Rep. Adam Schiff, the top Democrat in the House Intelligence Committee, floated the possibility of a new investigation in response to news that President Trump actively pursued lifting a gag order on an undercover FBI informant so he could testify to Congress about the Russian nuclear industry's bribery and money laundering during the time of the Obama administration.

“If President personally intervened w DOJ to advance case against political opponent it’s beyond disturbing; I intend to pursue in new probe,” Schiff, D-Calif., tweeted Thursday night.

If President personally intervened w DOJ to advance case against political opponent it’s beyond disturbing; I intend to pursue in new probe. https://t.co/2ccA6B3yGj — Adam Schiff (@RepAdamSchiff) October 27, 2017



Trump instructed his senior staff “to facilitate the Justice Department’s full cooperation with Congress to lift the gag order,” a source told CNN. Don McGahn, White House counsel, then delivered the message to the Justice Department.

The Justice Department has certain restrictions preventing the White House from engaging in criminal law enforcement matters. It is not typical for the White House to be involved in these matters, especially in this case because it concerns Trump’s political opponents.

Fox News was first to report Trump wanted to release the informant of the confidentiality agreement.

On Wednesday, it was revealed the FBI informant can now testify to Congress after being released from a confidentiality agreement by the Justice Department.

The informant's identity has not been publicly disclosed because he was undercover for almost five years. During that time, he provided agents information about Russia's atomic energy business in the U.S.

A report from The Hill last week said the FBI has evidence dating as far back as 2009 that nuclear industry officials from Russia had been involved in bribery, kickbacks, extortion, and money laundering that benefited Russian President Vladimir Putin's atomic energy project expansion with the U.S.

It is not clear if the intelligence panel's chairman, Rep. Devin Nunes, R-Calif., favors the probe into Trump's role as Schiff suggested. Nunes did, however, announce his panel would join the House Oversight Committee in looking into the so-called "Uranium One" deal.