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.
Rashida Tlaib slams anti-israel Arab group over handling of sexual harassment claims
‘Shark Tank’ star backs Trump’s White House ballroom plan amid security concerns: ‘It’s bipartisan’
Grand Jury Indicts 2 Suspects for Assault on Turning Point USA Journalist
DOJ Releases Mirror Selfie of WHCA Dinner Shooter Donning Red Tie, Weapons Arsenal Just Before Attack
Dems’ ‘No Kings’ rhetoric backfires as critics lambaste ‘confusing’ reaction to actual king
Repeat offender with dozens of prior charges arrested for burglarizing church in Soros-backed DA’s county
Animal Farm filmmakers push back on ‘anti-capitalist’ movie criticism
BREAKING: Supreme Court Rules 6-3 That Drawing Congressional Districts Based on Race is Unconstitutional
Two Jewish Londoners stabbed by attacker as mayor laments ‘series of shocking antisemitic attacks’
Scott Peterson’s defense loses bid to introduce witness testimony in long-running fight to overturn conviction
2 suspects indicted in assault of TPUSA reporter Savanah Hernandez during Minneapolis ICE protest: sources
Eaten Up with TDS, Adam Kinzinger Tries to Normalize Attempts to Kill Trump with Volley of Bizarre Posts
Powell could remain at the Fed despite looming end of chair term
Trump’s agenda on razor’s edge as GOP divisions block legislative path in House
Journalist Challenges Jim Acosta to Fight Outside His Hotel
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.
