FBI Visits Man Who Texted About Tailing Ambassador

FBI agents on Thursday went to the home of Robert Hyde, the GOP congressional candidate whose newly released text messages suggested he was keeping former US Ambassador Marie Yovanovitch under surveillance. Agents next went to Hyde's office, out of which he runs his landscaping business and Connecticut campaign, CNN reports, but would not say why they were there. The FBI, as well as federal prosecutors, are looking into any involvement Hyde may have had in efforts to remove Yovanovitch as ambassador to Ukraine and his relationship with Lev Parnas, an indicted associate of Rudy Giuliani, President Trump's personal lawyer.

Hyde said this week he was drunk when he sent Parnas texts about following Yovanovitch, per NBC. Parnas said he didn't think Hyde actually had her under surveillance, calling him "weird." Connecticut's GOP has called on Hyde to quit the congressional race and has returned contributions he made to the party, per the Daily Beast. (Ukraine has announced it's investigating the surveillance allegations.)