- Attorney General Jeff Sessions was questioned by Robert Mueller's office for several hours last week, according to The New York Times.
- This makes Sessions the first sitting member of President Donald Trump's Cabinet known to have been interviewed in the special counsel's Russia investigation.
- Former FBI director James Comey was also interviewed by Mueller's team last year. Investigators were reportedly interested in the memos he wrote about his interactions with Trump before he was fired.
- Sessions is a key figure because of his contacts with a Russian ambassador during the campaign, his role in Comey's firing, and his presence at a meeting in which a foreign-policy adviser for the Trump campaign pitched a meeting between Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
© Unnknown
Lou Dobbs just dropped a hammer on the FBI and Justice Department, calling for U.S. Marshals to arrest corrupt members of the DOJ's criminal cartel.
Yes, it has gotten that bad.
Dobbs called for a third-world approach to stifling and weeding out rampant corruption in the Justice Department.
This would likely be applauded by millions of Americans.
Comment: With each day, public is getting exposed to criminality of US deep state establishment. These are main stream news and no longer considered as conspiracy theories. See also:
TassTue, 23 Jan 2018 13:12 UTC
© EPA/SERGEI KARPUKHIN / POOL Press Secretary of the Russian President Dmitry Peskov
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Pavel Klimkin said earlier that Russia's proposal to return military hardware from Crimea was "a trick"Russian President Vladimir Putin's
proposal to return military hardware from Crimea to Ukraine does not require any additional official messages, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.
When commenting on a statement made by Ukrainian Foreign Minister Pavel Klimkin, who said that Kiev had not received Russia's official message in this connection and called the proposal "a trick," Peskov said that "there definitely may be official documents, including diplomatic notes, but an official statement by the head of state can only be views as an official proposal and an official initiative." "I don't know if any documents were sent through diplomatic channels, but I repeat that even if no documents were sent, there was no need to do that because the Russian president had made an official statement," Peskov added.
Comment: It doesn't seem like the Russians are very intimidated by the Ukranian Army, if they are willing to hand them back their military equipment.
More recent interesting items on Ukraine:
© Unknown
Disobedient Media previously reported on the Senate's passage of legislation that reauthorized a section of controversial FISA law. Since publishing that article, President Trump tweeted that he had signed off on the legislation, despite
widespread calls to veto the bill. FISA laws were initially
implemented in 2008 under President Obama, and were set to expire last week.
The Verge reported that Section 702 of the FISA Amendments Act provides the director of national intelligence and attorney general with the authority to surveil anyone outside of the country, and remains controversial.
The Verge added that, while it is designed to target and surveil non-US citizens, privacy advocates say that US citizens can get caught up as well. "This new bill includes some new provisions:
authorities can now access communications that simply mention the target, even if they are not the recipient of said message."
TassTue, 23 Jan 2018 13:02 UTC
Erdogan and Putin in a previous meeting
The two leaders also touched upon preparations for an upcoming Syrian National Dialogue CongressPresidents Vladimir Putin of Russian and Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey spoke over phone to discuss the situation in Syria, including near Afrin, where Turkey is conducting a military operation, the Kremlin press service said on Tuesday.
© CC BY 2.0 / Andy L
James Rybicki, a top FBI official who was once chief of staff to James Comey and current Bureau Director Christopher Wray, has reportedly resigned.
Ivan Danilov
SputnikWed, 24 Jan 2018 11:59 UTC
© Vladimir Astapkovich / Sputnik
In its latest "Asia insight" feature, Japanese news agency Nikkei speculates that Russia is "meddling" in Malaysia and other Asian countries with alleged "authoritarian streaks".
It seems that the fake news epidemic that struck Western media during the US presidential elections and the Brexit vote has spread to Japan. Nikkei cites two instances when Russia allegedly "filled the void" left by the Western powers, which chose to reduce their engagement with countries plagued by "creeping authoritarianism": Malaysia and Cambodia. It is curious that in Malaysia's case, the Japanese journalists claim that
Sputnik's cooperation with the local media is basically proof of Russian meddling, hinting that Moscow is seeking to influence Malaysian internal and economic affairs.
All accusations are based on a twisted interpretation of a single diplomatic visit by a Russian deputy minister. According to
Nikkei, "there are hints of Russian meddling in Malaysia, where the election is scheduled by August. Last month, the Russian deputy minister of telecom and mass communications, Alexey Volin, visited Kuala Lumpur to discuss cooperation between Sputnik, a Russian government-backed media company, and Malaysian player Bernama."
According to Attorney General Jeff Sessions, 50,000 text messages were exchanged between Peter Strzok and his mistress Lisa Page.
These 50,000 text messages do not include the 'missing' texts.Rep. John Ratcliffe (R-TX) said
after reviewing the new text messages he believes there may have been a "secret society" of folks within the DOJ and FBI working against Trump.
Rep. John Ratcliffe and Rep. Trey Gowdy spoke with Fox News on Monday after the news broke about the 50,000 new text messages.
Comment: It might not have been the best idea to talk about deleting the text messages IN THOSE TEXT MESSAGES. Hindsight is 20/20.
See also:
© AP; Ron Sachs/CNPJames Comey, Robert Mueller and Peter Strzok
During the financial crisis, the federal government bailed out banks it declared "too big to fail." Fearing their bankruptcy might trigger economic Armageddon, the feds propped them up with taxpayer cash.
Something similar is happening now at the FBI, with the Washington wagons circling the agency to protect it from charges of corruption. This time, the appropriate tag line is "too big to believe."Yet each day brings credible reports suggesting there is a massive scandal involving the top ranks of America's premier law enforcement agency. The reports, which feature talk among agents of a "secret society" and suddenly missing text messages, point to the existence both of a cabal dedicated to defeating Donald Trump in 2016 and of a plan to let Hillary Clinton skate free in the classified email probe.
Comment: The FBI seems like a time-bomb just waiting to explode, and it appears
the FISA memo is what it hinges on. We could see many people going down with this ship. It's about time.
RTTue, 23 Jan 2018 19:21 UTC
© Justin Sullivan / Getty Images / AFPU.S. Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI)
The FBI agent who investigated the Trump-Russia collusion claim sent a "jaw-dropping" text message suggesting that there was nothing to it, according to a Wisconsin senator who chairs the Homeland Security Committee.
Peter Strzok, formerly the deputy assistant director of the FBI's counterintelligence division, sent a text to his mistress, FBI attorney Lisa Page, on May 19, 2017 - just two days after the special counsel was appointed to investigate claims of President Donald Trump's collusion with Russia during the 2016 campaign. Strzok had led the investigation into Trump since July 2016, and had previously been involved in the probe of Hillary Clinton's use of a private email server.
"You and I both know the odds are nothing. If I thought it was likely, I'd be there no question. I hesitate in part because of my gut sense and concern that there's no big there there," Strzok texted Page, according to Senator Ron Johnson (R-Wisconsin), who read out the message on Tuesday during an interview with WISN-Milwaukee radio host Jay Weber.
Comment: More from
the Daily Caller:
In 'Jaw-Dropping' Text, Peter Strzok Expressed 'Concern' About Joining Mueller Team
Chuck Ross 11:05 AM 01/23/2018
...
Johnson released two pages of Strzok-Page messages from May 19, 2017. They show the pair seemingly discussing the new Mueller investigation and whether they wanted to join.
The messages show that Strzok and Page discussed the historical significance of the investigation and its potential impact on their career trajectory.
"A case which will be in the history books," Strzok wrote to Page in one text, adding that it was "maybe the most important case of our lives."
© Released by Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs CommitteeMay 19, 2017 text message from Peter Strzok to Lisa Page.
Strzok then appeared to try to coax Page into joining the Mueller investigation.
"You would obviously excel on the team," he said.
She responded by saying that she didn't "understand what they need me for!"
In another text, Strzok referred to his work on the Clinton investigation.
"For me, and this case, I personally have a sense of unfinished business," he said. "I unleashed it with MYE. Now I need to fix it and finish it."
"MYE" refers to "Mid-Year Exam," the FBI's code name for the Clinton investigation.
© Released by Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs CommitteeMay 19, 2017 text message from Peter Strzok to Lisa Page.
"You shouldn't take this on," Page then wrote. "I promise you, I would tell you if you should."
After several exchanges discussing their positions at FBI, Strzok suggested to Page that he did not want to take on the Mueller job because of his "gut sense and concern there's no big there there."
© Released by Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs CommitteeMay 19, 2017 text message from Peter Strzok to Lisa Page.
Comment: Thankfully, the Russiagate farce may come to an end sooner rather than later:
- Is 'Russia Collusion' Narrative About to Come Crashing Down?
- Finally, Russiagate is about to implode
Regarding Sessions testifying, see also (from November last year):Jeff Sessions testifies before House Judiciary Committee