After a chaotic and troubled week, the Justice Department has announced even more surprising news: The investigation against former FBI deputy director Andrew McCabe has been unceremoniously dropped without any charges being brought forward.
On Friday, McCabe’s lawyers released the contents of a letter sent to them by the DC US Attorney’s office:
“We write to inform you that, after careful consideration, the Government has decided not to pursue criminal charges against your client, Andrew G. McCabe, arising from the referral made by the Inspector General’s office to investigate his behavior,” the letter reads.
McCabe, the former deputy director of the FBI, was involved in some of the earliest investigations into Trump’s connections to Russia and Russian interference in the 2016 election. Following his early involvement in this wave of the investigation, McCabe was the constant target of Republican ire, beginning a long and partisan battle.
After the investigation was moved into the hands of Special Counsel Robert Mueller, however, the pressure on McCabe continued. The Department of Justice’s investigation into him ostensibly focused on his authorization of a leak to a Wall Street Journal reporter. The leak in question regarded a conversation McCabe had about an investigation into the Clinton Foundation.
Following this incident, the Justice Department’s inspector general, who acts independently, looked into the matter and determined that McCabe had “lacked candor” in four distinct instances when talking about the leak. Due to this tendency to speak about the leak with reporters, the inspector general saw fit to refer the matter to the FBI.
The timing of the dismissal of these investigations is unusual, to be blunt. Earlier this week, the Justice Department found itself engulfed in a political firestorm over its decision to lighten the sentence against convicted Trump confidante Roger Stone over charges such as lying to Congress. This seeming preferential treatment led many to accuse the DOJ of acting as Trump’s private law enforcement.
However, by lifting the investigations into McCabe without bringing any charges, the DOJ is clearly showing they are aware of the optics of the week’s events. On Thursday, Attorney General William Barr issued a rare negative statement about Trump, stating that Trump’s constant tweets were making the AG’s job “impossible.”
