President Trump phone tapping claims: Republican senator wants answers

Donald Trump should reveal what he knows about an alleged wire tap of his phones ordered by Barack Obama before November’s election, says a Republican senator. Ben Sasse called the US President’s surveillance claims serious and said the public deserved more information. The politician said it was possible the tycoon had been illegally tapped at Trump Tower, but, if so, he should explain what sort of device it was and how he knew about it. Mr Trump has not offered any evidence to support his claims, and Mr Obama has rejected the allegations, saying they were “simply false”.

Terrible! Just found out that Obama had my ‘wires tapped’ in Trump Tower just before the victory. Nothing found. This is McCarthyism!

President Donald Trump on Twitter

Kevin Lewis, a spokesman for Mr Obama, rejected the allegations, saying: “A cardinal rule of the Obama administration was that no White House official ever interfered with any independent investigation led by the Department of Justice.” He added: “As part of that practice, neither President Obama nor any White House official ever ordered surveillance on any US citizen. Any suggestion otherwise is simply false.” House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi ridiculed President Trump, writing: “The Deflector-in-Chief is at it again. An investigation by an independent commission is the only answer.” McCarthyism is defined as making allegations of subversion or treason with insufficient regard for evidence.

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