REPORT: DOJ IG Report Shows FBI Had Been Surveilling Kash Patel
We have yet more controversial news coming from the Department of Justice’s Inspector General’s office.
A recent report revealed that the FBI has been spying on Trump’s nominee to head the FBI, Kash Patel.
Patel has worked for then-Rep. Devin Nunes (R-CA) as well as several intelligence-related agencies.
Let’s See What He is Doing
The report was a result of the DOJ IG checking on a “compulsory process to obtain non-content communications records of Members of Congress, congressional staffers, and reporters at CNN, The New York Times, and The Washington Post to attempt to identify the sources of leaked classified information that had been published in news articles in 2017.”
The report does not name Patel specifically, however, it is being reported that the New York Times and CNN were told that one of the individuals in question was Kash Patel.
The window for when the report was conducted matches up to the timeframe when Patel was working for Rep. Nunes on the House Intelligence Committee.
In addition to Patel, Reps. Adam Schiff (D-CA) and Eric Swalwell (D-CA), both of whom were suspected as possible leakers of classified information to the media, were also being surveilled.
Ironically, Andrew McCabe was the Deputy Director of the FBI at the time, and now he is whining about how unqualified Patel is to lead the agency, which drew some fire of its own.
Erica Knight, a communication strategist, responded, “Andrew McCabe, who abused his power to spy on Kash Patel, now claims Patel is unqualified to lead the FBI. Hypocrisy much? The same McCabe who lied, leaked, and trampled civil liberties is worried about accountability under Patel. The swamp is nervous.”
With Director Wray resigning days before this report came out, there was considerable speculation that he did so, knowing the firestorm this report would elicit.
The DOJ then responded, “As the Report sets out, the OIG found no indication in its review that the investigative steps of the career prosecutors in any of these cases were pursued for improper reasons or based on party affiliation or status.”
While that is technically correct, the DOJ failed to take note of the conclusion of the report, where it stated that this surveillance created “at a minimum, the appearance of inappropriate interference by the executive branch.”
I have to say, I am really looking forward to Patel getting into the FBI to really dig into what took place from the beginning of the Trump administration to the current day.
While these reports are interesting, I still have a feeling some of the really bad stuff is being covered up.