The New York Times has a report this evening surrounding U.S. Attorney John Durham questioning CIA officials about the origination of the Trump-Russia investigation.
However, a closer look at the substance underneath the NYT reporting and it doesn’t actually look like Durham is questioning the CIA about the investigation itself; rather it appears he is questioning the CIA about how they came to the conclusions within the January 7th, 2017, Intelligence Community Assessment, or ICA.
(New York Times) […] Mr. Barr wants to know more about the C.I.A. sources who helped inform its understanding of the details of the Russian interference campaign, an official has said. He also wants to better understand the intelligence that flowed from the C.I.A. to the F.B.I. in the summer of 2016.
This is excellent news. Last week Michael Flynn fired Covington & Burling LLP as his legal counsel. Today it is being reported that Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn has hired former U.S. Attorney Sidney Powell.
This is an excellent development as Sidney Powell is one of the few legal advocates with a firm grasp on the surrounding dynamic. Additionally, Mrs. Powell is smart to the tricks and corrupt tactics of Andrew Weissmann and the assembled crew of Robert Mueller.
It will likely take several weeks for Powell to review the case file (must be rather large), and given the background of corrupt FBI activity, hopefully Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn and Sidney Powell can mount an offense. (more…)
Inspector General Horowitz is doing a FISA review based on the Carter Page application. However, if Michael Horowitz has started looking deeply into the DOJ National Security Division (DOJ-NSD), via their historic use of FARA definitions to submit Title-1 surveillance warrants against U.S. persons…. well, there’s a strong possibility such an IG investigation would take much longer than expected.
Additionally, if the Obama DOJ-NSD was using the appearance of FARA violations as the predicate for FISA warrant authority (now seems likely); and that sketchy predicate was the basis for keeping all OIG oversight away from the NSD (again, likely); then the entire political system in/around Washington DC would be opened as a target for surveillance.
Anyone targeted under such a sketchy legal predicate for lobbying violations, would unknowingly be carrying their Title-1 surveillance virus into every interaction. The downstream ramifications are almost beyond imagining….
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Judicary Chairman Jerry Nadler constructed a political hearing to kick-off their impeachment narrative and fuel their base. In an effort to create the appearance of hearing credibility the plan was to use testimony from former Nixon White House Counsel John Dean. The plan failed, miserably… Dean was showcased for what he is, a political prop for the left-wing base of MSNBC moonbats.
Committee members Jim Jordan and Matt Gaetz spotlight the ridiculous positions of Mr. Dean by highlighting his ideological history and presenting questions which showcase the absurdity of it all. First up, Jim Jordan:
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Following Mr. Jordan, representative Matt Gaetz: “the ghost of Christmas past“…. (more…)
Responding to a request from Chairman Jerry Nadler, Attorney General William Barr has sent a letter (full pdf below)explaining the scope of the DOJ review of intelligence activities in the 2016 presidential campaign. According to the letter AG Barr says the review is “broad in scope and multifaceted,” and includes examining actions by US and foreign intelligence agencies, “as well as non-governmental organizations and individuals.”
Here’s the letter: (more…)
Today the House Judiciary Committee led by Chairman Jerry Nadler officially begins the House Impeachment Hearings. Yes, these are impeachment hearings; they are just being presented under other names in an effort by Democrats to avoid the political fallout from holding impeachment hearings. They’ll get away with it because: (1) U.S. media are on their team; and (2) Leadership Republicans are idiots (and many also on the ‘D’ team).
The hearings will be broadcast live and -by design- carried on most media outlets. Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Chairman Jerry Nadler, having planned the approach for several months, name their impeachment kick-off event:
“Lessons from the Mueller Report: Presidential Obstruction and Other Crimes”
This interview is interesting from a few aspects. First, Carter Page states he was a long-standing source of information for the intelligence apparatus, specifically for the CIA for decades. Secondly, the framework by Page as outlined, and the underlying motive of the FBI to use him as an unwitting target for the FISA application, is essentially confirmation of our prior reconciled point on why the FBI exploited him. [Watch]
It never made sense that U.S. Person Carter Page was an FBI witness from 2013 through to March/May 2016 and yet in October 2016, to achieve a FISA warrant, the FBI called him an agent of a foreign government. [FISA APPLICATION] It never made sense until with more information about the Mueller investigation we realized the FISA warrant was essentially irrelevant; what the Obama intel apparatus needed for their “insurance policy” was The Dossier.
Fusion GPS was not contracted in April 2016 to research Donald Trump. The intelligence community was already doing unlawful NSA-database surveillance and political spy operations. They already knew everything about the Trump campaign. The Obama intelligence community needed Fusion GPS to give them a plausible justification, an insurance policy of sorts, for pre-existing surveillance and spy operations.
Fusion-GPS fulfilled that contract by delivering the Steele Dossier. (more…)
Fox News host Maria Bartiromo interviewed Mark Meadows earlier today on her Sunday morning show. This is quite possibly the most revealing interview so far this year on the Obama ‘Spygate’ and surveillance investigation. The interview is jam-packed with info.
Clapper and Brennan demanding protection for sources and methods, but at the same time they’re saying people weren’t spied on. … Well, you wouldn’t need to protect sources and methods if people in the Trump administration weren’t spied on.
The segment with Meadows begins at 18:37 [prompted, just hit play] and includes multiple new aspects including: •Weissmann/Mueller report collapsing under scrutiny. •New investigative documents likely mean criminal indictments. •New evidence of a “cover-up” within the FBI. •AG Bill Barr has firm disposition to provide accountability. •Expect significant delay in OIG Horowitz report (ie. Steele interview etc.). •FBI Papadopoulos covert recordings likely to be public. •Overall declassification delayed; likely no release prior to OIG report.
https://youtu.be/qCJa3MDqEaE?t=18m30s (more…)
HPSCI ranking member Devin Nunes appears on Fox News with Judge Jeanine Pirro to discuss ongoing political issues. During the interview Representative Nunes outlines the House hearings scheduled for next week.
The framework and purpose of this upcoming week is something we have outlined since January; democrats are forming the foundation for impeachment as a political tool. The comments from Nunes about impeachment hearings begins at 05:00 [WATCH]
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As we discussed last week, all of this is by design. Nancy Pelosi and the House Democrats are structuring a contempt vote against U.S. Attorney General Bill Barr for next week, June 11th. As part of the current construct, the Lawfare alliance of legal advisers and staff are writing specific language into the vote that will automatically allow more contempt votes against the Trump administration without hearings. (more…)
In federal court yesterday (Friday, June 7). In a FOIA case ruling (full pdf below) Judge James Boasberg was deciding public release over two issues related to the memos of former FBI Director James Comey. Backstory HERE and HERE.
Judge Boasberg was deciding what could be publicly released, meaning current redactions removed, based on two connected events: (#1) The content of the Comey Memos; and (#2) the declarations of lead FBI agent for Robert Mueller’s special counsel, David Archey, in describing those memos. CNN had filed a lawsuit to gain full access.
[Note: the descriptions of the Comey memos by FBI agent David Archey are known as the “Archey Declarations” – Read Here.]
For those who may not be aware, there are so many memos (dozens) when assembled they seem to make up an actual diary of moment-by-moment events, during the FBI investigation of Donald Trump, as documented by FBI Director James Comey. (more…)
