When Did the Spying Begin? U.S. Attorney General William Barr says he’s going to find the answer. By James Freeman
https://www.wsj.com/articles/when-did-the-spying-begin-11558105067
Americans are getting closer to learning how the surveillance tools of the U.S. government were turned against the party out of power during the 2016 presidential campaign. This morning the Journal’s Sadie Gurman and Aruna Viswanatha report on their interview with the head of the U.S. Department of Justice:
Attorney General William Barr said his review of the origins of the Russia investigation is focused on U.S. intelligence gathering before the Federal Bureau of Investigation opened its formal inquiry in July 2016 and could lead to rule changes for counterintelligence investigations of political campaigns.
“Government power was used to spy on American citizens,” Mr. Barr told The Wall Street Journal, in his first interview since taking office in February. “I can’t imagine any world where we wouldn’t take a look and make sure that was done properly.”
He added: “Just like we need to ensure that foreign actors don’t influence the outcome of our elections, we need to ensure that the government doesn’t use its powers to put a thumb on the scale.”
We absolutely do. And to ensure that this never happens in the future, it’s important to learn precisely when and how government spying powers were directed against associates of the Trump campaign—and by whom.
The Journal reporters add:
Multiple former FBI officials have testified that the bureau opened the counterintelligence investigation in July 2016 into people affiliated with the Trump campaign after receiving information from the Australian government that a foreign-policy adviser to the campaign, George Papadopoulos, appeared to know about Russian plans to use “dirt” they had on Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton.
Two hours after the Journal report this morning, Bill Hemmer of Fox News played excerpts of his own Barr interview in which Mr. Hemmer pressed the attorney general on the question of when the spying began. Mr. Barr responded that he was “not going to speculate about when it started,” but insisted that “we are going to find out.” Mr. Barr added that some explanations he’s been given about the government’s conduct in the matter have been “inadequate” or don’t “hang together” with other explanations.
It seems that Mr. Barr isn’t buying the origin story promoted by senior officials from the Obama administration. And there’s every reason to doubt it, as the Journal’s Kimberley A. Strassel has been chronicling for more than a year.
Mr. Barr also noted during his Fox interview that special counsel Robert Mueller did not investigate the government’s role in spying on the Trump campaign, but focused instead on the question of whether the campaign had colluded with Russia. Mr. Mueller found no evidence that Team Trump had conspired or coordinated with the Kremlin.
Americans hoping that the special counsel would also explain how the intelligence tools created to spy on foreign powers were directed against the domestic political opposition were disappointed. But Mr. Barr is on the case now, and Justice inquiries go beyond the FBI to also cover the activities of the Central Intelligence Agency.
This suggests that the Trump investigation origin story advanced by leaders of the Obama FBI may not be the only official story due for a correction. America’s most famous spy agency currently maintains a web page with the headline: “Top 10 CIA Myths.” It reads in part:
Myth 1: The CIA spies on US citizens
The CIA’s mission is to collect information related to foreign intelligence and foreign counterintelligence. By direction of the president in Executive Order 12333 of 1981, and in accordance with procedures approved by the Attorney General, the CIA is restricted in the collection of intelligence information directed against US citizens. Collection is allowed only for an authorized intelligence purpose; for example, if there is a reason to believe that an individual is involved in espionage or international terrorist activities. The CIA’s procedures require senior approval for any such collection that is allowed, and, depending on the collection technique employed, the sanction of the Director of National Intelligence and Attorney General may be required. These restrictions have been in effect since the 1970s.
The FBI has the lead on intelligence matters in the United States, especially those directed against US citizens. The CIA does not collect information concerning the domestic activities of US citizens, but its foreign intelligence collection mission can be conducted anywhere.
The surveillance of domestic political opponents in 2016 may have involved multiple federal agencies, and only one person exercised management authority over all of them. Perhaps at some point someone in the media will decide to ask him about it.
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