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A carefully redacted footnote within a report by FISA Court Presiding Judge Rosemary Collyer has always appeared to be a clue to a domestic surveillance program. Now details behind the redactions tell a concerning story. A brief refresher is needed for those new to the story. In April 2017 Judge Collyer wrote a highly critical FISA Court opinion following discoveries by Director Admiral Rogers of government contractors accessing the NSA database, and extracting illegal search results from the electronic records of every American. The scale of abuse was incredible [SEE HERE] and the surveillance issues had been covered up for...

The Trump administration's efforts to stop the use of H-1B workers by IT contractors suffered a major setback in court. This week, a federal judge ruled that the government exceeded the law. Trump administration has been denying H-1B work visa applications for IT contractors through stringent regulation interpretations. The IT contractors sued, claiming the administration's governance was too rigid. This week, the contractors won a significant court victory. U.S. District Judge Rosemary Collyer in Washington, said the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) "exceeded the law" and went too far in its interpretations of H-1B work visa rules. Her...

A judge has gutted the Trump administration’s minimal curbs on the many Indian-run companies that import Indian college graduates to take the jobs needed by young U.S. graduates.“A recent federal policy for employers that place H-1B skilled guestworkers at third-party worksites can’t be enforced,” according to a March 11 report in Bloomberg Law. Judge Rosemary M. Collyer of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia ruled Tuesday that a February policy memo from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services didn’t go through proper rulemaking procedure, and that the agency’s interpretation of the “employer-employee relationship” requirement is inconsistent with its...

Last month presiding FISA judge Rosemary Collyer announced she would be stepping down early due to ‘health issues.’ Chief Justice Roberts tapped Judge James Boasberg, an Obama appointee to replace Collyer. On Friday, Judge Boasberg announced in an order that he has appointed Obama-era national security leader at the DOJ David S. Kris as amicus counsel to review the reforms the FBI will be making to its FISA application process. This order was in response to the FBI abusing the FISA process after it obtained a total of four FISA warrants on Carter Page. The government had until Friday January...

FISA Court Neck Deep In Surveillance On Trump Campaign, Knew Of Application Issues, Report Carmine Sabia By Carmine Sabia Published December 26, 2019 at 9:49am The Deep State is a real thing, and with each new report or finding we discover that it is deeper than any of us have imagined. In the most recent case, it appears that the FISA courts were aware that the applications to spy on Carter Page, an aide with President Donald Trump’s campaign. After the report of Inspector General Michael Horowitz, the head of the FISA courts, Judge Rosemary Collyer, ripped into the FBI...

The FISA court has awakened from its deep slumber. Too damned late… and not enough. Finally, the FISA court has awakened from its deep slumber. Too damned late… and not enough. On Tuesday, presiding judge Rosemary Collyer issued an order slamming fired director James Comey’s FBI for presenting “false information,” concealing exculpatory evidence, and misleading the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court. But her judicial fix is feckless. She is now demanding that the FBI present the steps it will take to remedy these problems in future surveillance warrant applications. If this is her idea of a solution, it’s a joke. And...

FISA Court questions whether ‘information contained in other FBI applications is reliable’. Less than a week after Department of Justice Inspector General (IG) Michael Horowitz released his investigation detailing FBI misconduct in obtaining a FISA spy warrant on a Trump 2016 presidential campaign aide, the presiding judge of the FISA Court, Rosemary Collyer, issued a Four-Page Response Order on Dec. 17, 2019. This unprecedented order by the FISA court condemned—and verified—ongoing wrongdoing by the FBI in the entire approach to the FISA process. Judge Collyer’s order also highlighted just how serious these breaches of conduct actually were, and the potential...

Former FBI Director James Comey initially portrayed last week’s damning report on the bureau’s probe of Russiagate as a vindication. This week, Comey admitted that Inspector General Michael Horowitz discovered “real sloppiness,” which is “concerning.” That characterization does not begin to cover the problems described by Horowitz, which this week prompted a highly unusual public rebuke from the court that reviews secret warrant applications under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA). The FISA court called the FBI’s conduct “antithetical to the heightened duty of candor” that applies in such cases. Comey may take comfort in the fact that Horowitz didn’t...

During a stunning interview last Sunday Devin Nunes called for the FISA court to be deconstructed. In my opinion it was that statement, not the IG report, that spurred FISC Presiding Judge Rosemary Collyer to make a public order today. Today, hours after Judge Collyer released her order, Devin Nunes responded to the review of the FISC by stating, accurately, Judge Collyer doth protest too much. In this interview Devin Nunes outlines his February 2018 notification to the FISC about the specific fraud upon the court; and as a result of that (and a follow-up) notification, Nunes again takes the...

To fully understand today’s response order (pdf here) from FISA Presiding Judge Rosemary Collyer to the DOJ/FBI, a little background context is needed. As we noted, last weekend HPSCI ranking member Devin Nunes dropped the gloves and essentially stated the DOJ/FBI were conspiring against U.S. citizens with the wilful participation of the FISA court. This was a stunning, albeit unreported, development. Nunes change in posture is important because he outlined that without severe corrective action the FISC should be dismantled. Additionally, on the specific issues of fraudulent applications to the FISC, in February 2018 Devin Nunes and former Judiciary Chairman...

In a rare public order Tuesday, the chief judge of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court [FISC] strongly criticized the FBI over its surveillance-application process, giving the bureau until Jan. 10 to come up with solutions, in the wake of findings from Justice Department Inspector General Michael E. Horowitz. The order, from the court's presiding judge Rosemary M. Collyer, came just a week after the release of Horowitz's withering report about the wiretapping of former Trump campaign adviser Carter Page, as part of former Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election. "The FBI's handling of...

The secretive federal court that approved the surveillance of former Trump campaign adviser Carter Page on Tuesday accused FBI agents of creating a misleading impression about their basis for requesting a warrant and ordered the bureau to overhaul its process. In a blistering order, a judge on the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC) accused the bureau of providing false information and withholding materials that would have undercut its four surveillance applications. "The FBI's handling of the Carter Page applications, as portrayed in the OIG report, was antithetical to the heightened duty of candor described above," Rosemary Collyer, presiding judge with...

EVERYTHING After March 9th, 2016 Was A Cover Up Operation President Trump notes pending discoveries of the political surveillance and spy operations undeniably evident in the margins of the larger 2016 election story. https://theconservativetreehouse.files.wordpress.com/2019/04/trump-tweet-uk-intelligence-spygate.jpg ♦ President Trump can prove the July 31st, 2016, Crossfire Hurricane counterintelligence operation originated from a scheme within the intelligence apparatus by exposing the preceding CIA operation that created the originating “Electronic Communication” memo. Declassify that two-page “EC” document that Brennan gave to Comey. [The trail is found within the Weissmann report and the use of Alexander Downer – SEE HERE] ♦ Release and declassify all...

The background here is that any unilateral declassification by President Trump will end up putting him in opposition to a variety of corrupt interests. As a direct result he will be facing legal action from the legislative branch. With that accepted, here is the most strategic approach. All versions of the Carter Page FISA applications (DOJ) (FBI) (ODNI). All of the Bruce Ohr 302’s filled out by the FBI. (FBI) (ODNI) All of Bruce Ohr’s emails (FBI) (DOJ) (CIA) (ODNI) All relevant documents pertaining to the supportive material within the FISA application. (FBI) (DOJ-NSD ) (DoS) (CIA) (DNI) (NSA) (ODNI);...

FTA: Now, unbeknownst to us at the time FISA Presiding Judge Rosemary Collyer was writing a report based on NSA/FBI information given to her as part of a background FISA-702 review and reauthorization process. In April of 2017 that FISC report was delivered to recently confirmed Office of Director of National Intelligence, Dan Coats; who also received a supplementary briefing on the background of the content by NSA Director Admiral Mike Rogers. On April 26th that FISC report was partially declassified. [See Here] Here’s where it all connects. We know from Collyers report the FISA-702(16)(17) process was extraordinarily abused by...

WASHINGTON — The Trump administration has disclosed a previously top-secret set of documents related to the wiretapping of Carter Page, the onetime Trump campaign adviser who was at the center of highly contentious accusations by Republicans on the House Intelligence Committee that the F.B.I. had abused its surveillance powers. [Read the documents here.]

[JURIST] The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC) released two [Goodlatte, PDF] letters [Nunes, PDF] on Thursday stating that it would consider requests from two Congressional Representatives to release the hearing transcripts which caused former Trump advisor Carter Page to be put under surveillance. Representative Bob Goodlatte (R-VA) wrote to the FISC in January requesting the transcripts, and Representative Devin Nunes (R-CA) [official websites] sent a second letter at the beginning of February. Judge Rosemary Collyer wrote in her response that "the Court has never previously received a request from Congress for the contents of any specific FISA application or order,...

Moments ago FISA Court Presiding Judge Rosemary Collyer responded to the requests from the House Intelligence Committee Chairman Devin Nunes and House Judiciary Chairman Bob Goodlatte. (full pdf’s below – #1 and #2) There are nuances in each response specific to the statutory roles of each Chairman and the specific requests made by each committee.  Reflected in Judge Collyer’s responses is a need for careful consideration of each unique request.♦House Intelligence Committee Chairman Devin Nunes holds primary oversight authority over the aggregate Intelligence Community (IC).  Chairman Nunes has requested the transcripts from the FISA Court during the DOJ/FBI Title-1 surveillance...

Chairman Goodlatte has written a letter to Presiding FISA Court Judge Rosemary Collyer, requesting the FBI application documents that underwrite the October 21st, 2016, “Title 1” surveillance request against Carter Page. Goodlatte is cutting to the chase and requesting the underlying FISC material directly from the court as provided by the DOJ and FBI. The Goodlatte request presents a very interesting dynamic because Presiding Judge Rosemary Collyer was the FISC Justice who wrote the extensive 99-page opinion (based on the reporting by NSA Director Mike Rogers and the admissions from the Department of Justice) that outlined the intentional abuse and...

House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi said Thursday she is astonished by a judge's ruling that clears the way for a Republican challenge to President Obama's health care law to move ahead. Pelosi told reporters at her weekly news conference she's confident that Wednesday's ruling by U.S. District Court Judge Rosemary Collyer will be overturned. Collyer said the House can pursue its claim that the Obama administration violated the Constitution when it spent public money not appropriated by Congress. Republicans hailed the court ruling, and Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, said Thursday that "this victory sends a strong message that no one...