The “future of this country” depends on who is indicted next in special counsel John Durham’s criminal inquiry into the Russia investigation, warned a top House Republican.
Rep. Devin Nunes, ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee, said Thursday that trust in the Justice Department and FBI among conservatives nationwide hangs in the balance.
“The Biden DOJ can let people off if they would like,” the congressman from California said during a Fox News interview, referring to ex-FBI official Andrew McCabe winning back his full pension as part of a settlement with the Justice Department in a wrongful termination lawsuit.
“Durham is still out there,” he said. “For the Department of Justice and the FBI to have any support amongst conservatives or half of this country, it’s going to really depend on who Durham indicts, and I think that is what a lot of us are waiting for.”
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Two people have been charged in Durham’s yearslong investigation into the origins and conduct of the Russia investigation.
Durham obtained a guilty plea from former FBI lawyer Kevin Clinesmith, who admitted to altering an email about a Trump campaign aide under government surveillance. Last month, a grand jury indictment was levied against Michael Sussmann, a cybersecurity lawyer accused of lying to the FBI.
Sussmann, a former attorney at Perkins Coie, is accused of falsely telling the top FBI lawyer he was not representing any clients when acting on behalf of a technology executive and Hillary Clinton’s 2016 presidential campaign. During the meeting in question in September 2016, he shared information on possible links between former President Donald Trump and Russia.
Sussmann pleaded not guilty to a charge of lying to the FBI, with lawyers insisting he never said he didn’t have clients and was representing only the technology executive.
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Some Trump allies, including Nunes, have described the Sussmann indictment as evidence that Durham is ready to crack down on an alleged Russia collusion conspiracy involving the Clinton campaign and its allies.
“It appears like he is moving in the right direction, and hopefully, he gets to finish his investigation so we can get closure for this,” said Nunes, alluding to the prospect that Attorney General Merrick Garland could suddenly move to bury the investigation.
Durham was a U.S. attorney appointed by former Attorney General William Barr to investigate the origins and conduct of the Trump-Russia investigation and received special counsel status last year to continue his work during the Biden administration.
Durham’s endeavor has long been criticized by Democrats and legal observers who claim the inquiry is meant to undercut Robert Mueller’s special counsel investigation into alleged ties between the Trump 2016 campaign and Russia. Still, Trump and his allies have championed the investigation as a means to root out corrupt officials and settle political scores.
During the Fox News interview, Nunes also scoffed at the news that Bill Clinton’s former communications director, George Stephanopoulos, scored an interview with former MI6 agent Christopher Steele. Steele compiled the salacious and discredited anti-Trump “Steele dossier” after being hired by the opposition research firm Fusion GPS, which had been hired by the Clinton campaign.
The congressman said it is an “embarrassment” for Hulu, airing the interview on Oct. 18, and Disney, which owns a majority stake in the streaming service. Nunes also noted the timing of the interview after stating Steele was uncooperative with the House Intelligence Committee’s own Russia investigation.
“There is probably more to come. I’m sure it will be quite a comical and entertaining movie,” he said.
