FBI

New GOP narrative emerges it was Antifa and not Trump supporters that stormed the Capitol, FBI classifies act ‘domestic terrorism’

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Pro-Trump politicians and right-wing media figures Sarah Palin, Laura Ingraham, Matt Gaetz, Sean Hannity, Wisc. Sen. Ron Johnson, MyPillow chief Mike Lindell, and a growing chorus of Republicans magnified by right-wing media are repeating the claim that it was Antifa and “fake Trump protesters” that stormed the Capitol.

Meanwhile, FBI chief Christopher Wray has classified the assault as “domestic terrorism.”

“This attack, this siege was criminal behavior, plain and simple. And this behavior, which we, the FBI, see as domestic terrorism, has no place in our democracy,” said Wray Tuesday at a hearing in the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Despite denials from pro-Trump participants in the Capitol siege that there were Antifa supporters in their midst, Rep. Gaetz, who stood on the ransacked House floor and claimed that many rioters “were members of the violent terrorist group Antifa,” repeated the claim again at CPAC this past weekend.

The repetition of the new narrative reaches audiences that have been told for months by Trump that Antifa is a dangerous terror group, providing an alternative that could be easier to accept than that of MAGA fans as domestic terrorists.

By Milan Sime Martinic

Comey Testifies About Trump Meetings

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Fired FBI Director James Comey has delivered a prepared statement to Congress this week.

The statement described the six meetings Comey had with the president, some of which are considered quite unusual by analysts.

During one meeting with Trump, Comey testified, he shared with the president sensitive information of a salacious nature that had been gathered as part of the FBI’s Russia investigation. At another meeting Trump asked everyone to leave except Comey and then spoke about “letting Flynn go.”

Trump several times referred to “a cloud” being over the White House because of the Russia investigation, according to Comey, who also related that Trump told him “had not been involved with hookers in Russia,” among other references.

Trump’s attorney issued a statement that he felt vindicated because Comey had said Trump himself was not under investigation.

NYT Says Trump Urged Comey to Drop Russia Investigation

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The New York Times has reported that, according to James Comey, Trump tried to get a “pledge of loyalty” from the former FBI head, which Comey would not give, days before Trump fired Comey. There were questions flying around if the reason for the firing was Comey’s refusal.

NYT reported that Comey became concerned about what was going on between the president and himself and kept memos of the conversations which he shared with associates. They reported that during a Feb. 14 private meeting, Trump expressed concern about leaks and suggested maybe they should throw a couple of reporters in jail to send a message. Trump also talked to Comey about Michael Flynn, who he fired earlier for his relations with Russia, and suggested Comey just let Flynn go, which Comey interpreted as dropping the investigation into Flynn’s dealings, according to the Times.

The White House responded to the NYT article, stating it was “not a truthful or accurate portrayal of the conversation.”

Comey Asked to Testify Before Senate as a Private Citizen

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One day after he was fired as FBI Director by Trump, senators from both sides of the isle asked Comey to appear before the committee next week, reportedly.

It is not known whether the session will be public. Comey would be allowed to speak on classified intelligence to Senators in a classified setting as a private citizen, but in public classified information would not be given, although Comey’s personal thoughts on the matter might be more forthcoming than if he were still employed by the FBI.

Comey later declined the request. The President tweeted that Comey “better hope there are no ‘tapes'” of the conversation the two shared, but it is not known whether this was related to Comey’s decision.

Trump Fires FBI Director James Comey

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“Today, President Donald J. Trump informed FBI Director James Comey that he has been terminated and removed from office,” read the statement issued by the White House Tuesday.

“President Trump acted based on the clear recommendations of both Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein and Attorney General Jeff Sessions.”

Comey was heading the FBI investigation into the possible Russian hacking of Clinton’s email servers and whether there was any collusion on the part of Trump associates. A similar investigation is also being conducted by both the Senate Intelligence Committee and the House Intelligence Committee. So far, there is no evidence that there was collusion.

Comey Firing: Conflicting Messages

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In the wake of Trump’s firing of the former FBI director for what Trump called “not doing a good job,” conflicting public messages have come out in favor of and against James Comey.

Testimony by acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe (who was until 3 days ago deputy director) in front of Senate Intelligence Committee members included his defending Comey as a man of integrity who has broad support in the FBI to this day. Others also came out in defence of Comey’s reputation in the face of White House allegations.

On Facebook at least a dozen FBI agents changed their profile photos of or including James Comey. a gesture usually reserved for slain colleagues.

Everyone Needs to Update their Windows ASAP, or Risk Being Locked Out of Their Computers, Security Experts Say

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The WannaCry virus that shut down the UK health system this week is still making its rounds. It has now reached 150 countries and is continuing to spread.

It is expected that the hackers behind the ransomware will update it Monday, so it will be even more dangerous.

Computer security experts say that everyone should update their Windows OS, and back up all their data, because the virus is one that doesn’t even need computer users to click anything; it is making its way around the internet searching for Windows that aren’t updated. There is a known vulnerability in Windows that was exposed by an FBI data leak earlier this year. It seems hackers have based WannaCry on this known Windows vulnerability.

When a computer gets infected, all the data on it is encrypted and the owner no longer can access their files until they pay $300 in Bitcoin.