Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) blasted FBI Director Christopher Wray for dodging a question by a Democrat about the agency’s FISA searches at a hearing on Wednesday and specifically asked the question. “Are you protecting the Bidens?”
During questioning, Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-CA) asked Wray if the FBI is “purchasing location data from commercial sources without a warrant” at the House Judiciary Committee hearing.
Wray responded that it was a complex issue, and he could not completely answer it, requesting to have his staff follow up.
In the news: Rep. Gaetz Demands End To Controversial FISA Law That Feds Tapped To Target Americans
“This is an area that requires a little more precision and context for me to be able to answer that fully so let me have my staff follow back up to you so that I make sure that I don’t leave something important out.” Wray said.
As his questioning time began, Gaetz blasted Wray.
“The American people need to understand what just happened. My colleague, my Democrat colleague just asked the Director of the FBI whether or not they are buying information about our fellow Americans. And the answer is, ‘Well, we’ll just have to get back to you on that sounds really complicated.’ But I have other questions,” said Gaetz.
Gaetz then quoted Hunter Biden, “‘I’m sitting here with my father; I will make certain that between the man sitting next to me and every person he knows and my ability to forever hold a grudge that you will regret not following my direction. I am sitting here waiting for the call with my father.’ Sounds like a shakedown doesn’t it, director?”
“I’m not gonna get into commenting on,” said Wray.
“You. You seem deeply uncurious about it, don’t you? Almost suspiciously uncurious. Are you protecting the Bidens?” asked Gaetz.
“Absolutely not. The FBI does not, has no interest in protecting anyone politically,” answered Wray.
“During today’s House Judiciary Committee hearing on the “Oversight of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)”, U.S. Congressman Matt Gaetz (FL-01) slammed FBI Director Christopher Wray for a multitude of egregious acts committed by the bureau, including mass abuse of Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) and lack of investigating the Biden family,” said Gaetz’s office in a statement.
Full Transcript:
Rep. Gaetz: The American people need to understand what just happened. My colleague, my Democrat colleague just ask the Director of the FBI, whether or not they are buying information about our fellow Americans. And the answer is, ‘well, we’ll just have to get back to you on that sounds really complicated.’ But I have other questions. ‘I’m sitting here with my father; I will make certain that between the man sitting next to me and every person he knows and my ability to forever hold a grudge that you will regret not following my direction. I am sitting here waiting for the call with my father.’ Sounds like a shakedown doesn’t it, director?
FBI Director Wray: I’m not gonna get into commenting on
Rep. Gaetz: You. You seem deeply uncurious about it, don’t you? Almost suspiciously uncurious. Are you protecting the Bidens?
FBI Director Wray: Absolutely not. The FBI does not, has no interest in protecting anyone politically.
Rep. Gaetz: You won’t answer the question about whether or not that’s a shakedown? And everybody knows why you won’t answer it. Because to the millions of people who will see this, they know it is and your inability to acknowledge that is deeply revealing about you. But let’s go from the uncurious to the downright nosy. How many illegal FISA queries have occurred under your leadership of the FBI?
FBI Director Wray: Well, there are reports that have come out with different numbers about compliance incidents.
Rep. Gaetz: More than a million illegal ones? Because that’s what the Inspector General said. The Inspector General said that in the 3.4 million of these queries, more than a million were an error. Do you have any basis to disagree with that, that assessment by the Inspector General?
FBI Director Wray: I’m not? I’m not sure. Actually. That’s a correct characterization of the Inspector General’s findings on that.
Rep. Gaetz: Oh, well, the internet will remind you of that in moments. But but let’s now go to what the court said. The court said it was over 200,000 that have occurred on your watch. Would you have any basis to disagree with that assessment?
FBI Director Wray: Again, I don’t have the numbers. I sit here right now what I can say.
Rep. Gaetz: Seems like a number you should know. How many times the FBI’s breaking the law under your watch, especially if it’s like over a million to not know that number, and I’m worried about your veracity on the subject as well. Play this play the video.
Rep. Gaetz: So so there, Senator Lee’s asking you whether or not FISA was in any way involved in your January 6 investigation. and you say no. Was that truthful?
FBI Director Wray: I said that I did not believe it was.
Rep. Gaetz: Okay. So now let’s pull up what the court said, which is something a little different than what you said.
Rep. Gaetz: So, so here, no, that’s not the right one. Yeah, here we go. Right there. It says the government has reported additional significant violations of the queering standard, including several relating to the January 6, 2021, breach at the Capitol. So, I guess the question Director Wray is: Did you not know when you were answering these questions that the FBI was engaging in these illegal searches? Or did you perjure yourself to Senator Lee?
FBI Director Wray: I certainly didn’t perjure myself at the time that I testified in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee. I didn’t have that piece of information. I will add.
Rep. Gaetz: Well, that was a court order. You didn’t have that piece of information because the court hadn’t yet rendered a judgment. Did you not know when you gave the untruthful answer before Senator Lee that this was going on?
FBI Director Wray: It was. It was a truthful answer. I did not believe FISA had been involved in January.
Rep. Gaetz: It was. So, you didn’t. The answer is the FBI has broken so bad that people can go and engage in queries that when you come before the Congress to answer questions, you’re like blissfully ignorant. You’re blissfully ignorant as to the unlawful queries, you’re blissfully ignorant as to the Biden shakedown regime. And it just seems like it gets into a kind of a creepy place as well go to our next image on what the court said. Like just so the American people realize, the court has smacked you down, alleging or ruling FBI personnel apparently conducted queries for improper personal reasons. People were looking themselves up, they were looking their ex-lovers up who has been held accountable or fired as a consequence of the FBI using the FISA process is their like, creepy personal snooping machine.
FBI Director Wray: There have been instances in which individuals have had disciplinary action.
Rep. Gaetz: Name them
FBI Director Wray: And they no longer with it. I can’t get into it here, but we can follow back up.
Rep. Gaetz: But don’t you see. Don’t you see that, that’s kind of the thing Director Wray. That you preside over the FBI that has the lowest level of trust in the FBI is history. People trusted the FBI more when J. Edgar Hoover was running the place that when you are, and the reason is because you don’t give straight answers. You give answers that that later a court deems aren’t true. And then at the end of the day, you won’t criticize is an obvious shakedown when it’s directly in front of us, and it appears as though you’re white washing the conduct of corrupt people.
FBI Director Wray: Respectfully congressman, in your home state of Florida, the number of people applying to come work for us and devote their lives working for us is over, up over 100%.
Rep. Gaetz: We’re deeply proud of them and they deserve better than you.
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