A federal judge on Friday questioned the Justice Department's decision to release text messages between former FBI employees Lisa Page and Peter Strzok and signaled that she wants to see more evidence about whether political influence played a role. [...]

It's the second time this week a judge has allowed an FBI official's lawsuit against the Justice Department to continue unfolding in the courts.

On Thursday, a judge ruled former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe, who was fired a day before his scheduled retirement for "lack of candor," could also move toward gathering evidence about his firing, which he too says was politically motivated and unfair.

Judge Amy Berman Jackson, handling the Strzok and Page cases on Friday, called out several sworn statements from top Justice Department officials, including former Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, that appear to contradict one another about the DOJ's decisions to make Strzok and Page's text messages public.