Letter to the Hon. Jeff Sessions, Attorney General, DOJ - Colleagues Have Access To Report On Destruction Of Videotapes Before Voting On CIA Director Nominee

Letter

Dear Attorney General Sessions:

We have reviewed the investigation report written by U.S. Attorney and former special prosecutor John Durham regarding the destruction of videotapes by the CIA, known as the Durham report. We believe this report is highly relevant to the nomination of Gina Haspel to be director of the Central Intelligence Agency. The Justice Department provided this report to Senate leadership and the Senate Intelligence Committee, restricting its review to Committee members and limited staff. Yet we believe that no senator can consider Ms. Haspel's nomination in good conscience without first reviewing this document.

As the CIA has declassified the internal investigation into the videotapes' destruction authored by former Acting Director Michael Morell, we believe there also needs to be more transparency with regard to the Durham report. We strongly urge that the Justice Department immediately permit all senators to review the Durham report without redactions. While it may not be typical practice to make such materials available outside the Department, we do not believe these are typical circumstances.

Thank you for your prompt attention to our request.

Sincerely,