FBI signals to Carter Page that it has him nailed in Donald Trump’s Russia scandal
Last night I wrote that because the House and Senate Intel Committees are not in session for the next two weeks, and most new political developments have centered around Syria, we may not hear much about the Trump-Russia scandal from the major media outlets until “something new leaks” (link). I knew those leaks would come; I just didn’t know they’d begin already, or that the first one out of the gate would be so substantial. But based on this evening’s report from the Washington Post, it’s become clear the FBI has Trump campaign adviser Carter Page nailed to the wall, and that it’s ready to forcibly flip him.
The leak, which the Post says comes directly from “law enforcement and U.S. officials” (translation: the FBI itself), reveals that the FBI has had a surveillenace warrant on Carter Page since last summer. It’s already known that Trump campaign advisers were picked up incidentally during their communications with outsiders who were under surveillance. And it’s long been alleged that a surveillance warrant for Russian banks included an email server inside Trump Tower. But this warrant on Page is a whole new ballgame. It’s a big revelation, and it may be even bigger news that the FBI is choosing to leak it right now.
This particular leak is not merely an attempt getting cable news to resume covering the Trump-Russia scandal. It’s much bigger than that. This is the FBI sending a clear public signal to Carter Page that it knows everything he’s said and done in the past ten months or so. He knows what he’s guilty of, and as of today, he knows the FBI has him nailed on all of it. He can spend a long time in prison, or he can flip on Donald Trump and the other bigger fish.
This new Washington Post revelation (link) is, I believe, the FBI’s rather forceful way of signaling to Carter Page that it’s time to come in and make a deal. And this is a very big step forward in an investigation that’s now moving full steam ahead. Contribute to Palmer Report
