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Were undercover sources from other DOJ agencies present on Jan. 6? Grassley, Johnson demand answers

Were undercover sources from other DOJ agencies present on Jan. 6? Grassley, Johnson demand answers

EXCLUSIVE: Senate Republicans are demanding answers on whether confidential human sources from Justice Department agencies beyond the FBI were used on Jan. 6, 2021, while also questioning whether Inspector General Michael Horowitz thoroughly reviewed classified and unclassified communications between handlers and their sources, warning that without that review, there may be a “major blind spot” in his findings.  Horowitz last week released his highly anticipated report that there were more than two dozen FBI confidential human sources in the crowd outside the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, but only three were assigned by the bureau to be present for the event. Horowitz said none of the sources were authorized or directed by the FBI to “break the law” or “encourage others to commit illegal acts.”  But now, Sens. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, and Ron Johnson, R-Wis., are demanding further information from Horowitz, writing to him in a letter exclusively obtained by Fox News Digital that it is “unclear” if his office reviewed the use of confidential human sources by other DOJ components during the Capitol riot.  DOJ IG REVEALS 26 FBI INFORMANTS WERE PRESENT ON JAN. 6 “This IG report was a step in the right direction, but Senator Johnson and I still have questions the Justice Department needs to account for,” Grassley told Fox News Digital. “The American people deserve a full picture of whether Justice Department sources from its component agencies, in addition to the FBI, were present on January 6, what their role was, and whether DOJ had knowledge of their attendance.”  Grassley told Fox News Digital that Horowitz and his team “must redouble its efforts to make sure it has reviewed all relevant information and provide a sufficient response to our inquiry.”  Johnson told Fox News Digital he believes the report made public last week “may have only provided a fraction of the story regarding the presence and activities of confidential human sources or undercover federal agents in Washington, D.C. on Jan. 6, 2021.”  “I urge the Inspector General’s office to be fully transparent about their work to ensure that Congress and the public have an accurate and complete understanding about what it actually reviewed,” Johnson said. DOJ INSPECTOR GENERAL DOES NOT DENY FBI INFORMANTS WERE AMONG JAN 6 CROWD In their letter to Horowitz, Grassley and Johnson noted that the inspector general’s office received more than 500,000 documents from the Justice Department and its components as part of its investigation.  “According to the report, your office obtained: CHS reporting, thousands of tips provided to the FBI, investigative and intelligence records from the FBI case management system, emails, instant messages, and phone records; contemporaneous notes of meetings and telephone calls; chronologies concerning the lead-up of events to January 6; after-action assessments; training materials and policy guides; and preparatory materials for press conferences or congressional testimony as well as talking points,” they wrote.  Grassley and Johnson told Horowitz “it is vital” that his office “more precisely explain what records it sought and received from all DOJ component agencies.”  Grassley and Johnson are demanding answers on whether Horowitz obtained evidence on whether other DOJ component agencies had tasked or untasked undercover confidential human sources in the Washington, D.C., area or at the Capitol building on Jan. 6, 2021.  TRUMP SAYS WRAY RESIGNATION ‘GREAT DAY FOR AMERICA,’ TOUTS KASH PATEL AS ‘MOST QUALIFIED’ TO LEAD FBI They are also asking if all communications were obtained between DOJ component agency handlers and confidential human sources or undercover agents present in the D.C. area, and whether he has received classified and unclassified non-email communication platforms used by the FBI.  Grassley and Johnson are also demanding Horowitz share all FD-1023 forms, or confidential human source reporting documents, used in the investigation with them.  As for his initial report, Horowitz “determined that none of these FBI CHSs was authorized by the FBI to enter the Capitol or a restricted area or to otherwise break the law on January 6, nor was any CHS directed by the FBI to encourage others to commit illegal acts on January 6.”  The report revealed that the FBI had a minor supporting role in responding on Jan. 6, 2021 – largely because the event was not deemed at the highest security level by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).  Horowitz, though, said the FBI took significant and appropriate steps to prepare for that role.  According to the report, there were a total of 26 confidential human sources in the crowd that day, but only three of them were assigned by the bureau to be there.  One of the three confidential human sources tasked by the FBI to attend the rally entered the Capitol building, while the other two entered the restricted area around the Capitol.  If a confidential human source is directed to be at a certain event, they are paid by the FBI for their time.

Senate passes bill to stop shutdown, sending it to President Biden’s desk

Senate passes bill to stop shutdown, sending it to President Biden’s desk

Senators voted to pass a new version of a stopgap spending bill early Saturday morning after the midnight deadline for a partial government shutdown came and went. The Senate advanced the third version of a short-term spending bill by 85 to 11, and it will now head to President Biden’s desk, who has already signaled that he will sign it.  An original agreement on a short-term spending bill was released earlier in the week, totaling 1,547-pages and including a number of policy provisions and disaster aid.  But soon after its release, billionaire Elon Musk and other conservative critics publicly blasted the measure, ultimately resulting in it being condemned by President-elect Donald Trump and Vice President-elect JD Vance.  SENATE DEMS RAIL AGAINST ‘SHADOW SPEAKER’ BILLIONAIRE ELON MUSK: ‘NOT ELECTED TO ANYTHING’ “Republicans must GET SMART and TOUGH. If Democrats threaten to shut down the government unless we give them everything they want, then CALL THEIR BLUFF. It is Schumer and Biden who are holding up aid to our farmers and disaster relief,” Trump and Vance said in a lengthy statement opposing the bill on Wednesday afternoon. The initial spending measure would have extended government funding levels for fiscal year 2024 through March 14 and provide over $100 billion in disaster aid for those affected by storms Helene and Milton in the U.S. Southeast earlier this year. There was also a $10 billion provision for economic assistance to farmers in the bill.  Meanwhile, as of Thursday, the U.S. national debt was at $36,167,604,149,955.61 and was continuing to climb rapidly.  SENATE REPUBLICANS TRY TO FAST-TRACK EMERGENCY MILITARY PAY AS THEY BRACE FOR SHUTDOWN The size of the bill, along with several of its other provisions, including a cost of living raise for lawmakers, prompted the public reaction from Musk and others.  “Any member of the House or Senate who votes for this outrageous spending bill deserves to be voted out in 2 years!” he wrote on X.  After heading back to the drawing board, House Republicans emerged on Thursday with a new proposal. The revised measure would have extended current funding levels for three months and included a debt limit suspension for two years, per the request of Trump.  Additionally, it had economic relief for farmers and about $110 billion in disaster aid.  But the bill failed on the House floor Thursday night as Democrats united against it and a significant group of Republicans opted to oppose it as well. TOP SENATE DEMS POUR COLD WATER ON LATEST GOP SPENDING BILL PLANS: ‘READY TO STAY’ THROUGH CHRISTMAS “Old bill: $110BB in deficit spending (unpaid for), $0 increase in the national credit card. New bill: $110BB in deficit spending (unpaid for), $4 TRILLION+ debt ceiling increase with $0 in structural reforms for cuts. Time to read the bill: 1.5 hours. I will vote no,” Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, wrote on X ahead of the vote.  Roy was one of 38 House Republicans that opposed the stopgap bill.  By Friday morning, there appeared to be no agreement between Democrats and Republicans in Congress to work together on a new bill. In fact, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and Senate Appropriations Committee Chairwoman Patty Murray, D-Wash., said the government would go into a partial shutdown at midnight if Republicans did not return to the original stopgap bill.  “I’m ready to stay here through Christmas because we’re not going to let Elon Musk run the government,” Murray said in a statement.  TIM SCOTT’S SENATE CAMPAIGN ARM STAFF REVEALED AHEAD OF CRUCIAL 2026 SWING STATE RACES Schumer said in remarks on the Senate floor that the original bill would pass in the House if Speaker Mike Johnson brought it to the floor for a vote.  The third measure, which ultimately passed the House and Senate, was similar to the one that failed the night prior. The bill included economic relief for farmers and disaster aid for those affected by recent storms. However, the final stopgap bill did not include a suspension of the debt ceiling, which Trump had requested himself.  The House passed the short-term spending bill with 366 yes votes, surpassing the necessary two-thirds.

Brief government shutdown ushered in before Christmas as Senate works to advance House bill

Brief government shutdown ushered in before Christmas as Senate works to advance House bill

A partial government shutdown began at 12:01 on Saturday morning after Congress failed to pass a stopgap spending measure before the deadline and send it to President Biden’s desk. However, the Senate is actively working through amendment votes and other considerations in order to send the measure to Biden. The stopgap bill is expected to be passed in the Senate in the coming hours.  The partial shutdown comes only days before Christmas and New Year’s.  As of Thursday, the U.S. national debt was at $36,167,604,149,955.61 and was continuing to climb rapidly.  During a partial government shutdown, federal agencies and non-essential services are stopped, but some functions that are considered “essential” will continue. Certain national security functions, such as border patrol, law enforcement and disaster response, will remain active during the shutdown.  However, because the Senate is expected to move the bill forward imminently, the disruption to government function will be minimal, if at all noticeable. An original agreement on a short-term spending bill was released earlier in the week, totaling 1,547-pages and including a number of policy provisions and disaster aid.  TOP SENATE DEMS POUR COLD WATER ON LATEST GOP SPENDING BILL PLANS: ‘READY TO STAY’ THROUGH CHRISTMAS But soon after its release, billionaire Elon Musk and other conservative critics publicly blasted the measure, ultimately resulting in it being condemned by President-elect Donald Trump and Vice President-elect JD Vance.  The initial spending measure would have extended government funding levels for fiscal year 2024 through March 14 and provide over $100 billion in disaster aid for those affected by storms Helene and Milton in the U.S. Southeast earlier this year. There was also a $10 billion provision for economic assistance to farmers in the bill.  TIM SCOTT’S SENATE CAMPAIGN ARM STAFF REVEALED AHEAD OF CRUCIAL 2026 SWING STATE RACES The size of the bill, along with several of its other provisions, including a cost of living raise for lawmakers, prompted the public reaction from Musk and others.  After heading back to the drawing board, House Republicans emerged on Thursday with a new proposal. The revised measure would have extended current funding levels for three months and included a debt limit suspension for two years, per the request of Trump.  ‘MAKE AMERICA HEALTHY AGAIN’ CAUCUS LAUNCHED BY SEN MARSHALL AFTER RFK JR MEETING Additionally, it had economic relief for farmers and about $110 billion in disaster aid.  But the bill failed on the House floor Thursday night as Democrats united against it and a significant group of Republicans opted to oppose it as well. By Friday morning, there appeared to be no agreement between Democrats and Republicans in Congress to work together on a new bill. In fact, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and Senate Appropriations Committee Chairwoman Patty Murray, D-Wash., said the government would go into a partial shutdown at midnight if Republicans did not return to the original stopgap bill.  DOGE CAUCUS LEADER JONI ERNST EYES RELOCATION OUT OF DC FOR THIRD OF FEDERAL WORKERS “I’m ready to stay here through Christmas because we’re not going to let Elon Musk run the government,” Murray said in a statement.  The House managed to pass a third version of the spending bill on Friday. It was similar to the second version, including both economic relief for farmers and disaster aid, but did not have the debt ceiling suspension that Trump had been adamant about.  The bill received broad bipartisan support in the House and the green light from Biden, as the White House said he’d support it. Even Schumer released a statement after the House’s passage, saying he was “confident” it would pass the Senate.