WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS, W.Va. — House Speaker Paul Ryan has no plans to remove Rep. Devin Nunes as chair of the House Intelligence Committee Chairman, and said he endorses a committee vote to release a memo Nunes wrote alleging high-level FBI misconduct.
“It’s our job to shed light on that and bring accountability to the process,” Ryan told reporters on the second day of the GOP’s annual planning retreat in West Virginia.
Thursday morning, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., called on Ryan to strip the gavel from Nunes, R-Calif., after he was accused by Democrats of altering the memo after the committee voted to release it.
Ryan denied the changes were made after the committee vote. He said it was scrubbed to ensure nothing in it revealed information that could compromise the FBI or national security.
He said Democrats were making the accusations to detract from the GOP’s major agenda accomplishments, particularly tax reform, which is helping to boost Republican approval numbers.
“I think they are just playing politics and I think they are looking for a political distraction,” Ryan said. “I think they would love nothing more than to play politics and change the subject.”
Lawmakers who have read the memo, which President Trump could be released tomorrow, said it implicates several high ranking FBI officials.
"I say let all of it out, as long as we are not revealing sources and methods," Ryan said.