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Comey Disaster: Agent Who Quit Over Rigged Hillary Investigation Heads to Congress


disclaimerReported By Cillian Zeal | May 25, 2018 at 6:50am

URL of the original posting site: https://www.westernjournal.com/ct/comey-disaster-agent-who-quit-over-rigged-hillary-investigation-heads-to-congress/

An FBI agent who allegedly quit the bureau over his belief that the Hillary Clinton email investigation was rigged will testify before the House of Representatives, The Hill reported.

The joint investigation between the House Judiciary and the Oversight Committees — led by Republican Reps. Bob Goodlatte of Virginia and Trey Gowdy of South Carolina, respectively — has been a source of consternation for Republicans and Democrats alike.

Conservatives have complained about the slow pace of the examination into how the Clinton email investigation was conducted, noting that only two witnesses have appeared before it.

Democrats, of course, have complained that it exists at all, since anything that distracts from the endless investigation into how President Donald Trump is really a Russian plant is simply frivolous — particularly if it implicates former FBI Director James Comey, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton or former President Barack Obama in any wrongdoing.

Well, now we’re finally about to see some fireworks. Three top witnesses are going to testify before lawmakers: John Giacalone, who was in charge of the Clinton investigation for the first seven months; Bill Priestap, assistant director of the FBI’s counterintelligence division; and Michael Steinbach, former head of the FBI’s national security division and the man who succeeded Giacalone.

All three are of particular interest, especially since Priestap was the supervisor of FBI agent Peter Strzok, whose anti-Trump text messages have thrown the objectivity of the entire investigation into doubt.

However, the real headliner here may be Giacalone. Shortly after then-FBI Director Comey announced he wouldn’t be pursuing charges against Hillary Clinton for the email server, Fox News pundit Judge Andrew Napolitano wrote a column in which he claimed Giacalone had quit the bureau because he believed the investigation was rigged.

In the Oct. 28, 2016 column, Napolitano claimed at that at the start of the Clinton email investigation, “agents and senior managers gathered in the summer of 2015 to discuss how to proceed. It was obvious to all that a prima-facie case could be made for espionage, theft of government property and obstruction of justice charges. The consensus was to proceed with a formal criminal investigation.” 

“Six months later, the senior FBI agent in charge of that investigation resigned from the case and retired from the FBI because he felt the case was going ‘sideways’; that’s law enforcement jargon for ‘nowhere by design,‘” Napolitano wrote.

“John Giacalone had been the chief of the New York City, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C., field offices of the FBI and, at the time of his ‘sideways’ comment, was the chief of the FBI National Security Branch.”

“The reason for the ‘sideways’ comment must have been Giacalone’s realization that DOJ and FBI senior management had decided that the investigation would not work in tandem with a federal grand jury. That is nearly fatal to any government criminal case. In criminal cases, the FBI and the DOJ cannot issue subpoenas for testimony or for tangible things; only grand juries can,” Napolitano continued.

“Giacalone knew that without a grand jury, the FBI would be toothless, as it would have no subpoena power. He also knew that without a grand jury, the FBI would have a hard time persuading any federal judge to issue search warrants.”

Napolitano speculated there were several possible reasons that the case went “sideways.” One was that Obama feared having to testify if Clinton went to trial (he had sent emails to the private server, after all, meaning he was aware of it). There was also the fact that a Clinton indictment could have led to Trump becoming president, and Obama simply couldn’t countenance that. (Less than two weeks after Napolitano’s column was written, it must be noted, that reason became moot.)

Either way, if the investigation had indeed gone “sideways,” it would need to have done so with approval from the highest levels — certainly James Comey and possibly Barack Obama.like i said

Whether or not Giacalone has any concrete evidence of this or not is another issue entirely. My guess would be no, given that we’re going on two years since Comey’s infamous news conference and we still haven’t heard anything to that effect from Giacalone.

However, of all of the congressional testimonies we’ve seen over the past few years, this could be one of the most underreported. John Giacalone may open up a gigantic can of worms for Comey and Clinton — one that drags them back in the spotlight for reasons significantly less pleasant than their book tours.

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Scrambling Holder Pushes DOJ To Defy President’s Order To Investigate FBI


disclaimerReported By Ben Marquis | May 22, 2018 at 1:15pm

URL of the original posting site: https://www.westernjournal.com/ct/holder-pleads-doj-defy-order/

As the Donald Trump-Russia collusion narrative designed to smear and stymie the Trump presidency continues to unravel, some members of the previous administration have become even more outspoken and shrill in their condemnations of how things are being run than they already were.

The latest to do so publicly is former Obama administration Attorney General Eric Holder, who took to Twitter to express his grave concern over Trump’s demand that the Department of Justice look into whether former President Barack Obama’s FBI/DOJ investigated his 2016 campaign for “political purposes.”

However, Holder urged the DOJ to “simply say no” to what he viewed as a demand from Trump that was outside “DOJ norms.” 

Trump had tweeted Sunday, “I hereby demand, and will do so officially tomorrow, that the Department of Justice look into whether or not the FBI/DOJ infiltrated or surveilled the Trump Campaign for Political Purposes – and if any such demands or requests were made by people within the Obama Administration!”

trump

 

On Monday, Trump hosted a meeting at the White House with Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein and FBI Director Christopher Wray, according to The Hill. The meeting’s goal was to no doubt discuss the specifics of the order from the president. 

Trump’s tweeted order on Sunday and subsequent White House meeting led to Holder’s Monday evening tweet.

“More DOJ norms being eroded. Trump-a SUBJECT of the investigation-wants access to material related to the inquiry,” the former attorney general tweeted.

holder

“His Congressional supporters want evidence connected to an ongoing investigation. Time for DOJ/FBI to simply say no-protect the institutions and time tested norms,” Holder added.Picture2

Holder, who served as head of the DOJ from 2009-2015, has been an especially vocal critic of Trump since the 2016 campaign season, and has even intimated that he is considering mounting a presidential challenge against Trump in 2020. 

This most recent criticism of Trump came on the heels of revelations via FBI leaks that the bureau had utilized at least one “informant” during the election season to “spy” on the Trump campaign and dig up dirt on alleged connections to and collusion with Russia.

Unfortunately for Holder and his urging of the DOJ to disobey an order from the president, White House press secretary Sarah Sanders announced following the Monday meeting that the DOJ had asked Inspector General Michael Horowitz’s office to “expand its current investigation to include any irregularities with the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s or the Department of Justice’s tactics concerning the Trump Campaign.”

Furthermore, White House Chief of Staff John Kelly was set to arrange a meeting involving top law enforcement officials and top members of Congress to “review” certain “highly classified materials” related to the FBI’s investigation of the Trump campaign that have been sought by lawmakers, Sanders said.

The question that must be asked, given the shrill tweet by Holder and others in recent days and weeks, is that if the actions of the DOJ and FBI under Obama were entirely above board and beyond reproach, as has been insisted, why are they protesting any inquiry into those actions so much? Surely they have nothing to hide, right? 

To paraphrase a line from Shakespeare’s “Hamlet” that seems particularly relevant at this point, the former attorney general doth protest too much, methinks.please likeand share and leave a comment

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Obama Admin Officials Urge European Leaders To Take Action Against US For Nixing Iran Deal


disclaimerReported by John Locke

URL of the original posting site: http://www.americanjournalreview.com/obama-admin-officials-urge-european-leaders-to-take-action-against-us-for-nixing-iran-deal/

President Obama with Secretary of State, John Kerry

 
The efforts of former Obama administration members are becoming more and more beyond the pale as they desperately try to undermine the efforts and present policy of the United States and the Trump administration.what do you mean he canceled the deal

Former Secretary of State John Kerry’s spokesperson admitted that he had secret meetings with the Iranians to try to save the Iran Deal. People screamed ‘Logan Act’ but media barely covered it and no one seems to be taking any action against Kerry.

Now two more Obama administration officials are actually advising European leaders who are upset about the U.S. pulling out of the Iran Deal to boot our ambassadors from their country.

How is this not arguing against the United States? Answer: that’s exactly what it is. It’s arguing and advocating on behalf of Iran and the stated policy of the United States. 

The officials argued in an NY Times op-ed that the countries could expel American diplomats to punish Trump.

From Free Beacon:

“Europe Doesn’t Have to Be Trump’s Doormat,” wrote Steven Simon and Jonathan Stevenson. Simon served as the National Security Council’s senior director for the Middle East and North Africa, while Stevenson served as the regional director for political-military affairs.

“After months of swaggering hesitation, President Trump finally announced the United States’ withdrawal from the nuclear deal with Iran, to which Britain, France, Russia, China, Germany, and the European Union are also parties,” they wrote. “This action tramples on European leaders, who urged Mr. Trump to exercise restraint in the interest of international security and multilateralism.”words-of-a-leftist-propagandist

The two officials urged the European governments to take concrete actions against the United States.

“The European Union could, for instance, announce the withdrawal of member-states’ ambassadors from the United States,” they suggested. “Isn’t this what states do when diplomatic partners breach solemn agreements, expose them to security risks and threaten to wreak havoc on their economies?”

Simon and Stevenson went on to suggest that, depending on how the United States reacted, “European capitals might even follow up with expulsion of American ambassadors.”

Has there been any prior administration in history who has done so much to undermine their successors?

This is unconscionable.

It isn’t just an attempt to undermine the Trump administration but it is undermining the United States and hurting our position with our allies.

And they don’t even make any attempt to hide it, putting it in the NY Times and the media gives them the platform to attack our own policy. And this is in addition to Democrats paying for the fake dossier and spreading the Russia collusion story to harm the administration.

Time to connect all the dots and for everyone to condemn this coordinated Obama team effort.

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COLLUSION DELUSION: New Documents Show OBAMA Officials, FBI COORDINATED in Anti-Trump Probe


Reported by Sara Carter March 29, 2018

URL of the original posting site: https://saraacarter.com/new-documents-suggest-coordination-by-obama-white-house-cia-and-fbi-in-trump-investigation/ 

  • The “WH is running this meeting” – referring to the first time the DOJ and the FBI met to discuss interagency coordination on the case
  • Harry Reid wrote Comey citing reports of meetings between a Trump advisor and “high ranking sanctioned individuals” in Moscow as a reason for investigation of Trump
  • Reid’s vague letter offered no citations or sources for its assertions and can be directly tied to the FISA warrant for Carter Page
  • This sequence of events strongly suggests FBI encouraged Reid to write letter to legitimize its surveillance of Page
  • Documents demonstrate Reid was in contact with Comey about the letter
  • Peter Strzok sent Page a link to the letter and said, “Here we go” – inferring they knew it would create public outcry for a Russian interference investigation

Documents obtained by congressional investigators suggest possible coordination by Obama White House officials, the CIA and the FBI into the investigation into President Donald Trump’s campaign. Those senior Obama officials used unsubstantiated evidence to launch allegations in the media that the Trump campaign was colluding with Russia during the run-up to the 2016 presidential election, according to newly discovered documents and communications obtained by Congress.

The documents also reveal that former Senate majority leader Harry Reid, D-Nevada, sent a letter on Aug. 29, 2016, asking former FBI Director James Comey to investigate the allegations, which were presented to him by then CIA Director John Brennan. Brennan had briefed Reid privately days earlier on the counterintelligence investigation and documents suggest Reid was also staying in close touch with Comey over the issues.

The documents, which include text messages from embattled FBI Special Agent Peter Strzok and his paramour Lisa Page, also reveal that former Obama White House Chief of Staff Denis McDonough was involved in the initial investigation into Trump’s campaign. Comey, Brennan, and McDonough were the “highest-ranking officials at the FBI, CIA and White House” and were working in concert to ensure an investigation was initiated, congressional members told this reporter.

Rep. Mark Meadows, R-N.C., a member of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, was deeply troubled by the findings.

“We’ve been asking for documents with little cooperation of the DOJ and FBI — we’re having to find these unredacted documents on our own,” said Meadows, who’s also chairman of the House Freedom Caucus. “It appears there was a coordination between the White House, CIA, and FBI at the onset of this investigation and it’s troubling.”

President Obama Names Denis McDonough To Be White House Chief Of Staff
President Obama Names Denis McDonough To Be White House Chief Of Staff

Meadows said John Moffa, who was part of the counterintelligence division at the FBI, met with Denis McDonough on August 10, (2016), Meadows added. “What we’re finding is the more we dig the more we realize that there appeared to be a willful coordination between multiple groups outside the Department of Justice and FBI. Moffa was also the FBI agent who helped draft Comey’s July 5, 2016 exoneration letter to Hillary Clinton’s use of a private email server.

Meadows said the documents suggest Reid’s briefing from Brennan “was used in Michael Isikoff’s Yahoo News story.”

Isikoff’s article was also used as evidence for the FBI’s FISA warrant being granted against Carter Page. Page was a short-term volunteer advisor on the Trump campaign, who was spied on by the FBI. Congress and the Department of Justice are investigating the FBI’s conduct in obtaining a Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act warrant in October 2016 to spy on Page. Page was a central figure in an unverified dossier put together by former British Spy Christopher Steele alleging the Trump campaign colluded with Russia.

In April 2017, The New York Times published the first story about Brennan’s counterintelligence briefing to Reid regarding Trump. The briefings to Gang of Eight congressional members suggested Russia might be helping Trump win the election. Brennan alluded to the unverified allegation that members of the Trump campaign may be colluding with the Russians. The information briefed to the lawmakers expanded the number of people who were aware of the unverified allegations, and played a significant role in the increase of leaks to the media, according to the information obtained by the committee.

“A chain of events suggest the FBI encouraged Reid to write this letter to legitimize its surveillance of Carter Page”

A congressional investigator told this reporter that they believe the FBI was involved in the briefing to Reid but are still waiting for confirmation.

In the letter from Reid to Comey, Reid cites information Brennan shared with him that Trump advisor, referencing Carter Page, and other “high ranking sanctioned individuals” in Moscow were meeting. Reid asks Comey to launch an investigation by the FBI into the Trump Campaign and the Kremlin.

Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV)

The letter, which was obtained by this reporter, refers to reports briefed by Brennan but gives “almost no evidence” regarding the Trump campaign and Russia, according to congressional investigators.

For example, the letter only states that “questions have been raised about whether a Trump advisor who has been highly critical of U.S. and European economic sanctions on Russia, and who has conflicts of interests due to his investments in Russian energy conglomerate Gazprom, met with high-ranking sanctioned individuals in Moscow in July of 2016.”

Congressional investigators also note that newly revealed text messages between Strzok and Page also show possible coordination between the FBI, CIA and the Democrats.

Shortly after Reid’s letter was revealed in a New York Times article on August 30, 2016, Strzok texts Page saying, “here we go.” He included a link to the story in the text message. Congressional investigators suggest that the pair were creating inferences “that they knew it would create public calls for an investigation into Russian interference.”

Sept. 23, 2016, Isikoff article, which cites Reid’s letter, is also another example of possible coordination, congressional investigators state. The FBI used the Yahoo news article as part of the evidence in their application to obtain a FISA warrant on Carter Page.

“This sequence of events strongly suggests the FBI encouraged Reid to write this letter to legitimize its surveillance of Carter Page,” congressional investigators stated.

Congressional Findings:

  • What began as an investigation into allegations of Russian cyber hacking of the DNC was eventually broadened into an investigation of the Trump campaign.
  • By sending high-ranking officials and led to brief members of Congress on the possibility of Russian interference in the 2016 election, the DNC hack, and the possibility Trump campaign associates were in contact with Russia, the FBI was given cover for the investigation they had recently opened on Trump with questionable legal justification.
  • The intelligence community has admitted Russian efforts to influence the 2016 presidential election were only the most “recent expression” of their longstanding desire to undermine US elections.
  • It appears based on the information “insurance policy” in case Trump won, these briefings by the intelligence community to Congress, which led to several members calling for investigations into Russian interference and Trump, were perfectly timed to plant seeds of doubt in the outcome of the 2016 election.
  • By utilizing the FBI’s cyber division to look into the DNC hack, the agents exhibiting improper political biases from the FBI’s counterintelligence division, Lisa Page, and Peter Strzok, were offered cover.

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DOJ Inspector General Opens Investigation Into Obama Administration’s FISA Abuse


Reported By Nancy Hayes |

Department of Justice inspector general Michael Horowitz opened an investigation Wednesday into possible FISA abuses by the Justice Department and FBI officials and the nature of contacts between the FBI and a confidential source.

Department of Justice Inspector General Michael Horowitz, who operates independently from Attorney General Jeff Sessions and the Trump administration, announced Wednesday afternoon he will launch an investigation into alleged FISA abuse during the Obama administration.

“Department of Justice (DOJ) Inspector General Michael E. Horowitz announced today that, in response to requests from the Attorney General and Members of Congress, the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) will initiate a review that will examine the Justice Department’s and the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s (FBI) compliance with legal requirements, and with applicable DOJ and FBI policies and procedures, in applications filed with the U.S. Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC)  relating to a certain U.S. person,” the DOJ Office of the Inspector General released in a statement Wednesday. “As part of this examination, the OIG also will review information that was known to the DOJ and the FBI at the time the applications were filed from or about an alleged FBI confidential source.  Additionally, the OIG will review the DOJ’s and FBI’s relationship and communications with the alleged source as they relate to the FISC applications.”

DOJ spokesman John Lavinsky said in a statement accompanying the announcement.

Lavinsky explained that “as part of this examination, the OIG also will review information that was known to the DOJ and the FBI at the time the applications were filed from or about an alleged FBI confidential source.”

Lavinsky noted that the investigation was prompted by requests from several members of Congress and Attorney General Jeff Sessions. House Republicans recently released a memo claiming widespread abuse of the FISA process on the part of the DOJ and FBI in order to obtain a surveillance warrant on former Trump campaign associate Carter Page.

The timing of the investigation and the reference to members of Congress point to Page as the U.S. person. The statement’s reference to a confidential source similarly floats concerns found in the Republican memo which found that the FBI and the DOJ did not disclose the political origins of the Steele dossier in its FISA application and revealed previously undisclosed testimony from former FBI deputy director Andrew McCabe that an investigation into Page would not have occurred without Steele’s dossier.

The nature of contacts between DOJ officials and Steele during the opening of an investigation into the 2016 Trump campaign has been the nature of some controversy. The Republican memo especially expressed concern over the nature of meetings between Steele and DOJ official Bruce Ohr, whose wife worked for Steele for some time.

“If circumstances warrant, the OIG will consider including other issues that may arise during the course of the review,” the statement continues.

Michael Isikoff✔@Isikoff

Breaking: In response to requests from AG and members of Congress, DOJ IG Horowitz says he will investigate the FBI’s request for FISA warrant on “a U.S. person”– a reference to Carter Page. Probe will include role of “confidential FBI source”-a reference to Christoper Steele.

Horowitz has also been investigating for months potential misconduct at the FBI during the criminal investigation into Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s mishandling of classified information. That report is due any day.

About a month ago, The Hill reported, Attorney General Jeff Sessions said Tuesday that the Justice Department will investigate potential abuses of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA). “Yes, it will be investigated,” Sessions told reporters at the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court, which oversees FISA warrants, according to the Washington Examiner. He said looking into any abuses is the “appropriate thing” to do.

Trump has publicly pressed Sessions to open up an investigation into potential abuses of the program, which allows U.S. law enforcement and intelligence agencies to obtain secret surveillance orders on individuals in the U.S. suspected of being foreign terrorists or spies.

The president claimed last year that the Obama administration improperly wiretapped members of his presidential campaign and transition team, though the White House has not provided any evidence to support that claim.

Allegations of FISA abuses surfaced again last month, when Republicans on the House Intelligence Committee released a controversial memo alleging that FBI and Justice Department officials misused their authority to obtain a surveillance order on Carter Page, a former Trump campaign adviser.

It’s about time the Obama administration and those in it paid the price for all their shenanigans. Personally, I hope all those involved including Yates, Mueller, Comey, Rosenstein, Page and Strzok and others all rot in jail. It’s time to let the Americans know that just because you are employed and work in the “high levels” of government that does not excuse you from the law. No one is about the law.

Isn’t that right, Hillary?

Resources: Townhall, Daily Caller, The Hill

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More Politically INCORRECT Cartoons for Thursday March 1, 2018


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ICE Report Rips Apart Liberal Narrative about “Law-Abiding” Illegal Aliens


Authored By Ben Marquis | February 19, 2018 at 3:16pm

URL of the original posting Site: https://conservativetribune.com/ice-report-narrative-illegal-aliens/

President Donald Trump ran for office on a promise to crack down on illegal immigration, and repeatedly noted that he would focus on the arrest and removal from the country of “bad hombres” that had criminal convictions or pending charges.

Of course, liberals countered with the tired narrative that hardly any illegal immigrants are criminals, and that Trump would in essence be targeting “law-abiding” illegals — the narrative they lean on to support their sanctuary city policies that refuse to cooperate with federal immigration officials in turning over locally detained illegals for federal adjudication, processing and removal.

But according to The Daily Wire, a recent report released by Immigration and Customs Enforcement totally undercut that narrative as it made clear that an overwhelming percentage of illegal immigrants arrested by ICE in the 2017 fiscal year — roughly 90 percent — either had a criminal record or had criminal charges pending against them, with very few qualifying as “law-abiding” with no known convictions or pending charges.

That 18-page summary report detailed how ICE activity increased significantly following a Jan. 25, 2017, executive order from President Trump, and compared the resulting numbers of arrests with previous years.

Pew Research took a deep dive into the numbers of the report and found that of all those arrested by ICE in FY 2017;

  • Some 74 percent had past criminal convictions.

  • An additional 16 percent of those arrested faced pending criminal charges,

  • A mere 11 percent had no criminal record or pending charges to speak of.

Interestingly, the report showed that ICE arrests in 2017 were nearly half of the number of arrests made in FY 2009, former President Barack Obama’s first year in office, and that roughly 61 percent of those arrested in 2009 by Obama’s ICE were of the “non-criminal” variety. That’s exactly the opposite of what liberals would have you believe.

Of course, the total number of arrests dropped significantly over Obama’s tenure in office, with a decisive closing of that gap between criminal and non-criminal over the latter years, though the number of arrests picked up sharply following Trump’s inauguration into office — some 30 percent higher over the previous year.

Of those arrested in 2017 with past criminal convictions, the top criminal category was driving under the influence, followed closely by possession or distribution of “dangerous drugs.” Other traffic offenses, immigration law violations and assault rounded out the top five criminal categories.

Pew noted that there was a bit of regional variance in the numbers of criminal versus non-criminal ICE arrests. For example, some 88 percent of those arrested in the southern California area had a criminal record, while only about 60 percent of those arrested in New Jersey were known criminals.

The ICE report didn’t come right out and explicitly condemn sanctuary city policies, but it wasn’t difficult to catch the numerous allusions to such policies at several points throughout the report.

Most notably, a section of the report titled “At-Large Arrests” pointed out that in some jurisdictions, ICE was compelled to make at-large arrests within the community of illegal immigrants, which inevitably brings them into contact with non-criminal illegals.

Comparatively, when ICE is permitted to make arrests in a “custodial setting” such as a jail or prison, it is virtually guaranteed that the arrestee will either have a criminal record or pending criminal charges, and is far less likely to be a non-criminal swept up in the at-large arrests or sweeping raids.

Because of the lack of cooperation from sanctuary city jurisdictions, ICE had to make significantly more at-large arrests in the community than in prior years. The non-criminal illegals caught in those arrests have nobody to blame but themselves (for being here illegally in the first place) and the liberal politicians who refused to cooperate with federal officials for their detainment.

The ICE report noted that it would be far better for everyone involved — both law enforcement officials and non-criminal illegal immigrants — if such jurisdictions cooperated and handed over criminal illegals to ICE within a custodial setting, which would negate the need for at-large arrests and raids to track down known criminal illegals.

The liberal media would have us all believe that Trump and ICE are rounding up and deporting millions of “law-abiding,” non-criminal illegal immigrants, but the numbers released by ICE paint a far different picture, and reveal that Trump has thus far kept his word; that he is focused on rooting out and deporting criminals who shouldn’t be here.

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