Article: Justice hinders finance probe, GOP charges: Thompson may seek a counsel.(A)

Republican senators investigating campaign-finance practices accused the Justice Department yesterday of hampering their inquiry and threatened to take the unprecedented step of asking a court to force the appointment of an independent counsel.

"I do not have confidence anymore in the Justice Department's ability to carry a criminal investigation," said Sen. Fred Thompson, chairman of the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee.

In unusually harsh language, the Tennessee Republican accused the Justice Department of a "conflict of interest," saying it has repeatedly hindered his inquiries, particularly when they involve members of the executive branch.

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