Thursday, October 4, 2018
Top FBI attorney provides ‘explosive’ testimony regarding Trump-Russia probe, suspected FISA abuse
James Baker, who served as the FBI’s general counsel until May, told Congress that a previously unidentified source provided information to the FBI for its investigation, which began on July 31, 2016.
“During the time that the FBI was putting — that [the Department of Justice] and FBI were putting together the [Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act surveillance warrant] during the time prior to the election — there was another source giving information directly to the FBI, which we found the source to be pretty explosive,” Ohio GOP Rep. Jim Jordan said after a hearing, according to Fox News.
As the FBI’s top attorney, Baker was directly involved in handling applications for the FISA warrants granted against former Trump campaign adviser Carter Page.
Baker was interviewed behind closed doors as part of a congressional task force’s investigation into the FBI’s possible abuse of the FISA process. Republican lawmakers have expressed concerns that the Page FISAs relied heavily on the unverified Steele dossier.
The document, which was funded by former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s campaign and the Democratic National Committee, was cited extensively in the FBI’s applications to spy on Page.
“Some of the things that were shared were explosive in nature,” North Carolina GOP Rep. Mark Meadows told Fox regarding Baker’s interview. “This witness confirmed that things were done in an abnormal fashion. That’s extremely troubling.”
Jordan and Meadows did not provide additional details about what information Baker shared or who the FBI’s source was. They said that congressional investigators were not aware of the source until Baker’s testimony.
Meadows said earlier on Wednesday that he has seen evidence that “confidential human sources” used by the FBI “actually taped members within the Trump campaign.”
“There is strong suggestions in that some of the text messages, emails, and so forth who was involved, that extraordinary measures were used to surveil,” Meadows told...
FBI CLEARS KAVANAUGH: White House Finds No Corroboration Of Sexual Misconduct In FBI Report
Republicans have a narrow 51-49 edge in the Senate, so two defections would doom the nomination. In the event of a 50-50 tie, Vice President Mike Pence would cast a deciding vote on Judge Kavanaugh’s behalf.
The Wall Street Journal moved a report early Thurdsday morning confirming the details..
The report said it was not evident whether the White House has finalized its review of the FBI’s reports of witness statements.
The White House said it would forward the FBI report to the Sen. Grassley’s Senate Judiciary Committee early Thursday.
The FBI probe was launched last Friday as the Judiciary Committee prepared to vote on sending Judge Kavanaugh’s nomination to the Senate floor. Mr. Flake voted yes, but asked for the FBI to be given up to a week for a supplemental background check into allegations by Dr. Ford and another accuser, Deborah Ramirez, who says Judge Kavanaugh exposed himself to her in college.
Judge Kavanaugh also denies Ms. Ramirez’s allegations, saying he has never sexually assaulted anyone and characterizing the assertions as a political smear.
FBI agents have interviewed three people Dr. Ford said were at the social gathering where the alleged assault took place. The bureau also questioned two friends Judge Kavanaugh named in his 1982 calendar, Tim Gaudette and Chris Garrett, known as “Squi,” according to their lawyers.
Democrats have already signaled they consider the FBI...
Here’s all the wins Trump got in the New Mexico-Canada trade deal
Politicians have been promising to end or renegotiate NAFTA for decades, but President Donald Trump achieved that goal Monday. Here’s what’s in the new agreement.
The 90 Miles Mystery Box: Episode #399
You have come across a mystery box. But what is inside?
It could be literally anything from the serene to the horrific,
from the beautiful to the repugnant,
from the mysterious to the familiar.
If you decide to open it, you could be disappointed,
you could be inspired, you could be appalled.
This is not for the faint of heart or the easily offended.
You have been warned.
Wednesday, October 3, 2018
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