His statement said he supports a bid by Sen. Bob Corker, R-Tenn., chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee, to launch a new probe of Russia’s hacking and interference in the elections. “If Sen. Corker plans to hold a hearing on any recent Russian activities, I will work with the chairman ... to uncover the factsof the matter,” he said.

Johnson said he held hearings of the Europe subcommittee on “Russian propaganda and its disinformation campaigns” and, during trips to Europe, “heard firsthand of Russia’s efforts to destabilize and interfere in the internal affairs of its neighbors.”

The hacked DNC and Podesta emails were made public by the international group WikiLeaks. U.S. intelligence agencies told the Washington Post they have identified individuals with connections to the Russian government who provided the emails to WikiLeaks.

“Those officials described the individuals as actors known to the intelligence community and part of a wider Russian operation to boost Trump and hurt” Clinton, the Post reported.