How right-wing media twisted a filing by special counsel John Durham Near midnight on Friday, Feb. 11, special counsel John Durham made a filing ostensibly about a conflict-of-interest issue regarding his case against Michael Sussmann for allegedly lying to the FBI. What followed in the next 48 hours is a textbook case on how misinformation travels quickly. We devoted two reports to the Durham filing this week. One (detailed below) helps readers get up to speed on the complex case. The second was an examination of how inaccurate spin on the filing — that Hillary Clinton's campaign has spied on Donald Trump, even when he was president — was fueled by anonymous Twitter accounts, such as one called "Techno Fog," conservative journalists, such reporters for the Epoch Times and Red State, and former Trump administration officials. Fox News and Newsmax then led the charge on conservative television, often in misleading ways. Trump issued a statement saying the alleged crimes should be "punishable by death." Because the Durham filing was made late on Friday, the narrative pushed by this group was largely unchallenged over the weekend. Not until Monday did mainstream journalists begin to look into the filing, adding context and reporting, including responses from Sussmann and other players supposedly implicated. By week's end, even Durham distanced himself from the right-wing media furor, telling the court that "if third parties or members of the media have overstated, understated, or otherwise misinterpreted facts contained in the Government's Motion," that should not distract from the purpose of the filing. Durham confirmed the data collection in question took place in 2016, not under Trump. He indicated he might make further filings under seal if, for instance, "the safety of individuals" could be threatened — an apparent reference to Trump's statement. Enjoy this newsletter? Forward it to someone else who'd like it! If this email was forwarded to you, sign up here. Did you hear something fact-checkable? Send it here; we'll check it out. Confused by the Durham probe? This will get you up to speed. John Durham was tasked by former attorney general William P. Barr to investigate the roots of the FBI counterintelligence investigation into the Trump campaign. Since being appointed special counsel 16 months ago, after a preliminary investigation lasting 17 months, Durham has filed two indictments, including one against Sussman. In September, Durham charged Sussmann, a former federal prosecutor with expertise in computer cases, with lying to the FBI during a meeting in 2016. The indictment alleged that he told the FBI he was not acting on behalf of clients when in fact, the indictment said, he was secretly acting on behalf of Clinton's political team and others. Sussmann has pleaded not guilty, and his lawyers have denied he ever said he had no clients. On Sept. 19, 2016, Sussmann told James Baker, general counsel at the FBI, that cybersecurity researchers had found possible evidence of a secret communications channel between computer servers associated with the Trump Organization and with Alfa Bank, a Kremlin-linked financial institution. The FBI investigated Sussmann's tip but concluded that it was not suspicious at all. What's the connection to Clinton? Sussmann worked for Perkins Coie, which was employed by the Clinton presidential campaign. The indictment claims that in Perkins Coie internal paperwork, Sussmann billed his time with Baker to the Clinton campaign. He also billed much of his time on the Alfa Bank matter to the Clinton campaign, according to the indictment. But Sussmann's lawyers have said the billing records are misleading because the Clinton campaign received a flat retainer so the hours did not result in additional charges. In a later filing in October, Durham appeared to acknowledge that he did not have evidence that Sussmann ever spoke directly to the Clinton campaign about Alfa Bank. Instead, he suggests that such communications took place via another Perkins Coie lawyer who was general counsel for the Clinton campaign. We're always looking for fact-check suggestions. You can reach us via email, Twitter (@GlennKesslerWP and @AdriUsero) or Facebook. Read about our process and rating scale here, and sign up for the newsletter here. Scroll down for this week's Pinocchio roundup. | 
Email 
No comments:
Post a Comment