Gauntlet Thrown: House Judiciary Demands Special Counsel To Investigate Comey, Lynch, And Clinton

Oath Keepers

This article comes from ZeroHedge.com

Roughly a month ago, we noted that Republicans might be well served to stop sitting around twiddling their thumbs waiting for the next Russia ‘bombshell’ to drop and actually go on the offensive against an ‘investigation’ that has obviously morphed into mass hysteria courtesy of free-flowing leaks from a conflicted “intelligence community” intent upon bringing down a presidency rather than finding out the truth.  Here’s what we said:

Of course, until someone within the Trump administration or Republican Party smartens up and calls for the appointment of a ‘Special Counsel’ to look into Hillary’s email scandal, something that should have been done long ago, and not for retaliatory reasons but simply due to Comey’s and AG Lynch’s blatant mishandling of the investigation (a point which Deputy AG Rosenstein obviously agreed with), the Democrats have no reason to calm their mass hysteria.  Then, and only then, do we suspect that Hillary might just be able to ‘convince’ her party to exercise some form of reasonable judgement.

Well, it seems that some folks on the House Judiciary Committee, chaired by Bob Goodlatte (R-VA), seem to agree.  As such, 20 Republican Representatives have sent a letter to Attorney General Sessions and Deputy Attorney General Rosenstein demanding the appointment of a Second Special Counsel to look into a laundry list of potential scandals surrounding Hillary Clinton, James Comey, Loretta Lynch and many others from the Obama administration.

We are writing to you to request assistance in restoring public confidence in our nation’s justice system and its investigators, specifically the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). While we presume that the FBI’s investigation into Russian influence has been subsumed into Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation, we are not confident that other matters related to the 2016 election and aftermath are similarly under investigation by Special Counsel Mueller. The unbalanced, uncertain, and seemingly unlimited focus of the special counsel’s investigation has led many of our constituents to see a dual standard of justice that benefits only the powerful and politically well-connected. For this reason, we call on you to appoint a second special counsel to investigate a plethora of matters connected to the 2016 election and its aftermath, including actions taken by previously public figures like Attorney General Loretta Lynch, FBI Director James Comey, and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

Many Democrats and members of the Washington media previously called for a “special prosecutor” to investigate Russian influence on the election and connections with the Trump campaign. Not surprisingly, once you actually made the decision to appoint a special counsel, the calls for further investigations by congressional committees continued, focused on allegations that have heretofore produced no evidence of criminality, despite the fact that over a year has passed since the opening of the original FBI investigation. Political gamesmanship continues to saturate anything and everything associated with reactions to President Trump’s executive decisions, and reveals the hypocrisy of those who refuse to allow the Special Counsel’s investigation to proceed without undue political influence. It is an unfortunate state of affairs.

Read more here.

The Truth About The Awan Family Democrat IT Scandal | Debbie Wasserman Schultz Exposed

Obama Looted Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac

American Thinker

By Brian McNicoll

 

President Obama never was shy about using his phone and pen to achieve what he could not get from Congress on regulatory matters.

But documents revealed last week show the Obama administration may have been willing to get around congressional decisions on spending by using a slush fund of sorts funded by the profits of Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, the two government-sponsored home loan giants.

Fannie and Freddie are federally chartered enterprises which buy mortgage loans from banks and bundle them into securities that are sold to investors, thus freeing up capital so that banks can make more home loans.

They are government-sponsored enterprises, which means the government guarantees their loans. But they are run as private enterprises, with private leadership, a board of directors and, most significantly for this purpose, investors. They’re even listed on the stock market.

Judicial Watch Sues Deep State FBI

Judicial Watch

Judicial Watch Files Three Lawsuits Seeking Communications of Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe

These past few days saw a significant advance in our efforts to plumb the depths of what was going on at the top of the FBI during the late stages of the Obama administration and during the early days of the Trump administration.  The advance includes three Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuits against the U.S. Department of Justice seeking records for FBI Acting Director Andrew McCabe relating to his political activities, travel vouchers, and employment status.  The first two lawsuits specifically seek records of McCabe’s political activities involving his wife’s failed campaign for political office and interactions with Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe.

The first FOIA lawsuit, filed on July 24 (Judicial Watch v. U.S. Department of Justice (No. 1:17-cv-01494)), seeks the following:

• Any and all records of communication between FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe and other FBI or Department of Justice (“DOJ”) officials regarding, concerning, or relating to ethical issues concerning the involvement of Andrew McCabe and/or his wife, Dr. Jill McCabe, in political campaigns;

• Any and all records related to ethical guidance concerning political activities provided to Deputy Director McCabe by FBI and/or DOJ officials or elements.

The second Judicial Watch FOIA lawsuit, filed on July 26, (Judicial Watch v. U.S. Department of Justice (No. 1:17-cv-01495)) seeks communication records between then-Deputy Director McCabe and Gov. Terry McAuliffe, the Democratic National Committee (DNC), and the Democratic Party of Virginia, including:

• Any and all records of communication between Deputy FBI Director Andrew McCabe and any of the following individuals:
  

  Any official within the office of the Governor of Virginia, including but not limited to Governor Terry McAuliffe;

  Any official, representative or employee with the Democratic National Committee; and

  Any official, representative or employee with the Democratic Party of Virginia.

In 2015, a political action committee run by McAuliffe, a close friend and political supporter of Bill and Hillary Clinton, donated nearly $500,000 to Jill McCabe, wife of McCabe, who was then running for the Virginia State Senate.  Also, the Virginia Democratic Party, over which McAuliffe had significant influence, donated an additional $207,788 to the Jill McCabe campaign.  In July 2015, Andrew McCabe was in charge of the FBI’s Washington, DC, field office, which provided personnel resources to the Clinton email probe. McAuliffe himself was (and still may be) was under FBI investigation as well.

The Hatch Act prohibits FBI employees from engaging “in political activity in concert with a political party, a candidate for partisan political office, or a partisan political group.”

The third FOIA lawsuit filed this week came on July 26 (Judicial Watch v. U.S. Department of Justice (No. 1:17-cv-01493) for:

• Any and all Standard Forms 50 and 52 (i.e., SF-50s and SF-52s) for FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe;

• Any and all requests for approvals of travel submitted by FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe;

• Any and all travel vouchers and accompanying receipts and related documentation submitted by FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe;

• Any and all calendar entries for FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe.

These are all basic requests about the acting FBI director.   The cover-up of the records is a good indication that both the FBI and its parent the Justice Department are out-of-control.

There are numerous questions about the ethics and judgement of the FBI’s top leadership, particularly Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe.  These new lawsuits will help Americans “watch the watchers” at the powerful FBI.

 

Judicial Watch Sues for More Info on Comey Memos

We ramped up the pressure on the Deep State yesterday with another Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Justice looking for answers from the FBI, this one for the metadata for the memoranda written by former FBI Director James Comey memorializing his conversations with President Donald Trump, as well as records about Comey’s FBI-issued laptop computer or other electronic devices and records about how Comey managed his records while he was FBI Director (Judicial Watch, Inc., v. U.S. Department of Justice (No. 17-cv-01520)). Importantly, the metadata information may include details about when the memos were created or edited and by whom.

We sued here in DC after Justice simply failed to respond to our June 21 FOIA request for:

1. Any and all records depicting metadata for any and all memoranda written by former Director James Comey memorializing any meetings and/or telephonic communications with President Donald Trump, including metadata for the “original” electronic versions of the memoranda and any electronic copies of the memoranda that were subsequently created or saved. For purposes of this request, the term “metadata” includes, but is not limited to, dates and times of creation, modification, transmission, and/or retrieval of any electronic copy of any such memorandum currently or formerly in the possession of the FBI and/or drafted, modified, transmitted, and/or received via any FBI-owned computer or other electronic device.

2. Any and all records regarding, concerning, or related to the return, disposition, or handling of any laptop computer or other electronic device previously issued to and/or utilized by former Director James Comey.

3. Any and all records regarding, concerning, or related to the records management and preservation procedures utilized by former Director James Comey. This includes, but is not limited to, any and all records of communication between Mr. Comey and any other individual or entity regarding, concerning, or related to any such procedures or related regulations.

In an earlier, related FOIA lawsuit, JW sued the Justice Department for information about former FBI Director James Comey’s memorandum written after his meeting with President Trump regarding potential interference by the Russians in the 2016 presidential election (Judicial Watch v. U.S. Department of Justice (No. 1:17-cv-01189).

The infamous Comey memo purportedly memorialized his meeting and conversation with President Trump regarding the FBI’s investigation of potential Russian interference in the 2016 United States presidential election.

The memorandum, reportedly, was written on or about February 13, 2017 and was the subject of a New York Times article dated May 16, 2017.  The memo also purportedly recounts a conversation between President Trump and Comey about a pending investigation of former National Security Advisor Gen. Mike Flynn.

As you know probably know from earlier Weekly Updates, Judicial Watch is pursuing numerous additional FOIA lawsuits related to the surveillance, unmasking, and illegal leaking targeting President Trump and his associates during the FBI’s investigation of potential Russian involvement in the 2016 presidential election.  You can review some of them here, here, here, here, here, and here.  Last month, Judicial Watch also warned the FBI of its obligations under federal law to uncover records unlawfully removed by Mr. Comey.

We want to figure out when Mr. Comey wrote or edited his memos and how his records were created and managed by the FBI.  The fact that Mr. Comey walked out of the FBI with these sensitive documents tells us something isn’t right at the FBI and Justice Department.

Rather than wait for Congress, the media, or a compromised special counsel, we are in court to get answers.

Obamacare’s Healthcare.gov Security Nightmare Revealed

As a hapless Republican-controlled Congress grapples with the Obamacare monstrosity, your JW is hard at work exposing the security risk scandal associated with the Obamacare supersite – healthCare.gov.  We released two productions of records from the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) today – a total of 1123 pages of documents showing security concerns Obama officials had about the Obamacare website prior to its launch.

JW obtained the HHS documents in response to a court order in a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit (Judicial Watch v. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (No. 1:14-cv-00430)).  We began battling for documents back December, 2013, with a FOIA request for:

All records related to the security of the healthcare.gov web portal including, but not limited to, studies, memoranda, correspondence, electronic communications (e-mails), and slide presentations from January 1, 2012 to the present.

The documents show a flippant disregard for senior IT security official Tom Schankweiler’s security concerns in a September 23, 2013, email exchange between then-CMS Chief Information Officer Fryer and CMS official Jacqueline Toomey, one week before the launch of Obamacare. Toomey tells Fryer: “Breathe … don’t allow him to suck you in.”  Toomey responds later in the exchange:  “I’m afraid of who he’s ‘blind copying’ on his emails.”  Fryer says: “When [Consumer Information and Insurance Systems Group] gets theirs, can you make a gagging sound for me?”  Toomey responds: “Giggling.”

In a September 28, 2013, review, Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) Jane Kim notes that “the risk associated with the Illinois Integrated Eligibility System ATC [Authorization to Connect] as “high,” noting that “87 security controls [were] not documented or incomplete.”  Risk associated with Minnesota’s application to connect was also deemed “high,” with 110 incomplete or undocumented security controls. Pennsylvania’s risk was also deemed “high,” with 10 high level security findings. Hawaii was also considered a “high” risk, with 23 “high-impact” security findings.

A security spreadsheet in a September 19, 2013 email exchange shows a “high” level defect in the Obamacare website was discovered.  That finding prompted top IT security officials to schedule an emergency conference call in which senior IT security official Tom Schankweiler tries to persuade then-CMS Chief Information Officer Teresa Fryer to issue a “short term ATO [Authorization of Operate].”

In the CMS “Pre-Flight Checklist” published on September 20, 2013, is a chart that indicates that the “Hub,” designed to help with verifying applicant information used to determine eligibility for enrollment, was unable to perform its tasks. Regarding verification of citizenship is the comment: “Hub has been too irregular to work thorough this, and still don’t have the right data to test to the 5-year bar.” Regarding verification of SSN is the comment: “Hub,” has reliability issues …” The Pre-flight Checklist also notes nine “high” security risks, 123 “moderate” security risks, 68 “low” and 17 “common” risks in various components of the Obamacare system.

On October 1, Americans started shopping for health insurance on healthcare.gov, and the site crashed.

Our lawsuit has produced disclosure after disclosure about the Obamacare website disaster and the risk Americans were taking by using it:

• In September 2014, Judicial Watch released 94 pages of documentsobtained from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) including Security Controls Assessment Test Plans sent by CMS to Mitre Corporation.  CMS advised Mitre that the highest “Risk Rating” should be given to flaws that could cause “political” damage to CMS.  Moderate and low “Risk Ratings” were to include those resulting in potential “public embarrassment” to the agency.

• In March 2015, Judicial Watch released  documentsfrom the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) revealing that Department of Homeland Security (DHS) worked with HHS on security for healthcare.gov.

• In January 2016, Judicial Watch released documents showing federal health care officials’ concerns with the Obamacare website in two productions of records:  a 143-page productionand an 886-page production.  The emails showed that CMS Security Officer Teresa Fryer’s refused to approve the “ATO” (Authorization to Operate).

• And just recently, Judicial Watch released 944 pages of Department of Health and Human Services records showing that the Obamacare website was launched despite serious concerns by its security testing contractor, Mitre Corporation, as well as internal executive-level apprehension about security.

The evidence is overwhelming that the Obamacare website is a high-risk proposition for anyone who uses it.  The Trump administration should do an immediate security audit of the Obamacare official website.  In the meantime, you should know that your private health data is at risk on the Obamacare website.

Qatar Hires DC Lobby Part of the Swamp

Founders Code

At least there is a FARA filing.

Qatar is a hub for harboring terrorists and funding terror organizations. Recently, Gulf States with Saudi Arabia in the lead have isolated Qatar for these exact reasons.

Yesterday, this site published an article about the historical details of Qatar’s relationship with manifesting global terror.

Avenue Strategies was founded by former Trump campaign advisor Corey Lewandowski. The first clients were Citgo and Puerto Rico were among their first clients. He has since left the company, but the placeholder remaining are opportunists that apparently are dismissing the terror facts for money in their own pockets. Citgo is headquartered in Houston, Texas, but is “owned by the leftist government of Venezuela.” Citgo took out a loan from Russian state-owned oil giant, Rosneft in December 2016 that it has been unable to pay. It is under threat of a takeover by Rosneft.

At Avenue Strategies, there are names like Barry Bennett who previously worked for Ben Carson and Rick Perry. Then there is George Birnbaum who worked for Alfonse D’Amato, Charlie Crist and top leaders in Israel. Add in Ed Brookover, who worked for Ben Carson, John Boehner and Michelle Bachmann as well as leaders from various foreign countries. Bud Cummins is the last strategist who worked for Mike Huckabee’s campaign.

As you continue reading, remember, Qatar has a nasty historical connection to terror and has no plan to prosecute terrorists or to stop funding them including Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood, much less the Taliban. Testimony on the Hill regarding Qatar was hosted on July 27, 2017 and much of that testimony summary is found here.

Fmr CIA Director John Brennan Calls For Coup If Trump Fires Robert Mueller

 

InformationLiberation

by Chris Menahan

Former CIA Director John Brennan said if President Trump orders special counsel Robert Mueller be fired “executive branch officials” have an “obligation” to “refuse to carry that out.”

From Zero Hedge:

“I think it’s the obligation of some executive branch officials to refuse to carry that out. I would just hope that this is not going to be a partisan issue. That Republicans, Democrats are going to see that the future of this government is at stake and something needs to be done for the good of the future,” Brennan told CNN’s Wolf Blitzer at the Aspen Security Forum, effectively calling for a coup against the president should Trump give the order to fire Mueller.

Watch the exchange at 43:36:

Brennan appeared alongside his former colleague, Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, and both men who served in the Obama administration, told Blitzer they have total confidence in Mueller. “Absolutely. It was an inspired choice- they don’t come any better, ” Brennan said adding that “If Mueller is fired, I hope our elected reps will stand up and say enough is enough.” Some have responded with questions where Brennan’s devotion to the Constitution was in the aftermath of the events in Benghazi.

Washington Post Gives Megaphone to Far-Left Group’s Climate Fearmongering

Accuracy in Media

By: Brian McNicoll

 

It was 46 years ago, almost to the day, that the Washington Post ran a story on how man’s behavior was affecting his environment.

“In the next 50 years fine dust that humans discharge into the atmosphere by burning fossil fuel will screen out so much of the sun’s rays that the Earth’s average temperature could fall by six degrees,” the Post reported. “Sustained emissions over five to 10 years could be sufficient to trigger an ice age.”

But long before the shelf life of the Post’s prediction began to run out with no Ice Age in sight, the newspaper changed course and decided burning fossil fuel would make the weather hotter, not colder. It makes one wonder – Is the Post trying to deliver serious scientific information? Or does it just view pot shots at the energy industry as a way to sell papers?

Cockpit View of Blue Angels Superbowl 50 Flyover

The Blue Angels perform a fly-over prior to Super Bowl 50 between the Denver Broncos and the Carolina Panthers at Levi’s Stadium on February 7, 2016 in Santa Clara, California and you’re in the cockpit.

The Curious Case of Natalia Veselnitskaya

Family Security Matters

by ANDREW C. MCCARTHY

Obama-administration officials arranged for her entry – for reasons that have nothing to do with Trump Jr. or the presidential campaign.

She is relentlessly described as a “Russian lawyer” in media reporting. It should not escape our notice, then, that Natalia Veselnitskaya is not an American lawyer. She is not admitted to practice law in the United States.

So why was she admitted into the United States when she was not qualified to do the job that was the rationale for her admission?

We’ll get to that. To cut to the chase, however, it had nothing to do with the Trump campaign.

Pic of the Day