Posted on 05/20/2020 9:19:19 AM PDT by Kaslin
Two top Republican senators have expanded their request for records related to the “unmasking” of former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn to include information prior to the start of the FBI’s Crossfire Hurricane operation, which began in July 2016.
On Wednesday, acting Director of National Intelligence Richard Grenell declassified the names of those in the White House involved in revealing Flynn’s identity as a U.S. citizen corresponding with a foreign actor, as requested by Republican Sens. Ron Johnson of Wisconsin and Chuck Grassley of Iowa. Flynn had held discussions with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak during the presidential transition as the incoming national security advisor. This became the alleged basis for the grand Russian collusion conspiracy and the key to setting up Flynn in a perjury trap.
Names in the declassified report of White House officials targeting Flynn include top intelligence chiefs, including Obama CIA Director John Brennan, Obama Department of National Intelligence Director James Clapper, former Obama Chief of Staff Denis McDonough, and former Vice President Joe Biden.
“We write now both to reiterate our request for the declassification of additional information related to the unmasking of Americans around the time of the 2016 election, but also to expand the scope of our request to include information as early as January 2016,” Grassley and Johnson wrote. “Based on our investigation and recent press reports, we are increasingly concerned that the surveillance of U.S. persons affiliated with the Trump campaign began earlier than the opening of the FBI’s Crossfire Hurricane investigation in late July 2016.”
Sens. Grassley and Johnson say the administration’s deep-state surveillance operation on the Trump campaign involved unmasking even more U.S. citizens tied to the campaign that preceded the official launch of Crossfire Hurricane. Since it is a crime to surveil American citizens without a probable cause, their names are usually redacted on surveillance transcripts. Unmasking uncovers their identities.
“It has become evident that the FBI, and possibly members of the U.S. Intelligence Community, were focused on U.S. persons affiliated with the Trump campaign in early 2016, if not even earlier,” the senators wrote. “One example is that, in April 2016, FBI headquarters directed its New York Field Office to open a counterintelligence investigation of Carter Page, which on August 10, 2016, became part of the Crossfire Hurricane investigation.”
The senators’ expanded request marks a significant escalation into the unraveling of the previous administration’s surveillance scandal dubbed “Obamagate” and “Spygate,” as new information reveals the level to which the Obama White House went to prevent President Donald Trump from holding power. On Tuesday, newly declassified excerpts from former National Security Advisor Susan Rice’s bizarre inauguration day email sent to herself confirm that Flynn was a prime target at a Jan. 5, 2017 Oval office meeting between Obama, Rice, Biden, then-Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates, and then-FBI Director James Comey.
“From a national security perspective, 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 we cannot share information fully as it relates to Russia,” Rice wrote while the administration was conducting secret surveillance on U.S. citizens in the Trump campaign and transition team. “Comey said he does have some concerns that incoming NSA Flynn is speaking frequently with Russian Ambassador Kislyak… President Obama asked if Comey was saying the NSC should not pass sensitive information related to Russia to Flynn. Comey replied ‘potentially.'”
Three years later, and after a two-and-a-half year special counsel investigation with unlimited resources conducted by Robert Mueller buoyed by endless media coverage, the Mueller report found not one person on the Trump campaign, let alone the president himself, spied for the Russian government.
Obama had him tapped the moment Trump started up with questioning his birth location - Obama is an insecure loser.
Bingo. O knows that Trump could probably get at his “ sealed files” to know who he really is and where he came from.
I realize Obama prolly ain’t going to jail...even though he should.
To me ensuring Joey doesn’t get elected and jailing the likes of Comey, Brennan, Stozak, etc will be enough to forever tarnish the legacy of his almighty.
Ya so let’s waste more time, money and energy looking back to what and when it started instead of acting and stopping it as it goes on. Indict someone already!
“From a national security perspective, 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 we cannot share information fully as it relates to Russia,” Rice wrote while the administration was conducting secret surveillance on U.S. citizens in the Trump campaign and transition team. “Comey said he does have some concerns that incoming NSA Flynn is speaking frequently with Russian Ambassador Kislyak… President Obama asked if Comey was saying the NSC should not pass sensitive information related to Russia to Flynn. Comey replied ‘potentially.’”
All carefully constructed weasel words that leave room for “ plausible deniability”
In other words, I was just doing my job as it relates to O and Joey.
Comey on the other hand actually enacted a plan....
These geriatric Senators make Ents ( LOTR ) look like pikers when it comes to cognition.
Jail? We’re a million miles away from that. The American people are still being denied the basic historical facts of these 4 year old events by our elected and government officials.
Lots of ideas about everything that’s happened for 3+ years, but no nads to get to the bottom of anything, and prosecute!!!
Maybe its finally dawning on these Senators that they were spied on too.
They didn’t care much when it was Trump or Tea party members but in their mind they were off limits.
Until they weren’t.
And I pretty much know the facts.
About the only thing they can do is theater to try to bring sunshine to it and expose it. Doing something about it directly would be up to others.
But will the media even cover it at all - and if they do - how will they cover it?
Agreed................
Even more so the media. There is considerable amounts of it that have been uncovered that simply were never reported.
Nor were they concerned when the Tea Party Patriots were being targeted by the irs and fbi. Same crap, different day.
Exactly. Fool me once and all that. The Age of Trump has proven the GOP institutionally corrupt and unreformable. When we get close to “winning” the likes of Romney join the 47% and we are outflanked.
The most important thing to me is that this injustice is adjudicated in the courts and the court of public opinion.
However, in order for this to occur we have to show the proof. We have a good idea of what happened and if this were a Wheel of Fortune round we all guessed “treason” long ago with a few vowels and consonants turned.
However, while you and I don’t need to see the rest of the letters turned, the media, much of the public, and history demand the letters.
What they do with the truth is up to them but until the letters are turned they continue to spin, deny, and make other words fit other than “treason”. I don’t expect the feckless GOPe to do much, but given the alternative I will take it and wish them well.
I am a bit more optimistic in the short-term if Trump gains another term. He is teaching some of them to fight and many of the old guard have left or will leave the halls of congress.
We have some rising stars who are pretty effective with some fight in them in the house. The old guard remains in charge of the Senate.
I’m American...
And I pretty much know the facts.
Disagree. We don’t know who spied on the Trump campaign, who was targeted specifically, FISA issues, the role of the GOP (Gang of 8), who covered it up in the Deep State, etc., etc.
Right now we are looking at the tip of the obamagate iceberg. Nearly all the story is still buried.
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