EXCLUSIVE: McCabe Told Congress That Comey’s Draft Exoneration of Clinton Was Unprecedented

Andrew McCabe, the former deputy director of the FBI, told House lawmakers during a closed-door interview in late 2017 that other than the probe into Hillary Clinton’s unauthorized use of a private email server, he was not aware of any instance in which an FBI exoneration statement was drafted months prior to the conclusion of an investigation.

“This is the only time that I am aware of, sir,” McCabe told a lawmaker, who asked him if it was “common practice” to lay out an exoneration statement two months prior to concluding an investigation, according to a transcript obtained by The Epoch Times. Then-FBI Director James Comey had circulated a draft exoneration in May 2016—two months prior to concluding the investigation. Representatives and staff from the House judiciary and oversight committees grilled McCabe during an 8-hour session on Dec. 21, 2017. Two days later, McCabe announced his retirement. McCabe was forced to resign from his active position on Jan. 29, 2018, and on March 16, 2018, the day before McCabe was to retire with a full pension, then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions fired him for lying to investigators about self-serving leaks to the media.

The judiciary and oversight committees wrapped up a year-long investigation last month after interviewing more than 20 witnesses, including McCabe, Comey, and former Attorney General Loretta Lynch. The lawmakers concluded that the Obama Justice Department treated Clinton and then-candidate Trump unequally in 2016. While the DOJ appears to have abused foreign intelligence surveillance powers to target a Trump presidential campaign associate, its investigation of Clinton “was over before it began,”a summary released by the House Judiciary Committee states.

https://www.theepochtimes.com/exclusive-mccabe-told-congress-that-comeys-draft-exoneration-of-clinton-was-unprecedented_2763927.html

>>4721361

I believe it does..as long as the information he supplied can be corroborated.

Senior Executive of Huawei Canada Leaves Post as Company Faces Increasing Scrutiny

TORONTO—A senior executive with Huawei Canada is leaving his post after working for more than seven years for the Chinese telecom giant, which is facing increasing scrutiny over its close ties to Beijing. Scott Bradley, who was Huawei Canada’s senior vice president for corporate affairs, indicated in a LinkedIn post that he no longer holds that position. He could not be immediately reached for comments.

Huawei, founded by Ren Zhengfei—a former officer at China’s People’s Liberation Army—has been cited as a security risk in intelligence circles due to having close ties to the Chinese communist regime. Western intelligence officials have raised concerns Beijing could use the company’s equipment for espionage. The company is also at the center of a diplomatic spat between China and Canada as its chief financial officer and Ren’s daughter, Meng Wanzhou, was arrested in Canada on an extradition request from the United States. Following Meng’s arrest, China warned Canada of “grave consequences,” and has since detained two Canadians on charges of endangering national security. In a previous interview with The Epoch Times, Bradley denied that Huawei is connected to the Chinese regime.

Huawei Espionage Concerns On Jan. 11, Reuters reported Polish officials had arrested a Huawei employee and former Polish security official on spying allegations. Last year, The Australian newspaper reported officials in the land ‘Down Under’ had received reports about Chinese spies using Huawei to infiltrate a “foreign network.” Most of Canada’s allies in the Five Eyes intelligence alliance have banned the Chinese telco from their emerging 5G networks, the next evolution in wireless internet technology.

Key Advisory Role Bradley served as a key spokesperson for Huawei Canada, which is a major supplier for Canada’s major telecom companies. Going forward, he will serve as special adviser to the company, assisting “as required,” Huawei Canada President Eric Li said in a memo to staff obtained by Reuters. “We are saddened to see him leave but grateful for the tireless work he has put in to help us grow our brand and public image, and build various relationships with government,” Li Bradley ran as a federal Liberal candidate for Ottawa Centre in 2011 general election but was defeated. said.

https://www.theepochtimes.com/senior-executive-of-huawei-canada-leaves-post-as-company-faces-increasing-scrutiny_2764273.html

Poland Arrests Huawei Employee, Polish Man on Spying Allegations

https://www.theepochtimes.com/poland-arrests-huawei-employee-polish-man-on-spying-allegations_2763038.html

China Deploys Corruption Tactics to Win One Belt, One Road Projects in Malaysia: WSJ

China’s ambitious geopolitical project ‘One Belt, One Road” (OBOR) is under scrutiny, after an investigation into a scandal-ridden Malaysia state investment fund revealed that Beijing was the mastermind behind the alleged corruption. Beijing rolled out OBOR, also known as Belt and Road, in 2013, with the objective of building up trade routes linking China, Southeast Asia, Africa, Europe, and Latin America.

An investigation by the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) published on Jan. 7 revealed that senior Chinese officials in 2016 offered to bail out the heavily-indebted 1MDB, a Malaysian fund founded by former Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak, and tried to exert China’s influence in the United States and other countries to pressure them into dropping their corruption probes into the fund. China’s bailout offer was negotiated by Malaysian businessman Jho Low at the request of Najib, according to WSJ. At the time, 1MDB could not repay the $13 billion it had borrowed. Low is now a fugitive hiding in China, Malaysian officials told WSJ. In the United States and Malaysia, he is accused of criminal charges of orchestrating a money-laundering scheme to misappropriate funds taken from 1MDB.

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has estimated that a total of $4.5 billion was misappropriated by high-level 1MDB fund officials and their associates, according to a press release about the agency’s investigation. The DOJ has filed civil forfeiture complaints to recover the funds. In exchange for bailing out the fund, Malaysia offered Chinese companies lucrative contracts, including the $16-billion East Coast Rail Link (ECRL) connecting a port at the Strait of Malacca to a town facing the South China Sea, and the $2.5-billion Trans Sabah Gas Pipeline (TSGP), running 662 kilometers (411 miles) in eastern the Sabah state. These were projects under OBOR.

The WSJ conducted its investigation based on interviews with current and former Malaysian officials, including a former official with the Najib administration, as well as official documents and minutes of meetings between Chinese and Malaysian officials. An unnamed Malaysian official stated that the ECRL should have cost only $7.25 billion, citing an estimate by an unnamed Malaysian consultancy.

The 1MDB scandal was a big factor in Najib getting ousted during general elections in May 2018, which saw the return of Mahathir Mohamad as prime minister. Mahathir first served from 1976 to 1981. Najib has since been charged on corruption charges related to 1MDB. He has pleaded not guilty and has consistently denied wrongdoing. In August last year, Mahathir announced—while on an official visit to China—that he would cancel the ECRL and TSGP projects, a show of defiance against China’s influence. He had said the country’s top priority was to minimize debt and loans. At a press conference on Jan. 10, Mahathir stated that he did not have in possession the documents obtained by the Wall Street Journal. “We need to find this document and make use of the document as proof that this thing actually happened,” Mahathir said.

https://www.theepochtimes.com/china-deploys-corruption-tactics-to-win-one-belt-one-road-projects-in-malaysia-wsj_2762817.html