Though it seems like everyone else has forgotten about it, CBS News’ Catherine Herridge is still plugging away at the inspector general’s report on FISA abuses used to spy on the Trump campaign. On Friday she highlighted some of the report, including the claim that part of Christopher Steele’s reporting in his infamous dossier was assessed to be part of a Russian disinformation campaign to denigrate U.S. foreign relations.
#FISA Footnotes in watchdog report indicate FBI knew risk of Russian disinformation in Steele dossier, warnings got more specific over time. Dossier still used for surveillance warrants @carterwpage Full write up @CBSNews https://t.co/CApg8Z42D2
— Catherine Herridge (@CBS_Herridge) April 11, 2020
The FBI was warned sections of the controversial Steele dossier could have been part of a “Russian disinformation campaign to denigrate U.S. foreign relations,” according to newly declassified footnotes from a government watchdog report.
The December report by Justice Department Inspector General Michael Horowitz examined the FBI’s investigation into alleged coordination between the Trump campaign and Russia as well as the FBI’s four surveillance warrants for former Trump campaign aide Carter Page.
Horowitz concluded the FBI was justified in launching the investigation, dubbed Crossfire Hurricane, although he found 17 “significant inaccuracies and omissions” in the FBI’s handling of FISA (Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act) applications to surveil Page.
She breaks down her findings in this thread:
#FISA Developing @CBSNews obtains April 2 letter responding to @SenRonJohnson and @ChuckGrassley over four key footnotes IG Horowitz FISA report. Three declassified with minimal redactions, and fourth footnote blacked out citing “unique and significant concerns. Specifically,
— Catherine Herridge (@CBS_Herridge) April 10, 2020
…the redacted information refers to information received by a member of the Crossfire Hurricane team regarding possible previous attempts by a foreign government to penetrate and research a company or individuals associated with Christopher Steele." READ #MyHighlighter pic.twitter.com/Y4imYy6V9E
— Catherine Herridge (@CBS_Herridge) April 10, 2020
#FISA READ footnote 350 FBI effort to verify Steele Dossier “The (redacted) stated that it did not have high confidence in this subset of Steele’s reporting and ASSESSED that the referenced subset was part of a Russian disinformation campaign to denigrate US foreign relations” pic.twitter.com/7aVvNkx3BV
— Catherine Herridge (@CBS_Herridge) April 10, 2020
#FISA @ChuckGrassley who pushed for declassification footnotes with @SenRonJohnson issued this statement “FBI Ignored Early Warnings that Debunked Anti-Trump Dossier was Russian Disinformation
Declassified footnotes…reveal faulty predicate in Russia probe @CBSNews pic.twitter.com/oc3rEjYGWZ— Catherine Herridge (@CBS_Herridge) April 10, 2020
#FISA Who or What is behind 15 redacted characters – the specific warning about Russian disinformation? “The (redacted) stated that it did not have high confidence in this subset of Steele’s reporting and ASSESSED that the..subset was part of a Russian disinformation campaign..” pic.twitter.com/qkk8n7kiat
— Catherine Herridge (@CBS_Herridge) April 11, 2020
#FISA Three footnotes IG report declassified. Footnote 342 withheld citing “unique and significant concerns.” Comes from section about “..miscommunications between Steele and the (dossier’s) Primary Sub-source, exaggerations or misrepresentations by Steele about the information” pic.twitter.com/PjmcIyKm4I
— Catherine Herridge (@CBS_Herridge) April 11, 2020
“Exaggerations or misrepresentations by Steele about the information”? No way!
So basically–the Obama era DOJ and intel communities knowingly used Russian disinformation in an effort to topple a president.
Has to be the political crime of the century.
— mallen2010 (@mallen2010) April 11, 2020
They knew it was Russian disinformation because they paid the Russians for it!
This is post hoc institutional excuse making. They knew precisely what they were doing, do not let them pretend they were duped.
The FBI and CIA were in on the entire scheme.https://t.co/s7bv3EUKla
— Brother Numpsay (@BNumpsay) April 11, 2020
The whole world parroted falsehoods about this President for 3 plus years. Yet he still produced some remarkable results.
He is well over due a mass apology. From his current FBI & every "News" outlet in the land.
Indictments must follow & history corrected.#Trump2020
— UKForUSA (@UKForUSA) April 11, 2020
Here’s a great thread from Brian Cates in which he refers to that same page Herridge had highlighted. It’s long, but hang in there.
I couldn't write a farce this good.
For a time Steele was being paid by 3 different sources
1) the Clinton campaign
2) the FBI
3) Russian oligarchsto **circulate Russian disinformation** to influence the 2016 election.
— Brian Cates //Flynn & Breitbart's Army! (@drawandstrike) April 11, 2020
Remember when people like @DevinNunes were saying back in 2018 when people saw the evidence for what the **real** collusion was, it would blow them away?
We're almost there.
— Brian Cates //Flynn & Breitbart's Army! (@drawandstrike) April 11, 2020
Now look again at the paragraph on this page above the footnotes where Stuart Evans says boy it sure would have been NICE to know that Steele was working for Deripaska also while we were using his info to get surveillance warrants. pic.twitter.com/fiadELdfPR
— Brian Cates //Flynn & Breitbart's Army! (@drawandstrike) April 11, 2020
This is the SAME Stuart Evans who got the runaround from SSA 1 when he had to ask this Crossfire Hurricane team member THREE TIMES if Steele was affiliated with any of the 2016 campaigns.
From the December 9 OIG report on FISA Abuse: pic.twitter.com/S63A0JmIQ5
— Brian Cates //Flynn & Breitbart's Army! (@drawandstrike) April 11, 2020
Evans learns on Oct. 11 that the guy the FBI is using as it's CHS to put this Carter Page Is A Russian Agent allegations in this FISA warrant is a paid oppo researcher for the Clinton campaign.
The CH team had successfully hidden this up to that point.
— Brian Cates //Flynn & Breitbart's Army! (@drawandstrike) April 11, 2020
So Evans and the Office of Intel learn this on Oct. 11, that the CHS source for the key parts of the warrant is a paid Clinton flack.
The warrant is present to the FISC & approved on Oct. 21, if I recall correctly. That's 10 days later.
— Brian Cates //Flynn & Breitbart's Army! (@drawandstrike) April 11, 2020
Somebody was so determined to ram this warrant through the process that even learning that the CHS being used for the key allegations was a POLITICAL OPERATIVE WORKING FOR THE OTHER CAMPAIGN IN THE ELECTION wasn't enough to stop this.
— Brian Cates //Flynn & Breitbart's Army! (@drawandstrike) April 11, 2020
I think Evans saw the writing on the wall. The word had come down from the seventh floor: stay out of the way, let this through.
So even if they HAD known about Steele's employment by Deripaska, it wouldn't have mattered.
— Brian Cates //Flynn & Breitbart's Army! (@drawandstrike) April 11, 2020
And as that last OIG report revealed, when Horowitz and his investigators reviewed 29 randomly selected FISA warrants, not one single warrant had followed the proper verification procedures.
4 of them didn't even have the required Woods file. https://t.co/jAAzXJPNFk
— Brian Cates //Flynn & Breitbart's Army! (@drawandstrike) April 11, 2020
"The Office of the Inspector General (OIG) found errors in all 29 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) warrant applications that were subject to the review."
Gee, I wonder how that happened with Jumpin' James Comey and rat smile Andrew McCabe minding the store? pic.twitter.com/bHQiCwaiQO
— Brian Cates //Flynn & Breitbart's Army! (@drawandstrike) April 11, 2020
Let's be clear about what happened here.
The people running the FBI when all this was happening, where a large part of their JOB is to be ensuring all the laws and procedures are followed, were actively subverting the system for political ends.
They created a CULTURE.
— Brian Cates //Flynn & Breitbart's Army! (@drawandstrike) April 11, 2020
This is WHY nobody took action to stop this travesty when it was discovered the Crossfire Hurricane team was literally using a paid political propagandist working for the Clinton campaign to get a spy warrant on the Trump campaign during the 2016 election.
— Brian Cates //Flynn & Breitbart's Army! (@drawandstrike) April 11, 2020
Comey & McCabe created a culture at the FBI where even legally required procedures – like verifying all the material facts in a warrant & placing that info in the Woods file – were not being followed.
— Brian Cates //Flynn & Breitbart's Army! (@drawandstrike) April 11, 2020
How many US citizens were victims of the same federal fraud that @carterwpage was subjected to?
How many Americans had fake warrants sworn out on them at the FISA Court that ended being granted and had their rights violated?
— Brian Cates //Flynn & Breitbart's Army! (@drawandstrike) April 11, 2020
This could number in the thousands.
People keep thinking too small about the scope of the scandal.
They need to start thinking big.
The people who did this in the service of their political masters, this isn't just about putting THOSE particular asses in jail.
— Brian Cates //Flynn & Breitbart's Army! (@drawandstrike) April 11, 2020
The SYSTEM must be destroyed. The asses are easily replaceable if the system is left in place by the time Trump leaves office.
Think BIGGER.
It will help.
end.
— Brian Cates //Flynn & Breitbart's Army! (@drawandstrike) April 11, 2020
So where’s John Durham?
#Durham investigation: AG Barr to Fox on building a case “…he is diligently pursuing it. My own view is that the evidence shows that we're not dealing with just mistakes..if people broke the law and we can establish that with the evidence, they will be prosecuted” @ClareHymes22
— Catherine Herridge (@CBS_Herridge) April 10, 2020
AG Barr on POTUS decision to remove ICIG Atkinson “From the vantage point of DOJ (Atkinson) had interpreted his statute – which is a fairly narrow statute which gave him jurisdiction over wrong doing by intelligence people, and tried to turn it in to a commission to explore…
— Catherine Herridge (@CBS_Herridge) April 10, 2020
anything in the government and immediately report it to congress without letting the executive branch look at it and determine whether there was any problem” Barr told Fox. “So I think the President was correct in firing him.” @ClareHymes22
— Catherine Herridge (@CBS_Herridge) April 10, 2020
Maybe someone could ask presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden about this since it all happened under the Obama administration.
Related:
'Systematic corruption': DOJ IG Michael Horowitz says there were 'fundamental and serious errors' in all four FISA applications against Carter Page https://t.co/zxIyurhBhf
— Twitchy Team (@TwitchyTeam) March 31, 2020
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