A newly declassified memorandum alleging abuses of power by the FBI and the Department of Justice in spying on President Donald Trump’s campaign is creating a storm online.
Trump authorized House Intelligence Committee Chair Devin Nunes (R-California) to release the memo Friday. Nunes commissioned the 4-page document in mid-January. It chronicles how the FBI and the DOJ obtained a warrant to spy on Trump campaign adviser Carter Page entirely on the basis of the so-called “Steele dossier” paid for by Hillary Clinton’s campaign through the Democratic National Committee.
READ MORE: House GOP memo critical of FBI made public
Democrats, many mainstream media outlets, and a number of former and current FBI and DOJ officials tried to prevent the memo’s publication. Reactions to its release were likewise along party lines.
Many “Russiagate” promoters suggesting the declassified information is a play by Trump to discredit the investigation into links with Russia during the US presidential election.
Others, however, stated that the memo provides little new information. Former CIA officer Ned Price slammed the release for its “shoddiness” regarding the protection of sources.
US Democrat congressman Ted Lieu (D-California) described it as a “nothing burger.”
Meanwhile, Trump supporters zeroed in on the memo’s revelation that the Russian probe was pretty much entirely based on the Steele dossier, and argued it should lead to resignations and even indictments.
WikiLeaks’ co-founder Julian Assange also chimed in:
Carter Page, the former Trump campaign adviser who was targeted by the FISA warrant, called the memo a “giant, historic leap in the repair of America’s democracy.”