WASHINGTON _ The political battle over a hotly controversial memo involving surveillance entered a new phase Wednesday as Democrats announced they have drafted their own, competing document.
The original, classified memo was prepared by House Intelligence Committee Chairman Devin Nunes, a California Republican, and made available to every member of Congress last week. Republicans who read the four-page document said it reveals shocking information about the investigation into President Donald Trump, which began during the campaign, but Democrats have dismissed it as a distortion.
Now that Republicans are pushing to make their memo public, Democrats want their own version available as well.
"Regrettably, it has been necessary for committee Democrats to draft our own memorandum, setting out the relevant facts and exposing the misleading character of the Republicans' document," said Rep. Adam Schiff, a California Democrat.
The competing memos are the latest partisan rift over investigations into Russian interference with the 2016 presidential campaign.
