Representative Jason Chaffetz [official website], chairman of the House Oversight Committee [official website], sent a letter [text, PDF] to the Acting Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigations on Tuesday requesting “all memoranda, notes, summaries, and recordings referring or relating to communications between [fired FBI Director James] Comey and [President Donald] Trump.” The request came hours after the New York Times reported [text] the existence of a memo drafted by Comey detailing a closed-door meeting between himself and the president, wherein Trump allegedly asked Comey to discontinue an investigation of former National Security Advisor Lieutenant General Michael Flynn, saying “I hope you can let this go.” Chaffetz, a Republican, issued the letter following a request to do so in a more detailed letter [text, PDF] signed by the 33 Democrats on the House Oversight Committee and House Judiciary Committee.

Chaffetz gave a deadline for FBI Acting Director Andrew McCabe to produce the requested material by May 24, citing House Rule X [text, PDF] as authority. He has indicated [Twitter post] a willingness to subpoena the FBI to obtain the documents if necessary, writing “I need to see it sooner rather than later. I have my subpoena pen ready.”

Trump’s administration has faced significant scrutiny over alleged connections to Russia and its handling of investigations into those allegations. Last week, the acting FBI director said the bureau would continue its investigation into the allegations following the firing of Comey [JURIST report] days earlier. In addition to the FBI, both the House and Senate [JURIST reports] Intelligence Committees have held hearings on the issue.