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Grassley-Graham Letter to Susan Rice re Obama Meeting on Trump-Russia Collusion
United States Senate Committee of the Judiciary ^ | 189/2018 | Sen. Charles Grassley and Sen. Lindsey Graham

Posted on 02/12/2018 1:04:34 PM PST by mojito

February 8, 2018

The Honorable Susan Rice Senior Fellow, Belfer Center Harvard University 79 John F. Kennedy Street Cambridge, MA 02138

c/o Kathryn Ruemmler, Esq. Latham and Watkins LLP 555 Eleventh Street NW Washington, DC 20004

Dear Ambassador Rice:

The Senate Judiciary Committee has a constitutional duty to conduct oversight of the FBI and the broader Department of Justice. Part of that duty involves ensuring that law enforcement efforts are conducted without improper political influence. Accordingly , the Committee has been investigating the FBI's relationship with Christopher Steele during the time his work was funded by Hillary for America and the Democratic National Committee, as well as the FBI's reliance on his unverified third-hand allegations in the Bureau' s representations to courts.

As part of that effort, the Committee sent a request to the National Archives for records of meetings between President Obama and then-FBI Director Corney regarding the FBI's investigation of allegations of collusion between associates of Mr. Trump and the Russian government. In response, the Committee received classified and unclassified versions of an email you sent to yourself on January 20, 2017 - President Trump's inauguration day. If the timestamp is correct, you sent this email to yourself at 12:15pm , presumably a very short time before you departed the White House for the last time.

In this email to yourself, you purport to document a meeting that had taken place more than two weeks before, on January 5, 2017. You wrote:

"On January 5, following a briefing by IC leadership on Russian hacking during the 2016 Presidential election, President Obama had a brief follow-on conversation with FBI Director Jim Corney and Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates in the Oval Office. Vice President Biden and I were also present."

That meeting reportedly included a discussion of the Steele dossier and the FBI's investigation of its claims.1 Your email continued:

"President Obama began the conversation by stressing his continued commitment to ensuring that every aspect of this issue is handled by the Intelligence and law enforcement communities "by the book". The President stressed that he is not asking about, initiating or instructing anything from a law enforcement perspective. He reiterated that our law enforcement team needs to proceed as it normally would by the book."

"From a national security perspective, however, President Obama said he wants to be sure that, as we engage with the incoming team, we are mindful to ascertain if there is any reason that we cannot share information fully as it relates to Russia."

The next part of your email remains classified. After that, you wrote:

"The President asked Corney to inform him if anything changes in the next few weeks that should affect how we share classified information with the incoming team. Corney said he would."

It strikes us as odd that, among your activities in the final moments on the final day of the Obama administration, you would feel the need to send yourself such an unusual email purporting to document a conversation involving President Obama and his interactions with the FBI regarding the Trump/Russia investigation. In addition, despite your claim that President Obama repeatedly told Mr. Corney to proceed " by the book," substantial questions have arisen about whether officials at the FBI, as well as at the Justice Department and the State Department, actually did proceed " by the book."

In order for the Committee to further assess the situation, please respond to the following by February 22, 2018:

1. Did you send the email attached to this letter to yourself? Do you have any reason to dispute the timestamp of the email?

2. When did you first become aware of the FBI's investigation into allegations of collusion between Mr. Trump' s associates and Russia?

3. When did you become aware of any surveillance activities, including FISA applications, undertaken by the FBI in conducting that investigation? At the time you wrote this email to yourself, were you aware of either the October 2016 FISA application for surveillance of Carter Page or the January 2017 renewal?

4. Did anyone instruct, request, suggest, or imply that you should send yourself the aforementioned Inauguration Day email memorializing President Obama' s meeting with Mr. Corney about the Trump/Russia investigation? If so, who and why?

5. Is the account of the January 5, 2017 meeting presented in your email accurate? Did you omit any other portions of the conversation?

6. Other than that email, did you document the January 5, 2017 meeting in any way, such as contemporaneous notes or a formal memo? To the best of your knowledge, did anyone else at that meeting take notes or otherwise memorialize the meeting?

7. During the meeting, did Mr. Corney or Ms. Yates mention potential press coverage of the Steele dossier? If so, what did they say?

8. During the meeting, did Mr. Corney describe the status of the FBI's relationship with Mr. Steele, or the basis for that status?

9. When and how did you first become aware of the allegations made by Christopher Steele?

10. When and how did you first become aware that the Clinton Campaign and the Democratic National Committee funded Mr. Steele's efforts?

11. You wrote that President Obama stressed that he was "not asking about, initiating or instructing anything from a law enforcement perspective." Did President Obama ask about, initiate, or instruct anything from any other perspective relating to the FBI's investigation?

12. Did President Obama have any other meetings with Mr. Corney, Ms. Yates, or other government officials about the FBI's investigation of allegations of collusion between Trump associates and Russia? If so, when did these occur, who participated, and what was discussed?

Thank you for your prompt attention to this matter. Please contact Patrick Davis of Chairman Grassley' s staff at (202) 224-5225 or Lee Holmes of Chairman Graham's staff at (202) 224-5972 if you have any questions.


TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; Front Page News; Government; Politics/Elections; US: California
KEYWORDS: 20170105; 20170120; 20180222; biden; california; charlesgrassley; comey; corney; devinnunes; dnc; fbi; fisa; goldenshowersdossier; grassleyletter; jamescorney; jimcorney; joebiden; lindseygraham; lockherup; obama; rice; riceemailtimestamp; rodrosenstein; russia; sallyyates; steeledossier; susanrice; susanriceemail; trumprussia; yates
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To: mojito
"From a national security perspective, however, President Obama said he wants to be sure that, as we engage with the incoming team, we are mindful to ascertain if there is any reason that we cannot share information fully as it relates to Russia."

Am I reading this right? It sounds like they were trying to lay the groundwork for keeping things hidden from the incoming Trump administration.

There must be things that they don't want revealed.

21 posted on 02/12/2018 1:21:34 PM PST by Repealthe17thAmendment
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To: Genoa

Yeah. It looks like OCR turned “m” to “rn”


22 posted on 02/12/2018 1:22:28 PM PST by robroys woman (So you're not confused, I'm male.)
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To: Beach333

Probably glitch in OCR.


23 posted on 02/12/2018 1:23:07 PM PST by MayflowerMadam (Have an A-1 day.)
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To: mojito

Thanks, I saw that after I posted.


24 posted on 02/12/2018 1:24:42 PM PST by Beach333
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To: MayflowerMadam

The way the questions are worded, it seems that Grassley-Graham already know the answers to these questions.


They must be attorneys. :)


25 posted on 02/12/2018 1:24:43 PM PST by robroys woman (So you're not confused, I'm male.)
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To: dead

Does throw off any mass search for “Comey”.


26 posted on 02/12/2018 1:28:19 PM PST by ctdonath2 (It's not "white privilege", it's "Puritan work ethic". Behavior begets consequences.)
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To: Brilliant
It’s obvious a cya email.

It may be an attempt to cover HER ass, but it may uncover Obama's ass. It casts Obama in a very dubious light.

I would think it unprecedented for an outgoing President to discuss whether or not to share information fully with his successor in the last days of his outgoing administration. I can't think of ANY reason for this unless the outgoing President was aware of an ongoing investigation of the incoming President (valid or invalid).

Obviously, as a long time FReeper, I'm going to interpret this as an ongoing investigation of Obama's manufacture, rather than real Russia, Russia, Russia. After all, these are the people who lied about Benghazi being due to a video, and put some guy in jail to back it up. And (the wife keeps reminding me) Hillary shamelessly lied over the coffins of the returned dead to their parents.

27 posted on 02/12/2018 1:28:27 PM PST by Pearls Before Swine
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To: Oldeconomybuyer

Since Lindsey Graham is one of the GOP Senators taking the lead on this, I think it’s safe to say he knows damn well that HE was one of the GOP candidates under surveillance by Obama.


28 posted on 02/12/2018 1:30:32 PM PST by Alberta's Child ("Go ahead, bite the Big Apple ... don't mind the maggots.")
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To: PubliusMM
"Why was Zero asking Comey to keep him informed of ANY DAMN THING AFTER 1/20/2017? He was no longer POTUS..."

My thoughts exactly!
29 posted on 02/12/2018 1:34:53 PM PST by j_guru
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To: All
What's this?

The little rodent-faced know-nothing liar is a Senior Fellow, at the Belfer Center
at Harvard University? Located at 79 John F. Kennedy Street, Cambridge, MA 02138

They must be hard up to have hired her.

===========================================

Keep in mind that the Obama crime syndicate's incessantly going to the FISA trough could prove very instructive. B/c not only is it a no-no to LIE to a FISA court.....it is a felony to WITHHOLD info from the FISA court.

<><>Did Obama/Rice's request for a FISA warrant stipulate that Obama and Susan Rice wire-tapped Trump Tower......while Trump was a candidate?

<><> Did Obama/Rice's request for a FISA warrant stipulate that Obama's CIA director Brennan used phony foreign intel as a pretext for a multi-agency investigation into candidate Trump?

<><> Did the request for a FISA warrant stipulate that phony foreign intel led the FBI to probe a computer server connected to candidate Trump residing and conducting business in Trump Tower?

<><> Did the request for a FISA warrant stipulate that foreign intel gave cover to Susan Rice's sifting/unmasking operations?

I didn't think so.

30 posted on 02/12/2018 1:39:51 PM PST by Liz (Our side has 8 Trillion bullets; the other side doesn't know which bathroom to use.)
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To: 1Old Pro
"ALL these people Obama surrounded himself with were not very smart..."

I agree, and would add Hilary to the list of libs who surround themselves with morons.

This brings up Hanlon's Razor, which states:
"Never attribute to malice that which is adequately explained by stupidity."

31 posted on 02/12/2018 1:44:31 PM PST by Cuttnhorse (Never fear the cow)
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To: All

The Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs is the hub of Harvard Kennedy School’s research, teaching, and training in international security and diplomacy, environmental and resource issues, and science and technology policy. In 2018, for the fifth year in a row, the Belfer Center was ranked the world’s #1 University Affiliated Think Tank by University of Pennsylvania’s Think Tanks and Civil Societies Program.

Belfer Center Leadership
Ash Carter, Director
Eric Rosenbach, Co-Director
Patricia Walsh, Executive Director for Administration
Gary Samore, Executive Director for Research
Josh Burek, Director of Global Communications & Strategy

The Center has a dual mission: (1) to provide leadership in advancing policy-relevant knowledge about the most important challenges of international security and other critical issues where science, technology, environmental policy, and international affairs intersect; and (2) to prepare future generations of leaders for these arenas.

CONTACTS

Media and General Inquiries
Sharon Wilke, (617) 495-9858
Sharon_Wilke@hks.harvard.edu

Websites and Digital
Arielle Dworkin, (617) 496-4145
Arielle_Dworkin@hks.harvard.edu

Events
Belfer_Events@hks.harvard.edu

Fellowships
BCSIA_Fellowships@hks.harvard.edu


32 posted on 02/12/2018 1:45:49 PM PST by Liz (Our side has 8 Trillion bullets; the other side doesn't know which bathroom to use.)
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To: j_guru

Sedition...


33 posted on 02/12/2018 1:47:13 PM PST by hal ogen (First Amendment or Reeducation Camp?)
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To: Repealthe17thAmendment

As it relates to Russia, Hillary, the DNC, FBI, DOJ, CIA, NSC, etc.

Thats a bit more accurate.


34 posted on 02/12/2018 1:49:33 PM PST by Col Frank Slade
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To: mojito

Some piss poor cya. Grassley will have pretty solid answers to the questions he’s asking. Rice did a fair amount of unmasking, but we still don’t know why Powers did so much, so much in fact she claims much of it wasn’t her. So who was using her name ?


35 posted on 02/12/2018 1:49:51 PM PST by moehoward
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To: mojito

And Susan Rice’s response: I don’t recall!


36 posted on 02/12/2018 1:55:27 PM PST by drypowder
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To: mojito

“””12. Did President Obama have any other meetings with Mr. Corney, Ms. Yates, or other government officials about the FBI’s investigation of allegations of collusion between Trump associates and Russia? If so, when did these occur, who participated, and what was discussed?”””


This is a key question. It seems obvious that Obama and others had several prior meetings about Russia/Trump and by memorializing this meeting they could claim it was the only meeting they had had re Russia/Trump.


37 posted on 02/12/2018 1:56:25 PM PST by Presbyterian Reporter
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To: mojito

Bttt.

5.56mm


38 posted on 02/12/2018 1:58:42 PM PST by M Kehoe
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To: j_guru
“Why was Zero asking Comey to keep him informed of ANY DAMN THING AFTER 1/20/2017? He was no longer POTUS...”

That seditious and hateful ideologue sat there with Trump in their post-election meeting, acting like such a gracious person, but was all the time plotting. This is clear. Meanwhile, initially Trump was genuinely complimentary to Obama after their meeting, stating that the meeting went way over time because they were having such a great conversation.

Obama is one of the best liars, concealers, and bulls**tters I've ever seen. He is much better than Bill Clinton at this. He could make just about anything sound well-reasoned and above board. That talent, combined with what appears to be a deep-seated resentment of traditional America makes him very dangerous. Even now. He is truly an ideologue, as much as any Bolshevik, and he is very willing to do whatever appears necessary to achieve his goals. Just like Hillary, the ends justifies the means. The difference between them is that Hillary is on a mission to go down in history as a great historical figure. Obama wants to change history, and transform the major Western power on Earth.

39 posted on 02/12/2018 2:00:26 PM PST by neverevergiveup
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To: mojito

A cover our asses e-mail if ever there was one.


40 posted on 02/12/2018 2:01:50 PM PST by heights
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