WASHINGTON — The FBI failed to take the “basic step” of canvassing its field offices for intelligence ahead of the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol, according to a long-awaited Justice Department’s inspector general report released Thursday. FBI Deputy Director Paul Abbate told investigators that the lack of a canvas was a “basic step that was missed” and that he would have expected it to have occurred, the inspector general’s office said. The inspector general did find that the FBI “recognized the potential for violence” and took “significant and appropriate steps” even though the FBI played “only a supporting role in preparing for and responding to” the events of Jan. 6.
The report also includes details that will almost certainly fuel the “fedsurrection” narrative that has been growing on the right and amongst Donald Trump supporters: The false notion that the federal government was responsible for instigating the attack. While the review found “no evidence in the materials we reviewed or the testimony we received showing or suggesting that the FBI had undercover employees in the various protest crowds, or at the Capitol, on January 6,” the inspector general’s office said that there were 26 confidential human sources in Washington on Jan. 6. None of them were “authorized by the FBI to enter the Capitol or a restricted area or to otherwise break the law on January 6, nor was any CHS directed by the FBI to encourage others to commit illegal acts on January 6,” the inspector general said.
A total of four FBI confidential human sources entered the Capitol, according to the inspector general, including one who testified during the Proud Boys trial in which several members of the far-right group were found guilty of seditious conspiracy. A total of 13 confidential human sources entered the restricted area around the Capitol, the IG report said, while the remaining 9 never entered the Capitol or restricted area. Only three of the 26 FBI confidential human sources had specifically “been tasked by FBI field offices to report on specific domestic terrorism case subjects who were possibly attending the events of January 6,” while the other 23 attended “on their own initiative and were not tasked by FBI field offices to attend the events,” according to the report.
None of the FBI informants have been prosecuted in relation to the Jan. 6 attack, but the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia said it had generally not charged “individuals whose only crime on January 6, 2021 was to enter the restricted grounds surrounding the Capitol, which has resulted in the Office declining to charge hundreds of individuals; and we have treated the CHSs consistent with this approach.”
While more than 1,500 people have been charged in connection with the Capitol attack, there are thousands of others who were either inside the building or on the restricted grounds of the Capitol who will likely never face charges with just over a month remaining before Trump takes office. Online sleuths have identified hundreds of participants to the FBI, including 93 whose photos are on the bureau’s Capitol Violence website, most of whom are wanted for assaulting officers that day.
The inspector general’s report focuses on events that happened four years ago, in late 2020 and early 2021, at a time when Trump was working to overturn his election loss. The inspector general’s Jan. 6-related oversight has been delayed by both the prosecution of hundreds of Jan. 6 cases as well as by the separate, wide-spanning criminal investigation that special counsel Jack Smith ran, looking into Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election. A federal grand jury ultimately indicted Trump on four felony charges in connection with that effort, but Trump was able to successfully delay the trial, and Smith moved to drop the charges after Trump’s 2024 win. Smith is still expected to issue a written report on his investigation.
An NBC News review of thousands of pages of FBI documents connected to Jan. 6 revealed a bureau struggling with technology and communications as well as impeded from having honest conversations about the threat environment caused in large part by the man occupying the White House.
Comment: I can pretty much guarantee this won’t be the final word on the subject. The incoming Trump administration will surely continue investigations and inquiries to prove that the thousands of Trump supporters that took part in the Jan 6 “insurrection” were nothing but clueless sheep easily led astray by a handful of FBI confidential sources. Social media is already full of stories to that effect. The televised hearings will, no doubt, be entertaining. I think they will be as entertaining as the hearings trying to pin something truly damning on the Bidens. By the way, the key witness in those hearings, Alexander Smirnov, just pleaded guilty to making the whole story up in coordination with Russian officials.
TTG
https://newrepublic.com/post/189316/surprise-key-witness-reveals-lied-biden-corruption
ya mean a few “confidential human sources” had more control over thousands of dedicated patriots than their Jesus-ordained fearful leader? say it ain’t so!
TTG,
Trump will do nothing of the kind. The only likely charge is to the 4 CHS who entered the capital building with th sam one the others have been charged with. There’s zero to be gained by Trump in doing anything else. He gains zero votes in the House for any legislative item he wants passed doing so.
“… but the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia said it had generally not charged “individuals whose only crime on January 6, 2021 was to enter the restricted grounds surrounding the Capitol…”
That is NBC at its misleading best. “generally not” however that is the charge resulting in conviction for hundreds. Even an hour of research over the past year would point that out to NBC. I wonder if NBC news has figured out that the Capital and grounds are controlled by the legislative branch and has its own police force responsible for security – which is under control of the speaker. Remember who that was at the time? She’s now enjoying socialized medicine in Luxembourg, hope their results with the elderly and broken hips is better than San Francisco’s.
Thanks for the link to the once readable lefty mag. Can’t wait to see their report on the Duke Lacrosse accuser recanting her story.
Fred,
If he does nothing, I’d be pleasantly surprised. But he has recently stated he wants those on the Jan 6 Committee investigated and thinks they should all be jailed.
Those who were on the Capitol grounds and not in the Capitol itself were generally not charged. The exceptions were those engaged in violent attacks against law enforcement and ringleaders. Tarrio wasn’t even in DC that day.
TTG,
The CHS people were not on the house committee.
There have been more than 1,000 people charged with federal crimes, hundreds convicted,almost 100% with a jury pool “traumatized ” by the events. Good luck with beating the dead horse in 2025. BTW the Patriot Front of matching khaki guys disbanded the same day Wray announced his retirement.
https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/3-years-jan-6-numbers-1200-charged-460/story?id=106140326
Fred,
There were over 2,000 who entered the Capitol itself, so plenty got away with it. I’m sure a lot of them just strolled through and never lifted a hand to anyone. Trespassing maybe, but no big deal… other than trying to stop the certification process.
TTG,
You wriggle like a worm on a hook. If you spend 15 minutes on something other than Politico or TNR you will find that DOJ is still arresting for events on January 6th. At least we are down from “insurrection” to “stop the certification process”, which people convicted of misdemeanors weren’t doing or charged with doing. It made a nice campaign line. Did you notice the failure of the missing 15,000,000 to show up and vote for Kamala? One wonders where they all went.
Fred,
I don’t think anyone was charged with insurrection and only half a dozen were charged and convicted of seditious conspiracy. Trespassing, unlawful entry and disorderly conduct were popular charges. They were misdemeanors mostly. Hundreds were convicted of assault on police officers and weapons charges. The stopping the certification process was called disrupting official proceedings and was the charge most limited by the Supreme Court proceedings.
TTG,
I’m glad you put “insurrection” in quotes.
1776 was an insurrection. Syria is an insurrection. 1917 Russia was an insurrection. Jan 6 was a collection of clowns acting like annoying, but harmless, juvenile vandals.
No things that go “BOOM”, no dead government people, no insurrection.
EN,”Harmless”? I dare you approach those Capitol Police who were badly injured and say that to them!
Excuse me…there were dead Capitol police and one dead citizen. I think they should count for something. It was a violent insurrection.
Al & Laura,
Get a grip. Are you really that fragile and bubble wrapped? I thought you mentioned that your are a veteran, Al. You’d probably see pugil sticks as life or death riot combat.
One person was shot dead in cold blood. That was one of the idiots who ran into the Capitol. A couple of fat cops had cardiovascular issues. Lay off the donuts. They would have keeled over sooner or later anyhow. The pranksters didn’t kill them.
https://www.factcheck.org/2021/11/how-many-died-as-a-result-of-capitol-riot/
Laura,
“One dead citizen”. You mean the woman shot by the police officer. The dead Capitol police officer did not die do to any injuries received on the 6th of January.
I’m sure that the $600,000 that Trump’s buddies in Dubai and London paid Smirnov had nothing to do with his lies about the Bidens (SNARK!). And how did he evolve from a guy drowning in credit card debt prior to 2020 into now having millions of dollars in his bank accounts? With no job in the US and no property and a failing business?
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/trump-smirnov-fbi-informant-ties-b2512838.html
Although you have to wonder if Netanyahu might have had a hand in that also as Smirnov was a joint US-Israeli citizen. Why do we allow dual citizenship? I guess the conflict of interest is not evident to our lawmakers in Congress.
I suspect, or at least wouldn’t be surprised if Trump limited himself to pardoning the Jan 6 convicts and stopping any further prosecutions. There are risks in starting a new deep-dive into that event for him and little to be gained. Getting all those capitol guards back in the news describing that “day of love”, as Trump calls it, is unlikely to pan out well for him.
The pardons will come after massive and systemic election rigging is exposed. I predict the exposure will occur within the next two years and it will be irrefutable.