iceberg
Diamond Member
- May 15, 2017
- 36,788
- 14,921
- 1,600
Key Takeaways From James Comey's Testimony Before Congress
this is from sharyl attkisson who doesn't play sides, just presents the facts as they are. they certainly don't look good for comey and company.
some of the highlights:
Hillary Clintonâs FBI interview
Comey said he doesnât know who drafted the questions for Hillary Clintonâs FBI interview. He says he didnât read them. The FBI didnât record the interview. Comey said he also doesnât remember why Clintonâs interview wasnât conducted before a grand jury (p. 38).
Comey said he doesnât know for sure why the witnesses in the Clinton email investigation werenât subpoenaed and questioned before the grand jury. He says the FBI investigative team deemed it unnecessary (p. 212).
Comey would later tell the DOJ Inspector General that prior to Hillaryâs interview he didnât think there was any âthere there.â (Comey says he doesnât remember saying this to the IG, but agrees he did say it because itâs reflected in a transcript.) (p. 39).
Comey says the fact that he drafted a memo concluding Clinton shouldnât be prosecuted, two months before her FBI interview, doesnât indicate that heâd prejudged the case before the facts were in (p. 42).
Comey says he doesnât know whether anyone at the FBI or DOJ shared the questions for Clinton in advance with her attorney Cheryl Mills or attorney Heather Samuelson (p. 211).
-----
The Democratsâ Steele âdossierâ
Comey says he never met Christopher Steele (p. 109, 114).
Note: Steele is the author of the anti-Trump opposition research âdossierâ that the FBI presented to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) court to obtain wiretaps on Trump associate Carter Page.
Comey says he doesnât know how long the FBI relied on Steele as a source and doesnât know the particulars of FBI agreements with sources (p. 109, 114).
Comey says that as FBI Director, he never knew that Steele worked for a political opposition research firm hired by a law firm paid by the Democratic National Committee. Comey believed Republicans had first funded the dossier prior to Democrats (p. 112).
Note: Republicans had begged off on the opposition research project prior to Steele being hired. Steele was hired under the Democrats.
Comey says he doesnât think Steele had any direct knowledge about collusion, coordination, or conspiracy between the Trump campaign and Russia (pp. 123-124).
Comey says heâs not sure how Steeleâs dossier got to the FBI. Comey says he doesnât know what steps the FBI took to verify Steeleâs information before or after the FBI presented it to the FISA court. He says the FBI was still âevaluatingâ the information months after using it in court. Comey says the FBI made efforts to identify Steeleâs sources, but he doesnât remember if they were able to (p. 115, 118).
Comey says he reviewed and signed the Oct. 21, 2016, FBI wiretap application against Carter Page. Comey says he didnât know details, he simply signed off procedurally. He doesnât remember if the paperwork was entitled âverified application.â Comey remembers the FBI alleged Page was working for or with the Russian government, but Comey doesnât recall if the application mentioned âprobable causeâ (pp. 113, 121, 123).
Analysis: The issue of âverificationâ of the dossier is crucial. Intel sources say presenting a single unverified fact to the FISA court violates the FBIâs strict Woods Procedures installed to prevent the FBI from obtaining wiretaps based on false or questionable information. There seems to be no recognition by Comey or anyone else of these important FBI rules or how the FBI apparently violated them. Comey appears to have taken a surprisingly hands-off approach in terms of oversight when it came to the controversial wiretapping of a political campaign associate in an election year.
When Comey signed off the wiretap, he says the FBIâs corroboration of Steeleâs information was âin its infancyâ or only âminimally corroborated.â Comey acknowledges he signed off on the wiretap as âverifiedâ even though the information was unverified. He said he did so because the information came from âa reliable sourceâ with âa good track recordâ (p. 126).
----------
Attorney General Loretta Lynch
Comey said the tarmac meeting between Attorney General Loretta Lynch and former President Bill Clinton five days before Hillary Clintonâs FBI interview was problematic and âpotentially inappropriate.â Comey acknowledges he didnât take steps to find out the substance of the conversation (pp. 33-34).
Comey says he also learned of âmaterialâ that, if made public, âwould be used to cast doubt on whether [Lynch] had acted appropriatelyâ in the Hillary investigation (p. 35). He did not say what the material entailed.
Context: Comey first revealed the existence of the Lynch âmaterialâ in his book. According to a report on CNN, the material may refer to discussions between Lynch and Clinton staffer Amanda Renteria or former Democratic National Committee Chairwoman Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz. However, Lynch has denied discussing âany aspect of the investigationâ with them.
Comey said there was âthe appearance of conflict or the appearance that [Lynch] was compromised in some fashionâ (p. 48).
Comey also said that Lynch should have recused herself from the Clinton investigation (p. 77).
Comey says he raised his concerns about Lynchâs objectivity with Deputy FBI Director Andrew McCabe, and that Lynch was subsequently âbriefed and interviewed about the nature of that materialâ by McCabe and others (p. 36).
Note: McCabe was battling his own appearance of bias with his wife, Jill McCabe, a political candidate, receiving a large amount of campaign funds from Clinton connections.
Analysis: Lynch, McCabe, Strzok, and Page were key players in the Clinton email probe who ended up with conflicts of interest or the appearance of bias. Comey expressed no concern over the question of whether Lynchâs tarmac meeting and refusal to recuse may have amounted to obstruction of justice.
------
and so much more they all did so wrong.
this is from sharyl attkisson who doesn't play sides, just presents the facts as they are. they certainly don't look good for comey and company.
some of the highlights:
Hillary Clintonâs FBI interview
Comey said he doesnât know who drafted the questions for Hillary Clintonâs FBI interview. He says he didnât read them. The FBI didnât record the interview. Comey said he also doesnât remember why Clintonâs interview wasnât conducted before a grand jury (p. 38).
Comey said he doesnât know for sure why the witnesses in the Clinton email investigation werenât subpoenaed and questioned before the grand jury. He says the FBI investigative team deemed it unnecessary (p. 212).
Comey would later tell the DOJ Inspector General that prior to Hillaryâs interview he didnât think there was any âthere there.â (Comey says he doesnât remember saying this to the IG, but agrees he did say it because itâs reflected in a transcript.) (p. 39).
Comey says the fact that he drafted a memo concluding Clinton shouldnât be prosecuted, two months before her FBI interview, doesnât indicate that heâd prejudged the case before the facts were in (p. 42).
Comey says he doesnât know whether anyone at the FBI or DOJ shared the questions for Clinton in advance with her attorney Cheryl Mills or attorney Heather Samuelson (p. 211).
-----
The Democratsâ Steele âdossierâ
Comey says he never met Christopher Steele (p. 109, 114).
Note: Steele is the author of the anti-Trump opposition research âdossierâ that the FBI presented to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) court to obtain wiretaps on Trump associate Carter Page.
Comey says he doesnât know how long the FBI relied on Steele as a source and doesnât know the particulars of FBI agreements with sources (p. 109, 114).
Comey says that as FBI Director, he never knew that Steele worked for a political opposition research firm hired by a law firm paid by the Democratic National Committee. Comey believed Republicans had first funded the dossier prior to Democrats (p. 112).
Note: Republicans had begged off on the opposition research project prior to Steele being hired. Steele was hired under the Democrats.
Comey says he doesnât think Steele had any direct knowledge about collusion, coordination, or conspiracy between the Trump campaign and Russia (pp. 123-124).
Comey says heâs not sure how Steeleâs dossier got to the FBI. Comey says he doesnât know what steps the FBI took to verify Steeleâs information before or after the FBI presented it to the FISA court. He says the FBI was still âevaluatingâ the information months after using it in court. Comey says the FBI made efforts to identify Steeleâs sources, but he doesnât remember if they were able to (p. 115, 118).
Comey says he reviewed and signed the Oct. 21, 2016, FBI wiretap application against Carter Page. Comey says he didnât know details, he simply signed off procedurally. He doesnât remember if the paperwork was entitled âverified application.â Comey remembers the FBI alleged Page was working for or with the Russian government, but Comey doesnât recall if the application mentioned âprobable causeâ (pp. 113, 121, 123).
Analysis: The issue of âverificationâ of the dossier is crucial. Intel sources say presenting a single unverified fact to the FISA court violates the FBIâs strict Woods Procedures installed to prevent the FBI from obtaining wiretaps based on false or questionable information. There seems to be no recognition by Comey or anyone else of these important FBI rules or how the FBI apparently violated them. Comey appears to have taken a surprisingly hands-off approach in terms of oversight when it came to the controversial wiretapping of a political campaign associate in an election year.
When Comey signed off the wiretap, he says the FBIâs corroboration of Steeleâs information was âin its infancyâ or only âminimally corroborated.â Comey acknowledges he signed off on the wiretap as âverifiedâ even though the information was unverified. He said he did so because the information came from âa reliable sourceâ with âa good track recordâ (p. 126).
----------
Attorney General Loretta Lynch
Comey said the tarmac meeting between Attorney General Loretta Lynch and former President Bill Clinton five days before Hillary Clintonâs FBI interview was problematic and âpotentially inappropriate.â Comey acknowledges he didnât take steps to find out the substance of the conversation (pp. 33-34).
Comey says he also learned of âmaterialâ that, if made public, âwould be used to cast doubt on whether [Lynch] had acted appropriatelyâ in the Hillary investigation (p. 35). He did not say what the material entailed.
Context: Comey first revealed the existence of the Lynch âmaterialâ in his book. According to a report on CNN, the material may refer to discussions between Lynch and Clinton staffer Amanda Renteria or former Democratic National Committee Chairwoman Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz. However, Lynch has denied discussing âany aspect of the investigationâ with them.
Comey said there was âthe appearance of conflict or the appearance that [Lynch] was compromised in some fashionâ (p. 48).
Comey also said that Lynch should have recused herself from the Clinton investigation (p. 77).
Comey says he raised his concerns about Lynchâs objectivity with Deputy FBI Director Andrew McCabe, and that Lynch was subsequently âbriefed and interviewed about the nature of that materialâ by McCabe and others (p. 36).
Note: McCabe was battling his own appearance of bias with his wife, Jill McCabe, a political candidate, receiving a large amount of campaign funds from Clinton connections.
Analysis: Lynch, McCabe, Strzok, and Page were key players in the Clinton email probe who ended up with conflicts of interest or the appearance of bias. Comey expressed no concern over the question of whether Lynchâs tarmac meeting and refusal to recuse may have amounted to obstruction of justice.
------
and so much more they all did so wrong.