John Durham Is Getting Close to the Jugular
COMMENTARY
.By Charles Lipson - RCP Contributor
Last week, John Durham’s grand jury issued its third criminal indictment in the Trump-Russia collusion hoax. The person who was arrested may be obscure; the news may have been buried after Virginia’s bombshell election results; but Durham’s move is a big deal. It shows that the special counsel’s probe is methodically unraveling a huge conspiracy, seemingly engineered by Hillary Clinton’s 2016 campaign and implicating James Comey’s FBI, either as a willing participant or as utterly incompetent boobs.
The latest indictment also damages the mainstream media, which is why so many news outlets have ignored or underplayed it. After all, they broadcast a false story for years and are none too eager to revisit it. Other losers are the prosecutors assembled by Robert Mueller, most of them Democrats, who had reams of this damaging information and ignored it.
What Durham and a few intrepid reporters are uncovering may well be the most ambitious dirty trick pulled in an American election and its aftermath. The question now is whether Durham can expose the full extent of this malfeasance and charge those who planned and executed it.
Durham’s latest indictment charges Igor Danchenko (pictured) with lying multiple times to the FBI. Danchenko, who worked at the Brookings Institution as a Russian expert, may not be a household name, but he was a crucial player in concocting the false story that Donald Trump was collaborating with the Kremlin to win the White House. The real conspiracy, it turns out, was aimed at Trump and was conducted by the Clinton campaign and her longtime associates. It was financed jointly by Clinton’s campaign and the Democratic National Committee. Some leaked emails suggested it was approved by the candidate herself. The FBI continued running with it long after it had ample evidence to know it was a concoction. House Democrats ran with it even longer, basking in fulsome, uncritical media coverage. All of it was false.
The Danchenko indictment matters because his bogus information was the heart of the “Steele dossier,” which, in turn, was the heart of the anti-Trump investigation. The dossier was compiled by a former British spy, Christopher Steele, who had been hired by people working for Clinton. Steele claimed his information about Trump, including salacious sexual allegations, came from Russian sources. It didn’t. It came from Danchenko, who was working at a Washington think tank. As Danchenko admitted to the FBI, much of what he told Steele was old rumors or exaggerations. Some of it appears to have been simply fabricated. Steele incorporated it, and the Democrats deployed it.
The FBI interviewed Danchenko multiple times in January 2017, around the time Trump was taking office. Comey’s FBI had already received the dossier and his agents were trying to verify its allegations. They couldn’t do so, and Danchenko’s admissions told them why. His interrogation should have immediately stopped the FBI from using the dossier to investigate Trump. So should a warning from Bruce Ohr, the highest-ranking career official in the Department of Justice, that Steele was strongly biased. The FBI blew right through these red lights.
The bureau continued to use the bogus information in applying for secret warrants from the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court to spy on Carter Page and, through him, on others connected with Trump. Officials told the court, falsely, that the warrant information was reliable and verified when they knew it was neither.
What the warrants say, in essence, is, “We need to spy on Carter Page because we think he’s an enemy agent.” But the FBI already knew he wasn’t. That means they were trolling for other information. How did the FBI know Page was on our side? Because they asked the CIA and were told, quite explicitly, that Page was helping them, not the Kremlin. The CIA gave that exculpatory information to FBI lawyer, Kevin Clinesmith, who altered the message to say Page was not working for the CIA. His alternation was criminal, and he plead guilty after Durham charged him.
The story gets worse. Although Clinesmith altered the CIA message for FBI use, he also gave his superiors the CIA’s true communication. So, his bosses knew the real story. They weren’t interested in the truth, which they kept secret from the FISA court to continuing spying on Page. If there is any justice left in Washington, those responsible for this travesty will be held criminally liable. Page may well have a civil case against them, too.
As the FBI blundered forward on its political mission, it made other revealing missteps. The most important was Director Comey’s meeting with the incoming president in early January 2017. Comey told Trump the FBI had acquired some damning materials about him but emphasized they were still unverified. As Comey’s own aides warned him, that communication could be seen as a kind of blackmail threat, the kind that marked J. Edgar Hoover’s tenure.
Comey’s meeting with the president had another major consequence. Until then, even anti-Trump news outlets had been wary about mentioning the dossier (which the Clinton team had been shopping to them) because they couldn’t actually verify any of the vital details. That reticence changed with Comey’s briefing, which was news in its own right. The story now became, “FBI chief briefs president-elect Trump about salacious dossier, revealing damning info Kremlin could use to blackmail Trump.” One online outlet, BuzzFeed, went further. It published the full Steele dossier, and the media frenzy began.
Remember, this whole story was concocted and paid for by Hillary Clinton’s campaign and fed to the FBI and the media by her attorneys and associates. The FBI, which should have been able to quickly prove the story was false, plodded on with its investigation and fed the frenzy.
Although the dossier was commissioned to sink Trump in November, it was still useful after he won the election. Trump’s adversaries could exploit it to hamstring his embryonic administration, and that’s exactly what they did. With the whole-hearted backing of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff spent three years beating the drum of the “Russia collusion” hoax. Schiff’s constant media appearances claiming he had conclusive evidence of Trump-Russia collaboration continued long after he had received classified briefings that demolished his story. The briefer was former Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe, and he has confirmed those meetings with Schiff and his Senate counterpart, Mark Warner. No matter to Schiff, who kept repeating his claims and pursuing his full-scale investigation. First the verdict; then the inquiry. It was all part of a four-year-long battle, first to prevent Trump’s election, then to undermine his presidency, and finally to damage his chances for reelection.
The Clinton team launched this operation with professional expertise. The goal was to produce a powerful anti-Trump story, using whatever materials they could, then share it with the media (to smear Trump) and the FBI (to launch a major investigation and ensnare Trump). Ideally, the campaign’s involvement would be hidden, removed from the damning report by several layers of lawyers, opposition researchers, camp followers, and flacks.
To provide that insulation, the campaign used attorney Marc Elias, then at Perkins Coie law firm in Washington (where the recently indicted Michael Sussmann was a colleague), to hire an opposition-research firm, Fusion GPS. That firm, headed by former reporters Glenn Simpson and Peter Fritsch, in turn hired Steele, a Brit who had formerly worked for his country’s intelligence services, to produce the damning dossier. To translate some Russian materials, Fusion GPS hired Nellie Ohr, whose husband, Bruce, learned how biased Steele was and told the FBI to treat Steele and his information warily.
Bureau agents ignored that early warning and all the others. They quickly learned Steele’s material was a mirage, thanks to their interviews with Danchenko. They also confirmed that Steele’s dossier depended on Danchenko, so its claims of “Russian sourcing” were false. By interviewing Danchenko’s own sources, they learned that their third-hand statements, which were used in the dossier, were mainly rumors and “bar talk.”
The prosecutorial team assembled by Robert Mueller should have known all this, too. They had complete access to this exculpatory FBI material on day one and ignored it. A year and a half later, when Mueller himself finally testified before Congress, he didn’t even know what Fusion GPS was. By that point, Mueller seemed to have genuine difficulty remembering the details of his own investigation. His team of attorneys had no such excuse. Hired by Mueller’s top deputy, Andrew Weissmann, they were among the country’s sharpest and toughest prosecutors — and the most partisan. The more Durham uncovers, the worse the Mueller team will look.
Reviewing this evidence, Kimberly Strassel of the Wall Street Journal has concluded the Steele dossier is misnamed. It should be called the “Clinton dossier,” she says, since Hillary commissioned it, paid for it, and had her aides feed it to the media, the State Department, and the FBI. It was a full-scale disinformation campaign — coherent, well-organized, and well-funded. It was rotten to the core.
The question now is whether John Durham can find enough evidence to charge the ones who planned and executed it. The charging documents he filed for Danchenko and Sussmann are far more extensive than the necessary minimum. They suggest that Durham has compiled extensive evidence about a broader conspiracy. Will he settle for the capillaries now that he has the jugular in view?
Charles Lipson is the Peter B. Ritzma Professor of Political Science Emeritus at the University of Chicago, where he founded the Program on International Politics, Economics, and Security. He can be reached at charles.lipson@gmail.com.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Is it possible our government would do such a thing?
Fw: A Judge Stands up to a Hospital: "Step Aside" and Give a Dying
Man Ivermectin - by Mary Beth Pfeiffer
This drug that can literally save lives that are on the brink of dying is being kept from use by our Government because they are all in for the vaccine and they would rather let people die than admit there are safe medications that can work with or without the Vaccine. The CDC hasn't approved it for Covid but Biden could approve it's use by Executive Order, it's a very cheap safe drug, that's been around for 50 years and hundreds of doctors across the Country say it works even on advanced Covid cases on ventilators. Write your Congressman and tell him to tell Biden to do the right thing!!
https://rescue.substack.com/p/
+++++++++++++++++++++++++
Ordman's Good News Israel (Edited.)
The pace of Israel's achievements is speeding up every week. There are many double events to celebrate in this week's positive Israel newsletter. Just see the highlights below.
Please click here, to donate a small or large amount to help me publicize VeryGoodNewsIsrael.
Wishing those who celebrate it a very Happy Chanukah.
Best regards
Michael
- Two Israeli breakthroughs in cancer research.
- Two Israeli women “break the glass ceiling” - in innovation and IDF leadership.
- Two historic events uniting Israel and the UAE.
- Two more cool Israeli energy-saving innovations.
- Boost in Israel’s economic ties with Serbia and Morocco.
- Four more billion-dollar Israeli companies.
- Israeli wins at the Emmy awards and in the World jiu-jitsu championships.
- Two major Temple-era archaeological discoveries in Jerusalem
ISRAEL’S MEDICAL ACHIEVEMENTS
Silencing tumor communications. Researchers at Israel’s Technion Institute have developed a breakthrough cancer treatment by injecting analgesic nanoparticles into the bloodstream. These anaesthetize the nerves inside the tumors, shutting down communications between them, thus inhibiting tumor growth and spread.
https://www.jns.org/
https://www.technion.ac.il/en/
Immunotherapy dose reduced by a million. The NanoGhost cancer treatment targeted delivery mechanism developed by scientists at Israel’s Technion Institute is truly revolutionary (see here previously). It enables the dose of existing immunotherapies (e.g., TRAIL) to be reduced by a millionfold, to prevent toxic side effects.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/
Insulin pump gets attention. Israel’s Triple Jump is developing a unique small insulin pump patch that is placed on the patient’s body. The patch has mobile connectivity capabilities and will be included in a future artificial pancreas system. The device has attracted interest from medical devices giant Medtronic.
https://www.calcalistech.com/
https://finder.
Diabetes cured – in mice. Researchers at Israel’s Technion Institute genetically modified muscle stem cells from diabetic mice to express high levels of GLUT4 molecules, which transport glucose in the body. When re-implanted into the mice, it reduced blood sugar levels by an average of 26% and lowered levels of fatty liver.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/
https://www.jns.org/technion-
Hospital to launch neurology startups. Tel Aviv’s Sourasky (Ichilov) Medical Center and Ra’anana’s Sanara Ventures are partnering to turn ideas and projects developed in the neurology department into groundbreaking projects in the fields of digital health and neurology. These include brain diseases, strokes and sleep disorders.
https://www.calcalistech.com/
An Israeli medical hub in New Jersey. Israel’s Sheba Medical Center is partnering the Liberty Science Center in New Jersey to develop Liberty ARC HealthSpace2030 - a high-tech hospital simulation hub on at Jersey City’s SciTech Scity innovation campus. It will focus on digital health and home healthcare solutions.
https://unitedwithisrael.org/
Keeping employees healthy. Israel’s Insurights has developed an AI platform to help employees utilize their health benefits. It answers questions, highlights preventive care benefits, and finds lower-cost providers. Its key feature is Zoe, a “Virtual Chief Health Officer,” who can analyze any insurer’s healthcare plan.
https://www.calcalistech.com/
Networking for patients. Israel’s Alike.Health connects patients with a similar medical condition at various stages of treatment or illness, allowing them to learn from each other about ways to cope. The startup has just been selected to join the “Google for Startups Accelerator”, Google’s 3-month mentoring program.
https://www.calcalistech.com/
It’s never too late. A 102-year-old woman has become the first Israeli to undergo cryoablation (freezing) treatment for breast cancer developed by Israel’s IceCure (see here previously). The usual surgical solution was not an option for her, as a previous heart catheterization meant that an operation was too risky.
https://worldisraelnews.com/
ISRAEL IS INCLUSIVE AND GLOBAL
Israeli woman is top innovator. World Biz Magazine has chosen Israel’s Hamutal Yitzhak, CEO of Else Nutrition (see here previously) as No. 1 (of 40,000+ entries) on their list of “Top 100 Innovation CEO” awards for 2021. Shahar Fogel, CEO of Israel’s Rookout (see here previously), was also included in the top 100.
https://worldisraelnews.com/
Israel’s top female General. Brigadier General Orly Markman has been named as head of the IDF’s court of appeals. She will be promoted to Major General, becoming only the third Israeli woman to ever receive the rank. Israel’s first female Major General, Orna Barbivai, is now Israel’s Minister of the Economy.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/
IDF Chief praises Specials. IDF Chief of Staff Aviv Kochavi gave an inspiring speech at Special in Uniform’s annual benefit for IDF soldiers with disabilities. He stated, “You are blessed in the IDF, you are essential to the IDF, and you are wanted by the IDF!”. Some 750 young “specials” perform important work at 60 IDF bases.
https://www.
Ultra-orthodox site spreads cancer awareness. Throughout last month, Israel’s largest ultra-Orthodox news site, Kikar HaShabbat, colored its logo pink and wrote that it was doing so to give public expression to October being breast cancer awareness month.
https://worldisraelnews.com/
4 Israeli universities in top 50 entrepreneurs list. Four Israeli universities were listed in PitchBook’s 2021 ranking of 50 leading undergraduate programs that produce the most VC-backed entrepreneurs. Tel Aviv Uni was 8th, Technion Institute (12th), Hebrew University of Jerusalem (31), and Ben-Gurion University (44).
https://www.timesofisrael.com/
Outstanding entrepreneurs. The Global Consortium of Entrepreneurship Centers recently awarded the title of “Outstanding Emerging Entrepreneurship Center” to the Innovation Centers of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and Ben-Gurion University of the Negev - the first ever such award for institutions outside of the US.
https://jewishbusinessnews.
Resurrecting New York. Some 400 people attended a ”Unicorn party”, organized by Israel’s Margalit Startup City in Soho, New York. Founder and Executive Chairman Erel Margalit said, “Israeli tech played a significant role in bringing New York back to life.” They included "People who innovate and don't take no for an answer.”
https://www.calcalistech.com/
Electricity for water deal with Jordan. The UAE has brokered a “water for solar energy” exchange deal between Israel and Jordan. Jordan will export 600 megawatt of electricity to Israel from a UAE-built solar farm. Israel will export up to 200 million cubic meters of desalinated water to Jordan. The deal was signed in Dubai.
https://en.globes.co.il/en/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/
Israeli flag raised at UAE presidential palace. (TY David O) In a historic ceremony, the Israeli flag was hoisted and the Israeli national anthem Hatikva was played for the first time at the Qasr Al Watan Presidential Palace in Abu Dhabi. It marked the inauguration of Amir Hayek - the Israeli Ambassador to the UAE.
https://www.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?
Aiming for the Moon, with the UAE. The United Arab Emirates signaled its interest in joint space missions with Israel back in Dec 2020 (see here). This has now been formalized in an agreement to work together on a number of space projects, including a joint launch of the “Beresheet 2” space mission to the moon.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/
https://www.jns.org/israel-
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
Promoting innovation. Israel’s Innovation Authority (IIA) is investing around NIS 220 million over 3 years in four new technology consortiums. They focus on cultivated meat, insect farming, human-robot interface, and fluid sampling focused medical diagnosis. IIA CEO Dror Bin praised Israeli tech as “magic”.
https://www.calcalistech.com/
https://www.jpost.com/jpost-
Cyber training for religious graduates. The Jerusalem College of Technology (JCT) has launched Cyber Elite 2.0, a program that provides cybersecurity training for orthodox and ultra-orthodox computer graduates. It aims to supply Israel’s high-tech and defense industries with newly skilled employees to meet its talent shortage.
https://www.calcalistech.com/
Protection against ransomware attacks. Israel’s Cymptom protects businesses and lifesaving networks at hospitals, against cyber threats. Its software monitors, prioritizes the risks and recommends how to address them in real time. Cymptom was named Cybersecurity Best Product at the 2021 Global InfoSec Awards.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/
See through walls from afar. Israel’s Camero-Tech has developed technology that can “see through walls” at long-range. The Xaver™ LR40 (XLR40) portable system can detect, in real time, live objects hidden behind walls from over 50 meters away. Besides security applications, it is relevant for search-and-rescue operations.
https://www.jpost.com/opinion/
New lightweight communications satellite. Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) revealed its new GEO Mini Communication Satellite at the International Astronautical Congress (IAC) expo in Dubai. It weighs only 700 kg, so can be launched together in rideshares with other satellites, significantly reducing launch costs.
https://www.calcalistech.com/
Safer public transportation. Israel’s Optibus (see here previously) has partnered with Israel’s GreenRoad (see here previously) to increase passenger safety and comfort. They aim to use historical road safety data (e.g. road and ride quality, collisions, injuries, and driver behavior) early in the transportation network planning stage.
https://jewishbusinessnews.
Eco-friendly cooling. Israel’s NAM Technology has developed Ecokor - a new cooling system that saves up to 40% of electricity consumption and reduces emissions. Its innovative multi-cascade refrigeration works with the latest refrigerants. Ecokor can be installed in factories, warehouses, supermarkets, refrigerated trucks etc.
https://www.jpost.com/jpost-
https://nam-technology.com/
Storing green energy. Israel’s Storage Drop has developed a system designed to store renewable energy (e.g. solar) as high-pressure air when the demand for electricity is low, and to convert the compressed air into electrical energy when required. The system is to be installed at the Israeli port of Ashdod.
https://www.calcalistech.com/
Boosting crop yields in California. The robotic pollinator from Israel’s Edete Precision Technologies (see here previously) has increased yields by 24%, during a pilot trial at an 82-acre pistachio orchard in Sacramento, California. Edete plans to use the system on thousands of acres during the 2022 blooming season.
https://www.futurefarming.com/
Get the best price for a product. Israel’s Karma's has developed an Artificial Intelligent shopping tool that offers consumers a “guaranteed best price” on many e-commerce sites. It features an automatic coupon finder, cash rewards, plus price and inventory tracking.
https://www.calcalistech.com/
ECONOMY & BUSINESS
Economy moves forward. Israel’s latest Composite State of the Economy Index returned to pre-Covid levels of increase. It was buoyed by increases in services revenue and services exports. Job vacancies are at a record high, reflecting employers’ desire to expand their operations following the reopening of the economy.
https://www.boi.org.il/en/
Serbia opens trade office in Jerusalem. Serbia has inaugurated its innovation and trade office in Jerusalem. The office, located in Margalit Startup City Jerusalem, is a sign of burgeoning business ties and designed to enable the countries to fulfill their bilateral economic potential.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/
More flights to Arab countries. Moroccan national airline Royal Air Maroc is launching direct flights between Casablanca and Tel Aviv 3 days a week, commencing Dec 12. Also, UAE’s largest airline Emirates is starting daily flights between Dubai and Tel Aviv on Dec 6.
https://www.jns.org/moroccan-
Hi-tech data center for Bank of Israel. The Bank of Israel has a new “state of the art” data center. It is fault tolerant, earthquake resilient, and based on energy-saving green technologies.
https://www.boi.org.il/en/
Deloitte launches 7 more startups. Deloitte has selected seven more Israeli startups for its Launchpad initiative (see here previously). They will be mentored on how to grow their businesses in the US. They are Agora (see here), BlazePod, Craft.io, DigitalOwl, Hyro (see here), IVIX (see here) and SavorEat (see here).
https://www.calcalistech.com/
https://www.blazepod.com/ https://craft.io/ https://www.digitalowl.com/
Techstars accelerates. In its fifth year, Techstars Tel Aviv has launched its second 13-week accelerator program of 2021 (see here previously). The 11 Israeli startups are AgadoLive, Binsight, EyeKnow, Insuretax, EZCheck.me, optimusQ, Ovvio, Renbizz. retravel, Sea Analytics and YieldX. https://www.yieldx.biz/
https://www.calcalistech.com/
Checking the state of Continental’s tires. The technology from Israel’s Traffilog (see here previously) will remotely diagnose the condition of truck tires for Continental AG. The German tire giant already has partnerships with several Israeli startups (see here previously).
https://www.calcalistech.com/
Doing good while doing well. Israel’s Browzwear (see here previously) has been named one of Fortune Magazine’s Impact20 - companies that generate revenue while offering products or services that have a positive effect on the world. Browzwear’s VSticher 3D prototype software reduces fabric waste in the fashion industry.
https://unitedwithisrael.org/
https://www.calcalistech.com/
Significant exits: Renasas acquired Celeno for $315 million; Medtronic to acquire Triple Jump for $300 million; Slinger acquired PlaySight for $82 million;
4 more Unicorns. Latest Israeli startups to become billion-dollar Unicorns are Celsius Networks (raised $400 million, value $3 billion); Lusha (see here) raised $205 million, value $1.5 billion; Augury (see here) raised $180 million, value $1 billion; OpenWeb (raised $150 million, value $1 billion).
https://jewishbusinessnews.
https://www.calcalistech.com/
https://www.jpost.com/jpost-
https://celsius.network/ https://www.openweb.com/
Look who is investing in Israel. One of the investors in Israel’s latest $1 billion company OpenWeb is the New York Times, which rarely prints anything complimentary about the Jewish State.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/
Investment in Israeli startups: Celsius Network raised $400 million; Lusha raised $205 million; Fabric raised $200 million; Augury raised $180 million; OpenWeb raised $150 million; DustPhotonics raised $33 million; Backbox raised $32 million; Tactile Mobility raised $27 million; OurCrowd rai
No comments:
Post a Comment