Marcy Wheeler on Showdown over Nunes Memo, Mueller Probe & Reauthorization of Mass Surveillance
Published on Feb 1, 2018 by Democracy Now! [ https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzuqE7-t13O4NIDYJfakrhw / https://www.youtube.com/user/democracynow , https://www.youtube.com/user/democracynow/videos ] A showdown is brewing in Washington as the White House prepares to release a controversial Republican memo despite opposition from the FBI, the Justice Department and Democratic lawmakers. The four-page memo, written by House Intelligence Committee chair, Republican Congressmember Devin Nunes of California, purports to show that the FBI abused its power when it began surveilling Trump campaign adviser Carter Page in 2016 due to his dealings with Russia. Supporters of President Trump claim the memo offers proof that the FBI’s investigation was tainted by politics from the start, in part because the FBI won approval of the wiretap by citing a dossier funded by supporters of Hillary Clinton. On Wednesday, the FBI, which is led by Trump appointee Christopher Wray, issued an unusual statement criticizing the imminent release of the memo, saying, “[W]e have grave concerns about material omissions of fact that fundamentally impact the memo’s accuracy.” We speak to independent journalist Marcy Wheeler, who runs the website EmptyWheel.net [ https://www.emptywheel.net/ ]. https://www.democracynow.org/2018/2/1/marcy_wheeler_on_showdown_over_nunes [with embedded video, and transcript] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=omeJbn-6QfE [with comments]
The director of the FBI seems prepared to publicly dispute the Nunes memo once it is released FBI Director Christopher Wray is prepared to refute the unverified memo written by Rep. Devin Nunes that alleges misconduct on the part of the FBI and the Department of Justice. President Donald Trump has stated that he is prepared to release the memo, despite claims from both sides of the aisle in Congress that it omits crucial details and distorts key facts. Wray has previously butted heads with Trump on issues relating to the FBI. http://www.businessinsider.com/fbi-director-will-publicly-dispute-the-nunes-memo-2018-2