Former FBI agent Peter Strzok releasing a book on concerns that Trump could be compromised

by Rachel Scully - 07/28/20 11:53 AM ET

Former FBI counterintelligence agent Peter Strzok is releasing a book detailing his concerns that President Trump could be compromised, The Associated Press reported Tuesday.

Strzok played a key role in former special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into possible ties between the Trump campaign and Russia during the 2016 presidential race. Strzok was fired in 2018 after a series of text messages from August 2016 surfaced in which he says his agency would “stop” then-candidate Trump from becoming president.

“Compromised: Counterintelligence and the Threat of Donald J. Trump” is expected to provide an insider’s view on some of the most notable and politically infamous investigations in modern American history, including the investigation into whether the Trump campaign coordinated with Russia to influence the presidential election.

Mueller’s probe did not find evidence that members of the Trump campaign coordinated or conspired with Russia during the 2016 election. The former FBI director did not make a determination on whether Trump obstructed justice. Trump has denied any wrongdoing and repeatedly called the Russia investigation a “witch hunt” and a “hoax.”

“Russia has long regarded the United States as its ‘Main Enemy,’ and I spent decades trying to protect our country from their efforts to weaken and undermine us,” Strzok said Tuesday in a statement accompanying the book announcement.

“In this book, I use that background to explain how the elevation by President Trump and his collaborators of Trump’s own personal interests over the interests of the country allowed Putin to succeed beyond Stalin’s wildest dreams, and how the national security implications of Putin’s triumph will persist through our next election and beyond,” he added.

His book is set to be released on Sept. 8.

In 2017, Strzok helped lead the investigation into any links between Trump’s campaign and Russia before he was fired after text messages between FBI lawyer Lisa Page and himself became public. Many GOP lawmakers have argued that Strzok participated in a conspiracy against Trump’s presidency.