Cambridge Analytica fights back on data scandal

WASHINGTON — House Democrats, frustrated by what they see as GOP inaction and with an eye on midterm elections, on Tuesday held the first of what they hope will be several interviews with witnesses who have not been interrogated in the Republican-led Russia investigations.

Democrats on the House Judiciary and Oversight and Government Reform committees interviewed former Cambridge Analytica employee Christopher Wylie, who sparked a global debate over electronic privacy in March when he revealed that a data-mining firm affiliated with President Donald Trump’s campaign gathered millions of Facebook profiles to influence elections.

Wylie’s visit is part of a Democratic attempt to keep congressional focus on Russian meddling in the 2016 election and on whether Trump’s campaign was involved. Democrats on the House Intelligence Committee plan to meet with Wylie on Wednesday.

It was unclear if there were any new revelations in Tuesday’s closed-door meeting, which lasted less than three hours and was attended by a handful of lawmakers. The Democrats said they would like to hold additional interviews, but it was unclear if any were scheduled.

At least one House Democrat who attended signaled a larger strategy was at play.

“The Republicans aren’t always going to be in the majority,” said Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi of Illinois, a member of the Oversight panel, after he left the interview with Wylie. “So I think we have to do our due diligence, we have to lay the groundwork for what we would actually want to do if we take back the House and we are operating in the majority in the committee.”

Leaving the interview, Wylie declined to say what was discussed but said he hopes that Congress can investigate Cambridge Analytica and whether the firm’s “actions were compliant with American law.”