Jordan on Durham indictments: 'We told you so'
Danchenko pleaded not guilty Wednesday to making false statements about the source of information that he provided to Steele for the dossier
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Rep. Jim Jordan, the top Republican on the House Judiciary Committee, had a message for those who pushed and believed the anti-Trump dossier amid recent indictments out of Special Counsel John Durham’s investigation into the origins of the Trump-Russia probe: "We told you so."
Last week, Durham indicted the Russian national, Igor Danchenko, who is believed to be the sub-source for former British intelligence officer Christopher Steele, who compiled the dossier that served as the basis for Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) warrants against Trump campaign aide Carter Page in 2016.
The dossier was funded by the Democratic National Committee and Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign through law firm Perkins Coie.
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Danchenko pleaded not guilty Wednesday to making false statements about the source of information that he provided to Steele for the dossier.
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In an interview with Fox News, Jordan, who was heavily involved in GOP congressional investigations into the origins of the Russia probe, reacted to the developments.
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Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, during a Justice Department oversight hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., on Oct. 21, 2021. (Greg Nash/Pool via REUTERS)
"Those of us who were in this, you know, back when no one else was, it's sort of like, we told you so," Jordan said. "That sounds arrogant, and I don’t mean to be, but this is what we said. This is what they were doing – what they were accusing President Trump of doing, they were actually doing – they were working with the Russians and it goes right to the Clinton campaign."
Former Attorney General William Barr last year revealed that the sub-source, now known to be Danchenko, was the subject of an FBI counterintelligence investigation from 2009 to 2011 for suspected contact with Russian intelligence officers.
Jordan, citing Danchenko’s indictment, said he was "bragging that if Clinton won he was going to get a job in the State Department."
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"This is the Clinton campaign – they orchestrated this whole thing," Jordan said.
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Jordan also pointed out that both Danchenko and Clinton lawyer Michael Sussmann were charged with making false statements to the FBI – not as part of Durham’s probe, but rather, during interviews with the FBI in 2016 and 2017.
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"They are being indicted for the original lies that they told back in 2016 and 2017 to the FBI," Jordan said.
Former Special Counsel Robert Mueller's Russia probe yielded no evidence of criminal conspiracy or coordination between the Trump campaign and the Russians during the 2016 election.
At the conclusion of Mueller’s probe in 2019, Barr appointed Durham, who at the time served as the U.S. attorney from Connecticut, to investigate the origins of the FBI’s original Russia probe, also known as Crossfire Hurricane, which began in July 2016. Durham was instructed to review that probe through the appointment of Mueller in May 2017.
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Barr, before leaving the Trump administration in December 2020, tapped Durham as special counsel to continue his investigation through the Biden administration.
In the scope order, Barr stated that Durham "is authorized to investigate whether any federal official, employee, or any other person or entity violated the law in connection with the intelligence, counter-intelligence, or law-enforcement activities directed at the 2016 presidential campaigns, individuals associated with those campaigns, and individuals associated with the administration of President Donald J. Trump, including but not limited to Crossfire Hurricane and the investigation of Special Counsel Robert S. Mueller, III."
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Jordan, a founding member of the House Freedom Caucus, served as ranking member on the House Oversight Committee until March 2020, and now serves as the ranking member on the House Judiciary Committee.
Jordan has led the charge on a number of high-profile congressional investigations – ranging from the Benghazi probe during the Obama administration, to the origins of the Trump-Russia investigation, the first impeachment of former President Trump, the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic, and more.
Jordan shares an "inside look" at those investigations and more in his new book, "Do What You Said You Would Do: Fighting for Freedom in the Swamp," set to be released Nov. 23.
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"I spent a lot of time writing about investigations," Jordan told Fox News. "That’s by the nature of my committees – I just always seemed to be involved in all of this."
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He added: "I really do think that people who read this will enjoy it," Jordan said, noting that it’s a "fun read," and adding that the book also focuses on his interactions with Trump.
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"You know, the title, no one, no one did the title more than President Trump," he said. "No one did more of what they said they would do than he did."
"We walked through all the important investigations and some fun stories are in there as well, that, like I said, I think readers are going to like," Jordan added. "So I'm excited."