Nation
Fmr. FBI lawyer Kevin Clinesmith given yearlong probation for falsifying Carter Page FISA application
Former FBI lawyer Kevin Clinesmith was sentenced Friday to one year of probation and 400 hours of community service for altering an email during the Russia investigation that was used as grounds for the surveillance of former Trump campaign adviser Carter Page.
Back in August, Clinesmith pleaded guilty to “one count of making a false statement within both the jurisdiction of the executive branch and judicial branch of the U.S. government, an offense that carries a maximum term of imprisonment of five years and a fine of up to $250,000.”
RELATED: Exclusive: Carter Page Reacts To Clinesmith Guilty Plea, Says There’s More To Come
Clinesmith, who worked at the FBI for four years, had altered the email in the beginning stages of the bureau’s investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election and potential collusion with the Trump campaign.
He changed another official’s June 2017 email to say that Page was “not a source” for the CIA. In a memo, however, the agency had previously informed investigators that Page from 2008 to 2013 was an “operational contact” for it and provided information about his contacts with Russian intelligence officers. Page has said, too, that he was a source for the agency.
Friday’s Clinesmith sentencing is so far the only criminal charge related to Special Counsel John Durham‘s investigation into the origins of the Trump-Russia probe. The investigation began in May 2019 after then-Special Counsel Robert Mueller concluded his yearlong Russia investigation, which produced no evidence of collusion between Russian officials and the Trump campaign during the 2016 election.
Back in December, then-Attorney General William Barr appointed Durham as special counsel to continue the investigation into Mueller’s probe, which conservatives and former President Donald Trump himself have accused of being a “witch hunt” motivated by political bias.
While sentencing him to probation and community service on Friday, U.S. District Judge for the District of Columbia James Boasberg gave Clinesmith no fine. The judge said that Clinesmith losing his job and being at the center of massive media attention had caused him to suffer.
During his Friday sentencing hearing, Clinesmith told the court he was “ashamed” of his actions, stating that they had “harmed the very institutions that I cherish and admire.”
“I have a duty to take responsibility for my actions and mistakes,” he also said.
You can follow Douglas Braff on Twitter @Douglas_P_Braff.
Elections
IRS Whistleblower Receives Retaliation After Speaking Out on Hunter Biden Tax Case
A whistleblower in the Hunter Biden tax investigation, IRS Supervisory Special Agent Gary Shapley, is facing harsh repercussions from the IRS after revealing alleged misconduct within the agency. Shapley, who gained widespread attention following an interview with investigative journalist Catherine Herridge, claims to be under intense pressure to accept a demotion or resign after publicly disclosing his concerns.
National Review reports on the recent developments, shared by Shapley’s attorney, Tristan Leavitt, reveal that the IRS had apparently been withholding a punitive decision until after Herridge’s interview went viral. “Less than an hour after @C__Herridge posted this story yesterday about the retaliation against the IRS whistleblowers, the IRS sent SSA Shapley this notice telling him he had 15 days to choose whether to be demoted or to resign,” Leavitt tweeted, noting that the agency appeared to have delayed this decision by at least two weeks.
On October 15, the IRS officially informed Shapley of a planned reassignment, notifying him he would be moved from his role as a Supervisory Special Agent in the criminal division to a Senior Analyst position—a demotion. Shapley was given the option to either accept the downgrade or, if he chose not to, request a lower-level special agent role or leave the agency entirely.
In response to the alleged retaliation, Shapley’s attorney sent a formal letter to Congress on Thursday. Addressed to House Oversight Committee chairman James Comer (R-Ky.), House Judiciary Committee chairman Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), and House Ways and Means Committee chairman Jason Smith (R-Mo.), Leavitt’s letter highlights a history of punitive treatment Shapley claims to have faced since he first disclosed his findings.
“From the moment USA Weiss received access to SSA Shapley’s protected whistleblower disclosures and contacted IRS leadership, the IRS has treated SSA Shapley differently,” Leavitt wrote in the letter. He also added that “the illegal reprisal increased after SSA Shapley made clear he intended to blow the whistle to Congress and others. And it continues to this day, when the IRS knows it can retaliate against SSA Shapley simply by waiting out the clock for him to be forced into the position of resigning or being demoted.”
The U.S. Office of Special Counsel (OSC) is currently investigating the allegations of retaliation, not only against Shapley but also against another IRS whistleblower, Joseph Ziegler, who had similarly come forward regarding the Hunter Biden case. Leavitt has requested that the OSC intervene to prevent what he calls an apparent case of retaliation and has urged congressional Republicans to ask for a briefing on the progress of the OSC’s 17-month-long investigation.
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