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Tag: u s department of justice
Barr Deputy's Report Debunked 'Unmasking' Accusations Against Democrats

Barr Deputy's Report Debunked 'Unmasking' Accusations Against Democrats

A newly disclosed U.S. Department of Justice's investigatio has determined that members of former President Barack Obama's administration had no interest in revealing General Michael Flynn's identity “for political purposes or other inappropriate reasons.”

According to BuzzFeed, the report is based on months of investigative research on the so-called “'unmasking' of Flynn" who briefly held the position of U.S. National Security Advisor under former President Donald Trump's administration before he submitted his resignation in February 2017. Flynn's resignation came amid scrutiny and questions about the nature of his conversations with Russia’s ambassador to the US.

Per Buzzfeed: "Republicans later accused officials in the Obama administration of using their positions to reveal anonymized names in classified documents, known in the intelligence community as unmasking, in order to target individuals in Trump’s orbit."

Amid those accusations, former U.S. Attorney General Bill Barr ordered that an investigation be launched to further assess the allegations. The investigation was conducted by John Bash, who at the time, worked as a U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Texas. Although the investigation was closed back in 2020, the report had not been made public.

Bash has made it clear that his "review has uncovered no evidence that senior Executive Branch officials sought the disclosure of' the identities of US individuals 'in disseminated intelligence reports for political purposes or other inappropriate reasons during the 2016 presidential-election period or the ensuing presidential-transition period.'"

Bash further expounded on his findings in the written statement for his report. Although he admitted that he did not see any justification for a criminal investigation into those suspected of being involved in the "unmasking," he also said "he was 'troubled' by 'how easy it is for political appointees of the incumbent administration to obtain nonpublic information about individuals associated with a presidential campaign or a transition team.'”

“There exists a significant potential for misuse of such information— misuse that could be difficult to detect,” Bash wrote. His report recommended that the intelligence community consider implementing “certain prophylactic safeguards for unmasking requests that relate to presidential campaigns or transitions, including a more demanding substantive standard for granting those requests, special notification requirements, and a centralized approval process.”

Reprinted with permission from Alternet.

Justice Department Will Not Prosecute Former FBI Director Comey Over Leaked Memos

Justice Department Will Not Prosecute Former FBI Director Comey Over Leaked Memos

Reprinted with Permission from Alternet

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has decided that former FBI Director James Comey will not be prosecuted for allegedly leaking classified information, Fox News has reported. This comes after South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham’s assertion that it would be “stunning” if Attorney General William Barr did not proceed with a prosecution of Comey.

DOJ Inspector General Michael Horowitz had referred Comey for a potential prosecution, but an official described by Fox News as “familiar with the deliberations” told the right-wing cable news outlet that “everyone at the DOJ involved in the decision said it wasn’t a close call.” That source, according to Fox News, said “they all thought this could not be prosecuted.”

During an interview with Fox News’ Sean Hannity, Graham said, “If Bill Barr decided not to prosecute on disclosing the memos, I accept his judgment. I’ve known him for 20 years.” Graham also asserted that if Barr “does bring a charge against Comey,” he would “hate to be Comey.”

Graham, referring to Barr, told Hannity, “I want him to do what he thinks is right by the law and not prosecute anybody if you don’t think the case is there.”

On Wednesday, The Hill’s John Solomon reported that Horowitz was preparing a “damning report” on Comey. But the DOJ, according to the conservative PJ Media, decided not to bring charges against the former FBI director because it didn’t believe there was sufficient evidence to show that Comey intentionally violated the law.

At issue was a memo Comey allegedly leaked that was classified as “confidential.” The memo dealt with a conversation Comey had with Trump after being fired in May 2017 during the Russia investigation. But according to Solomon’s sources, that memo wasn’t classified as “confidential” until after Comey allegedly leaked it.

North Carolina Lawmaker Dismisses U.S. Deadline To Change Restroom Law

North Carolina Lawmaker Dismisses U.S. Deadline To Change Restroom Law

By Colleen Jenkins and Julia Edwards

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (Reuters) – A top Republican lawmaker in North Carolina said the state would not be “bullied” by the U.S. Justice Department into meeting a Monday deadline to change a new law regulating which bathrooms transgender people can use.

“We will take no action by Monday,” House Speaker Tim Moore told reporters in Raleigh on Thursday, the day after the federal government told the state that the law enacted in March violated the U.S. Civil Rights Act.

The law requires transgender people to use bathrooms that correspond with the sex on their birth certificate rather than their gender identity. The Justice Department said North Carolina was discriminating against transgender state employees and it had until Monday to say whether it would remedy the violations.

If North Carolina Governor Pat McCrory does not say he will stand down from enforcing the law, the federal agency’s civil rights division could push for a court order. If a federal judge sides with the Justice Department, North Carolina will have to comply or face a restriction of federal funds.

A Justice Department spokeswoman would not say whether the department would take legal action against the state or what sources of funding may be restricted.

Moore said the tight deadline was unreasonable and that the federal government’s position was inappropriate.

“Obviously we don’t ever want to lose any money, but we’re not going to get bullied by the Obama administration to take action prior to Monday’s date,” Moore said. “That’s not how this works.”