XPost: alt.fan.rush-limbaugh   
   From: x@y.com   
      
   DOJ, FBI probing top Trump administration officials over investigations of   
   president's adversaries: Sources   
      
   At least one witness has been subpoenaed regarding the conduct, sources   
   said.   
   ByKatherine Faulders, Alexander Mallin, and Peter Charalambous   
   November 20, 2025, 2:18 PM   
      
   1:57   
      
   Federal judge rebukes prosecutor in James Comey case   
   Federal judge rebukes prosecutor in James Comey caseA federal judge found   
   that the prosecutor may have committed a series of profound missteps before   
   the grand jury that indicted the former FBI director.   
      
   The Department of Justice is probing the conduct of at least two top Trump   
   administration officials for allegedly interfering with and potentially   
   jeopardizing the ongoing criminal investigations of the president's   
   political adversaries, sources familiar with the matter told ABC News.   
      
   Sources said the DOJ and FBI are scrutinizing whether U. S. Pardon Attorney   
   Ed Martin and Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Bill Pulte enlisted   
   individuals outside the Department of Justice to probe allegations of   
   mortgage fraud amid ongoing investigations of Sen. Adam Schiff and New York   
   Attorney General Letitia James.   
      
   At least one witness in the Schiff investigation has received a grand jury   
   subpoena to hand over any correspondence with Martin's associates as well   
   as with Pulte himself, sources told ABC News.   
   Judge grills government over apparent lapses in Comey indictment   
      
   In what would be an extraordinary breach of DOJ protocol, Martin is also   
   believed to have shared sensitive grand jury information about the James   
   case with at least one unauthorized individual as well as worked with   
   another person from outside the federal government to examine potential   
   evidence in the Schiff and James probes, sources familiar with the matter   
   said.   
      
   Senior Trump administration officials have expressed concerns that the   
   potential misconduct may have compromised the investigations and   
   jeopardized the viability of the cases if they proceed to trial.   
      
   While Attorney General Pam Bondi tapped Martin as a "special attorney" for   
   mortgage fraud, officials say the alleged rogue conduct -- operating   
   outside of the two U. S. attorneys' offices investigating the cases and   
   usurping the FBI agents assigned to the cases -- violates DOJ guidelines   
   and necessitates a full review of Martin's conduct to determine what would   
   need to be disclosed to defense lawyers.   
      
   FBI agents working on the Schiff case discovered the potential problem when   
   they sought to interview Christine Bish, a California politician and   
   realtor who first publicized the allegations of mortgage fraud against   
   Schiff. When FBI agents first made contact with her, Bish expressed   
   confusion about why federal investigators sought to speak with her again,   
   telling agents that she had repeatedly spoken with a man she believed   
   worked for the Department of Justice as Ed Martin's lead investigator,   
   sources said.   
   Sen. Adam Schiff departs a Democratic luncheon at the U. S. Capitol on   
   November 6, 2025 in Washington, DC.   
   Eric Lee/Getty Images   
      
   Bish told FBI agents that Robert Bowes -- who has publicly claimed to be a   
   financial fraud expert with the Office of Personnel Management assigned to   
   work with the Department of Justice on mortgage fraud matters -- reached   
   out to her a month earlier via a direct message on X to request an   
   interview, according to sources.   
      
   Without the knowledge of the FBI or Maryland prosecutors, Bowes spoke with   
   Bish -- who is thought to be a central witness in the Schiff case -- on   
   multiple occasions during which she provided information on the case,   
   sources said.   
      
   A man named Scott Strauss -- a private citizen who is believed to be   
   working with Martin -- also reached out to Bish to request that she send   
   the documents about Schiff to a private email address, which she declined   
   to do because the request appeared suspicious, the sources said.   
      
   Bish, sources said, also told investigators that Pulte had reached out to   
   her directly in July to request the documentation related to her complaint   
   -- just days before President Trump shared some of the documentation on   
   social media to claim that Schiff "should be prosecuted. " Pulte has played   
   a central role in the criminal investigations of Trump's opponents --   
   issuing criminal referrals against James, Schiff, and Federal Reserve   
   Governor Lisa Cook -- and recently dismissed Fannie Mae watchdogs who were   
   probing how he obtained the mortgage records.   
      
   An aide to Martin referred ABC News to the Justice Department's press   
   office for comment.   
      
   A spokesperson for the Justice Department told ABC News, "Anonymous sources   
   seeking to spin or influence ongoing processes do a disservice to the   
   public and to the rule of law. "   
      
   Representatives for Pulte, Strauss, and Bish did not immediately respond to   
   a request for comment from ABC News. An attorney for Schiff did not respond   
   to a request for comment. Attorneys for James declined to comment.   
   'She knows I'm a lunatic'   
      
   The concerns about Pulte and Martin's conduct come as the Department of   
   Justice has accelerated its efforts to investigate and prosecute President   
   Trump's perceived political foes. Following a public pressure campaign from   
   the president, a Trump-installed U. S. attorney indicted New York Attorney   
   General Letitia James and former FBI Director James Comey over the   
   objections of prosecutors who sources said expressed serious concerns with   
   both cases, sources said. Investigators in Maryland continue to probe   
   Schiff for alleged mortgage fraud.   
      
   All three have denied all allegations against them, and Comey and James   
   pleaded not guilty after they were charged. Defense lawyers have challenged   
   the cases against James and Comey by arguing they would have never been   
   brought had their clients not been vocal critics of President Trump.   
      
   James, speaking outside the courthouse following her arraignment, said the   
   justice system under President Trump is being "used as a tool of revenge"   
   and is nothing but a "vehicle of retribution. "   
      
   Attorneys for Schiff have called the investigation "politically motivated"   
   and "unsupported by any evidence. "   
      
   Prosecutors have not publicly commented on the Schiff matter, but sources   
   say investigators have so far struggled to identify a viable case, in part   
   because the mortgage documents in question are well past the statute of   
   limitations.   
      
   After a controversial tenure as the interim U. S. attorney in D. C. when he   
   failed to secure enough Republican support to be confirmed to the permanent   
   position, Martin has only further embraced his status as a partisan warrior   
   for President Trump.   
   Interim U. S. attorney for the District of Columbia Ed Martin speaks during   
   a press conference, May 13, 2025, in Washington, D. C.   
      
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