Horowitz report expected to clear FBI of misdeeds in Russia probe

by Marty Johnson - 12/07/19 4:05 PM ET

The Justice Department’s report that is expected to conclude that the FBI’s federal investigation into potential links between Russia and President Trump’s 2016 campaign wasn’t politically motivated will be released Monday.

Inspector General Michael Horowitz, who wrote the report, is said to have found that there was enough evidence to justify the FBI wiretapping Carter Page, Trump’s former campaign adviser who reportedly had contact with Russian officials multiple times.

People familiar with the report told the Los Angeles Times that the contents of the report will not only exonerate the FBI but also largely dismiss claims from the Trump administration and its allies that the federal agency broke the law in search of evidence and purposely went after Trump’s campaign.

“Now, what you’re going to see, I predict, will be perhaps the biggest scandal in the history of our country,” Trump told Fox News last month.

That said, people close to the report also told the newspaper that Horowitz did find several instances of FBI agents and officers acting in careless and unprofessional ways.

The Senate Judiciary Committee has scheduled a public hearing Wednesday to hear Horowitz’s report.

Justice Department spokeswoman Kerri Kupec said in a statement that Horowitz has done “excellent work.”

“Rather than speculating, people should just read the report for themselves next week, watch the Inspector General’s testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee, and draw their own conclusions about these important matters,” she said.