CNN analyst explains why Trump's request that intel officials deny evidence of Russian collusion in FBI probe is a problem
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On CNN's New Day legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin noted that, “when you look at the full pattern of activity” from President Donald Trump, “culminating with the firing of James Comey as FBI director, it certainly lays out facts worthy of investigating whether the president obstructed justice.” Toobin added, “there's a distinction” between asking your press secretary to claim publicly that there's no evidence of collusion, and asking an intelligence official to do so because “that's someone who should be investigating that, not just a mouthpiece for you.” Toobin was referring to The Washington Post’s report “Trump asked intelligence chiefs to push back against FBI collusion probe after Comey revealed its existence.” The Post’s report noted that “current and former senior intelligence officials viewed Trump's request as an attempt by the president to tarnish the credibility of the agency leading the Russia investigation” and a “threat to the independence of U.S. spy agencies.” From the May 23 edition of CNN's New Day: