Free Republic

For the past year, defenders of the FBI have consistently downplayed the significance of an FBI staff lawyer falsifying evidence in the government’s investigation into Donald Trump’s relationship with Russia. They argue Kevin Clinesmith’s crime of altering a CIA document to obscure the fact that former Trump campaign aide Carter Page worked for U.S., not Russian, intelligence was a rare lapse in judgment by an overworked bureaucrat. It was not, his apologists say, part of any broader conspiracy to conceal exculpatory information from surveillance court judges, who never learned of Page’s history with the CIA before approving FBI warrants to...

Trump-Russia probe promoters are now being recognized as top Biden administration officials, Rep. Devin Nunes alleged on "Sunday Morning Futures," as the California Republican criticized the appointment of Melissa Hodgman, the wife of former FBI agent and Russia investigation head Peter Strozk, to a key government position. Hodgman was named the Securities and Exchange Commission's acting director of the enforcement division on Jan. 22. Nunes said he can’t judge how she will personally serve in her new post, but said the background of Biden's appointees raises concern. "Looks like Peter Strozk is actually going to get reimbursed for all of...

To fully understand today’s response order (pdf here) from FISA Presiding Judge Rosemary Collyer to the DOJ/FBI, a little background context is needed. As we noted, last weekend HPSCI ranking member Devin Nunes dropped the gloves and essentially stated the DOJ/FBI were conspiring against U.S. citizens with the wilful participation of the FISA court. This was a stunning, albeit unreported, development. Nunes change in posture is important because he outlined that without severe corrective action the FISC should be dismantled. Additionally, on the specific issues of fraudulent applications to the FISC, in February 2018 Devin Nunes and former Judiciary Chairman...