5 Points On FBI Director Wray’s First Congressional Testimony Since Capitol Attack | Talking Points Memo

FBI Director Christopher Wray on Tuesday debunked right-wing conspiracy theories about the Capitol insurrection, defended the bureau’s intelligence-sharing ahead of the attack and defined the categories of alleged rioters law enforcement is looking at.


This is a companion discussion topic for the original entry at https://talkingpointsmemo.com/?p=1362913

The elephant in the room is that the FBI was woefully unprepared to deal with the 1/6 insurrection despite having successfully snuffed out and stopped the coup attempt in MI. How would one not see a potential threat in advance of 1/6 after having uncovered the MI plot and presumably learning a lot about what motivates right wing activity? I think the answer to that is simple: Trump. When it came time to deal with the white nationalist threat to the peaceful transfer of power, the FBI balked at drawing direct connections to Trump and following the leads which emanated from messaging around Trump which were interpreted and acted upon by the far right. They were too afraid to make the connection that right wing groups exist AND that Trump is a big driver and motivator of their activity and that he does so for personal political benefit. That, to me, is disqualifying. Wray should resign. He did not protect the nation when it was faced with a grave threat to Democracy. That the threat came from within the house is something the FBI was simply too afraid to deal with. They couldn’t process it. That paralysis imperiled the nation, disrupted our Democracy and cost lives.

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Nah, not good enough, Director Wray. Not good enough at all.

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The Old Post Office building, which is quite close to the FBI headquarters, has become a serious national security threat. The private residence in that building was used by the January 6 Coup plotters in their conspiracy to incite the crowd to violently attack the Vice President of the United States in the Capitol. It has become a den for domestic terrorists and radicalized white nationalist christian domestic terrorist groups. Also, Saudi, Russian and Chinese intelligence agents are using it as a base to spy on our government. Director Wray should order the complete dismantling of the infrastructure at the Old Post Office facility. It should be converted to FBI offices.

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Off Topic. It really is a “whole other country”. Bloody fucking hell! How about supersizing that negligence with a few preventable industrial accidents and and a man-made weather crisis?

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“Our focus is on the violence,” Wray said, adding: “Obviously the folks who engaged in this kind of violence draw inspiration from a variety of sources and we’re concerned about any source that stimulates or motivates violent extremism.”

Correct response. That’s for the prosecutor to decide in a given case based on the totality of its circumstances. He’s right that it’s not his job. He seemed to acknowledge that it’s a conspiracy, concerning and something they’re keeping an eye on…that it can function as inspiration and motivation. Read between those lines and that should be sufficient. They’re not fucking stupid and he wasn’t going to play into the fishing for a soundbite.

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Couldn’t they at least wait until all boil water orders are rescinded, and people have access to water? Or do they even know how many Texans are currently displaced by water damaged homes?

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Yup. The NM state gov’t must be very concerned about the mask mandate’s being dropped.

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I wonder how much of a difference it makes in the practical (mathematical) sense though. It’s certainly atrocious, partisanship-motivated, science-denying policy, but TX had to be a hotbed of people just ignoring any mandate anyway, no?

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OT: Damnation…

`

NEW: Issuing an
executive order to lift the mask mandate and open Texas to 100 percent.
pic.twitter.com/P4UywmWeuN


Gov. Greg Abbott (@GovAbbott) March
2, 2021
`
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Have they even solved the power outage problem yet?

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In places like Lubbock, yes, but in Dallas, Austin, Houston, I’m thinking compiance mighr be pretty good.

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Just saw you got there first. This is criminal on his part.

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I wouldn’t say that your Post says it all (it’s not a Term Paper). But your post lays out the gap between the Republican Party in the Trump Era and what is normally seen as an organization acting within the political and legal norms of this society.

This is a time which, in a sense, is more dangerous than the time before the election. The Republican Party is acting on its OWN right now. Hence the push to assume Power Without Fair Elections.

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Which also suggests a level of awareness and conscientiousness that in turn suggests it might largely continue anyway? The big thing is scoring the win on school openings. That is what I really think motivates this for them right now. They see it as a major way to win back suburbanites they lost last election. They certainly don’t give a fuck about forcing children back into petri dish schools to all get COVID and then bring it back to mom and dad…especially if mom and dad are “those people.”

How much you wanna bet they even tell kids they’re not PERMITTED to wear masks in school?

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It really is a “whole other country”.

And quite committed to their traditions.

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Gov. Ducey, here in AZ, will be next.

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I expect to see smug a-holes in the stores and wandering about here in San Antonio while the majority take concern. The biggest problem will be people who see this as a statement of where we are at and believe the crisis is over. We are a week post our second shot. I feel up-armored for the stupidity about to ensue but we will still mask long into the future.

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I can easily see the virus outpacing the vaccine at this point. This is going to wreck a lot of good work.

Death panels are in action as we speak. And the are all one hundred percent Republicans.

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My second shot is Mar 10, but I’ll still mask up for the foreseeable future. Brazil variant has been found in the UK. Five’ll get you ten it’s in the US too. Recovery from previous Covid-19 does not appear to immunologically protect against this one.

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