What Merrick Garland Failed To Mention About the FBI

Attorney General Garland told us next to nothing about the investigation that prompted the raid of President Trump’s residence at Mar-a-Lago. He did, though, briefly address what he called “unfounded attacks on the professionalism of the FBI and Justice Department agents and prosecutors.”What malarky. While we do not know if the search of Mar-a-Lago was proper or political, we do know that the FBI in particular has been beset with scandals over the last six years that call into question the bureau’s basic competence and political neutrality. Just look at the record. In 2019, the Justice Department’s inspector general found so many errors and deceptions in the four surveillance warrants against a former Trump campaign adviser, Carter Page, that the secret court revoked two of them. Later the inspector general found that scores of other surveillance warrant applications lacked basic verification of the supposed facts contained within.Then there is the FBI’s disastrous investigation into the USA Gymnastics doctor who has been accused by 330 women and girls of sexual abuse, Larry Nasser. He is now serving what amounts to a life sentence on sexual abuse and child pornography charges.The Justice Department inspector general found that key agents investigating the case lied to their superiors when they had evidence of his crimes, effectively allowing Nasser to continue his predations for another year. Add to this the FBI investigation into the 2020 plot to kidnap Michigan’s governor, Gretchen Whitmer. The Justice Department lost its first trial in this case because the defense successfully showed that the bureau had embedded agents and informants throughout the white militia accused of attempting the plot, including placing a snitch as the organization’s second in command.This is why Republicans will be zeroing in on the FBI, either as best they can from the opposition or more aggressively if their party wins control of Congress in the midterms. Senator Grassley, who serves as the ranking member of the judiciary committee, is telling me that the bureau’s “inconsistent decisions when it comes to politically sensitive investigations in recent years has understandably raised questions about the fair and equal application of the law.”Mr. Grassley is now focused on reports from FBI whistleblowers against assistant special agent in charge of the Washington Field Office, Timothy Thibault. These whistleblowers allege that Mr. Thibault improperly sabotaged an investigation into Hunter Biden by falsely claiming that credible tips were foreign disinformation.Compare that to the FBI’s handling of opposition research generated by agents of Hillary Clinton’s campaign. Back then, the FBI director, James Comey, fought internally to include the so-called Steele Dossier in an intelligence community assessment of Russian meddling in the 2016 election. He did that despite warnings from the CIA at the time to stay far away from the dossier.Part of the problem, according to Mr. Grassley, is that the bureau rarely holds its own accountable. A lawyer who pleaded guilty to doctoring evidence submitted to the secret surveillance court regarding Mr. Page, Kevin Clinesmith, was sentenced to probation in 2021. The District of Columbia Bar in December restored his status to member in “good standing.” “The American people ought to be able to have faith in the premier federal law enforcement agency,” Mr. Grassley said. “But that trust has been tarnished.”Blame Iran for the Rushdie AttackMake no mistake: The attack on author Salman Rushdie Friday is on the Iranian regime. In 1989, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini issued a religious edict, or fatwa, calling on Muslims to murder the novelist for writing “The Satanic Verses.” Since then, fanatics all over the world have tried to murder him.It’s reassuring that on Sunday evening, Secretary Blinken acknowledged the role Iran has played in Mr. Rushdie’s attempted murder. He said, “Iranian state institutions have incited violence against Rushdie for generations, and state-affiliated media recently gloated about the attempt on his life. This is despicable.” That is much better than the initial statement from the Biden administration Friday, when it made no mention of Iran. Nonetheless, Mr. Blinken is still trying to revive the dormant nuclear bargain with Iran. President Trump withdrew the U.S. from that agreement in 2018. Since President Biden acceded to office, he has tried to revive the articles of appeasement his former administration struck with Iran in 2015.This is despite Iran’s plots to assassinate a former national security adviser, John Bolton, and to kidnap the America-based activist on Iran, Masih Alinejad. It’s also despite Iran’s decision to block access for United Nations inspectors to nuclear sites. It’s also despite Iran nearly hitting the American consulate in northern Iraq last year with a ballistic missile.The stabbing of Mr. Rushdie is yet another reason why no self-respecting nation should seek to negotiate with the fanatics who currently run Iran. Just look at the semi-official response from the regime: The National Union for Democracy in Iran translated an item in Kayhan, an official newspaper whose editor is appointed by Iran’s supreme leader, that said of Mr. Rushdie’s assailant: “A thousand Hurrahs, a hundred bravos, that hand should be showered with kisses.”

What Merrick Garland Failed To Mention About the FBI

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