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Sessions: Justice Department to investigate missing text messages

Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced today that the Justice Department has begun an investigation into the missing text messages between two anti-Trump FBI agents.

“We will leave no stone unturned to confirm with certainty why these text messages are not now available to be produced and will use every technology available to determine whether the missing messages are recoverable from another source,” Sessions said in a statement. “I have spoken to the Inspector General and a review is already underway to ascertain what occurred and to determine if these records can be recovered in any other way. If any wrongdoing were to be found to have caused this gap, appropriate legal disciplinary action measures will be taken,” he continued.

What makes these missing FBI text messages so much more politically flammable than the missing IRS Lois Lerner records is that Lerner was merely abusing the rights of ordinary Americans, while these FBI officials appear to have been trying to abuse the rights of other politicians. While the Republicans might have mouthed outrage over the IRS abuse, they were unable to mobilize their entire party over the issue. I can just hear the response in the Congressional cloakrooms: “What difference does it make? Lerner and the IRS were just messing with some dumb tea party rednecks.”

With the FBI, however, the entire political class is now realizing that they have become the target, and this threat to them cannot be tolerated.

Genesis cover

On Christmas Eve 1968 three Americans became the first humans to visit another world. What they did to celebrate was unexpected and profound, and will be remembered throughout all human history. Genesis: the Story of Apollo 8, Robert Zimmerman's classic history of humanity's first journey to another world, tells that story, and it is now available as both an ebook and an audiobook, both with a foreword by Valerie Anders and a new introduction by Robert Zimmerman.

 

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17 comments

  • Phill O

    Good take on the politician angle Bob. I do not like the fact but I think you are correct!

  • jeff medvin

    More evidence that rules and regulations are for us, the little people. Change lanes without signaling, double park, or miss paying property tax and you have real problems but defy a subpoena, destroy evidence or jeopardize national security by mishandling secrets and you get to apologize.

  • Garry

    Mr. Z wrote,

    “With the FBI, however, the entire political class is now realizing that they have become the target, and this threat to them cannot be tolerated.”

    If this all came to light a year ago, I think many politicians, Republicans included, would have thought “this doesn’t affect me, it’s just Trump, and we want to get rid of him anyway.” Since then, more and more people have come to the realization that it’s not going to be easy getting rid of Trump. Also, I have to think that this becoming public knowledge makes a difference.

    Still, I suspect there are at least a few holdouts among politicians that don’t want to pursue this, because they perceive it as only a threat to Trump, whom they hate.

    I hope there’s enough critical mass/political will to really pursue this and clean house, even though the mops, sponges, themselves are not all clean.

  • wayne

    LevinTV
    Mueller’s ‘Silent Coup’ Not So Silent Anymore
    December 2017
    https://youtu.be/vg_XdcTBgVo
    55:12

  • Cotour

    I.G. Horowitz’s office apparently already has Strzock and Pages communications?

    https://youtu.be/O8yumV5jPCE

    And there are a group within the FBI that are a “secret” society?

    https://pjmedia.com/trending/page-strzok-referenced-fbi-secret-society-met-day-election/

    And they have apparently been using drug trafficker methods by using “burner” phones? This goes sooo deep that I do not think anyone can imagine. And Sessions requested that McCabe be fired, seems a reasonable request to me given just what I a mere pedestrian understands about his actions. But Christopher Wray refused, threatened to resign. I say go ahead.

    http://nordic.businessinsider.com/fbi-director-chris-wray-threatened-resignation-over-jeff-sessions-pressure-2018-1/

    I suppose that Wray would not want to disrupt a fellow government employee his retirement calculations. What will a defense attorney who has represented someone who ANY of these high level FBI operatives were a part of do related to any convictions? Guess, this becomes a treasure trove of reasonable doubt since these people are apparently not familiar with what actual evidence is and what their fiduciary responsibility is.

    This can only get much, much worse before it gets better. And Mueller who is the head of the “Trump Russia Collusion” investigation who is elbow deep in all of this is still at work. I find that counter intuitive.

  • Garry

    Cotour, good find on the I.G. apparently having the missing text messages; that gives me hope that something’s coming relatively soon.

    I wish I shared your optimism on how big ITs effects will be.

  • Cotour

    Critical mass has been or soon will be achieved.

    And then let the chips fall where they may, Democrat or Republican alike.

    Behold, we are all witness to the brilliance of the Founders efforts.

  • Garry

    The part I worry about is “let the chips fall where they may”; I get the feeling there will be resistance to letting the chips fall. The key is to get the public behind it, but I don’t know how much public will is out there.

    I hope my worries are unfounded.

  • Cotour

    What you are witnessing right now is the attempt to control the chips, but there are now too many.

    And keep in mind where all of this FBI / DOJ intrigue doubles back to sit, at the feet of Hillary Clinton and Barack Hussein Obama.

    Hillary Clinton because the assumption that she was a lock and going to be the next president for certain, no one would have dared stand in her way if they wanted to retain their jobs, or worse. Communal criminality at its best. And Barack Hussein Obama because he and his top level operatives committed fraud on the FISA court in order that they have the privilege of violating the Constitution and spying on their political opponent, D. J. Trump. Fiduciary surrender of the highest order, especially if you get caught.

  • wayne

    D’Souza:
    “What The Democrats & A Gang Of Criminals Have In Common”
    October 2015
    https://youtu.be/2WB5MioPSFA?t=543
    57:48

  • Steve Earle

    Cotour said:
    “…This can only get much, much worse before it gets better. And Mueller who is the head of the “Trump Russia Collusion” investigation who is elbow deep in all of this is still at work. I find that counter intuitive….”

    I’m learning to see the nightly news through the lens of S.O.M. When I saw that Sessions was going to FINALLY do some investigating I immediately thought “what will the swamp do now to push back?” And, like clockwork, there was a leak from Mueller stating he wanted to interview Trump. And of course, that’s all the MSM is talking about today.

    I suspect that Mueller is doing exactly what he was told to do: Make it obvious to Trump and his people that this game is going to get NASTY and it would be better for him if it all went away……

  • Steve Earle

    And re the IRS: I am still amazed that the average person in the USA wasn’t and still isn’t, screaming for heads. How is it that people don’t realize that a corrupt IRS could be used to destroy ANY of us?

    I actually thought back then that would be the straw that broke Obama’s back, and that maybe it would even lead to the abolishing of the IRS finally. I was obviously far too optimistic about my fellow American’s ability to reason :-(

  • Edward

    Steve Earle asked: “And re the IRS: I am still amazed that the average person in the USA wasn’t and still isn’t, screaming for heads. How is it that people don’t realize that a corrupt IRS could be used to destroy ANY of us?

    You answered your own question in your previous comment. What is the MSM talking about today? Not the IRS, the FBI, EPA, State Department, NSA, CIA, DHS, smashed subpoenaed cell phones, wiped servers, classified information on unsecured computers, the DNC hiring foreign spies as IT gurus, Uranium One, or Benghazi. Instead they are completely focused on remote possibilities that Trump will be ousted from the presidency — but they are careful not to let anyone think that this ouster is a peaceful coup instigated by progressive Democrats embedded within the government.

  • wodun

    Edward
    January 24, 2018 at 5:25 pm

    but they are careful not to let anyone think that this ouster is a peaceful coup instigated by progressive Democrats embedded within the government.

    I was watching Jake Tapper today and he was interviewing a former FBI agent. The former agent was great at conflating criticism of the leaders of the FBI with low level FBI agents and he pointed out they would be just fine with a socialist President.

    Tapper asked him, paraphrasing here, “Don’t the text messages raise some questions about the possibility of bias that would affect their job?”

    FBI agent, “They didn’t say anything that 350 million Americans don’t think about Trump.”

    Obviously, that isn’t true. It also exposes the former agent’s own bias that is strong enough form him to go on national TV to influence the public. Why wouldn’t we expected people like him to be this dishonest when working?

    It also is an example of what you said. Tapper didn’t quote text messages that alluded to plotting illegal acts and implied they were just talking trash about Trump. The media intentionally hides relevant information so that their viewers don’t get a full picture of what took/taking place.

  • Cotour

    TRUMP TO STARE DOWN THE DRAGON?

    http://thehill.com/homenews/administration/370620-trump-fighting-back-against-russia-probe-is-not-obstruction

    Always going to the edge, its a part of his psychology, but there is no legal reason to do it IMO. Its Trumps drug of choice. (Who said that Trump never did drugs?)

    Personally based on Muellers connections to all of this crap going on in the FBI and DOJ related to the Hillary situation I think I might just sit and wait it out OR ultimately just fire him and end the investigation and take my chances with the Congress and Senate who are well aware of Muellers own credibility issues.

  • wayne

    Cotour–
    The Idea, is to slay the dragon.

    DeStefano, who is the Swamp, and life long pal of John Boehner, is the White House Personnel Director, and responsible for staffing the executive branch with 3,500 people.

    Circling back….
    An extremely unflattering portrait of J. Edgar Hoover:

    BBC Timewatch – 1993
    “The Secret File On J Edgar Hoover”
    https://youtu.be/vshCzoI7ZJo
    48:38

    We got stuck with FBI during Prohibition, but Prohibition ended and the FBI remained. And they conveniently didn’t target “organized crime” until the 1950’s.

  • Cotour

    Not Trump, Trump intends to stare an inch from the dragons eyes and and make the dragon blink and bend to his will. He wants to ride him home, make him his pet.

    Thats Trump, he can’t help himself. (Unless he knows something more than what we know, which is probable)

    Its the pump that he gets, it is his drug, the opioid of the MEGA “A” type personality, nothing better to him and in his experience it pays off like nothing else, but the risk here can be great.

    And then even if Trump were to be impeached for something that came out of this interview he still will not be removed by the Senate.

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