U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) has released internal emails and an FBI Electronic Communication that show Department of Justice officials declined to open a criminal investigation into possible campaign finance violations by Hillary Clinton and the Democratic National Committee (DNC). According to Grassley, this decision was made despite FBI agents presenting evidence that Clinton and the DNC intentionally concealed payments aimed at targeting then-candidate Donald Trump.
In 2022, the Federal Election Commission fined both Clinton and the DNC for disguising campaign expenditures used to pay Fusion GPS, a political research firm responsible for producing the Steele Dossier. The dossier contained allegations of Trump colluding with Russia, which have since been discredited.
The refusal to investigate was made by Richard Pilger from the DOJ’s Public Integrity Section and J.P. Cooney, who worked in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia at that time. Pilger later played a significant role in approving Jack Smith’s Arctic Frost investigation, while Cooney served as Smith’s Deputy Special Counsel during that probe.
Grassley received the FBI communication as part of his oversight efforts from both the DOJ and FBI.
“Courageous whistleblowers came to my office years ago to sound the alarm that the Justice Department inappropriately interfered in efforts to investigate potential criminal activity committed by Hillary Clinton and her campaign,” Grassley said. “These records show the same partisans who rushed to cover for Clinton rabidly pursued Arctic Frost, which was a runaway train aimed directly at President Trump and the Republican political apparatus. I appreciate Attorney General Bondi and FBI Director Patel’s efforts to turn over the information I requested, and I’ll continue investigating this matter.”
The released documents include both the FBI communication and related email exchanges. Grassley has also sent a follow-up letter to both agencies regarding this issue.
