Congressional investigators probing the origins of the Steele dossier have set their sights on a brand new target — The Obama State Department.

Were Obama State Department officials responsible for spreading discredited tidbits compiled in the dossier through the media? Intelligence Chairman Devin Nunes may soon find out.

Byron York of the Washington Examiner reports the Obama State Department is now being probed as to whether or not they had a hand in the dossier. York notes Steele was viewed inside the Obama State Department as a valuable source for intelligence on all things Russia. Obama State officials made a habit of disseminating reports the former British spy authored for private clients around the Department:

A book published in November by a correspondent at the Guardian, “Collusion: Secret meetings, dirty money, and how Russia helped Donald Trump win,” noted that Steele’s 2010 work on the World Cup soccer corruption investigation won him the trust not only of the FBI, but the State Department as well. From author Luke Harding: TRENDING: Obama Statement on Ginsburg Demands GOP Senate Honors Her Dying 'Instructions' and Put Off Vote on Supreme Court Nominee Until New President Sworn In The [soccer] episode burnished Steele’s reputation inside the U.S. intelligence community and the FBI. Here was a pro, a well-connected Brit, who understood Russian espionage and its subterranean tricks. Steele was regarded as credible. Between 2014 and 2016, Steele authored more than a hundred reports on Russia and Ukraine. These were written for a private client but shared widely within the State Department and sent up to Secretary of State John Kerry and to Assistant Secretary of State Victoria Nuland, who was in charge of the U.S. response to the Ukraine crisis. Many of Steele’s secret sources were the same sources who would supply information on Trump. One former State Department envoy during the Obama administration said he read dozens of Steele’s reports on Russia. The envoy said that on Russia, Steele was “as good as the CIA or anyone.” Steele’s professional reputation inside U.S. agencies would prove important the next time he discovered alarming material, and lit the fuse again.

Hillary Clinton, who admitted her 2016 presidential campaign helped fund the dossier, was Obama’s Secretary of State between January 21, 2009 – February 1, 2013.

Former British spy Christopher Steele, who was tasked with compiling the ‘Trump dossier’ for opposition research firm Fusion GPS, recently admitted in court that the discredited document contains “limited intelligence.”

Steele also admitted part of “his final December memo,” was unvetted.

“Such intelligence was not actively sought; it was merely received,” Steele added.

As The Gateway Pundit‘s Cristina Laila reported, it is now being reported by Paul Sperry of the New York Post that the Senate Judiciary Committee has discovered “credible evidence of a CRIME” committed by Christopher Steele in his dealings with the FBI.

“DEVELOPING: Senate Judiciary Committee has discovered “credible evidence of a CRIME” committed by dirty Hillary DOSSIER author Christopher STEELE in his dealings with the FBI … declassified memo detailing the alleged crime forthcoming …” Sperry tweeted.

DEVELOPING: Senate Judiciary Committee has discovered "credible evidence of a CRIME" committed by dirty Hillary DOSSIER author Christopher STEELE in his dealings with the FBI … declassified memo detailing the alleged crime forthcoming … — Paul Sperry (@paulsperry_) January 6, 2018

The dossier contains explosive, but unverified, opposition research that alleges intel ties between Russia and Trump and also claims Russia holds sexual blackmail material over Trump.