what did fbi attorney baker say

by Davon Hettinger 8 min read

In 2007, according to The Washington Post, Baker revealed that he had informed Attorney General Alberto Gonzales "about mistakes the FBI has made or problems or violations or compliance incidents" prior to Gonzales' April 2005 testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee that " [t]here has not been one verified case of civil liberties abuse" after 2001.

Full Answer

Is James Baker still with the FBI?

Oct 26, 2021 · Durham to call former FBI general counsel James Baker to testify in case of former Clinton campaign attorney Indictment says Michael Sussmann lied to Baker when he presented data linking Trump ...

Who is James Baker (government attorney)?

Jan 15, 2019 · "The Committees learned that in some instances, high-ranking DOJ and FBI officials, including the FBI General Counsel James Baker and DOJ Associate Deputy Attorney General Bruce Ohr, took the self ...

What happened to James Baker?

Jan 21, 2019 · January 21, 2019 by Jeff Carlson, CFA. Closed-door testimony by former top FBI lawyer James Baker revealed that Michael Sussmann, a lawyer and partner at Perkins Coie, gave Baker information alleging a Russian bank was communicating with a server in Trump Tower—an allegation later proven false. Former FBI General Counsel James Baker.

Who is Tom Baker and what did he do?

Feb 17, 2019 · A former FBI attorney said in testimony that was just released that at least two members of President Donald Trump’s cabinet were prepared to oust him. James Baker, who was the top attorney at the FBI, said in closed door testimony before Congress that he was informed of this by Andrew McCabe and Lisa Page.

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Feb 18, 2022 · Democratic lawyer Michael Sussmann relied in part on legal analysis by fired FBI agent Peter Strzok when arguing that the false statements charge brought against him by special counsel John Durham ...

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What did Baker say during the second day of Baker's testimony?

During the second day of Baker’s testimony, he said that during a subsequent, “follow-up” conversation he understood that Sussmann was also talking to the media, noting that Sussmann had told him “some elements of the press had this information as well and were going to publish something about it.”

Who gave Baker information about Russian bank?

Closed-door testimony by former top FBI lawyer James Baker revealed that Michael Sussmann, a lawyer and partner at Perkins Coie, gave Baker information alleging a Russian bank was communicating with a server in Trump Tower—an allegation later proven false.

Did James Comey ask Baker to go back to Sussmann?

After FBI leadership realized that Sussmann was speaking with the media, Baker was asked, possibly by FBI Director James Comey himself, to go back to Sussmann and see if he would be willing to get The New York Times to delay publishing:

When did Baker meet Sussmann?

Baker’s initial meeting with Sussmann took place on Sept. 19, 2016. The timing is particularly notable as Steele had just produced a series of three new memos dated Sept. 14, 2016. One of these memos directly referenced Alfa Bank—misspelled in Steele’s memo as “Alpha.”

Was Alfa Bank communicating with Russia?

The information that Sussmann provided to Baker on Alfa Bank’s alleged communications with a Trump Tower server was later detailed in a since-debunked article by Slate, “ Was a Trump Server Communicating With Russia .” The article, which was published on Oct. 31, 2016, concerned allegations regarding a server in the Trump Tower that had allegedly been communicating with a server at Alfa Bank in Russia. Both the FBI and The New York Times found the allegations to be unfounded. Nevertheless, the article was used in the promotion of the Trump-Russia collusion narrative.

Who is the FBI's ex director?

For most of the past three years, the FBI has tried to portray its top leadership as united behind ex-Director James Comey. James Brien Comey Biden sister has book deal, set to publish in April Mystery surrounds Justice's pledge on journalist records NYT publisher: DOJ phone records seizure a 'dangerous incursion' on press freedom MORE.

How many emails did the FBI find?

or. "The FBI found 110 emails in 52 email chains that contained information that was classified at the time the messages were sent, Comey said. Eight of those chains contained "top secret" information, the highest level of government classification for material that could harm national security.

What was the protecol used by the Clinton lawyers to sort the work from the personal emails?

The protecol used by the Clinton Lawyers to sort the work from the personal emails was shared with the FBI. Any emails which did not get caught in the protecol search which looked at all like they might have work information were held out and given to the FBI to allow the FBI to decide.

Did Hillary Clinton use a private server?

In recent statements, Krongard held that Hillary Clinton’s use of a private server for virtually all of her work and communications in her role as secretary of state was neither an accident nor an oversight. Rather, claimed Krongard, “It’s clear she did not want to be subject to internal investigations.”.

Did Hillary Clinton set up a state.gov email address?

Krongard believes the choice Hillary made not to set up the state.gov e-mail address was an intentional, premeditated decision. The Harvard-educated Krongard pointed out that from her first day in office, Clinton never requested the state.gov email address to be set up as secretaries of state before her had done.

Did Comey recommend criminal charges?

His boss, Comey, announced on July 5, 2016, that he would not recommend criminal charges. He did so without consulting the Department of Justice, a decision the department’s inspector general (IG) later concluded was misguided and likely usurped the power of the attorney general to make prosecutorial decisions.

Did Hillary Clinton block the State Department IG?

Inspector Generals are chosen by the president, but it is also true that Hillary blocked the seating of a "permanent" State Department IG for the entire length of her tenure. The acting IG's report explicitly contradicted Clinton's repeated assertion that her server was allowed and that no permission was needed.

Why is Baker under investigation?

In 2017, Sinclair -owned Circa reported that Baker was under a Department of Justice criminal investigation for allegedly leaking classified national security information concerning the Trump administration to the media.

What did James Baker do?

Baker joined the Criminal Division of the Department of Justice through the Attorney General's Honors Program in 1990 and went on to work as a federal prosecutor with the division's fraud section. In 1996 he joined Office of Intelligence Policy and Review (OIPR).

When was the Crossfire Hurricane?

Further information: Crossfire Hurricane (FBI investigation) On May 10 , 2019, Baker was interviewed for a taped Lawfare podcast, a justice-focused blog, during which he discussed his role in the FBI investigation of events during the 2016 presidential election that would be taken over by Robert S. Mueller III.

Does Baker support encryption?

Baker had long supported legislation requiring encryption systems to include a means to allow access by law enforcement with a proper warrant. Baker has argued that the cybersecurity threat has become so severe that law enforcement should embrace strong encryption and adapt to the lack of easy access to plaintext messages in a published essay and in a press interview.

Did James Baker receive a memo?

It was revealed on April 19, 2018 that he was a recipient of at least one Comey memo. On May 4, 2018, Baker resigned from the FBI and joined the Brookings Institution as a fellow, writing for the justice-focused blog, Lawfare.

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Overview

James Andrew Baker is a former American government official at the Department of Justice who served as general counsel for the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
A graduate of the University of Notre Dame and the University of Michigan Law School, he joined the Department of Justice in 1990.

Education

Baker is a graduate of the University of Notre Dame and received a J.D. and M.A. from the University of Michigan in 1988. Mr. Baker has taught national security law at Harvard Law School since 2009.

Government service

Baker joined the Criminal Division of the Department of Justice through the Attorney General's Honors Program in 1990 and went on to work as a federal prosecutor with the division's fraud section. In 1996 he joined Office of Intelligence Policy and Review (OIPR). This government agency handles all Justice Department requests for surveillance authorizations under the terms of the 1978 Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, advises the Attorney General and all major intelligence …

Private sector

Baker's government service was interrupted twice by stints in the private sector. Baker was assistant general counsel for national security at Verizon Business from 2008 to 2009. He was associate general counsel with Bridgewater Associates, LP from 2012 to 2014.

Controversy

In 2004, according to The Washington Post, Baker was responsible for the discovery that "the government's failure to share information" regarding the NSA electronic surveillance program had "rendered useless a federal screening system" insisted upon by the United States Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court to prevent "tainted information"—in U.S. case law, "fruit of the poisonous tree"—from being used before the court. Baker was reported to have informed presidi…

2016 presidential election investigation

On May 10, 2019, Baker was interviewed for a taped Lawfare podcast, a justice-focused blog, during which he discussed his role in the FBI investigation of events during the 2016 presidential election that would be taken over by Robert S. Mueller III. Previously Baker had refrained from making public comment. He stated that he felt compelled to speak publicly now that the report is public and being characterized adversely by Trump and some members of his administration.

Views on encryption

Baker had long supported legislation requiring encryption systems to include a means to allow access by law enforcement with a proper warrant. Baker has argued that the cybersecurity threat has become so severe that law enforcement should embrace strong encryption and adapt to the lack of easy access to plaintext messages in a published essay and in a press interview.

See also

• Timeline of investigations into Donald Trump and Russia