Counter-intel expert: Jim Jordan and disgruntled FBI agents 'thought they'd get away with it — they didn't'
Former FBI deputy director for counter-intelligence Frank Figliuzzi called out the fired agents that appeared before Rep. Jim Jordan's (R-OH) weaponization committee Thursday to claim that they were targeted because of their conservative beliefs.
Speaking to MSNBC's Nicolle Wallace, he joined with former U.S. Attorney and a whistleblower lawyer, Harry Litman, who questioned the legitimacy of the claim that the men were indeed whistleblowers instead of disgruntled employees.
Wallace wondered, if Jordan felt there was politicization happening at the FBI, why then wouldn't he call in the head of the FBI, Christopher Wray?
Figliuzzi explained that the last several times Wray appeared on Capitol Hill, he makes it clear that Jan. 6 attackers are domestic terrorists. Each time it makes the GOP look as if they are supporting terrorism.
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"What they thought they'd get today was sympathy, empathy with employees who have been fired simply for expressing their opinion, which, of course, we know now is not true. So they discarded the Wray theory, [and] they went with let's try to get sympathy for these folks who have families to feed," said Figliuzzi. "I think that's what's going on. They didn't want the truth to come out. We even glossed over some of the more ugly parts of this."
He made two additional points: in the case of Stephen Friend, the FBI said that he lost his clearance after he refused to participate in the arrest of a Jan. 6 attacker. When talking to his superiors about it, Friend “espoused an alternative narrative about the events at the U.S. Capitol," the letter from the Bureau said. There's also an accusation that Friend downloaded documents from the FBI onto a personal drive, but didn't go into details there.
Figliuzzi explained that the man that Friend refused to arrest was using chemical spray against officers, wearing full tactical gear with a helmet, and was known for having an AR-15.
"And Stephen Friend suggests, what, that he's cooperative, we should make an appointment for him to turn himself in," said Figliuzzi in shock. "Really? You want that guy showing up in the reception room at the office? That's fascinating. It's those kinds of things that gloss over and they thought they would get away with it today, and they didn't."
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