The House Intelligence Committee Hearing: Missing Questions
Editorial
Politics, Americas
Rep. Schiff and many other Democrats apparently want to broaden and deepen the existing confrontation between the United States and Russia without giving any thought to its possible consequences.
The New York Times described FBI director James Comey’s statement during a March 20 congressional hearing that his agency is conducting a counterintelligence investigation of possible collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia as an “extraordinary step.” But what is truly extraordinary is the media’s—and the congressional Democrats’—failure to approach the very serious questions surrounding Russia’s interference in the 2016 election with the responsibility and honest self-reflection they so clearly deserve.
That Director Comey should acknowledge a counterintelligence investigation is not even news. Americans have known that the FBI was investigating Russia’s role in the election and any connections to the Trump campaign for several months now. Seventeen U.S. intelligence agencies issued a public report on this matter on January 6, 2017, over two months ago. It would have been newsworthy if Comey had said there was no investigation or that the investigation was complete.
Moreover, Comey described a counterintelligence investigation, which is a routine and appropriate response to concerns surrounding Russia’s actions. A counterintelligence investigation aims to determine what happened, to draw lessons from what transpired to strengthen U.S. defenses, and to explore whether any criminal conduct occurred. The New York Times—or other mainstream media outlets—could equally easily have run a story stating that the FBI director did not refer to any criminal investigations with a headline stating that the bureau had not yet found evidence of wrongdoing. Yet this does not appear to fit their predetermined narrative. Indeed, the Times buried this idea deep within its story, stating that “such inquiries rarely lead to criminal charges.”
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