Barr: ‘Very Unusual’ For FBI To Rely On Steele Dossier Given ‘Clear Mistakes’

Attorney General William Barr said in an interview that aired Friday that he is investigating what role the Steele dossier played in the Russia probe, and that the salacious document had “a number of clear mistakes.”

“It’s a very unusual situation to have opposition research like that, especially one that on its face had a number of clear mistakes and a somewhat jejune analysis,” Barr told Fox News’ Bill Hemmer.

“And to use that to conduct counterintelligence against an American political campaign is a strange — would be strange development.”

In the interview, Barr spoke at length about an inquiry he launched at the Justice Department into the origins of the Russia investigation. He told The Wall Street Journal in an interview that the investigation is also focusing on what information U.S. intelligence agencies gathered on Trump campaign associates before the FBI formally opened its investigation in July 2016.

Music and patriotism: Dukes of Hazzard star praises community and family at Great American State Fair

Tyler Robinson preliminary hearing: Judge orders redactions to ex-lover’s video testimony

Social media influencer and model, 22, killed in violent highway crash

Trump threatens troop withdrawals if ‘very good deal’ on Greenland isn’t struck

House Dem back in the spotlight as brother faces up to 10 years in prison if convicted

Platner drops out of crucial Senate race after bombshell rape allegation torpedoes campaign

Franklin Graham Gives McDonald’s ‘Free Advice’ on How to ‘Bring Happy Customers Back’

Who is Valli Geiger? Meet the Maine Dem that Platner urged to run for Senate

Mike Rowe Sues Discovery for $2 Million in ‘Deadliest Catch’ Dispute

Erika’s Heartbreaking Reaction to a Woman She Saw in the Courtroom Crying Over Charlie’s Murder

Former Wisconsin Judge Who Was Convicted of Helping an Illegal Alien Evade ICE Gets Light Sentence

Bernie-backed socialist who allied with Platner could supplant him on ballot

WATCH: Dana White drops 2028 hints while raving about his favorite Trump cabinet secretary

Donald Trump sparks intrigue by ditching new Qatari jet for old Air Force One

Potential 2028 Dem contender unloads on Netanyahu, admits US-Israel ties at ‘crossroads’

The FBI relied heavily on the Steele dossier, which was funded by the DNC and Clinton campaign, to obtain surveillance warrants against Carter Page, a Trump campaign adviser. But Republicans have accused the FBI of misleading the surveillance court by relying on the dossier given that its allegations were unverified.

Christopher Steele, a former British spy, claimed in the dossier that the Trump campaign was involved in a “well-developed conspiracy of co-operation” with the Russian government to influence the 2016 election. He alleged that Page and other Trump associates, like Paul Manafort and Michael Cohen, were at the center of the scheme.

But the special counsel’s report all but debunked the dossier’s central thesis, while dismissing one specific allegation about Cohen. The report said that prosecutors were unable to establish a conspiracy between the Trump team and Russia. It also said that Cohen did not visit Prague in August 2016, which is where the dossier claimed the former Trump lawyer went to pay off Russian hackers.

Steele and his client, Fusion GPS, shopped the dossier around to numerous journalists. Steele also provided memos from his dossier to the FBI and State Department.

Barr told Hemmer that the answers he has received so far about the origins of the investigations “aren’t sufficient.” He is reportedly working with the directors of the CIA, FBI and Office of National Intelligence on the inquiry.