White House decries media 'lack of interest' in reports of Obama officials spying

White House press secretary Sean Spicer. Photo / AP

The White House has called on the media to show more zeal in investigating allegations that Obama Administration officials abused their access to intelligence to seek out and disclose potentially damaging information about Donald Trump's campaign and transition.

Struggling to defuse ongoing investigations of Russian interference in the election on behalf of now-President Donald Trump, and to deflect reports of possible ties between Trump associates and Moscow, White House press secretary Sean Spicer said he was "somewhat intrigued" at the media's "lack of interest ... in one set of developments versus another set of developments".

But Spicer, in contrast to weeks of outrage he has expressed from the White House podium, said he would not comment on a new report that Susan Rice, President Barack Obama's national security adviser, had requested that the intelligence community provide her with names of Trump associates whose conversations with foreigners were incidentally intercepted.

Conservative social media agitator Mike Cernovich reported on Monday that the White House Counsel's office had "identified" Rice as asking for the names of "incoming Trump officials", during an internal review of document logs. The report did not indicate whether conversations with Russians were involved.

Rice could not be reached for comment on the report.

Information from the review, according to White House officials, was turned over to Republican Devin Nunes, the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee. Nunes subsequently announced that he had briefed Trump on the information.

Both the House and Senate intelligence committees, along with the FBI, are investigating the reports of Russian interference and possible collusion. House Democrats have said that Nunes, who also served as a Trump transition official, should step down as chairman.

The Administration has pushed back on the reports of Russia contacts by saying they stem from efforts by Obama officials to undermine Trump. That, it insists, should be the focus of investigations. Trump has charged, without offering proof, that his communications were intercepted under orders from Obama.

In a tweet yesterday, Trump referred to "Such amazing reporting on unmasking and the crooked scheme against us ... 'Spied on before the nomination.' The real story." "Unmasking" refers to revealing a name that has been blacked out in an intelligence report on surveillance.