| 302 | An FD-302 is an FBI form to “report or summarize the interviews that they conduct” and contains information from the notes taken during the interview by the non-primary agent. Referenced during General Michael Flynn’s trial as a missing piece of exculpatory evidence. |
| Brady Rule | Named after the Supreme Court case Brady v. Maryland. Requires criminal prosecutors to turn over evidence that exonerates a defendant, damages the prosecution’s case, or information that could lead to the discovery of such evidence. Failure to do so can result in a conviction being vacated and/or disciplinary actions against the prosecutor. |
| Crossfire Hurricane | Codename for the investigation opened by FBI official Peter Strzok on July 31, 2016 to determine if the Trump Campaign was working with Russia to interfere with the presidential election. It was predicated on a conversation between George Papadopoulus, a Trump volunteer campaign advisor and Joseph Mifsud, a Maltese professor. Mifsud allegedly told Papadopoulus that Russia had “dirt” on Hillary Clinton. |
| Crossfire Razor | Codename for the investigation on General Michael Flynn opened by the FBI on August 16, 2016. |
| Deep State | a theory suggesting that collusion and cronyism exists within the US political system with an agenda that can conflict with and undermine the legitimate running of the government and ergo the country |
| DNC | Democratic National Committee The governing body of the Democratic party. |
| Durham Investigation | May 13, 2019. In response to numerous concerns, DOJ Inspector General William Barr tasked attorney John Durham to oversee a review of the origins of the Russia investigation (“Hurricane Crossfire”) and to determine if intelligence collection involving the Trump campaign was “lawful and appropriate”. In Oct, 2019 it became a criminal investigation. |
| exculpatory evidence | Evidence favorable to the defendant in a criminal trial that exonerates or tends to exonerate the defendant of guilt. |
| FISA | “Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Application” is a request to obtain authorization by a judge to surveil foreign spies inside the United States. Used by law enforcement and federal agencies under strict guidelines, because surveillance is carried out without the suspect’s knowledge, right to privacy or to defend themselves. |
| Fusion GPS | Research firm based in Washington DC that produced the Steele Dossier. |
| Horowitz Investigation | May 19, 2019. In response to numerous concerns, DOJ Inspector General William Barr directed Inspector General Michael Horowitz to investigate the use of the FISA court by the DOJ and FBI to surveil the Trump Campaign leading up to the 2016 election (“Hurricane Crossfire”) and potential political bias. This was an “internal audit”, based upon findings limited to DOJ and FBI personnel interviews and documents. |
| impeachment | A statement of charges leveled against an official by a legislative body
The impeachment of Donald Trump, the 45th president of the United States by Congress |
| Logan Act | Outdated federal law (1799) that criminalizes negotiation by unauthorized American citizens with foreign governments having a dispute with the United States. |
| Mueller (Special Council) Investigation | On May 17, 2017, US Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein appointed Robert Mueller to take over the FBI work (Hurricane Crossfire) to investigate Russian interference in the 2016 United States elections, potential links with the Trump campaign and “any matters that may arise”. Thirty four (34) individuals were indicted of which five (5) were Trump associates for process crimes (not related to Russian interference in the election). The investigation concluded on March 22, 2019 with an ambiguous report that claimed no Americans colluded with Russia on the 2016 election, but obstruction of justice charges by President Trump were not filed because a sitting president cannot be charged with a federal crime while in office. This left the final say with US Attorney General William Barr, who along with Rosenstein concluded that there was insufficient evidence for obstruction of justice and closed the matter with no further charges. The cost of the investigation was over $32 million dollars. |
| process crime | An offense against the judicial process, such as false statements, obstruction, witness tampering that interferes with investigating/prosecuting a case. |
| Steele Dossier | Political opposition research conducted by Fusion GPS on Donald Trump. Originally funded by a conservative website, it began in Oct, 2015 and ended in May, 2016. The research was resurrected under a contract with the Democratic National Committee in June, 2016 and ending after the election. The research contained slanderous and unverified/false information but was continued by Christopher Steele, who despised Trump. After the election in Nov, 2016 Senator John McCain attended a conference along with David Kramer, a former assistant Secretary of State and was approached by Sir Andrew Wood, a retired British diplomat who told McCain and Kramer of the dossier. Kramer subsequently met with Steele and read the dossier. On Dec. 9, 2016 McCain provided James Comey, Director of the FBI with a copy of the dossier. It was used by the FBI to obtain FISA warrants to spy on Trump foreign policy advisor Carter Page. |
| unmask | To reveal the identify of an individual, normally kept confidential to protect the rights of an American citizen, during the course of US government investigations and surveillance of foreign entities. |
| Woods file | The mandatory FBI evidence file that contains the documentary proof to verify all statements against U.S. persons that are contained in any FISA application. Note: In the case of Carter Page, the file was reportedly missing and the Special Counsel manufactured the appearance of one ex post facto in 2018. |