Thursday, December 28, 2017

How Obama's henchmen and women violated the Constitution in spying on the Trump team

Sundance continues to amaze me at The Conservative Treehouse. Today he writes,
As of this writing the FBI and DOJ are refusing to answer foundational questions about that second FISA application and the subsequent FISA warrant that was used as a justification for the Wiretaps and Surveillance that began on the Trump Campaign.

The dates here seem intentionally cloudy because, according to James Comey testimony, the FBI counterintelligence operation began in July 2016, around the same time the Steele Dossier was given to the FBI and simultaneous to the first FISA application being denied.

The second FISA application was approved in/around October 2016. All current media outlines overlook the obvious question of whether the wiretaps and surveillance began in July 2016 without a warrant.

Given the nature of the illegality involved with the entire effort it would be naive to think the FBI waited until October for wiretaps to become legal when their own admissions state they began the operation in July, three months prior.

The story of October 2016 has more interesting aspects. But first, we must gain a greater understanding of the division within the DOJ that was involved.

♦The National Security Division (NSD) inside the DOJ was where all of the collaboration appears to have taken place. The NSD is a sub-division within the DOJ similar to the Counterintelligence Division within the FBI.

Using the National Security Division (NSD) inside the DOJ presents a specifically useful angle for the purposes of hiding duplicitous, unethical and unlawful conduct.

Responding to a 2015 request by the DOJ Office of Inspector General, Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates told the internal watchdog they cannot investigate the National Security Division.

That’s right, there is essentially no oversight on any activity happening inside the NSD.

In 2015 the OIG requested oversight and it was Sally Yates who responded with a lengthy 58 page legal explanation saying, essentially, ‘nope – not allowed.’ (PDF HERE) All of the DOJ is subject to oversight, except the NSD.

The Department of Justice’s own Inspector General (currently Michael Horowitz who opened a January 2017 investigation into the 2016 politicization of the FBI and DOJ) is not allowed to investigate anything that happens within the NSD branch of the Department of Justice.

See the ‘useful arrangement‘?

Yeah, Funny that.

So it might not be so coincidental the players used on the DOJ side of “Operation Trump” all seem to come from within the National Security Division.

I digress, but remember, I said pay attention to the September/October 2016 time-frame.

DOJ Deputy Attorney Bruce Ohr was “demoted” in the summer of 2017 after the Inspector General discovered unreported 2016 contacts between Ohr and Russian Dossier author Christopher Steele, as well as contact with Fusion GPS founder Glenn Simpson, in October 2016. [Also remember Bruce’s wife, Nellie Ohr, was hired by Fusion GPS in April 2016 to start the research that ultimately ended with the sketchy dossier.]

Also in October 2016, right around the time the DOJ lawyers formatted the FBI information (Steele Dossier etc.) for the FISA Application, the head of the NSD, Asst. Attorney General John P Carlin, left his job.

It would have specifically been John Carlin’s responsibility to ensure a valid legal basis for the FISA application submitted to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court.

Remember also, the July 2016 application was denied, a rarity. Therefore, if the second application used ‘sketchy’ enhancements – for the matter of accountability it no longer mattered because Asst. Attorney General John Carlin was headed to the exits.

After NSD head John Carlin left the DOJ he was replaced with Acting Asst. Attorney General Mary McCord. [*Remember this*] Also note “Stuart Evans”.

...Immediately after the second FISA warrant is approved,… in the period where John Carlin has given his notice of intent to leave, but not yet left… Inside those specific two weeks,… On September 26th, 2016, the National Security Division of the DOJ tells the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC) they have been breaking the law; and the NSD specifically informs the court they have been using FISA applications to spy on their domestic political opposition.

Wait, what?

You’ve… just…. got… to… be… kidding… right?

...The NSD admits the details how, under President Obama, the Eric Holder and Loretta Lynch Department of Justice used FISA applications to spy on political opponents, unmasked conversations to discover content, and also disclosed this has been happening for SIX YEARS prior to the beginning of the July 2016 joint FBI/DOJ “Trump Operation”.

Now, SERIOUSLY, does anyone doubt what the October 2016 FISA warrant was about?


Read more here.

No comments: