Department of Justice (via New York Times) Carter Page FISA warrant
On Saturday evening, the Department of Justice released a set of top-secret documents relating to the warrant used to authorize wiretapping on Carter Page, the former Trump campaign adviser accused of being an agent of the Russian government. The warrant charges that Page worked on behalf of the Russian government to undermine the 2016 US election.
You can read the 412-page warrant here.
The Warrant Calls Page An “Agent of A Foreign Power” And Says He Was Working With Russia To Influence the 2016 Election
Carter Page
The warrant is heavily redacted. It charges that Carter Page is “the agent of a foreign power” working on behalf of Russia. The warrant further says that Page did “knowingly engage in clandestine intelligence activities(other than intelligence gathering activities) for or on behalf of such foreign power.”
The warrant also says, “The FBI believes that Page has been the subject of targeted recruitment by the Russian government [redacted] undermine and influence the outcome of the 2016 US Presidential election in violation of US law.”
Appearing on CNN on Sunday morning, Carter Page was repeatedly asked whether he was an agent of Russia. He denied it and called the accusation “absurd,” adding, “it’s a lot of spin.” Page eventually said that he had only “advised” Russians in 2012 or 2013 as part of a larger group planning the G20 sumit.
The Page Warrant Has Been the Subject of Controversy for Months, And the Department of Justice Delayed Releasing It Until a Lawsuit Was Filed
Are we all still waiting on the FISAs @TomFitton, @JudicialWatch, @adamgoldmanNYT, @MFIAclinic, @BradMossEsq, @MarkSZaidEsq, @bradheath, @JMadisonProject, et al? If so, too bad – that ridiculousness may have offered a nice summertime laugh, before taking steps to restore justice.
The Justice Department released the long-awaited documents after Judicial Watch and a number of media outlets filed a request under the Freedom of Information Act. The initial request was declined, and eventually Judicial Watch filed a lawsuit under FOIA, which the Department of Justice finally complied with yesterday.
You can read Judicial Watch’s FOIA application here.
Republicans had claimed that law enforcement officials had obtained the warrant to spy on Page improperly. They said that the warrant, issued in 2016, was effectively a way for the Obama administration to spy on the Trump campaign. Davin Nunes, chair of the House intelligence Committee, has called the document “100 percent fraudulant.” In February, Nunes’s committee released a memo claiming that the warrant was obtained based on information that was gathered by Democratic opposition researchers paid by the DNC.
You can read Nunes’ memo here.
Judicial Watch said that the warrant — and the wiretapping of Page — was “the worst government abuse scandal in a generation.”
Trump Has Already Tweeted That The Warrant Proves “Crooked Hillary” Was Spying on the Trump Campaign
President Trump, never one to shy away from Twitter, tweeted, “Looking more & more like the Trump Campaign for President was illegally being spied upon (surveillance) for the political gain of Crooked Hillary Clinton and the DNC. Ask her how that worked out – she did better with Crazy Bernie. Republicans must get tough now. An illegal Scam!”
Looking more & more like the Trump Campaign for President was illegally being spied upon (surveillance) for the political gain of Crooked Hillary Clinton and the DNC. Ask her how that worked out – she did better with Crazy Bernie. Republicans must get tough now. An illegal Scam!