Without reading the Justice Department inspector general’s report examining the FBI’s investigation into possible coordination between the Trump campaign and Russia, Trump claimed the report showed an ‘attempted overthrow’ of government; it did not, at all.
“This was an overthrow of government, this was an attempted overthrow and a lot of people were in on it and they got caught, they got caught red-handed.
I think I’m going to put this down as one of our great achievements. Because what we found and what we saw — never, ever should this happen again in our country.“
-Donald J. Trump
December 9, 2019
What the report really claims:
- DOJ’s internal watchdog found:
- Numerous errors but no evidence of political bias by the FBI.
- FBI had a legal “authorized purpose” to ask for court approval to begin surveillance of Carter Page.
- Mistakes:
- 17 “basic and fundamental” errors and omissions in its applications to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISA).
- Appeared to make the case for the FISA warrant stronger.
- FBI relied too much on Christopher Steele even after one of his sources told the FBI his statements were either mischaracterized or exaggerated.
- FBI lawyer Kevin Clinesmith altered an email.
- Claimed Page did not work for a government agency when he, indeed, did in 2008 to 2013. The report does not identify the agency.
What others have said:
Billy Barr: “The F.B.I. launched an intrusive investigation of a U.S. presidential campaign on the thinnest of suspicions that, in my view, were insufficient to justify the steps taken.”
Read his entire gaslighting statement here:
Federal prosecutor John Durham does not agree with the report and has his own coming out shortly.
John Durham: “I have the utmost respect for the mission of the Office of Inspector General and the comprehensive work that went into the report prepared by Mr. Horowitz and his staff. However, our investigation is not limited to developing information from within component parts of the Justice Department. Our investigation has included developing information from other persons and entities, both in the U.S. and outside of the U.S. Based on the evidence collected to date, and while our investigation is ongoing, last month we advised the Inspector General that we do not agree with some of the report’s conclusions as to predication and how the FBI case was opened.”
DOJ:
But just wait until that Durham report comes out!
