01-24-2018, 12:33 AM
Politico Article
Republicans have seized on text messages between Strzok and Page that were recently turned over by the Justice Department. In batches posted by Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) and described on Fox News by Reps. Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.) and John Ratcliffe (R-Texas), the agents have been portrayed as politically biased against Trump, with some ambiguous messages characterized as evidence that their official actions may have been tainted by partisan animus.
In one exchange, Strzok and Page indicated that the Justice Department and FBI knew Clinton would escape charges in the investigation of her handling of classified information even before the FBI interviewed her.
In an interview, Ratcliffe said that exchange, among others, called into question Comey’s testimony before the committee in September 2016, when he said the bureau didn’t decide against prosecuting Clinton until after her official interview. Ratcliffe, a member of the House Judiciary Committee, said he expected the committee to demand a new interview with Comey to reconcile those “inconsistencies.”
“There’s a mountain of evidence — a growing mountain of evidence — that seems entirely inconsistent with what he said under oath,” said Ratcliffe, a former U.S. attorney who has become a central player in the committee’s investigation of the FBI’s conduct in 2016.
“He may have testified truthfully, but there’s a lot of stuff that says that he didn’t,” Ratcliffe continued, adding: “Trust me: He will either appear and testify or he will exercise his Fifth Amendment right” against self-incrimination.
Republicans have seized on text messages between Strzok and Page that were recently turned over by the Justice Department. In batches posted by Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) and described on Fox News by Reps. Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.) and John Ratcliffe (R-Texas), the agents have been portrayed as politically biased against Trump, with some ambiguous messages characterized as evidence that their official actions may have been tainted by partisan animus.
In one exchange, Strzok and Page indicated that the Justice Department and FBI knew Clinton would escape charges in the investigation of her handling of classified information even before the FBI interviewed her.
In an interview, Ratcliffe said that exchange, among others, called into question Comey’s testimony before the committee in September 2016, when he said the bureau didn’t decide against prosecuting Clinton until after her official interview. Ratcliffe, a member of the House Judiciary Committee, said he expected the committee to demand a new interview with Comey to reconcile those “inconsistencies.”
“There’s a mountain of evidence — a growing mountain of evidence — that seems entirely inconsistent with what he said under oath,” said Ratcliffe, a former U.S. attorney who has become a central player in the committee’s investigation of the FBI’s conduct in 2016.
“He may have testified truthfully, but there’s a lot of stuff that says that he didn’t,” Ratcliffe continued, adding: “Trust me: He will either appear and testify or he will exercise his Fifth Amendment right” against self-incrimination.