WASHINGTON _ House Speaker Paul Ryan defended special counsel Robert S. Mueller III on Tuesday even as he supported the release of a Republican memo about classified surveillance that could undermine the investigation into Russian interference with the presidential election.
"This is a completely separate matter from Bob Mueller's investigation, and his investigation should be allowed to take its course," Ryan said.
"There are legitimate questions about whether an American's civil liberties were violated," Ryan said.
Some Republicans have questioned whether Mueller's investigation is tainted by partisan bias, and Trump reportedly tried to fire him last year.
Ryan said the four-page memo, which was drafted by aides to Rep. Devin Nunes, a California Republican and chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, could reveal abuses in the process for obtaining warrants from the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court, which meets in secret.
The committee voted on a party-line basis Monday to release the memo over the objections of the Justice Department that it contains classified material. The White House could block the release but President Donald Trump has indicated he supports making it public.
Democrats said the Nunes memo cherry-picks facts and presents a distorted view intended to undermine Mueller's probe. The Republican majority on the committee refused to approve releasing a Democratic dissent to the GOP memo.
