Editor’s note: this article was initially and accidentally published under the wrong byline. It is now published under the correct byline, Dr Lee Cary. we regret our error.
Ed
Part I focused on the introduction of the Durham Report where five, main opening queries of Durham’s investigation are listed, along with a brief statement that the answers would, at the end, be “sobering” to the reader.
Part 2 moves to the summary of the document’s ultimate findings in pp. 303-304.
“Throughout the duration of Crossfire Hurricane, facts and circumstances that were inconsistent with the premisethat Trump and/or persons associated with the Trump campaign were involved in a collusive or conspiratorial relationship with the Russian government were ignored or simply assessed away…Some of those most directly involved in the subsequent investigation had (i) expressed their open distain for Trump, (ii) asked about when they would open an investigation on Trump, and (iii) asserted that they would prevent Trump from becoming President…[O]ur investigation revealed that the stated basis for opening a full investigation ‘to determine whether individual(s) associated with the Trump campaign [were] witting of and/or coordinating activities with the Government of Russia’ was seriously flawed...[T]he FBI’s failure to critically analyze information that ran counter to the narrative of a Trump/Russia collusive relationship exhibited throughout Crossfire Hurricane is extremely troublesome. The evidence of the FBI’s confirmation bias in this matter, includes, at a minimum, the following information that was simply ignored of in some fashion rationalized away.” (Bolding added for emphasis)
In other words, the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s motive for Crossfire Hurricane was as corrupt, biased, and fraudulent as a set of loaded dice.
Durham reports a dozen examples that represent only a “minimum” of the “information that was simply ignored or in some fashion rationalized away” by Crossfire Hurricane operatives. The dozen are summarized below with occasional bolding added for emphasis.
1. Australian diplomats told the FBI that George Papadopoulos never claimed to have direct contact with Russians, nor did he provide information about any offer of assistance.
2. There was no information from the “Intelligence Community” to support the Crossfire Hurricane hypothesis of Trump collusion with Russia.
3. The FBI ignored significant exculpatory information provided by Carter Paste, Papadopoulos, and an unnamed Trump senior policy advisor during recorded conversations. (I.e., the investigators didn’t consider what they didn’t want to hear.)
4. The FBI failed to pursue investigative leads inconsistent with their theory of the case.
5. The FBI disregarded Page’s offer to be interviewed about allegations contained in a news article written by Michael Isikoff in Yahoo! News, dated 9/23/2016. Instead, the Bureau pursued FISA surveillance approval.
6. The FBI used unvetted/uncorroborated Steele Dossier content in several FISA applications, despite knowing there were conflicts between Steele and his main sub-source – Igor Danchenko. (More on Igor in Part 3)
7. FBI never asked Steele about having provided information to Michael Isikoff that accused Page of colluding with Russians. Instead, the investigators shifted the source from Steele to Steele’s employers.
8. “The FBI ignored the fact that at no time before, during or after Crossfire Hurricane were investigators able to corroborate a single substantive allegation in the Steele dossier reporting.” (Verbatim in the Report)
9. “There was a complete failure on the part of the FBI to even examine – never mind resolve – the serious counterespionage issues surrounding Steele’s primary subsource, Igor Danchenko.” (Verbatim)
10. FBI leadership disregarded the Clinton Plan intelligence while, at the same time: “(i) the Clinton campaign made public statements tying the DNC computer hack to Russian attempts to help Trump get elected, (ii) the FBI was receiving Clinton campaign-funded Steele Reports, and (iii) the Clinton campaign-funded Alfa Bank allegations were being prepared for delivery to the media and the FBI.” (So, the FBI was backstopping the Clinton Campaign that was ramping up the media against Trump.)
11. FBI investigators never interviewed Charles Dolan, a longtime Democratic operator with ties to the Clintons, who also had “significant ties to Russian government figures” who appeared in “the Steele reporting”.
12. The Crossfire Hurricane investigators provided partial, and/or misleading information, and, also, withheld relevant information from attorneys preparing Page FISA applications to the secret court.
Here is John Durham’s summary:
“[T]he FBI discounted or willfully ignored material information that did not support the narrative of a collusive relationship between Trump and Russia.”
It doesn’t end there.
Durham looks beyond his own analysis to that offered by the FBI Inspection Division Report that claimed the investigators “repeatedly ignore[d] or explain[ed] away evidence contrary to the theory of the Trump campaign…had conspired with Russia….It appeared that…there was a pattern of assuming nefarious intent.” That’s not the last word, though.
Durham isn’t done yet. He writes:
“An objective and honest assessment of these strands of information should have caused the FBI to question not only the predication for Crossfire Hurricane, but also to reflect on whether the FBI was being manipulated for political or other purposes. Unfortunately, it did not.”
Well, there is a contrary assessment of the one above.
It is also possible that the FBI Agents involved in Crossfire Hurricane, as well as the Bureau’s leadership, were not being manipulated for political purposes, but were themselves the manipulators.
…to be continued
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