Yesterday, Georgia Republican Doug Collins released the transcript of two days of testimony given by former FBI lawyer and paramour of the discredited former FBI counterintelligence official Peter Strzok. This is the second transcript that Collins has released in protest of the FBI’s use of secrecy to prevent the public from seeing non-secret but embarrassing information about the FBI. The transcript is available here.

One of the interesting side shows in the whole Russia probe has been why the FBI, which was allegedly concerned that one or more Trump campaign officials was having some kind of contact with Russia, elected to carry out a political espionage/dirty tricks campaign directed at President Trump both as a candidate, as president-elect, and as a sitting president. In particular, it always seemed strange that there was sufficient concern to open a counter-intelligence investigation but not enough concern to give the candidate a so-called defensive briefing on the perceived threat and allow him to mitigate the damage. Back in May of 2018, I noted that Trump was not afforded this courtesy in The “Crossfire Hurricane” Story Paints An Ugly Picture Of The FBI And Department Of Justice.

We know there was someone on the 2008 McCain campaign who tickled the whiskers of counter-intelligence agencies. McCain was privately approached and the person was removed from the campaign. Trump was not extended this courtesy.

That very subject was covered in the committee questioning of Page. And she revealed an unsurprising answer.

The FBI already had a bunch of information on Carter Page that was used to beef up the FISA. The only new info we know of that came into the FBI between when they were discussing defensive briefing (August 2016) and the FISA approval (Oct 2016) is from the Steele dossier.

— Chuck Ross (@ChuckRossDC) March 12, 2019

To say it a different way — Lisa Page is saying FBI didn't provide defensive briefing to Trump camp because FBI didn't know if Trump aides were Russian agents. Except that's what FBI alleged Carter Page was.

— Chuck Ross (@ChuckRossDC) March 12, 2019

As you can see from the FISA application on Carter Pare, the FBI clearly says he is an agent of a foreign power.

We also know that the one FISA warrant we have was preceded by other such warrants. In fact, Page stepped down from the Trump campaign in September based on leaks to the media that he was under investigation for his ties to Russia…so much for any concern for an innocent man’s reputation.

What is notable is that Page has basically been exonerated by Mueller.

When one puts this in the context of the infamous “insurance policy” statement it becomes more sketchy.

The newly released transcripts of my interview with Lisa Page indicate that Peter Strzok had no evidence of collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia prior to the launch of the FBI and special counsel investigations into the matter. pic.twitter.com/Mt8SChdocI

— John Ratcliffe (@RepRatcliffe) March 13, 2019

https://twitter.com/seanmdav/status/1105845684962496516

It looks more and more like the FBI deliberately deceived the FISA court, getting permission to electronically monitor a ham sandwich Carter Page. And they did so on the strength of the unverified allegations in the Steele dossier. They didn’t tell Trump anything about Page because a) they knew that Page was clean but b) they were able to use the fiction of Page’s FISA warrant to justify increasing their scrutiny of the Trump camp.

The key takeaway from the devastating Lisa Page testimony is that late into 2017 the FBI still suspected the case against Trump could’ve been “literally nothing.” YET, the FBI already swore in front of the FISA court that they’d VERIFIED the info used in the 2016/17 investigation

— Dan Bongino (@dbongino) March 13, 2019

This deserves more attention! FBI Mistress, Lisa Page, confirmed to House Judiciary, there was an anti-Trump Insurance Policy and it's the fake Russian investigation! She admits there was almost no evidence on collusion, yet they continued with WITCH HUNT! https://t.co/vCIikT4tyr

— Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) March 13, 2019

What happens next?

Sen. @LindseyGrahamSC has reignited the investigation into alleged FISA abuse.

He is demanding from the Justice Department a wide array of documentation related to the surveillance of Carter Page & other members of @realDonaldTrump's 2016 campaign. https://t.co/Ku5YroZBBx

— Washington Examiner (@dcexaminer) March 8, 2019

Unfortunately, in choosing an apparatchik like William Barr to be Attorney General and another apparatchik as his deputy and with a member of the Swamp comfortably ensconced at FBI headquarters nothing will come of this. But something could…

https://twitter.com/seanmdav/status/1105849804146515968

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