The Washington Postreported Wednesday morning that there was a fight at the FBI among agents about whether they should enforce the search warrant issued for Mar-a-Lago for the stolen documents from the White House. There were FBI agents that felt they should do more to try and get the documents, which was a negotiation that had been underway for a year at that point.
Speaking to MSNBC's Nicolle Wallace about the reporting was former FBI official Frank Figliuzzi, who was previously the deputy director of the FBI for counterintelligence, explained that there are debates between agents and prosecutors all the time.
"So, for example, in this case, you know, there are healthy parts of this where Carol [Leonnig]'s reporting is, they talked about incremental approaches. They talked about going easy and saying pretty please, and yes, we need the subpoena," said Figliuzzi. "So, all of that you can understand, we're talking about a former president of the United States. It's clearly going to be on the front page of the paper, et cetera."
The "unhealthy" piece of the reporting, he said, is that even with evidence that was clear that the agents were presented with the information that Trump had been asked "pretty please" multiple times by the National Archives. He'd been threatened. There was a subpoena, which also didn't work. All the while, there was classified information at a Florida country club.
"It seems, what I'm hearing, that the FBI said, we think maybe we should just close this because it's going to be a mess, right? And where is that coming from?" Figliuzzi asked. "I have to tell you, I believe part of this is we're seeing the fruits of the bashing and erosion of our institutions by the Trump administration. And it continues even as there is a subcommittee, the so-called weaponization of government subcommittee. Why do I say that? If you're in the FBI and you're a line agent or even an executive, in the front of your head is Jim Comey got fired. Andy McCabe got fired. Pete Strzok got walked out of the building, right? And his wife attacked, Andy McCabe's wife attacked merely for running office, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera."
He thinks that FBI agents are now thinking twice about "doing the right thing" due to these attacks on the FBI or DOJ over the four years Trump was in office. The attacks continue to this day. One Trump supporter went so far as to open fire at the FBI in Ohio. During a Feb. 2023 episode of Rachel Maddow, the MSNBC host pointed out that if Trump is indicted, there will be an attack on the American government like never before from his supporters.
"Isn't that where the far-right wants us to go?" Figliuzzi asked. "Isn't that where Trump wants us to be, right? The infamous manager of the New York Yankees Billy Martin, when asked why he was so adamantly screaming at an umpire who had already made a call, he said, 'I'm not arguing this call. I'm arguing for next call.' Trump has been arguing for the next call every day of his tenure. This was one of those next calls. He wants FBI agents to stop from doing the right thing."
See the video below or at the link here.