Politics
Federal probe targeting Trump’s perceived adversaries continues after prosecutor’s resignation
A court filing says federal prosecutors are pursuing multiple grand jury investigations involving former CIA Director John Brennan and alleged violations of President Donald Trump’s civil rights. The disclosure comes days after Joseph diGenova, who had helped lead the effort, resigned amid reported disagreements over the investigation’s pace.
WASHINGTON — Federal prosecutors are continuing multiple grand jury investigations involving President Donald Trump’s perceived political adversaries, including a broad inquiry into whether Trump’s civil rights were violated by criminal investigations brought against him after he left office, according to a court filing Monday.
Kenneth Wainstein, an attorney for former CIA Director John Brennan, described the investigations in a declaration filed in federal court in Washington. Wainstein said he spoke Friday with prosecutors handling the matters, including Kurt Olsen, a Justice Department lawyer who previously worked to challenge Joe Biden’s 2020 election victory and has promoted Trump’s false claims that the election was stolen.
One investigation focuses on whether Brennan misled a House committee about the intelligence community’s assessment that Russia sought to help Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign. Brennan has denied lying or misleading lawmakers.
Wainstein said Olsen told him that Brennan is considered a subject of the congressional testimony investigation and that the matter could become part of a larger conspiracy case. Olsen also reportedly said Brennan is a subject of the broader civil-rights inquiry, though not currently a target of that investigation.
The Justice Department has not publicly announced charges in either matter. A department spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The disclosure followed the sudden resignation of Joseph diGenova, a former U.S. attorney in Washington who returned to the Trump administration earlier this year to work on the conspiracy investigation. Wainstein said he received a grand jury subpoena signed by diGenova and exchanged emails with him only hours before the resignation. The subpoena ordered Brennan to appear before a grand jury in Fort Pierce, Florida, on Oct. 15.
DiGenova’s departure reportedly surprised some members of his team and came amid tension over whether prosecutors should bring charges quickly, potentially before the 2026 midterm elections. In an interview last week, diGenova said he opposed rushing the investigation.
“I take my time when I bring cases,” diGenova said. “Whatever the facts show, they show. However long that takes to do it properly, it takes.”
Attorney General Todd Blanche praised diGenova’s work in a television interview but declined to explain why he resigned. Blanche said prosecutors in Florida were continuing to work on the case and other investigations.
The broader inquiry reflects demands from Trump’s allies that the Justice Department prosecute people involved in investigations of the president. Trump’s defenders have argued that officials who pursued him should face the same civil-rights theories that prosecutors once used against Trump in connection with efforts to overturn the 2020 election and disenfranchise voters.
Prosecutors have also issued subpoenas related to a 2017 intelligence assessment on foreign interference in the 2016 campaign. Wainstein said Brennan supplied records connected to at least one of those subpoenas. A separate set of subpoenas seeking testimony about Brennan’s congressional appearance was issued in April but withdrawn shortly after diGenova joined the department.
Grand jury targets are rarely called to testify because they generally invoke their Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination. Wainstein said Olsen indicated that Brennan is currently regarded as a target of the investigation into his testimony but not of the broader inquiry into alleged violations of Trump’s civil rights.
Brennan also filed a lawsuit seeking to require federal agencies to preserve evidence that could be relevant to his defense if prosecutors eventually charge him. A hearing in that case was scheduled for Monday afternoon.