Special Counsel John Durhamâs report on the FBIâs 2016 Russia probe is âdevastatingâ for the bureau, but great news for former President Donald Trump, according to a CNN host.
CNNâs Jake Tapper discussed the report after it was released on Monday.
âThe report is now here. It has dropped. And it might not have produced everything of what some Republicans hoped for,â he began.
However, he added, âIt is regardless devastating to the FBI, and to a degree, it does exonerate Trump.â
Watch the video below:
In a 306-page report, Durham lays out a series of criticisms of how the FBI handled its investigation into whether members of Trumpâs 2016 campaign colluded with Russian operatives.
Durham argued the FBI moved quickly in 2016 to investigate a tip about contacts between a Trump campaign aide and a Russian official. However, he said the bureau did not have additional information to corroborate the tip, and the investigation was launched without a proper basis.
The report states the FBIâs move to launch the Trump investigation âbased on raw, unanalyzed, and uncorroborated intelligence also reflected a noticeable departure from how it approachedâ allegations involving Clinton.
It alleges the FBI was more skeptical of allegations foreign governments considered donating to Hillary Clintonâs campaign to gain influence.
Durham also found FBI officials did not conduct a thorough enough review of information it took in from groups or people with a political affiliation. And his report accused the FBI of relying on leads from Trumpâs political opponents.
In 2019, Special Counsel Robert Muellerreleased a report that found ânumerous links between the Russian government and the Trump Campaign.â However, he did not find evidence to back up allegations of a conspiracy.
And in December 2019, Justice Department Inspector General Michael Horowitz released a report sharing several âsignificant concernsâ about the FBIâs Russia probe.
His report listed several âfactual misstatements and omissionsâ made to help get a warrant for Trump campaign aide Carter Paige.
However, he stated, âOpening the investigation was in compliance with and FBI policies, and we did not find documentary or testimonial evidence that political bias or improper motivation influencedâ the investigation.
After Durhamâs report was released, Trump told Fox News, âI, and much more importantly, the American public have been victims of this long-running and treasonous charade started by the Democrats â started by Comey.â
âThere must be a heavy price to pay for putting our country through this,â he continued, adding, âIt turned out to be a giant and very dangerous hoax.â