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.”
Portion of the Kennedy Center ceiling collapses, renewing calls to close for renovations
Nevada Democratic election chief says Trump administration hit his office with seven DOJ subpoenas
DOJ ordered to freeze antitrust work with Canada as trade tensions intensify
Left-Wing Outlet Says It’s a ‘Racist Conspiracy Theory’ to Talk About Immigrants Replacing American Voters
WATCH: Illegal alien busted in battleground state after allegedly committing voter fraud
American Journalist Sentenced to Prison After Pleading Guilty to Working as an Agent of the Chinese Government
Republicans denounce Lindsay Clancy mistrial: ‘Victims deserved far, far better’
Two Suspects Arrested After Famous Musician and His Family Are Murdered in Mexico
Mullin asks DOJ to review voter data sharing tied to Zuckerberg-funded nonprofit group
Trump lawyers target what Letitia James won’t say about evidence in $450M case
Country Star John Rich Says Jelly Roll Knew Exactly What He Was Doing, And He Will Now Pay the Price
ICE officer pleads not guilty to lying about Minneapolis shooting involving Venezuelan man
Report: Dozens of Suspected ‘Directed Energy Attacks’ Carried Out Inside the United States
Illinois mother charged with murder in death of 2-year-old son in case drawing comparions to Lindsay Clancy
Michael Cohen, Star Witness in Trump’s NY Conviction, Reportedly Recants Testimony: ‘He Was Pressured and Coerced’
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.
