FBI Withholds Russia Probe Docs Requested By House Intel Committee

House Oversight Committee Chairman Jason Chaffetz said today that the FBI had decided to withhold documents, including memos, notes, summaries, and recordings, requested by his committee in regards to the ongoing Russia probe. This was revealed in a letter sent by Chaffetz to the FBI responding to the agency’s decision to withhold documents requested by the Committee on May 16, 2017.

The FBI"s denial to cooperate is presented below:

According to a statement by the Oversight Committee, "Chaffetz requested memos, notes, summaries, and recordings to assist in the Committee’s investigation of the FBI’s independence, and which are outside the scope of the Special Counsel’s investigation."

The documents are due June 8, 2017, but that may not happen as it appears the FBI is suddenly unwilling to cooperate.  

As Chaffetz elaborates, after a New York Times report that former Federal Bureau of  Investigation Director James Corney memorialized the content of phone calls and meetings with the President in a series of memoranda, he requested those memoranda and any related notes, summaries, and recordings. The FBI is withholding those documents, citing to the appointment of Robert Mueller as Special Prosecutor. According to a letter from your staff: "In light of this development and other considerations [the Bureau] is undertaking appropriate consultation to ensure all relevant interest implicated by your request are properly evaluated.

The letter states:

“The Committee has its own, Constitutionally-based prerogative to conduct investigations. But the Committee in no way wants to impede or interfere with the Special Counsel’s ability to conduct his investigation.  In fact, the Committee’s investigation will complement the work of the Special Counsel. Whereas the Special Counsel is conducting a criminal or counterintelligence investigation that will occur largely behind closed doors, the Committee’s work will shed light on matters of high public interest, regardless of whether there is evidence of criminal conduct.

“The focus of the Committee’s investigation is the independence of the FBI, including conversations between the President and Comey and the process by which Comey was removed from his role as director.  The records being withheld are central to those questions, even more so in light of Comey’s decision not to testify before the Committee at this time.”

“I am seeking to better understand Comey’s communications with the White House and Attorney General in such a way that does not implicate the Special Counsel’s work.”

As Chaffetz concludes, "Congress and the American public have a right and a duty to examine this issue independently of the Special Counsel"s investigation. I trust and hope you understand this and make the right decision-to produce these documents to the Committee immediately and on a voluntary basis."

The American public is certainly looking forward to the FBI"s release of the full content of the Comey"s memos, not only those relating to his meetings with Trump, but just as importantly, with Loretta Lynch, as well as Barack Obama and/or Hillary Clinton.

Full text of Chairman Chaffetz letter can be viewed here.
Full text of FBI letter can be viewed here.

Comey-Probing Congressman Announces Early Resignation From Politics

Juat a month after comments that he had begun exploring employment possibilities outside of Congress, Politico reports Rep. Jason Chaffetz is expected announce today that he is resigning before the end of this congressional term, according to three sources familiar with his plans.

As Politico details, Chaffetz did not respond to a request for comment Wednesday evening or Thursday morning.

Multiple sources say he will leave Congress on June 30.

Chaffetz, 50, is chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, the top investigative body in the chamber.

He recently subpoenaed James Comey"s memos, and invited the fired FBI director to testify next week before his panel.

Additionally, the U.S. prosecutor overseeing price-fixing probes is said to step-down...(via Bloomberg)

Brent Snyder, the head of criminal enforcement at the U.S. Justice Department’s antitrust division, is stepping down, according to two people familiar with the matter.

Chaffetz Demands FBI Hand Over All Comey's Notes, Memos, & Recordings Related To Trump

Update: Jason Chaffetz office just released the letter sent to the FBI"s Andrew McCabe demanding all Comey-Trump related memos...

Trump and/or Comey are getting increasingly boxed in here - one or other is going to be proved a liar soon enough.

*  *  *

As we detailed earlier, following the New York Times latest Trump bombshell (see "Comey"s Revenge: Leaks Memo To NYT Saying Trump Asked Him To End Flynn Investigation"), the impeachment word seems to be getting tossed around a little more loosely this evening.  And, given the serious accusations levied by former FBI Director James Comey, the Chairman of the House Oversight Committee, Jason Chaffetz, has  just promised that he will "get the Comey memo, if it exists," which was backed up by the not so thinly veiled threat: "I have my subpoena pen ready."

.@GOPoversight is going to get the Comey memo, if it exists. I need to see it sooner rather than later. I have my subpoena pen ready.

— Jason Chaffetz (@jasoninthehouse) May 16, 2017

Meanwhile, in the following Q&A with NBC, Chaffetz says his committee has already started "drafting the necessary paperwork" to get Comey"s memo to the extent it is not handed over voluntarily.

"If the memo exists, I need to see it and I need to see it right away.  We are drafting the necessary paperwork to get the mom so we will find out in a hurry if its out there."

"I want to read the memo first but on the surface that seems like an extraordinary use of influence to try to shutdown an investigation being done by the FBI.  I don"t know if it"s true yet but I want to find out if that"s actually out there."

????Chaffetz to NBC:"If the memo exists, I need to see it and I need to see it right away. We are drafting the necessary paperwork to get [it]" pic.twitter.com/rF2g8qWm7v

— Katy Tur (@KatyTurNBC) May 16, 2017

House Oversight Committee Confirms Flynn Likely Broke Law On Overseas Payments

Former national security adviser Michael Flynn likely broke the law by failing to disclose foreign income he earned from Russia and Turkey, the heads of the House Oversight Committee said Tuesday.

As The Washington Post reports, committee chairman Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah) and ranking member Elijah Cummings (D-Md.) said they believe Flynn neither received permission nor fully disclosed income he earned for a speaking engagement in Russia and lobbying activities on behalf of Turkey when he applied to reinstate his security clearance, after viewing two classified memos and Flynn"s disclosure form in a private briefing Tuesday morning.

"Personally I see no evidence or no data to support the notion that General Flynn complied with the law," Chaffetz told reporters following the briefing.

"He was supposed to get permission, he was supposed to report it, and he didn"t," Cummings said.

Chaffetz confirmed that Flynn had failed to reveal the more than $45,000 he was paid to speak at a 2015 gala for RT, the Kremlin-run TV network, as well as the money he was paid by an air freight company and a cybersecurity firm with direct connections to Russia. Chaffetz added that the White House had refused to provide his committee with information and documents related to Flynn"s security clearance and payments from organizations tied to the Russian and Turkish governments. The committee made six requests, and the White House cited reasons it could not comply with each of them, Cummings said.

One has to wonder about the Trump team"s vetting process and perhaps more notable is that now that Cheffetz is not running for re-election, he has nothing to fear from political fallout from the White House or GOP in general.

GOP Chair Of House Oversight Committee Declines Calls To Investigate Flynn Situation

Earlier today, and to our complete surprise, no less, Nancy Pelosi joined in the chorus of angry liberals calling for further investigations into Trump"s ties to the Kremlin.  The House Minority Leader expressed her faux outrage via a statement posted to twitter calling for, among other things, "a bipartisan, independent, outside commission to fully investigate Russia"s influence on the Administration and the election."  Ironically, we "do not recall" Pelosi asking for an "independent commission" when actual, tangible evidence emerged proving that Hillary and her team intentionally ignored a Congressional subpoena calling for the preservation of email records...we assume she just forgot.

Despite the outrage, Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah), Chair of the House Oversight Committee, confirmed earlier today that his panel won"t investigate the circumstances that led to Michael Flynn stepping down Monday as President Trump"s national security adviser.  Instead, Chaffetz deferred to the House Intelligence Committee, which is already investigating Russia"s attempt to influence the presidential elections, a scope that includes campaign communications with the Russian government.  Per The Hill:

"I think that situation has taken care of itself. I know that the Intel committee is looking into the hacking issue."

"I think he did the right thing stepping down."

"It really is the purview of the Intel Committee. They really are the only ones that can look at that type of information, particularly when you’re talking about interactions with a nation state like that. It’s not something the Oversight Committee can actually look at because sources and methods are the exclusive purview of the Intel Committee."

Of course the "Swarm Of Angry Protesters" that took over a Chaffetz town hall meeting last week in Utah, amid chants of "Do Your Job", will likely not be very happy with his decision.

Meanwhile, Chaffetz"s assertion that the "situation had taken care of itself" didn"t stop the ranking Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, Elijah Cummings, from demanding a "full classified briefing" to determine "who else within the White House is a current and ongoing risk to our national secruity."

Rep. Elijah Cummings (Md.), the top Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, called for a full classified briefing about the circumstances leading to Flynn"s departure from all the relevant agencies.

"Now, we in Congress need to know who authorized his actions, permitted them, and continued to let him have access to our most sensitive national security information despite knowing these risks. We need to know who else within the White House is a current and ongoing risk to our national security," Cummings said in a joint statement with Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.), the top Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee.

Of course, there"s only one logical conclusion to be drawn from all of this, namely that Jason Chaffetz is most likely a Russian spy and should be thoroughly investigated immediately...

Jason Chaffetz Utah Town Hall Disrupted By Swarm Of Angry Protesters - "Do Your Job"

A Town Hall meeting hosted by the Chair of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, Jason Chaffetz, in his home state of Utah last night came under attack from a mob of angry liberals demanding that he "Do His Job." 

Ironically, these Leftists who now demand that Chaffetz investigate Trump for not releasing his tax returns (which is not even required by law...but who cares about laws anyway) and Kellyanne Conway for jokingly telling Fox News viewers to go out and buy some Ivanka Trump merchandise are the same ones who were all too willing to ignore Hillary"s violation of numerous federal laws with her private email server including a Congressional document retention subpoena that was very clearly, and intentionally, violated.

Here some footage of the chaos from last night:

Cong Chaffetz Town Hall crowd chanting "Do your job!" He"s having a hard time answering over crowd noise @UtahIndivisible @IndivisibleTeam pic.twitter.com/gO0BXybGy5

— Kyung Lah (@KyungLahCNN) February 10, 2017

Calling on @jasoninthehouse to investigate Trump"s conflicts of interest at #chaffetztownhall in UT. #doyourjob pic.twitter.com/io8pjns8oB

— Becca Lee Ogden (@beccabeccalee) February 10, 2017

When the #ChaffetzTownHall started off with This then the crowd Booed the Congressman when he walked out, we knew it was going to be epic. pic.twitter.com/Xga9odh18h

— Bobbi Hughes-Millman (@bobbi_bobbi) February 10, 2017

Despite rarely being able to get a word in over the roar of the mob, Chaffetz was able to explain to one disaffected Hillary supporter that no law requires a presidential candidate to release his/her tax returns.

“If you want to continue to look into [2016 Democratic presidential nominee] Hillary Clinton, I don’t care,” an attendee named Noor Ul-Hasan asked Chaffetz, according to the Salt Lake Tribune. "But why aren’t you checking out your own president?”

“You’re really not going to like this part,” Chaffetz responded. "The president, under the law, is exempt from conflict of interest laws.”

Again, #Chaffetz says he wants Trump to release his tax returns, "but it is not required by law." Reaction: pic.twitter.com/KF6rX8Ei3J

— Eric Bradner (@ericbradner) February 10, 2017

Brutal Town hall meeting for Jason Chaffetz #ChaffetzThinks #ChaffetzTownHall pic.twitter.com/EUMv9RPYv6

— Sarah M (@smullowney) February 10, 2017

Meanwhile, these lovely folks just "want a leader, not a creepy tweeter!"

"We want a leader, not a creepy tweeter!" lol #chaffetztownhall pic.twitter.com/Cq8DX8bBXA

— Scott Wessman (@scottew) February 10, 2017

Of course, as we noted just yesterday (see "Politicians Are Now Making Plans In Case The Public Turns Against Them Violently"), scenes like this Chaffetz demonstration are becoming a common occurrence at Republican Town Halls all over the country.  Unfortunately, the angry, and often violent mobs, are causing many conservative politicians to worry about their own personal safety — to the point where some are having private sessions to discuss the matter.

Citing sources who were in the room, Politico writes:

“House Republicans during a closed-door meeting Tuesday discussed how to protect themselves and their staffs from protesters storming town halls and offices in opposition to repealing Obamacare.”

Some of the suggestions, the news outlet reports, include “having a physical exit strategy at town halls, or a backdoor at congressional offices to slip out of, in case demonstrations turn violent; having local police monitor town halls; replacing any glass office-door entrances with heavy doors and deadbolts; and setting up intercoms to ensure those entering congressional offices are there for appointments, not to cause chaos.”

While protests are popping up all over, the Republicans’ private session was no doubt prompted by events that happened over the weekend.

While speaking before a raucous crowd in Roseville, California, Representative Tom McClintock had to be escorted from the stage and away from the event by local police officers.

McClintock, who held town hall meetings during the politically volatile days of both the Tea Party and Occupy movements, told The Hill he’s never seen anything like it:

“This was something very different. After an hour, the incident commander for the Roseville Police Department advised us the situation was deteriorating and felt it necessary to get me out of the venue. That’s never happened before.”

Amazing how quickly the Left converted from "Love Trumps Hate" to anger and violence...

Hillary for Prison: Jason Chaffetz Promises to Continue and Expand His Investigation into Her Email Scandal

Trump ran on the promise to "lock her up," regarding Hillary"s activities with her insecure email server and subsequent activities in destroying evidence that might"ve paved the way for her landing on her head in prison. No one could say for sure, since upwards of 30,000 emails were destroyed by the Clinton camp -- in a feverish ploy to evade investigation.
 
Rep. Chaffetz, along with Trey Gowdy, have been leading the way in Congress in pursuit of the truth, regarding the Clinton email scandal. Many on the left have lobbied for Trump to "let go" of the Hillary investigation in order to "heal the country" after a bitter and tumultuous campaign. However, nothing has been graceful about Hillary since her loss and it shouldn"t surprise anyone if Trump, along with incoming AG Sessions, decided to pursue a case against her with energetic fervor -- draining the swamp of those implicated in the biggest political corruption cabal since Tammany Hall circa mid 19th century.
 
Source: Washington Examiner

"This was never a political targeting in the beginning and just because there was a political election doesn"t mean it goes away," House Oversight and Government Reform Chairman Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah, told reporters Monday. "There were a lot of other characters that were involved in this that we have to look at."
 
"This was potentially one of the largest breaches of security in the history of the State Department," he said. "It cannot and should never be repeated again. How is it that so much information was able to migrate out into the world? These are still open questions that we need to finish up so that they don"t happen again."
 
Chaffetz wants to review the security clearances of Clinton aides who helped manage the "extremely careless" email process described by FBI Director James Comey. Chaffetz said he is inclined to hold Bryan Pagliano, a key Clinton IT aide, in contempt of Congress for flouting subpoenas last year. "You can"t just get a subpoena from Congress to testify and not show up," he said.
 
The Utah Republican wants to target more senior officials, such as State Department Under Secretary for Management Patrick Kennedy, in light of FBI suggestions that he tried to set up a "quid pro quo" with the FBI to suppress revelations that Clinton"s email server held classified information.
 
FBI leadership could also be a live target of the review, as Republicans are troubled that Va. Gov Terry McAuliffe, a longtime ally of the Clintons, made campaign donations to the wife of Andrew McCabe, the agency"s second-in-command. "I"m very concerned about the straight-up conflict of interest that Mr. McCabe had," Chaffetz said. "That"s something we"ll continue to spend resources on."

 
Hillary for prison, 2017.

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