Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Lindsey Graham is weighing in on the newly released Inspector General report about repeated misconduct by fired FBI Director James Comey.
"The Inspector General’s report is a stunning and unprecedented rebuke of a former Director of the FBI. This is the first of what I expect will be several more ugly and damning rebukes of senior DOJ and FBI officials regarding their actions and biases toward the Trump campaign of 2016," Graham released in a statement. “I appreciate the time and effort Mr. Horowitz and his team spent documenting the off-the-rails behavior of Mr. Comey regarding the leaking of law enforcement materials to the media. I also appreciate Mr. Horowitz for reinforcing the proper standards expected of senior DOJ and FBI officials. Well done Mr. Horowitz.”
Horowitz found Comey set a "dangerous precedent" by leaking confidential memos to the media in order to launch Robert Mueller's Special Counsel investigation against President Trump.
"In a country built on the rule of law, it is of utmost importance that all FBI employees adhere to Department and FBI policies, particularly when confronted by what appear to be extraordinary circumstances or compelling personal convictions. Comey had several other lawful options available to him to advocate for the appointment of a Special Counsel, which he told us was his goal in making the disclosure. What was not permitted was the unauthorized disclosure of sensitive investigative information, obtained during the course of FBI employment, in order to achieve a personally desired outcome," the report states. "Comey Violated Department and FBI Policies Pertaining to the Retention, Handling, and Dissemination of FBI Records and Information Comey's actions with respect to the Memos violated Department and FBI policies concerning the retention, handling, and dissemination of FBI records and information, and violated the requirements of Comey’s FBI Employment Agreement."
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Attorney General Bill Barr has appointed U.S. Attorney John Durham to investigate the origins of the Russia probe and FISA abuse. Horowitz is also expected to release his report on those issues soon.
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