Mueller Deputy Weissmann Lashes at Justice Department Over Indictment of FBI Attorney: ‘Two Systems of Justice at Play’

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Andrew Weissmann, who served as a deputy on former Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into the Trump administration and Russian interference in the 2016 election, lashed out at the Justice Department on Friday for indicting an FBI attorney who played a role in that investigation.

In a series of messages on Twitter, Weissmann invoked former White House National Security Adviser Michael Flynn in asking Attorney General William to explain the reasoning behind charges for Kevin Clinesmith. Court documents on Friday indicated Clinesmith, a former FBI attorney, intends to plead guilty to altering an email from the CIA, which investigators used to seek a wiretap on former Trump campaign adviser Carter Page. 

“Question for Barr: how are Flynn’s confessed lies to the FBI (repeated to the VP) not a crime, but Clinesmith changing an email (the full version of which he also sent to DOJ) is?” Weissmann wrote. “Clinesmith is charged with adding the words ‘not a source’ to an email about Carter Page, but no where does the charge say that is false, i.e. that Page was a source for the CIA. Without that, how is the addition ‘materially’ false?”

Weissmann also invoked U.S. Attorney John Durham, who is leading a probe reviewing the origins of the Russia investigation.

“Here is Durham theory: even though Clinesmith gave the complete and accurate email to DOJ to use in the Page FISA, when asked by an FBI agent if the CIA had represented IN WRITING that Page was not a source, Clinesmith said yes, when CIA had not said so explicitly in writing. no where is it alleged that Page was in fact a CIA source or, if so, that Clinesmith knew that. How is any of this false or material to the Page FISA, using Barr’s new Flynn materiality standard. It’s not. Two systems of justice at play.”

He added: “Clear from Durham charge that the FBI supervisor wanted to know if CIA confirmed “in writing” that Page was not a source because of distrust of CIA — but whether in writing or not, no allegation that Clinesmith lied about the fact Page was not a source. That’s a federal crime?”

At issue are four warrants that authorities sought to spy on Page between October 2016 and June 2017. Page served an “operational contact” for the CIA in Russia. An inspector general investigation concluded that Clinesmith told the FBI during an application for the final warrant that Page was “never a source.”

“He will be pleading guilty,” Clinesmith attorney Justin Shur said in a statement to reporters on Friday. “Kevin deeply regrets having altered the email. It was never his intent to mislead the court or his colleagues as he believed the information he relayed was accurate. But Kevin understands what he did was wrong and accepts responsibility.”

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