WASHINGTON – FBI lovebird Peter Strzok blasted the House committee where he was testifying Thursday, calling it “another victory notch in Putin’s belt.”
Strzok, who slammed then-candidate Donald Trump in text messages in 2016, stood by his investigation into Russian meddling into presidential election.
“Russian interference in our elections constitutes a grave attack on our democracy,” Strzok said in prepared remarks to the House Judiciary and Oversight Committees. “Most disturbingly, it has been wildly successful—sowing discord in our nation and shaking faith in our intuitions. I have the utmost respect for Congress’s oversight role, but I truly believe that today’s hearing is just another victory notch in Putin’s belt and another milestone in our enemies’ campaign to tear America apart.”
Strzok investigated both Hillary Clinton emails and Russian meddling in the 2016 elections.
Republicans argue his severe disdain for Trump –as expressed in texts with ex-lover Lisa Page—clouded the FBI probe that eventually led to Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation.
Though Strzok has “significant regret” that his texts caused “confusion” and “pain” for people he loved, the special agent said his feelings didn’t affect his work.
“Let me be clear, unequivocally and under oath, not once in my 26 years of defending my nation did my personal opinions impact any official action I took,” Strzok said in prepared remarks.
The Justice Department Inspector General found earlier this summer there were disturbing biases among several FBI agents like Strzok but they did not affect the outcome of the Clinton email investigation.
Republicans weren’t buying it, with Gowdy and Virginia Rep. Bob Goodlatte, chair of the House Judiciary Committee, fiercely attacking Strzok’s credibility.
“Agent Strzok had Hillary Clinton winning the White House before he finished investigating her,” Gowdy said, referring to a text in which Strzok said Trump wouldn’t win.
The hearing briefly devolved into chaos and shouting as Goodlatte said Strzok needed to answer Republicans’ questions — and suggested they might recess the hearing and hold him in contempt.
Goodlatte eventually relented and let the hearing proceed.
In response to a question from Rep. Steve Chabot (R-Ohio), Strzok conceded that it was “fair to say” that he and Page detested Trump and supported Clinton.
While Republicans repeatedly charged that the texts exposed anti-Trump bias in the federal government, Democrats just as often called the hearing a charade to undermine Mueller’s Russia probe.
In one sharp exchange between Strzok and Gowdy, the G-man denied that he was removed from Mueller’s team because of his anti-Trump sentiment but rather for the “appearance” of bias.
He accused Gowdy of misrepresenting his testimony on the matter and said he didn’t “appreciate” it.
“I don’t give a damn what you appreciate, agent Strzok. I don’t appreciate having an FBI agent with an unprecedented level of animus working on two major investigations during 2016,” Gowdy fired back.
Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-Texas) stunned the room when he said Strzok, who was under oath, was lying and brought up his extramarital affair with Page.
“I watched you in the private testimony you gave and I told some of the other guys, ‘He’s really good, he’s lying and we know he’s lying and he could probably pass a polygraph,’ ” Gohmert said.
“When I see you looking with a little smirk, how many times did you look so innocent into your wife’s eyes and lie to her about Lisa Page,” he continued as the hearing room erupted.
Someone shouted, “Insane asylum!” and someone else said that Gohmert needed his medication.
In response, Strzok acknowledged “hurting” someone he described as a “family member” before attacking the Texas lawmaker.
“I have told the truth. The fact that you would accuse me otherwise and [bring up] a family member that I have acknowledged hurting goes to more of a discussion of your character and what you stand for and what’s going on inside you,” he said.
Democrats throughout the day mocked their GOP colleagues and accused them of carrying water for Trump by trying to discredit the Mueller probe.
Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-NJ) ripped Gowdy, who spent years holding hearings about Hillary Clinton’s role in the deadly Benghazi terror attack.
“You’ve been out of control since you got on this committee. If you can’t control yourself, how do you expect this committee to control itself. This is not Benghazi!” she said.