Saturday, June 20, 2026
ADVT 
International

Donald Trump's Wire-Tapping Claims Simply False: Obama Spokesman

The Canadian Press, 04 Mar, 2017 12:42 PM
    US President Donald Trump's accusation that his predecessor Barack Obama had his "wires tapped" in Trump Tower before Election Day is "simply false", Obama spokesman Kevin Lewis said on Saturday.
     
    "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," Xinhua news agency quoted Lewis as saying in a statement.
     
    "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," said Lewis.
     
    Trump claimed in a tweet storm on Saturday morning that Obama had wiretapped Trump Tower before his election victory, but offered no evidence.
     
    Trump said: "Terrible! Just found out that Obama had my ‘wires tapped' in Trump Tower just before the victory. Nothing found. This is McCarthyism!"
     
    He also called Obama a "bad, or sick, guy". 
     
    "Is it legal for a sitting President to be 'wiretapping' a race for President prior to an election? Turned down by court earlier. A NEW LOW!" Trump added in subsequent tweets. 
     
    "I'd bet a good lawyer could make a great case out of the fact that President Obama was tapping my phones in October, just prior to Election!"
     
    The President then compared the alleged surveillance of his communications to Watergate -- the scandal in the early 1970s that brought down Republican President Richard Nixon after he ordered a break-in of the Democrats' Washington headquarters.
     
    However, Trump did not immediately provide evidence that Obama was responsible for surveillance on his property, the Hill newspaper reported.
     
     
    Moments earlier, Trump had also linked Obama to Attorney General Jeff Sessions's meetings last year with Russia's ambassador to Washington.
     
    "The first meeting Jeff Sessions had with the Russian Amb was set up by the Obama Administration under education programme for 100 Ambs," he tweeted.
     
    Sessions on Thursday said he would recuse himself from any investigations into Russia's links to Trump's team, after massive outrage over the revelations that he met Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak twice during the campaign, then denied doing so during his confirmation hearings.
     
    Trump also blasted Obama for meeting Kislyak 22 times and tweeted: "Just out: The same Russian Ambassador that met Jeff Sessions visited the Obama White House 22 times, and 4 times last year alone."
     
    Trump's team has sought to push back on accusations of ties with Russia by pointing out instances of Democrats meeting Kislyak, according to the report. 
     
    Former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn was ousted last month after revelations that he misled top White House officials about the nature of his conversations with Kislyak.

    MORE International ARTICLES

    Indonesia to release AirAsia crash report a year later

    Indonesia to release AirAsia crash report a year later
    The final report of the investigation into the crash of the AirAsia flight QZ8501 will be published at least one year later, an Indonesian official said here Tuesday....

    Indonesia to release AirAsia crash report a year later

    295 victims of MH17 crash identified

    295 victims of MH17 crash identified
    One more victim of the Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 crash in eastern Ukraine has been identified, resulting in a total of 295 identified victims, the Dutch ministry of security...

    295 victims of MH17 crash identified

    Al Qaeda warns France after terror attacks

    Al Qaeda warns France after terror attacks
    The Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) has issued a warning to France after the country's spate of terror attacks over the past week...

    Al Qaeda warns France after terror attacks

    US rues not sending prominent official to Paris march

    US rues not sending prominent official to Paris march
    The US, facing a barrage of criticism for President Barack Obama's decision not to attend Sunday's anti-terrorism unity march in Paris, admitted Monday that it should have sent a higher profile official....

    US rues not sending prominent official to Paris march

    New vessel to join underwater search for MH370

    New vessel to join underwater search for MH370
    An additional vessel has been commissioned to carry out underwater search activities for the Malaysia Airlines aircraft MH370 missing and untraced since March 2014....

    New vessel to join underwater search for MH370

    Kerry meets Nawaz Sharif, voices support for Pakistan

    Kerry meets Nawaz Sharif, voices support for Pakistan
    US Secretary of State John Kerry assured Pakistan of support in the fight against terrorism and other challenges, during his meeting with Pakistani...

    Kerry meets Nawaz Sharif, voices support for Pakistan