Former FBI general counsel James Baker said this week that he and other officials were “quite worried” that former FBI Director James Comey appeared to be blackmailing then President-elect Trump during a 2017 meeting regarding salacious allegations found in the Steele dossier.
On the latest episode of the Yahoo News podcast “Skullduggery” broadcast on Tuesday, Baker said he and others were so concerned about Comey briefing Trump on January 6, 2017 on Russia’s interference in the election as well as the controversial dossier that “analogies” were made to J. Edgar Hoover, the former FBI director who famously abused his power to blackmail individuals.
“We were quite worried about the Hoover analogies, and we were determined not to have such a disaster happen on our watch,” Baker said, hoping to convey to the incoming president that they did not want to continue the “legacy” of Hoover’s blackmailing.
Baker did not recall the moment he first heard about the Steele dossier but remembered the bureau taking it “seriously” and said that they were “obligated to deal with it” and determine whether or not anything about it was true, but insisted they didn’t accept it “as gospel.” He did, however, believe Trump had to be briefed on the dossier because it was “about to be disclosed to the press.”
Justice Department charges 16 across multiple states with alleged illegal voting, election crimes
Breaking: US Issues Security Alert as Trump Rushes to WH Days After Saying US Could Soon ‘Annihilate’ Iranian Regime
Messianic Rabbi Jonathan Cahn Says His Viral ‘Duct Tape Man’ Encounter Echoes ‘Revelation’ About Evil in His Latest Book
New Jersey mom charged with obstruction after ‘missing’ son found hiding in her crawl space
NORAD F-16 intercepts aircraft that violated restricted airspace over Camp David with Trump present: officials
DSA Democrats Praise This ‘Socialist Model’ – Communist Cuba’s Power Grid Collapses
Watch: MAGA Takes Victory Lap as CNN Is Forced to Read Trump’s WH Ban on Air
Newsom signs bills to prevent Trump from ‘dictatorial control’ over California elections
Shocking Reports of Dog Torture Emerge from Major LA Homeless Encampment
Trump announces new ‘AI Force,’ vows to protect industry as AI czar announcement nears
Solid-Blue Oregon Suddenly Looks Flippable as a New Poll Puts the Governor’s Race in Toss-Up Range
Who is Chinese first lady Peng Liyuan?
Specific Utah Law Could Derail Charlie Kirk Family’s Wrongful Death Case: Legal Experts
Riyadh airport explosion prompts Saudi Arabia to issue air raid alerts as Houthi fighting escalates
Yes, They Do Exist: Ken Paxton Shuts Down Chinese Birth Tourism Center in Texas
The former top FBI lawyer explained why he clashed with Comey over whether to tell Trump that he wasn’t the subject of the Russia investigation. According to Baker, he argued that the then President-elect’s activities “fell into the category” of being a subject and he didn’t think it was “accurate” to say otherwise. By contrast, Comey repeatedly told Trump that the president was not under investigation before his dismissal in May 2017.
Nonetheless, Baker said he supported any investigation that is looking into the origins of the Russia probe.
“I welcome scrutiny,” Baker said. “I plan to fully cooperate with the department to help them figure out what happened. Because I believe what happened was lawful, at least based on every piece of information that I have.”
Story cited here.
