Sen. Lindsey Graham used every Lou Dobbs crazed talking point and conspiracy theory about the FBI during his opening questions to William Barr during his confirmation hearing, inquiring as to whether the nominee if would re-investigate their claims that the FBI tried to destroy Donald Trump.
Graham acted more like a corrupt Freedom Caucus member (Devin Nunes) than the new Senate Judiciary Committee chairman conducting an Attorney General confirmation hearing.
During his first ten minutes of questions, Graham brought up every Fox News and Trump surrogate-approved attack theory against Lisa Page, Peter Strzok, Bruce Ohr, Fusion GPS and the FISA Warrant process that they used to try and smear the FBI to defend Trump and Gen. Flynn.
Graham also alluded to the idea that there needs to be some outside group to provide checks and balances against a rouge FBI, something he'd never have done or said when the FBI investigates Democrats.
Sen. Graham read off the text messages from Page and Strzok that were used for months as a way to defend Trump and paint the FBI and the special counsel as organizations dedicated to destroy Trump.
After reading them he said, "You can have any opinion that you like, but you are supposed to do your job without an agenda. Do you promise me as Attorney General, if you get this job, to look into seeing what happened in 2016?"
"Yes, Mr. Chairman."
So to the new Senate Judiciary Committee chairman, the #1 priority for any AG is to shield and protect Trump.
"How do these statements sit with you?"
"I was shocked with when I saw them."
Graham replied, "Please get to bottom of it. I promise you we will protect the investigation, but we are relying upon you to clean this place up."
Trump and Giuliani routinely distorted the IG report on their private texts but that doesn't bother Graham, obviously. No mention of Rudy's corrupt dealings with the FBI during the 2016 presidential campaign either.
Sen. Graham then went into a lengthy soliloquy about the FISA warrant process, Fusion GPS, the Steele dossier and Bruce Ohr that former Chairman Devin Nunes, Rep. Mark Meadows and Jim Jordan and many other Trump surrogates have used as a bludgeon to defend Trump against all recriminations and investigations.
Graham then asked if he'd investigate the process, "The warrant certification against Carter Page on four different occasions certifies that the dossier which was the main source of the warrant was reliable. Would you look into see whether or not that was an accurate statement and hold people accountable if it was not?"
Trying to defend Trump has turned Senate and House Republicans into moronic defenders of Alex Jones fevered lunacies.
Trump has not only spread white nationalistic racism and ridiculous conspiracy theories throughout our country but infected the GOP with them. Lindsey Graham is evidence of that.
