Judicial Watch: Rice Should Have to Testify Before Grand Jury

Former national security adviser Susan Rice should have to testify before a grand jury for reportedly seeking to unmask the identities of individuals on Trump's transition team who were incidentally collected in intelligence reports, Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton told Fox News on Wednesday.

Fitton said the calls by some Republicans to have Rice testify before an investigatory committee hearing are not enough.

"I would expect that she wouldn't admit to crimes in a hearing any more than she was going to admit to a crime in an interview with MSNBC," Fitton said. "If she is going to be called as a witness, I would suggest the focus be on getting a grand jury going and having her testify before a grand jury. That would show that we're actually serious about investigating this unprecedented violation and abuse of power by a president and his appointees."

Fitton added that if Rice "was accessing this material and using it for improper purposes, there are all sorts of criminal laws that would have been violated. The Privacy Act protects the private information of individuals from prying for improper purposes and you can go to jail for that" for up to six months.

He compared the allegations to what G. Gordon Liddy's illegal actions on behalf of President Richard Nixon during the Watergate scandal.

Fitton said it remains to be seen what former President Barack Obama knew and at what point he became aware of the information, but he insisted Obama must also be held accountable for his role in this scandal.

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