Eliza Collins, and Erin Kelly

USA TODAY

WASHINGTON — Republican leaders in Congress refused to commit Tuesday to opening an investigation of former national security adviser Michael Flynn, suggesting instead that ongoing probes of Russian influence in the 2016 elections have the authority to investigate Flynn if warranted.

"The Intelligence Committee is already looking at Russian involvement in our election," said Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky. "They can look into whatever they choose to."

Flynn acknowledged in his resignation letter that he had not fully informed Vice President Pence of his conversations with the Russian ambassador before Trump was sworn in. Pence had gone on television to defend Flynn, saying Flynn had not discussed U.S. sanctions in his calls with ambassador Sergey Kislyak. It appears that was not correct, and Flynn did discuss sanctions on the calls.

Sen. Roy Blunt, R-Mo., a member of the Intelligence Committee, said there are "a number of unanswered questions" that the panel will be looking at in regard to Flynn. He said the committee would be talking about those questions later this week, possibly as early as later Tuesday.

Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn, R-Texas, told the Dallas Morning News that the intelligence committees were the appropriate place for such a probe, and having Flynn testify "would certainly be an option."

House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., was more circumspect earlier in the day, declining to endorse an investigation of Flynn. "I think we need to get all of that information before we prejudge anything," he told reporters.

White House spokesman Sean Spicer, asked by reporters about possible congressional investigations, said the White House would comply with the law, but he did not commit to cooperating with a congressional probe.

"I think the president feels very confident the review that was conducted by White House counsel was very thorough and concluded ... that there was nothing wrong," Spicer said. "People are free to do what they wish, but i think they will find exactly what the president first believed and what the White House counsel concluded."

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The House Intelligence Committee is also looking into Russian tampering, and Adam Schiff of California, the top Democrat on the committee, said Tuesday, "alleged contacts and any others the Trump campaign may have had with the Kremlin are the subject of the House Intelligence Committee's ongoing investigation. Moreover, the Trump Administration has yet to be forthcoming about who was aware of Flynn's conversations with the Ambassador and whether he was acting on the instructions of the President or any other officials, or with their knowledge."

Intelligence Chairman Devin Nunes, R-Calif., did not commit to investigating Flynn's calls with the Russian ambassador, but Nunes spokesman Jack Langer said the panel "will continue to investigate any intelligence or counter-intelligence issues involving Russia and follow the facts wherever they lead."

North Carolina Republican Reps. Mark Meadows and Mark Walker, members of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, both suggested an investigation of Flynn may be premature during C-SPAN appearances on Tuesday morning.

“Perhaps there was some inappropriate conversations that took place but, yet in terms of actually violating and going deeper is not something I would support,” Meadows said.

Walker agreed. “I have not seen the evidence that there is any kind of collaboration that would require an investigation at this point,” he said.

Even Arizona GOP Sen. John McCain, who has not hesitated to criticize the Trump administration’s relationship with Russia, was not yet ready to call for a separate probe of Flynn. "It’s too early yet to draw conclusions except that there are serious questions that need to be answered," McCain told reporters Tuesday.

But Rep. Raul Labrador, R-Idaho, a leader of the conservative House Freedom Caucus, which Meadows chairs, said Tuesday, "I want the Intelligence Committee to look into it." He said that if Nunes is not pursuing an investigation, "maybe he’s already looked at the transcripts (of Flynn's calls) and realized there is no there there.”

Meanwhile, Democrats tried to force investigations in other venues.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., called for an independent investigation with executive authority to pursue potential criminal violations.

He said it is not enough for the Senate Intelligence Committee to investigate the Flynn incident because they have no legal authority to prosecute anyone.

Schumer said Attorney General Jeff Sessions must recuse himself from the investigation because Justice Department rules prohibit someone with political ties to the people being investigated to conduct the investigation. He pointed out that Sessions was involved in Trump's presidential campaign, serving as a national security adviser.

"Jeff Sessions cannot be the person to lead that investigation," Schumer said. "I expect Attorney General Sessions will recuse himself and make sure a thorough and independent investigation proceeds."

"There needs to be an independent and transparent investigation, because the White House knew for weeks that General Flynn misled the vice president, and yet they let him stay on for weeks, participating in the highest levels of national security discussions," Schumer said. "If an investigation is not independent, non-partisan and, most of all, transparent, there is no guarantee this administration will ... take the decisive actions needed to keep us safe."

Rep. John Conyers, D-Mich., ranking member on the House Judiciary Committee, and Rep. Elijah Cummings, D-Md., ranking member on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, called for full classified briefings this week.

“We in Congress need to know who authorized his actions, permitted them, and continued to let him have access to our most sensitive national security information despite knowing these risks. We need to know who else within the White House is a current and ongoing risk to our national security,” they said in a statement released Tuesday night.

Rep. Bennie Thompson of Mississippi, the top Democrat on the House Homeland Security Committee, said, "Now more than ever, we need an independent commission to fully investigate Russia's interference with the election and any potential Trump campaign ties to the Kremlin.

House Democratic Caucus Chairman Joe Crowley of New York said Flynn’s resignation “is not the end of our investigation into Russia’s influence over President Trump, but the beginning. This is much larger than Flynn ... the real question is, what did President Trump know and when did he know it? Did the president order Flynn to call the Russians?"

Senate Intelligence Vice Chairman Mark Warner, D-Va., said in a statement Tuesday, “Nothing about this resignation, or resignations that could occur in the future, precludes the Senate Intelligence Committee from continuing to investigate Gen. Flynn, or any other campaign official who may have had inappropriate and improper contacts with Russian officials prior to the election.”