Special Counsel John Durham dropped his final report on the origins of Trump-Russia collusion after three years of investigation.
The devastating conclusion was that the FBI did not have enough credible evidence to begin investigating links between the former president’s campaign and the Kremlin in the run-up to the election.
It condemned the discredited dossier compiled by former MI5 spy Christopher Steele, the handling of the allegations and made links to Hillary Clinton’s campaign.
Durham, 73, was appointed in 2019 by then-Attorney General Bill Barr, summed up that no “wholesale changes” were needed as a result of his report.
But it has raised serious questions for the FBI — faced with mounting accusations that it is political — and the intelligence community.
He stated that the agency “failed to live up to their important mission of strict adherence to the law.”
Get the full report BELOW and the timeline extending to the Mueller investigation below.
May 17, 2017 – Then-Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein appoints Robert Mueller as special counsel. Mueller was ordered, among other things, to investigate “any connection and/or coordination between the Russian government and persons involved in” Trump’s presidential campaign.
January 15, 2019 – Bill Barr first alluded to what would become the Durham Inquiry during his Senate confirmation hearing. He promised then-chairman of the judiciary, Lindsey Graham, that he would investigate the FBI’s counterintelligence investigation against Donald Trump.
On March 22, 2019 – Mueller concluded his special investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election and submitted his final report to Barr.
March 24, 2019 – Attorney General Barr issued his summary of the report.
March 25, 2019 – Barr met with then Connecticut Attorney General John Durham. Justice Department records show that the two had 18 more meetings and three phone calls that year.
Bill Barr (pictured in 2022) first alluded to what would become the Durham investigation during his Senate confirmation hearing in January 2019. He promised then-chairman of the judiciary, Lindsey Graham, that he would end the counterintelligence investigation of the FBI would investigate against Donald Trump.
April 10, 2019 – Barr testified before a Senate Appropriations panel, where he announced a review of “the origins and conduct of intelligence activities targeting the Trump campaign in 2016.”
April 12, 2019 – A top aide to Barr spoke to DOJ Inspector General Michael Horowitz to explain what appeared to be the beginning of Durham’s investigation.
May 13, 2019 – It became public that Barr was tapping Durham to investigate issues related to the origins of the FBI’s Trump-Russia investigation.
May 23, 2019 – Trump said Barr asked him to direct intelligence officials to cooperate with the investigation into surveillance during the 2016 election. Trump authorized Barr to release and downgrade information related to the investigation.
July 25, 2019 – Trump made his infamous phone call with Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelensky, revealing that Trump may have referenced the Durham investigation when he asked Kiev for help and insisted that Zelensky talk to Barr and Rudy Giuliani.
October 19, 2019 – Two articles appeared stating that Durham had interviewed two dozen FBI officials.
October 24, 2019 – The New York Times broke the news that the Durham investigation was now a criminal investigation.
December 2019 – It was revealed that Durham was investigating the role of Obama-era CIA director John Brennan in how the intelligence community assessed Russian interference in the 2016 election.
April 2020 – Durham’s investigation continued despite the pandemic.
April 10, 2020 – Barr said Durham’s “primary focus … is to bring abusers to justice if he can prove they were criminal offenses.”
April 24, 2020 – Probe shifted to looking at leaks within the Trump administration that led to chaos in his early years.
May 18, 2020 – Barr said at a news conference that neither Obama nor Biden was the focus of Durham’s criminal investigation.
September 2021 – Durham has issued a new set of subpoenas, including against a law firm with close ties to Hillary Clinton’s 2016 campaign.
In February 2022, Durham filings revealed that Hillary Clinton’s campaign was being paid to have Trump Tower and White House servers hacked to “weigh down” ties between Trump and Russia
September 17, 2021 – Cybersecurity attorney Michael Sussmann pleaded not guilty in federal court. He was charged with lying to the FBI at a 2016 meeting where he shared information about ties between the Trump Organization and Russia’s Alfa Bank. He said he did not work for a client, but was hired by Hillary Clinton’s 2016 presidential campaign.
November 2021 – Durham accused Russian-born analyst Igor Danchenko of lying to the FBI in fabricating a source for the Steele dossier. He pleaded not guilty to five counts of making false statements to a federal agent.
February 11, 2022 – The Durham filing shows that Clinton paid to have the servers of Trump Tower and the White House hacked to “strengthen” ties between Trump and Russia.
February 2022 – Trump-era Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe reveals that Durham thinks there is “enough evidence” to charge “even more people.” He also said Obama and Biden were briefed on the Clinton revelations in 2016.
May 2022 – Jury finds Sussmann not guilty of lying to the FBI about misrepresenting himself when he made debunked claims about a secret backchannel between Trump and Kremlin-affiliated Alfa Bank.
October 2022 – Danchenko is acquitted of four counts of lying to the FBI after providing most of the investigation into the discredited Steele Dossier.
May 2023 – John Durham concludes in his final report that the FBI did not have enough credible evidence to launch the full Trump-Russia investigation.
Special Counsel John Durham Drops His Final Report On The Origins Of The Collusion Between Trump And Russia After Three Years Of Investigation