Some lawmakers would like to see the Justice Department prosecute former spy chief James Clapper for inaccurate testimony to Congress about domestic surveillance before it’s too late.
Privacy-conscious critics say looming five-year statutes of limitation for perjury and making false statements — establishing a March 12 deadline for charges — make an urgent case for action, and that nonprosecution would set a dangerous precedent that impedes oversight and executive-branch accountability.
In an apology letter, Clapper wrote that he gave a “clearly erroneous” answer because he “simply didn’t think of” the call-record collection. But in an MSNBC interview he offered a different explanation, saying he gave the “least untruthful” answer because he was “asked a, ‘When are you going to stop beating your wife?’ kind of question, meaning not answerable necessarily by a simple yes or no.”
Lawmakers from both parties, but primarily Republicans supportive of new limits on surveillance, called for Clapper’s prosecution during the Obama administration, without success. Several renewed their calls as the deadline nears.
“The time for the Department of Justice and the FBI to bring the accusations against James Clapper in front of a grand jury is long overdue,” said Rep. Ted Poe, R-Texas. “He and others who have held administrative power must be held accountable to the same laws that govern the people of the United States.”
“Yes, he should be prosecuted,” said Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky. “He admitted to lying to Congress and was unremorseful and flippant about it. The integrity of our federal government is at stake because his behavior sets the standard for the entire intelligence community. The same goes for James Comey, who secretly leaked documents that he was not legally permitted to release.” – READ MORE
[give_form id=”79809″] [divider][/divider]The head of the U.S. intelligence community under President Obama said on Tuesday that he was not aware of the former Trump campaign adviser who was recently reported to have been the catalyst for the FBI’s investigation into Trump campaign collusion.
In an interview on CNN, former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper said that when he left his Obama administration job on Jan. 20, 2017, George Papadopoulos “was not a name on my radar scope.”
The admission is somewhat surprising given Papadopoulos’ purported importance to the Russia probe.
The 30-year-old energy consultant was identified in a New York Times article published over the weekend as a catalyst for the FBI’s counterintelligence investigation into possible Trump campaign collusion with the Russian government.
Is essence, Clapper admitting Papadopoulos was never on his radar is unwittingly an admission that the Obama-Era Intel apparatus used a FISA warrant(s) to spy on Trump and associates.
It also shatters the fake story published by the New York Times alleging Papadopoulos was the keystone to the Trump Russia investigation.
Big surprise. The New York Times lied. Again.
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