According to FBI:
Carter Page qualified as a subversive cross between the mysterious WW 2 charactor “Kilroy was here” and James Bond.
In real life, he looks like a patriot suffering from PTSD; having been been caught up in the FBI’s sting operation, “Crossfire Hurricane.” His TV interviews leave me frustrated, but sympathetic.
He reminds me of a rabbit caught in the path of a tractor as it works it’s way across the field:
The rabbit moves as little as possible, to avoid getting squashed, while keeping an eye to the sky for the circling Hawks.
The rabbit knows to run from cover is to be seen. It could be fatal!
When interviewers question Carter Page, he most often deflects to “rabbit trails” that lead nowhere.
But, like the rabbit, if you’re “keeping one eye to the sky,” it’s hard to focus elsewhere long enough to be coherent.
Crossfire Hurricane:
The FBI’s spying operation may have something to do with the induced paranoia.
It targeted Carter Page two weeks after he joined the Trump campaign, as a foreign policy expert. His Russia credentials were used by the FBI as the reason for their suspicions:
Even though Page had been a willing co-operater in numerous CIA debriefings, related to his Russian dealings.
The question arises: Why would the FBI need a FISA (Foreign Intelligence warrant) on Carter Page after, he had left the Trump campaign?
The Horowitz Report:
Provided some insight into the question.
The Inspector General Report revealed that the FISA warrant unleashed a treasure trove of information.
It allowed the FBI to spy on Trump campaign activities;
By providing access to all past, present, and future communications connected to Carter Page. Not only those who communicated with Carter Page:
Anyone who communicated; with someone that communicated, with Carter Page!
All were swept up by the data mining operation. It created a massive pool of unsuspecting individuals:
The majority of which were American citizens;
Normally protected under strict privacy laws: These were now unmasked by the broad FISA provisions.
The FISA warrant:
Gave the FBI virtual access to every tidbit of information from the Trump campaign!
The Horowitz Inspector General Report cited the FBI with seventeen gross violations. In addition, there were numerous other violations of standard FBI protocols forewhich…
“…there were no, or unsatisfactory explanations.”
These violations occurred, even though three different teams of FBI agents were employed during the course of the operation.
Amazingly? All of the violations, were in opposition to the interest of republicans and the Trump campaign.
“Golden Showers”
The Democrat party, funded opposition research which resulted in the now infamous work product known as the “Golden Showers Dossier.”
It contained salatious and unverified claims damaging to Donald Trump.
The FBI denied using the report to obtain the FISA on Carter Page in order to spy on the Trump campaign. The Horowitz report established those assertions were, in fact, lies.
The FBI became aware in January of 2017, the Golden Showers Dosier was a fraud, but renewed it numerous times to keep operation “Crossfire Hurricane” active.
The Inspector General Horowitz Report did not make a finding of political bias in opening the Crossfire Hurricane, but suggested bias may have been involved in continuing the investigation after the “Golden Showers” dossier was discredited.
In response to fired Director of the FBI James Comey’s claim the report exonerated him, Horowitz said: “This report exonerates no one!”
“… the report either indicated gross incompetence on the part of the FBI, or malfeasance.”
Horowitz concluded “incompetence” was the primary reason for violations.
It was a stunning indictment of the failure of leadership at the worlds premier law enforcement agency.
The report brought closure to Russia Collusion narrative;
And was devastating to the proponents of the Mueller Russia Collusion allegations. The IG’s report exposed the bias’s of many partisan interests and major news outlets opposed to President Trump.
Congressman Devin Nunes’s memo, in 2017, raised many of the same issues uncovered by the Inspector Generals Report.
The Nunes memo was widely disparaged at the time, by Adam Schiff and the Democrat party, but also by anti Trump Republicans and most major news media outlets.
