116. Gregg Re, “Carter Page Says FBI Informant ‘Intensified’ Communications Just Prior to FISA Warrant,” Fox News, June 9, 2019.
117. Ibid.
118. George Papadopoulos, Deep State Target: How I Got Caught in the Crosshairs of the Plot to Bring Down President Trump (New York: Diversion Books, 2019).
119. Ibid., 101.
120. Adam Goldman, Michael S. Schmidt, and Mark Mazzetti, “FBI Sent Investigator Posing as Assistant to Meet with Trump Aide in 2016,” New York Times, May 2, 2019.
121. Gregg Re and Brooke Singman, “U.S. Informant Reportedly Tried to Probe Papadopoulos on Trump-Russia Ties, ‘Seduce Him’ During Campaign,” Fox News, May 3, 2019.
122. Papadopoulos, Deep State Target, 106.
123. Ibid., 107.
124. Jan Crawford, “William Barr Interview: Read the Full Transcript,” CBS News, May 31, 2019.
125. Papadopoulos, Deep State Target, 67–69.
126. Ibid., 105.
127. Ibid., 176.
128. Ibid., 213.
129. Ibid., 60.
130. Ibid., 61.
131. Ibid., 75.
132. Ibid., 76.
133. Ibid., 77.
134. Sharon LaFraniere, Mark Mazzetti, and Matt Apuzzo, “How the Russia Inquiry Began: a Campaign Aide, Drinks and Talk of Political Dirt,” New York Times, December 30, 2017.
135. George Papadopoulos, Deep State Target, 78.
136. John Solomon, “Australian Diplomat Whose Tip Prompted FBI’s Russia-Probe Has Tie to Clintons,” The Hill, March 5, 2018.
137. “FBI Domestic Investigations and Operations Guide (DIOG), Part 03 of 03,” 2011, https://vault.fbi.gov/FBI%20Domestic%20Investigations%20and%20Operations%20Guide%20%28DIOG%29/fbi-domestic-investigations-and-operations-guide-diog-2011-version/fbi-domestic-investigations-and-operations-guide-diog-october-15-2011-part-03-of-03/view.
138. Robert S. Mueller, The Mueller Report: The Final Report of the Special Counsel into Donald Trump, Russia, and Collusion as Issued by the Department of Justice (New York: Skyhorse Publishing, 2019), vol. I, 179.
139. Ibid., 180.
140. Robert Mendick, Alex Luhn, and Ben Riley-Smith, “Revealed: London Professor at Centre of Trump-Russia Collusion Inquiry Says: ‘I Have Clear Conscience,’ ” The Telegraph, October 31, 2017.
141. Robert S. Mueller, The Mueller Report, 180–181.
142. Jonathan Turley, “The Mysterious Mister Mifsud And Why No One Wants To Discuss Him,” The Hill, July 27, 2019.
143. Andrew C. McCarthy, “Fighting the Politicized, Evidence-Free ‘Collusion with Russia’ Narrative,” National Review, May 24, 2017.
144. Michael Isikoff and David Corn, Russian Roulette: The Inside Story of Putin’s War on America and the Election of Donald Trump (New York: Twelve, 2018), 153.
145. John Solomon, “A Convenient Omission? Trump Campaign Adviser Denied ‘Collusion’ to FBI Source Early On,” The Hill, October 23, 2018.
146. John Solomon, “FBI’s Spreadsheet Puts A Stake Through The Heart Of Steele’s Dossier,” The Hill, July 16, 2019.
147. Ibid.
148. “FBI Domestic Investigations and Operations Guide (DIOG), Part 03 of 03,” 13.
149. Papadopoulos, Deep State Target, 2. Papadopoulos gave a different version of this conversation when interviewed by Congress, stating that the arresting FBI agents told him, “This is what happens when you don’t tell us everything about your Russia contacts.”
150. Ibid., 179.
151. Glenn Greenwald, “The FBI Informant Who Monitored the Trump Campaign, Stefan Halper, Oversaw a CIA Spying Operation in the 1980 Presidential Election,” The Intercept, May 19, 2018.
152. Ibid.
153. Crawford, “William Barr Interview: Read the Full Transcript.”
154. Adam Goldman, Charlie Savage, and Michael S. Schmidt, “Barr Assigns U.S. Attorney in Connecticut to Review Origins of Russia Inquiry,” New York Times, May 13, 2019.
155. Stephen E. Boyd, Assistant Attorney General, letter to Representative Jerrold Nadler, Chairman, Committee on the Judiciary, June 10, 2019, https://www.scribd.com/document/412966458/2019-6-10-DOJ-Review-of-Intelligence-Activities-Nadler#from_embed.
156. Crawford, “William Barr Interview: Read the Full Transcript.”
Chapter 4: The Attempted Coup
1. Laurence J. Peter and Raymond Hull, The Peter Principle: Why Things Always Go Wrong (New York: William Morrow, 1969).
2. Anderson Cooper, “Interview with Former Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe,” CNN, February 19, 2019.
3. Andrew G. McCabe, The Threat: How the FBI Protects America in the Age of Terror and Trump (New York: St. Martin’s Press, 2019), 136; Casey Quackenbush, “Read the Full Transcript of Former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe’s 60 Minutes Interview,” Time, February 18, 2019.
4. Sarah Left, “Iraq War ‘Waged on False Intelligence,’ ” The Guardian, July 9, 2014; Associated Press, “Official: Iraq War Was Both Intel, Policy Failure,” NBC News, December 9, 2008.
5. Jenna Lifhits, “Obama Ignored Iranian Transgressions to Preserve Nuclear Deal, Haden Says,” The Weekly Standard, December 14, 2016.
6. McCabe, The Threat, 207.
7. Ibid.
8. Constitution of the United States of America, Article II, Section 3, Clause 4.
9. McCabe, The Threat, 239.
10. Joseph Hinks, “Read Former FBI Director James Comey’s Farewell Letter to Colleagues,” Time, May 11, 2017.
11. McCabe, The Threat, 239.
12. “Full Transcript: Acting FBI Director McCabe and Others Testify Before Senate Intelligence Committee,” Washington Post, May 11, 2017.
13. “Read Full Testimony of FBI Director James Comey in Which He Discusses Clinton Email Investigation,” Washington Post, May 3, 2017.
14. “Rod Rosenstein Full Remarks to Congress on Comey Memo,” Axios, May 19, 2017; Jessica Taylor, “Rosenstein On Comey Memo: ‘I Wrote It. I Believe It. I Stand By It’,” NPR, May 19, 2017.
15. Gregg Re, “Comey Reveals He Concealed Trump Meeting Memo from DOJ Leaders,” Fox News, December 9, 2018.
16. Office of the Inspector General, U.S. Department of Justice, “A Review of Various Actions by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Department of Justice in Advance of the 2016 Election,” p. 405.
17. McCabe, The Threat, 219.
18. Ibid., 221.
19. Ibid., 218.
20. Ibid., 217.
21. Ibid., 216–17.
22. Devlin Barrett, “Clinton Ally Aided Campaign of FBI Official’s Wife,” Wall Street Journal, October 24, 2016.
23. McCabe, The Threat, 193.
24. Ibid., 218.
25. Andrew C. McCarthy, “McCabe and 60 Minutes Avoid Discussing Why Russia Factored in Comey’s Firing,” National Review, February 18, 2019.
26. McCabe, The Threat, 239.
27. Ibid., 225.
28. Catherine Herridge, “Strzok-Page Texts Calling to ‘Open’ Case in ‘Chargeable Way’ Under Fresh Scrutiny,” Fox News, September 17, 2018.
29. Ibid.
30. “The Attorney General’s Guidelines for Domestic FBI Operations,” Department of Justice, https://www.justice.gov/archive/opa/docs/guidelines.pdf, 22.
31. Ibid.
32. McCabe, The Threat, 225.
33. Quackenbush, “Read the Full Transcript of Former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe’s 60 Minutes Interview.” See also Representative Doug Collins, Ranking Member, House Judiciary Committee, letter to Representative Jerrold Nadler, Chairman, February 14, 2019, available at https://gallery.mailchimp.com/0275399506e2bdd8fe2012b77/files/568cf2d2-eb9b-40a2-92a5-ada5a0bd5db6/02_14_19_Letter_to_Nadler_Re._McCabe.pdf?utm_source=Collins+Judiciary+Press+List&utm_campaign=3d4d3af9dd-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2019_02_14_08_33&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_ff92df788e-3d4d3af9dd-168924225.
34. McCabe, The Threat, 234.
35. “Rod Rosenstein Full Remarks to Congress on Comey Memo,” Axios, May 19, 2017.
36. Grac
e Segers, “What Andrew McCabe Told ’60 Minutes’ About Trump and the 25th Amendment,” CBS News, February 17, 2019.
37. Ibid.
38. Kevin R. Brock, “The Embarrassing Return of Andrew McCabe,” The Hill, February 15, 2019.
39. Jake Gibson, “Source in Room Says Rosenstein’s ‘Wire’ Comment Was Case of Sarcasm,” Fox News, September 21, 2018.
40. Gregg Jarrett, “Rod Rosenstein Should Immediately Stop Overseeing the Mueller ‘Collusion’ Investigation,” Fox News, October 10, 2018; Catherine Herridge, “Rosenstein Threatened to ‘Subpoena’ GOP-Led Committee in ‘Chilling’ Clash over Records, Emails Show,” Fox News, June 12, 2018.
41. Adam Goldman and Michael S. Schmidt, “Rod Rosenstein Suggested Secretly Recording Trump And Discussed 25th Amendment,” The New York Times, September 21, 2018.
42. Brooke Singman, “McCabe Details Central Role In Russia Probes, DOJ Meetings On Whether To Oust President,” Fox News, February 14, 2019.
43. Catherine Herridge, “Talks on Rosenstein Possibly Recording Trump Unfolded over ‘Couple of Days,’ Abandoned as ‘Too Risky’: Former Top FBI Lawyer,” Fox News, February 18, 2019.
44. Kevin Breuniger, “Criminal Charges Recommended for Fired FBI Official Andrew McCabe,” CNBC, April 19, 2018.
45. Catherine Herridge, “Former Top FBI Lawyer: 2 Trump Cabinet Officials Were ‘Ready to Support’ 25th Amendment Effort,” Fox News, February 17, 2019.
46. Ibid.
47. Adam Goldman and Michael S. Schmidt, “Rod Rosenstein Suggested Secretly Recording Trump and Discussed 25th Amendment,” New York Times, September 21, 2018.
48. Ibid.
49. Willis L. Krumholz, “Andrew McCabe Can’t Keep His Story Straight,” The Federalist, February 20, 2019.
50. Constitution of the United States, Amendment XXV, ratified February 10, 1967.
51. Thomas H. Neal, “Presidential Disability Under the Twenty-fifth Amendment: Constitutional Provision and Perspective for Congress,” Congressional Research Service, updated November 5, 2018, https://fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/R45394.pdf.
52. Ibid., 7.
53. Ibid.
54. Ibid.
55. Willis L. Krumholtz, “Andrew McCabe Can’t Keep His Story Straight,” The Federalist, February 20, 2019.
56. Margot Cleveland, “5 Big Takeaways from the ’60 Minutes’ Interview with Andrew McCabe,” The Federalist, February 19, 2019.
57. “Statement by Attorney General on Firing of FBI’s McCabe,” Reuters, March 17, 2018.
58. Office of the Inspector General, U.S. Department of Justice, “A Report of Investigation of Certain Allegations Relating to Former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe,” February 2018, https://www.scribd.com/document/376298359/DOJ-IG-releases-explosive-report-that-led-to-firing-of-ex-FBI-Deputy-Director-Andrew-McCabe#from_embed, 2.
59. Pamela Brown and Laura Jarrett, “Justice Dept. Watchdog Sends McCabe Findings to Federal Prosecutors for Possible Charges,” CNN, April 19, 2018.
60. Martina Stewart and Carrie Johnson, “Source: Fired Deputy FBI Director Took Memos, Notes About Interactions with Trump,” NPR, March 17, 2018.
61. Byron Tau, “Rod Rosenstein Won’t Meet Lawmakers This Week,” Wall Street Journal, October 10, 2018.
62. Caitlin Yilek and Kelly Cohen, “GOP Lawmakers File Resolution to Impeach Deputy AG Rod Rosenstein,” Washington Examiner, July 25, 2018.
63. Michael D. Shear, Katie Brenner, Maggie Haberman, and Michael S. Schmidt, “Rod Rosenstein’s Job Is Safe, for Now: Inside His Dramatic Day,” September 24, 2018.
64. Kyle Cheney, “Trump Makes Nice with Rosenstein, but Congress Isn’t Letting Up,” Politico, October 10, 2018; Associated Press, “Trump Invites Rosenstein on Air Force One, No Plans to Fire Him,” NBC News, October 8, 2018; Jennifer Epstein and Justin Sink, “Trump Says He Had ‘Great’ Meeting with Rosenstein on Air Force One,” Bloomberg, October 8, 2018.
65. Sadie Gurman, Michael C. Bender, and Aruna Viswanatha, “Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein to Meet Donald Trump to Consider His Future at DOJ,” Wall Street Journal, September 24, 2018.
66. Sadie Gurman, “Trump Says He Has No Plans to Fire Rosenstein,” Wall Street Journal, October 8, 2018.
67. Gregg Jarrett, interview with President Donald J. Trump, Oval Office, White House, June 25, 2019.
68. I had several face-to-face meetings with President Trump in the spring, summer, and fall of 2017, as well as follow-up calls in early 2018. This comment is drawn from several of those discussions and was repeated by him during an interview on September 17, 2017, at Trump National Golf Club, Bedminster, New Jersey.
69. Robert S. Mueller, The Mueller Report: The Final Report of the Special Counsel into Donald Trump, Russia, and Collusion as Issued by Department of Justice (New York: Skyhorse Publishing, 2019), 257–58.
70. Gregg Jarrett, interview with John Dowd, lawyer for President Donald Trump, June 13, 2019.
71. Jarrett, “Rod Rosenstein Should Immediately Stop Overseeing the Mueller ‘Collusion’ Investigation.”
72. Herridge, “Rosenstein Threatened to ‘Subpoena’ GOP-Led Committee in ‘Chilling’ Clash over Records, Emails Show.”
73. Catherine Herridge, “Rosenstein Launched ‘Hostile’ Attack in May Against Republicans over Russia Records: Congressional Email,” Fox News, September 27, 2018.
74. Gregg Jarrett, The Russia Hoax: The Illicit Scheme to Clear Hillary Clinton and Frame Donald Trump (New York: Broadside Books, 2018), 210.
75. Code of Federal Regulations, 28 C.F.R § 45.2, “Disqualification Arising from Personal or Political Relationship.”
76. Washington Post Staff, “Full Transcript: FBI Director James Comey Testifies on Russian Interference in 2016 Election,” Washington Post, March 2017.
77. Politico Staff, “Transcript: Jeff Sessions’ Testimony on Trump and Russia,” Politico, June 13, 2017.
78. Code of Federal Regulations, 28 C.F.R. § 600.1, “Grounds for Appointing a Special Counsel.”
79. Rod J. Rosenstein, Acting Attorney General, “Appointment of Special Counsel to Investigate Russian Interference with the 2016 Presidential Election and Related Matters,” Order No. 3915-2017, May 17, 2017, https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/3726408-Rosenstein-letter-appointing-Mueller-special.html.
80. Zachary Basu, “Mueller Referred 14 Criminal Cases for Outside Prosecution,” Axios, April 18, 2019.
81. Code of Federal Regulations, 28 C.F.R. § 600.1.
82. Jonathan Turley, “It’s High Time Rod Rosenstein Recuse Himself,” The Hill, August 7, 2017.
83. Andrew C. McCarthy, “Rosenstein Fails to Defend His Failure to Limit Mueller’s Investigation,” National Review, August 7, 2017.
84. Michael B. Mukasey, “The Memo and the Mueller Probe,” Wall Street Journal, February 4, 2018.
85. The Mueller Report, 39.
86. “Justice Department Defends Russia Probe from GOP Claims of FBI Political Bias,” PBS NewsHour, PBS, December 13, 2017.
87. Andrew C. McCarthy, “After Mueller’s Exoneration of Trump, Full Disclosure,” National Review, March 23, 2019.
88. Code of Federal Regulations, 28 C.F.R. § 600.4, “Jurisdiction.”
89. Ibid.
90. United States District Court for the District of Columbia, United States of America v. Paul J. Manafort, Jr., “Government’s Response in Opposition to Motion to Dismiss,” No. 17-cr-201-1 ABJ, April 2, 2018, https://www.justsecurity.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/USG-Govt-Opposition-to-Motion-to-Dismiss.pdf21.
91. Memorandum For The Attorney General From Rod J. Rosenstein, Deputy Attorney General, “Restoring Public Confidence In The FBI,” May 9, 2017, available at http://apps.washingtonpost.com/g/documents/politics/fbi-director-james-b-comeys-termination-letters-from-the-white-house-attorney-general/2430/.
92. Sari Horwitz, Karon Demirjian, and Elise Viebeck, “Rosenstein Defends His Controversial Memo Used to Justify Trump’s Firing of Comey,” Washington Post, May 19, 2017.
; 93. Jonathan Turley, “If Rod Rosenstein Feels Conflicted, He Should Simply Recuse Himself,” The Hill, June 30, 2018.
94. Adam Goldman and Michael S. Schmidt, “Rod Rosenstein Suggested Secretly Recording Trump and Discussed 25th Amendment”; Michael S. Schmidt and Adam Goldman, “Shaken Rosenstein Felt Used by White House in Comey Firing,” New York Times, June 29, 2018.
95. Andrew G. McCabe, The Threat: How FBI Protects America in the Age of Terror and Trump (New York: St. Martin’s Press, 2019), 234, 242–43.
96. Michael S. Schmidt and Adam Goldman, “Shaken Rosenstein Felt Used by White House in Comey Firing.”
97. Code of Federal Regulations, 28 C.F.R. § 45.2, “Disqualification Arising from Personal or Political Relationship.”
98. Rules of Professional Conduct, Rule 1.7:—Conflict of Interest, “General Rule,” https://www.dcbar.org/bar-resources/legal-ethics/amended-rules/rule1-07.cfm.
99. Code of Federal Regulations, 28 C.F.R. § 600.7, “Conduct and Accountability.”
100. Aruna Viswanatha and Del Quentin Wilber, “Special Counsel’s Office Interviewed Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein,” Wall Street Journal, September 19, 2017.
101. The Mueller Report, 449. See footnotes 439–463, which make reference to “302,” the term used to identify a summary report following an interview.
102. The Mueller Report, 250. See also Erica Orden, “Mueller Report Highlights Rosenstein’s Role as Witness in the Investigation He Oversaw,” CNN, April 18, 2019.
103. The Trump-Rosenstein conversations are footnoted cryptically in The Mueller Report. It is unclear whether a “Ms. Gauhar” took notes of the conversations in real time or if they were recorded and then transcribed. Throughout his report, Mueller carefully avoided stating whether Rosenstein had been interviewed by the special counsel. If the deputy attorney general was interviewed, why not say so? Was Mueller attempting to minimize Rosenstein’s conflict of interest by concealing reference to an interview? These are legitimate questions that remain unanswered as of this writing.
104. Laura Jarrett, “Exclusive: Rosenstein Consulted with Ethics Adviser at DOJ on Russia Probe,” CNN, April 13, 2018.
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