But newly released text messages suggest Nunes’ staff was aware of and involved in portions of the scheme, casting a new light on his combative defense. AdvertisementParnas, who is facing federal campaign finance violation charges in New York, has publicly turned on Trump and Giuliani in recent weeks. He has provided documents to the House committee and given explosive media interviews as the Senate prepares to determine whether to remove Trump from office. Parnas told MSNBC in an interview aired this week that he was told to work with Harvey because Nunes “couldn’t be in a spotlight” because of an ethics investigation. AdvertisementThe GOP-led Ethics Committee cleared Nunes of the allegations, and the investigation was dropped in December 2017, long before Harvey and Parnas began texting.

Source: Los Angeles Times January 19, 2020 00:33 UTC