Thread by @TimInHonolulu

1. Remember Carter Page? He was found in four #FISA applications to be an "Agent of a Foreign Power." Irregularities in the applications gave John Durham something to justify his existence as a special prosecutor, but that key finding has not, to my knowledge, been challenged.

2. Four FISA orders of 90 days each are permitted under FISA 50 U.S. Code § 1805(d)(2). One year. After that, the statute says it shuts down as to a US person. FISA applies to surveillance of "agents of a foreign power" and applies separate rules for persons other than US persons

3. and, like Carter Page, US persons. For a US person like Carter Page, the statute defines them as an agent of a foreign power as follows:

(2)any person who—

(A)knowingly engages in clandestine intelligence gathering activities for or on behalf of a foreign power,

4. which activities involve or may involve a violation of the criminal statutes of the United States;
(B)pursuant to the direction of an intelligence service or network of a foreign power, knowingly engages in any other clandestine intelligence activities for or on

5. behalf of such foreign power, which activities involve or are about to involve a violation of the criminal statutes of the United States;
(C)knowingly engages in sabotage or international terrorism, or activities that are in preparation therefor,

6. for or on behalf of a foreign power;
(D)knowingly enters the United States under a false or fraudulent identity for or on behalf of a foreign power or, while in the United States, knowingly assumes a false or fraudulent identity for or on behalf of a foreign power; or

7. (E)knowingly aids or abets any person in the conduct of activities described in subparagraph (A), (B), or (C) or knowingly conspires with any person to engage in activities described in subparagraph (A), (B), or (C)."

8. Could TFG be an "agent of a a foreign power? How about people around him? We know Manafort and Flynn were because they both filed FARA statements and were convicted of crimes related to their status. Did those admissions establish that TFG knowingly aided or abetted them in

9. conduct of their intelligence related activities? I think it does so I conclude that TFG would be a lawful target of a FISA order that I presume was initiated no earlier than mid-February 2021. The possible time that TFG's FISA order could remain active is 12 months.

10. Under the standard two-hop rule the surveillance can extend to everyone TFG knows and everyone they know. What kind of information do you think the FBI could obtain by full NSA FISA authorities on TFG and everyone he knows and everyone they know? Now put yourself in the

11. shoes of the new head of the DOJ National Security Division, Matthew Olsen, who was sworn in on November 1. He has all those FISA intercepts running. It's sucking in every inner thought of everyone connected to TFG and his attempted coup. He has by my estimate until February

12. to end surveillance of TFG but each of the foreign agents they uncover gets a new clock. And most Americans are clueless about how it works. But someone special certainly knows how it works. And his name is Vlad Putin. And he knows what's coming. So he begins to create a

13. a diversion in Ukraine. A bargaining chip. But his #45 operation is being rolled up and some of the players are starting to turn on each other. Flynn must know he's about to be charged for what this time may be espionage that can carry the death penalty. Where's Rudy? He's

14. He's clearly been engaged in assisting the Russian intelligence services in the quest to dig up dirt on Hunter Biden and had likely has had a series of FISA orders running in parallel with TFG's. Now, if as I have suspected since the Jan 6 attack, the Russian intelligence

15. services played a role in the attack that the DOJ has already termed "terrorist" activity, the charges that might be levelled against the US participants move into a whole new level of hell. I know this will not stop the drum beat for a quick indictment of TFG, but hopefully

16. helps explain why it might be taking so long. @maddow @MaddowBlog

17. To all the @SenateGOP @HouseGOP who are still slavish members of TFG's cult, how does it feel to be in the "two hop" group? Under the Gates Procedures only the Gang of Eight is entitled to know about Congress getting caught by FISA authorities.

18. Keep an eye on the four GQP gang of eight members. Can you think of anything that happened recently with any of the members of that small gang of four that was hard to explain? Think real hard.

McConnell
McCarthy
Rubio
Nunes