Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) on July 31 launched a declassified annex to former particular counsel John Durham’s 2023 report on the FBI’s investigation into allegations of Trump marketing campaign–Russia ties.
In keeping with statements by Grassley, Lawyer Basic Pam Bondi, and CIA Director John Ratcliffe, the report means that the Hillary Clinton marketing campaign sought to falsely declare that then-Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump had ties with the Russian authorities, whereas the FBI failed to research the matter.
“Right this moment, the Division of Justice supplied Chairman Grassley with beforehand labeled info referring to Particular Counsel Durham’s investigation into doable coordination between the Clinton marketing campaign and the Obama administration to intervene with the 2016 presidential election,” Bondi stated in a press release.
Her assertion was echoed by Ratcliffe.
Info within the Durham annex, Ratcliffe stated, exhibits that there was “a coordinated plan to stop and destroy Donald Trump’s presidency” throughout his first time period.
In one of many now-declassified memos, it stated that the Clinton marketing campaign “accredited a plan proposed by one among her international coverage advisors … to ‘smear Donald Trump by magnifying the scandal tied to the intrusion by the Russian particular providers within the pre-election course of to learn the Republican candidate.’”
That info was uncovered by Durham throughout his probe of the FBI and different intelligence actions throughout that election.
“Based mostly on the Durham annex, the Obama FBI didn’t adequately evaluation and examine intelligence reviews exhibiting the Clinton marketing campaign could have been ginning up the pretend Trump–Russia narrative for Clinton’s political acquire, which was in the end executed by the Steele File and different means,” Grassley stated in a statement.
Grassley described it as “one of many largest political scandals and cover-ups in American historical past.”
“The brand new Trump administration has an amazing accountability to the American individuals to repair the injury executed and accomplish that with most velocity and transparency,” he stated.
In keeping with the senator, the FBI additionally failed to research whether or not Clinton marketing campaign officers got here up with the Russia collusion narrative, which turned a heavy focus of media shops through the preliminary levels of Trump’s first time period in workplace. He additionally faulted the bureau for utilizing a now-discredited file created by former UK spy Christopher Steele to acquire surveillance warrants focusing on 2016 Trump marketing campaign aide Carter Web page.
The Durham Report, launched in Might 2023, was the fruits of a four-year investigation led by Durham into the FBI’s probe of alleged ties between Trump’s 2016 marketing campaign and Russia. Clinton testified to Durham below oath, as did officers who have been in high intelligence positions through the 2016 elections.
Durham probed the FBI’s investigation into Trump and located that it was triggered by unverified intelligence. He later told lawmakers after the report was launched in 2023 that “primarily based on our investigation, it isn’t a respectable foundation to open a full investigation.”
The Epoch Occasions contacted Clinton’s workplace for touch upon Thursday.
Zachary Stieber contributed to this report.
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