Returning to the House after 11-hours of closed-door testimony, 48-year-old FBI Agent Peter Strzok testified today before the House Judicary and Oversight Committees. Strzok showed he’s a tough, combative and self-righteous career FBI agent, dismissing test messages and emails during the 2016 presidential campaign disparaging President Donald Trump. Despite texting his friend-and-lover FBI Atty. Lisa Page with disparaging messages about Trump, Strzok told the committee that his personal biases don’t affect his work. He couldn’t explain, as lead investigator in former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton’s private email servier, why Hillayr was exonerated July 5, 2016 after reports surfaced she had some 33,000 emails electronically deleted on her private servers and physically destroyed 12 cell phones. Strsok couldn’t explain why Hillary wasn’t charged with obstruction of justice.
Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) couldn’t understand how Strzok and Page exchanged thousands of tests, many of which disparaging Trump. “We want the FBI and DOJ to be off the front pages and to return to doing what they are best at—battling crime, terrorism, and espionage and protecting all of us from harm,” said Goodlatte. Strzok said in opening remarks he’s never in his 26 years of FBI service showed any political bias on the job. Yet he’s been caught before the 2016 election telling Page they cannot allow Trump to become president. Strzok told the Committee that his numerous anti-Trump emails were simply inconsequential political banter, showing no political bias. “Let me be clear, unequivocally and under oath: No once in my 26 years of defending my nation did my personal opinions impact any official action I took,” Strzok told the Judiciary and Oversight Committee.
Pressed by Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.) about personal bias, Strzok said his late night rants mirrored his disgust toward Trump for insulting a Gold Star family. Strzok openly shared his contempt for Trump before the Committee, admitting he was disgusted with Trump’s response toward a Goldstar family. Strzok didn’t admit that the fallen soldier Humayan Khan’s father Khizr Khan, worked for the campaign of Trump’s rival, former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton. Khizer was a featured speaker at the Democratic National Convention in July 2016, working feverishly for Hillary until Election Day. Trump never insulted falled soldier Humayan, he questioned why Khizr’s wife Khazala said nothing at the convention speech while Khizr attacked Trump for Hillary. Strzok acted like he was justified in his disgust of Trump based on Hillary’s campaign sideshow.
Heading up Hillary’s email investigation for the FBI, Strzok couldn’t explain anything about how he recommended acquitting Hillary July 5, 2016, only two weeks before the Democratic National Convention when he knew everything needed to make an obstruction case. Any other person who deleted data from and private server or destroyed cell phones would have been charged with obstruction. “We don’t want to read text messages after text messages dripping with bias against one of the two presidential candidates,” said Goodlatte. Although testifying forcefully, Strzok clearly showed bias against Trump, admitting he had disgust toward Trump for his treatment of the Khan family. Strzok knew that Khizr worked for the Hillary campaign specifically to discredit Trump before the election. Strzok admitted he couldn’t believe someone who criticized a Gold Star family—Hillary’s campaign strategy—could possibly become president.
Calling Tump a “douche” and an “idiot” among other things can’t be dismissed for someone working on a politically charged investigation into Hillary’s use of a private email server. “Like many people, I had expressed political opinions during an extraordinary presidential election.” Strzok told the Committee. “Many contained expressions of concern for the security of our country—opinions that were not always expressed in terms I am proud of.” Democrats in the Committee spent most of their time rehabbing Strzok, showing the extreme polarization between Democrats and Republicans. Instead of questioning what Strzok was thinking, Democrats bought his arguments that any anti-Trump texts or emails were entirely inconsequential. Despite his denials in the Committee, Strzok’s bias was real, unmistakable and destructive to his work as an FBI agent.
When you really examine Strzok’s testimony today, it mirrors the extent of his personal and professional bias toward Trump. Any law enforcement investigator or Judge would be forced to recuse himself from a criminal or civil case. “You need to understand that was written late at night, off-the-cuff, and in response to a series of events that included candidate Trump insulting the immigrant family of a fallen war hero,” Strzok confessed. Then, expressing his true feelings about Trump, Strzok couldn’t contain himself. “My presumption, based on that horrible, disgusting behavior, [was] that the American population would not elect somebody demonstrating that behavior to be president of the United States,” Strzok told the Committee. Exposing his hate for all to see toward Trump, there’s nothing ambiguous about Strzok’s bias. Strzok showed more than bias—he showed hate toward Trump.
