A federal judge ruled Thursday that former President Donald Trump can be deposed in a pair of lawsuits brought by two former FBI officials whom he has publicly discredited for a long time.
US District Court Judge Amy Berman Jackson ruled that former FBI officials Peter Strzok and Lisa Page could also question FBI Director Christopher Wray.
Statements must be limited to two hours and a «limited set of issues» that were discussed during a sealed hearing on Thursday, according to the ruling.
Strzok and Page, who were frequent targets of Trump during his presidency, filed separate lawsuits in 2019 against the Justice Department and the FBI alleging, in Page’s case, privacy violations and, in Strzok’s case, wrongful termination. .
Strzok and Page made headlines in December 2017 when it was announced that they had been removed from then-special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into text messages critical of Trump, including one that referred to him as «a disgusting human being.» ”.
Page’s lawsuit had argued that the text messages he exchanged with Strzok were released illegally. She also said the attacks by Trump and his allies caused damage to his reputation that limited his earning power, along with legal and therapy fees. Page resigned as an FBI attorney in May 2018.
Page declined to comment Thursday on the judge’s ruling.
An FBI spokesperson said: «In an effort to protect the integrity of the pending litigation, the FBI has no comment.»
Strzok’s lawsuit argued that he was wrongfully fired for sending private text messages critical of Trump during the 2016 presidential campaign.
In one exchange, when Page asked for assurances that Trump would not be elected, Strzok responded: “No, he won’t. We’ll stop it.»
Trump had highlighted the text messages as evidence that the Russia investigation was a «witch hunt,» and repeatedly publicly demanded that Strzok be fired.
The FBI Office of Professional Responsibility had recommended that he be suspended and demoted for 60 days. But the FBI’s deputy director at the time, David Bowdich, overturned that decision, firing Strzok and denying him the chance to appeal, which Strzok said violated FBI guidelines.
In his lawsuit, Strzok, a veteran of the FBI for more than two decades before his firing, sought his reinstatement, back pay and other damages.
jonathan allen, dareh gregorian and michael kosnar contributed.