“The Predicate”

FBI Director Christopher Wray appears before the House Judiciary Committee today to answer questions about the ongoing mission objectives of the FBI.  However, the opportunity for Wray’s appearance is being used to further investigate and unravel the ongoing issues surrounding the politicization of the FBI under the former leadership of Director James Comey.  Specifically how the FBI was weaponized against the campaign of candidate Donald Trump to the benefit of 2016 presidential candidate Hillary Clinton.
In the questioning segment below Ohio Representative Jim Jordan questions Director Wray about the role of FBI Deputy Head of Counterintelligence, FBI Agent Peter Strzok. Jim Jordan outlines the role of Strzok -as it is currently known- and asks if Agent Strzok then took information from Christopher Steele (author of the ‘Steele Russian Dossier’) and used that dossier as the predicate to organize the FISA application that began the surveillance of people associated with the Trump campaign:

.
This line of questioning is critical because when combined with a year of investigation by the Dept of Justice, Office of Inspector General, the sunlight takes a two-pronged approach:
♦The IG is working from the inside to investigate the politicization, a more apt term is ‘weaponization‘, of the FBI and DOJ within those organizations.  The IG is then identifying specific people and specific behavior.
♦The oversight committees (Judiciary, Intelligence) are working from the outside of the organizations to spotlight the consequences from those people and from that behavior.
(more…)

It appears the DNC (Perez) gender plan for the political aspirations of elected Democrats is continuing.  In a coordinated and strategically timed roll-out today, DNC Chairman Tom Perez and a host of top level Democrats began demanding Senator Al Franken resign from his Senate seat.
Senator Franken is inside the famous Democrat cross-fire ‘kill zone’.  His likelihood of re-election is very low, and simultaneously his ouster feeds a scripted useful narrative. Hence, he’s a goner…

WASHINGTON DC – […] Starting around 11:30 a.m. ET, the senators posted statements in a coordinated effort, one after the other, on social media, saying the Minnesota Democrat should step down.
Some comments were elaborate, lengthy and loaded with a moral message. Others, like that of Sen. Claire McCaskill of Missouri, were straight to the point. “Al Franken should resign,” she simply tweeted.
Within the next 90 minutes, 16 Democrats — 10 of them women — and one Republican senator — Susan Collins of Maine — had publicly urged their colleague to vacate his seat.

(more…)

A rather interesting New York Times article describes life in the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) now that interim Director Mick Mulvaney is leading the agency. Actually, one of the more interesting aspects is how congressional defenders of the CFPB have claimed the workforce is non-partisan, yet for some mysterious reason the mostly Millenials are described as using coded messaging.

Keep in mind, these are presumably college educated young professionals:

New York Times […] Some employees, including a few of the bureau’s top officials, have welcomed their new leader. Others, pointing to Mr. Mulvaney’s earlier hostility toward the agency and its mission, are quietly resisting. One small group calls itself “Dumbledore’s Army,” according to two of the people who were familiar with their discussions. The name is a reference to a secret resistance force in the “Harry Potter” books.
An atmosphere of intense anxiety has taken hold, several employees said. In some cases, conversations between staff that used to take place by phone or text now happen almost exclusively in person or through encrypted messaging apps.

(more…)

Facing increased scrutiny for his financial settlements with harassment accusers, Democrat Representative John Conyers states he is retiring from congress.  According to lawyers speaking on behalf of Conyers, his retirement is effective immediately.
(Via CBS) [John Conyers (D-MI)] has announced Tuesday that he is retiring and has endorsed his son, John Conyers III to run for his seat. Conyers’ lawyer confirmed that the retirement is effective immediately.
“My legacy can’t be compromised or diminished in any way by what we’re going through now. This too shall pass,” said Conyers on a local Michigan radio station Tuesday morning.
He added, “I want you to know that my legacy will continue through my children. I have a great family here and especially in my oldest boy, John Conyers III who incidentally I endorsed to replace me in my seat in Congress.”
(more…)

OK, before going further, we need to step back and take a look at how deeply enmeshed Deputy Head of Counterintelligence FBI Agent Peter Strzok was to this entire FBI investigative enterprise.

•Peter Strzok was the lead FBI agent in charge of the Hillary Clinton email investigation. •Agent Peter Strzok was one of a small group who interviewed Hillary Clinton. •Agent Strzok was also the FBI contact person to receive the Russian Dossier and interview the author Christopher Steele.  [Remember, Hillary Clinton’s team paid Christopher Steele (via Fusion GPS) to create the dossier.] •Agent Strzok was the primary counterintelligence investigator for the ‘vast Russian conspiracy’, narrative.  •Agent Strzok was then hired by Robert Mueller to lead the FBI investigative efforts into  the “Russian Election Collusion/Conspiracy.”  •Agent Strzok was removed from the Mueller Team after the anti-Trump/pro-Clinton content of his internal communications were discovered by the current Inspector General investigation….

…and today we discover that Deputy Head of Counterintelligence, FBI Agent Peter Strzok was the person who interviewed National Security Advisor General Michael Flynn on January 24th, 2017.  An interview, that blindsided Flynn because there was no advanced notification…. And an interview that was the basis for the recent Robert Mueller charging of Flynn.
Good grief, it’s no wonder why the FBI desperately tried to control a pending IG release by advance-scripting a narrative, via leaks to the New York Times and Washington Post.
If FBI Agent Strzok can be shown to have conflicting political and institutional bias, then every aspect of the investigation he was involved in comes into question… and Agent Strzok is at the EPICENTER of every angle, within every aspect, of EVERY investigation.

SARA CARTER – A supervisory special agent who is now under scrutiny after being removed from Robert Mueller’s Special Counsel’s Office for alleged bias against President Trump also oversaw the bureau’s interviews of embattled former National Security advisor Michael Flynn, this reporter has learned.

(more…)

Did you know the DOJ has been investigating the FBI for 11 months…. wait, what?

Hold-up on the criticism folks.  Three important statements today from the DOJ, FBI and OIG indicate there have been ongoing investigations and reviews of conduct within the upper tiers of leadership within the Department of Justice and the FBI.
Given the nature of the leaked IG investigation to the Washington Post and New York times; surrounding apex investigator and deputy head of counterintelligence at the FBI Peter Strzok; and accepting the direct approach of President Trump in his tweets toward that revelation; and adding the layer of Intel Chairman Devin Nunes threatening to file ‘contempt of congress charges‘; there is every indication something is about to break – very soon.

(L-R) Attorney General Jeff Sessions – FBI Director Christopher Wray

“[The allegations] if proven to be true, would raise serious questions of public trust. I look forward to receiving the Inspector General’s report. We will ensure that anyone who works on any investigation in the Department of Justice does so objectively and free from bias or favoritism.”
“My job is to restore confidence in the Department of Justice in all aspects of our work and I intend to do so. As such, I have directed that the FBI Director review the information available on this and other matters and promptly make any necessary changes to his management and investigative teams consistent with the highest professional standards.”
~ Attorney General Jeff Sessions
“When the FBI first learned of the allegations, the employees involved were immediately reassigned, consistent with practices involving employee matters.”
~ FBI Spokesperson

Here’s the critical OIG statement:
(more…)

Against the backdrop of reports highlighting a profound political bias inherent within the top FBI agents in both the Clinton (James Comey) and Russian Interference (Robert Mueller) investigations, President Trump outlines disappointment, concern and the need for agency reform:

WaPo […] Current and former FBI officials say the Strzok matter points to a larger unresolved issue facing the agency as it tries to investigate the president and make a fresh start with a new director, Christopher A. Wray. Much of the agency’s senior leadership jobs are currently filled by people who were put in those positions by Comey, and Wray has yet to make many significant changes at the top. But a major house cleaning by the new director is widely anticipated inside the bureau.  (more)

(more…)

Those who have traveled the deep weeds will know the Washington Post is the primary and historic defense media for the Intelligence Community (IC).  That backdrop is CRITICAL to understanding this story.

The Washington Post is quick to the presses ahead of congressional intelligence committees discovering the specific content of communication between the lead FBI agent on Robert Muellers team… that led to an Inspector General investigation… that led to Mueller firing the top FBI agent from the team.
Again, for EMPHASIS, this Washington Post report is specifically trying to get out ahead of the story to defend Mueller and the FBI.

FBI Special Agent Peter Strzok (above left box), was the deputy head of counterintelligence at the FBI.  He was the tip-of-the-spear in the Clinton email investigation assigned by James Comey.  FBI Agent Strzok was part of a very small special team, called the “skinny team”, tasked with investigating Hillary Clinton.  Agent Peter Strzok was one of the few people who actually interviewed Hillary Clinton.
Additionally, this year agent Peter Strzok was personally selected by Special Counsel Robert Mueller to be the TOP FBI AGENT in charge of the investigation into collusion between the Trump campaign and the Russian collusion conspiracy.
However, as a direct outcome of an Inspector General investigation into Peter Strzok, it is just coming to light that text messages and written communication between Strzok and an FBI lawyer named Lisa Page will show a strong bias to clear Clinton and against Trump.
Behind the communication, Peter Strzok and FBI attorney Lisa Page were having an affair.  Strzok and Page communicated with each other about their disdain and hatred for Donald Trump while they were key members of the Muller investigative team.
(more…)

Former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn releases a statement following his plea agreement with Special Counsel Robert Mueller:

It would appear, as CTH has predicted for well over a year, that Flynn brokered a deal with Robert Mueller to admit to misleading statements to the FBI in exchange for Mueller agreeing not to prosecute Flynn for his FARA (lobbying) violations.
As CTH warned in November of 2016 Flynn was involved in lobbying efforts on behalf of the Turkish government.  The financial constructs surrounding the payments to Flynn were sketchy, very sketchy.  CTH anticipated this sketchy behavior would come back to bite Flynn and -by extension- could be an issue for the White House if he took a high level position.  None of that had anything whatsoever to do with the fictitious vast Russian conspiracy story.
It is increasingly clear that Mueller used the sketchy financial arrangement between Turkey and Flynn -specifically how Flynn maneuvered the money- as the leverage in the unrelated Russian conspiracy investigation.
Giving Flynn a pass on his failure to register the arrangement under the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA), and the banking issues (possibly IRS trouble), gets Robert Mueller a dual benefit.
Benefit #1 – Robert Mueller gets Flynn as a notch on his political belt and; Benefit #2 simultaneously sets up a scenario where he can allow Tony Podesta et al, to skate prosecution for similar illegal and sketchy lobbying activity.
(more…)

Former National Security Adviser General Michael Flynn has pleaded guilty to a process crime of lying to FBI investigators about the content of a December 29th phone call with Russian Ambassador Sergei Kislyak. The conversation occurred the same day that then-president Barack Obama announced sanctions against Russia for its interference in the 2016 election.
This is the same misleading information that led to the White House firing Michael Flynn.
Special Counsel Robert Mueller has charged Flynn (full pdf below) with falsely telling FBI agents that he did not ask the ambassador “to refrain from escalating the situation” in response to the sanctions.
According to the plea, while being questioned by FBI agents on January 24, 2017, Flynn also lied when he claimed he could not recall a subsequent conversation with Kislyak, in which the ambassador told Flynn that the Putin regime had “chosen to moderate its response to those sanctions as a result of [Flynn’s] request.”
(more…)