Thread by @MZHemingway

Comey hearing is starting, if anyone wants to endure that. c-span.org/video/?475947-…

Graham notes that Igor Danchenko, the source for the dossier that was purchased by Hillary Clinton and the DNC, was suspected of being a spy and national security threat. This obviously should have killed any use of dossier by apolitical intel agencies.

Feinstein just falsely asserted that Steele dossier had no part in larger Russia investigation. This is a lie. It was used quite heavily throughout, from warrants to spy on Trump campaign affiliates to Rosenstein's direction for the special counsel.

Graham out with a very weak initial question, asking how Comey would rate Crossfire Hurricane as an investigation on a scale of 1-10? What does that even mean?

Graham asks Comey if he agrees with Horowitz that the dossier was essential to the applications to spy on innocent American Carter Page. Comey says he's not sure. Graham takes him through Horowitz's reasoning, where he's agreeing with Horowitz.

Graham now pointing out that Carter Page made truthful statements that should have affected the FBI's decision to investigate. Comey pretty much saying he can't remember anything and didn't know anything.

Graham asks if the FISC should have been told that Carter Page had a working relationship with CIA. Comey refuses to answer. Graham finally asks why Clinesmith was fired. Comey says he only knows what he read in papers. Graham losing patience with Comey's approach today.

Graham asked if Comey had any responsibility for the flawed applications to spy on Carter Page. Comey says, not really, but officially, sure.

Graham asks Comey if he was aware that the primary subsource was investigated as a Russian agent. Comey says he didn't learn anything about anything. Says he doesn't know why he didn't know.

Comey won't agree that court should have been told the primary source was a suspected Russian spy but does agree it should have been discussed by the powers-that-be.

After Comey says, implausibly, that he didn't know the primary subsource was interviewed by his agency, Graham drops his head in frustration. Lifting it, he asks, "was this an important case for the FBI? Or a run-of-the-mill thing?"

Graham doesn't seem to find it plausible that Comey was unaware of the mountains of exculpatory evidence for Carter Page. "How could all that happen and not get up to you, the director of the FBI, on one of the most important investigations in the history of the FBI?"

When Comey suggests the applications to spy on the Trump campaign affiliate weren't particularly important, Graham says "it was important to Mr. Page." Asks who was thinking about Carter Page's rights at the FBI.

Graham asks Comey about the investigative referral sent directly to him on 9/7/16, re: Clinton's approval of a plan concerning Donald Trump and Russian hackers hampering US elections as a means of distraction from email server. Comey: "Doesn't ring a bell."

Feinstein is up. We'll see if Comey has trouble remembering things to answer her questions or not.

Grassley lays out all the official communications to/from FBI about Steele's unreliability. Asks Comey why he kept this hidden. Comey says he doesn't remember anything.

Comey says in summer of 2016 that he personally told Obama that FBI was launching investigation into Russia collusion, says he didn't name names.

Comey, contra all evidence, tells Leahy I don't know whether the Russians have something over Trump but its difficult to explain his actions in any other way. (This is insane)

Comey working hard to not discuss Ratcliffe letter. Claims he doesn't understand it. Given its seriousness, the proper thing to do at this point is declassify the underlying information.

"Did you call Steele dossier salacious and unverified?" Comey says he referred to just a portion of it, and that it's not that impt. Says "entire dossier" was something they were trying to rule in and out. Previously, though, said he wasn't informed of all the debunkings of it.

Cornyn says, before IG report on dossier, did he know of questions about reliability of dossier. Says, "I learned a lot about Steele material and subsource interviews from Horowitz report that I didn't know before."

"Can you rule out that part of CH was predicated on Russian disinformation?" Comey: "I think so." Cornyn says, even though we know now that subsource was a Russian agent, that doesn't taint investigation? Comey says not opened based on Steele, so all is good.

Durbin says he'll concede that "some documents weren't handled appropriately" but says it's not a big deal and that nobody cares about the dossier. Wonders why anyone even cares about violations of civil liberties and weaponization of the intel agencies against political enemies.

Comey and Durbin agree that even though special counsel was officially launched because of the dossier, none of indictments had anything to do with dossier allegations so all good. (it is true that none of the indictments had anything to do with Russia collusion)

Graham also makes the point that not a single American was charged with Russia collusion. Explains to Democrats that all Americans should care about political abuse of the FISA process.

"What astounds me the most, the director of the FBI in charge of this investigation, is completely clueless about any of the ino obtained by his agency suspicious of the dossier." -- eg source was russian agent, that it was not intel but bar talk, that it was internet rumor

"And you want us to reauthorize this program with a system like that? Where everyone is responsible but no one is responsible?" Graham asks how they would like THEIR clients to be treated this way in FISA process.

Mike Lee, a consistent Constitution defender, now up. "With all due respect, you don't seem to know ANYTHING about an investigation you ran." Then slams Comey for speculating that Russia has something on Trump.

Lee says Comey's sources weren't accurate, that he didn't identify the inaccuracies to the court, that he doesn't seem to understand how Trump talks about world leaders, that his speculations about ties are inappropriate given how he knows nothing about the investigation he ran.

Comey admits his slurs about Trump being compromised by Russia were based on his own partisan feelings as a private citizen fired by the man, not in any way related to anything real that the FBI found.

"What in the heck do the certifications mean if you weren't required to know and did not know what was in there? What does the certification mean?" Comey says "certification is narrow" and that FBI has "duty of candor" and admits it "wasn't meant."

Lee notes that partisans running the investigation reasonably thought HRC would win and they wouldn't get caught. Asks why Americans should have any confidence in FISA process, and how they could be caught up in similar work by FBI that would never come to light.

'You don't install a wasp's nest in your child's bedroom and then get surprised when your child is stung by wasps. You don't install an ex parte process and then get surprised when it goes off the rails.' -- Mike Lee demanding FISA reform or elimination.

Whitehouse upset by Ratcliffe letter but now saying that it's a fact that Trump colluded with Russia. (It is not) But I'll go ahead and agree with Whitehouse about the problems of selective declassification. Declassify everything!

Whitehouse very upset about entire investigation into FISA abuse but says that he agrees it's important to look into FISA abuse. I don't quite understand what he's trying to say.

Graham just did an excellent summary of what the problems with the Russia collusion investigation were, how everything Trump-related was investigated fully and no collusion was found. And that Clinton's working with Russian sources to smear Trump was never investigated at all.

Whitehouse interpreting Ratcliffe's letter on Russia finding out Hillary Clinton was planning to run a Trump-Russia op. Says she was just saying she would highlight collusion (that never existed) not that she had come up with a smear campaign (even though she ran one)

Senator Cruz asks if Carter Page issue was handled in a competent and honest way. Comey says it was. Cruz says he assumes Comey read IG report that found 17 omissions to the court. Comey says there were failings, denies there were lies. Cruz brings up falsification of evidence.

Cruz notes that Clinesmith falsified document to make fraudulent submission. "You believe that is honest or competent"? Comey says he doesn't think IG found that. So now Cruz reads directly from report. Asks if it was his practice in FBI to falsify evidence to courts.

"Difficult to say an investigation that featured fraudulent evidence was competent and honest." -- Cruz. Comey says he never figured out that Clinton funded dossier, never knew that primary subsource was investigated as Russian agent (FBI knew this in 2016)

Cruz asks Comey about May 2017 testimony that he'd never been an anonymous source. That he'd never authorized someone else to be an anon source. Notes McCabe says Comey authorized his leaks. Cruz asks Comey who is telling the truth. Comey says he stands by his testimony.

Cruz says investigation was corrupt, that agency was weaponed, that he was willfully corrupt or woefully incompetent. That this has done severe damage to honorable people at FBI because law enforcement should not be political -- that this is Comey's legacy.

Klobuchar says there are more important things to talk about than abuse of the FISA process. But then she rightfully notes Senate GOP could have done more on this previous to now if they really cared.

Took a lunch break. Now Coons is saying FISA abuse is not particularly important.

Kennedy now asking Comey about his mishandling of the public announcement of Hillary Clinton's probe ending without prosecution.