More on Durham, the FBI, and Clinton vs. Trump; from Andrew C. McCarthy and Jonathan Turley
“Raw, unanalyzed, and uncorroborated.” Those words from the Durham Report summed up one of the most damning investigations in the Justice Department’s history.
In the 305-page report released Monday, special counsel John Durham concluded that the Trump-Russia investigation was launched without a required minimal level of evidence and shattered a host of departmental standards. Let that sink in: The Justice Department — as well as the media that covered it — effectively shut down a duly elected presidency, based on what turned out to be a politically engineered hoax.
That would make anyone angry. Really angry. Trump-level angry.
The fact is, in this instance, Donald Trump was correct when he said he was the target of a political hitjob funded by the Clinton campaign and maintained by virtually every media outlet. There is a word for that: disinformation…
In the end, it is not a crime to be unethical or incompetent, so no charges will be filed as a result of the report. Durham clearly hopes that the belated transparency provided by his report will produce greater future accountability. That may be the only naive aspect of his findings.
Of course, the FBI promptly issued a statement that it has — once more — reformed itself in light of its failures. But who really believes this is unlikely to occur again?
Turley points out that the Hunter laptop story has been lied about by the same people, and there’s really no end in sight:
Thus, Durham was left throwing haymakers in an empty political boxing ring — and those who perpetrated this scandal on the nation are left to carry on making money on books, speeches, TV commentary and lectures about political or electoral ethics. The media, meanwhile, is offering little more than a shoulder-shrug and more spin.
If anyone needs any reminder, Turley is not on the right and does not like Trump. But he’s usually fair in what he writes.
Andrew C. McCarthy is on the right but can’t stand Trump. When Russiagate began, he thought that people in the FBI and DOJ were going to be straight-shooters. But several years ago the scales dropped from his eyes, at least regarding Russiagate. Now he writes:
Among the most troubling conclusions in special counsel John Durham’s Russiagate report is that the FBI — even as it relied on Clinton-campaign-funded opposition research against Donald Trump that it failed to verify — ignored strongly supported intelligence that Hillary Clinton was intentionally smearing Trump as a Putin puppet.
To my mind, Durham is being too kind.
Perusing the report, I find it impossible to draw any other conclusion than that the FBI, and the Obama administration more broadly, did not ignore the intelligence about Clinton’s strategy but rather that the law-enforcement and intelligence apparatus of the United States government knowingly abetted Clinton’s implementation of the strategy….
Clearly, there was a Clinton campaign strategy to frame Trump. Yet the most sensible interpretation of the evidence Durham has amassed is not that the FBI, in evaluating its collusion evidence, failed to weigh intercepted Russian intelligence about that strategy. It is that the FBI was well aware of Clinton’s strategy, fully expected Clinton to be the next president, and helped implement the strategy, regardless of what Russian spies may or may not have thought about it…
The FBI knowingly treated Clinton with kid gloves. FBI lawyer Lisa Page warned the bureau’s senior intelligence investigator, Peter Strzok, to tread lightly in interviewing Clinton about the email scandal — fearful that, upon winning the election, Clinton would otherwise be vengeful against the FBI…
Durham documents that President Obama, Vice President Biden, top intelligence officials, Attorney General Loretta Lynch, and FBI director Comey were fully briefed by CIA director John Brennan on Russia’s assessment of Clinton’s plan to frame Trump.
McCarthy’s take on the FBI’s motive is interesting. Perhaps it’s even true. The idea is that the FBI wanted to curry favor with the next president, who would of course be Hillary Clinton.
But I don’t think that’s it, or at best it’s only a small part of it. For example, if they had thought Trump was going to be elected, would they have supported him and gone against her? I very strongly doubt it. I think their hatred of Trump and support of Clinton was motivated by two things. The first was their ideological kinship with Clinton. The second was Trump’s “drain the swamp” threat. They are part of the swamp, and he represented a direct threat to their power. And power is the name of the game.
Clinton and her gang are not concerned. They are laughing and congratulating each other.
They finally get to publically take credit for their political skills.
I wish Fullmoon was wrong, but I’m sure s/he’s right. “They are laughing and congratulating each other.”
Who can believe any longer in the fairness of our system of (in)justice, or in the integrity of our institutions? Who can believe that there will ever be any consequences for egregious misbehavior or for criminal actions by powerful and well-connected leftists? Who can believe that next year’s election will be “free and fair” and without interference, not from malign foreign actors, but from within our own corrupt and rotten government?
THE paper of record chimes in with an apt op-ed on the predicament created by, and facing, the media:
“Media Admits They Lied About That Russia Collusion Thing But Are Totally Telling The Truth About Everything Else”—
https://babylonbee.com/news/media-admits-they-lied-about-that-russia-collusion-thing-but-are-totally-telling-the-truth-about-everything-else/
Ah, but what IS Truth…anyway…?
I am thinking DJT was the upset of the Uniparty cart, oh Republicans and Democrats faint working against each other
But Trump finally showed they were not on the Conservatives side.
Why did Durham, after spending millions over all that time, not mention the perpetrators of the farce are aligned with our internal ‘Communist Cartel’ – for lack of a better term. Never mind… I know why.
Meanwhile Biden and Mayorkas and Garland are telling everyone who will listen that “white supremacy” is the greatest terrorist threat our nation faces.
Next will come the reminders that “if you’re not a white supremacist then you have nothing to worry about.”
Then, all the laws that have been slowly done away with concerning compulsory institutionalization of the mentally ill will be brought back, but only for mental illnesses that do not enjoy protected status. “White supremacy” will be the first “condition” that will qualify you for treatment, but the list will eventually grow to include homophobia, transphobia, xenophobia, and every other thing that the left regularly accuses the right of being, doing, or thinking.
This just shows you why you don’t have a government investigator investigate government wrongdoing. Durham didn’t lie by commission but rather by omission. Notice the weasel wording. But at least he pointed out that the legal system is corrupt and dishonest.
j e asks “Who can believe that next year’s election will be “free and fair” and without interference, not from malign foreign actors, but from within our own corrupt and rotten government?”
Well “there’s a fool born every minute” PT Barnum
“Let a man meet a bear robbed of her cubs, Rather than a fool in his folly.” proverbs 17:12
“America will never be destroyed from the outside. If we lose our freedoms it will be because we have destroyed ourselves from within” Abraham Lincoln
Skip on May 16, 2023 at 5:48 pm said:
I am thinking DJT was the upset of the Uniparty cart, oh Republicans and Democrats faint working against each other
Yes. Good observation. I have a daughter, an FBI agent 1 year from retiring. She hates and hated Trump but could not explain why,. Sh was visiting during his presidency and one morning was watching the Sunday talking heads. As I walked by, she said in an outburst, “Trump is so incompetent !” I stopped and asked her if 3% unemployment and 2% inflation was evidence of incompetence. “Yes !” she answered. To avoid a family quarrel, I waled on . There is no arguing with them. It is akin to religion.
I personally cannot watch his speeches and had no expectation of competency when he was elected. But he performed almost flawlessly until 2020. The pandemic intervened and his son-in-law ran his campaign incompetently. Scott Atlas’ book is pretty revealing.
mccabe fell effortlessly upwards, each time there was a disaster or even a near miss, up to comey’s understudy,
They thought Hillary was gonna win????????? Change their name to federal Bureau of Idiots.
They will do something similar every election until somebody goes to jail. The Dems win, the deep state wins and the MSM wins. And there is no downside.
These traitors are laughing all the way to the proverbial bank. No accountability. We will never have another free and fair election.
We are so comprehensively screwed.
And yet, even Turley, even Turley…
“…Let that sink in: The Justice Department — as well as the media that covered it — effectively shut down a duly elected presidency, based on what turned out to be a politically engineered hoax…”
HOWEVER, the boldened text should REALLY read, at least as far as the DOJ, the WH, the FBI—and last but not least Joe Biden and that exemplar of doing things “by the book”, Susan Rice: “…based on what THEY KNEW TO BE a politically engineered hoax…”
As for the Media, they didn’t give a damn—they WANTED to believe it and so they ran with it. (And HOW! did they run with it…with their 24/7 recycling of lies while PROTECTING the conspiracy) And so they were in up to their eyeballs with the conspiracy…for which they were duly rewarded and honored!!!!
Ah, Turley…Still, one does the best one can…
And from the “Most Transparent Administration EVUH…!” File (cross-referenced with the “Our Administration Has Been Scandal-Free” Dossier…
…You know, those paper trails can be so…damn…INCONVENIENT!!
Hey! Here’s an idea: Get RID OF ‘EM!!
Exhibit A:
” ‘Betrayal’: FBI Agents Working On Russia Probe Say Leaders Concealed Intelligence On Hillary’s Role;
” Order not to put anything in writing “was the most inappropriate operational or professional statement he had ever heard at the FBI,” FBI lawyer said.”—
https://www.dailywire.com/news/betrayal-fbi-agents-working-on-russia-probe-say-leaders-concealed-intelligence-on-hillarys-role
Exhibit B:
“The Durham Coverup;
“Did Ex-CIA Director John Brennan Doctor His Notes to Hide His Role in Russiagate?”—
https://leesmith.locals.com/upost/4011954/the-durham-coverup
+ Bonus:
“…61 hacks who should never be trusted again after Durham Report”—
https://twitchy.com/brettt-3136/2023/05/16/the-federalist-calls-out-61-hacks-who-should-never-be-trusted-again-after-durham-report/
H/T Instapundit (for all links)
Pingback:Instapundit » Blog Archive » IT’S CORRUPTION ALL THE WAY DOWN: More on Durham, the FBI, and Clinton vs. Trump; from Andrew C. M
Andrew McCarthy owes us all a deep apology. He is scum in my eyes. It was obvious from the beginning it was a hit piece on Trump. Why should we take anything he writes seriously?
Unbelievable…but true:
FB(G)I(GO), continued…
“Eight Takeaways From the Durham Report;
“Susan Schmidt examines the highlights and lowlights of the new Special Counsel report on Trump-Russia”—
https://www.racket.news/p/damn-thats-thin-i-know-it-sucks-the
H/T Powerline blog.
The whole investigation is essentially one forgery after another.
Did I say “unbelievable”?
Probably should say TRANSFORMATIONAL.
As in, OBAMA-ESQUELY Transformational…
…which has “evolved” (with more than a bit of strategic “fortifying”) into GROTESQUELY, BURLESQUELY, “BIDEN”-ESQUELY Transformation.
The only question is, can it be reversed?
That the country is in jeopardy is no surprise to those who have been paying attention.
That those who have been paying attention have been labeled white supremacist insurrectionists by the criminals who have hijacked the country…should also come as no surprise….
Mike K, I am truly sorry you failed as a parent. Hopefully you have a fulfilling hobby to distract your brain from the ringing in your ears
part of the other frame against general flynn,
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12090805/Ex-MI6-boss-says-revolution-end-threat-Putins-Russia.html
Mike K, I am truly sorry you failed as a parent. Hopefully you have a fulfilling hobby to distract your brain from the ringing in your ears
==
This remark is in poor taste.
And what of the Mueller 2 Year Star Chamber?
Interesting case of TDS – Trump tried to politicize the Doj?
Hmm… ny post owned by Murdoch. Michael Goodwin.
https://nypost.com/2023/05/16/the-deep-state-stabbed-donald-trump-in-the-back-during-the-2016-election/
There is no arguing with them. It is akin to religion.
==
I think the problem (and it’s one I live with) is that their social vision is a mass of inchoate sentiments. I think if they were in a classroom and told to produce an essay by an instructor, they might make some sense of it, but they’re not subject to intellectual authority on a mundane basis.
“This remark is in poor taste.”
100% agree, Thanks to Art for pointing it out
well the bot, is masquerading the corrupt jackass, who was in partnership with mcauliffe and is part and parcel, of the wrecking crew,
Similar to all the discussion about Hillary’s illicit acts…” there was no crime;” how is this not the very act of insurrection and coup? Last I checked, those were high crimes. Barr claims it’s enough that it was exposed; as if Congress or the DOJ will do anything to reform any of this.
its not a crime when they do it, there was a plumbers unit, it was called intertel, they protected the nfl and did favors for other parties, fusion went after not only trump but daleidens outfit that outed the grisly stem express,
And the Schiff Show continues…
“Schiff stands by Trump-Russia collusion hoax despite Durham report’s condemnation of FBI;
“While serving on the House Intelligence Committee, Schiff repeatedly made now-debunked claims about the evidence of collusion, some of which relied on the Steele Dossier, which itself was the product of the Clinton campaign’s opposition research.”—
https://justthenews.com/politics-policy/schiff-stands-trump-russia-collusion-hoax-despite-durham-reports-condemnation-fbi
Just another member—in excellent standing—of the Zombie Party…
Biden, Fetterman, the pantheon of sordid fantasists.—
+ Bonus!
‘ “Dianne Feinstein says ‘I haven’t been gone’ after nearly three-month absence;
“No, I’ve been here. I’ve been voting,” she said.’—
https://justthenews.com/government/congress/dianne-feinstein-says-i-havent-been-gone-after-nearly-three-month-absence
The most interesting part of the Durham report is how pathetic he is. He didn’t subpoena any of the bad guys. Didn’t subpoena the important records. Even a partial list of the names will shock you. Check out Steve McIntyre (climate audit) on twitter. Or see a tweet by General Flynn that sums it up accurately.
Compare and contrast the sledgehammer that was Mueller’s investigation with the pillows and backrubs that Durham handed out.
This was a deep state/Big Brother whitewash. Durham didn’t tell us anything we didn’t already know. And he did essentially zilch about using his vast powers to bring the perps to justice.
As shown by Turley, the NeverTrump Right has skipped the “It’s not happening, and it’s good that it is” stage and is sprinting to ‘It’s not illegal for the feds to smear a presidential candidate’. With friends like these…
I don’t have much to add other than a general commiseration on the death of justice in America. The Durham report didn’t really reveal anything I and many others didn’t already know or strongly suspect. It only added further confirmations. And the reactions to it only served to fully illustrate the how profoundly deep the corruption and systemic derangement currently runs in this country.
If only we had a legitimate Fourth Estate that wasn’t partially corrupted by biases, self delusion, and desperation caused by their gradually decaying cultural relevance.
If we had a tech industry that wasn’t almost entirely run by a pack of vicious plutocrats who hold normal citizens in contempt, and largely employed by deeply ignorant and indolant youth who act as useful idealogical idiots.
If only we had a federal justice apparatus (FBI, CIA, DOJ ect.) that wasn’t peopled with arrogant, amoral, careerist SOBs who also hold normal citizens in contempt.
And if only we didn’t have a distressingly large chunk of the populace who are evidently very easily bamboozled by the above corrupt powers, or at least are distracted by unimportant minutiae.
If only…
Matt Taibbi on the nightmare of the massive “Get Trump” cult during the Mueller witch hunt, the absolute hysteria that basically saw otherwise sane people transformed…and how intensely difficult it was to maintain one’s equilibrium while trying to navigate one’s way through the “Night of the Living Dead” reality that was conjured up and disseminated ubiquitously by the Clinton-Obama-Media-Infotech nexus.
https://instapundit.com/584950/
Ben @7:29 am: I’m wholeheartedly with you. McCarthy is among the worst of the never-Trumpers. He suffers from severe TDS and long ago squandered whatever little credibility he may have once had. Turley is barely better.
Yes, we were pretty sure all that was true all along; yes, the report doesn’t go far enough; yes, the MSM is playing crickets and the Schiff-head stands by his hoax.
Still, there’s a ray of hope in the fact that the report was actually issued. Some people will shift toward reality. The fix is not 100% in.
As a result of the release of Durhan’s report we can expect the following:
1. Nobody will be indicted or stand trial or even be punished. Maybe one or two guys (e.g. , Wray ) may quit, but they will move into far higher paying jobs in the private sector. Yep, that’s the “punishment” any of the culprits can expect.
Quel dommage.
2. Republicans in Congress will hold hearings which may (but highly unlikely) embarrass some of the scam ring leaders. They will lie, obfuscate and not recall anything of note and, as per the norm, nothing will happen to them.
It will all be a big joke.
3. Perhaps some brought before congressional committees will be “held in contempt.” This means that the committee members did not appreciate being lied to. Those held in contempt will not give a flying f**k because nothing will happen to them.
And that about wraps it up folks
Time to move on – yet again.
What I am hearing is that the agents at the main office in Washington are careerists and yes men who follow the lead of the higher-ups, and the investigation (if there was any) was turned over to newer and younger agents who weren’t experienced or properly sceptical, but who were thoroughly indoctrinated.
I’m not sure about letting the rank and file agents McCarthy counted on to be straight shooters off the hook, though. The indoctrination has been going on for a very long time. It may not be that hard for agents to pivot to investigating the latest supposed threat the higher-ups point to. In any case, there have been other cases of corruption in the field offices. That’s a different kind of rottenness, but still rottenness.
It sounds like Strzok, McCabe, and the rest of the conspirators aren’t grateful that they weren’t indicted.
Adam Schiff’s rendition of Russiagate in a nutshell:
“You may CLAIM that there is no clear evidence that you’re a wife-beater; but why would you have been investigated for beating your wife in the first place if you weren’t?
“And why would you have been investigated for years and years and years, at that?
“But you WERE, in fact, investigated for years and years and years—an INTERNATIONAL investigation, no less—at a cost of millions and millions of dollars, which investigation was dutifully reported by all responsible media organs, world-wide.
“Which proves beyond the shadow of a doubt that you ARE a wife-beater.
“AND It DOES NOT MATTER what evidence they found or didn’t find…. You CANNOT ESCAPE THE FACT that you are what you are.
That you did what you did.
Remember: Where there’s smoke there’s fire. QED.”
Abraxas – Mark Wauk, retired FBI, point is after 9-11 under Mueller the fbi changed focus to counter intelligence and centralized. And if you wanted promotion, you had to go to dc. The regional offices list power. So only those willing to move to dc, got promoted to higher management.
they were not very good at that goal. at least two chinese spies worked for mueller, there was an operative in the special forces, who was an open russian spy, who was given open access for nearly 20 years,