Whitewash? IG Report on FISA Abuses by Obama Administration Will Disappoint the Right

Multiple media outlets are reporting that Justice Department Inspector General David Horowitz's report on abuses by Obama-era officials in obtaining FISA warrants to spy on the Trump campaign will almost certainly disappoint those who believe that political bias colored the FBI's investigation.

The IG report is due out December 9, but already it appears that there will be no recommendations for indictments of major officials who were in charge of the investigation.

Andrew McCarthy at NRO:

CNN adds that some of the witnesses interviewed expect the IG’s report will “find mistakes in the FBI’s handling of the FISA process, but that those mistakes do not undermine the premise for the FBI’s investigation.” The network describes that premise as the conclusion “that Russia interfered in the 2016 election.”

McCarthy thinks that Horowitz is missing the point if his criticisms stop there.

Of course, that only relates half the story — the uncontroversial half. The FBI’s full premise was that the Trump campaign was complicit in Russia’s election interference.

What is in issue is whether there were adequate grounds for suspicion of a Trump–Russia criminal conspiracy — enough to justify the FBI and the Justice Department in taking the fraught step of investigating the incumbent administration’s political opposition during a presidential campaign, exploiting such powerful counterintelligence measures as FISA warrants, the deployment of informants, and collaboration with foreign intelligence services against Americans who worked on the Trump campaign — the kinds of investigative techniques reserved for hostile foreign powers and terrorist organizations.

important point the state horowitz cant say with the errors that the warrants would not have been authorized due to the 99% plus approvals..1 either the applications were perfect or 2. the courts too liberal...needs follow up.

....During the next eight years, from 2004 to 2012, there were over 15,100 additional warrants granted, and another seven being rejected. Over the entire 33-year period, the FISA court granted 33,942 warrants, with only 12 denials – a rejection rate of 0.03 percent of the total requests....

They probably don’t. I’ll wait for the report.

However, It’s probably a lot easier to disappoint the right than to totally appease us. What we want is the full story and all the players and everyone who committed a crime prosecuted, every one who used poor judgement outed and shamed, everyone who was incompetent removed from office/position. And then controls put in place that this never happens again.

Trump says he’s been told it will be Historic and some very bad things were done.

Hope it’s not a historic April fools joke on Trump.

I thought that the principals involved -- and their lawyers-- were given the opportunity read and to add comments to the report.

Is any DC lawyer going to leak to the New York Times and the Washington Post that the report suggests that their client was engaged in a coup d'état?

Of course the lawyers are spinning leaks to help their clients. And of course the intellectually lazy reporters at New York Times and the Washington Post are eating it up.

We need to read the report to find out what is in the report.

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