OPINION:
The FBI that I knew dealt in facts. We targeted criminals based on evidence and not political party or ideology. But our leadership over the past 17 years failed America by engaging in selective prosecution. The simple definition of which is that you overlook crimes committed by like-minded folks while prosecuting those who hold dissimilar views.
The public and media can speculate in rumors and anonymous sources, but the FBI had always been the institution that sorted it all out and put cuffs on the guilty. It now appears that senior FBI officials have amended our Constitution. The Bureau had always been the last hope for justice delivered, with the jurisdiction to go after any sleaze ball whether they be a U.S. senator or mobster. We were sovereign and neutral like Switzerland. But that was some 20 years ago before the Justice Department sucked us into their partisan vortex.
The public wonders when congressional committees are going to put some hides on the wall. We have witnessed numerous individuals raise their right hand and swear to tell the truth, and then lie, lie, lie, which is a benign term for perjury. Congressional committee hearings are simply drama. They have no ability to convene a grand jury and lack the courage to refer perjury cases to Justice. Hearings are like a recurring movie with the same ending.
Eric Holder lied under oath and refused to honor congressional subpoenas for Fast and Furious. His penance was to be held in congressional contempt. This is the equivalent of being reprimanded by Mr. Rodgers. Americans expect arrests whenever congressmen face the camera and solemnly promise that “someone will pay.” No one ever does. Our elected officials should face firing squads for cowardice.
James Clapper lied under oath about meta data collection, but was permitted a do-over. Huma Abedin lied under oath affirming that the FBI had all her emails. Cheryl Mills didn’t lie because she contracted a temporary case of amnesia as did Loretta Lynch. But what did it matter. (Pun intended) Which is what the attorney general instructed James Comey to refer to the Hillary email investigation. So, let’s add obstruction of justice to Ms. Lynch’s felony tab.
Hillary lied to everyone so no need to waste words, but her co-conspirators demand a mention. They include Bryan Pagliano and the guys that bleached and smashed Hillary’s devices. They all received immunity which is a legal quid pro quo for becoming a snitch. The problem is they walked instead of talked.
Lois Lerner was granted a felony pass for using the IRS as her private criminal operation, Susan Rice illegally unmasked Trump staff and fibbed a lot on television regarding Benghazi, Eric Holder dismissed the Black Panther’s case on voting intimidation, and even President Obama could be charged with misprision of a felony for refusing to enforce immigration laws. Then there’s James Comey, Peter Strocz, Andy McCabe, Lisa Page, Bruce Ohr and Mrs. Ohr, all of whom have criminal liability but will probably retire with full benefits and get book deals.
Honorable mention are individuals who escape prosecution based on ethnicity or notoriety. Jesse Jackson kept a mistress with non-profit funds, Al Sharpton ignored the IRS for years, the Clinton Foundation is a continuing criminal enterprise, Black Life Matters incites riots, and Antifa is a violent vigilante group. See anyone in jail?
Since the Justice Department is political and the FBI impotent no one will face lady justice except Kristian Saucier, a sailor who took photos of his submarine and was sentenced to a year in federal prison. Let’s compare apples with apples:
Director Comey proclaimed Hillary innocent of Title 18, Section 793, Gathering, transmitting or losing defense information, but a year prior the FBI arrested Byran Nishimura, a reserve naval officer for “unauthorized removal and retention of classified materials, without malicious intent, in other words, precisely what the FBI alleges Hillary did.”
Donald Keyser earned over a year in prison for unlawfully removing classified documents from the Department of State to his residence. U.S. Attorney Chuck Rosenberg stated that Mr. Keyser “had an absolute obligation to safeguard the classified information and utterly failed to do so.” He added, “Keyser’s sentence of imprisonment is a warning to others in positions of public trust.” Just not Hillary Clinton. There’s Gen. Petraeus, and Gen. Flynn, George Papadopoulos, and Martha Stewart who lied to the FBI. As a retired FBI agent, I can assure you that Title 18, Section 1001 is a rarely used statute, except on conservatives. I’ve conducted hundreds of interviews with subjects, the majority of which, fibbed big time.
FBI field agents just want to do their job minus interference from Justice and FBI HQ. But that won’t happen until someone from Justice or FBI HQ gets arrested.
• John Ligato is a retired FBI agent and former Marine. A recipient of three Purple Hearts in Vietnam, his latest book is “The Near Enemy.”
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