The FBI on Wednesday released a statement regarding the controversial memo by House Intelligence Committee Chair Devin Nunes alleging abuses of surveillance powers during the 2016 election, saying it had “grave concerns” over material omissions of fact.
Whoa. INBOX, in rare public statement, FBI says it had limited opportunity to review the Nunes memo before the vote and "we have grave concerns about material omissions of fact that fundamentally impact the memo’s accuracy." pic.twitter.com/gf3NmuW1DZ
— Katie Bo Williams (@KatieBoWill) January 31, 2018
James Comey’s buddy Benjamin Wittes interpreted the FBI’s statement as proof that the Nunes memo is a lie.
Let’s be blunt: the President is about to release a document the FBI is effectively calling a lie and whose release his own Justice Department describes as extremely reckless.
Reminds me of that time Abraham Lincoln….oh never mind… https://t.co/VJhpcG7r0Z
— Benjamin Wittes (@benjaminwittes) January 31, 2018
Hmm … Fox News reported Tuesday that two senior FBI officials had seen the memo and concluded that it contained “no factual inaccuracies.” Either that report is false, or Wittes’ tweet doesn’t add up.
https://twitter.com/Doranimated/status/958779631162875904
Speaking of material omissions, Nunes responded to the FBI’s statement alleging material omissions on the FBI’s part:
Devin Nunes responds to FBI charge that House Intel 'FISA abuse' memo has 'material omissions of fact that fundamentally impact the memo's accuracy.' From Nunes: pic.twitter.com/7iD5weTDbN
— Byron York (@ByronYork) January 31, 2018
“The FBI is intimately familiar with ‘material omissions’ with respect to their presentations to both Congress and the courts,” Nunes shot back.
Nunes says the FBI/DOJ made material omissions to the courts. If that's true, then the judge who approved the Carter Page FISA should be angry. Only one way to find out…
— Adam Goldman (@adamgoldmanNYT) January 31, 2018
Yep … release the memo.
Brit Hume chimed in on the exchange, noting that the FBI’s stance seems to have changed a bit.
Notable that in the latest round of FBI/DOJ objections to the release of the House intel memo, earlier claims of dangerous disclosures of sources & methods have vanished.
— Brit Hume (@brithume) January 31, 2018
Now that he mentions it, wasn’t the release of the memo supposed to be a threat to national security? The FBI seems to have scaled back its objections a bit now that the release of the memo seems imminent, once President Trump reviews and approves it.
Quite notable. Also you nailed it Brit. Now it is "material omission" of facts. https://t.co/I0KxOjX2UI
— Sassy Scarlett (@Southrngirl77) January 31, 2018
Bingo. Now, it is that the memorandum contains "material omissions." Gee, I don't recall "material omissions" as a basis for classification in America. https://t.co/GTXWk4yZ7w
— Jack Smith (@TrumpABZ) January 31, 2018
FBI is in full CYA mode. https://t.co/DZSt5QUdTr
— David Wohl (@DavidWohl) January 31, 2018
https://twitter.com/bobturek/status/958813678182133761
Related:
Paging Nancy Pelosi: FBI officials reportedly find no factual inaccuracies in Nunes memo
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