CONGRESSIONAL
COMMITTEES
1
Senate
Intelligence
2
House
Intelligence
3
Senate
Judiciary
4
House
Oversight
JUSTICE
DEPARTMENT
5
Special
counsel
JUSTICE
CONGRESSIONAL
DEPARTMENT
COMMITTEES
1
Senate
Intelligence
2
House
Intelligence
5
Special
counsel
3
Senate
Judiciary
4
House
Oversight
CONGRESSIONAL
JUSTICE
COMMITTEES
DEPARTMENT
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Senate
Intelligence
2
Senate
Judiciary
3
House
Intelligence
4
House
Oversight
5
Special
counsel
This page has been updated to reflect the selection of Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.) as chairman of the House Oversight panel.
All eyes are on Robert S. Mueller III as he begins his role as special counsel, leading the Justice Department’s probe into the Trump campaign’s possible ties to Russia. But that’s far from the only investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 election.
The criminal investigation led by the special counsel is charged with determining if anything illegal occurred. Meanwhile, each of the four major congressional fact-finding investigations is working to expose transgressions it finds unethical.
Despite their differing goals, all the investigations are moving simultaneously and using much of the same information.
Non-criminal
probes
Criminal
probe
INITIAL ACTIONS
FBI investigation began in July, turned over to special counsel in May
Intelligence agencies co-sign Jan. 6 Russian interference report
investigations begin
5
1
2
Justice Dept
special counsel
3
4
Congress
INTELLIGENCE GATHERING
Investigators issue subpoenas and compel testimony.
Committees hold hearings and subpoena information.
pOTENTIAL OUTCOMES
Try in the “court of public opinion”
Consult grand jury to bring criminal charges
Impeachment
Non-criminal probes
Criminal probe
INITIAL
ACTIONS
FBI investigation began in July, turned over to special counsel in May
Intelligence agencies co-sign Jan. 6 Russian interference report
investigations
begin
5
1
2
3
4
Congress
Justice Department
special counsel
INTELLIGENCE
GATHERING
Investigators issue subpoenas and compel testimony.
Committees hold hearings and subpoena information.
Try in the “court of public opinion”
pOTENTIAL
OUTCOMES
Consult grand jury to bring criminal charges
Impeachment
pOTENTIAL
OUTCOMES
INITIAL
ACTIONS
investigations
begin
INTELLIGENCE
GATHERING
Committees hold hearings and subpoena information.
Try in the “court of public opinion”
Intelligence agencies co-sign Jan. 6 Russian interference report
1
2
3
4
Non-criminal
probes
Impeachment
Congress
FBI investigation began in July, turned over to special counsel in May
5
Investigators issue subpoenas and compel testimony.
Consult grand jury to bring criminal charges
Criminal
probe
Justice Department
special counsel
The investigations are looking into different things
Generally, the special counsel and intelligence committees have a broader scope than the other committees.
The scope of the special counsel’s inquiry has broadened to include any effort by Trump to obstruct justice. Former FBI Director James Comey said in his Senate testimony that he believes he was fired over the FBI’s investigation into possible coordination between the Trump campaign and the Russians.
Special
counsel
- Any attempt to obstruct justice by Trump, or his allies
- The Trump campaign’s ties to Russia
- Russian meddling in the 2016 election
- Possible financial crimes by Trump associates
Senate
Intelligence
- Russia’s interference in the election
- Collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia
Senate
Judiciary
- The circumstances that led to national security adviser Michael Flynn’s dismissal
- Leaks to the media
House
Intelligence
- Russia’s interference in the election
- Collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia
- Leaks to the media
House
Oversight
- Flynn’s contacts with Russian officials, including payments he received.
- Any attempt to obstruct justice by Trump, or his allies
- The Trump campaign’s ties to Russia
- Russian meddling in the 2016 election
- Possible financial crimes by Trump associates
Special
counsel
- Russia’s interference in the election
- Collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia
Senate
Intelligence
- The circumstances that led to national security adviser Michael Flynn’s dismissal
- Leaks to the media
Senate
Judiciary
- Russia’s interference in the election
- Collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia
- Leaks to the media
House
Intelligence
- Flynn’s contacts with Russian officials, including payments he received.
House
Oversight
House
Intelligence
Senate
Judiciary
House
Oversight
Special
counsel
Senate
Intelligence
- Russia’s interference in the election
- Collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia
- The circumstances that led to national security adviser Michael Flynn’s dismissal
- Leaks to the media
- Russia’s interference in the election
- Collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia
- Leaks to the media
- Flynn’s contacts with Russian officials, including payments he received.
- Any attempt to obstruct justice by Trump, or his allies
- The Trump campaign’s ties to Russia
- Russian meddling in the 2016 election
- Possible financial crimes by Trump associates
Some have more access to information than others
Access differs both because of how aggressively the leaders pursue the investigation — the special counsel is expected to be more thorough — and the jurisdiction of the committees. They all are also expected to get unclassified information by requesting or subpoenaing testimony and documents from Trump affiliates and others involved.
Mueller plans to interview top intelligence officials as early as this week. It may not be possible for the White House to prevent those officials from speaking to Mueller’s investigators because the Supreme Court ruled during the Watergate scandal that administration officials cannot withhold evidence in criminal prosecutions.
MORE access to
classified materials
Special
counsel
Mueller will work directly with the FBI and have broad access to FBI intelligence, and is expected to subpoena many Trump allies. He also has his own budget and staff independent of the Justice Department, and no deadline.
House
Intelligence
Senate
Intelligence
These committees have the broadest access to classified intelligence in Congress. They also have the power to subpoena people for testimony.
House
Oversight
Senate
Judiciary
These committees have a more general oversight role. They will access some classified information, but less than the intelligence committees, and can also subpoena people for testimony.
Less access to
classified materials
MORE access to
classified materials
Mueller will work directly with the FBI and have broad access to FBI intelligence, and is expected to subpoena many Trump allies. He also has his own budget and staff independent of the Justice Department, and no deadline.
Special
counsel
Senate
Intelligence
These committees have the broadest access to classified intelligence in Congress. They also have the power to subpoena people for testimony.
House
Intelligence
Senate
Judiciary
These committees have a more general oversight role. They will access some classified information, but less than the intelligence committees, and can also subpoena people for testimony.
House
Oversight
Less access to
classified materials
Less access to classified materials
MORE access to classified materials
House
Oversight
Senate
Judiciary
House
Intelligence
Senate
Intelligence
Special
counsel
These committees have a more general oversight role. They will access some classified information, but less than the intelligence committees, and can also subpoena people for testimony.
These committees have the broadest access to classified intelligence in Congress. They also have the power to subpoena people for testimony.
Mueller will work directly with the FBI and have broad access to FBI intelligence, and is expected to subpoena many Trump allies. He also has his own budget and staff independent of the Justice Department, and no deadline.
The investigations can interfere with one another
Each probe will share information to some extent. The leaders of the Senate Intelligence Committee released a statement saying they “will engage with Director Mueller and our expectation is that he will engage with the Committee as well.”
But the investigations can also stymie one another. Congress has the power to grant “qualified immunity” to people who testify, meaning their statements cannot be used against them in court. Since it is hard for prosecutors to show the evidence they are using is independent of those statements, it can make their case significantly harder to prove.
[Appointment of Mueller could complicate other probes into alleged Russian meddling]
On the other hand, some people may refuse to testify before congressional committees because they are under criminal investigation by the special counsel. Former national security adviser Michael Flynn has already refused to turn over documents to the Senate Intelligence Committee, invoking his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination.
CONGRESSIONAL
COMMITTEES
Senate
Judiciary
Senate
Intelligence
House
Intelligence
House
Oversight
They can share information and coordinate schedules
Qualified immunity can complicate the special counsel’s case
People won’t want to testify before Congress
Special
counsel
JUSTICE
DEPARTMENT
CONGRESSIONAL
COMMITTEES
JUSTICE
DEPARTMENT
Qualified immunity can complicate the special counsel’s case
Senate
Judiciary
Senate
Intelligence
Special
counsel
They can share information and coordinate schedules
House
Intelligence
House
Oversight
People won’t want to testify before Congress
Qualified immunity can complicate the special counsel’s case
CONGRESSIONAL COMMITTEES
JUSTICE DEPARTMENT
They can share information and coordinate schedules
House
Intelligence
Senate
Judiciary
House
Oversight
Special
counsel
Senate
Intelligence
People won’t want to testify before Congress
They can deliver different consequences
Because the congressional investigations are political and the special counsel’s is legal, they have different standards for what qualifies as wrongdoing, and different ways to punish wrongdoers.
The Justice Department has long taken the position that it would not be appropriate to charge a sitting president. Instead, the responsibility would fall on Congress to review any findings of criminal misconduct and then decide whether to initiate impeachment proceedings.
Special
counsel
This is the legal arm of the investigation, so members are focused on violations of federal law rather than immoral actions more broadly. They could file charges against the subjects of their investigation. Deputy Attorney General Rod J. Rosenstein, a Trump appointee, could publish reports of their findings, which would have political consequences.
Senate
Judiciary
Senate
Intelligence
They can publicize their findings, which could ultimately lead to public apologies, resignations or lost elections. And the wrongdoings they punish do not necessarily need to be illegal, just politically unpalatable.
House
Oversight
House
Intelligence
They can deliver similar political consequences to the Senate. They also are able to initiate the impeachment process, though this probably would largely occur within the Rules and Judiciary committees.
This is the legal arm of the investigation, so members are focused on violations of federal law rather than immoral actions more broadly. They could file charges against the subjects of their investigation. Deputy Attorney General Rod J. Rosenstein, a Trump appointee, could publish reports of their findings, which would have political consequences.
Special
counsel
They can publicize their findings, which could ultimately lead to public apologies, resignations or lost elections. And the wrongdoings they punish do not necessarily need to be illegal, just politically unpalatable.
Senate
Intelligence
Senate
Judiciary
They can deliver similar political consequences to the Senate. They also are able to initiate the impeachment process, though this probably would largely occur within the Rules and Judiciary committees.
House
Intelligence
House
Oversight
House
Oversight
Senate
Judiciary
House
Intelligence
Senate
Intelligence
Special
counsel
They can publicize their findings, which could ultimately lead to public apologies, resignations or lost elections. And the wrongdoings they punish do not necessarily need to be illegal, just politically unpalatable.
They can deliver similar political consequences to the Senate. They also are able to initiate the impeachment process, though this probably would largely occur within the Rules and Judiciary committees.
This is the legal arm of the investigation, so members are focused on violations of federal law rather than immoral actions more broadly. They could file charges against the subjects of their investigation. Deputy Attorney General Rod J. Rosenstein, a Trump appointee, could publish reports of their findings, which would have political consequences.
Their conclusions will probably have different levels of credibility
Because Republicans control both houses of Congress, Democrats are less inclined to view their committees’ conclusions as credible than the special counsel’s. And depending on how the special counsel investigation plays out — Trump-appointed Justice Department officials still have some control over the investigation — it may lose some credibility as well.
And not all congressional investigations are on equal footing in this respect — some have made a real effort for the investigation to be bipartisan, while others have appeared too cozy with Trump administration leaders and have had to recuse themselves.
Special
counsel
TRUMP
APPOINTEE
Rosenstein
Mueller
Mueller still reports to Trump-appointed Rosenstein since Attorney General Jeff Sessions recused himself, and could be fired by Trump — though it would be no small task. Also, Mueller previously worked at the law firm WilmerHale, which had Jared Kushner and former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort as clients. Democrats view these as conflicts of interest, though Justice Department ethics experts have cleared the latter.
Senate
Intelligence
GOP
DEM
Burr
Warner
Sen. Richard Burr (R-N.C.) and Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-Va.) are jointly working on this notoriously bipartisan investigation. Many Democrats view it as the most credible of the congressional investigations.
Senate
Judiciary
GOP
Grassley
Sen. Charles E. Grassley (R-Iowa) publicly cast doubt on the FBI investigation’s objectivity because of acting director Andrew McCabe’s wife’s close ties to the Clintons and how former director James B. Comey handled the Clinton email investigation.
House
Intelligence
GOP
DEM
Conaway
Schiff
Rep. K. Michael Conaway (R-Tex.) and Rep. Adam B. Schiff (D-Calif.) are working together after committee chair Rep. Devin Nunes (R-Calif.) was pressured to recuse himself. Nunes allegedly publicly shared classified intelligence and gave Trump details about the investigation.
House
Oversight
GOP
GOP
Gowdy
Gowdy
Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.) has taken control of the investigation, but it remains unclear if he’ll use it to investigate the president. Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah) was running the investigation as the chair of the committee, but stepped down and will leave Congress at the end of June.
Mueller still reports to Trump-appointed Rosenstein since Attorney General Jeff Sessions recused himself, and could be fired by Trump — though it would be no small task. Also, Mueller previously worked at the law firm WilmerHale, which had Jared Kushner and former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort as clients. Democrats view these as conflicts of interest, though Justice Department ethics experts have cleared the latter.
TRUMP
APPOINTEE
Special
counsel
Rosenstein
Mueller
GOP
DEM
Sen. Richard Burr (R-N.C.) and Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-Va.) are jointly working on this notoriously bipartisan investigation. Many Democrats view it as the most credible of the congressional investigations.
Senate
Intelligence
Burr
Warner
GOP
Sen. Charles E. Grassley (R-Iowa) publicly cast doubt on the FBI investigation’s objectivity because of acting director Andrew McCabe’s wife’s close ties to the Clintons and how former director James B. Comey handled the Clinton email investigation.
Senate
Judiciary
Grassley
Rep. K. Michael Conaway (R-Tex.) and Rep. Adam B. Schiff (D-Calif.) are working together after committee chair Rep. Devin Nunes (R-Calif.) was pressured to recuse himself. Nunes allegedly publicly shared classified intelligence and gave Trump details about the investigation.
GOP
DEM
House
Intelligence
Conaway
Schiff
GOP
Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.) has taken control of the investigation, but it remains unclear if he’ll use it to investigate the president. Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah) was running the investigation as the chair of the committee, but stepped down and will leave Congress at the end of June.
House
Oversight
Gowdy
House
Intelligence
Senate
Judiciary
House
Oversight
Special
counsel
Senate
Intelligence
TRUMP
APPOINTEE
GOP
GOP
DEM
GOP
GOP
DEM
Burr
Warner
Grassley
Conaway
Schiff
Rosenstein
Mueller
Gowdy
Sen. Richard Burr (R-N.C.) and Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-Va.) are jointly working on this notoriously bipartisan investigation. Many Democrats view it as the most credible of the congressional investigations.
Sen. Charles E. Grassley (R-Iowa) publicly cast doubt on the FBI investigation’s objectivity because of acting director Andrew McCabe’s wife’s close ties to the Clintons and how former director James B. Comey handled the Clinton email investigation.
Rep. K. Michael Conaway (R-Tex.) and Rep. Adam B. Schiff (D-Calif.) are working together after committee chair Rep. Devin Nunes (R-Calif.) was pressured to recuse himself. Nunes allegedly publicly shared classified intelligence and gave Trump details about the investigation.
Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.) has taken control of the investigation, but it remains unclear if he’ll use it to investigate the president. Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah) was running the investigation as the chair of the committee, but stepped down and will leave Congress at the end of June.
Mueller still reports to Trump-appointed Rosenstein since Attorney General Jeff Sessions recused himself, and could be fired by Trump — though it would be no small task. Also, Mueller previously worked at the law firm WilmerHale, which had Jared Kushner and former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort as clients. Democrats view these as conflicts of interest, though Justice Department ethics experts have cleared the latter.
Even with all these investigations — plus other related inquiries in the Treasury Department and other congressional committees — it could be years before they come to a close. And if charges are not filed, we may never know what happened, or did not happen, between the Trump campaign and the Russian government.
About this story
Information from staff reports and Eric Schickler, political science professor at the University of California at Berkeley. Additional special counsel details from Congressional Research Service [PDF] and the Justice Department.
Originally published May 30, 2017.
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