A GOP Congressman started a firestorm Tuesday after he twitted out that his office had information which hinted at the fact that the FBI actually leaked information to the press which it then turned and used as an excuse to obtain FISA surveillance warrants.
This newest claim stems from FBI intelligence analyst Jonathan Moffa’s Friday testimony behind closed doors before the House Judiciary and Oversight committees.
We've learned NEW information suggesting our suspicions are true: FBI/DOJ have previously leaked info to the press, and then used those same press stories as a separate source to justify FISA's
Unreal. Tomorrow's Bruce Ohr interview is even more critical. Did he ever do this?
— Mark Meadows (@MarkMeadows) August 28, 2018
Fox News later reported that a source with knowledge of the testimony confirmed Meadow’s claims. And he went as far as to tell the news agency that Moffa, who worked with controversial former FBI officials Peter Strzok and Lisa Page, acknowledged this “had been a practice in the past.”
Republicans have questioned to exactly what extent leaked information was used when it came to the anti-Trump dossier which is said to have been used as the main basis to get FISA courts to sign off on the surveillance of many on the Donald Trump campaign.
The source continued by telling Fox News that Moffa did not specifically confirm or deny whether these leaks here, in fact, used when it came to the dossier but he did confirm that it was used in other cases prior.
“Republican member of the House Oversight Committee Mark Meadows says he has ‘about 60 questions’ for the DOJ official about his connection to the anti-Trump dossier, says the integrity of the FBI and the Department of Justice are at stake.
A government official, however, pushed back, saying that the account was incorrect and that Moffa did not testify to this.
And another source familiar with Moffa’s testimony offered a more nuanced version of events. The source told Fox News that Moffa said the FBI keeps track of open source reports related to their cases — and when asked whether a FISA application would reference a news account, he said it could be possible, hypothetically, but the FBI aims to find better information.