WASHINGTON, DC- The Washington Examiner reported that another pin is about to fall regarding the case of the FBI’s ill-fated, illegally concocted Russia collusion hoax that sought to take down former President Donald Trump at the onset of his term.
Former FBI agent Charles McGonigal is expected to plead guilty to one or more charges concerning his illegal relationship with a Russian oligarch. McGonigal was involved in helping to facilitate the Russia collusion narrative.
According to prosecutors, McGonigal “acted on behalf” of the oligarch, Oleg Deripaska, for profit in 2021, an activity which included trying to help Deripaska evade American sanctions.
McGonical wasn’t merely a low-level investigator or operative within the FBI. Rather, he was head of the cybercrimes section in Washington, D.C. and later headed up counterintelligence in the FBI’s New York field office. He was also intimately involved in the “Crossfire Hurricane” investigation of the former president in its early stages.
In fact, McGonical helped get the ball rolling on the scheme, sending an email alleging Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign was tied to Russia. That information was gleaned from a “drunken rant” from a Trump campaign adviser, including claims later discredited.
However, McGonical was complicit in the investigative abuses that came afterward, which included the illegal wiretapping of Trump campaign adviser Carter Page. In 2020, FBI Director Christopher Wray admitted the surveillance was unlawful when he testified before the House Judiciary Committee.
A DOJ Inspector General Michael Horowitz report found the FBI’s Crossfire Hurricane investigation was wholly flawed and identified 17 “significant errors and omissions” credited to the DOJ and FBI related to FISA (Foreign Intelligence Security Act) warrants targeting Page. The filings used the debunked dossier filed by disgraced former British spy Christopher Steele, who was hired by Fusion GPS, which in turn was hired by the Clinton campaign via the Perkins Coie law firm.
“The report acknowledges that…this was illegal surveillance concerning at least several of these FISA applications, because there was not probable cause or proper predication, correct?” asked Republican Rep. John Ratcliffe (TX).
“Right,” Wray replied tersely.
The ill-fated Crossfire Hurricane scheme was hatched with assistance from the Hillary Clinton campaign and, by all appearances, was politically motivated. The mainstream media parroted the narrative and haunted President Trump through much of his presidential term. The Examiner wrote that Deripaska was one of the key figures the media used to push a connection between Trump and Russia.
The irony of this, of course, is that Democrats, in particular Reps. Adam Schiff (D-CA) and Eric Swalwell (D-CA) accused Trump of being a “Russian asset,” while it was McGonical himself who was acting in that capacity.
The fear among those who worked with McGonical is that he may have used sensitive security information gleaned during his government service and endangered national security after he left the FBI.
Some lawmakers, including Democrats, are concerned about the same thing, an unidentified one of whom sits on the Senate Judiciary Committee. A former CIA official told Rolling Stone, “The potential here is that he could be one of the most devastating spies in U.S. history.”
Despite all the underhanded dealings conducted by officials within the FBI concerning Crossfire Hurricane, few of those involved have been held accountable. That may change somewhat with McGonical’s plea, but it remains to be seen if he will be genuinely held to account or if he receives what is tantamount to a slap on the wrist.
Former FBI agent Charles McGonigal is expected to plead guilty to one or more charges concerning his illegal relationship with a Russian oligarch. McGonigal was involved in helping to facilitate the Russia collusion narrative.
According to prosecutors, McGonigal “acted on behalf” of the oligarch, Oleg Deripaska, for profit in 2021, an activity which included trying to help Deripaska evade American sanctions.
McGonical wasn’t merely a low-level investigator or operative within the FBI. Rather, he was head of the cybercrimes section in Washington, D.C. and later headed up counterintelligence in the FBI’s New York field office. He was also intimately involved in the “Crossfire Hurricane” investigation of the former president in its early stages.
In fact, McGonical helped get the ball rolling on the scheme, sending an email alleging Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign was tied to Russia. That information was gleaned from a “drunken rant” from a Trump campaign adviser, including claims later discredited.
However, McGonical was complicit in the investigative abuses that came afterward, which included the illegal wiretapping of Trump campaign adviser Carter Page. In 2020, FBI Director Christopher Wray admitted the surveillance was unlawful when he testified before the House Judiciary Committee.
A DOJ Inspector General Michael Horowitz report found the FBI’s Crossfire Hurricane investigation was wholly flawed and identified 17 “significant errors and omissions” credited to the DOJ and FBI related to FISA (Foreign Intelligence Security Act) warrants targeting Page. The filings used the debunked dossier filed by disgraced former British spy Christopher Steele, who was hired by Fusion GPS, which in turn was hired by the Clinton campaign via the Perkins Coie law firm.
“The report acknowledges that…this was illegal surveillance concerning at least several of these FISA applications, because there was not probable cause or proper predication, correct?” asked Republican Rep. John Ratcliffe (TX).
“Right,” Wray replied tersely.
The ill-fated Crossfire Hurricane scheme was hatched with assistance from the Hillary Clinton campaign and, by all appearances, was politically motivated. The mainstream media parroted the narrative and haunted President Trump through much of his presidential term. The Examiner wrote that Deripaska was one of the key figures the media used to push a connection between Trump and Russia.
The irony of this, of course, is that Democrats, in particular Reps. Adam Schiff (D-CA) and Eric Swalwell (D-CA) accused Trump of being a “Russian asset,” while it was McGonical himself who was acting in that capacity.
The fear among those who worked with McGonical is that he may have used sensitive security information gleaned during his government service and endangered national security after he left the FBI.
Some lawmakers, including Democrats, are concerned about the same thing, an unidentified one of whom sits on the Senate Judiciary Committee. A former CIA official told Rolling Stone, “The potential here is that he could be one of the most devastating spies in U.S. history.”
Despite all the underhanded dealings conducted by officials within the FBI concerning Crossfire Hurricane, few of those involved have been held accountable. That may change somewhat with McGonical’s plea, but it remains to be seen if he will be genuinely held to account or if he receives what is tantamount to a slap on the wrist.
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