Special Counsel <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/john-durham" target="_blank" rel="noopener">John Durham</a> said <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/fbi" target="_blank" rel="noopener">FBI</a> agents approached him to apologize for the Crossfire Hurricane investigation.
During testimony before the House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday, Durham spoke about his report that criticized the FBI over its probe into alleged links between Donald Trump&#8217;s 2016 presidential campaign and Russia.
&#8220;Our findings were sobering. I can tell you, having spent 40 years-plus as a federal prosecutor, they were particularly sobering to me,&#8221; Durham said.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
House Judiciary Committee John Durham Testimony
.<a href="https://twitter.com/RepMikeJohnson?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@RepMikeJohnson</a>: &quot;You said that your findings and conclusions are sobering&#8230;Why?&quot;
DURHAM: &quot;I have had any number of FBI agents&#8230;who have come to me and apologized for the manner in which that investigation [Crossfire Hurricane]… <a href="https://t.co/3kdf4RE8II">pic.twitter.com/3kdf4RE8II</a>
&mdash; Daily Caller (@DailyCaller) <a href="https://twitter.com/DailyCaller/status/1671515590341586944?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 21, 2023</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Rep. Mike Johnson (R-LA) later asked Durham to explain why his findings were sobering.
&#8220;Let me give you some real-life views,&#8221; Durham said. &#8220;I have had any number of FBI agents who I&#8217;ve worked with over the years — some of them are retired, some of them are still in place — who have come to me and apologized for the manner in which that investigation was undertaken.&#8221;
Durham said he believes the majority of the FBI&#8217;s personnel are &#8220;decent human beings&#8221; who swear under their oaths to abide by the law.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
John Durham: 
&quot;Our findings were sobering. Anybody who actually reads the report would find that the problems identified in the report are not susceptible to overnight fixes. What is required is accountability!&quot; <a href="https://t.co/h2Xybjri1w">pic.twitter.com/h2Xybjri1w</a>
&mdash; Citizen Free Press (@CitizenFreePres) <a href="https://twitter.com/CitizenFreePres/status/1671518451855130626?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 21, 2023</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
&#8220;There were investigative activities undertaken or not undertaken here which raise real concerns about whether or not the law was followed, the policies in place at the FBI were followed,&#8221; Durham said.
After a years-long investigation, Durham concluded his probe, and the Department of Justice released his <a href="https://www.justice.gov/storage/durhamreport.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">report</a> last month. It accused the FBI of &#8220;confirmation bias&#8221; and being too quick to open a full-fledged investigation into the Russia matter.
Durham secured one guilty plea over the course of his investigation: that of former FBI lawyer Kevin Clinesmith, who was accused of falsifying a document in efforts to renew the authority to conduct FISA surveillance on onetime Trump campaign foreign policy adviser Carter Page. Clinesmith was spared prison time and faced a <a href="https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/fbi-lawyer-clinesmith-one-year-bar-suspension-guilty-plea-fisa-deception" target="_blank" rel="noopener">one-year bar suspension</a>.
In a statement responding to Durham&#8217;s report, the FBI said it “already implemented dozens of corrective actions, which have now been in place for some time.” The bureau also said Durham&#8217;s report &#8220;reinforces the importance of ensuring the FBI continues to do its work with the rigor, objectivity, and professionalism the American people deserve and rightly expect.&#8221;
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Durham said in his <a href="https://judiciary.house.gov/sites/evo-subsites/republicans-judiciary.house.gov/files/evo-media-document/durham-testimony.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">opening statement</a> that he is &#8220;encouraged&#8221; by some reforms the FBI has implemented but stressed that &#8220;the problems identified in the report are not susceptible to overnight fixes.&#8221;
The special counsel added: &#8220;As we said in the report, they cannot be addressed solely with enhanced training or additional policy requirements. Rather, what is required is accountability — both in terms of the standards to which our law enforcement personnel hold themselves and in the consequences they face for violations of law or policy.&#8221;

John Durham

John Durham Says FBI Agents Apologized To Him For Trump Probe

Carter Page

Donald Trump

General

Politics

Russiagate

The former FBI attorney who altered an email during the Russia probe – making it appear as though former Trump campaign aide Carter Page hadn’t been a CIA asset when, in fact, he was – may be able to practice law again in year.
Kevin Clinesmith, the attorney, pleaded guilty in August 2020 on a charge of felony false statement, receiving one year of probation and 400 hours of community service for his role in continuing the investigation into whether then-President Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign colluded with Russia to steal the election.
As The Daily Wire previously <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/kevin-clinesmith-altered-an-email-in-the-trump-russia-probe-to-keep-it-going-he-just-received-probation">reported</a>, Clinesmith altered an email from an FBI agent that stated former Trump campaign adviser Carter Page had been a source for the CIA, Politico <a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2021/01/29/fbi-lawyer-trump-russia-probe-email-463750">reported</a>. Clinesmith altered the email to say Page was “not a source” for the CIA, which helped the FBI continue its surveillance of Page.
Clinesmith’s attorney’s argued that he genuinely believed that what he was altering the email to say was true, and he simply wanted to save himself the additional work of reaching out to the CIA for an email. U.S. District Court Judge James Boasberg – an Obama nominee – sided with Clinesmith’s defense.
“My view of the evidence is that Mr. Clinesmith likely believed that what he said about Mr. Page was true,” Boasberg said, according to Politico. “By altering the email, he was saving himself some work and taking an inappropriate shortcut.”
Had Clinesmith followed through, however, Page would have been confirmed as a former CIA asset and nearly all of the FBI’s reasoning for spying on him would have been negated.
Clinesmith also agreed to a one-year suspension of his law license in Washington, D.C., Reuters <a href="https://www.reuters.com/legal/government/ex-fbi-lawyer-agrees-one-year-bar-sanction-after-conviction-2021-06-28/">reported</a>, meaning he could practice law again in August.
“Clinesmith and his lawyers at Lathrop GPM <a href="https://fingfx.thomsonreuters.com/gfx/legaldocs/bdwvkoarkvm/clinesmith-record-2021-06.pdf">signed</a> a negotiated discipline with the District of Columbia office of disciplinary counsel on June 11 that set out the proposed suspension,” the outlet reported. “A hearing committee of the District of Columbia Board on Professional Responsibility is expected to take up the proposal at a public hearing on July 19.”
Reuters added that the hearing committee could reject Clinesmith’s negotiated bar sanction. If it approves the sanction, Clinesmith would be able to practice law again as early as August, since the one-year suspension began last year when he pleaded guilty. His bar license is also suspended on an interim basis in Michigan.
When the Department of Justice’s Inspector General investigated the four FISA warrants against Page, it found 17 “<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/ig-report-here-are-the-17-specific-inaccuracies-and-omissions-in-the-fbis-fisa-warrants-against-carter-page">inaccuracies and omissions</a>,” including Clinesmith’s:
<blockquote>Omitted Page’s prior relationship with another U.S. government agency, despite being reminded by the other agency in June 2017, prior to the filing of the final renewal application, about Page’s past status with that other agency; instead of including this information in the final renewal application, the FBI OGC [Office of the General Counsel] Attorney altered an email from the other agency so that the email stated that Page was “not a source” for the other agency, which the FBI affiant relied upon in signing the final renewal application.</blockquote>

lawyer

Attorney Who Altered Email During Russia Probe May Be Able To Practice Law Again

Crime

A government official who altered an email in order to continue the FBI’s spying on a member of the 2016 Trump campaign received only probation and community service for his crime, a stark reminder that people in government are rarely, if ever, held accountable for the destruction they cause to others.
Former FBI attorney Kevin Clinesmith was sentenced to 12 months probation and 400 hours of community service for altering an email from an FBI agent that stated former Trump campaign adviser Carter Page had been a source for the CIA, Politico <a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2021/01/29/fbi-lawyer-trump-russia-probe-email-463750">reported</a>. Clinesmith altered the email to say Page was “not a source” for the CIA, which helped the FBI continue its surveillance of Page.
Clinesmith’s attorney’s argued that he genuinely believed that what he was altering the email to say was true, and he simply wanted to save himself the additional work of reaching out to the CIA for an email. U.S. District Court Judge James Boasberg – an Obama nominee – sided with Clinesmith’s defense.
&#8220;My view of the evidence is that Mr. Clinesmith likely believed that what he said about Mr. Page was true,&#8221; Boasberg said, according to Politico. &#8220;By altering the email, he was saving himself some work and taking an inappropriate shortcut.&#8221;
Had Clinesmith followed through, however, Page would have been confirmed as a former CIA asset and nearly all of the FBI’s reasoning for spying on him would have been negated.
When the Department of Justice’s Inspector General investigated the four FISA warrants against Page, it found 17 “<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/ig-report-here-are-the-17-specific-inaccuracies-and-omissions-in-the-fbis-fisa-warrants-against-carter-page">inaccuracies and omissions</a>,” including Clinesmith’s:
<blockquote>Omitted Page’s prior relationship with another U.S. government agency, despite being reminded by the other agency in June 2017, prior to the filing of the final renewal application, about Page’s past status with that other agency; instead of including this information in the final renewal application, the FBI OGC [Office of the General Counsel] Attorney altered an email from the other agency so that the email stated that Page was “not a source” for the other agency, which the FBI affiant relied upon in signing the final renewal application</blockquote>
U.S. Attorney John Durham, who was appointed by former Attorney General William Barr to investigate the origins of the FBI’s Russia probe, has so far only charged Clinesmith with a crime. Clinesmith pleaded guilty to felony false statement as part of a plea deal last summer with Durham.
“Prosecutors argued that Clinesmith&#8217;s misconduct was so serious that he deserved between about three and six months in prison. Clinesmith&#8217;s lawyers asked that he not receive any prison time. The maximum sentence on the false statement charge is five years in prison, although judges usually sentence in accord with federal guidelines that called for Clinesmith to serve between zero and six months in prison,” Politico reported.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Anthony Scarpelli said Clinesmith’s “criminal conduct tarnished and undermined the integrity of the [Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act] program,” Politico added.
&#8220;It has lasting effects on DOJ, the FBI, the FISC, the FISA process and trust and confidence United States citizens have in their government&#8230;The resulting harm is immeasurable,” Scarpelli continued.
Clinesmith’s attorney argued that his actions played a minor role in the surveillance process against Page, who has received death threats and years of negative media attention for the FBI’s ultimately fruitless surveillance.
It should also be noted that Judge Boasberg sat on the U.S. Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court, the secret court that granted the numerous warrants against Page. He is now the presiding judge of that court.
In response to the ruling, Page provided a statement to The Daily Wire:
<blockquote>Although this was only the first FISA abuse case, I was very encouraged that the court nevertheless recognized the fundamental importance of integrity in the U.S. foreign intelligence surveillance system more generally. Despite the very narrow focus of this one charged offense and guilty plea, there is still a great deal of work that&#8217;s left to do in restoring confidence in the FISA system.</blockquote>

Kevin Clinesmith Altered An Email In The Trump-Russia Probe To Keep It Going. He Just Received Probation.

The Senate Judiciary Committee on Friday released 11 transcripts of depositions conducted as part of the committee’s investigation into the origins of the FBI’s Russia probe.
Chairman Lindsey Graham (R-SC) said in a statement that he “decided to release all transcripts of depositions involving the committee’s oversight of the Crossfire Hurricane investigation,” adding, “We have released as much material as possible, but some classified material has still been withheld.&#8221;
The 11 transcripts include one from “Case Agent 1,” who was <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/23/us/politics/fisa-surveillance-fbi.html">identified</a> as Stephen Somma by The New York Times in February 2020. As The Daily Caller’s Chuck Ross <a href="https://dailycaller.com/2020/02/24/case-agent-1-stephen-somma-fisa/">reported</a> at that time, Somma was blamed for “some of the most significant problems laid out in the Justice Department’s inspector general report on FISA abuse against a Trump campaign.” Somma was singled out by the Department of Justice’s Inspector General in a report documenting numerous inaccuracies and omissions included in the FBI’s FISA warrants against former Trump campaign aide Carter Page.
As The Daily Wire <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/ig-report-here-are-the-17-specific-inaccuracies-and-omissions-in-the-fbis-fisa-warrants-against-carter-page">reported</a> in December 2019 when the report was released, those errors included information that Page had a prior relationship with a U.S. government agency, so his contact with Russian officials was not unusual.
“According to the IG report, he was the FBI agent who initially sought a surveillance warrant against Page. Somma pushed for a FISA warrant ‘almost immediately’ after the FBI opened Crossfire Hurricane on July 31, 2016, the IG said,” Ross reported early last year. “Somma’s initial request was rejected, but FBI lawyers later approved seeking a FISA warrant on Page after the bureau received information from former British spy Christopher Steele. In his dossier, Steele alleged that Page was a key player in the Trump campaign’s ‘well-developed conspiracy of cooperation’ with the Russian government to influence the 2016 election.”
The IG’s damning report said the FBI did not verify the allegations against Page. Somma was in charge of verifying the information that was included in the warrants.
Another major transcript released by the Judiciary Committee is that of Bruce Ohr, one of the central figures in the Russia probe. Transcripts from Ohr’s interviews with the FBI had already been released, but this one is new.
Bruce Ohr is married to Nellie Ohr, who worked for Fusion GPS and provided her husband with research she had done on behalf of Fusion GPS, which Bruce then passed on to the FBI. Nellie Ohr was <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/nellie-ohr-fusion-gps-contractor-and-wife-doj-ashe-schow">criminally referred</a> to the DOJ by House Republicans in May 2019, though that referral has gone nowhere.
While working for Fusion, Nellie was <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/fusion-gps-had-wife-doj-official-investigate-ashe-schow">asked</a> to investigate Trump’s children. She also told lawmakers in her October 19, 2018, deposition that ex-British Spy Steele had passed information from his dossier to Bruce in the hopes that he would turn it over to the FBI. In his interview with Senate investigators, Ohr admits that he had a friendly relationship with Steele, though he doesn’t call him an actual friend.

Lindsey Graham

Senate Releases More Documents Relating To Russia Investigation, All Transcripts

Crossfire Hurricane

Carter Page, the former Trump 2016 campaign aide who was spied on by the FBI, wants to speak at the sentencing for the man who pleaded guilty to altering an email to make it seem as though Page had not previously worked with the CIA.
As the Daily Caller’s Chuck Ross reported, Page filed a motion on Friday requesting he be granted restitution, arguing “that actions by Clinesmith and others on the FBI’s Crossfire Hurricane team advanced the false theory that Page was a Russian spy.”
Leslie McAdoo Gordon, the attorney representing Page, said in the filing that Page should be allowed to speak at Clinesmith’s sentencing because he is a victim and the Crime Victim’s Rights Acts allows victims to speak at public court proceedings.
Clinesmith previously pleaded guilty to altering an email from the CIA regarding Page’s previous work with the agency. The CIA said Page had been a “operational contact” in years past, explaining his dealings with Russian officials. Clinesmith edited the email to include the line “not a ‘source,’” helping the FBI continue its investigation into Page and more broadly the Trump campaign.
As The Daily Wire <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/u-s-attorney-investigating-origins-of-russia-probe-wants-jail-time-for-fbi-lawyer-who-altered-cia-email-regarding-carter-page">reported</a>, U.S. Attorney John Durham, who was recently appointed as special counsel to continue his investigation into the origins of the investigation into whether the Trump campaign colluded with Russia to steal the 2016 election, filed a motion requesting a prison sentence for Clinesmith. Durham specifically requested Clinesmith serve a prison term “between the middle and upper end” of the allowable sentencing guidelines. For his part, Clinesmith has requested probation without prison time.
When the Department of Justice’s Inspector General released a report in December 2019 regarding the FISA warrants against Page, it found 17 “inaccuracies and omissions,” including Clinesmith’s altered emails. Clinesmith told the IG if the FBI learned that Page had been a source for the CIA, it would have “drastically” changed how the FISA warrants against him were handled.
While Clinesmith acknowledged he had made a “grievous mistake” and “accepts full responsibility for it,” Durham maintained that the former FBI lawyer may have altered the email due to political bias. An IG report into the FBI’s investigation of Hillary Clinton’s private email server uncovered messages from Clinesmith disparaging Trump. In one message, Clinesmith wrote “Viva le Resistance,” an apparent reference to the Resistance Movement that sprung up immediately after Trump was elected.
The warrants against Page were used to fuel the media and anti-Trump movement’s claims that Trump colluded with Russia to steal the 2016 election, even though a years-long, multi-million dollar special counsel investigation found no such evidence. The entire story was bolstered by media outlets reporting anonymous sources that didn’t even appear to have direct knowledge of the investigation or any of the allegations, referred to only as “sources familiar with the matter.” After the story was revealed to be false, media outlets and politicians stopped bring it up, but never had to answer for their repeated false claims.

Carter Page Wants To Speak At Sentencing For FBI Lawyer Who Altered An Email About Him

U.S. Attorney John Durham, who was tapped in April 2019 to investigate the origins of the FBI’s Russia probe that relied on dubious information to spy on President Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign, has emerged from the abyss to make a sentencing suggesting.
Durham on Thursday <a href="https://www.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.dcd.221058/gov.uscourts.dcd.221058.22.0.pdf">filed</a> a motion in court requesting a federal judge sentence former FBI lawyer Kevin Clinesmith, who pleaded guilty to altering a CIA email relating to former Trump campaign aide Carter Page, to a prison term “between the middle and upper end” of the allowable sentencing guidelines. Clinesmith altered an email from the CIA saying that Page had previously provided information to the agency in order to make it look like Page had not previously worked with the agency, thereby making his past dealings with Russian officials appear suspicious. The altered email helped the FBI continue to secure FISA surveillance warrants against Page.
The Daily Caller’s Chuck Ross <a href="https://dailycaller.com/2020/12/04/john-durham-kevin-clinesmith-prison-carter-page/">reported</a> that Durham’s court filing asserts “that Clinesmith was aware of the significance of Page’s relationship with the CIA.” Ross also reported that Clinesmith has <a href="https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/17445533/21/united-states-v-clinesmith/">filed</a> his own request to limit his sentence to probation without jail time. His attorneys referred to Clinesmith’s altering of the email as a “grievous mistake,” one for which he “accepts full responsibility.”
“They maintain that Clinesmith ‘did not knowingly lie’ about Page’s relationship with the CIA. Durham asserts that Clinesmith may have been motivated to alter the email due to ‘political or personal bias’ against Donald Trump and his campaign,” Ross reported. “Durham pointed to a Justice Department inspector general’s report on the FBI’s investigation of Hillary Clinton’s use of a private server which flagged texts messages that Clinesmith sent criticizing Trump after his election win.”
In one message, Clinesmith wrote “Viva le Resistance,” an apparent reference to the Resistance Movement that sprung up immediately after Trump was elected.
In December 2019, the Department of Justice’s Inspector General released a report showing 17 “<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/ig-report-here-are-the-17-specific-inaccuracies-and-omissions-in-the-fbis-fisa-warrants-against-carter-page">inaccuracies and omissions</a>” in the FBI’s FISA warrants against Carter Page, including Clinesmith’s altered email. The report noted that Page had previously worked with the CIA as an “operational contact” and that the CIA informed FBI investigators of this fact. This information was not included in the FISA warrant applications against Page. As Ross reported, “Clinesmith told the IG that the FBI finding out that Page was a source for the CIA would have ‘drastically’ changed how the bureau handled the FISA applications.”
The warrants against Page were used to fuel the media and anti-Trump movement’s claims that Trump colluded with Russia to steal the 2016 election, even though a years-long, multi-million dollar special counsel investigation found no such evidence. The entire story was bolstered by media outlets reporting anonymous sources that didn’t even appear to have direct knowledge of the investigation or any of the allegations, referred to only as “sources familiar with the matter.” After the story was revealed to be false, media outlets and politicians stopped bring it up, but never had to answer for their repeated false claims.

U.S. Attorney Investigating Origins Of Russia Probe Wants Jail Time For FBI Lawyer Who Altered CIA Email Regarding Carter Page

It was April 2019 when U.S. Attorney John Durham disappeared into the abyss to investigate the origins of the years-long hoax that President Donald Trump colluded with Russia to steal the 2016 election.
A year-and-a-half later &#8212; and after a contentious election &#8212; Trump is asking what happened to the prosecutor who was supposed to hold people accountable for spying on a presidential campaign and spreading false information for years.
“Where are they with Comey, with McCabe, with Brennan with all these people? They lied, they leaked, they spied on our campaign,” Trump asked on Fox News’ “Sunday Morning Futures,” as <a href="https://dailycaller.com/2020/11/29/donald-trump-carter-page-john-durham/">reported</a> by the Daily Caller’s Chuck Ross.
During that same interview, Trump expressed dismay that the Justice Department has been silent while the president and his supporters have presented allegations of voter fraud in key battleground states during the 2020 election. The Trump campaign has filed numerous lawsuits in an attempt to contest the election.
Trump then pivoted to the Durham investigation, asking, “What happened to Durham? Where’s Durham?”
As The Daily Wire <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-says-he-may-appoint-special-counsel-to-continue-criminal-investigation-of-fbi">reported</a>, Fox host Maria Bartiromo asked Trump during the interview whether he would appoint a special counsel to continue investigating the origins of the Russian collusion hoax.
“Will you appoint a special counsel to investigate and to continue the investigating into what took place in the 2016 election?” Bartiromo asked. “You mentioned Jim Comey and Andrew McCabe not facing accountability. Will you appoint a special counsel?”
“By the way, Comey and McCabe, that’s the least of it,” Trump replied. “You talk about the Logan Act. They used the Logan Act on General Flynn, who I was very proud to pardon. But they wanted to use and they did use the Logan Act on General Flynn. And you know where that started.”
“Look, this whole thing is a terrible situation. This should have never been allowed to happen. And, you know, it’s an embarrassment to our country. All over the world, they’re talking about it,” Trump continued. “And, yes, I would consider a special prosecutor, because, you know, this is not a counsel. It sounds so nice. I went through three years of a special counsel, prosecutor. I call prosecutor, because it’s a much more accurate term.”
Trump also praised former campaign aide Carter Page’s lawsuit against the FBI and DOJ, which fraudulently obtained FISA warrants to spy on Page and begin an investigation into the Trump campaign.
“I see Carter Page is bringing a lawsuit. That’s good news,” Trump said on Fox.
The Daily Wire previously <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/the-fbi-spied-on-carter-page-now-hes-suing-them-for-75-million">reported</a> that Page filed a lawsuit on Friday against the Justice Department, FBI, and several named individuals who helped obtain the FISA warrants to spy on Page that were based on unverified, salacious allegations in a dossier paid for by Hillary Clinton’s 2016 campaign.
Page alleges in his lawsuit that FBI investigators violated “his Constitutional and other legal rights in connection with unlawful surveillance and investigation of him by the United States Government” and that he “was targeted because of his lawful association with the 2016 Presidential campaign of Donald Trump.”
Page is suing numerous individuals associated with the DOJ’s Crossfire Hurricane investigation into alleged Russian collusion, including ex-FBI director James Comey, ex-FBI agents Andrew McCabe and Peter Strzok, Lisa Page, and Kevin Clinesmith, who <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/breaking-ex-fbi-lawyer-to-plead-guilty-in-durham-criminal-investigation-for-allegedly-falsifying-evidence">pleaded guilty</a> to falsifying evidence against Page.

Trump

Trump Applauds Carter Page’s Lawsuit While Asking ‘Where’s Durham?’

There isn’t much a private citizen can do when their own government works against them, but former Trump campaign aide Carter Page is going to try. Page is attempting to get his life back after the FBI spied on him as part of its baseless investigation into alleged collusion between Russia and Trump’s 2016 campaign.
Page filed <a href="https://www.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.dcd.224507/gov.uscourts.dcd.224507.1.0.pdf">a lawsuit</a> on Friday against the Justice Department, FBI, and several named individuals who helped obtain the FISA warrants to spy on Page that were based on unverified, salacious allegations in a dossier paid for by Hillary Clinton’s 2016 campaign.
Page alleges in his lawsuit that FBI investigators violated “his Constitutional and other legal rights in connection with unlawful surveillance and investigation of him by the United States Government” and that he “was targeted because of his lawful association with the 2016 Presidential campaign of Donald Trump.”
Page is suing numerous individuals associated with the DOJ’s Crossfire Hurricane investigation into alleged Russian collusion, including ex-FBI director James Comey, ex-FBI agents Andrew McCabe and Peter Strzok, Lisa Page, and Kevin Clinesmith, who <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/breaking-ex-fbi-lawyer-to-plead-guilty-in-durham-criminal-investigation-for-allegedly-falsifying-evidence">pleaded guilty</a> to falsifying evidence against Page.
Clinesmith altered an email from the CIA acknowledging that Page previously had provided the agency information. Clinesmith’s alterations made it appear as if Page was not a previous CIA asset, making his Russian interactions seem inappropriate.
As The Daily Wire previously <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/ig-report-here-are-the-17-specific-inaccuracies-and-omissions-in-the-fbis-fisa-warrants-against-carter-page">reported</a>, the FBI included 17 “inaccuracies and omissions” in order to obtain four FISA warrants against Page, including the omission of evidence that Page had previously worked with the CIA. An Inspector General review of other FISA warrants found few, if any, similar inaccuracies and omissions.
“The FBI did not have probable cause to lawfully obtain a FISA warrant. Instead, the FBI used documents furnished by Christopher Steele, a Confidential Human Source (‘CHS’). As the Crossfire Hurricane team knew, CHS Steele had been paid by the Democratic Party and/or the Hillary Clinton presidential campaign to perform “political opposition research” and dig up dirt on a connection between the Trump campaign and Russia in order to divert attention from the investigation of Clinton’s email practices while she was Secretary of State,” Page alleges in his lawsuit.
Page further alleges the FBI disregarded its own procedures in order to spy on Page, including Rule 13a, which “requires the government to immediately correct any misstatement or omission of material fact in a warrant application,” the lawsuit states. The FBI, according to Page, knowingly included incorrect information, even after the bureau became aware of the inaccuracies.
The crux of the lawsuit is that the FBI relied on unverified information from a single source and relentlessly pursued Page despite evidence contradicting their theory against him. The FBI even broke numerous procedures in order to continue pursuing Page, procedures that, if followed, would have stopped them from ever obtaining FISA warrants to spy on Page in the first place.
Due to the professional, reputational, and emotional harm caused to Page by the FBI’s actions, Page, a former Navy Officer, is requesting at least $75 million in damages.

The FBI Spied on Carter Page. Now He’s Suing Them For $75 Million.

Lawsuit

The Department of Justice has released a memo written on August 2, 2017 that outlined the scope of Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into whether President Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign colluded with Russia to steal the election. The investigation concluded that the campaign did not, in fact, collude with Russia.
The newly released document sheds some light on the scope of the investigation with regards to five individuals who were targeted: Carter Page, Paul Manafort, George Papadopoulos, Michael Flynn, and a fifth person whose name was redacted. The memo was released thanks to a request from Senate Judiciary Chairman Lindsey Graham (R-SC), which Attorney General William Barr granted. Barr provided an unclassified version of the “Scope Memo,” which can be viewed <a href="https://nypost.com/2020/05/07/doj-releases-memo-outlining-scope-of-robert-muellers-probe/">here</a>, thanks to The New York Post.
The original memo was written by Rod Rosenstein while he was the Acting Attorney General and noted that he had issued an order on May 17, 2017 that appointed Mueller as special counsel and authorized him to conduct an investigation that had been authorized by then-FBI Director James Comey during testimony to the House Intelligence committee on March 20, 2017. The May 17, 2017 order, Rosenstein wrote, was worded in such a way to “permit its public release without confirmed specific investigations involving specific individuals.” The August 2, 2017 memo that was just released provided specifics.
The memo outlines the allegations that “were within the scope of the investigation,” including “Allegations that Carter Page committed a crime or crimes by colluding with Russian government officials with respect to the Russian government’s efforts to interfere with the 2016 election for President of the United States, in violation of United States law.” As we now know, not only did Page not collude with Russia, but the FBI <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/ig-report-here-are-the-17-specific-inaccuracies-and-omissions-in-the-fbis-fisa-warrants-against-carter-page">left out</a> key exculpatory evidence to continue targeting him through FISA warrants.
The memo further outlines the allegations against Manafort, Papadopoulos, and Flynn:
Allegations that Paul Manafort:
<ul>
<li>Committed a crime or crimes by colluding with Russian government officials with respect to the Russian government&#8217;s efforts to interfere with the 2016 election for President of the United States, in violation of United States law;</li>
<li>Committed a crime or crimes arising out of payments he received from the Ukrainian government before and during the tenure of President Viktor Yanukovych;</li>
<li>Committed a crime or crimes arising out of his receipt of loans from a bank whose Chief Executive Officer was then seeking a position in the Trump Administration;</li>
</ul>
Allegations that George Papadopoulos:
<ul>
<li>Committed a crime or crimes by colluding with Russian government officials with respect to the Russian government&#8217;s efforts to interfere with the 2016 election for President of the United States, in violation of United States law;</li>
<li>Committed a crime or crimes by acting as an unregistered agent of the government of Israel;</li>
</ul>
Allegations that Michael Flynn:
<ul>
<li>Committed a crime or crimes by engaging in conversations with Russian government officials during the period of the Trump transition;</li>
<li>Committed a crime or crimes by making false statements to the FBI when interviewed about his contacts with the Russian government;</li>
<li>Committed a crime or crimes by failing to report foreign contacts and income on a Fonn SF-86 that he completed in anticipation of his being selected to serve as the National Security Adviser to President Trump;</li>
<li>Committed a crime or crimes by acting as an unregistered agent for the government of Turkey</li>
</ul>
All collusion claims against these individuals were unfounded, and recently released information appears to show that Flynn was set up in order to get him fired.
Following the release of the memo, Graham said it showed the “entire Mueller investigation was illegitimate to begin with,” according to a transcript <a href="https://cnsnews.com/article/washington/susan-jones/graham-declassified-memo-shows-entire-mueller-investigation-was">from CNS News</a>.

Michael Flynn

DOJ Releases Memo Explaining Why Carter Page, Michael Flynn, And Others Were Targeted In Mueller Probe

George Papadopoulos

Paul Manafort

Robert Mueller

In a pair of social media posts on Sunday, President Trump pointed to reports that FBI Director Christopher Wray acknowledged during a House Judiciary Committee hearing last week that the FBI engaged in &#8220;illegal surveillance with respect to at least several of these FISA applications [for Trump adviser Carter Page] because there was no probable cause or proper predication.&#8221;
&#8220;FBI Director Christopher Wray just admitted that the FISA Warrants and [Surveillance] of my campaign were illegal,&#8221; Trump wrote in a two-tweet thread Sunday. &#8220;So was the Fake Dossier.&#8221;
Trump then hit the caps lock for an incensed declaration about the &#8220;scam investigation&#8221; into &#8220;collusion&#8221; between the Trump campaign and Russia, for which Special Counsel Robert Mueller ultimately found no evidence after his two-year, wide-ranging probe:
<blockquote>THEREFORE, THE WHOLE SCAM INVESTIGATION, THE MUELLER REPORT AND EVERYTHING ELSE FOR THREE YEARS, WAS A FIXED HOAX. WHO PAYS THE PRICE? This is the biggest political crime in American History, by far. SIMPLY PUT, THE PARTY IN POWER ILLEGALLY SPIED ON MY CAMPAIGN, BOTH BEFORE AND AFTER THE ELECTION, IN ORDER TO CHANGE OR NULLIFY THE RESULTS OF THE ELECTION. IT CONTINUED ON WITH THE IMPEACHMENT HOAX. Terrible!</blockquote>
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&#8230;.This is the biggest political crime in American History, by far. SIMPLY PUT, THE PARTY IN POWER ILLEGALLY SPIED ON MY CAMPAIGN, BOTH BEFORE AND AFTER THE ELECTION, IN ORDER TO CHANGE OR NULLIFY THE RESULTS OF THE ELECTION. IT CONTINUED ON WITH THE IMPEACHMENT HOAX. Terrible!
&mdash; Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1226594759436881921?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 9, 2020</a></blockquote>
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Wray&#8217;s acknowledgment of the FBI&#8217;s wrongdoing reportedly came during a House Judiciary Committee hearing last week. CBS News’ <a href="https://twitter.com/CBS_Herridge/status/1225481249155928066?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1225481249155928066&amp;ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Feditorial.dailywire.com%2Fwp-admin%2Fpost.php%3Fpost%3D85846%26action%3Dedit">Catherine Herridge</a> reported that Texas Republican Rep. John Ratcliffe, citing the inspector general and DOJ report on the FBI abuse of the FISA court, asked Wray if he would “acknowledge that this was illegal surveillance with respect to at least several of these FISA applications because there was no probable cause or proper predication. Correct?”
“Right,” Wray responded, Herridge reported.
Recently declassified <a href="https://www.fisc.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/FISC%20Declassifed%20Order%2016-1182%2017-52%2017-375%2017-679%20%20200123.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC) ruling</a> in January determined that the FBI should have discontinued its secret surveillance of Page because it had “insufficient predication to establish probable cause.” At least two of the four FISA applications for Page, ruled FISA Judge James Boasberg on January 7, were “not valid.”
“DOJ assesses that with respect to the applications in Docket Numbers 17-375 and 17-679, ‘if not earlier, there was insufficient predication to establish probable cause to believe that [Carter] Page was acting as an agent of a foreign power,&#8217;” ruled Boasberg, as reported by The Federalist’s <a href="https://thefederalist.com/2020/01/23/breaking-spy-court-admits-fisa-warrants-against-carter-page-were-not-valid/">Sean Davis</a>.  “The Court understands the government to have concluded, in view of the material misstatements and omissions, that the Court’s authorizations in Docket Numbers 17-375 and 17-679 were not valid.”
In an interview with <a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/fbi-director-chris-wray-reacts-doj-watchdog-report/story?id=67605418">ABC News</a> in December following the release of the IG report, Wray defended the bureau and denied that there was any evidence that the FBI unfairly targeted Trump’s campaign. “[T]he Inspector General did not find political bias or improper motivations impacting the opening of the investigation or the decision to use certain investigative tools during the investigation, including FISA,” said Wray. “But that the Inspector general did find a number of instances where employees either failed to follow our policies, neglected to exercise appropriate diligence, or in some other way fell short of the standard of conduct and performance that we, and that I, as Director, expect of all our employees.”
Trump responded by declaring that Wray would &#8220;never be able to fix the FBI&#8221; with that kind of attitude. “I don’t know what report current Director of the FBI Christopher Wray was reading, but it sure wasn’t the one given to me,” Trump tweeted. “With that kind of attitude, he will never be able to fix the FBI, which is badly broken despite having some of the greatest men &amp; women working there!”
<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/ig-report-here-are-the-17-specific-inaccuracies-and-omissions-in-the-fbis-fisa-warrants-against-carter-page">Read the full list of 17 &#8220;inaccuracies and omissions&#8221; in the Trump campaign-targeting FISA applications found by the inspector general here</a>.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
I don’t know what report current Director of the FBI Christopher Wray was reading, but it sure wasn’t the one given to me. With that kind of attitude, he will never be able to fix the FBI, which is badly broken despite having some of the greatest men &amp; women working there!
&mdash; Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1204374382715506690?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 10, 2019</a></blockquote>
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President Trump

Trump: FBI Director Just Admitted Surveillance Of My Campaign Was Illegal

Christopher Wray

On the same day that the U.S. Senate voted to acquit President Trump over the allegations leveled by Democrats in their two impeachment articles, the director of the FBI reportedly made a significant admission during a House Judiciary Committee hearing. After publicly insisting that the FBI had not unfairly targeted the Trump campaign in its surveilling of Trump adviser Carter Page — prompting a sharp rebuke from President Trump — Wray reportedly acknowledged Wednesday that the FBI engaged in &#8220;illegal surveillance with respect to at least several of these FISA applications because there was no probable cause or proper predication.&#8221;
As reported by CBS News&#8217; <a href="https://twitter.com/CBS_Herridge/status/1225481249155928066?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1225481249155928066&amp;ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Feditorial.dailywire.com%2Fwp-admin%2Fpost.php%3Fpost%3D85846%26action%3Dedit">Catherine Herridge</a>, Texas Republican Rep. John Ratcliffe, citing the inspector general and DOJ report on the FBI abuse of the FISA court (see below), asked Wray in the hearing Wednesday if he would &#8220;acknowledge that this was illegal surveillance with respect to at least several of these FISA applications because there was no probable cause or proper predication. Correct?&#8221;
&#8220;Right,&#8221; Wray responded. Herridge reported the exchange in a tweet Thursday (h/t <a href="https://twitchy.com/brettt-3136/2020/02/06/fbi-director-christopher-wray-acknowledges-illegal-fisa-surveillance-with-no-probable-cause/">Twitchy</a>):
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
READ: Key section judiciary hearing <a href="https://twitter.com/RepRatcliffe?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@RepRatcliffe</a> that IG Report/DOJ/FISA court “..acknowledge that this was illegal surveillance with respect to at least several of these FISA applications because there was no probable cause or proper predication. Correct? “ Wray “Right” <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Durham?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Durham</a>
&mdash; Catherine Herridge (@CBS_Herridge) <a href="https://twitter.com/CBS_Herridge/status/1225481249155928066?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 6, 2020</a></blockquote>
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Wray&#8217;s admission follows his much-cited interview with <a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/fbi-director-chris-wray-reacts-doj-watchdog-report/story?id=67605418">ABC News</a> in December and a much-quoted blistering Trump tweet issued in response. In the interview, Wray denied that there was any evidence that the FBI unfairly targeted Trump&#8217;s campaign.
&#8220;I think it’s important for the American people to know that when the FBI opens an investigation it does so with proper predication, with proper authorization, based on the facts and nothing else,&#8221; said the FBI director. &#8220;I think it&#8217;s important that the inspector general found that in this particular instance the investigation was opened with appropriate predication and authorization.&#8221;
&#8220;[T]he Inspector General did not find political bias or improper motivations impacting the opening of the investigation or the decision to use certain investigative tools during the investigation, including FISA,&#8221; said Wray. &#8220;But that the Inspector general did find a number of instances where employees either failed to follow our policies, neglected to exercise appropriate diligence, or in some other way fell short of the standard of conduct and performance that we, and that I, as Director, expect of all our employees.&#8221;
Trump responded to Wray&#8217;s statement by declaring that &#8220;he will never be able to fix the FBI&#8221; with &#8220;that kind of attitude.&#8221;
&#8220;I don’t know what report current Director of the FBI Christopher Wray was reading, but it sure wasn’t the one given to me,&#8221; said Trump. &#8220;With that kind of attitude, he will never be able to fix the FBI, which is badly broken despite having some of the greatest men &amp; women working there!&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
I don’t know what report current Director of the FBI Christopher Wray was reading, but it sure wasn’t the one given to me. With that kind of attitude, he will never be able to fix the FBI, which is badly broken despite having some of the greatest men &amp; women working there!
&mdash; Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1204374382715506690?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 10, 2019</a></blockquote>
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Wray&#8217;s testimony Wednesday follows the declassification of a <a href="https://www.fisc.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/FISC%20Declassifed%20Order%2016-1182%2017-52%2017-375%2017-679%20%20200123.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC) ruling</a> in January determining that the FBI should have discontinued its secret surveillance of Trump adviser Carter Page because it had &#8220;insufficient predication to establish probable cause.&#8221; At least two of the four FISA applications for Page, ruled FISA Judge James Boasberg on January 7, were &#8220;not valid.&#8221;
&#8220;DOJ assesses that with respect to the applications in Docket Numbers 17-375 and 17-679, ‘if not earlier, there was insufficient predication to establish probable cause to believe that [Carter] Page was acting as an agent of a foreign power,'&#8221; wrote Boasberg, as reported by The Federalist&#8217;s <a href="https://thefederalist.com/2020/01/23/breaking-spy-court-admits-fisa-warrants-against-carter-page-were-not-valid/">Sean Davis</a>.  &#8220;The Court understands the government to have concluded, in view of the material misstatements and omissions, that the Court’s authorizations in Docket Numbers 17-375 and 17-679 were not valid.&#8221;
As The Daily Wire noted at the time, the IG report released in December <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/ig-report-here-are-the-17-specific-inaccuracies-and-omissions-in-the-fbis-fisa-warrants-against-carter-page">highlighted</a> the following 17 &#8220;inaccuracies and omissions&#8221; made by the FBI in applying for FISA applications to surveil Carter, including seven from the first application:
<ol>
<li>Omitted information from another U.S. government agency detailing its prior relationship with Page, including that Page had been approved as an operational contact for the other agency from 2008 to 2013, and that Page had provided information to the other agency concerning his prior contacts with certain Russian intelligence officers, one of which overlapped with facts asserted in the FISA application;</li>
<li>Included a source characterization statement asserting that Steele’s prior reporting had been “corroborated and used in criminal proceedings,” which overstated the significance of Steele’s past reporting and was not approved by Steele’s FBI handling agent, as required by the Woods Procedures;</li>
<li>Omitted information relevant to the reliability of Person 1, a key Steele sub-source (who, as previously noted, was attributed with providing the information in Report 95 and some of the information in Reports 80 and 102 relied upon in the application), namely that (1) Steele himself told members of the Crossfire Hurricane team that Person 1 was a “boaster” and an “egoist” and “may engage in some embellishment” and (2) [redacted]</li>
<li>Asserted that the FBI had assessed that Steele did not directly provide to the press information in the September 23 Yahoo News article, based on the premise that Steele had told the FBI that he only shared his election-related research with the FBI and [Fusion GPS Founder Glenn] Simpson; this premise was factually incorrect (Steele had provided direct information to Yahoo News) and also contradicted by documentation in the Woods File-Steele had told the FBI that he also gave his information to the State Department;</li>
<li>Omitted Papadopoulos’s statements to an FBI CHS in September 2016 denying that anyone associated with the Trump campaign was collaborating with Russia or with outside groups like WikiLeaks in the release of emails;</li>
<li>Omitted Page’s statements to an FBI CHS [Confidential Human Source] in August 2016 that Page had “literally never met” or “said one word to” Paul Manafort and that Manafort had not responded to any of Page’s emails; if true, those statements were in tension with claims in Steele’s Report 95 that Page was participating in a “conspiracy” with Russia by acting as an intermediary for Manafort on behalf of the Trump campaign; and</li>
<li>Selectively included Page’s statements to an FBI CHS in October 2016 that the FBI believed supported its theory that Page was an agent of Russia but omitted other statements Page made, including denying having met with Sechin and Divyekin, or even knowing who Divyekin was; if true, those statements contradicted the claims in Steele’s Report 94 that Page had met secretly with Sechin and Divyekin about future cooperation with Russia and shared derogatory information about candidate Clinton.</li>
</ol>
The IG found the following 10 inaccuracies and omissions in the second FISA application:
<ol>
<li>Omitted the fact that Steele’s Primary Sub-source, who the FBI found credible, had made statements in January 2017 raising significant questions about the reliability of allegations included in the FISA applications, including, for example, that he/she had no discussion with Person 1 concerning WikiLeaks and there was “nothing bad” about the communications between the Kremlin and the Trump team, and that he/she did not report to Steele in July 2016 that Page had met with Sechin;</li>
<li>Omitted Page’s prior relationship with another U.S. government agency, despite being reminded by the other agency in June 2017, prior to the filing of the final renewal application, about Page’s past status with that other agency; instead of including this information in the final renewal application, the FBI OGC [Office of the General Counsel] Attorney altered an email from the other agency so that the email stated that Page was “not a source” for the other agency, which the FBI affiant relied upon in signing the final renewal application;</li>
<li>Omitted information provided by persons with direct knowledge of Steele’s work-related performance in a prior position about Steele’s professional judgment, including statements that Steele had held a “moderately senior” position (not “high-ranking” as noted in the applications), had no history of reporting in bad faith but demonstrated “poor judgment,” “pursued people with political risk but no intelligence value,” “didn’t always exercise great judgment,” and it was “not clear what he would have done to validate” his reporting;</li>
<li>Omitted information from Department attorney Bruce Ohr about Steele and his election reporting, including that (1) Steele’s reporting was going to Clinton’s presidential campaign and others, (2) Simpson was paying Steele to discuss his reporting with the media, and (3) Steele was “desperate that Donald Trump not get elected and was passionate about him not being the U.S. President”;</li>
<li>Failed to update the description of Steele after information became known to the Crossfire Hurricane team, not only from Ohr but from others, that provided greater clarity on the political origins and connections of Steele’s reporting, including that Simpson was hired by someone associated with the Democratic Party and/or the DNC;</li>
<li>Failed to correct the assertion in the first FISA application that the FBI did not believe that Steele directly provided information to the reporter who wrote the September 23 Yahoo News article, even though there was no information in the Woods File to support this claim and even after certain FBI officials involved in Crossfire Hurricane learned in 2017, before the third renewal application, of an admission that Steele made in a court filing about his interactions with the news media in the late summer and early fall of 2016;</li>
<li>Omitted the finding from a formal FBI source validation report that Steele was suitable for continued operation but that his past contributions to the FBI’s criminal program had been “minimally corroborated,” and instead continued to assert in the source characterization statement that Steele’s prior reporting had been “corroborated and used in criminal proceedings”;</li>
<li>Omitted Papadopoulos’s statements to an FBI CHS in late October 2016 (after the first application was filed) denying that the Trump campaign was involved in the circumstances of the DNC email hack;</li>
<li>Omitted Joseph Mifsud’s denials to the FBI that he supplied Papadopoulos with the information Papadopoulos shared with the FFG (suggesting that the campaign received an offer or suggestion of assistance from Russia); and</li>
<li>Omitted evidence indicating that Page played no role in the Republican platform change on Russia’s annexation of Ukraine as alleged in Steele Report 95, which was inconsistent with a factual assertion relied upon to support probable cause in all four FISA application</li>
</ol>
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FBI Director Christopher Wray

FBI Director Blasted By Trump Admits ‘Illegal Surveillance’ Of Trump Adviser: Report

Carter Page, the former adviser for President Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign, is suing the Democratic National Committee and those who helped pay for the salacious dossier that formed the basis for multiple surveillance warrants used to spy on Page and the campaign.
Fox News <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/politics/ex-trump-aide-carter-page-files-suit-against-dnc-over-dossier-this-is-only-the-first-salvo">exclusively reported</a> that the lawsuit was filed Thursday in U.S. District Court in the Northern District of Illinois’ Eastern Division. The 23-page lawsuit names the DNC, law firm Perkins Coie and its partners, who paid Ex-British Intelligence officer Christopher Steele to dig up dirt on Trump. The “dirt” Steele found was nothing but rumors and innuendo. Steele himself said at least one of his sources was a “boaster” and an “egoist” who likely engaged “in some embellishment.”
The FBI used that dubious dossier, however, to obtain warrants to surveil Page and the Trump campaign. Even then, the FBI had to <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/ig-report-here-are-the-17-specific-inaccuracies-and-omissions-in-the-fbis-fisa-warrants-against-carter-page">omit information</a> in order to obtain the warrants. In early December, the Department of Justice Inspector General determined that the FBI violated numerous policies by omitting information and including repeated errors when obtaining the warrants against Page.
Page’s lawsuit states that the defendants “used false information, misrepresentations and other misconduct to direct the power of the international intelligence apparatus and the media industry against a private individual, Plaintiff Carter Page, to further their political agenda.”
Page had previously worked with the CIA and the FBI, which explained why he had contact with certain Russian officials. When the FBI filed its warrant applications against Page, it purposefully omitted that information even after it confirmed Page previously had been a source for the intelligence community.
“Defendants’ efforts mobilized the news media against Dr. Page, damaging his reputation, and effectively destroying his once-private life. The Defendants’ wrongful actions convinced many Americans that Dr. Page is a traitor to the United States, and as a result he has received—and continues to receive—multiple death threats. Dr. Page’s businesses have suffered greatly from the false, malicious information spread by Defendants. In short, Defendants’ actions have not only damaged Plaintiffs’ reputations and financial prospects, they have even caused Dr. Page to reasonably fear for his safety,” the lawsuit states.
Page <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/exclusive-carter-page-it-was-not-political-bias-that-led-to-fbi-spying-on-me-but-policy-bias">told</a> The Daily Wire in December that he received the most threats on the day that former FBI Director James Comey testified before the House Intelligence committee. Among other threats that day, Page received a voicemail from an unknown caller, who referred to something Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA) said during Comey’s testimony.
The lawsuit does not seek a specific amount in damages.
Page is represented by John Pierce of Pierce Bainbridge Beck Price &amp; Hecht LLP, who is also representing Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-HI) in <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/breaking-tulsi-gabbard-files-defamation-lawsuit-against-hillary-clinton">her lawsuit</a> against Hillary Clinton for defamation. Pierce told Fox News that Page’s lawsuit against the DNC and Perkins Coie was “a first step to ensure that the full extent of the FISA abuse that has occurred during the last few years is exposed and remedied.”
“Defendants and those they worked with inside the federal government did not and will not succeed in making America a surveillance state,” he continued.
In a press release, Pierce added:
For years, Carter Page stood alone as the DNC, Perkins Coie and officials at the highest levels of the federal government attempted to destroy his life and derail President Trump’s 2016 campaign.  They failed on both fronts. It is a credit to Dr. Page’s strength of character, resilience and patriotism that he was not broken by this onslaught. He no longer stands alone. Today, Pierce Bainbridge and Dr. Page begin a campaign to restore Dr. Page’s name and hold those who targeted him accountable.  Most importantly, this is a first step to ensure that the full extent of the FISA abuse that has occurred during the last few years is exposed and remedied. Defendants and those they worked with inside the federal government did not and will not succeed in making America a surveillance state. But this is thanks only to the brave actions of patriotic citizens such as Dr. Page who stand up as individuals to fight for the civil liberties of all Americans.  This is only the first salvo. We will follow the evidence wherever it leads, no matter how high, and we will hold all those who conspired to destroy Dr. Page’s life along with the Constitution accountable. The rule of law will prevail.

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