Trump to OK release of controversial FBI memo

By Michael Hernandez

WASHINGTON (AA) - President Donald Trump is expected to clear the way for the release of a controversial Republican memorandum about the FBI's surveillance practices, casting aside the bureau's concerns over its accuracy.

Trump could tell Congress as soon as Friday that he approves the House Intelligence Committee memo's release, a senior administration official said Thursday.

“The president is ok with it,” the official said. “I doubt there will be any redactions. It’s in Congress’ hands after that.”

The memo reportedly details FBI impropriety in the initial stages of the investigation into Russia's alleged interference in the 2016 election, and the Trump campaign's alleged collusion.

In an exceptionally rare public statement on Wednesday, the FBI warned against the release of the document, saying it omits vital information.

"With regard to the House Intelligence Committee’s memorandum, the FBI was provided a limited opportunity to review this memo the day before the committee voted to release it," the bureau said. "As expressed during our initial review, we have grave concerns about material omissions of fact that fundamentally impact the memo’s accuracy."

The House Intelligence Committee voted along party lines Monday to release the classified document as the FBI insists it has complied with all applicable laws regarding its surveillance activities. Trump had five days to reject the memo's release.

Adam Schiff, the committee's ranking Democrat, charged Chairman Devin Nunes with making "material changes" to the document before sending it to the White House. Those changes were not included in the version voted on by the committee, Schiff said.

Trump has long insisted that his campaign did not collude with Russia during the race for the White House, and some view the memo's release as an attempt to undercut the special counsel investigation being led by Robert Mueller.

Just last week, it was confirmed that Mueller interviewed Attorney General Jeff Sessions, who was a prominent figure in the campaign, for several hours.

The acknowledgement is the first known time that the probe interviewed a Cabinet-level official within the Trump administration.

Sessions previously recused himself from the ongoing investigation, angering Trump who has reportedly fumed in private meetings with Sessions about the decision.