The Russian lawyer ‘just happened’ to be associated with Glenn Simpson of Fusion GPS—the same outfit that was shopping the Dossier and the Russian collusion conspiracy theory.
What an odd coincidence.
Former FBI lawyer Lisa Page told Congress this past summer that in May 2017 — seven months after the FISA warrant was issued, and nine months after the Russia probe was started — the FBI had not corroborated the main allegation in Steele’s dossier about collusion between Moscow and the Trump.
And former FBI Director James Comey testified in June 2017 that the dossier was considered unverified and salacious.
Yet it was used as evidence to justify the FBI spying on the campaign of a duly-elected GOP presidential nominee’s campaign, even though it started as political opposition research paid for by the Democratic Party and Hillary Clinton’s campaign.
Even Steele’s former boss, Fusion GPS founder Glenn Simpson, expressed uncertainty about some of the Russia intelligence Steele was providing.
During a December 2016 meeting, Associate Deputy Attorney General Bruce Ohr recorded Simpson in written notes as saying that some people believed one of the allegations of collusion “but others disagree.”
More importantly, Simpson told Ohr that Steele’s main source wasn’t in Moscow but, rather, was a former Russian intelligence figure in Washington, the notes show.
“Much of the collection about the Trump campaign ties to Russia comes from a former Russian intelligence officer (? not entirely clear) who lives in the US,” Ohr wrote in his notes, quoting Simpson.
In other words, Steele’s intelligence was hearsay collected a continent away from Moscow.
The various expressions of uncertainty about the reliability of Steele’s hearsay Russia intelligence give investigators solid reason to question if the FBI did its job in vetting his Russia expertise.
After all, helping the FBI crack a sports corruption case, as Steele did earlier in his relationship with the bureau, is a far cry from the skills and sourcing needed to unmask the true intentions of a sophisticated Russian counterintelligence operation.
https://thehill.com/hilltv/rising/417535-questions-grow-about-fbi-vetting-of-christopher-steeles-russia-expertise