The release of the Durham report provides a helpful bookend to the Mueller report, a reminder that two opposing things can exist simultaneously in the universe, and yet another example of how America would benefit if both ends of the spectrum would clean their own fucking house instead of just pointing the finger:
Durham says the FBI essentially engaged in confirmation bias, especially on stories like the Carter Paige FISA request and the Steele Dossier. They went too hard, too fast and too far with available information, and that plays right into the hands of the GQP's ongoing rage against any government agency (unless that agency does something they like, of course, like Comey causing Hillary great harm right before the 2016 elections). So the Durham report is a gift to the GQP and keeps that whole conspiracy culture running at full speed. Way to go, FBI, it looks like you were pretty biased, and that looks like shit. This kind of thing has to fixed and stopped, now.
AT THE SAME TIME, the Mueller report manifested in indictments of +/- 30 people, including REAL RUSSIAN OPERATIVES, securing REAL CONVICTIONS of several Trump associates, from George Papadopolous to Paul Manafort to Mike Flynn to Rick Gates. So clearly there was communication between the Trump campaign and the Russians, and we know that the campaign was asking for Russian assistance on getting dirt on Hillary. Was their actual collusion, where plans were made and carried out? Mueller could not prove that, although he did say that a pursuit of Trump obstruction by Congress would be appropriate.
The final score on this? Yes, the GQP is correct that there was (and maybe is) bias at the FBI, and that makes it perfectly fair to wonder if that's just the tip of the iceberg. And yes, Trump and his campaign leaned on one of our two most dangerous adversaries for help in 2016. This cuts across our entire political spectrum, and denying/ignoring that only makes things worse.
www.reuters.com
Durham says the FBI essentially engaged in confirmation bias, especially on stories like the Carter Paige FISA request and the Steele Dossier. They went too hard, too fast and too far with available information, and that plays right into the hands of the GQP's ongoing rage against any government agency (unless that agency does something they like, of course, like Comey causing Hillary great harm right before the 2016 elections). So the Durham report is a gift to the GQP and keeps that whole conspiracy culture running at full speed. Way to go, FBI, it looks like you were pretty biased, and that looks like shit. This kind of thing has to fixed and stopped, now.
AT THE SAME TIME, the Mueller report manifested in indictments of +/- 30 people, including REAL RUSSIAN OPERATIVES, securing REAL CONVICTIONS of several Trump associates, from George Papadopolous to Paul Manafort to Mike Flynn to Rick Gates. So clearly there was communication between the Trump campaign and the Russians, and we know that the campaign was asking for Russian assistance on getting dirt on Hillary. Was their actual collusion, where plans were made and carried out? Mueller could not prove that, although he did say that a pursuit of Trump obstruction by Congress would be appropriate.
The final score on this? Yes, the GQP is correct that there was (and maybe is) bias at the FBI, and that makes it perfectly fair to wonder if that's just the tip of the iceberg. And yes, Trump and his campaign leaned on one of our two most dangerous adversaries for help in 2016. This cuts across our entire political spectrum, and denying/ignoring that only makes things worse.
Factbox: People indicted, convicted, investigated in Trump-Russia probe
U.S. President Donald Trump's former campaign chairman Paul Manafort agreed to cooperate with Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation of Russian meddling in the 2016 U.S. election as part of a plea deal, prosecutors said on Friday.
www.reuters.com
