Garland, Wray Among Officials Who Signed Off on ‘Arctic Frost’ Probe Targeting Conservatives

The probe was marked a ‘Sensitive Investigative Matter,’ making then-Attorney General Merrick Garland’s approval necessary to begin the investigation.

Attorney General Merrick Garland, flanked by Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco and FBI Director Christopher Wray, speaks at the Justice Department in Washington on Jan. 27, 2023. Carolyn Kaster/AP Photo

Former Attorney General Merrick Garland and former FBI Director Christopher Wray were among the officials who signed off on the “Arctic Frost” probe targeting top conservative figures and organizations, according to documents disclosed by Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley’s (R-Iowa) office.

According to the newly released documents, Arctic Frost—which tracked eight Republican senators’ phone calls and targeted conservative groups such as Turning Point USA—relied on Garland and then-Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco to move forward.

They’re the latest in a trove of documents related to the investigation that have been released by Grassley’s office.

The newest documents show that Wray forwarded a memo to Garland through Monaco’s office seeking approval to open a probe into alternative electoral slates presented by President Donald Trump’s allies during the 2020 election.

Because the investigation was marked as a “Sensitive Investigative Matter,” Garland’s sign-off was necessary to begin the investigation.

“Following the 2020 Presidential and Vice Presidential election, in an apparent effort to obstruct Congress’s certification of the Electoral College, fraudulent certificates of electors’ votes were submitted to the Archivist of the United States, purporting to represent the actual elector votes from the states of Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, and Wisconsin,” an executive summary of the scope of the intended investigation said.

“Open source reporting and public statements made by individuals closely associated with Donald J. Trump, Inc. (Trump Campaign) present an articulable factual basis indicating the existence of a federal crime, and thus the FBI seeks to open a full investigation,” the release added.

The final page of the document shows that Garland approved the investigation on April 5.

A handwritten note at the bottom from Wray acknowledges receipt of the approval.

The Arctic Frost investigation would go on to serve as the basis for Special Counsel Jack Smith’s criminal prosecution of Trump related to the alternate elector plan. The charges were dropped after Trump won reelection in 2024.

The probe collected cellphone data from eight Republican U.S. senators according to other documents released by Grassley.

Specifically, the FBI under Wray obtained cellphone records for Sens. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.), Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyo.), Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska), and Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.), according to the document, which was made public by Grassley on Oct. 6.

They obtained information known as toll records from the phones. The data show where, when, and to whom a call is made, but don’t include the content of the call, according to senators.

According to new documents released by Grassley, conservative groups—including Turning Point USA, the Republican National Committee, the Republican Attorneys General Association, the America First Policy Institute, and others—were targeted by the probe.

In total, Grassley said during a Sept. 16 Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, 92 conservative groups were “placed under the investigative scope of Arctic Frost.”

Zachary Stieber contributed to this report.