By Ray, October 13, 2019
“James Comey Would Like to Help [get rid of Trump]”. This may not seem newsworthy, yet it is the title atop an instructive article today by Matt Flegenheimer of the NY Times. His article makes it clear that, for its part, the Times remains determined to support former FBI Director James Comey and sustain the discredited Russia-gate narrative they share — to the point of helping Comey and his partners-in-crime avoid prison. (See: https://nytimes.com/2019/10/12/us/politics/james-comey-trump.html?nl=todaysheadlines&emc=edit_th_191013?campaign_id=2&instance_id=12939&segment_id=17841&user_id=e69a6cb2bbba5cd47ffe27ec9fb45fbe®i_id=695407011013 .)
In late August, the Department of Justice decided to let Comey off with a slap on the wrist for leaking to the NY Times, through an intermediary, highly sensitive information from his talks with President Donald Trump. At that juncture, it was already a no-brainer to warn that the victory lap Comey chose to run was clearly premature. (See, for example: https://www.wsj.com/articles/jim-comeys-higher-virtue-11567121926?shareToken=st5be6bf7326284ff38bf74cdc8a6e9c13&reflink=article_email_share .)
Consequential leaks to the media by a former FBI director are serious enough. Now, however, we are talking about felonies. And this time Comey is standing in such deep kimchi that he may drown, despite how tall he is, and despite NYT preemptive puff pieces protesting purity of the caliber of Caesar’s wife. This time, even with the Establishment media and Comey’s accomplices offering fulsome praise for him, there is some serious doubt as to whether or not he will be able to wangle a Stay-Out-Of-Jail Card. Why are they running scared?
In Horror of Horowitz
Over the last year and a half, Department of Justice Inspector General Michael Horowitz has been investigating how Comey, his deputy Andrew McCabe, and three Deputy Attorneys General (Rod Rosenstein, Sally Yates, and Dana Boente) thought they could get away with signing applications for surveillance of former Trump associate Carter Page without disclosing that, as McCabe later testified, the application was based largely on a the shabby, unverified “Steele dossier” paid for by the Democrats. Providing incomplete, misleading information to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court is a felony.
No problem, these top law enforcement officials thought at the time. Who would find out about their misconduct after Mrs. Clinton — the odds-on favorite — became president? There would be encomia and promotions for help rendered, not indictments.
Oops. Now all of the above are squirming, and there is a paper trail. Only one of the FISA application signers is still in a key position to help from the inside — Dana Boente. No, he was not demoted to working in the file room. He is the FBI General Counsel.
Is It About to Hit the Proverbial Fan?
According to Inspector General Horowitz, Attorney General William Barr has had his draft IG report for over a month. Horowitz has said that his team “reviewed over one million records and conducted over 100 interviews, including several of witnesses who only recently agreed to be interviewed.” The team is “finalizing” the report prior to releasing it publicly. ( See: https://www.foxnews.com/politics/doj-inspector-general-submits-report-on-alleged-fisa-abuses-to-attorney-general .)
Some pundits are now suggesting that the DOJ IG report may be published as early as next Friday.
Hold onto your hats.