Grassley Fires Off Scorching Letter To DOJ After Anti-Trump Texts Reveal Burner Phone, “Insurance Policy”

Senate Judiciary Chairman Chuck Grassley fired off a letter late Wednesday to the DOJ, asking Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein to explain several disturbing revelations contained within anti-Trump text messages sent between FBI investigators Peter Strzok and his FBI-Attorney mistress Lisa Page – both of whom were central to the Clinton email investigation and the Trump-Russia probe, and both of whom were removed from Robert Mueller’s Special counsel when their text messages came to light. Rosenstein appeared before the House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday to answer questions about Strzok, Page and Mueller’s investigation.

Rosenstein stood by Robert Mueller’s investigation, telling lawmakers dismayed at a trove of damning text messages that he is “not aware of any impropriety” on the Special Counsel (which is stacked with anti-Trump Democrats, who have reportedly also sent anti-Trump messages), saying “I think it’s important that when we talk about political affiliation… The issue of bias is something different,” adding “We recognize we have employees with political opinions. And it’s our responsibility to make sure those opinions do not influence their actions. And so, I believe that Director Mueller understands that and he is running that office appropriately.”

Grassley raised serious concerns in his letter to the DOJ addressed to Rosenstein, as just two of over 10,000 (!?) text messages referred to an “insurance policy” against a Trump presidency, and a special phone they used “when we talk about hillary because it can’t be traced.”

Grassley’s letter reads:

“Yesterday, the Justice Department released a subset of text messages requested by the Committee. The limited release of 375 text messages between Mr. Peter Strzok and Ms. Lisa Page indicate a highly politicized FBI environment during both the Clinton and Russia investigations. For example, one text message from Ms. Page proclaims to Mr. Strzok, “God(,) Trump is a loathsome human.

Some of these texts appear to go beyond merely expressing a private political opinion, and appear to cross the line into taking some official action to create an “insurance policy” against a Trump presidency. Mr. Strzok writes the following to Ms. Page:

I want to believe the path you threw out for consideration in Andy’s office – that there’s no way he gets elected – but I’m afraid we can’t take that risk. It’s like an insurance policy in the unlikely event you die before you’re 40…

Presumably, “Andy” refers to Deputy FBI Director Andrew McCabe. So whatever was being discussed extended beyond just Page and Stzrok at least to Mr. McCabe, who was involved in supervising both investigations.

Another text from Ms. Page to Mr. Strzok on April 2, 2016, says the following:

So look, you say we text on that phone when we talk about hillary because it can’t be traced, you were just venting bc you feel bad that you’re gone so much but it can’t be helped right now.

That text message occurred during Mr. Strzok’s involvement in the Clinton investigation and days before he interviewed Huma Abedin and Cheryl Mills on April 5, 2016 and April 9, 2016, respectively. Thus, the mention of “hillary” may refer to Secretary Clinton and therefore could indicate that Mr. Strzok and Ms. Page engaged in other communications about an ongoing investigation on a different phone in an effort to prevent it from being traced.” 

Grassley then asks the following questions of the DOJ:

1. On what date did you become aware of the text messages between Mr. Strzok and Ms. Page and on what date were they each removed from the Special Counsel’s office?
2. Are there any other records relating to the conversation in Andrew McCabe’s office shortly before the text described above on August 15, 2016? [the “insurance policy” text] If so please produce them to the Committee.
3. Please provide all records relating to Andrew McCabe’s communications with Peter Stzrok or Lisa Page between August 7, 2016 and August 23, 2016.
4. What steps have you taken to determine whether Mr. Strzok, Mr. Page, and Mr. McCabe should face disciplinary action for their conduct?
5. My understanding is that the Inspector General’s current investigation is limited to the handling of the Clinton email matter only. What steps have you taken to determine whether steps taken during the campaign to escalate the Russia investigation might have been a result of the political animus evidenced by these text messages rather than on the merits?
6. Has the Department identified the referenced “that phone” Mr. Strzok and Ms. Page used to discuss Secretary Clinton? What steps has the Department taken to review the records on this other phone that allegedly “can’t be traced.” If none, please explain why

Grassley also tweeted “FBI owes answers abt “insurance policy” against Trump victory,” adding “…why would senior FBI leaders use secret phones that “cant be traced” to talk Hillary?”

FBI owes answers abt "insurance policy" against Trump victory…& if nothing to hide, why would senior FBI leaders use secret phones that "cant be traced" to talk Hillary? DOJ needs to give JudicComm full transparency/cooperation 2 restore public trust. FBI CANT BE POLITICAL

— ChuckGrassley (@ChuckGrassley) December 13, 2017

Grassley grilled Senate Democrats last week for their unwillingness to investigate Hillary Clinton and the Obama Administration, stating that the Democrats on the committee he oversees “only want to talk about [President] Trump.”

There are two major controversies plaguing the credibility of the Justice Department and the FBI right now. On the one hand the Trump Russia investigation, and then on the other hand the handling of the Clinton investigation. Any congressional oversight related to either one of these topics is not credible without also examining the other. Both cases were active during last year’s campaign. Both cases have been linked to the firing of the FBI Director.

These questions go to the heart of the integrity of our federal law enforcement and justice system.  

With Chuck Grassley on the warpath in the Senate, and the House Intel Committee chasing down FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe, one has to wonder how long the FBI and DOJ are going to be able to maintain this farce before shutting it down – especially if in fact other members of Mueller’s team also sent anti-Trump messages as journalist Sara Carter has claimed.

Actress Salma Hayek has penned a chilling essay in the New York Times claiming Harvey Weinstein threatened to kill her in a terrifying “attack of fury.”

…with every refusal came Harvey’s Machiavellian rage.

I don’t think he hated anything more than the word “no.” The absurdity of his demands went from getting a furious call in the middle of the night asking me to fire my agent for a fight he was having with him about a different movie with a different client to physically dragging me out of the opening gala of the Venice Film Festival, which was in honor of “Frida,” so I could hang out at his private party with him and some women I thought were models but I was told later were high-priced prostitutes.

The range of his persuasion tactics went from sweet-talking me to that one time when, in an attack of fury, he said the terrifying words, “I will kill you, don’t think I can’t.”

Hayek, 51, details the repeated advances she says Weinstein made while working with him on the film Frida, in which she played Mexican artist Frida Kahlo:

No to opening the door to him at all hours of the night, hotel after hotel, location after location, where he would show up unexpectedly, including one location where I was doing a movie he wasn’t even involved with.

No to me taking a shower with him.

No to letting him watch me take a shower.

No to letting him give me a massage.

No to letting a naked friend of his give me a massage.

No to letting him give me oral sex.

No to my getting naked with another woman.

No, no, no, no, no …

Weinstein allegedly threatened to shut down the filming of Frida unless Hayek filmed a nude sex scene with another actress.

“I had to take a tranquilizer, which eventually stopped the crying but made the vomiting worse,” she wrote of her emotional turmoil at filming a scene she thought unnecessary, adding “As you can imagine, this was not sexy, but it was the only way I could get through the scene.”

Mr. Weinstein’s spokeswoman, Holly Baird, has disputed Hayek’s account, saying in a statement: “Mr. Weinstein does not recall pressuring Salma to do a gratuitous sex scene with a female costar and he was not there for the filming.”

Hayek joins a list of 84 women who have accused Weinstein of sexual harassment or assault, including Rose McGowen, Ashley Judd, Gwyneth Paltrow and Daryl Hannah. Weinstein has denied any criminal behavior, suggesting in a statement through an attorney “it is wrong and irresponsible to conflate claims of impolitic behavior or consensual sexual contact later regretted, with an untrue claim of criminal conduct.”

Because blocking a doorway to force a woman watch you masturbate into a soup pot is simply impolitic.

2017 has been a year of retarded gains. Not only has the S&P 500 returned over 20% YTD in what was predicted to be a dismal Trump-inspired rout by idiots wearing ill-fitting Jos. A. Bank attire, billions have been raised out of thin air in ICOs of various cryptocurrencies – over $4 billion in fact, according to data from Autonomous Research, LLP.

The SEC’s Jay Clayton reiterated Monday that cryptocurrency sales should be regulated by the agency, adding that investors should be on high alert for promotors who claim to offer crazy returns, along with ICOs that don’t comply with securities regulations.

While Bitcoin’s market value now exceeds the GDP of over 130 countries (probably more since that was written), and the overall Cryptocurrency market cap exceeding half-a-TRILLION dollars – John McAfee’s dick grows safer by the day.

The top 5 ICOs by amount raised in 2017 are below:

I think it’s time for Fly to issue iBankCoins…

Hours after several of Donald Trump’s accusers assembled for a Monday press conference to call on congress to launch an investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct lodged against the President, Bill O’Reilly appeared on Glenn Beck’s radio show to discuss what he claims is the existence of a tape showing a woman being offered $200,000 to accuse Donald Trump of ‘untoward behavior.’ 

O’Reilly told Beck that his lawyer listened to the tape and that there are at least three crimes contained on it:

O’Reilly: There is a tape, Beck, an audio tape of an anti-Trump person offering $200,000 to a woman to accuse Donald Trump of untoward behavior. 

Beck: Is this tape going to be released?

O’Reilly: I may have to go to the US Attorney myself. I don’t wanna have to do that and inject myself into the story, but I had my lawyer listen to the tape. He’s listened to it. There are at least three crimes on the tape. So as a citizen, I may have to do this.

Beck: I will tell you Bill, the first thing that you say – well I’m trying to get it, I’m trying to get it so it can be released. You weren’t talking about getting it for YOU to release it, but it had to be out there. And I think the first time I said to you, I mean, if they don’t – you’ve gotta bring it to the US Attorney.

O’Reilly: Again, it’s in the hands of someone who knows the seriousness of the situation.

Beck: What is their hesitancy?

O’Reilly: You know, I can’t really get into that at this point. But I can tell you that Donald Trump knows about the tape. And I’m, for the life of me, sitting here going “Why on earth are you allowing a movement to try to smear you when you have a powerful – and I mean it’s powerful – piece of evidence that shows that this is an industry. That there are false charges and money changing hands.” It’s so frustrating but I wanted your listeners to know it, it’s there, it’s amazing, and it will change the whole discussion if it ever gets out.

Watch below: 

O’Reilly first divulged the existence of the tape six weeks ago in a largely unnoticed interview with Newsmax: 

O’Reilly told Newsmax on Monday that investigators working for him had uncovered an audio recording of “an anti-Trump attorney” offering an unidentified woman $200,000 to file sexual harassment charges against then-presidential candidate Donald J. Trump.

“It exists,” O’Reilly said. “We have urged the person who has the tape to hand it over to the U.S. attorney, because my investigative team believes there are three separate crimes on the audio tape.”

O’Reilly tells Newsmax his attorneys have listened to the tape. O’Reilly stated he is not in possession of the recording, but the conversation is believed to have taken place before last year’s presidential election.

“It’s related to my situation,” O’Reilly insists, “and when the tape emerges, you will see why. I can’t say any more than that, but it is related to my situation.“

With the ‘Russiagate’ witch hunt fizzling out amid revelations that Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s probe is stacked with several anti-Trump team investigators, O’Reilly warns that there’s going to be a huge push to rehash sexual misconduct allegations against the President. While several of these claims have been debunked or refuted, and Trump even threatening to sue the NYT at one point, it will come as a surprise to exactly nobody if and when ‘Russiagate’ shifts into ‘Gropegate’ in 2018.

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson signaled that the United States is preparet to negotiate with North Korea without preconditions – aside from one; no more nuclear or missile tests for an undetermined “quiet period.”

“Let’s just meet. We can talk about the weather if you want,” Tillerson told an audience at the Atlantic Council in Washington. “We can talk about whether it’s going to be a square table or a round table if that’s what you’re excited about.”

USG Jeffrey Feltman calls his visit to #NorthKorea the first in-depth political exchange of views between the UN and Pyongyang in almost 8 years. He says the officials he met, including the FM & vice-FM, agreed this ''was only a beginning'' pic.twitter.com/7rtWKo6YrJ

— Melissa Kent (@KentUNCBC) December 13, 2017

In response, North Korea signaled back on Tuesday evening, stating:

• N.Korea agrees “it is important to avoid war. “
• We have left the door open for negotiations.
• N.Korea did not offer any type of commitment to talks.

Tillerson said earlier in the day that the Trump administration is pleased with the “progress” made in imposing “extreme” sanctions and diplomatic pressure on Pyongyang, which includes heightened UN sanctions along with pressure from China. Tillerson said that more than 22 countries have recalled diplomats from North Korea.

The timing of Tillerson’s potential overture is interesting – not only does it come two weeks after a missile launch that experts confirmed could reach much of the North American continent, but at a time when South Korea is feverishly preparing to host the upcoming Winter Olympic games in February 2018.

Especially worrisome is that Pyongyang’s recent November 28th ICBM launch was reported to have flown for 50 minutes on a very high trajectory reaching 4,500 km above the earth (more than ten times higher than the orbit of Nasa’s International Space Station) before coming down nearly 1,000 km from the launch site off the west coast of Japan. The test prompted the US Ambassador to China, Terry Branstad, to reiterate that Kim Jong Un’s provocative actions constitute “the biggest threat to humankind right now.”

Ratcheting up

In response to North Korea’s nuclear overtures, the US decided to whip its dick out and conduct military exercises with allies in the region such as Japan. While Russia cautioned the US to be careful and exhibit restraint with the exercises, South Korea was the loudest voice requesting the United States tone down the drills.

This comes amidst talk of what’s being called a “freeze-for-freeze” deal in which the North would agree to halt all missile launches and nuclear tests and in return the US would suspend all military exercises in the area. This is something both Moscow and Beijing are currently pushing hard for, and Tillerson’s remarks before the Atlantic Council today could signal that the White House is seriously considering the plan.

At minimum, Tillerson’s comments leave the door open to a diplomatic solution – and North Korea’s response was highly encouraging. No word on whether or not special agent Dennis Rodman was involved.

Hackers are hitting the world’s second largest bitcoin exchange with a large DDOS (distributed denial of service) attack, crippling the network and preventing users from accessing their accounts – while wallet-provider Coinbase’s website showed “service unavailable” early Tuesday.

cant withdraw. wth? tried 100 times. pic.twitter.com/GMpek6hocG

— frustrated (@somestupidw) December 12, 2017

Bitfinex, one of the world’s largest bitcoin exchanges said it’s been getting hit, and that the API (application programming interface) is also down in a Tuesday tweet.

We are currently under heavy DDOS. API is also down. We are working on further mitigation.

— Bitfinex (@bitfinex) December 12, 2017

At first Bitfinex said the network was simply under heavy load, as the API and phone app were “functioning smoothly,” however that’s since been upgraded to a full DDOS attack.

Last week Bitfinex reported that it had similarly come under a “significant denial-of-service attack for the past several days.”

Bitfinex has been under significant denial-of-service attack for the past several days. The attack has recently worsened. Please monitor https://t.co/u3pYCWdhHY for ongoing updates.

— Bitfinex (@bitfinex) December 7, 2017

Bitfinex announced it would stop serving US customers on December 2nd, citing the expense of doing busienss with them. This move was followed by Wells Fargo’s decision earlier in the year to halt their relationship with Bitfinex, through which customers could send digital currency to Bitfinex in Taiwan – along with digital currency Tether.

pw doesn't work, reset doesn't work…waiting for my iota all day……. this isn't nice…..

— marcel s (@Junglist86_BS) December 12, 2017

Meanwhile, coinbase is also down and users are reporting all sorts of problems.

Figure your shit out Coinbase dear godddddd

— Scott Colon (@semi_colon_12) December 12, 2017

My Coinbase app isn’t working. Anybody else experiencing this? @CoinbaseSupport pic.twitter.com/D50pB0wqG7

— Tony Rizzo (@Rizzy_OnUrb) December 12, 2017

@CoinbaseSupport withdrew $7k and it should have arrived in my bank account today. It didn’t. So today, I withdrew $5750 using the bank wire option. Before I confirmed it said it would be in account today. Those funds did not arrive.

— Noah Prewett (@Ranchlife81) December 12, 2017

FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe abruptly cancelled his scheduled closed door testimony to the House Intel committee today, as news emerged that the wife of Senior DOJ official Bruce Ohr worked for Fusion GPS and the CIA. Fusion is the opposition research firm behind the infamous “Trump dossier,” while Ohr was demoted from his position with the Department of Justice last week for allegedly trying to conceal his ties to Fusion.

Fox News reporter Chad Pergram tweeted that his sources tell him “McCabe has an Ohr problem,” and they believe “FBI DepDir McCabe not coming to Hse Intel Cmte tomorrow because he’d be asked about Bruce Ohr & Ohr’s wife Nellie who worked for Fusion GPS,” adding “something far more sinister.”

Pergram also tweeted “Expect subpoenas to compel McCabe to appear this wk.”

FBI’s McCabe was expected to appear before Hse to Intel Cmte Tues. Now told he’s not coming. Expect subpoenas to compel McCabe to appear this wk. Source: “McCabe has an Ohr problem”

— Chad Pergram (@ChadPergram) December 12, 2017

Congressional sources tell Fox they believe FBI DepDir McCabe not coming to Hse Intel Cmte tomorrow because he’d be asked about Bruce Ohr & Ohr’s wife Nellie who worked for Fusion GPS.
something far more sinister.

— Chad Pergram (@ChadPergram) December 12, 2017

Fox is told Hse Intel Cmte will likely subpoena FBI DepDir McCabe to appear this wk. In addition, will subpoena documents/emails related to McCabe’s appearance

— Chad Pergram (@ChadPergram) December 12, 2017

Source tells Fox they think McCabe scheduling snafu before Hse Intel arose after Fox rpt tonight about wife of DoJ’s Bruce Ohr. Nellie Ohr worked for Fusion GPS thru last fall. Firm is connected to anti-Trump dossier.

— Chad Pergram (@ChadPergram) December 12, 2017

As ZeroHedge notes: House Intel Committee chairman Devin Nunes (R-CA) announced last week that they were prepared to hold McCabe and assistant Attorney General Rod Rosenstein in contempt for the DOJ’s failure to comply with a previous subpoena. He also accused the FBI and the DOJ of willfully refusing to comply with an Aug. 24 subpoena in part by refusing the committee’s request “for an explanation of Peter Strzok’s dismissal from the Mueller probe.”

Nellie Ohr, the wife of disgraced DOJ official Bruce Ohr, was employed by Fusion GPS last year. Her term of employment overlapped with the period when the Trump dossier was being compiled. Though Fox was unable to discern the exact nature of her role at the firm, its reporters discovered that she has done extensive research on Russia-related topics for think tanks based in the Washington, DC area.

Fox News reports:

A senior Justice Department official demoted last week for concealing his meetings with the men behind the anti-Trump “dossier” had even closer ties to Fusion GPS, the firm responsible for the incendiary document, than have been disclosed, Fox News has confirmed: The official’s wife worked for Fusion GPS during the 2016 election.

Contacted by Fox News, investigators for the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence (HPSCI) confirmed that Nellie H. Ohr, wife of the demoted official, Bruce G. Ohr, worked for the opposition research firm last year. The precise nature of Mrs. Ohr’s duties – including whether she worked on the dossier – remains unclear but a review of her published works available online reveals Mrs. Ohr has written extensively on Russia-related subjects. HPSCI staff confirmed to Fox News that she was paid by Fusion GPS through the summer and fall of 2016.

Not only that, Nellie Ohr represented the CIA’s “Open Source Works” group in a 2010 “expert working group” on international organized crime, along with her husband Bruce and Fusion GPS founder Glenn Simpson.

Nellie Ohr, the wife of demoted DOJ official, Bruce Ohr, not only worked for Fusion GPS, but has also represented the CIA's "Open Source Works" group. https://t.co/u5HPgJwvWd pic.twitter.com/ZPhAIzR6wv

— Josh Caplan (@joshdcaplan) December 12, 2017

Open Source Works is described as the “CIA’s in-house open source analysis component, devoted to intelligence analysis of unclassified, open source information.”

Open Source Works, which is the CIA’s in-house open source analysis component, is devoted to intelligence analysis of unclassified, open source information. Oddly, however, the directive that established Open Source Works is classified, as is the charter of the organization. In fact, CIA says the very existence of any such records is a classified fact. “The CIA can neither confirm nor deny the existence or nonexistence of records responsive to your request,” wrote Susan Viscuso, CIA Information and Privacy Coordinator, in a November 29 response to a Freedom of Information Act request from Jeffrey Richelson of the National Security Archive for the Open Source Works directive and charter.

During the 2016 election, Bruce Ohr met with former MI6 spy Christopher Steele, and shortly after the 2016 election, he met with Glenn Simpson of Fusion GPS – who commissioned Steele to create the infamous “Trump-Russia” dossier.

Another factor in McCabe’s sudden cancellation, according to ZeroHedge, is a report from The Hill‘s John Solomon that Rep. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) recently interviewed a retired FBI supervisor who told him he was instructed by Deputy Director Andrew McCabe not to call the 2012 Benghazi attack an act of terrorism when distributing the FBI’s findings to the larger intelligence community – despite knowing exactly who conducted the attack.

The agent found the instruction concerning because his unit had gathered incontrovertible evidence showing a major al Qaeda figure had directed the attack and the information had already been briefed to President Obama, the lawmaker said. –The Hill

If true, it means McCabe lied for the Obama administration in a clear, partisan violation of the FBI’s mandate to “detect and prosecute crimes against the United States,” not “lie for the President so as not to offend Islam.” As Rep. DeSantis told The Hill:

“What operational reason would there be to issue an edict to agents telling them, in the face of virtually conclusive evidence to the contrary, not to categorize the Benghazi attack as a result of terrorism? By placing the interests of the Obama administration over the public’s interests, the order is yet another data point highlighting the politicization of the FBI.”

Whether McCabe cancelled over his “Ohr problem,” or for instructing a retired FBI supervisor to lie about the Benghazi attack, or because he doesn’t want to talk about Peter Strzok’s dismissal from the Mueller probe – one thing is for sure; Devin Nunes can’t be happy, and we can probably expect subpoenas to start flying off his desk as soon as this morning.

The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department has maintained a secret list of around 300 officers with histories of misconduct, according to documents viewed by the Los Angeles Times. Approximately two-thirds of the names on the list are still with the department.

The “Brady list,” created in 2014 and named after a landmark 1963 Supreme Court decision requiring prosecutors to alert defendants to favorable evidence, was compiled under former interim Sheriff John Scott to keep track of officers who had been accused or convicted of misconduct that might affect their credibility in court. Current Sheriff, Jim McDonnell, wants to grant prosecutors access to the list – who are required by law to tell criminal defendants about evidence which might affect an officer’s credibility if called as a witness – however McDonnell’s efforts were met with a lawsuit from the Deputies’ Union, which argued that the move would violate California police confidentiality laws.

“The deputies have been identified as potential witnesses in more than 62,000 felony cases since 2000, according to a Times analysis of district attorney records. In many of those cases, the deputies’ misconduct would probably have been relevant in assessing their credibility.” –LA Times

The officers on the Brady list have come under fire for a wide variety of misconduct, including writing a false report after pepper-spraying and elderly man in the face, forcing strangers to perform oral sex, disposing of evidence, domestic battery, and molesting an underage girl who told The Times she dropped out of school and considered suicide. Indeed, the Los Angeles police force is so corrupt that the FBI performed an extensive investigation – which led to nearly two dozen convictions, including former Sheriff Lee Baca, who obstructed FBI efforts to investigate abuses in county jails. Baca was sentenced in May to three years in prison.

“An FBI investigation of inmate abuse by deputies found years of excessive force and coverups. More than 20 officials, including former Sheriff Lee Baca, were convicted of crimes in the wake of that investigation.

In 2014, after Baca stepped down, officials combed through officers’ histories for misconduct involving “moral turpitude.” Deputies added to the list were found by internal investigators to have made false statements, written false reports, misappropriated property, obstructed an investigation, engaged in discrimination or harassment, accepted bribes or other improper gifts, used unreasonable force or been violent with a family member.”

The types of misconduct vary, however dishonesty ranks #1 at 69% of officers on the Brady list, followed by family violence, immoral conduct, stealing and sex. The officers in question are overwhelmingly deputies, followed by seargents, detectives, and lieutenants.”

In one incident reviewed by The Times from 1995, officer Casey Dowling was accused by a 14-year-old girl of molesting her after she told him she had been the victim of a knife attack. The girl said Dowling grabbed her breast while she sat in his patrol car, according to a DA’s memo at the time. The girl then said Dowling drove her home, followed her into her bedroom, and felt her up again after asking if she was wearing panties.

Dowling, who claims he has evidence that he’s not on the Brady list, was discharged in 1997 for “immoral conduct,” only to file an appeal and get his job back – earning $189,000 last year. His attorney claims he was never fired.

In another incident, officer Christian Chamness – recently named “deputy of the year,” at the Lancaster sheriff’s station, pepper sprayed a 73-year-old man in the face. In his arrest report, Chamness claimed the elderly man blocked deputies trying to leave a barber ship where they had arrested the man’s son and a friend.

Chamness, who arrested the man and charged him with resisting or delaying a police officer, wrote in his official report: “He began to advance on me,” adding “I … ordered him once more to step aside. He refused so I sprayed him with a 3- to 4-second burst.”

Except video evidence showed this wasn’t true. In reality, video evidence obtained by The Times depicts the elderly man outside of the barbershop speaking with deputies – one of whom is holding the elderly man’s left arm. After words were exchanged, Chamness whipped out his pepper spray and hit the 73 year old with three bursts to the face. The county paid $195,000 to settle the lawsuit, and officer Chamness was suspended for 25 days for filing a false report and using unreasonable force. Chamness made $135,000 last year. 

In several other cases, deputies known for misconduct were given jobs as detectives or on patrol – assignments which often include appearances in court to bear witness. While the department fired several of the officers on the list, at least 13 have appealed their dismissal and gotten their jobs back.

The list reviewed by The Times includes some deputies who, despite previous misconduct, were given jobs in patrol or as detectives — assignments in which testimony can be crucial. The department fired some deputies whose names are on the list, but at least 13 appealed and got their jobs back.

The fight to keep the list private

When Sheriff McDonnell attempted to give the Brady list to prosecutors, the Deputies’ Union sued – arguing the move would violate California’s officer confidentiality policies.

“Do we go back and overturn every conviction now?” asked Elizabeth Gibbons, a lawyer who has represented the Assn. for Los Angeles Deputy Sheriffs. “That’s a can of worms that gets opened if the court adopts the department’s argument in this case.”

According to The Times, “In July, a state appeals court ruled that the names cannot be revealed even in pending criminal cases in which the officers could testify. The court concluded that defendants are already able to gather the information they need by asking a judge to review the officer’s file for relevant information that could affect the case. State law, however, bars judges from handing over information about complaints more than five years old. And many defense attorneys say that even if they can persuade a judge to review the records, they are rarely given enough to assess the credibility of police witnesses.”

The California Supreme Court will decide next year on whether or not prosecutors should be able to see internal lists of officer misconduct. As one of 22 states which keep officer discipline from the public, California is known for having some of the nation’s strictest laws when it comes to secrecy of police misconduct – and is the only state which blocks prosecutors from seeing entire police personnel files.

In a recent interview, District Attorney Jackie Lacey said she’s “in a tough spot,” because while she supports Sheriff McDonnell’s efforts to release the Brady list, over 200 investigators who work for her office are members of the union suing the sheriff. “I think the sheriff is trying to do the right thing,” said Lacey.

White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders spit-roasted the MSM during Monday’s briefing – calling them out for recent #FakeNews, and suggesting that they were purposefully misleading the public.

“There’s a very big difference between making honest mistakes and purposefully misleading the American people. Something that happens regularly. You can’t say — I’m not done. You can’t say that it’s an honest mistake when you are purposely putting out information that you know to be false or when you’re taking information that hasn’t been validated, that hasn’t been offered any credibility and that has been continually denied by a number of people including people with direct knowledge of an incident. This is something that — I’m speaking about the number of reports that have taken place over the last couple of weeks. I’m simply stating that there should be a certain level of responsibility in that process.”

Sanders was, of course, talking about three incidents “over the last couple of weeks.”

First, ABC reporter Brian Ross was suspended after he put out a report that Michael Flynn was prepared to tell special counsel Robert Mueller that then-candidate Donald Trump told him to contact the Russians, when in fact Trump told Flynn to do so after he’d won the election – a totally normal thing to do for an incoming administration. As a result, the Dow tanked 350 points before the story was corrected.

Trump called Ross a “fraudster” in response, and tweeted that anyone who lost money “based on the False and Dishonest reporting of Brian Ross” should hire an attorney and sue ABC.

People who lost money when the Stock Market went down 350 points based on the False and Dishonest reporting of Brian Ross of @ABC News (he has been suspended), should consider hiring a lawyer and suing ABC for the damages this bad reporting has caused – many millions of dollars!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 3, 2017

The second bit of fabricated  news was CNN’s report from last Friday that Donald Trump Jr. received documents from Wikileaks on September 4, 2016 before they had been officially released, when in fact, a random person emailed him a link to publicly available documents on September 14.

CNN corrected the report, issuing the following statement:

CNN originally reported the email was released September 4 — 10 days earlier — based on accounts from two sources who had seen the email. The new details appear to show that the sender was relying on publicly available information. The new information indicates that the communication is less significant than CNN initially reported.

Trump shot back, tweeting “Fake News CNN made a vicious and purposeful mistake yesterday. They were caught red handed, just like lonely Brian Ross at ABC News (who should be immediately fired for his “mistake”),” adding “Watch to see if @CNN fires those responsible, or was it just gross incompetence?” It is worth noting that Ross was not fired but rather suspended for 4 weeks.

Fake News CNN made a vicious and purposeful mistake yesterday. They were caught red handed, just like lonely Brian Ross at ABC News (who should be immediately fired for his “mistake”). Watch to see if @CNN fires those responsible, or was it just gross incompetence?

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 9, 2017

The THIRD piece of Fake News was when the Washington Post’s David Weigel put out a photo of Trump’s speech last weekend, hours before it started, with the quote “Packed to the rafters.”

The event was, in fact, packed to the rafters:

.@DaveWeigel @WashingtonPost put out a phony photo of an empty arena hours before I arrived @ the venue, w/ thousands of people outside, on their way in. Real photos now shown as I spoke. Packed house, many people unable to get in. Demand apology & retraction from FAKE NEWS WaPo! pic.twitter.com/XAblFGh1ob

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 9, 2017

Weigel apologized and deleted the FakeNews tweet:

Sure thing: I apologize. I deleted the photo after @dmartosko told me I'd gotten it wrong. Was confused by the image of you walking in the bottom right corner. https://t.co/fQY7GMNSaD

— Dave Weigel (@daveweigel) December 9, 2017

Chris is Pissed

In response to Sanders’ admonishment, CNN Editor-at-large Chris Cillizza lashed out like an angry purse-dog, penning quite the screed over Sanders for going “way, way beyond the pale of the usual give and take between the White House and press corps.”

Cillizza addressed JUST ONE of the three #FakeNews controversies – that of Brian Ross,  suggesting Ross’s mistake wasn’t intentional by using a stupid Baseball analogy.

Nowhere in anything we know about Ross’ erroneous reporting is there even a whiff of intentionality. Where is the evidence that Ross purposely pushed out the Flynn-Trump report — knowing it was wrong — solely to make Trump look bad?

There is a massive difference between making an honest mistake — in this case trusting a source too much — and purposeful intent to deceive. A massive difference.

Think of it this way: I am up to bat with the bases loaded and my team down one run in the bottom of the ninth inning of the seventh game of the World Series. I strike out. Game over. My team loses.

If I tried my best to hit the ball but failed, that means one thing.
If someone paid me $50,000 to strike out anytime I was up in an important moment in the game, that’s something else altogether. It’s not even in the same, ahem, ballpark.

“It’s not even in the same, ahem, ballpark.”

This is why the left can’t meme, by the way. That was a terrible analogy and a stupid joke. Moreover, Sarah Sanders is well within her right to suggest that intentional misreporting or a failure to validate a claim has taken place. She doesn’t need proof to hold that opinion.

It’s also hilarious that Cillizza totally failed to include his own network’s massive retraction over the Trump Jr. Wikileaks debacle, when – just like the Brian Ross story – the implications of what the networks were asserting would have had a serious, material impact on world affairs – as evidenced by the Dow’s 350 point kneejerk meltdown before Brian Ross corrected his story.

Cillizza closes by saying “But, to suggest — or believe — that the mistakes made by the media, including CNN, are purposeful is beyond offensive to anyone who spends their days in this profession.”

Right – which is why three CNN employees admitted to Project Veritas that they think the Russia story is “Fake News” pushed for ratings.

CNN Producer John Bonifield was caught on camera saying:

I haven’t seen any good enough evidence to show that the President committed a crime.

I know a lot of people don’t like him and they’d like to see him get kicked out of office…. but that’s a lot different than he actually did something that can get him kicked out of office.

Meanwhile, CNN’s Van Jones said Russia is a “nothingburger.”

Boy Chris, it sure seems like CNN employees have the very clear impression that the Russia story is Fake News being pushed intentionally to mislead the public for ratings.

The New Yorker has just canned up and coming journalist Ryan Lizza – the guy who published the full transcript of his call with very brief Trump admin comms director Anthony Scaramucci, in which “The Mooch” famously said “I’m not Steve Bannon, I’m not trying to suck my own cock,” among other things.

Well, turns out karma is a bitch – as “The New Yorker has severed ties with Ryan Lizza in response to behavior the magazine believes to be “improper sexual conduct””

Full statement:

“The New Yorker recently learned that Ryan Lizza engaged in what we believe was improper sexual conduct. We have reviewed the matter and, as a result, have severed ties with Lizza. Due to a request for privacy, we are not commenting further.”

Ryan Lizza says in a statement that he’s “dismayed” the New Yorker has characterized “a respectful relationship with a woman I dated as somehow inappropriate.” Full statement: pic.twitter.com/SvjnzSaYSR

— Michael Calderone (@mlcalderone) December 11, 2017

As ZeroHedge points out,  Lizza had been rather silent in recent weeks. He has not appeared on CNN, where he is a contributor, since November 22; and aside from a smattering of retweets, his normally buzzing Twitter feed has been absent of reporting or commentary since around the same time.

Sad!

Did Mooch know?

Joe Concha of The Hill posits that Scaramucci knew of Lizza’s sexual misconduct, telling New York morning talk show host Craig Carton that Lizza may have some bad karma headed his way.

“This guy’s obviously a very bad actor,” Scaramucci told Carton on Monday. “Karma’s a bitch. It’ll come back and bite him. You’ll see.

“You’re a transactional guy,” he added, addressing Lizza. “And you’re gonna have a transactional, miserable life.”

Did Scaramucci know about Ryan Lizza's demise? Mooch Dec 4 interview: "This guy’s obviously a very bad actor. Karma’s a bitch. It’ll come back & bite him. You’ll see. You’re a transactional guy,” he added, addressing Lizza. “And you’re gonna have a transactional, miserable life."

— Joe Concha (@JoeConchaTV) December 11, 2017

Veddy interesting…

Also interesting is a report from former Hillary Clinton CA field director Michael Trujillo, who says that WaPo and CNN are working on 20-40 sexual misconduct stories involving members of congress. Meanwhile, several Trump accusers have assembled into a sexual-misconduct voltron – and will attempt to take advantage of the “new precedent” set by members of congress stepping down – such as Al Franken, John Conyers and Trent Franks, in the hopes of getting rid of Drumpf once and for all.