5 Things to Know About Special Counsel John Durham’s Final Report

1. Debunks Russian Collusion Narrative

According to the report released by Special Counsel John Durham, the FBI had no concrete evidence or intelligence to justify opening a probe of then-Presidential candidate Donald Trump, avoiding its own rules to protect civil liberties, failing to adhere to warnings that the Russia collusion allegations were a political trick by Hillary Clinton and her Democrat allies. Subsequently, the report also highlighted that political figures like current US President Joe Biden were briefed in the summer of the 2016 US Election about a plan by the Clinton campaign to manufacture the Russia scandal against Trump. Other US officials like CIA Director John Brennan met with Obama administration officials to discuss Russian efforts to interfere in the election, briefing officials over the alleged approval by the Clinton campaign on July 26 to advisors to vilify Trump by creating a scandal that claimed Russian interference in the 2016 election. In his report, Durham explained that the FBI failed to adhere to standards and allowed the probe to persist, including the surveillance of an American citizen, without basis under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. Despite the revelations, many prominent Democrat politicians, influencers, and pundits have not apologized for their role in spreading the Russian collusion narrative, going insofar as to lie to Americans about what is in the report.

2. Great Britain's Reaction

In his report, Durham outlined the interactions between the FBI's legal attaché in London and intelligence officials about the UK intelligence community's failed reaction to the investigation. Durham's report outlined that British intelligence officials were shocked and realized they were pulled into a counterintelligence investigation without evidence. According to the report, the London official expressed disbelief at the "thin" evidence that started the case, telling officials that the British personnel was skeptical and warned that the FBI investigations made "no sense." The report goes on to say that once US intelligence officials showed their British counterparts the tape of the Trump adviser, the UK attaché described his government's reaction as "not positive because of the lack of any evidence," while noting that another official said the British intelligence officials had "enough" of such investigation plans. At the start of the Russian-collusion narrative, British intelligence agent Christopher Steele shared a debunked report that Trump employed several prostitutes to urinate on a bed in front of him where the Obamas once stayed. Reports later revealed that US and UK officials were monitoring interactions in late 2015 of what they described as "suspicious interactions" between Trump campaign figures, causing much speculation and consternation among national media outlets.

3. The Politicization of the Justice System

For the past several months, trust in the US Department of Justice, FBI, the CIA, and the intelligence community has eroded among Americans, given that many of these agencies have been politicized by left-wing progressive government workers who were most active in leaking to the national press during the Trump administration. Former agents who have worked for the FBI and other law enforcement agencies said that the report highlights the erosion of the justice system, creating a two-tier system of justice where one person from the political side faces no criminal charges. Even before the report was released, revelations from the FBI, CIA, and the intelligence community found that senior executives and agents working at these agencies had an agenda against the Trump administration, using their powers to aid in an investigation despite legal guidelines and restrictions, abusing and misusing their roles. In response to the report, the FBI came out with a statement stating that conduct by agents in 2016 and 2020 was the "reason that current FBI leadership already implemented dozens of corrective actions, which have now been in place for some time." Despite the statement from the FBI, experts and officials say that the report will continue to make Americans lose faith in institutions needed to protect the country and that it will take several years for the agency to redeem itself.

4. Information on Anti-Trump FBI Agent Peter Strzok

According to the report, the Special Counsel outlined information regarding anti-Trump FBI agent Peter Strzok, who helped push the Russian collusion narrative that plagued the Trump administration. In the report, Strzok worked with FBI lawyer Lisa Page, with whom he was having an affair, to go around FBI Counterintelligence Chief Bill Priestap to keep the investigation going by getting the approval of the FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe. When the anti-Trump FBI Agent opened a full investigation by skipping the opening steps based on a brief and faulty account by an Australian diplomat at a conversation in a London bar after traveling to London, he explained to US officials the reasoning behind the investigation that neither the FBI employees nor British counterparts could believe. The Special Counsel noted that FBI officials found the actions of Strzok concerning, describing him as the "worst offender," regarding instances where his boss, Bill Priestap, wanted to go in one direction and both Strozk and his lover Page disagreed and "went around him," to Director McCabe. Despite the newly released information, the former FBI official told MSNBC’s Joy Reid that the investigation into the Trump campaign over Russian collusion was serious and that the case was not "acted with bias."

5. Vilification of the Trump Administration & Campaign

Shortly after the information of the report and the revelation that the FBI had no plausible grounds to begin its investigation, the former President and members of his administration and campaign felt vindicated by the findings. From 2016 to the end of the Trump administration, the President and many other officials were smeared by the national press that they were installed by the Russian government and sowed chaos and discord in the country. Despite the new revelations, pundits and media outlets spreading the Russian collusion narrative have not revoked their findings, labeling Special Durham's report as "partisan" and "unnecessary." Speaking to Just the News, the former President stated that the actions by the FBI and the Clinton Campaign were a "total violation of about every rule and principle you can have." Trump explained that the actions of individuals involved were dishonest and "more than anything else that affected the 2020 presidential election, much more so than the 2016 election." The former President said that should he become re-elected, he would enact new reforms to the FBI, DOJ, and the CIA, which many Republicans and conservative voters are hoping for should a Republican win the White House in 2024.