Christopher Steele, the former British intelligence agent who compiled the hoax dossier alleging ties between President Donald Trump and Russia, refuses to cooperate with the Department of Justice’s investigation into the origins of the Obama administration’s spying on then-candidate Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign, according to Reuters.
A Reuters source close to Steele’s private investigation outfit, Orbis Business Intelligence, said the ex-spy has chosen not to answer questions from Connecticut’s U.S. Attorney John Durham, who was recently appointed by Attorney General William Barr to examine the probe’s origins. Reports of Steele’s unwillingness to cooperate with the Justice Department comes days after President Trump gave Barr authority to declassify intelligence materials related to the probe and ordered several law enforcement agencies, including the CIA and FBI to cooperate with Durham’s review.
In 2016, Steele was hired by the opposition research firm Fusion GPS tasked by attorneys for the Democratic National Committee and Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign to dig up dirt on President Trump. Steele’s dossier was used by the FBI to obtain a Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) warrant to surveil members of the Trump campaign, namely, onetime Trump campaign foreign policy advisor Carter Page. FBI officials did not disclose explicitly to the FISA court that the dossier was paid for by the DNC or the Clinton campaign. However, the bureau did indicate that the document was produced as opposition research.
Troy Jackson, now pushing affordability message, voted to raise taxes in Maine
Trump DOJ accuses Obama judge of ‘Monday-morning quarterbacking’ in bid to revive Abrego Garcia case
Virginia man acquitted by insanity in killing flees US during 48-hour mental hospital pass
Man calls 911 after girlfriend found dead in motel, police allegedly uncover disturbing videos on his phone
Newly Released COVID Email Shows FDA Head Warning Fauci of Vax Side Effects, Then Eerie 4-Word Response from the Disgraced COVID Chief
Illegal immigrant learns fate after using stolen identity to vote in US elections for decades
Watch: Mom, Daughter Threatened with Ejection Over Pro-Girl Shirts, Despite Paying $2k for Tickets Just to Support Sophie Cunningham
LA gun owners stuck waiting years for concealed carry permits score major DOJ victory
Watch: In Just 30 Seconds Bill Maher Uses Actual History to Defeat One of Palestinians’ Dirtiest Gaza Lies
Mamdani’s New York: Man Charged with Hate Crime After Randomly Attacking Jewish Woman, 63, at Synagogue
Harvard, NYU among 30 universities hit with Pentagon foreign-tie audit deadline
Exclusive: Texas Lawmaker Says Talarico ‘Most Liberal’ in State History Amid Speculation He Fabricated Intern Story: He ‘Relies on Dishonesty’
Declassified FBI docs reveal Swalwell had sex with ‘Fang Fang’ multiple times
Babysitter accused of kidnapping two young sisters was previously charged with abducting newborn
El-Sayed aide likens GOP opponent’s campaign to ‘KKK cross burning’ over video with Ford pickup
In a recent interview with the Fox News Channel, Barr said his department is examining if “government officials abused their power and put their thumb on the scale” at the start of the FBI’s counterintelligence operation.
“I’ve been trying to get answers to the questions, and I’ve found that a lot of the answers have been inadequate, and some of the explanations I’ve gotten don’t hang together. In a sense, I have more questions today than when I first started,” the attorney general told anchor Bill Hemmer.
“The source close to Steele’s company said Steele would not cooperate with Durham’s probe but might cooperate with a parallel inquiry by the Justice Department’s Inspector General into how U.S. law enforcement agencies handled pre-election investigations into both Trump and Clinton,” according to Reuters.
Story cited here.
