As AG Jeff Sessions says there will be no second special counsel as requested by several members of Congress, Andrew McCabe needs money…apparently.
Andrew McCabe – the top FBI official by fired by Attorney General Jeff Sessions hours before his planned retirement – is now soliciting donations online for his legal defense fund.
“The support for Andrew #McCabe has been overwhelming, humbling & deeply appreciated,” Melissa Schwartz, a spokesperson for McCabe, tweeted Thursday. “Unfortunately, the need for a legal defense fund is a growing reality.”
Schwartz linked to a GoFundMe account sponsored by “Friends of Andrew McCabe” that displays a photo of McCabe and his family. It says it has a goal of $150,000.
The site on Thursday afternoon showed hundreds of people donating between $5 and $1,000 each, totaling almost $60,000.
Sessions fired McCabe earlier this month after the DOJ’s inspector general determined McCabe was not truthful during his review of the Clinton email investigation and the FBI’s Office of Professional Responsibility recommended his firing.
But McCabe has defended his actions, and the GoFundMe description says McCabe’s FBI career was “long, distinguished, and unblemished.”
It says a legal defense fund is needed because he will likely have to respond to congressional inquiries, as well as the Department of Justice’s Inspector General Investigation and “any potential lawsuits he might consider.”
McCabe’s legal team is being led by former Department of Justice Inspector General Michael R. Bromwich.
McCabe was fired just days before he would have been eligible for a lifetime pension, meaning those benefits could now be in jeopardy. But the GoFundMe page said he is not using the money to replace those benefits.
“He will continue to fight for the pension and benefits he deserves, rather than accept any crowdfunding for that purpose,” it says. More here.
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McCabe legal defense is led by a former inspector general, meanwhile Michael Horowitz, a DoJ Inspector General has his mission compounded.
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEMarch 28, 2018DOJ OIG Announces Initiation of ReviewDepartment of Justice (DOJ)Inspector General Michael E. Horowitz announced todaythat,in response to requests from the Attorney GeneralandMembers of Congress, the Officeof the Inspector General (OIG) will initiate a review that will examine the JusticeDepartment’sandthe Federal Bureau of Investigation’s (FBI)compliance with legal requirements, and withapplicable DOJ and FBI policies and procedures, in applications filed with the U.S. ForeignIntelligence SurveillanceCourt(FISC)relating to a certainU.S. person. As part of thisexamination, the OIG also will review information that was known to theDOJand the FBI at thetime the applications were filedfrom or about an alleged FBI confidential source. Additionally,the OIG will review the DOJ’sand FBI’s relationship and communications with the allegedsource as they relate to the FISCapplications.If circumstances warrant, the OIG will consider including other issues that may ariseduring the course of the review.###