Podesta Pens Op-Ed about the FBI

The chairman of Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign, John Podesta, published an op-ed in The Washington Post criticizing the FBI for its handling of Clinton’s email investigation and the hacking of his emails as well as the emails of the Democratic National Committee. Read Podesta’s full op-ed below:

Something is deeply broken at the FBI
By: John Podesta
December 15, 2016

The more we learn about the Russian plot to sabotage Hillary Clinton’s campaign and elect Donald Trump, and the failure of the FBI to adequately respond, the more shocking it gets. The former acting director of the CIA has called the Russian cyberattack “the political equivalent of 9/11.” Just as after the real 9/11, we need a robust, independent investigation into what went wrong inside the government and how to better protect our country in the future.

As the former chair of the Clinton campaign and a direct target of Russian hacking, I understand just how serious this is. So I was surprised to read in the New York Times that when the FBI discovered the Russian attack in September 2015, it failed to send even a single agent to warn senior Democratic National Committee officials. Instead, messages were left with the DNC IT “help desk.” As a former head of the FBI cyber division told the Times, this is a baffling decision: “We are not talking about an office that is in the middle of the woods of Montana.”

What takes this from baffling to downright infuriating is that at nearly the exact same time that no one at the FBI could be bothered to drive 10 minutes to raise the alarm at DNC headquarters, two agents accompanied by attorneys from the Justice Department were in Denver visiting a tech firm that had helped maintain Clinton’s email server.

This trip was part of what FBI Director James B. Comey described as a “painstaking” investigation of Clinton’s emails, “requiring thousands of hours of effort” from dozens of agents who conducted at least 80 interviews and reviewed thousands of pages of documents. Of course, as Comey himself concluded, in the end, there was no case; it was not even a close call.

Comparing the FBI’s massive response to the overblown email scandal with the seemingly lackadaisical response to the very real Russian plot to subvert a national election shows that something is deeply broken at the FBI.

Comey justified his handling of the email case by citing “intense public interest.” He felt so strongly that he broke long-established precedent and disregarded strong guidance from the Justice Department with his infamous letter just 11 days before the election. Yet he refused to join the rest of the intelligence community in a statement about the Russian cyberattack because he reportedly didn’t want to appear “political.” And both before and after the election, the FBI has refused to say whether it is investigating Trump’s ties to Russia.

There are now reports that Vladimir Putin personally directed the covert campaign to elect Trump. So are teams of FBI agents busy looking into the reported meeting in Moscow this summer between Carter Page, a Trump foreign policy adviser, and the Putin aide in charge of Russian intelligence on the U.S. election? What about evidence that Roger Stone was in contact with WikiLeaks and knew in advance that my hacked emails were about to be leaked? Are thousands of FBI person-hours being devoted to uncovering Trump’s tangled web of debts and business deals with foreign entities in Russia and elsewhere?

Meanwhile, House Republicans who had an insatiable appetite for investigating Clinton have been resistant to probing deeply into Russia’s efforts to swing the election to Trump. The media, by gleefully publishing the gossipy fruits of Russian hacks, became what the Times itself calls “a de facto instrument of Russian intelligence.”

But the FBI’s role is particularly troubling because of its power and responsibility — and because this is part of a trend. The Justice Department’s Inspector General issued a damning report this summer about the FBI’s failure to prioritize cyberthreats more broadly.

The election is over and the damage is done, but the threat from Russia and other potential aggressors remains urgent and demands a serious and sustained response.

First, the Obama administration should quickly declassify as much as possible concerning what is known about the Russian hack, as requested by seven Democratic members of the Senate Intelligence Committee.

Second, the administration should brief members of the electoral college on the extent and manner of Russia’s interference in our election before they vote on Dec. 19, as requested by a bipartisan group of electors.

Third, Congress should authorize a far-reaching, bipartisan independent investigation modeled on the 9/11 Commission. The public deserves to know exactly what happened, why and what can be done to prevent future attacks. Reps. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.) and Elijah E. Cummings (D-Md.) have introduced legislation to authorize such an investigation.

Finally, Congress should more vigorously exercise its oversight to determine why the FBI responded overzealously in the Clinton case and insufficiently in the Russian case. The FBI should also clarify whether there is an ongoing investigation into Trump, his associates and their ties to Russia. If ever there were a case of “intense public interest,” this is it. What’s broken in the FBI must be fixed and quickly.

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News Source: The Washington Post

HFA Statement on Trump’s Comments on Meeting with Putin

Hillary for America Senior National Spokesperson Glen Caplin released the following statement today after Donald Trump’s comments saying he, “Could see myself meeting with Putin and meeting with Russia prior to the start of the administration.”

“It’s unclear why Donald Trump needs to meet with Vladimir Putin on November 9th since he’s already repeating all his talking points, pushing his policy agenda and taking advantage of his espionage operation. Rest assured that as president, Hillary Clinton will stand up to Putin in the face of his unacceptable behavior, not coddle him.”

Hillary for America previously released a new video cataloguing Trump’s disturbing connections to Russia and why they are so concerning. Watch it here.

The campaign also recently released a Medium post on the Russian hack that Donald Trump refuses to admit or condemn laying out an important question that voters deserve to know – “What did Trump know, and when did he know it?” Read it here.

Here are 15 facts you should know about Donald Trump, WikiLeaks and Russia:

1) The U.S. intelligence community has concluded that top Kremlin officials are behind the hack of the DNC and other Democratic organizations to influence the elections – and named WikiLeaks as part of their effort.

• Washington Post: “Intelligence officials have identified WikiLeaks and other sites as among those receiving or publishing information from Russian intelligence, a claim that Assange has dismissed in the past.

2) According to the Wall Street Journal, “FBI Suspects Russia in Hack of John Podesta Emails”– top Russian officials meanwhile shifted away from denying a role in separate hacking of the Democratic National Committee.

3) Long time Trump campaign associate Roger Stone says he is in contact with Julian Assange. Stone unwittingly admitted the Russians are the source for WikiLeaks when he said, “The DNC heist documents…were hacked and first made public by Guccifer 2.0, almost a month ago, and when that did not get the appropriate traction, he took them to WikiLeaks who then leaked them.”  Stone also seemed to predict Podesta’s emails would be released as far back as August, suggesting possible collusion.

4) According to reports, “several current and former officials who have worked in the Justice Department, FBI and intelligence community said they have little doubt federal law enforcement is looking into the different questions surrounding the different current and one-time Trump campaign operatives.

5) Julian Assange’s own ties to the Kremlin are extensive and well-documented:

• Assange hosted a talk show on Putin’s propaganda network, RT.
  • Forbes: The Breathtaking Hypocrisy of Julian Assange, Kremlin Pawn
• A recent New York Times examination of Assange’s time in exile found that WikiLeaks’ activities have consistently benefitted Putin’s Russia at the expense of America and our allies.
• National security experts have criticized Assange and WikiLeaks for doing Putin’s bidding by releasing documents obtained by Russian hackers:
  • Defense One: How Putin Weaponized Wikileaks to Influence the Election of an American President: “Considerable evidence shows that the Wikileaks dump was an orchestrated act by the Russian government, working through proxies, to undermine Hillary Clinton’s Presidential campaign.”
• Former NSA analyst and counterintelligence officer, John Schindler: “Russian hackers working for the Kremlin cyber-pilfered the DNC then passed the purloined data, including thousands of unflattering emails, to Wikileaks, which has shown them to the world. This, of course, means that Wikileaks is doing Moscow’s bidding and has placed itself in bed with Vladimir Putin.”
• National Security expert Michael Weiss: “In a bizarre mind-meld that could only happen today, the WikiLeaks founder is refusing to say whether he got the hacked DNC emails from Russia, and Trump is defending Putin.”

6) Trump was reportedly briefed by U.S. intelligence officials before the last debate that Russian intelligence services were behind the hacks. Despite that information, Trump stood on the debate stage and claimed to 80 million Americans that it could be anyone including someone “sitting in their bed who weighs 400 pounds.” Why?

• NBC News: “A senior U.S. intelligence official assured NBC News that cybersecurity and the Russian government’s attempts to interfere in the 2016 election have been briefed to, and discussed extensively with, both parties’ candidates, surrogates and leadership, since mid-August. ‘To profess not to know at this point is willful misrepresentation,’ said the official. ‘The intelligence community has walked a very thin line in not taking sides, but both candidates have all the information they need to be crystal clear.’”
• WaPo: Headline: “Trump refusal to accept government assessments on Russian hacks dismays former officials”
  • “The former officials, who have served presidents in both parties, say they were bewildered when Trump cast doubt on Russia’s role after receiving a classified briefing on the subject and again after an unusually blunt statement from U.S. agencies saying they were “confident” that Moscow had orchestrated the attacks.”

7) Donald Trump himself encouraged Russian hackers to spy MORE on Hillary Clinton: “Russia, if you’re listening, I hope you’re able to find the 30,000 emails that are missing,” Trump said. “I think you’ll be rewarded mightily by our press!”

8) Trump’s business interests in Russia run deep…and present HUGE conflicts of interest. Because Donald Trump won’t release his taxes, the full extent of his Russian business interests that could conflict with American national security interests is largely unknown. But just some of the recent headlines have revealed hundreds of millions of dollars related to Russian business interests; connections to business groups with ties to the Kremlin like Bayrock; business dealings with alleged Russian mobster Felix Sater and a 30-year history of pursuing business with Russia including the Miss Universe pageant. Trump’s son has said that “Russians make up a pretty disproportionate cross-section” of the Trump Organization’s assets and that “we see a lot of money pouring in from Russia.”

9) Trump’s policies are concerning experts because they align closely with Putin’s agenda, contrary to American interests.

• Op-ed by Former U.S. Ambassador to Russia, Michael McFaul: “Putin has rational motives for wanting Trump to win: Trump champions many foreign policies that Putin supports. Trump’s most shocking, pro-Kremlin proposal is to “look into” recognition of Crimea as a part of Russia…. Trump has demanded that other NATO members essentially pay us for protection… Trump has also disparaged our allies in Asia, creating new opportunities for Russian influence…. On the whole, Trump advocates isolationist policies and an abdication of U.S. leadership in the world. He cares little about promoting democracy and human rights. A U.S. retreat from global affairs fits precisely with Putin’s international interests.”
• Vox: Trump’s policies are objectively pro-Russia. “Nothing Russia could do, on its own, would help its foreign policy more than what Trump is proposing. He is literally suggesting the United States transform global politics to make it more favorable to Russian interests.”
• Slate: Putin’s Puppet: If the Russian president could design a candidate to undermine American interests—and advance his own—he’d look a lot like Donald Trump. “Donald Trump is like the Kremlin’s favored candidates, only more so. He celebrated the United Kingdom’s exit from the EU. He denounces NATO with feeling. He is also a great admirer of Vladimir Putin.”
• Politifact: “Trumps [sic] comments on backing away from NATO, supporting Russia on the Ukraine and rethinking sanctions against Russia certainly qualify as statements that dovetail with what the Putin administration would like.”

10) Former Acting CIA Director Michael Morrell has concluded, “In the intelligence business, we would say that Mr. Putin had recruited Mr. Trump as an unwitting agent of the Russian Federation.”

11) The Trump campaign’s ties to Russia are deeply disturbing.

• One-time Foreign Policy Adviser Carter Page is being probed by U.S. intelligence agencies for meeting with sanctioned Kremlin officials including Igor Diveykin. “A former Russian security official, Diveykin now serves as deputy chief for internal policy and is believed by U.S. officials to have responsibility for intelligence collected by Russian agencies about the U.S. election, the Western intelligence source said.”
  • The Trump campaign lied about Page having “never been a part of our campaign. Period” to cover up his involvement.  In fact, Trump announced Page himself to Washington Post editorial board back in March 2016 as one of his foreign policy advisers, which was confirmed by Trump spokeswoman Hope Hicks to CNN.
• Campaign Chair Paul Manafort was forced to resign after the New York Times revealed, “Handwritten ledgers show $12.7 million in undisclosed cash payments designated for Mr. Manafort from Mr. Yanukovych’s pro-Russian political party from 2007 to 2012…Investigators assert that the disbursements were part of an illegal off-the-books system whose recipients also included election officials.”
• Gen. Michael Flynn, the adviser who joined Trump for his classified intelligence briefing, has been paid by Kremlin-run RT and sat two seats down from Putin at the outlet’s 10th anniversary gala. “The presence of such an important figure at Putin’s table startled current and former members of the Obama administration. ‘It was extremely odd that he showed up in a tuxedo to the Russian government propaganda arm’s party,’ one former Pentagon official told me. Like Trump, Flynn has advocated forging closer ties with Russia.”
• Mike McSherry, an aide who helped lead Trump’s convention strategy, worked alongside Manafort and Gates to lobby for Putin puppet Yanukovych.
• Howard Lorber, a Trump economic adviser, traveled with Trump to Moscow in the 1990s seeking real estate deals. Lorber was just the the “latest in a long list of relationships that give Trump a financial stake in warm U.S.-Russian relations.”
• Boris Epshteyn, a senior Trump adviser and surrogate, moderated a 2013 forum at the “Invest In Moscow!” Conference and has echoed Kremlin talking points on TV. As a surrogate for Donald Trump’s campaign he argued that Russia has not seized Crimea from Ukraine, even though Vladimir Putin seized the region more than two years ago. While discussing the GOP nominee’s recent remarks about Putin on CNN Sunday, campaign surrogate Boris Epshteyn said, “First of all, Russia did not seize Crimea.”
• Richard Burt, who has been an adviser to Trump and helped write his first major foreign policy speech, has deep ties to Russia as well. Burt sits on the board of directors for the US-Russia Business Council, formerly sat on the senior advisory board of Russia’s Alfa Bank, and has argued againstS. sanctions on Russia.
• Michael Caputo, a former top Trump adviser who also recently resigned, had a contract with Russian conglomerate Gazprom Media in 2000 to improve Putin’s image in the United States.

12) Trump allies, WikiLeaks and Russia pushed a nonsensical conspiracy theory about the DNC hacks. “Trump campaign surrogates are fueling a conspiracy theory that a murdered Democratic National Committee staffer was connected to the hacking of the DNC, a theory being pushed by WikiLeaks and the Russian state-controlled press. Some experts have gone as far as to say that Putin is explicitly using Trump to further his agenda.”

13) Even top Republicans have raised serious concerns about Trump’s relationship with Putin’s Russia. 50 G.O.P officials warned that Donald Trump would put the nation’s security at risk: “They viewed Mr. Trump’s comments on NATO as an abandonment of America’s most significant alliance relationship. Mr. Trump has said throughout his campaign that he intends to upend Republican foreign policy orthodoxy on everything from trade to Russia, where he has been complimentary of President Vladimir V. Putin, saying nothing about its crackdown on human rights and little about its annexation of Crimea.”

• 14) Top Democrats on four House committees that oversee national security on Friday called on the FBI to investigate Donald Trump’s purported ties to the Russian government and its alleged hacking of Democratic groups and operatives.

15) Trump has praised Putin for a decade, and Putin has returned the favor.

• Trump, 2007: “[Putin’s] doing a great job. In rebuilding the image of Russia and also rebuilding Russia period. Forget about image.”
• Trump, 2011: “I often speak highly [of Putin] for his intelligence and no-nonsense way…. Putin has also announced his grand vision: the creation of a ‘Eurasian Union’ made up of former Soviet nations that can dominate the region. I respect Putin…”
• Trump, 2013, on Putin’s NYT op-ed denouncing American exceptionalism: “I thought he did an amazing job…. He’s making him look like a — he’s the professor and the President is a school child… He really becomes with this letter, almost, the world leader”
• Trump, 2013: “Do you think Putin will be going to The Miss Universe Pageant in November in Moscow – if so, will he become my new best friend?”
• Washington Post on Trump’s 2013 Miss Universe Contest in Moscow: “Putin canceled at the last minute, but he sent a decorative lacquered box, a traditional Russian gift, and a warm note”
• Trump, 2014: “Putin has become a big hero in Russia with an all time high popularity.”
• Trump, 2015: “In terms of leadership, [Putin’s] getting an ‘A,’ and our president is not doing so well.”
• Putin, 2015 on Trump: “He’s a really brilliant and talented person, without any doubt.”
• Trump, 2016: “[Putin] called me a genius, I’m going to disavow it? Are you crazy? Can you believe it? How stupid are they.”
• AP, 2016: Russia’s Putin Reaffirms Praise for Trump, Calling Him ‘Bright’

For all the latest, follow our Scheduled Events page and follow Clinton on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram. Also, be sure to subscribe to the campaign’s official Podcast, With Her.

HFA Publishes Essay About Email Hack

On Saturday, Hillary for America Senior National Spokesperson Glen Caplin published an essay on Medium about the alleged Russian hacking of the email accounts of the Democratic National Committee and HFA Chair John Podesta. In the essay, Caplin questions what Donald Trump and his campaign knew about the hacking and their connection to it. The article, titled “What did Trump know, and when did he know It?” also questions the connection between Trump advisor Roger Stone WikiLeaks following an interview in which Stone admitted to meeting with sources from WikiLeaks. While the essay asks a lot of questions, it does not accuse anyone of any wrong-doing. Read the full essay HERE.

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News Source: Medium, Politico

HFA Statement on Roger Stone’s Admission of WikiLeaks Contact

Hillary for America Senior National Spokesperson Glen Caplin released the following statement on Roger Stone’s admission of ‘Back-Channel Communications with WikiLeaks’:

“It is disturbing that Roger Stone, a longtime Donald Trump confidante, has confirmed the fact that he has “back-channel communications” with Wikileaks, an organization that is working with the Russian government to affect the American presidential election.”

For all the latest, follow our Scheduled Events page and follow Clinton on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram. Also, be sure to subscribe to the campaign’s official Podcast, With Her.

News Source: NBC News

Clinton Campaign Reinforces Clinton’s Good Health

Today, Hillary for America released a fact sheet combating conspiracy theories about Hillary Clinton’s health. The release references the official physicians report released by Clinton’s doctor in 2015 and denies all allegations that Clinton’s health is failing. The full release is below.

Trump Pushes Deranged Conspiracy About Clinton’s Health To Distract From Tax Return Questions

Facing withering criticism from national media outlets, state editorial boards and even some Republican allies over his refusal to release his tax returns, Donald Trump is once again peddling deranged conspiracy theories in a desperate attempt to change the subject – this time with absurd and debunked claims about Hillary Clinton’s health.

This is hardly the first time Trump and his allies have donned tin foil hats when things weren’t going his way.  When his back was previously up against the wall, he’s suggested President Obama was a Muslim with ISIS sympathies, that Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia was murdered and that Ted Cruz’s father was involved in the assassination of President John F. Kennedy.

Now, with the help of his well-oiled network of conspiracy peddlers – from Roger Stone to Sean Hannity – Trump is desperately trying to give life to already busted myths about the health of a woman whose stamina and focus was publicly lauded following an 11 hours long hearing about the tragedy in Benghazi.

Per his long pattern, Trump will clearly say or do anything to avoid the barrage of questions only his tax returns can answer: Whether he’s worth as much as he dubiously claims?  Whether his pro-Kremlin policies stem from financial conflicts of interest with Russian oligarchs?  Or whether he actually gives as much as he says to charity?

“While it is dismaying to see the Republican nominee for president push deranged conspiracy theories in a foreign policy speech, it’s no longer surprising,” said Jennifer Palmieri. “Donald Trump is simply parroting lies based on fabricated documents promoted by Roger Stone and his right wing allies. Hillary Clinton has released a detailed medical record showing her to be in excellent health plus her personal tax returns since 1977, while Trump has failed to provide the public with the most basic financial information disclosed by every major candidate in the last 40 years. It’s time for him to stop using shameful distractions to hide his own record.”

Two Deranged, Debunked Conspiracies About Clinton’s Health

The Doctors’ Letters

Trump confidant and discredited conspiracy peddler Roger Stone and his right-wing allies have been pushing fake medical documents supposedly leaked from Hillary Clinton’s physician that purport to show grave health problems.

However, here’s a statement from the actual Dr. Lisa Bardack, Hillary Clinton’s real internist and Chairman of the Department of Medicine at CareMount Medical, debunking the veracity of these false documents:

“As Secretary Clinton’s long time physician, I released a medical statement during the campaign indicating that she is in excellent health.  I have recently been made aware of allegedly ‘leaked’ medical documents regarding Secretary Clinton with my name on them. These documents are false, were not written by me and are not based on any medical facts. To reiterate what I said in my previous statement, Secretary Clinton is in excellent health and fit to serve as President of the United States.”

Here’s a link to the actual medical records about Hillary Clinton released by Dr. Bardack (written on actual letterhead) with the concluding summary directly below:

 Now compare that to the medical records released from Donald Trump’s gastroenterologist – not internist — that makes several peculiar claims that Kurt Eichenwald, senior writer at Newsweek, dissected in a must watch segment on CNN this morning:

1. Eichenwald: “This is not a real letter because what you have, number one, it’s not from an internist. It’s from a doctor who treats digestive problems.”

2. Eichenwald: “He says that all of Mr. Trump’s medical tests are positive. That means that everything he was tested for, he has. No competent or real doctor would write this.”

3. Eichenwald: “It also says such things as ‘Donald Trump will be the healthiest president in the history of the United States.’ That sounds a lot like Donald Trump.”

4. Eichenwald: “It doesn’t have a real letter letterhead. The letterhead was written on Microsoft Word.”

Hannity Drafts Urologist To Diagnose Potential Head Trauma Via Video Tape

To push the baseless narrative about lingering head trauma, Trump surrogate Sean Hannity drafted a urologist – not a neurologist – wearing a white physician’s coat to help diagnose whether a video tape was evidence of repercussions from previous head trauma.

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