Wife of demoted DOJ official worked for firm behind anti-Trump dossier

A senior Justice Department official demoted last week for concealing his meetings with the men behind the anti-Trump “dossier” had even closer ties to Fusion GPS, the firm responsible for the incendiary document, than have been disclosed, Fox News has confirmed: The official’s wife worked for Fusion GPS during the 2016 election.

Contacted by Fox News, investigators for the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence (HPSCI) confirmed that Nellie H. Ohr, wife of the demoted official, Bruce G. Ohr, worked for the opposition research firm last year. The precise nature of Mrs. Ohr’s duties – including whether she worked on the dossier – remains unclear but a review of her published works available online reveals Mrs. Ohr has written extensively on Russia-related subjects. HPSCI staff confirmed to Fox News that she was paid by Fusion GPS through the summer and fall of 2016.

Fusion GPS has attracted scrutiny because Republican lawmakers have spent the better part of this year investigating whether the dossier, which was funded by the Hillary Clinton campaign and the Democratic National Committee, served as the basis for the Justice Department and the FBI to obtain FISA surveillance last year on a Trump campaign adviser named Carter Page.

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Top DOJ official demoted after contact with dossier authors

“The House Intelligence Committee,” Chairman Devin Nunes, R-Calif., told Fox News in a statement on Monday, “is looking into all facets of the connections between the Department of Justice and Fusion GPS, including Mr. Ohr.”
Until Dec. 6, when Fox News began making inquiries about him, Bruce Ohr held two titles at DOJ. He was, and remains, director of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force; but his other job was far more senior. Mr. Ohr held the rank of associate deputy attorney general, a post that gave him an office four doors down from Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein. The day before Fox News reported that Mr. Ohr held his secret meetings last year with the founder of Fusion GPS, Glenn Simpson, and with Christopher Steele, the former British spy who compiled the dossier, the Justice Department stripped Ohr of his deputy title and ousted him from his fourth floor office at the building that DOJ insiders call “Main Justice.”
The Department of Justice has provided no public explanation for Ohr’s demotion. Officials inside the Department have told Fox News his wearing of two hats was “unusual,” but also confirm Ohr had withheld his contacts with the Fusion GPS men from colleagues at the DOJ.

Bruce G. Ohr was demoted at the DOJ for concealing his meetings with the men behind the anti-Trump 'dossier.'  (AP)

Former FBI Director James Comey has described the dossier as a compendium of “salacious and unverified” allegations about then-candidate Donald Trump and his associates, including Page, a foreign policy adviser. The dossier was provided to the FBI in July 2016, shortly before then-candidate Donald Trump accepted the Republican presidential nomination. As Comey later testified, it was in that same month that the FBI began a counterintelligence probe of alleged collusion between the Trump campaign and the Russian government.
The disclosure by Fox News that Bruce Ohr met with Simpson and Steele last year expanded the reach of the dossier’s creators from the FBI into the top echelons of the Justice Department. Initial investigation suggested that Steele, a longtime FBI informant whose contacts with Mr. Ohr are said to date back a decade, might have played the central role in putting Simpson together with the associate deputy attorney general. Now, the revelation that Mrs. Ohr worked for Simpson calls that account into question.
A review of open source materials shows Mrs. Ohr was described as a Russia expert at the Wilson Center, a Washington think tank, when she worked there, briefly, a decade ago. The Center’s website said her project focused on the experiences of Russian farmers during Stalin’s collectivization program and following the invasion of Russia by Nazi forces in 1941. She has also reviewed a number of books about twentieth century Russia, including Reconstructing the State: Personal Networks and Elite Identity in Soviet Russia (2000), by Gerald Easter, a political scientist at Boston College, and Bertrand M. Patenaude’s The Big Show in Bololand: The American Relief Expedition to Soviet Russia in the Famine of 1921 (2002).
Contacted by Fox News late Monday, DOJ officials declined to comment.
Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., the ranking Democrat on the intelligence committee, declined to comment on the original disclosure about Mr. Ohr’s secret meetings, and did not immediately respond to a request for comment about Mrs. Ohr.
While Nunes has issued numerous subpoenas to DOJ and FBI relating to the dossier, and has threatened contempt-of-Congress citations against Rosenstein and FBI Director Christopher Wray for what congressional Republicans have termed “stonewalling” by the two agencies, Schiff has mostly objected to the demands for documents and witnesses, casting the entire dossier probe as innately political. “I think there's a hope that if they can impeach Christopher Steele, and they can impeach the FBI and DOJ, maybe they can impeach the whole Russia investigation,” Schiff told MSNBC in September.

Why Port Authority attack proves Islamist terror is a threat to our homeland

Today’s terror attack in New York City is another reminder that the threats we face from Islamist terrorists are real and can bring serious harm to our homeland.

Thanks to American leadership and a new strategy on the battlefield, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi was able to declare that ISIS has been defeated in Iraq. While this is welcome news, crushing the so-called ‘caliphate’ in the Middle East, allows foreign fighters and sympathizers of ISIS and Al Qaeda to scatter.

They are returning to their home countries, looking for different ways to keep their hateful ideology alive and creating new dangers in other parts of the world. This has brought a new wave of terror attacks to the West.
European cities once known for their culture and history, are becoming well known for deadly attacks. They include London, Brussels, Paris, Nice, Barcelona and Berlin. And the bombing at the Port Authority this morning is already the second attack in New York in under two months.

As Americans, we cannot forget that we are in this fight together. Terrorists do not check our political affiliations before they carry out an attack.

Islamist extremists are clearly answering the call of Sheik Adnani to kill Westerners using whatever means necessary wherever they are. Since our enemies our constantly adjusting their tactics, we must remain agile in defense of our nation.
To defeat these threats, we need to work with tech companies like Google, Facebook and Twitter to take down radical propaganda that preaches hate and recruits new members to the terrorist cause. The advancement of technology has brought great benefits, but is has also been a powerful tool for our adversaries. The internet been a constant lifeline, allowing them to effectively plot and communicate at lightning speed.
We must also bolster the security of our airports with the most advanced screening technology available. Even though many of the attacks in the last year have been vehicular homicides, our aviation sector is still the “crown jewel” of targets.
Lastly, the U.S. must continue to lead an international alliance dedicated to using all of its economic, intelligence, military, and other resources to dry up funding for terrorists and destroy them on the battlefield.
As Americans, we cannot forget that we are in this fight together. Terrorists do not check our political affiliations before they carry out an attack. We will have political differences on many issues, but our commitment to keeping our homeland safe and secure should be a national priority for everyone.
We cannot allow the cowardly acts of terrorists to shake our will or dent our morale. With sound policies and innovative approaches to homeland security and by staying united and maintaining our resolve, we will defeat this evil enemy once and for all.
Republican Michael McCaul, represents Texas' 10th Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives. He serves as chairman of the House Committee on Homeland Security.

FBI's McCabe 'has an Ohr problem,' will not testify on Tuesday, source says

Deputy FBI Director Andrew McCabe, who was reportedly scheduled to testify behind closed doors in front of the House Intelligence Committee on Tuesday, will instead meet next week due to a "scheduling error," Department of Justice officials told Fox News.

McCabe’s testimony was likely to, at least in part, focus on Peter Strzok’s role in the Hillary Clinton email investigation.

Strzok is a former deputy to the assistant director at the FBI who was removed from Special Counsel Robert Mueller's staff after Mueller learned Strzok had exchanged anti-Trump texts with a colleague.
House investigators previously told Fox News they have long regarded Strzok as a key figure in the chain of events when the bureau, in 2016, received the infamous anti-Trump “dossier,” which launched a counterintelligence investigation into possible Russian meddling in the election.
“This was a routine scheduling error after the dates were switched on an internal email that we are happy to provide the committee,” a Justice Department official told Fox News. “The FBI regrets the error, and we look forward to making both witnesses (the alleged FBI handler for Christopher Steele and McCabe) available prior to the Christmas recess."

Bruce Ohr Ohr was recently demoted from one of his two senior posts, Fox News has learned.  (AP)

Steele is a former British spy who reportedly compiled a dossier of allegations about President Trump’s ties to Russia. He is
Fox News was told by those familiar with the matter that the intelligence committee is suspicious of the purported scheduling error. One source said they believe the schedule issue arose after Fox News' report Monday night on Department of Justice official Bruce Ohr.
Ohr was recently demoted from one of his two senior posts. Fox News reported that Ohr’s wife, Nellie Ohr, worked through last fall for Fusion GPS, which was behind the anti-Trump dossier.
The precise nature of Mrs. Ohr’s duties – including whether she worked on the dossier – remains unclear but a review of her published works available online reveals Mrs. Ohr has written extensively on Russia-related subjects.

Deputy FBI Director Andrew McCabe will meet with the House Intelligence Committee next week.  (Reuters)

“McCabe has an Ohr problem,” one Congressional source said.
The supposition is that Justice Department officials realized McCabe would face questions about Ohr and he is not prepared to respond.
The committee is prepared to subpoena all Justice Department documents and records related to the scheduling debacle, the source said. The committee is also prepared to subpoena McCabe to compel his testimony later this week.
Some Capitol Hill sources have expressed reservations that McCabe could retire before various Congressional investigators get to him.

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'Stain on America!' Trump denounces 'Fake News Media' after string of major reporting errors exposed

President Trump on Sunday slammed “the Fake News Media,” which he called “out of control,” after a string of major errors in reporting on his presidency emerged over the past week.

“Very little discussion of all the purposely false and defamatory stories put out this week by the Fake News Media,” he tweeted. “They are out of control - correct reporting means nothing to them.”

The president continued, “Major lies written, then forced to be withdrawn after they are exposed...a stain on America!”
Trump’s comments came after a Washington Post reporter tweeted a misleading photo about the crowd size at Friday’s rally in Pensacola, Fla., during which Trump took aim at ABC News’ Brian Ross and CNN.
In a now-deleted tweet, the Post’s Dave Weigel posted a photo of a half-empty arena to mock Trump for saying the rally was “packed to the rafters.”
But that photo was not taken while Trump was speaking. Trump tweeted photos showing the arena when it was full.
“.@daveweigel @washingtonpost put out a phony photo of an empty arena hours before I arrived @ the venue, w/ thousands of people outside, on their way in,” he tweeted. “Real photos now shown as I spoke. Packed house, many people unable to get in. Demand apology & retraction from FAKE NEWS WaPo!”
Weigel tweeted, “Sure thing: I apologize,” saying he deleted the photo after another reporter informed him he had “gotten it wrong.”
“It was a bad tweet on my personal account, not a story for Washington Post. I deleted it after like 20 minutes. Very fair to call me out,” Weigel said in another tweet.
Trump later called for Weigel to be fired.
Earlier at the Friday rally itself, Trump slammed ABC News’ Brian Ross.
“They took this fraudster from ABC -- they suspended him for a month,” he said. “They should have fired him for what he wrote.”
Ross was suspended for four weeks without pay after he reported that former national security adviser Michael Flynn had been directed by Trump -- when he was a candidate for president -- to make contact with the Russians. ABC News later corrected the report to note that the order to Flynn came when Trump was already president-elect.
Trump also said Friday that CNN had apologized “just a little while ago” for a reporting error.
“They apologized! Oh thank you, CNN. Thank you so much. You should have been apologizing for the last two years,” he said.
CNN had to correct a story that suggested the Trump campaign, including Donald Trump Jr., had been tipped off early about hacked DNC emails from WikiLeaks when it later emerged that the alert was about material already publicly available.
CNN responded, “CNN's initial reporting of the date on an email sent to members of the Trump campaign about Wikileaks documents, which was confirmed by two sources to CNN, was incorrect. We have updated our story to include the correct date, and present the proper context for the timing of email.”
No disciplinary action will be taken in the matter, a CNN official said in a tweet.
On Saturday, Trump accused CNN of “a vicious and purposeful mistake.”

Touring Mississippi civil rights museum, Trump honors those 'who sacrificed so much'

President Trump attended the opening of the Mississippi Civil Rights Museum on Saturday, telling visitors the venue honors “the brave men and women who sacrificed so much” for freedom.

“We are here to honor the fight to end slavery … to join the right to vote and to gain birth-right equality.”

“We are here to honor the fight to end slavery … to join the right to vote and to gain birth-right equality,” Trump said in brief, subdued speech. 

Trump’s planned visit to the museum and the adjoining Mississippi history museum in Jackson sparked days of controversy -- including protests and boycotts from civil right leaders like Rep. John Lewis, D-Ga., and others who have raised concerns about the president’s comment and actions toward women, African-Americans and others.

"After President Trump departs, we encourage all Mississippians and Americans to visit this historic civil rights museum.”

- Joint statement by Reps. John Lewis, D-Ga., and Bennie Thompson, D-Miss.

“President Trump’s attendance and his hurtful policies are an insult to the people portrayed in this civil rights museum,” Lewis said in a joint statement with fellow Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss. “After President Trump departs, we encourage all Mississippians and Americans to visit this historic civil rights museum.”
The lawmakers said Trump’s remarks about women, the disabled, immigrants and National Football League players “disrespect” the efforts of past Mississippi civil right leaders including Fannie Lou Hamer.
The White House earlier this week said it was disappointed that Lewis and others wouldn’t join the president at the museum to honor “the incredible sacrifice civil rights leaders made to right the injustices in our history.”
The president tweeted after touring the museum and speaking: "It was my great honor to celebrate the opening of two extraordinary museums ... . We pay solemn tribute to our heroes of the past & dedicate ourselves to building a future of freedom, equality, justice & peace."
Trump was joined by Housing Secretary Ben Carson, civil rights movement activist Myrlie Evers, and Gov. Phil Bryant, Sen. Roger Wicker and Rep. Gregg Harper -- all Mississippi Republicans.
According to the White House, the civil rights museum has eight interactive galleries that highlight the struggle for freedom and shares stories about the Mississippi movement that changed the nation. It “aims to promote greater understanding of the systematic oppression of black Mississippians and their fight for equality that transformed the state and nation,” the White House said.

Pro-Trump students in MAGA hats booted from 'safe space' campus coffee shop

A viral video shows a group of conservative Fordham University students in New York City being kicked out of a campus coffeehouse after being told their pro-Trump “Make America Great Again” hats violated the shop’s “safe space” policy.

"Fox & Friends" aired on Sunday a portion of the video, which shows the group being told, “I don’t want people like you supporting this club.”

The video was shot Thursday at Fordham’s student-run Rodrigue’s Coffee House.
“No one here wants people like you supporting our club,” a Rod’s student volunteer employee is heard saying. “I’m giving you 5 minutes.”
She goes on to say, “You are threatening the integrity of our club. This is a community standard. You are wearing hats that completely violate safe space policy. You have to take if off or you have to go.”
Fordham junior Aaron Spring, 20, says he just wanted a cup of coffee.
“I didn’t make any noise,” he said, according to "Fox & Friends." “I wasn’t rude. I didn’t curse at anybody. I was just sitting enjoying a cup of coffee with friends.”
The video was first shown by Campus Reform. It has been viewed more than 67,000 times as of Sunday.
The website reported that Spring and his pals were given a handout titled “Rodrigue’s Coffee Shop has a safer space policy,” prohibiting racism, sexism and homophobia and urging patrons to be mindful of the ways in which their words and actions can impact others.
A Fordham spokesman told Fox News in a statement Sunday that there is no such policy on campus.
“There is no University safe space policy, nor one that excludes any members of the Fordham community from any public spaces on the basis of their political views,” spokesman Bob Howe said.
He said Fordham is a community that values diverse opinions, and in which students should disagree with one another in a civil fashion.
Howe said Fordham is investigating the incident.

Jerry Brown: Trump doesn't fear 'the wrath of God'

California Gov. Jerry Brown said Sunday President Trump's apparent lack of fear "of the wrath of God" explains his denial of climate change.
"I don't think — President Trump has a fear of the Lord, the fear of the wrath of God, which leads one to more humility," Brown told CBS' "60 Minutes."
"And, this is such a reckless disregard for the truth and for the existential consequences that can be unleashed," he continued, referring to climate scientists who believe global warming is due to the burning of fossil fuels.
Brown, who is currently battling some of the worst wildfires in his state's history, said nature is not "a political game."

The governor, however, called on Trump to re-evaluate his decision to withdraw the U.S. from the Paris climate accord, which he announced in June.
"The truth of the case is that there's too much carbon being emitted, that heat-trapping gasses are building up, the planet is warming and all hell is breaking loose," he said. "So I'd say to Mr. Trump, take a deeper look. Now is not the time to undo what every country in the world is committed to."