While nasty, dessicated cornstalk and Trump enabler Sen. Charles Grassley is ramming the nomination of Brett Kavanaugh through the Senate with as little disclosure of the judge's record as possible, he's also got his fingers on another critical matter. In June, he put a "hold" on the nomination of a key official to head the National Counterintelligence and Security Center in order to force the Justice Department to disclose sensitive information related to the Special Counsel's Russiagate investigation.
Grassley's extortion is the Senate version of what Trumpist stooge Rep. Devin "Clouseau" Nunes has attempted on the House side of the Capitol: force the Justice Department / FBI to disclose information about ongoing investigations into Russia's meddling in the 2016 elections so that they can feed that information to unindicted co-conspirator Donald "Rump" Trump's team of lawyers. According to the Mother Jones report,
"...Grassley is still holding up the nomination, because he wants information on the origins of the FBI’s investigation into contacts between Trump’s 2016 campaign and Russia. The senator says Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein pledged to give him 'equal access to materials DOJ and FBI are providing to the House and Senate Intelligence committees.'
[snip]
Grassley’s hold highlights ongoing GOP efforts to attack the FBI’s Russia investigation by casting doubt on its origins. While House Intelligence Committee chairman Rep. Devin Nunes (R-Calif.) has gained notice for his efforts to protect Trump from Mueller’s investigation, Grassley, who relies on a staff known for being aggressive ideologues, has arguably served as Nunes’ quieter but less inept partner, bombarding the Justice Department and other agencies with letters and document requests for information concerning conservative media hobbyhorses, such as the Strzok texts, the Uranium One deal, and opposition research work of Fusion GPS."All of this, of course, serves not only Rump, but the strategic goals of the Russian Federation in undermining the U.S. and its system of government, undermining the rule of law and calling into question the viability of democratic forms of government.
