The Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General (OIG) released the following statement in response to inquiries:
Prior to the Justice Department’s decision to release certain text messages this week, the OIG told the Department that we did not object to the Department releasing to Congress records that it had previously produced to us in the course of our ongoing review, which included the text messages. In conveying this position to the Department, we noted that, as with any such release, the Department was responsible for making its own determination about whether any restrictions, such as those affecting grand jury information, limited what records it may provide to Congress.
At no time prior to the release of the text messages did the Department consult with the OIG about providing records to the media.