WASHINGTON — U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA), Vice Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, issued the following statement on the indictments of former Trump campaign officials Paul Manafort and Rick Gates, and the news that former campaign adviser George Papadopoulos has pleaded guilty to making false statements to the FBI: 

“Today’s indictments of two top Trump campaign officials, including former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort, is a significant and sobering step in what will be a complex and likely lengthy investigation by the Special Counsel. That is why it is imperative that Congress take action now to protect the independence of the Special Counsel, wherever or however high his investigation may lead. Members of Congress, Republican and Democrat, must also make clear to the President that issuing pardons to any of his associates or to himself would be unacceptable, and result in immediate, bipartisan action by Congress.

“We have also learned this morning that, during this investigation, George Papadopoulos made false statements to the FBI about his contacts with Russians at the same time he was serving as an adviser to the Trump campaign. This is just the latest in a series of undisclosed contacts, misleading public statements, potentially compromising information, and highly questionable actions from the time of the Trump campaign that together, remain a cause for deep concern and continued investigation. 

“The Senate Select Committee on Intelligence will continue its bipartisan probe into Russian meddling in the 2016 Presidential election.”  

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