Trey Gowdy Says He Made 'Mistakes' Relying On FBI's Word On RussiaGate; Takes Media's Word On Arbery Shooting

Former Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.) on Monday explained comments he made defending the FBI in 2018 regarding the Russian probe, telling Fox News's Tucker Carlson that his mistake at the time was "relying on the word of the FBI and the DOJ."

During Carlson's show, the host played a clip of Gowdy saying after an FBI briefing two years ago, "I am more convinced the FBI did exactly what my fellow citizens would want them to do when they got the information they got, and that it has nothing to do with Donald Trump.'

After the footage ran, Carlson told Gowdy, "I remember watching that and thinking, boy, I hope he is right." The host then asked, "Do you still feel that way?"

"Oh gosh, no, no." Gowdy replied. "I've made a lot of mistakes in life—relying on briefings and not insisting on the documents—it took me about three weeks, I went over the Department of Justice, I sat there for four hours."

Last week, Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) attacked Gowdy over his comments from 2018, and for refusing to support an effort to subpoena Democrats back in 2017 when he had the power to defend Gen. Michael Flynn.

Why did Trey Gowdy go on TV in May 2018 and say the FBI did what our fellow Americans would have wanted them to do? And that it had nothing to do with @realDonaldTrump?

When we wanted subpoena power, it was Paul Ryan and Gowdy who wouldn't give it to us. https://t.co/EbS5O9wbWG pic.twitter.com/sQDmo2ohkt

— Rep. Matt Gaetz (@RepMattGaetz) May 9, 2020

Gaetz told Fox News host Sean Hannity of Gowdy, 'When he had control and could have run this to the ground in 2017, we didn't send out one single subpoena, not one, and that's a failure of our Republican leadership."