--- title: Feinstein: Senate Building Obstruction Case Against Trump description: Sen. Dianne Feinstein told Meet the Press the Senate investigation includes an obstruction of justice case against President Donald Trump. canonical: https://time.com/5046911/sen-dianne-feinstein-senate-putting-together-obstruction-of-justice-case-against-president-trump/ author: Jennifer Calfas article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2017-12-03T18:18:15.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T07:53:53.718Z article:section: Politics og:title: Feinstein: Senate 'Putting Together' Obstruction Case Against Trump og:description: She cited the indictments and guilty pleas by former advisers to the president og:url: https://time.com/5046911/sen-dianne-feinstein-senate-putting-together-obstruction-of-justice-case-against-president-trump/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2af4b4aeed0f7837/6988f37d22fb8575bfe23e49/dianne-feinstein.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 4821 og:image:height: 2712 og:image:alt: FBI Director Comey Testifies At Senate Judiciary Committee Oversight Hearing og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Feinstein: Senate 'Putting Together' Obstruction Case Against Trump twitter:description: She cited the indictments and guilty pleas by former advisers to the president twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2af4b4aeed0f7837/6988f37d22fb8575bfe23e49/dianne-feinstein.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Sen. Dianne Feinstein: Senate 'Putting Together' Obstruction of Justice Case Against President Trump > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME Newsletters: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition TIME publishes seven free email newsletters, written and edited by TIME journalists, reaching more than 1.1 million engaged readers. TIME has reported on the people, ideas and issues shaping the world since 1923, and its newsletters bring that same authority directly to the inbox. 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Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement. ## Video: Michael Flynn Pleaded Guilty to Lying to the FBI [Watch (HLS stream): Michael Flynn Pleaded Guilty to Lying to the FBI](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/46BLEXw1.m3u8) (2:10)  _Published 2017-12-01. Former national security adviser Michael Flynn has pleaded guilty to making false statements to the FBI._ by [Jennifer Calfas](https://time.com/author/jennifer-calfas/) ## Jennifer Calfas Dec 3, 2017 6:18 PM UTC  Senate Judiciary member Sen. Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) questions Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, James Comey during an oversight hearing on the FBI on Capitol Hill May 3, 2017 in Washington, DC. Senate Judiciary member Sen. Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) questions Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, James Comey during an oversight hearing on the FBI on Capitol Hill May 3, 2017 in Washington, DC. Eric Thayer—Getty Images by [Jennifer Calfas](https://time.com/author/jennifer-calfas/) ## Jennifer Calfas Dec 3, 2017 6:18 PM UTC Sen. Dianne Feinstein revealed Sunday that the Senate’s investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election includes a potential obstruction of justice case against President Donald Trump. “I think what we’re beginning to see is the putting together of a case of obstruction of justice,” said Feinstein, the ranking Democrat on the Senate Judiciary Committee, [on NBC’s “Meet the Press.”](https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politics-news/feinstein-senate-russia-probe-building-obstruction-case-against-trump-n826031?cid=sm%5Fnpd%5Fnn%5Ftw%5Fma) > [](https://twitter.com/MeetThePress/status/937337053645361153) Feinstein pointed to the [indictments](http://time.com/5002178/paul-manafort-rick-gates-read-indictment/) and [pleas](http://time.com/5045693/michael-flynn-guilty-plea-courtroom/) of former Trump advisers that have come as a result of Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation. In late October, former Trump campaign manager [Paul Manafort](http://time.com/5006961/rise-and-rapid-fall-of-paul-manafort/) and his partner [Rick Gates](http://time.com/5006963/paul-manaforts-right-hand-man/) were indicted on a number of charges. Both former National Security Adviser [Michael Flynn](http://time.com/5045291/michael-flynn-donald-trump-russia-investigation-robert-mueller/) and former campaign adviser [George Papadopoulos](http://time.com/5008762/trump-george-papadopoulos-mueller/) pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI. Feinstein also cited behavior she has seen from the White House and the president’s [dismissal](http://time.com/4773873/james-comey-fired-whats-next/) of former FBI Director James Comey earlier this year. “I see it in the hyper-frenetic attitude of the White House, the comments every day, the continual tweets,” she said. “And I see it most importantly in what happened with the firing of Director Comey, and it is my belief that that is directly because he did not agree to lift the cloud of the Russia investigation. That’s obstruction of justice.” Obstruction of justice is [defined as](http://time.com/4781655/donald-trump-james-comey-michael-flynn-obstruction-of-justice/) when someone purposefully disrupts or intervenes with an ongoing investigation. In this case, Feinstein points to Trump’s dismissal of Comey as a cause for alarm. Along with Mueller’s probe, Feinstein’s committee is one of the Senate groups investigating Russian election interference and whether the Trump campaign colluded with Russia. Trump has repeatedly said that he does not believe he is personally under investigation relate to the FBI’s Russia probe. Following Flynn’s plea earlier this week, Trump tweeted on Saturday that he “had to fire General Flynn because he lied to the Vice President and the FBI.” > [](https://twitter.com/realdonaldtrump/status/937007006526959618) This explanation shifted from Trump’s original statement on why he fired Flynn, which he said had to do with his communication with Vice President Mike Pence about his contact with Russian officials. On Sunday, he also [tweeted](http://time.com/5046802/trump-flynn-comey/) that he had never asked Comey to stop investigating Flynn — another [denial](http://time.com/4781623/michael-flynn-james-comey-donald-trump-fbi-investigation/) of a [New York _Times_ report](https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/16/us/politics/james-comey-trump-flynn-russia-investigation.html?%5Fr=0), confirmed by other news outlets, from early this year alleging that he had done so. The president has repeatedly [denied](http://time.com/4819677/donald-trump-obstruction-of-justice-twitter/) any collusion with his campaign and Russia, as well as reports that he is being investigated for obstruction of justice. In June, a lawyer for the president has [challenged reports](http://time.com/4819320/donald-trump-robert-mueller-investigation-obstruction-of-justice/) that Trump was being investigated on those grounds. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5046911/sen-dianne-feinstein-senate-putting-together-obstruction-of-justice-case-against-president-trump/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5046911/sen-dianne-feinstein-senate-putting-together-obstruction-of-justice-case-against-president-trump/"},"headline":"Sen. 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