The FBI Director Christopher Wray testifies before the House Judiciary Committee about the agency's surveillance of millions of Americans. Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-GAetz, questions the FBI director about whether or not the agency is spying on its own citizens.
00:00:56.000We are live broadcasting out of room 2021 of the House office building,
00:01:01.000the Rayburn building here on the Capitol complex in Washington, D.C.
00:01:04.000And what a day it was with the FBI director testifying before the House Judiciary Committee.
00:01:09.000I've got all the highlights, all the reactions.
00:01:12.000The live stream is fired up. You've seen a lot of this.
00:01:15.000Bones Mama on Rumble wants to know if anything is going to happen with the revelations that we were able to glean from Director Ray's testimony today.
00:01:24.000And Jeff on Facebook has a far more vulgar way of asking the very same question.
00:01:31.000The first is over the authorization to renew some of the spying authorities that the FBI had been abusing more than a million times.
00:01:41.000You're going to see the questions about that, how Director Ray answered it, how foolishly, purposefully ignorant he was on the facts of the FBI's abuses.
00:01:50.000We should not reauthorize the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act.
00:01:54.000Two days ago, I introduced legislation to call for the expiration of those authorities that you're about to see abused very, very frequently.
00:02:04.000Now, there are some Republicans who do want to reauthorize those authorities.
00:02:08.000We need to convince them. And you know what?
00:02:11.000There are even Democrats making valid points about surveillance and privacy.
00:02:15.000Democrats we typically don't agree with on a lot, but we're going to show you the points they made to see if maybe there's an opportunity for the populist right and the populist left to work against the abuses of our civil liberties and our constitutional rights.
00:02:28.000Just maybe. And then, of course, there is the pipe bomber and all that went on around that.
00:02:35.000Was it a diversion, a distraction of law enforcement away from the Capitol so there would be a higher level of criminal acuity?
00:02:41.000Thomas Massey broke evidence on that that we're going to review.
00:02:46.000But first, I'm going to start with my questioning of Christopher Wray.
00:02:49.000If you missed it, I'm going to give you the whole five minutes.
00:02:52.000Absorb it. We'll come back, talk about it on the other side.
00:03:17.000I will make certain that between the man sitting next to me and every person he knows and my ability to forever hold a grudge that you will regret not following my direction.
00:03:27.000I am sitting here waiting for the call with my father.
00:03:31.000Sounds like a shakedown, doesn't it, director?
00:03:36.000I'm not going to get into commenting on that.
00:03:39.000You seem deeply uncurious about it, don't you?
00:11:57.000Unless the information has already been collected by a data broker.
00:12:02.000Then sometimes they just do an end run around the Fourth Amendment, around the Constitution, and they go get the data.
00:12:10.000My colleague from Washington State, Pramila Jayapal, a Democrat who chairs the House Progressive Conference, who I agree with on almost every issue, she made brilliant points on the FBI's abuses of the Constitution and the Fourth Amendment by using stuff from data brokers.
00:12:29.000I'm going to let you listen to her testimony.
00:12:34.000I do want to focus on some areas of concern around American civil liberties that I have had longstanding concerns about.
00:12:42.000In testimony to Senate Intelligence in March, you stated that the FBI had previously purchased commercial database information that includes location data derived from Internet advertising,
00:12:55.000but that, to your knowledge, the FBI does not currently purchase data.
00:13:00.000But just last month, the ODNI declassified a report revealing that the FBI and other agencies do purchase significant amounts of commercially available information about Americans from data brokers.
00:13:15.000And the report notes that commercially available information, quote, has increasingly important risks and implications for U.S. persons' privacy and civil liberties as commercially available information can reveal sensitive and intimate information about individuals.
00:13:30.000It is public information that the FBI uses Babel, Street, and Ventile and has a Lexus account.
00:13:38.000All of these companies provide data for purchase.
00:13:41.000Can you tell me how the FBI uses that data?
00:13:44.000Respectfully, this is a topic that gets very involved to explain, and so what I would prefer to do is have our subject matter experts come back up and brief you,
00:13:55.000and they can answer your questions in detail about it because there's a lot of confusion that can be unintentionally caused about this topic.
00:14:06.000My testimony that you referred to before remains the same, and the story about the ODNI report doesn't change that.
00:14:15.000But again, there's a lot of precision and technical dimensions to this.
00:14:19.000Well, I do appreciate that, but I am looking at a report that is from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence saying that the FBI purchases data.
00:14:31.000Mr. Chairman, I ask unanimous consent to enter this into the record.
00:14:36.000Do you know if the contracts with data brokers like the ones I described provide location data?
00:14:44.000My testimony about purchasing commercial database information that includes location data derived from Internet advertising remains the same, which is that we currently do not do that.
00:14:56.000But the information that you have that has already been purchased, does it contain location information?
00:15:02.000Well, just again, I'm not trying to be obtuse or difficult here.
00:15:05.000I just know from experience that the more you drill into this whole issue of commercial data, geolocation data, et cetera, that it gets very involved.
00:15:17.000In some cases, it involves pilot projects that are in the past.
00:15:21.000In some cases, it involves national security information, et cetera.
00:15:25.000So I just want to make sure that we get you the information you need.
00:15:28.000I will take that, but I do want to say that this is just an extremely important issue for the American people to understand how their data is being used.
00:15:55.000Does the FBI have a written policy outlining how it can purchase and use commercially available information?
00:16:03.000There are a number of policies that bear on this topic.
00:16:06.000Again, that could be part of the same briefing that we're happy to provide.
00:16:09.000I don't dispute at all that this is an important topic.
00:16:12.000I'm simply saying that precisely because it's such an important topic that a minute and 12 seconds counting down is not the best way for me to explain it.
00:16:27.000As I sit here right now, I don't have the answer for you on that.
00:16:29.000But, again, there are a number of policies that are relevant to this, and so that may affect the…
00:16:33.000And you'll commit to providing those to us so that we can explore them?
00:16:37.000I would commit to providing you a briefing that will provide, hopefully, very helpful information to help you understand better this whole topic.
00:16:46.000We're back live, so he'll provide the information.
00:16:50.000And, really, if you want to know how the FBI is buying data on the open market to avoid having to go before a grand jury, a judge, to establish probable cause, that's very complicated stuff.
00:17:05.000Christopher Wray can't explain that to you in a congressional hearing.
00:17:15.000And if there is this unprecedented tool to suck up information from all of us, the fusion of big tech and big government in the national security state and the surveillance state becomes ever the more dangerous.
00:17:42.000And Gail on YouTube says that Congresswoman Jayapal surprised her and that she sounded like a Republican today.
00:17:48.000Here's the reason I showed you Congresswoman Jayapal's remarks and her questions.
00:17:54.000If we want enduring change to protect us from the excesses and the abuses of the national security state, we are going to have to work with progressive Democrats at times.
00:18:06.000Because there are Republicans, some of whom, my colleagues, people I know well, they just believe the FBI is right every time.
00:18:15.000They think the CIA, NSA, that all these groups are the good guys in every circumstance.
00:18:20.000And the reality is if we want to still live in a free society where liberty is protected, we have to have tough questions and aggressive oversight.
00:18:28.000And I welcome progressive Democrats to our cause if they see the light and don't want our fellow Americans living this way.
00:18:39.000And we should be willing to work with everyone to vindicate that interest that we have.
00:18:43.000Now, I also want to show you some breaking footage from Congressman Thomas Massey.
00:18:50.000And this goes back to the pipe bomber.
00:18:52.000And if you're one of our tens of thousands of listeners, this won't be as helpful to you because this is a very visual presentation from Congressman Massey.
00:19:02.000He actually had a staffer go in and hunt down some videos that hadn't been seen by the public.
00:19:09.000And it shows a very curious case about a pipe bomber.
00:19:14.000Well, about someone who found the pipe bomb, I should say, in almost a perfect timing and sequence to distract from what was going on at the Capitol.
00:19:25.000Thomas Massey with the video receipts.
00:19:32.000Director Wray, in light of information provided to us about the FBI's investigation of the January 6th pipe bombs,
00:19:39.000in an interview with Assistant Director Steven Duantuano, Chairman Jordan and I sent you a letter a month ago.
00:19:46.000Some of the information that we found in that interview was that phone data that could have helped to identify the pipe bomber was corrupted, was unusable.
00:19:57.000He also wasn't sure who found or how the second bomb was found at the DNC.
00:20:03.000Do you know how the second bomb was found at the DNC?
00:20:06.000And when do you plan on answering our letter?
00:20:09.000Well, as to the letter, I will work with the department to make sure we can figure out what information we can provide.
00:20:16.000As you know, this is a very active, ongoing investigation, and there are some restrictions on that, but we will do our best we want.
00:20:21.000Yes, we can handle classified information, and we fund your department, and so you need to provide that.
00:20:26.000It's not – respectfully, it's not an issue of classification.
00:20:30.000It's an issue of commenting on ongoing criminal investigations, which is something that by longstanding department policy we are restricted in doing.
00:20:40.000And in fact, the last administration actually strengthened those policies partly because –
00:20:44.000That's not our policy, though, and we fund you, so let's move on.
00:20:48.000Do you know how the second pipe bomb – do you – can you tell us how the second pipe bomb was found at the DNC?
00:20:53.000Again, I'm not going to get into that here.
00:20:55.000900 days ago is when this happened, and you said you had total confidence we'd apprehend the subject.
00:21:01.000We've found video that looks like somebody, a passerby, miraculously found this pipe bomb at the DNC and then notified the police.
00:21:10.000Miraculously, I say, because it was specifically the same – the precise time to cause the maximum distraction from the events going on at the Capitol.
00:21:19.000Can you show this video that we have, please?
00:21:22.000I'd like to know if the director has seen this.
00:21:25.000This is somebody with a mask on, wearing a hat.
00:21:28.000They're walking in front of the DNC, which is out of the view on the right-hand side.
00:22:06.000It appears to me that that's not a coincidence, that the person with the backpack who walked by that bench and then went up to the police and the detail didn't do that accidentally.
00:22:21.000They had a purpose in mind and then what transpired after that was the result of information that person gave to them.
00:22:27.000If that person found the pipe bomb, would they be a suspect?
00:22:32.000Well, again, I don't want to speculate about specific individuals.
00:22:36.000I will tell you that we have done thousands of interviews, reviewed something like 40,000 video files, of which this is one, assessed 500-something tips.
00:23:05.000In my remaining minute, I want to turn to another issue.
00:23:09.000George Hill, former FBI supervisory intelligence analyst in the Boston field office, told us that the Bank of America with no legal process was – gave to the FBI gun purchase records with no geographical boundaries for anybody that was a Bank of America customer.
00:23:32.000Well, what I do know is that the – a number of business community partners all the time, including financial institutions, share information with us about possible criminal activity.
00:23:45.000And my understanding is that that's fully lawful.
00:23:50.000In the specific instance that you're asking about, my understanding is that that information was shared with field offices for information only, but then recalled to avoid even the appearance of any kind of overreach.
00:24:03.000But my understanding is that that's a fully lawful process.
00:24:20.000Well, we've got an email where it says the FBI did give the search queries to Bank of America, and Bank of America responded to the FBI and gave over this information without a search warrant.
00:24:31.000Do you believe there's any limitation on your ability to obtain gun purchase data or purchase information from people that – for people who aren't suspects from banks without a warrant?
00:24:44.000Well, now you're asking a legal question, which I would prefer to defer to the lawyers, since I'm not practicing as one right now, including the department.
00:24:52.000But what I will tell you is that my understanding is that the process by which we receive information from business community partners across a wide variety of industries, including financial institutions, sharing information with us about possible criminal activity is something that is fully lawful under current federal law.
00:25:11.000It may be lawful, but it's not constitutional.
00:25:17.000Terrific questioning by Congressman Massey.
00:25:19.000Lacy face on YouTube says this is why she is canceling her BOA accounts.
00:25:25.000And William on YouTube is connecting the dots and wants everyone to know that it was indeed Chris Christie, none other than Chris Christie, who recommended Chris Ray for the position of FBI director.
00:25:41.000But one thing you didn't see from Republicans in a lot of these clips was excessive discussion about President Trump.
00:25:47.000We've got Merrick Garland coming in in several weeks, and I think there are going to be appropriate questions to him about the way they've constructed the special counsel's office and the unfair targeting of President Trump and what that means for our civil liberties and how America looks to the world.
00:26:02.000But in this hearing, there was only one group obsessed about President Trump, and it was the Democrats.
00:26:09.000Every person you're about to hear in this supercut is a Democrat, and they are obsessed.
00:26:17.000This hearing is little more than performance art.
00:26:20.000It is an elaborate show designed with only two purposes in mind.
00:26:24.000To protect Donald Trump from the consequences of his actions and to return him to the White House in the next election.
00:26:31.000We are here today because MAGA Republicans will do anything to protect Donald Trump, their savior, no matter how unfounded or dangerous it may be to do so.
00:26:43.000Welcome to the legislative arm of the Trump re-election campaign.
00:26:48.000Director Wray, would you disagree with the premise of this article that the FBI delayed in looking at Mr. Trump himself?
00:27:00.000The January 6 committee, and I was a member, did find that the ex-president was the center of a wide-ranging conspiracy to overturn the election.
00:27:10.000You are being attacked and vilified by some of the members of this committee and others outside this committee because the Justice Department and the FBI has had the audacity to investigate serious allegations of criminal conduct by a former president.
00:27:24.000My Republican colleagues seem to believe that a former president similarly cannot be indicted.
00:27:29.000That would effectively make a president above the law, beyond the reach of the law.
00:27:35.000And in my view, there would probably only one thing the founders would find more politically precarious and dangerous to our Constitution than the indictment of a president or former president.
00:27:47.000And that is the failure to indict a president or former president when they have engaged in criminal conduct.
00:27:52.000It is not the fault of the FBI that Donald Trump surrounded himself with criminals.
00:27:59.000Donald Trump brought that upon himself.
00:28:01.000Thank you to the FBI for exposing the cesspool of corruption of these Trump associates.
00:28:08.000Now, I'd like to talk about efforts by MAGA Republicans to defund the FBI.
00:28:13.000Ted Lue's right if we don't bring the FBI to heel.
00:28:19.000If we don't put that law enforcement agency on the side of law-abiding people, then, yeah, we should defund, dismantle, defang, deauthorize whatever it takes to save this country.
00:28:31.000And make no mistake, the corrupt people at the FBI are a threat to the country.
00:28:36.000Not the brave patriots like the whistleblowers who came forward, those who are working to protect us each and every day,
00:28:42.000but the folks who believe that the principal obligation of the FBI is to expand its power by helping its friends and harming its enemies.
00:28:49.000And we saw that play out really for regular Americans who had become engaged politically around the school board issue.
00:28:59.000You've heard it talked about a great deal.
00:29:02.000Parents started showing up at school board meetings complaining about mask mandates, vaccine mandates, critical race theory, radical gender ideology,
00:29:09.000bizarre manifestations of highly sexualized content in curriculum and instructional materials.
00:29:16.000And as a consequence of that, people showed up.
00:29:19.000A good thing about local control over education is that there's not some faceless bureaucrat 4,000 miles away making decisions about your family.
00:29:47.000They saw parents as threats, potentially domestic violent extremists.
00:29:51.000They even created a tag in the FBI system specifically for parents who attended school board meetings.
00:29:59.000Now, Director A was asked about this today.
00:30:02.000What I'm going to do is I'm going to show you two clips back to back.
00:30:04.000The first is what Director A said today.
00:30:07.000And then the second half of the clip reveals the evidence that we got from an FBI whistleblower, Steve Friend, previously.
00:30:15.000Take a listen and let me know if the FBI director was lying.
00:30:20.000I will say to you the same thing that I said to all 56 of our field offices as soon as I read the memo,
00:30:28.000which is that the FBI is not in the business of investigating or policing speech at school board meetings or anywhere else for that matter.
00:30:44.000And in the parking lot of a school board meeting where the FBI sent you, you were taking down information regarding people's license plates.
00:31:52.000So the FBI just decided it was more important to have you in that parking lot of that school board meeting than getting the worst of the worst away from people that they could harm.
00:32:02.000Sure seems inconsistent for the FBI director to say we were never investigating speech at a school board meeting.
00:32:13.000And then to have an FBI former special agent Steve Friend saying, yeah, we were there taking down license plate information at school board meetings for people who had showed up to speak.
00:32:24.000Maybe a criminal referral for perjury is in Christopher Wray's future.
00:32:30.000Maybe he deserves it on more than one count.
00:32:35.000I have seen several of you comment that you think this is wasted time, that Congress is just asking questions that we don't get answers to.
00:32:42.000But sometimes those lack of responses are revealing.
00:32:45.000And in a world in which members of Congress are actually doing their job, a day like this would piss you off.
00:32:51.000A day like this would show you that the FBI has completely come untethered from the Constitution and accountability and our due process rights.
00:33:02.000They're using information to go around the Fourth Amendment that they acquire on the private market.
00:33:07.000And then when they conduct illegal searches, the FBI director doesn't even understand the basics of the frequency of that problem.
00:33:36.000I need you to get out there and share this information with your senators, with your representatives.
00:33:41.000We've got to get a Congress ready to fight to defund these entities and these authorities and these task forces that are cleaning up after the Biden family for all of their corruption.
00:34:02.000Sino Hawk, CEFC, the Chinese energy entities that were using the Bidens to get cred to literally come in to our country and occupy part of the energy sector, which is pretty freaking important to our quality of life, our safety, our security, our military bases.
00:34:21.000And the first big original sin of the Republican Congress was passing the legislation that underwrit trillions of dollars in debt to allow all of this to exist.
00:34:35.000Unfortunately, I was not able to unify my Republican colleagues around opposition to the debt limit bill.
00:34:41.000But now there's the money and that financial decision has to be made commensurate with the government funding bill that McConnell and Pelosi agreed to running out.
00:34:55.000So these are critical, critical weeks.
00:34:57.000There are times when you can take off, tune into sports, other things going on in your life.
00:35:02.000But right now we are buckling down to prepare for a fight about whether or not this woke, weaponized, corrupt government will continue to see money printed to service its misadventures.
00:35:24.000Thank you so much for being a part of our report today.
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