uh oh ... got some air seeping into that airtight case...
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2018/jan/9/dianne-feinstein-releases-transcript-fusion-gps/
The Senate Judiciary Committee’s top Democrat has released a highly anticipated transcript of the panel’s closed-door interview with Glenn Simpson, co-founder of the research firm Fusion GPS, which was responsible for the anti-Trump dossier at the center of the Russian election meddling saga.
The committee interviewed Mr. Simpson last summer. According to an early, fast-read of his 300-page testimony on Tuesday, various issues were discussed including Mr. Trump’s tax history and business ties, alleged Russian organized crime-connected figure Felix Sater and Fusion GPS‘ interaction with the FBI.
In a statement Tuesday, Sen. Dianne Feinstein of California said, “the innuendo and misinformation circulating about the transcript are part of a deeply troubling effort to undermine the investigation into potential collusion and obstruction of justice. The only way to set the record straight is to make the transcript public.”
Compiled by former British spy Christopher Steele, the bombshell dossier contains salacious, largely unverified allegations of Mr. Trump’s long-standing ties to the Kremlin.
Recent weeks have seen partisan tensions at the committee escalate dramatically as members have clashed over releasing the transcript.
Friction was driven by a push from committee chairman Sen. Chuck Grassley to expand the panels’s Russia probe to include suspicions that the dossier had been used to justify the launch of the overall FBI Trump-Russia probe. Mr. Grassley also wanted to know if it had helped secure a warrant to monitor former Trump adviser Carter Page.
Despite pleas from Fusion GPS to do so, the powerful committee chairman refused to release Mr. Simpson’s interview.
Instead last week he and Judiciary Committee member Sen. Lindsey Graham announced they were issuing a criminal referral to the Department of Justice, suggesting officials investigate Mr. Steele for possibly lying to the FBI. The move angered committee Democrats, who said they were not consulted beforehand.
Last week, Mr. Simpson and Fusion’s other co-founders Peter Fritsch argued in a New York Times op-ed that the dossier was not “the trigger for the FBI’s investigation into Russian meddling.”
On Tuesday the firm said in a statement, “Fusion GPS commends Sen. Feinstein for her courage. The transcript of Glenn Simpson’s lengthy responses to the Senate Judiciary Committee’s questioning speaks for itself.”
Details behind the creation of the dossier have always been highly controversial. After months of investigating, it was finally learned that funding initially came from the conservative Washington Free Beacon. After Mr. Trump won the Republican nomination, the Democratic National Committee and lawyers working for presidential nominee Hillary Clinton assumed funding, which was when Mr. Steele was hired.
