Archiv: FBI-MI6-FISA-affair


04.06.2022 - 13:51 [ PBS.org ]

Clinton campaign lawyer found not guilty of lying to the FBI

(May 31, 2022)

Durham has remained at work into the Biden administration. He has brought three cases so far, though the one against Sussmann is the only to have reached trial. A former FBI lawyer, Kevin Clinesmith, was given probation after pleading guilty in 2020 to altering an email related to the surveillance of an ex-Trump campaign aide, and a Russian analyst who contributed to a dossier of Democratic-funded research into ties between Russia and Trump awaits trial on charges of lying to the FBI about his sources of information.

04.06.2022 - 13:42 [ ]

Hillary Clinton personally approved plan to share Trump-Russia allegation with the press in 2016, campaign manager says

(Fri May 20, 2022)

Robby Mook said he attended a meeting with other senior campaign officials where they learned about strange cyberactivity that suggested a relationship between the Trump Organization and Alfa Bank, which is based in Moscow. The group decided to share the information with a reporter, and Mook subsequently ran that decision by Clinton herself.

„We discussed it with Hillary,“ Mook said, later adding that „she agreed with the decision.“

30.10.2021 - 19:04 [ Glenn Greenwald / Rumble.com ]

The Mountain of Data Showing How Authoritarian Democrats Have Become

(video)

12.06.2021 - 07:11 [ CNBC.com ]

Apple says it didn’t know Trump’s DOJ was asking for Democrats‘ data when it complied with subpoena

Apple on Friday said it didn’t know former President Donald Trump’s Department of Justice was subpoenaed data on Democrats when it complied with the request.
Apple said it was under a gag order not to disclose the subpoena to the affected parties.
Microsoft also acknowledged it received a similar subpoena.

12.06.2021 - 07:06 [ ORF.at ]

Ausspähung durch Trump-Regierung sorgt für Empörung

Die „New York Times“ schrieb, Angehörige des Justizministeriums hätten 2017 und 2018 von Apple unter Strafandrohung die Herausgabe von Daten der Betroffenen verlangt – als Teil von Untersuchungen zu möglicher Weitergabe offizieller Informationen rund um die Russland-Ermittlungen gegen Trump. Apple sei zugleich verpflichtet worden, Stillschweigen über die Datenanforderung zu wahren.

24.11.2020 - 21:34 [ CharlieKirk.com ]

Schumer Flashback: „You Take On The Intelligence Community, They Have Six Ways From Sunday of Getting Back At You“

Sen. Schumer went on to say “he’s being really dumb to do this,” to which Maddow replied “what do you think the intelligence community will do”, Schumer says “I don’t know, but from what I am told that they are very upset by how he has treated them and talked about them.”

So in Schumer’s words, the intelligence community will get back at you if they do not like what you have said about them and they have the power to do it.

26.10.2020 - 09:12 [ Axios.com ]

Scoop: Trump’s post-election execution list

If President Trump wins re-election, he’ll move to immediately fire FBI Director Christopher Wray and also expects to replace CIA Director Gina Haspel and Defense Secretary Mark Esper, two people who’ve discussed these officials‘ fates with the president tell Axios.

The big picture: The list of planned replacements is much longer, but these are Trump’s priorities, starting with Wray.

26.10.2020 - 09:03 [ theHill.com ]

Trump has list of top intelligence officials he’ll fire if he wins reelection: report

President Trump plans to fire several top officials in the national security sphere should he win reelection in November, Axios reported Sunday.

The president plans to fire Defense Secretary Mark Esper, CIA Director Gina Haspel and FBI Director Christopher Wray, two people familiar with his decisionmaking told the news outlet. White House officials declined to comment on personnel matters.

26.10.2020 - 07:12 [ Washington Post ]

Biden relies on pattern of activity to blame Russia for release of data from what is said to be his son’s laptop

The Biden campaign’s decision to lean into accusations of Russian involvement in the episode, despite lacking specific proof, risks eroding public trust in U.S. allegations of foreign election interference if the suspicions in this case turn out to be unfounded, according to intelligence and foreign policy experts. Trump already has undermined such trust by casting doubt on proved Russian interference on his behalf during the 2016 campaign and denigrating U.S. intelligence officials.

23.10.2020 - 10:25 [ Nachdenkseiten ]

US-Wahlen, Medien und Manipulationen

Neue Informationen, die Joe Biden schaden könnten, werden nicht angemessen thematisiert. Neue Dokumente, die den Mythos von „Russiagate“ bedrohen, werden verschwiegen. Die Manipulation vor den US-Wahlen läuft auf Hochtouren – auch in deutschen Medien.

23.10.2020 - 02:31 [ theHill.com ]

Trump pushing to declassify document disputing intel findings on Russia: report

But two officials said their calls for declassification have been met with opposition from within the intelligence agencies, with some objecting that such a release would be too close to Election Day.

10.10.2020 - 12:18 [ USA Today ]

Trump lashes out at Barr after realizing inquiry into Russia probe won’t be public before election

Trump has ramped up his criticism of Barr in recent days as he seeks to make the origins of the Russia probe a major election issue. The president has long cast the Russia investigation as a political hoax meant to undermine him and has called for the indictment of his political enemies, including former President Barack Obama and former vice president and Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden.

10.10.2020 - 12:08 [ CNN ]

Pompeo says he will release Clinton emails following Trump criticism

„She said she had 33,000 e-mails,“ Trump told Fox News on Thursday. „They’re in the State Department, but Mike Pompeo is unable to get them out, which is very sad actually. I’m — I’m not happy about him for that, that reason. He was unable to get — I don’t know why. You’re running the State Department and you get them out. But they’re in the State Department.“

09.10.2020 - 14:02 [ Newsweek ]

Trump Authorizes All Russia, Clinton Email Probe Documents to be Declassified: ‚No Redactions!‘

(06.10.2020)

White House chief of staff Mark Meadows on Monday said Trump had „tasked me with getting some declassification rolling“ as the president was recovering from COVID-19 at the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center. Officials began releasing documents on Tuesday.

09.10.2020 - 14:00 [ CBS News ]

Former CIA Director John Brennan on ethics of intelligence, challenges to democracy

(07.10.2020)

– Recent declassifications by DNI John Ratcliffe: „I thought it was a outrageous, appalling and blatant act of politicization that he released, very selectively, some intelligence that was provided then to the Senate Judiciary Committee, which is right now engaged in, I think, a very partisan effort to try to debunk the necessary investigative efforts of the FBI that looked into Russian interference in the 2016 election.“

09.10.2020 - 13:46 [ CNN ]

Trump’s spy chief declassified unverified Russian intelligence despite concerns raised by CIA and NSA

(30.09.2020)

Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe declassified unverified Russian intelligence despite concerns being raised by the CIA and National Security Agency, according to people briefed on the matter.
Career officials in the intelligence agencies were concerned about declassifying the information because it was unverified and they believed it could reveal sources and methods. Ratcliffe overrode those concerns and sent the document to Senate Judiciary Chairman Lindsey Graham on Tuesday, the people sa

09.10.2020 - 13:45 [ CNN ]

Comey knocks Barr’s attacks on the Russia probe: ‚I have no idea what on Earth he is talking about‘

(30.09.2020)

Graham pointed to the documents declassified Tuesday by Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe — which summarized unverified Russian intelligence that Clinton’s 2016 presidential campaign was trying to „stir up a scandal“ by tying Trump to Russia — arguing they showed the FBI’s double standard in not investigating Clinton and Russia.

One Republicans senator even asked Comey about the Democratic allegations he had swung the 2016 election to Trump by releasing information about the FBI’s investigation into Clinton’s emails.

09.10.2020 - 13:44 [ Townhall.com ]

BREAKING: Newly Declassified Documents Show Hillary May Have Set Up the Russia Hoax

(29.09.2020)

“According to his handwritten notes, former Central Intelligence Agency Director Brennan subsequently briefed President Obama and other senior national security officials on the intelligence, including the ‘alleged approval by Hillary Clinton on July 26, 2016 of a proposal from one of her foreign policy advisors to vilify Donald Trump by stirring up a scandal claiming interference by Russian security services.’”

„On 07 September 2016, U.S. intelligence officials forwarded an investigative referral to FBI Director James Comey and Deputy Assistant Director of Counterintelligence Peter Strzok regarding ‘U.S. Presidential candidate Hillary Clinton’s approval of a plan concerning U.S. Presidential candidate Donald Trump and Russian hackers hampering U.S. elections as a means of distracting the public from her use of a private mail server,’” the letter continues.

05.10.2020 - 02:50 [ RealClearPolitics.com ]

Federalist’s Sean Davis: CIA Director Haspel Personally Blocking Declassification Of Documents That Will Reveal Truth About Russiagate

„Unfortunately those releases and declassifications according to multiple sources I’ve talked to are being blocked by CIA director Gina Haspel who herself was the main link between Washington and London,“ Davis said. „As the London station chief from John Brennan’s CIA during the 2016 election. Recall, it was London where Christopher Steele was doing all this work. And I’m told that it was Gina Haspel personally who is blocking a continued declassification of these documents that will show the American people the truth of what actually happened.“

30.08.2020 - 08:22 [ theGuardian.com ]

Outcry as US intelligence stops in-person reports to Congress on election security

An official in Ratcliffe’s office, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said on Saturday the office was “concerned about unauthorized disclosures of sensitive information following recent briefings”.

The move drew a heated rejoinder from House Democrats, who have focused on foreign efforts to sway the presidential election in 2016 and again this year.

30.08.2020 - 08:15 [ theHill.com ]

READ: Director of National Intelligence’s letter to Congress on election security briefings

„I believe this approach helps ensure, to the maximum extent possible, that the information ODNI provides the Congress in support of your oversight responsibilities on elections security, foreign malign influence, and election interference is not misunderstood nor politicized,“ Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe wrote in a letter to congressional committee heads.

30.08.2020 - 07:59 [ NPR.org ]

Director Of National Intelligence Cancels Verbal Election Security Briefings

In a joint statement released Saturday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Adam Schiff, the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, said Congress had been set for briefings on election security in mid-September. But briefings for members of Congress, including the House and Senate intelligence committees, by Ratcliffe’s office have now been called off, they said.

„This is a shocking abdication of its lawful responsibility to keep the Congress currently informed, and a betrayal of the public’s right to know how foreign powers are trying to subvert our democracy,“ Pelosi and Schiff said in the statement.

16.08.2020 - 05:53 [ USA Today ]

Trump says he will look ‚very strongly‘ at granting pardon to whistleblower Edward Snowden

In the interview, Trump justified talk of a pardon by again complaining about an FBI investigation into links between his campaign and Russians who sought to interfere in the 2016 presidential election. He said it was unfair that people like ex-FBI Director James Comey are free while Snowden is in legal limbo.

27.07.2020 - 20:07 [ SproutWired.com ]

Rep. Nunes on solution source for anti-Trump Steele dossier: ‘expanded our investigation’ into Brookings Institute

House Intelligence Committee Position Member Devin Nunes, R-Calif., instructed “Sunday Early morning Futures” in an distinctive job interview that “we’ve now expanded our investigation, full-blown investigation, into the Brookings Institute.”

27.07.2020 - 20:02 [ theGreggJarrett.com ]

The Secret Source Behind The Anti-Trump Dossier Is Finally Exposed

The fabulist behind the infamous and discredited anti-Trump dossier has finally been exposed. His name is Igor Danchenko.

He is not some mysterious Russian agent operating in the bowels of the Kremlin. Danchenko is a Ukrainian-born resident of the United States who worked as a senior research analyst for the Washington D.C. liberal think tank, Brookings Institution.

27.05.2020 - 21:07 [ CNN ]

Trump tweet throws House vote on government surveillance powers into doubt

The request to shelve the vote was the latest hurdle for legislation reauthorizing authorities from the 2001 Patriot Act that’s been squeezed both by FISA opponents who have pushed for more civil liberties protections and by the President and his allies furious over the role of the FISA court in the Russia investigation and the misconduct with warrants obtained on former Trump adviser Carter Page.

„I hope all Republican House Members vote NO on FISA until such time as our Country is able to determine how and why the greatest political, criminal, and subversive scandal in USA history took place!“ Trump tweeted on Tuesday evening.

27.05.2020 - 20:46 [ Journal-News.net ]

Handling of Flynn case should concern all Americans

Regardless of our political leanings, what happened to Michael Flynn should concern every American. While we should insist on details about his case, a more important question needs to be answered:

How many other people have been treated similarly by the FBI and other law enforcement agencies?

27.05.2020 - 20:41 [ theGreggJarrett.com ]

Former CBS Reporter One Of The First ‘To Identify Myself As A Target of Illegal Spying Under Obama Admin’

“I believe many, many others were spied on but do not know” said Attkisson. “It was only thanks to help from intelligence contacts that I even learned that government agents were spying me. Otherwise, I never suspected it or would have known.”

25.05.2020 - 21:33 [ Fox News ]

Mueller deputy Andrew Weissmann to headline Biden virtual fundraiser

Throughout the Russia investigation, Weissmann had been considered a “deputy” to Mueller, with conservatives regularly targeting him for his reputation of using aggressive tactics in cases, as well as his role in past controversial prosecutions. Weissmann helped to build the case against former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort.

20.05.2020 - 12:41 [ the Hill ]

Graham to release report on his probe into Russia investigation before election

Graham’s timeline, which was first reported by The Hill last week, would have him releasing a report on the committee’s probe only weeks before the November election, where Trump is set to face off against former Vice President Joe Biden, the presumptive Democratic nominee.

In addition to the Senate panel examining Crossfire Hurricane, the name for the FBI investigation into Russia’s 2016 election meddling and the Trump campaign, Graham has said that his investigation will also look at the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court, or FISA court.

16.05.2020 - 10:13 [ Radio Utopie ]

Geheimdienste-Ausschuss-Vorsitzender: U.S.-Dienste sammelten „versehentlich Informationen über U.S. Bürger im Trump Team“

(23.03.2017)

Am 12. März äußerte sich dann jemand, der Ahnung hat: Rand Paul. In der „CBS“-Sendung „Face the Nation“ rückte Rand Paul, unter vielem Hin und Her und Ach und jaa-nee, endlich mit der Sprache heraus (Links wurden hinzugefügt):

„Der Weg wie es funktioniert ist – das F.I.S.A.-Gericht, mittels Section 702 (Anm.: vom Patriot Act), hört Ausländer ab und hört dann Amerikanern zu. Es ist eine Durchleuchtung von Amerikanern durch die Hintertür. Und weil sie so viele Daten haben, können sie abhören — tippen sie Donald Trump in ihre gewaltigen Ressourcen (Anm.: Datenbanken) über Leute ein, die sie in Übersee abhören, und sie kriegen alle seine Telefonanrufe.

Und so haben sie das mit Präsident Obama gemacht. Sie — eintausendzweihundertsiebenundzwanzig Mal haben sie Präsident Obamas Telefonanrufe belauscht. Dann maskieren sie ihn (Anm.: anonymisieren seine Daten). Aber hier ist das Problem. Und General Hayden hat dies am anderen Tag gesagt. Er sagte, sogar niedere Angestellte können den Anrufer demaskieren (Anm.: die Daten wieder einer bestimmten Person zuordnen). Das ist vermutlich dass, was Flynn passiert ist.

Sie zielen nicht auf Amerikaner. Sie zielen auf Ausländer. Aber sie tun das absichtlich, um an Amerikaner heran zu kommen.“

16.05.2020 - 09:23 [ JustTheNews.com ]

Making of a myth: Timeline of media’s role in selling ‚Trump-Russia collusion‘ tale

Nov. 18, 2016:

Trump announces Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn as his choice for National Security Adviser. Over the next few weeks, Flynn communicates with numerous international leaders.

Nov. 30 – Dec. 28, 2016:

Two dozen Obama administration officials make requests to unmask the name of National Security Adviser designee Flynn, who was „incidentally“ captured by intel surveillance. The officials include: U.N. Ambassador Samantha Power, Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, and CIA Director John Brennan.

Jan. 5, 2017:

Obama chief of staff Denis McDonough requests Flynn unmasking.

Intelligence Community leadership, including FBI Director James Comey, Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates, CIA Director Brennan and Director of National Intelligence Clapper, provides classified briefing to President Obama, Vice President Joe Biden, and National Security Adviser Susan Rice on alleged Russia hacking during 2016 campaign, according to notes later written by Rice.

After briefing, according to Rice’s notes, President Obama convenes Oval Office meeting with her, Comey, Biden, and Yates. The „Steele dossier“ is reportedly discussed. Also reportedly discussed: Flynn’s intercepted talks with Russia’s ambassador.

16.05.2020 - 08:37 [ The Hill / Youtube ]

Saagar Enjeti: BOMBSHELL reveals Biden at center of Obamagate, media ignores

Saagar blasts Joe Biden for being among the Obama administration officials who „unmasked“ former national security adviser Michael Flynn, despite his wavering stance on involvement in the prosecution.

15.05.2020 - 15:32 [ Fox News ]

Rand Paul on Flynn unmasking: Biden committed ‚devastating abuse of power‘

‚It amounts to illegally eavesdropping for political purposes‘ says Rand Paul discussing new information that Obama officials unmasked Michael Flynn

14.05.2020 - 23:17 [ Real Clear Politics ]

Rand Paul: „Vice President Biden Is Guilty Of Using Government To Go After A Political Opponent“

Sen. Rand Paul called for acting Director of National Intelligence Rick Grenell to testify about a list of Obama administration officials, including Obama and Biden, involved in the „unmasking“ of then-incoming National Security Adviser Michael Flynn’s communications after the 2016 election.

Speaking to members of the press, Paul also said he wanted testimony from the officials on the list, including James Comey and James Clapper.

14.05.2020 - 23:00 [ AJC.com ]

‘He knew everything’: Trump demands that Obama testify in Flynn case

“Here is the concern: If you don’t have a national security reason, you’re basically spying on a political opponent,” the South Carolina Republican said on the news show.

“What is the national security reason to unmask Gen. Flynn in transition? I can’t think of one. But, I do believe, given their behavior, they’re looking to get rid of Flynn and if they used our intelligence apparatus to basically act on a political vendetta, that’s chilling to every American and would be very wrong.”

14.05.2020 - 22:56 [ Wall Street Journal ]

More Than a Dozen Obama Officials Requested ‘Unmasking’ That Identified Michael Flynn in Intelligence Reports

The list includes then-Vice President Joe Biden and former CIA Director John Brennan; the requests came after Russian interference in U.S. election.

14.05.2020 - 22:48 [ Fox News ]

Unmasking’ requests number in thousands across administrations, as pols demand details

The numbers reflect how frequently national security and intelligence officials use this tool in their work. Unmasking occurs after U.S. citizens‘ conversations are incidentally picked up in conversations with foreign officials who are being monitored by the intelligence community. The U.S. citizens‘ identities are supposed to be protected if their participation is incidental and no wrongdoing is suspected. However, officials can determine the U.S. citizens‘ names through a process that is supposed to safeguard their rights. In the typical process, when officials are requesting the unmasking of an American, they do not necessarily know the identity of the person in advance.

10.05.2020 - 16:53 [ the Hill ]

Senate revives surveillance brawl

The Senate is set to revive a fight over a shadowy surveillance court, bringing to a head a months-long stalemate that resulted in the lapse of three intelligence programs.

The looming debate, which will pit some of President Trump’s biggest allies against one another, comes on the heels of growing questions about the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) court after the Justice Department inspector general found widespread errors as part of an interim report on warrant applications.

10.05.2020 - 04:59 [ the Hill ]

McConnell urges Senate to reject changes to House-passed surveillance bill

(07.05.2020)

Under a deal struck by Senate leadership, senators will vote on three amendments: One from Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) preventing FISA warrants from being used against Americans, one from Sens. Mike Lee (R-Utah) and Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) on appointing outside advisers, and one from Sens. Steve Daines (R-Mont) and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) to prevent law enforcement from obtaining internet browsing and search history without a warrant.

10.05.2020 - 04:51 [ Reason.com ]

FISA Surveillance and Possible Reforms Are Back on the Senate’s Agenda

(07.05.2020)

Next week the Senate is poised to resurrect some federal surveillance powers that expired in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic. A handful of senators are hoping to force through reforms to better protect Americans‘ privacy.

10.05.2020 - 04:09 [ the Hill ]

FBI director in ‚hot seat‘ as GOP demands reforms

Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.), a member of the Judiciary Committee with oversight of the FBI, noted that “we’ve got a problem at the FBI.”

“Clearly, we had some people, and maybe still have some people, that don’t understand the rule of law, and nothing’s been done,“ Kennedy said.

13.04.2020 - 12:58 [ Chuck Grassley, US Senator ]

FBI Ignored Early Warnings that Debunked Anti-Trump Dossier was Russian Disinformation

WASHINGTON – The “central and essential” evidence used to justify invasive surveillance of an American citizen in the FBI’s probe into Russian interference was, itself, an example of Russian interference, according to once-secret footnotes declassified at the urging of two U.S. Senators. The footnotes, part of the Justice Department Inspector General’s postmortem of the FBI’s flawed operation to spy on Trump campaign aide Carter Page, were released just hours after Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Chairman Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) renewed their push for transparency. The senators expect a fuller declassification in the coming days.

(…)

“It’s ironic that the Russian collusion narrative was fatally flawed because of Russian disinformation. These footnotes confirm that there was a direct Russian disinformation campaign in 2016, and there were ties between Russian intelligence and a presidential campaign – the Clinton campaign, not Trump’s.”

The IG report detailed how the FBI’s application for a Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) warrant to spy on Page relied heavily on an unverified dossier compiled by former British spy Christopher Steele on behalf of Fusion GPS, which was conducting opposition research for the Clinton campaign and Democratic National Committee. According to Footnote 302, in October 2016, FBI investigators learned that one of Steele’s main sources was linked to the Russian Intelligence Service (RIS), and was rumored to be a former KGB/SVR officer. However, the FBI neglected to include this information in its application, which the FISA court approved that same month. Two months later, investigators learned that Glenn Simpson, the head of Fusion GPS, told a Justice Department attorney that he assessed the same source “was a RIS officer who was central in connecting Trump to Russia.” In January, the FISA warrant was renewed.

13.04.2020 - 12:12 [ Ron Johnson, US Senator / Wall Street Journal ]

Russian Disinformation Fed the FBI’s Trump Investigation

(10.04.2020)

Declassified footnotes to a Justice Department inspector general report show that the Federal Bureau of Investigation team investigating members of the Trump campaign received classified reports in 2017 identifying key pieces of the Steele dossier as products of a Russian disinformation campaign. This might be only the tip of the iceberg because other recently declassified information demonstrates that even more disinformation may have been planted in Christopher Steele’s reporting.

13.04.2020 - 11:54 [ Radio Utopie ]

Es sind natürlich die U.S.-Geheimdienste, die Trump erpressen (wollen)

(11. Januar 2017)

So etwas ist noch nie passiert. Die gesamte Situation ist präzedenzlos.

Das angeblich belastende Material, wie beschrieben angeblich von irgendeinem britischen Agenten, etc, ist bereits gestern auf Buzzfeed veröffentlicht worden. Es ist dermaßen ekelhaft, dass es einem die Schuhe auszieht. Und es wird mir schlecht, wenn ich sehe wie die Leute auf Twitter darauf reagieren. Offensichtlich wurde diese Fälschung, die als solche u.a. von Gateway Pundit und Wikileaks identifiziert wurde, nur mit einem Ziel entworfen: Trump anzuschießen und zwar so, dass er nie wieder aufsteht.

Trumps Reaktion ist, nun ja, fast etwas verwirrt. Im Laufe des heutigen Tages hielt er seine Pressekonferenz als gewählter Präsident ab. Allen Anwesenden war, nach meinem Eindruck, eine Art Schock über die Situation ins Gesicht geschrieben. Selbst der bemühte, ab und an aufbrandende Beifall änderte nichts an der gespenstischen Situation.

Während der Pressekonferenz übernahm Trump einerseits zum ersten Mal die Position der C.I.A. und äußerte hastig zwischen zwei Sätzen zur Frage, wer verantwortlich sei für den angeblichen Hack gegen die Parteizentrale der „Demokraten“ („Democratic National Committee“, D.N.C.),

„Ich glaube, es war Russland“ („I believe, it was Russia“)

Gegen Mittag hatte Trump andererseits zu dem veröffentlichten „belastenden Material“ getwittert:

„(Die) Geheimdienste hätten niemals erlauben sollen, dass diese Fake News an die Öffentlichkeit ´geleaked´ werden. Ein letzter Schuss gegen mich. Leben wir in Nazi-Deutschland?“

13.04.2020 - 11:41 [ Daily Caller ]

Oleg Deripaska Says He Hired Christopher Steele To Work On Research Project

(July 2, 2019)

Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska said he previously employed Christopher Steele, the author of the Trump dossier.
Deripaska said he hired Steele through his attorneys in London to work on an unspecific legal proceeding.
Steele investigated the Trump campaign on behalf of the Clinton campaign and DNC.

13.04.2020 - 11:31 [ CBS News ]

Footnotes in watchdog report indicate FBI knew of risk of Russian disinformation in Steele dossier

(10.04.2020)

Footnote 350 in the IG report addresses the FBI’s knowledge of Russian contacts with Steele and the potential for disinformation. Steele had „frequent contacts with representatives for multiple Russian oligarchs, we identified reporting the Crossfire Hurricane team received from (redacted) indicating the potential for Russian disinformation influencing Steele’s election reporting.“

The footnote also indicates that warnings to the FBI’s Russia probe became more pronounced over time.

13.04.2020 - 11:28 [ Washington Post ]

4 takeaways from the brutal new report on FBI surveillance

(31.03.2020)

The FBI’s surveillance of Americans including former Trump campaign adviser Carter Page isn’t exactly the issue du jour amid a global pandemic. But on Tuesday, a brutal inspector general’s report suggested that this will be something that the bureau and Congress will have to reckon with in the near future.

12.03.2020 - 12:38 [ Rand Paul, US Senator / Twitter ]

We must have reform and stop abusing the rights of Americans.

12.03.2020 - 12:22 [ Thomas Massie, Abgeordneter im US Repräsentantenhaus / Twitter ]

I just left the floor where I spoke out against the Patriot Act/FISA Reauthorization. Video below:

(11.03.2020)

12.03.2020 - 11:13 [ The Hill ]

Paul, Lee urging Trump to kill House FISA deal

Sens. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) and Mike Lee (R-Utah) are working to kill a House deal to reauthorize expiring intelligence programs and reform the surveillance court, throwing up an eleventh hour roadblock to the agreement.

10.03.2020 - 06:12 [ Rand Paul, US Senator / Twitter ]

I couldn’t agree more. Real reform or nothing this week.

10.03.2020 - 06:01 [ Mike Lee, US Senator / Twitter ]

The #deepstate spied on @realDonaldTrump . PATRIOT Act §215 makes it easier for the feds to spy on Americans. FISA should be used to stop foreign terrorists, not spy on U.S. citizens. Absent major FISA reform, we should let 215 expire this week! #Veto215

10.03.2020 - 05:12 [ Politico.com ]

House leaders near deal to renew federal surveillance powers

House leaders are closing in on a bipartisan deal to renew a set of federal surveillance powers expiring this weekend, but no final agreement has been reached, according to lawmakers and aides of both parties.

08.03.2020 - 11:51 [ theHill.com ]

Rand Paul looms as wild card in surveillance fight

Paul, a libertarian-minded Republican, is pushing for broader surveillance court reforms to be included as part of any bill that reauthorizes or extends the expiring provisions of the USA Freedom Act, a 2015 law that overhauled the country’s intelligence programs.

„The time is ripe now. It’s an inflection point. You’ve got Republicans coming around to this,“ Paul said.

06.03.2020 - 20:36 [ theHill.com ]

Surveillance deal elusive as deadline looms

Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said she is pushing for a reauthorization, not just an extension, of the three expiring provisions that deal with roving wiretaps, lone wolf surveillance and a controversial records program that allows the government to request phone metadata.

“We have to have a reauthorization,” Pelosi told reporters.

06.03.2020 - 20:31 [ Townhall.com ]

Fix the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court, and Punish the Crooks Who Abused It

Horowitz discovered premeditated fraud on the FISC by a DOJ attorney. In 2016, the attorney „altered“ email from „the other U.S. government agency“ (CIA) and submitted a fraudulent application for a warrant to the court. So the FISC approved the warrant.

The target: Carter Page, a Naval Academy graduate and a former Trump presidential campaign associate. Spying on Page — an innocent man — opened a door to spying on President Donald Trump.

06.03.2020 - 20:28 [ CBS News ]

Surveillance court judge bars some DOJ and FBI officials from warrant process

U.S. District Judge James Boasberg, the presiding judge on the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC), issued an order Wednesday setting out an additional framework for the Justice Department and FBI to follow in future FISA proceedings. The order specifies that „no DOJ or FBI personnel under disciplinary or criminal review relating to their work on FISA applications shall participate in drafting, verifying, verifying, reviewing or submitting such applications to the court.“

02.03.2020 - 21:01 [ ACLU / Youtube ]

Reform Our Surveillance Laws

Donald Trump must do right by Carter Page and all Americans by telling Congress to reform our surveillance laws to better protect civil liberties.

02.03.2020 - 20:58 [ theHill.com ]

ACLU, FreedomWorks urge Trump to reform ‚rogue FBI‘ as part of intel bill

The ad will air through Friday and is part of a six-figure, multistate TV and digital ad campaign to urge Trump and Congress to enact broader surveillance reforms.

Congress has until March 15 to reauthorize, reform or end three expiring provisions of the USA Freedom Act, a 2015 law that overhauled the post-9/11 Patriot Act.

29.02.2020 - 19:36 [ theHill.com ]

Trump upends controversial surveillance fight

Trump’s apparent support for including broader changes to the surveillance court associated with FISA comes as he’s railed repeatedly about his campaign being “spied” upon by the Obama-era FBI.

Progressives and libertarian-minded Republicans have long pushed to reform the court, arguing enough privacy protections and transparency aren’t given to individuals targeted for government surveillance.

27.02.2020 - 13:27 [ Axios.com ]

Inside the fight over FBI surveillance powers

Why it matters: Key measures in FISA — including the business records provision, Section 215 — are set to expire on March 15.

26.01.2020 - 04:27 [ ABC News ]

FBI says monitoring of ex-Trump aide should’ve ended sooner – ABC News

The FBI obtained a warrant in 2016 to eavesdrop on former Trump national security aide Carter Page on suspicions that he was secretly a Russian agent. The Justice Department renewed the warrant three times, including during the early months of the Trump administration.

27.12.2019 - 16:14 [ Radio Utopie ]

Wag the Russki

(11.April 2017)

am 30. März gibt die U.S.-Regierung von Donald Trump, wegen interner Machtkämpfe in Washinton im Zuge einer Spionage-Affäre und Ermittlungen des F.B.I. gegen den amtierenden Präsidenten wegen vermeintlicher Beeinflussung der Präsidenschaftswahl durch Russland schwer unter Druck, nach sechs Jahren Krieg und Hunderttausenden von Toten den Umsturzversuch in Syrien auf. Entsprechende Erklärungen erfolgen durch U.S.-Außenminister Rex Tillerson und die U.S.-Botschafterin bei den Vereinten Nationen, Nikki Haley.

Dann, am 4. April, nur einen Tag nach einem Attentat in St. Petersburg (nach welchem der russische Geheimdienst F.S.B. den zuvor beobachteten Kopf eines zentralasiatischen Einzelgängers aus der Tasche des „Selbstmordattentats“ zieht) und zeitgleich zum Beginn einer von „Europäischer Union“ und „Vereinte Nationen“ in Brüssel organisierten Syrien-Konferenz der Invasionsmächte mit rechtschaffenden Vertretern von insg. 70 Staaten, auf der die Bundesregierung nach 2,3 Milliarden Euro weitere 1,169 Milliarden Euro zur Verfügung stellt – „für die Opfer des syrischen Bürgerkriegs“ – tut jemand, wieder einmal, den Invasoren den denkbar größten Gefallen zu derem denkbar günstigsten Zeitpunkt.

Aus der syrischen Stadt Khan Sheikhoun (Ḫān Šayḫūn, Chan Schaichun) vermelden Propaganda-Stellen der Invasoren einen Angriff mit Giftgas bzw Chemiewaffen. 24 Stunden lang schweigen Regierung und Militär der Russischen Föderation und sondern dann unglaubwürdige, ausweichende Erklärungen und für die Propaganda der Invasoren leicht zu wiederlegende Lügen ab.

Belege für den tatsächlichen Ablauf der Geschehnisse müssen die Invasoren nicht vorlegen, da die russische Seite keine Gegenbeweise zu den entsprechenden Vorwürfen vorlegt, trotz aller vorhandenen Kapazitäten der Militäraufklärung. Stattdessen spielen Militär und Regierung der Föderation „dummer Russki, böser Russki!“, stellen sich als Sandsack zur Verfügung und spielen so den Kriegstreibern und einer weiteren Eskalation der Geschehnisse direkt in die Hände.

Einen Tag nach dem vermeintlichen oder tatsächlichen Massaker in Khan Sheikhoun stellt sich am 5. April der aus Russland mit so viel Hoffnung erwartete neue Präsident der Vereinigten Staaten, ex-Showmaster und Milliardär Donald Trump, zusammen mit dem König von Jordanien vor die Presse und dreht sich um 180 Grad wieder auf Kriegskurs – nicht nur gegen Syrien, sondern auch gegen den Iran, den er gleich mehrfach erwähnt. Gleichzeitig wird der Nationale Sicherheitsrat entsprechend umgebaut, der Machtkampf zwischen widerstrebenden Kräften in der U.S.-Administration zugunsten des geheimdienstlich-militärischen Komplexes entschieden und die Spionage-Affäre faktisch niedergeschlagen.

Es ergibt sich der Eindruck: Trump ist schlicht erpresst worden und hat einen Deal mit den ihm gegenüberstehenden Interessengruppen gemacht: namentlich die C.I.A., das F.B.I und das Pentagon.

Am Abend des 6. April streut die U.S.-Regierung höchstselbst Gerüchte über mögliche Luftangriffe gegen die syrische Regierung und ihr Militär.

Offensichtlich für diese ein Grund von den nun kommenden Ereignissen total überrascht zu werden, genauso wie die Russische Föderation.

Noch in der Nacht zum 7. April starten U.S.-Luftangriffe von Kriegsschiffen im Mittelmeer aus gegen den syrischen Luftwaffenstützpunkt Al-Shayrat. (Luftangriff: U.S.-Imperium nimmt Einladung Russlands und Syriens dankend an)

Von den vom Pentagon vermeldeten 59 Marschflugkörpern treffen bemerkenswerterweise angeblich nur 23 das Ziel und haben bei ihrem Einschlag nach Angaben vom russischen Verteidigungsministerium eine „extrem niedrige“ Effektivität, was Landebahnen, Zubringer und Stellplätze des syrischen Luftwaffenstützpunktes in Takt lassen.

Vor dem Angriff informierte das Pentagon den russischen Generalstab. Nach Angaben des syrischen Generalstabes, der nichts darüber sagt ob auch er vom Angriff vorab informiert wurde, sterben bei dem U.S.-Angriff sechs syrische Soldaten.

Anschließend sondern die Propagandaschleudern „Sputnik“ und „RT“ allerlei Erklärungen für ihre offensichtlich irritierte Kundschaft ab, was es denn mit der Vorabinformation vom „massiven“ Angriff der vermeintlichen Gegner im U.S.-Militär so auf sich hatte, warum keine russischen Soldaten getötet wurden, warum auf dem syrischen Luftwaffenstützpunkt nichts von Bedeutung zerstört wurde, warum von 59 Marschflukörpern nur 23 ihr Ziel getroffen haben sollen, etc, etc.

Nach viel Gewimmer und Gebrumm rückt die russische Staatspresse endlich damit heraus:

Es gibt schlicht keine Vereinbarungen über eine Verteidigung syrischer „Militärobjekte“ durch die russischen Streitkräfte – also weder so etwas wie einen Verteidigungs-, noch einen Bündnispakt zwischen Syrien und Russland.

Und noch viel „besser“:

Russland weigert sich auch zukünftig einen syrischen Stützpunkt oder gar Syrien insgesamt zu verteidigen, ausdrücklich auch im Falle von neuen U.S.-Luftangriffen. Das bestätigte gestern der Vize vom Auswärtigen Ausschuss des Föderationsrates.

Nur die eigenen Stützpunkte in Syrien, die werde man natürlich verteidigen.

25.12.2019 - 14:33 [ New York Magazine ]

Tulsi Gabbard and the Return of the Anti-Anti-Trump Left

What they share, in addition to enthusiasm for Bernie Sanders, is a deep skepticism of the Democratic Party’s mobilization against the president. The left’s struggle against the center-left is the axis around which their politics revolves. From that perspective, the Russia scandal and impeachment are unnecessary and even reactionary.

While incomprehensible to liberals, centrists, and even many leftists who work within two-party politics, left-wing anti-anti-Trumpism has a coherent logic. It takes as its starting point a familiar critique that Trump won because liberalism failed. Trump, while bad, is merely a meta-phenomenon of the larger failure of the Democratic Party and the political and economic Establishment.

18.12.2019 - 16:11 [ theHill.com ]

The Memo: Trump era flips script on views of intelligence agencies

Republicans — historically the strongest defenders of the national security apparatus — complain about abuse of power and the malignant influence of a so-called ‘Deep State.’

Democrats — traditionally more skeptical of the intelligence community — insist that the agencies are virtually beyond reproach.

On Monday, President Trump retweeted someone who called the FBI and the media “a criminal organization” and “tyrants.”

18.12.2019 - 15:55 [ Wikipedia ]

Church Committee

Vor dem Hintergrund des zunehmend unpopulärer werdenden Vietnamkrieges erregten mehrere einzelne Veröffentlichungen über geheime Aktivitäten der US-Regierung ab Anfang der 1970er Jahre ein wachsendes Interesse von Öffentlichkeit und US-Kongress.

– Januar 1970: Der Ex-Soldat Christopher Pyle enthüllt, dass die US-Army im eigenen Land Anti-Kriegsproteste und -aktivisten überwacht. Mitte des Jahres beginnt der Senat mit ersten Ermittlungen unter Sam Ervin.

– Ende März 1971: Die Washington Post und die New York Times berichten über illegale Programme des FBI, Überwachung und Zersetzung gegenüber Bürgerrechtsgruppen. Später wird bekannt, dass die Programme unter dem Namen COINTELPRO bereits seit 1956 liefen. Die Berichterstattung erfolgte auf Basis von Dokumenten, die durch die Citizens’ Commission to Investigate the FBI entwendet und an die Presse weitergeleitet wurden.

– Juni 1971: Die New York Times veröffentlicht trotz massiven Drucks der Regierung die sogenannten „Pentagon Papers“ über das langjährige und geheime politische und militärische Engagement der USA in Vietnam schon vor und während des Beginns des Vietnamkriegs.

– 1972: Eine Serie zunächst kleiner Artikel der Journalisten Bob Woodward und Carl Bernstein in der Washington Post enthüllt die Hintergründe eines Einbruchs in das Hauptquartier der Demokratischen Partei im „Watergate-Hotel“. Erst der Prozess gegen die Einbrecher im Januar 1973 legt die Hintergründe der Watergate-Affäre offen und löst massive Senatsermittlungen aus, geleitet wieder von Sam Ervin. Im August 1974 tritt US-Präsident Richard Nixon unter der Last der Vorwürfe zurück, nachdem ein Amtsenthebungsverfahren gegen ihn eingeleitet wurde.

– Dezember 1974: Der Journalist Seymour Hersh enthüllt in einer Serie der NYT die „Familienjuwelen“ der CIA, geheime Operationen zur Ermordung ausländischer Staatschefs und Putsche. Er erwähnt zudem massive Überwachungsoperationen der CIA gegen politische Gegner des Vietnamkrieges in den USA unter dem Codenamen Operation CHAOS.

Die USA hatten zu dieser Zeit keine ausreichende Erfahrung mit der Kontrolle ihrer erst im Zweiten Weltkrieg aufgebauten und seitdem nur ad hoc strukturierten Nachrichtendienste.

(…)

Die Ermittlungen ergaben auch, dass verschiedene Abgeordnete der beiden Kammern über einzelne Operationen informiert worden waren. Es fehlte aber an einer Koordination und klaren Verantwortlichkeiten, so dass die einzelnen Abgeordneten es vorzogen, in eine andere Richtung zu schauen.

Unter dem Druck der Veröffentlichungen erließ Präsident Gerald Ford die Executive Order 11905, ein verbindliches Verbot an alle US-Regierungsstellen und deren ausführenden Organe, ausländische Staatschefs gezielt zu töten oder derartige Operationen zu planen.

Aus dem Church Committee gingen die ständigen Ausschüsse zur Kontrolle der Nachrichtendienste im US-Senat (Select Committee on Intelligence) und im Repräsentantenhaus (United States House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence) hervor. Außerdem legte der Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act von 1978 fest, nach welchen Regeln die CIA im Ausland operieren darf und dass die Dienste für die Überwachung von amerikanischen Staatsbürgern die Genehmigung des neu eingerichteten FISC-Gerichtes bedürfen.

18.12.2019 - 15:22 [ Fox News / Youtube ]

Nunes: Democrats have put people in ‚tremendous danger‘

(15.12.2019)

California Congressman Devin Nunes, Republican ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee demands Schiff to call on IG Horowitz to testify before House Intelligence Committee.

18.12.2019 - 15:01 [ Fox News ]

FISA court slams FBI over surveillance applications, in rare public order

The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court has dealt with some of the most sensitive matters of national security: terror threats and espionage. Its work, for the most part, cannot be examined by the American public, by order of Congress and the president. Its work has been mostly secret, its structure largely one-sided.

„The most unusual thing is that there is a body of law that the court has created, but as a practitioner that is part of that law, we have between zero and some very limited knowledge of what that law is,“ Michael Sussmann, a former Justice Department prosecutor and current private attorney in the consumer and computer-privacy field, told Fox News. „But, it’s the fact that there is a secret law and a secret body of law that makes it the most vexing.“

18.12.2019 - 13:20 [ Donald J. Trump, President of the United States / Twitter ]

So, if Comey & the top people in the FBI were dirty cops and cheated on the FISA Court, wouldn’t all of these phony cases have to be overturned or dismissed? They went after me with the Fake Dossier, paid for by Crooked Hillary & the DNC, which they illegally presented to FISA…

(today)

….They want to Impeach me (I’m not worried!), and yet they were all breaking the law in so many ways. How can they do that and yet impeach a very successful (Economy Plus) President of the United States, who has done nothing wrong? These people are Crazy!
10,120 replies 12,033 retweets 44,359 likes

18.12.2019 - 13:08 [ Radio Utopie ]

Es sind natürlich die U.S.-Geheimdienste, die Trump erpressen (wollen)

(11.01.2017)

So etwas ist noch nie passiert. Die gesamte Situation ist präzedenzlos.

Das angeblich belastende Material, wie beschrieben angeblich von irgendeinem britischen Agenten, etc, ist bereits gestern auf Buzzfeed veröffentlicht worden. Es ist dermaßen ekelhaft, dass es einem die Schuhe auszieht. Und es wird mir schlecht, wenn ich sehe wie die Leute auf Twitter darauf reagieren. Offensichtlich wurde diese Fälschung, die als solche u.a. von Gateway Pundit und Wikileaks identifiziert wurde, nur mit einem Ziel entworfen: Trump anzuschießen und zwar so, dass er nie wieder aufsteht.

Trumps Reaktion ist, nun ja, fast etwas verwirrt. Im Laufe des heutigen Tages hielt er seine Pressekonferenz als gewählter Präsident ab. Allen Anwesenden war, nach meinem Eindruck, eine Art Schock über die Situation ins Gesicht geschrieben. Selbst der bemühte, ab und an aufbrandende Beifall änderte nichts an der gespenstischen Situation.

Während der Pressekonferenz übernahm Trump einerseits zum ersten Mal die Position der C.I.A. und äußerte hastig zwischen zwei Sätzen zur Frage, wer verantwortlich sei für den angeblichen Hack gegen die Parteizentrale der „Demokraten“ („Democratic National Committee“, D.N.C.),

„Ich glaube, es war Russland“ („I believe, it was Russia“)

Gegen Mittag hatte Trump andererseits zu dem veröffentlichten „belastenden Material“ getwittert:

„(Die) Geheimdienste hätten niemals erlauben sollen, dass diese Fake News an die Öffentlichkeit ´geleaked´ werden. Ein letzter Schuss gegen mich. Leben wir in Nazi-Deutschland?“

18.12.2019 - 12:49 [ Washington Post ]

Surveillance court demands answers from FBI for errors, omissions in Trump campaign investigation

(today)

The inspector general concluded that central to the FBI’s court applications for surveillance of Page were a set of allegations provided by former British intelligence officer Christopher Steele. The Steele dossier, as it came to be known, contained allegations against Trump, Page and other Trump associates, and those allegations have been the subject of intense political fighting since they became public in early 2017.

18.12.2019 - 06:29 [ Washington Post ]

FBI seeks interview with whistleblower who triggered impeachment inquiry

(20.11.2019)

The FBI is seeking an interview with a CIA whistleblower whose complaint led to an impeachment inquiry into whether President Trump abused his office in his dealings with the Ukrainian president, according to three people familiar with the matter.

18.12.2019 - 06:27 [ newsy.com ]

Reports: FBI Asked To Interview The CIA Whistleblower

(20.11.2019)

The FBI reportedly reached out to lawyers representing the whistleblower whose complaint sparked the impeachment investigation.

18.12.2019 - 06:18 [ theHill.com ]

Judge blasts FBI over misleading info for surveillance of Trump campaign adviser

„The FBI’s handling of the Carter Page applications, as portrayed in the OIG report, was antithetical to the heightened duty of candor described above,“ Rosemary Collyer, presiding judge with the FISC, wrote in the order released by the court.

The judge gave the FBI until Jan. 10 to provide the court a sworn statement detailing how it plans to overhaul its approach to future surveillance applications.

17.12.2019 - 21:16 [ Glenn Greenwald / Intercept ]

The Inspector General’s Report on 2016 FBI Spying Reveals a Scandal of Historic Magnitude: Not Only for the FBI but Also the U.S. Media

If you don’t consider FBI lying, concealment of evidence, and manipulation of documents in order to spy on a U.S. citizen in the middle of a presidential campaign to be a major scandal, what is? But none of this is aberrational: the FBI still has its headquarters in a building named after J. Edgar Hoover – who constantly blackmailed elected officials with dossiers and tried to blackmail Martin Luther King into killing himself – because that’s what these security state agencies are. They are out-of-control, virtually unlimited police state factions that lie, abuse their spying and law enforcement powers, and subvert democracy and civic and political freedoms as a matter of course.

17.12.2019 - 21:13 [ Fefe ]

Wie das FBI gelogen und betrogen hat, um einen Typen abhören zu dürfen. Bonus: Es geht um Carter Page, einen Trump-Mitarbeiter

Der zentrale Punkt hier ist, dass Geheimdienste immer lügen, egal wie gut und edel oder verderbt und böse die Partei ist, die ihre Lügen gerade als Basis für ihre Argumentation heranzieht. Das FBI wäre kein Stück vertrauenswürdiger, wenn es sich hier umgekehrt verhielte und das ein Obama-Mitarbeiter gewesen wäre statt eines Trump-Mitarbeiters.

16.12.2019 - 21:32 [ William Webster / New York Times ]

I Headed the F.B.I. and C.I.A. There’s a Dire Threat to the Country I Love.

(today)

The privilege of being the only American in our history to serve as the director of both the F.B.I. and the C.I.A. gives me a unique perspective and a responsibility to speak out about a dire threat to the rule of law in the country I love. Order protects liberty, and liberty protects order. Today, the integrity of the institutions that protect our civil order is, tragically, under assault from too many people whose job it should be to protect them.

The rule of law is the bedrock of American democracy, the principle that protects every American from the abuse of monarchs, despots and tyrants. Every American should demand that our leaders put the rule of law above politics.

14.12.2019 - 09:46 [ theHill.com ]

Senate Republican calls on Trump to declassify record on FBI surveillance of campaign adviser

“The Inspector General report showed the FBI was willing to do anything in order to spy on Carter Page, including making 17 significant inaccuracies and omissions. The American public deserves to know everything the FBI did,” Kennedy said in a statement Friday.

“I’m asking President Trump to declassify the entire record so that Attorney General Barr and FBI Director Wray can release it to the American people. If the FBI wants to continue the employment of rogue, politically-motivated agents, then let the public read the entire record.”

12.12.2019 - 09:21 [ New York Times ]

We Just Got a Rare Look at National Security Surveillance. It Was Ugly.

At more than 400 pages, the study amounted to the most searching look ever at the government’s secretive system for carrying out national-security surveillance on American soil. And what the report showed was not pretty.

The Justice Department’s independent inspector general, Michael E. Horowitz, and his team uncovered a staggeringly dysfunctional and error-ridden process in how the F.B.I. went about obtaining and renewing court permission under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, or FISA, to wiretap Carter Page, a former Trump campaign adviser.

11.12.2019 - 19:25 [ theHill.com ]

Horowitz: ‚Very concerned‘ about FBI leaks to Giuliani

„As we noted publicly last year in our report, we were very concerned about that,“ Horowitz said at Wednesday’s Senate Judiciary Committee hearing.

„We are investigating those contacts. We’ve issued a couple of public summaries so far about people we’ve found violated FBI policy. We have other investigations ongoing,“ Horowitz continued.

He added that, while it has been hard to prove the substance of conversations between FBI and reporters or outside individuals, “we can prove the contacts.“

„Under FBI policy you need authorization if you’re going to disclose information and have certain contacts,“ he said.