In a recently released report, U.S. Special Counsel John Durham stated that the FBI had no “actual evidence” to investigate Donald Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign and relied excessively on information provided by Trump’s political adversaries. The 306-page report marks the end of a four-year investigation into possible missteps by the FBI during its early “Crossfire Hurricane” inquiry into potential contacts between Trump’s campaign and Russia.
Durham found that prior to initiating Crossfire Hurricane, U.S. intelligence and law enforcement agencies did not have any solid evidence of collusion between Trump’s campaign and Russia.
He also claimed that the FBI handled the 2016 Trump investigation differently from other politically sensitive inquiries, such as those involving Trump’s Democratic opponent, Hillary Clinton.
Durham wrote, “The Department and the FBI failed to uphold their important mission of strict fidelity to the law in connection with certain events and activities described in this report.”
In response to the report, the FBI stated that it has already implemented numerous corrective actions for some time. Meanwhile, Durham’s findings may serve as political ammunition for Trump, who is planning to run for re-election in 2024 despite facing criminal charges in New York and two federal investigations by Special Counsel Jack Smith.
However, Durham’s investigation has had limited impact, as both defendants he attempted to prosecute in 2022 were acquitted by separate juries.
Durham’s report echoes many concerns raised by the Justice Department’s inspector general regarding the FBI’s process for applying to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court for wiretap applications.
Durham’s report states: “Senior FBI personnel displayed a serious lack of analytical rigor towards the information that they received, especially information from politically affiliated persons and entities.”