Congressman: Inspector General’s Report Speaks For Itself

Former special agent and current Republican Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick praised the work of the FBI following the release of the U.S. Department of Justice’s inspector general’s report but stated the agency needs to maintain its “high standard.”

The congressman, who read the 476-page report, released the following statement to LevittownNow.com on Tuesday:

“The FBI is an amazing organization, and it’s amazing people protect and save American lives every single day. As is the case with all organizations, internal policing is critically important. Any FBI employee who engages in serious misconduct must be removed immediately, as they have tarnished the image of the FBI and, therefore, have demonstrated that they were never worthy of FBI credentials in the first place. Our community and our nation must continuously support the FBI, and likewise the FBI must continuously maintain its firm commitment to hold its employees to the highest possible ethical and legal standards, as I know they do. Any FBI employee who falls short of this standard must face the harshest of consequences. This is the high standard that the FBI holds itself to, which is why they are and remain the preeminent law enforcement organization on the planet.”

Fitzpatrick has previously defended the work of the FBI.

According to the report approved by Inspector General Michael Horowitz, the FBI was justified is commencing “Crossfire Hurricane” in 2016. The inquiry looked at suspicion of ties between Donald Trump’s election campaign and those affiliated with the Russian government. It led to the special counsel investigation that ended with the prosecution of members of Trump’s campaign and charges against foreign agents.

“The FBI had an authorized purpose when it opened Crossfire Hurricane to obtain information about, or protect against, a national security threat or federal crime, even though the investigation also had the potential to impact constitutionally protected activity,” Horowitz wrote in the report.

The report concluded that there was enough evidence in 2016 to open a legal inquiry in the businessman and reality TV star’s Republican campaign for president.

The report chided the FBI for at least 17 “significant errors” related to agency policies when special agents obtained a Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISA) warrant to look into Trump campaign adviser Carter Page. However, the inspector general noted his office did not find “political bias or improper motivation influenced the FBI’s decision.”

The report’s findings beat back at misinformation that has been spread by prominent supporters of the president but also confirmed some concerns about problems relating to FISA warrants.

The president and some of his most vocal supporters have called investigations into his successful 2016 campaign, which found wrongdoing, “witch hunts” and said the FBI probe was motivated by disdain for Trump.

A second report on the 2016 probe is due out in weeks. That investigation has been headed by U.S. Attorney John Durham and has a broader focus.

“Based on the evidence collected to date, and while our investigation is ongoing, last month we advised the Inspector General that we do not agree with some of the report’s conclusions as to predication and how the FBI case was opened,” Durham said in a statement.

U.S. Attorney General William Barr disagreed with the report’s findings that the investigation was opened for the right reasons.

“The Congressman believes that the report’s findings speak for themselves,” Fitzpatrick’s office said.

Trump was upset Tuesday morning after FBI Director Christopher Wray stated in an ABC News interview that the investigation was opened properly. He also noted the FBI was taking steps to resolve issues related to the issues surrounding the FISA warrant.

“I don’t know what report the current Director of the FBI Christopher Wray was reading, but I’m sure it wasn’t the one given to me. With that kind of attitude, he will never be able to fix the FBI, which is badly broken despite having some of the greatest men & women working there!” the president tweeted.

“The Congressman does not believe that the FBI is badly broken. He believes they are the preeminent law enforcement organization on the planet whom, like all organizations, must remain vigilant in self-policing and holding its members to the highest ethical and legal standards,” the congressman’s office said when asked about the president’s comment.

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