Earlier this week the New York Times published a story revealing the FBI was not only spying on the Trump campaign, but had at least one FBI informant embedded within it. Further, the piece reveals the FBI didn't have enough evidence to open a criminal investigation into members of the Trump campaign, so a counterintelligence investigation was launched instead.
Counterintelligence investigations can take years, but if the Russian government had influence over the Trump campaign, the F.B.I. wanted to know quickly. One option was the most direct: interview the campaign officials about their Russian contacts.The Washington Post has published a similar story:
That was discussed but not acted on, two former officials said, because interviewing witnesses or subpoenaing documents might thrust the investigation into public view, exactly what F.B.I. officials were trying to avoid during the heat of the presidential race.
They said that anything the F.B.I. did publicly would only give fodder to Mr. Trump's claims on the campaign trail that the election was rigged.
The F.B.I. obtained phone records and other documents using national security letters - a secret type of subpoena - officials said. And at least one government informant met several times with Mr. Page and Mr. Papadopoulos, current and former officials said. That has become a politically contentious point, with Mr. Trump's allies questioning whether the F.B.I. was spying on the Trump campaign or trying to entrap campaign officials.
The story came just days ahead of the expected release of a Department of Justice Inspector General report about how the FBI handled the criminal investigation into Hillary Clinton's mishandling of classified information on her personal email server. Those who have followed the FBI saga closely have a theory about the timing and a new narrative:
Comment: The MSM sources such as NYT and WaPo, were puppets in the hands of those colluding against the Trump administration, choosing to protect the guilty and implicate the innocent - doing what they were told.
Justice Department's IG Horowitz found 'reasonable grounds' to believe there was a violation of federal criminal law in the FBI/DOJ's handling of the Clinton investigations, and has referred findings to US Attorney John Huber for possible criminal prosecution.
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