Dem rep: Nunes ‘betrayed’ Intelligence panel’s independence

House Intelligence Committee ranking member Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.) said early Thursday that committee Chairman Devin Nunes (R-Calif.) has “betrayed” the panel’s autonomy.

“He’s not the president’s lawyer and he betrayed the independence that our committee must show at such a trying time in our nation’s history,” he told host Chris Cuomo on CNN’s “New Day.”

“He should have brought the evidence that he had to our committee,” Swalwell added. “He never should have taken it to the president, whose campaign is under federal criminal investigation right now.”

{mosads}Nunes said Wednesday that the U.S. intelligence community incidentally collected information on members of Trump’s transition team, and the information later appeared in intelligence reports.

“Details about the U.S. persons involved in the incoming administration with little or no apparent foreign intelligence value were widely disseminated in intelligence community reports,” he told reporters.

Nunes added that “additional names” of Trump transition officials had been unmasked in the intelligence reports and that Trump’s communications may have been swept up as well.

“I want to be clear — none of this surveillance was related to Russia or the investigation of Russian activities or of the Trump team,” he said, noting he believes the intelligence was collected legally.

Trump earlier this month claimed without providing evidence that former President Obama had his “wires tapped” at Trump Tower in New York City last year.

FBI Director James Comey, however, said Monday the Department of Justice has “no information” validating Trump’s claims.