El mensaje detrás de la asunción en Cali

Un integrante del Ejército Nacional de Colombia vigila la vía Panamericana, en Cali. Foto: EFE

Un desafío a la izquierda

Abelardo de la Espriella. Foto: Reuters

Invitados

Con Estados Unidos

Una ofensiva inquietante

«Cambio total»

The White House released a trove of documents showing that the FBI opened a 2017 investigation into whether President Donald Trump was acting on behalf of or under the influence of Russia when he fired FBI Director James Comey.

The investigation, codenamed «Oxferd Comma,» opened after Trump fired Comey in May 2017, according to the White House’s release. 

Investigators sought to determine whether Trump was «directed by, controlled by, and/or coordinated activities with, the Russian Federation in a manner constituting a threat to the national security of the United States and/or a violation of federal criminal statutes,» according to an FBI memo dated May 16, 2017. The memo also said investigators would examine whether Trump or others had obstructed or conspired to obstruct an associated FBI investigation.

TRUMP ALLY DIGENOVA TAPPED TO LEAD DOJ PROBE INTO BRENNAN OVER RUSSIA PROBE ORIGINS

The opening memo cited information developed during Crossfire Hurricane, the FBI’s counterintelligence investigation into whether individuals associated with Trump’s 2016 campaign were coordinating with the Russian government to interfere in the 2016 election.

READ THE DOCUMENTS:

It also identified later events and information, including Trump’s interactions with Comey, the administration’s shifting explanations for Comey’s firing, Trump campaign discussions concerning the Republican platform’s language on Ukraine aid and Trump’s business ties and real estate interests involving Russia.

SECRET FBI PROBE CAST TRUMP AS POSSIBLE RUSSIAN ASSET AFTER COMEY FIRING, MEMOS SHOW

Former FBI Director James Comey testifies before the Senate Intelligence Committee about his interactions with President Donald Trump and the Russia investigation on June 8, 2017, in Washington, D.C. (Cheriss May/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

Trump initially cited Comey’s handling of the FBI investigation into Hillary Clinton’s use of a private email server while she was secretary of state as the reason for his ouster, though he later said the Russia investigation was also on his mind when he made the decision.

The FBI memo said the circumstances surrounding Comey’s dismissal could support an inference that the bureau’s counterintelligence investigation was a factor in Trump’s decision to fire Comey.

READ THE DOCUMENTS:

However, the decision to open the investigation did not mean those suspicions had been substantiated.

Special counsel Robert Mueller, appointed in 2017 to investigate Russian election interference, reported in 2019 that his team did not establish coordination between the Trump campaign and Russia and did not make a prosecutorial decision on obstruction. Attorney General William Barr appointed John Durham to review the origins and handling of the FBI’s Russia investigation in 2019. Durham’s 2023 report concluded that the FBI opened the full Crossfire Hurricane investigation without sufficient evidentiary support and did not apply the same rigor it had used in other sensitive investigations.

READ THE DOCUMENTS:

A separate 2019 Justice Department inspector general review found the FBI had enough information under its rules to open Crossfire Hurricane, though it later identified serious errors and omissions in surveillance applications involving former Trump campaign adviser Carter Page.

A review of the White House’s original release shows the code name rendered as «Oxferd Comma,» with the letter «o.» Former acting Assistant Attorney General Jeff Clark, who served in Trump’s first administration, said a document expert he consulted concluded the «o» in «Comma» found within the FBI documents was a zero. Clark speculated the unusual spelling was intended to make the records harder to find through FOIA searches.

The documents were published by the White House Wednesday, which said they had been declassified and released through its Government Transparency Task Force.

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche just lost the last little bit of cushion he had left to survive confirmation.

Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, announced that she would not support Blanche’s nomination to be the nation’s top prosecutor and law enforcement official, dealing another blow to his rocky confirmation process.

Her defection, despite a heavy lobbying effort by Blanche that saw him make the trek to Alaska, means that Senate Republican leadership can’t afford to lose anymore votes to get him across the finish line, given that Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., though now back home, has still not returned to the Senate.

COLLINS DROPS THE HAMMER ON TRUMP’S PICK TO LEAD DOJ, JEOPARDIZING PATH TO CONFIRMATION

Murkowski acknowledged Blanche’s visit to Alaska and heavy lobbying effort throughout the last few weeks, but it’s his connection to President Donald Trump’s nearly $2 billion anti-weaponization fund, and broader concerns of a weaponized Justice Department, that proved the nail in the coffin for her.

«The politicization — even weaponization — of the Department did not start with this administration but has accelerated during it,» Murkowski said in a statement. «I take issue with the handling of the release of the Epstein files; the sweeping immunity protections granted to the President, his family, and their businesses; the statements that have been made to anti-abortion groups; and the repeated targeting of individuals ranging from former administration staff to sitting U.S. Senators.»

«I am also keenly aware that the Department’s nearly $2-billion dollar slush fund—which likely would have rewarded January 6 protesters—is only off the table because this nomination is pending and the Senate has leverage,» she continued. «Once we vote, that will end, and there is no telling what the future holds.»

TRUMP’S AG PICK SURVIVES — FOR NOW — AS REPUBLICANS QUESTION IF WHITE HOUSE DEAL WILL HOLD

To Murkowski’s latter issue, several lawmakers in both sides of the aisle acknowledge that though Blanche and the Department of Justice (DOJ) agreed to permanently rescind the fund in writing to Sens. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., and John Cornyn, R-Texas, there’s nothing stopping Trump from reviving it.

And he’s on several occasions made clear he wants to see it come back.

Before making her decision, Trump already took a snipe at her during an interview with Punch Bowl News published Friday morning.

TRUMP THREATENS TO YANK HIS OWN AG NOMINEE AS GOP REVOLT GROWS

U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA) arrives for a meeting with Senate Republicans in the U.S. Capitol on June 28, 2025 in Washington, DC. Senate Republicans overnight released a new version of the «One, Big, Beautiful Bill,» as they approach U.S. President Donald Trump’s July 4 deadline. (Photo by Al Drago/Getty Images)

«I’m against Murkowski,» Trump said. «I do more for Alaska than any president in history. No president’s done for Alaska what I’ve done. She’s not good.»

Meanwhile, it’s unclear whether the Senate will actually vote on Blanche on Friday, which could be the upper chamber’s grand finale of the summer before it exits Washington, D.C., for the remainder of August.

And there’s still one more Republican that hasn’t weighed in on how they’ll vote: Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La.

If he defects, and McConnell is still gone, it will be a 50-50 vote. That means Vice President JD Vance would need to break the tie. But for now, only Murkowski and Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, are publicly opposing Blanche’s confirmation.

«The country needs an Attorney General who will check the worst impulses of this administration,» Murkowski said. «I hope Mr. Blanche is able to achieve that, if confirmed, but I simply do not have confidence that will be the case.»