Thread by @RighteousBabe4

Oh?!! Counterintelligence google.com/amp/s/www.nbcn…

The FBI and other intelligence agencies are pursuing a counterintelligence effort to thwart Russian influence operations in the U.S. and stymie an anticipated Russian effort to interfere in the 2020 election, the officials tell NBC News.

As part of that mission, analysts will continue to drill down on exactly how the Russians interfered in the 2016 election, whether any Americans helped them unwittingly, and whether any American continues to be compromised by Russia, experts say.

"The fact that it's not present in the report tells me the ball is now and remains in the court of the FBI and the intelligence community," said Frank Figliuzzi.

It's unclear whether the counterintelligence investigation into Trump remains open.

report conspicuously avoids making an assessment about whether any of that conduct harmed national security...doesn't say whether Mueller looked for financial ties between Trump & Russians or determined whether Russia has any leverage over the plotus* or any member of his team.

Much of that information is not contained in the report, which was designed to summarize prosecution decisions. Left unsaid is that much of that information is also classified.

But I do think the question of whether there are folks acting in ways contrary to our national interest is at least as important as the question of who is charged with a crime."

But a counterintelligence investigation can yield something even more important: an intelligence assessment of how likely it is that someone — in this case, the president — is acting, wittingly or unwittingly, under the influence of or in collaboration with a foreign power,"

"The investigation established that the Russian government perceived it would benefit from a Trump presidency and worked to secure that outcome, and that the campaign expected it would benefit electorally from information stolen and released through Russian efforts," per report

These are not criminal questions that can be resolved in a court of law, experts say.

"Often in the worlds of intelligence it's about shades of gray that don't approach certainty," Geltzer said.

Figliuzzi ➡️ “The objective is to neutralize — detect, deter and defeat the threat."

But, Figliuzzi said, "deterring it and defeating it becomes problematic if it's the president of the U.S."