| Manuel Balce Ceneta/AP Photo Goodlatte's son donates to Democrat running to replace him 
 
 A high-ranking Republican lawmaker's son donated the "maximum amount" to a Democrat running to replace his father.  A top-ranking House Republican, Virginia Rep. Bob Goodlatte, is getting a lot of heat for his conduct as the chair of the House Judiciary Committee in the lead-up to FBI agent Peter Strzok’s firing — including from his own son. He will retire from Congress at the end of 2018, which also marks his term limit as chair of the House Judiciary Committee. On Sunday, Bobby Goodlatte said he had donated to Democratic candidate Jennifer Lewis, a mental health worker who is running to fill his father’s seat in Virginia’s Sixth Congressional District, urging others to do the same. "I've also gotten 5 other folks to commit to donate the max. 2018 is the year to flip districts — let's do this!" Bobby Goodlatte wrote on Twitter, where he describes himself as a product designer and angel investor based in San Francisco. Lewis said she was surprised by Goodlatte’s public donation when she woke up Monday, calling it a “very exciting morning, to say the least.” The maximum individual donation is $2,700, according to the Federal Election Commission. And to do it in such a public way, with Congressman Goodlatte being such a huge force in our political world, it’s just, I'm at a loss for words in a lot of ways,” Lewis said. The Lewis campaign raised more than $15,000 in donations after Bobby Goodlatte announced his support, spokesman Josh Stanfield said. The committee’s investigation into the Justice Department’s conduct — specifically how the federal agency began its investigation into Russia’s election meddling and possible ties to the Trump’s campaign — has become part of a broader challenge from conservatives to the credibility of special counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia investigation. That committee hearing was a low point for Congress,” Bobby Goodlatte tweeted. “Thank you for your service sir. Following Goodlatte's tweet on Sunday, more than $25,000 had flowed in from across the country by Monday afternoon, according to Lewis' campaign manager, Josh Stanfield. Regardless of his son's criticism, Goodlatte’s district is a challenge for Democrats. https://t.co/bYCKta2Bhs — Bobby Goodlatte (@rsg) August 13, 2018 
 
 Lewis is running against Republican state lawmaker Ben Cline, a former Goodlatte aide.
– The son of a high-ranking House Republican has prominently come out in support of a Democrat for his father's seat. Bobby Goodlatte, son of House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte, tweeted Sunday that he'd given the "maximum allowed donation to Jennifer Lewis," who he notes is the Democrat running for Rep. Goodlatte's seat. The elder Goodlatte is retiring after a 13-term career. "I've also gotten 5 other folks to commit to donate the max. 2018 is the year to flip districts," the younger Goodlatte wrote. "Let's do this!" Outlets including Politico picked up the story as Bobby Goodlatte continued to tweet, fleshing out some of the reasoning behind the public move. On Monday, he tweeted: "I’m deeply embarrassed that Peter Strzok's career was ruined by my father’s political grandstanding." As Vox notes, Rep. Goodlatte presided over the June hearing in which Strzok was grilled by him and fellow members of the GOP over text messages he once sent to an FBI lawyer that appeared to show his bias against then-candidate Donald Trump. "That committee hearing was a low point for Congress," Bobby Goodlatte tweeted about the 10-hour hearing before turning his attention back to Strzok. "Thank you for your service sir. You are a patriot." According to the AP, Jennifer Lewis' campaign manager, Josh Stanfield, said more than $25,000 had come in from across the country following Bobby Goodlatte's tweet. "Everyone is sort of caught off guard," Stanfield said. "But obviously it's compelling for some reason."