AG Barr Appointed John Durham As Special Counsel Just Days Before Election
Michael Cantrell
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Just a few days before the extremely controversial 2020 presidential election, Attorney General Bill Barr appointed U.S. Attorney John Durham as a special counsel to investigate any potential violations of the law that might have taken place during the FBI’s Crossfire Hurricane operation and those that might have occurred later concerning special counsel Robert Mueller’s team.
The order appointing Durham was released on Tuesday and affords the attorney with additional protections against the possibility of Joe Biden becoming president and attempting to shut down investigations into the origins and conduct of the FBI in the Russia probe.
As of now, Biden hasn’t been asked about the matter and has not stated if he would allow Durham’s work to continue if he is certified the winner of the election.
“On May 13, 2019, I directed United States Attorney John Durham to conduct a preliminary review into certain matters related to the 2016 presidential election campaigns, and Mr. Durham’s review subsequently developed into a criminal investigation, which remains ongoing. Following consultation with Mr. Durham, I have determined that, in light of the extraordinary circumstances relating to these matters, the public interest warrants Mr. Durham continuing this investigation pursuant to the powers and independence afforded by the Special Counsel regulations,” Barr said in the appointment order, which was dated Oct. 19, 2020.
“The Special Counsel is authorized to investigate whether any federal official, employee, or any other person or entity violated the law in connection with the intelligence, counterintelligence, or law enforcement activities directed at the 2016 presidential campaigns, individuals associated with those campaigns, and individuals associated with the administration of President Donald J. Trump, including but not limited to Crossfire Hurricane and the investigation of Special Counsel Robert S. Mueller III,” Barr’s newly revealed order added. “If the Special Counsel believes it is necessary and appropriate, the Special Counsel is authorized to prosecute federal crimes arising from his investigation of these matters.”
The attorney general also said that Durham should submit interim reports as he deems appropriate as well as a final report once he has concluded his investigation so that the public can learn what he has uncovered. Despite rampant speculation that Durham might release a report prior to the November election, that didn’t happen amid concerns about undue influence to the contest.
We’ve seen a number of documents that have revealed some serious shady business went down during the origins of Crossfire Hurricane. Emails and text messages have indicated that members of the FBI were purposefully plotting against Donald Trump both as the president and before he won the 2016 election.
Durham’s efforts have resulted in one guilty plea. Kevin Clinesmith admitted he changed the wording of a CIA email so that it would say that former Trump campaign associate Carter Page was “not a source” for the agency, despite the fact that the FBI had been informed that Page was an “operational contact” for the CIA for many years.
Just imagine what other bombshells we’ll probably find out about as Durham continues his investigation? We might be seeing arrests and charges filed well into a Biden presidency.
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