Rangappa is a CNN analyst, and NO, she doesn't clear anything up...she misleads. Page has been after her on Twitter; today alone:etcetera said:Agree, except for the part about letting certain members of Congress see some of it. The leaks from Congress are a sure-fire way to discourage foreign-based persons from putting themselves at risk of torture and death by being HUMINT sources for the FBI and CIA.Quote:
So there wasn't a formal hearing on the Page application, but there certainly had to be a paper trail consisting of the written analysis by a FISC attorney on the submitted FISA application, plus records of any telephone conversations and requests for additional information by the attorney or judge. The latter should be made reviewable to Horowitz or DOJ investigative officials or Congressional Committees.Here's a twitter thread by ex-FBI attny/agent Rangappa which clears up some misconceptions about that.Quote:
There is no way Cater Page's FISA application passes the smell test.
Carter Page is a US citizen. The FBI/DOJ needed to show that he was likely an agent of a foreign power. They didn't! They hid from the FISC that he was an FBI asset that had been used only months previously to ensnare a Russian spy plot (Buryakov case) within the US, plus the fact that he had worked for the CIA in the past and had received an award for it. They misled the FISC and only presented unverified opposition research -- the dossier -- to show that he was likely an agent of Russia.
When the FISA on Page was approved, he was no longer affiliated with the Trump Campaign. During all of Page's testimony, he has never had legal representation. Page knew before the FISA warrant was approved that something was wrong -- he wrote an email/letter to Comey in September 2016 inquiring why he was being singled out and that a foreign person had written he had had engaged in activities in Russia he hadn't.