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Opinion: The Chilling Reality of Bias at the F.B.I.
The New York Times ^ | December 18, 2019 | By Julian Sanchez

Posted on 12/18/2019 9:30:30 AM PST by Oldeconomybuyer

Subtitle: Americans deserve a stronger assurance than “hope” that their Fourth Amendment rights are being respected.

The F.B.I.’s investigation of the former Trump campaign adviser Carter Page, we can now say with assurance, was a train wreck. In his report, Justice Department Inspector General Michael Horowitz cataloged a damning list of egregious errors, omissions or misrepresentations in filings to the secretive Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court, which approved nearly a year’s worth of wiretaps on Mr. Page.

Many Republicans have taken this as proof that the investigation was hopelessly contaminated by anti-Trump political bias. That would be the optimistic scenario. Unfortunately, it’s probably much worse than that.

If the F.B.I. botched its applications for Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act warrants against Mr. Page because of political bias, after all, problems of the sort Mr. Horowitz identified are most likely unique to this case. The bureau obtains about 1,500 FISA warrants each year, and an overwhelming majority have no connection to domestic politics. The solution is also similarly simple: Toss out the bad apples who acted on political motives and add a few layers of safeguards for the tiny fraction of cases that are designated “sensitive investigative matters” because they do intersect with politics.

That might be a reasonable response if we were confident the Page investigation represented an outlier or aberration. The chilling reality, however, is that we have no idea whether that’s the case.

(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...


TOPICS: Constitution/Conservatism; Culture/Society; Editorial; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: beseeingyou; bigbrother; election2016; fbi; fisa; fisawarrants; wiretapping
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1 posted on 12/18/2019 9:30:30 AM PST by Oldeconomybuyer
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To: Oldeconomybuyer

I can’t get past the paywall, but its hard to believe the first two paragraphs were actually written by the Trump-deranged writers and editors at the NY Times.

The urban leftist snowflake readers of their propaganda sheet may actually become confused.


2 posted on 12/18/2019 9:33:08 AM PST by PGR88
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To: Oldeconomybuyer

This is from the nyt???


3 posted on 12/18/2019 9:33:24 AM PST by Ken H
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To: Oldeconomybuyer

They altered the paperwork and they knowingly lied.

This in addition to Obama spying on journalists.

And the ACLU doesn’t say sh!t.


4 posted on 12/18/2019 9:33:27 AM PST by a fool in paradise (Recall that unqualified Hillary Clinton sat on the board of Wal-Mart when Bill Clinton was governor)
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To: Oldeconomybuyer

Downsize it as much as possible. That’s the only way they’ll get it.


5 posted on 12/18/2019 9:33:44 AM PST by DIRTYSECRET (urope. Why do they put up with this.)
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To: Oldeconomybuyer

This from the Slimes??

Pigs must be flying.


6 posted on 12/18/2019 9:34:09 AM PST by aquila48 (Do not let them make you care!)
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To: PGR88

It’s not - this is an Op-Ed piece.

“Mr. Sanchez is a senior fellow at the Cato Institute.”


7 posted on 12/18/2019 9:34:16 AM PST by proxy_user
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To: Oldeconomybuyer

What they all avoid saying is that Page fisa warrant is a blank check to spy on the entirety of Trump’s campaign, transition team and presidency. I think it should be made clear the scope of one of these warrants. But I know that the media of today is more about shaping opinion then stating the facts.


8 posted on 12/18/2019 9:35:49 AM PST by JoSixChip (I'm an American Nationalist)
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To: Oldeconomybuyer

The president has asked for prayers
Time to let him hear from us. Please encourage other to send their support in prayers AND to him at the WH

https://www.whitehouse.gov/contact/


9 posted on 12/18/2019 9:37:12 AM PST by hoosiermama (When you open your heart to patriotism, there is no room for prejudice.DJT)
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To: Oldeconomybuyer

Each FISA warrant is capable of monitoring/surveil/spying on 25,000 other people.

Journalist Sharyl Attkisson, the host of “Full Measure,” follows up on her interview with former federal prosecutor Sidney Powell about her allegation that the “entire Russia collusion narrative was made up” by anti-Trump political partisans in the FBI and Department of Justice. Attkisson reports how one FISA warrant against Trump staffer Carter Page could be used to legally surveil 25,000 people who were associated with him:


10 posted on 12/18/2019 9:38:32 AM PST by Grampa Dave (A FRIVOLOUS Impeachment Vote is a SEDITIOUS CONSPIRACY)
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To: PGR88
... but its hard to believe the first two paragraphs were actually written by the Trump-deranged writers and editors at the NY Times.

Simplist explanation, they must have found out that FISA warrants were being used against themselves and are terrified that the FBI might be used as a tool by Trump.

11 posted on 12/18/2019 9:40:38 AM PST by glorgau
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To: JoSixChip

FYI:

Each FISA warrant is capable of monitoring/surveil/spying on 25,000 other people.

Journalist Sharyl Attkisson, the host of “Full Measure,” follows up on her interview with former federal prosecutor Sidney Powell about her allegation that the “entire Russia collusion narrative was made up” by anti-Trump political partisans in the FBI and Department of Justice.

Attkisson reports how one FISA warrant against Trump staffer Carter Page could be used to legally surveil 25,000 people, who were associated with him:

10 posted on 12/18/2019, 9:38:32 AM by Grampa Dave


12 posted on 12/18/2019 9:41:03 AM PST by Grampa Dave (A FRIVOLOUS Impeachment Vote is a SEDITIOUS CONSPIRACY)
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To: JoSixChip

NEED TO KNOW
<><> What information was criminally gained by Obama and Rice?
<><> Details of the scope and dimension of intel given to assist Hillary?
<><> In what ways did Hillary’s campaign use criminal information against Trump?

The FBI requested a type of surveillance generally reserved for tracking suspected terrorists, including
<><>wiretaps,
<><> electronic surveillance,
<><> the use of bugs and tracking devices,
<><> physical surveillance,
<><> electronic surveillance
<><> satellite geo-location surveillance
<><> and much more.......


REFERENCE FR POSTED-——AAG Matthew Whitaker Discusses Upcoming IG Report on FISA Abuse and Trump Campaign Surveillance…

Following leaked revelations that former FBI lawyer Kevin Clinesmith manipulated evidence to attain a Title-1 surveillance warrant against U.S. person Carter Page to conduct political espionage against the Trump campaign, former AAG Matthew Whitaker discusses the IG investigation and upcoming IG report.
Whitaker notes the bigger issues are how the FISA process generally has been abused and potentially long-term ramifications.

It is also worth remembering it wasn’t just “wiretaps” that were gained, the FBI requested and received full Title-1 surveillance authority including:
<><>wiretaps,
<><> electronic surveillance,
<><> the use of bugs and tracking devices,
<><> physical surveillance,
<><> electronic surveillance
<><> satellite geo-location surveillance
<><> and much more.

The FBI requested a type of surveillance generally reserved for tracking suspected terrorists.

When Mr. Clinesmith manipulated evidence to attain the warrant, he was working under the guidance of FBI supervisory agent Peter Strzok. -—snip——rest on FR


13 posted on 12/18/2019 9:42:38 AM PST by Liz (Our side has 8 trillion bullets; the other side doesn't know which bathroom to use.)
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To: Grampa Dave
"...Each FISA warrant is capable of monitoring/surveil/spying on 25,000 other people..."

That is due to the "Two-Hop Rule".

It used to be the "Three-Hop Rule", but it didn't take a big brain to accept that a "Three-Hop Rule" would allow legal, blanket surveillance of nearly the entire country.

I talk to you. You talk to your car mechanic. He talks to thousands of customers. ad nauseum.

14 posted on 12/18/2019 9:45:20 AM PST by rlmorel (Finding middle ground with tyranny or evil makes you either a tyrant or evil. Often both.)
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To: Oldeconomybuyer

.

FBIAS


15 posted on 12/18/2019 9:45:21 AM PST by Lurkinanloomin (Natural Born Citizens Are Born Here of Citizen Parents_Know Islam, No Peace-No Islam, Know Peace)
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To: Grampa Dave
Each FISA warrant is capable of monitoring/surveil/spying on 25,000 other people.

And at about 1,500 a day being issued, combinatorically eventually practically everybody will be subject to surveillance under a FISA warrant. Welcome to the new Amerika.

16 posted on 12/18/2019 9:45:28 AM PST by glorgau
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To: Oldeconomybuyer

A better solution is to burn the FISC to the ground and repeal all laws that manifested it.


17 posted on 12/18/2019 9:45:54 AM PST by Mariner (War Criminal #18)
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To: Oldeconomybuyer
Sounds like some of the Left and coastal elites are worried their weapon might be turned on them.

It was on Fox, but I can't remember the guest, who stated to the effect the only way to stop the Left is to do to them what they've been doing to us. Normally I'm not a fan of tit-for-tat, but sometimes an Allende requires a Pinochet.

18 posted on 12/18/2019 9:46:00 AM PST by Tench_Coxe
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To: PGR88; Ken H

The author is from the Cato institute.


19 posted on 12/18/2019 9:46:36 AM PST by Mariner (War Criminal #18)
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To: proxy_user

It’s not - this is an Op-Ed piece.

“Mr. Sanchez is a senior fellow at the Cato Institute.”

Still. They printed it.

It would be like Pravda in the 1940s printing an article critical of Stalin.


20 posted on 12/18/2019 9:47:25 AM PST by samtheman (U.S. out of the U.N. --- U.N. out of the U.S.)
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