DOJ Inspector General Has Finished FISA Abuse Investigation
By Daily Wire. Justice Department (DOJ) Inspector General Michael Horowitz has finished his investigation into the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) abuses during the 2016 election committed by then-President Barack Obama’s DOJ and, specifically, the FBI.
Horowitz wrote a letter to congressional leaders to inform them that his team of investigators was in the process of finalizing the report — and preparing to turn it over to the DOJ and FBI so that classified material could be redacted.
Fox News reports: “Horowitz and his investigators have probed how the infamous, anti-Trump dossier compiled by former British spy Christopher Steele was used to secure the original Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) warrant for former Trump aide Carter Page in October 2016, as well as for three renewals. Horowitz’s team has questioned why the FBI considered Steele a credible source, and why the bureau seemed to use news reports to bolster Steele’s credibility.”
“I am writing in connection with the [DOJ] Office of the Inspector General’s ongoing Examination of the [DOJ] and the FBI’s Compliance with Legal Requirements and Policies in Applications Filed with the U.S. Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court Relating to a certain U.S. person,” Horowitz wrote in his letter, adding, “the team has reviewed over one million records and conducted over 100 interviews, including several of witnesses who only recently agreed to be interviewed.”
“We have now begun the process of finalizing our report by providing a draft of our factual findings to the [DOJ] and the FBI for classification determination and marking,” Horowitz continued. “This step is consistent with our process for reports such as this one that involve classified material. Once we receive the marked document back from the [DOJ] and the FBI, we will then proceed with our usual process for preparing final draft public and classified reports, and ensuring that appropriate reviews occur for accuracy and comment purposes.”
#FISA oversight falls squarely within the Judiciary Committee’s jurisdiction. We must address concerns outlined in the IG’s report. I'm calling on the chairman to schedule a hearing as soon as possible after Congress receives the report.https://t.co/FIyuI7nXDb
— Rep. Doug Collins (@RepDougCollins) September 13, 2019
(Read more from “DOJ Inspector General Has Finished FISA Abuse Investigation” HERE)
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FISA Abuse Investigation Completed
By Washington Examiner. . .Horowitz’s team examined the FISA application and three renewals beginning in October 2016 to surveil former Trump campaign adviser Carter Page. The applications relied on the unverified dossier compiled by British ex-spy Christopher Steele, who was hired by opposition research firm Fusion GPS and funded by Democrats.
Republicans have alleged the FBI and the Justice Department misled the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court about the dossier’s Democratic benefactors, which included Hillary Clinton’s 2016 campaign and the Democratic National Committee, and its author’s anti-Trump bias were left out of the FISA applications, and they have demanded accountability. Democrats countered that the FBI acted appropriately, saying the Justice Department and the FBI met the rigor, transparency, and evidentiary basis for probable cause.
Meanwhile, Barr’s “investigation into the investigators” is underway, and the attorney general has said he is working very closely with Horowitz. The inspector general can recommend prosecutions, and U.S. Attorney John Durham, whom Barr tasked to lead the review of the origins of the Russia investigation, has the ability to convene a grand jury and subpoena people outside the government.
Collins said his committee “must act swiftly to address concerns outlined in the Inspector General’s report” and implored Judiciary Chairman Jerry Nadler to hold a hearing with Horowitz and FBI Director Christopher Wray. Nadler, confronted by GOP Rep. Jim Jordan earlier this week, said a hearing with Horowitz will happen at the “appropriate time.”
The FISA filings required approval from top members of the FBI and the Justice Department; targets of Horowitz’s inquiry likely included the approvers of the four applications and renewals: former FBI Director James Comey; former Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates; Dana Boente, the only signatory in active government service and currently Trump’s top lawyer at the FBI; then-FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe; and then-Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, who appointed former FBI Director Robert Mueller to be special counsel the month before. (Read more from “FISA Abuse Investigation Completed” HERE)
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