Then-FBI Director James Comey acted on information that he knew was fabricated by Russian intelligence out of concern that a leak of the info could damage the credibility of the probe into Hillary Clinton’s use of a private email server, CNN reported Friday.
The Russian intelligence material related to a purported email exchange between then-Democratic National Committee Chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz and a Clinton campaign operative who suggested then-Attorney General Loretta Lynch would help quash the FBI’s investigation.
According to CNN, Comey used the purported emails in part to justify his decision to publicly announce that no charges would be brought against Clinton, in a remarkable address that also accused her of being “extremely careless” in how she handled classified information on her private server. Comey did not consult with Lynch beforehand, and the speech broke FBI protocol to never comment on closed cases where no charges are brought.
The Washington Post reported Wednesday that the purported emails originated from a dubiously sourced Russian intelligence document, the veracity of which was never confirmed by the FBI. Officials aware of Comey’s actions told CNN that he knew that the document was bogus, but still factored it into his handling of the case.
Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe went as far as to meet with the Senate Intelligence Committee on Thursday to inform lawmakers that the FBI had not been duped by dodgy Russian intelligence, according to CNN.
The report noted Comey himself brought up those emails months ago in closed-door briefings with Congress and expressed fear that, if made public, they could undermine the public’s faith in the outcome of the investigation and the independence of the DOJ. But he did not tell lawmakers that the veracity of the information was in question at that time, per CNN.
Obama should have fired him. And yeah… I know the GOP would have screamed bloody murder. I do hope that Mueller can somehow make amends…
That’s why it amused the shit out of me the way Trump fired him.
Not that this excuses Trump’s behavior in the least. I am perfectly capable of enjoying the sandbagging of one irredeemable douchebag, while being appalled by the motivations of the irredeemable douchebag that did the sandbagging.
Despite Josh Marshall’s odd insistence that Comey was TRYING to do the right thing, I feel that there’s enough evidence here to say pretty confidently that Comey did his level best to hurt Hillary and install Trump into the White House. And he was willing to tarnish his reputation and break protocol in the process. The only thing he WASN’T willing to do was put his ass on the line LEGALLY for Trump. There was no way he was going to risk his own incarceration.
Which is the real reason Trump didn’t trust him. Trump wants to surround himself only with people willing to sacrifice their own freedoms for him
So Comey acted on fake Russian disinformation because he wanted to protect the FBI/DoJ (and his) reputation by going out and throwing the election and thereby destroying his reputation.
Thanks a lot fucker.
And Republicans will still claim the Kremlin had no influence on the outcome of the Presidential race.
Of course, the GOP will scream at the top of its lungs about unfair election outcomes…
If Jon Ossoff wins that special election in Georgia.
Can anyone please explain to me how what Russia did is not an act of war?
And why the hell doesn’t almost anyone have their hair on fire about it? Frankly, I’ve seen enough. I’m not saying we need to go to war, but a strong response is required.