Representatives Elijah Cummings (D-MD) and Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), ranking members on the House Oversight and Judiciary Committees, respectively, issued a statement slamming Rep. Mark Meadows (R-NC) for spreading made-up conspiracy theories about the meaning behind just released text messages between Peter Strzok and Lisa Page.
“Republicans in Congress repeatedly cherry-pick, mischaracterize, and then leak bits and pieces of documents to fabricate conspiracy theories to protect President Trump, and this is just the latest example. The documents clearly show that Mr. Strzok and Ms. Page were not discussing how to leak documents to the press—but whether the Justice Department should change its regulations to stop leaks to the media. We don’t know how many times Republicans will try this same trick—or how many times President Trump will take advantage of them—but they need to start fulfilling their constitutional duty to conduct credible oversight of the Executive Branch rather than acting as the President’s personal defense counsel.”
In a letter to Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein on Monday, Meadows cites an April 2017 text from Strzok to Page in which they allegedly discuss a "media leak strategy."
"Our review of these new documents raises grave concerns regarding an apparent systemic culture of media leaking by high-ranking officials at the FBI and DOJ related to ongoing investigations," Meadows, head of the House Freedom Caucus and ally to Trump, wrote to Rosenstein.
"Review of these new documents suggests a coordinated effort on the part of the FBI and DOJ to release information in the public domain potentially harmful to President Donald Trump's administration."
Trump on Wednesday seized on news reports detailing Meadows's letter.
"New Strzok-Page texts reveal 'Media Leak Strategy.' @FoxNews So terrible, and NOTHING is being done at DOJ or FBI - but the world is watching, and they get it completely," Trump tweeted.
Strzok's attorney released a statement in response:
Nadler and Cummings argued that Meadows cherrypicked those texts and failed to include others to provide context, noting earlier text messages that same day where Strzok and Page talked about a meeting centered on proposed changes to the DOJ's efforts to stop leaks to the press.
"In a message earlier that same day, Mr. Strzok texted Ms. Page: 'DoJ getting all political and about to blown (sic) up the media leak regs and turn this into a circus,'" the Democrats said in their statement.
House Dems blast GOP for FBI, DOJ 'conspiracy theories' aimed to protect Trump (The Hill)
Nadler and Cummings Issue Statement After GOP Leaks and Mischaracterizes Documents—Again (press release)