LARRY KUDLOW: I want a great FBI, but we don’t have it

Last night, I asked a question that I believe is absolutely crucial to our democracy, the impartial rule of law and faith in America: How do we keep the FBI out of the next election?  

In 2016, the FBI was foursquare behind the Trump-Russia collusion hoax, aiding and abetting not only during the election campaign but well after, including Trump's impeachment and, of course, what we learned from the Durham report is that the whole thing was a fiasco, completely untrue, and Mr. Trump was totally exonerated, but the FBI's fingerprints were all over the Russian hoax.   

In the 2020 election, the FBI knew all about Hunter Biden's laptop computer a year before election day and they still aided and abetted the phony lying gang of 51 former intel officers who called the laptop Russian misinformation. Again, the FBI's fingerprints were everywhere, in defense of an outright lie that may well have changed the outcome of the election.   

I continue to ask how it is that our nation's top cops, which is what the FBI is essentially supposed to be — remember, the G-men? — have moved from an inherently conservative culture, which traditionally undergirds police. How did this conservative culture turn into a liberal left culture that seems intent on backing the Democratic Party in all cases?   

LARRY KUDLOW: TRUMP WOULD LIKE TO SEE A LOT MORE JUSTICE BROUGHT TO THE GANG OF DIRTY POLITICAL TRICKSTERS 

Democrats were the ones who backed the riots in 2020, spurred by the Marxist "Black Lives Matter" and Antifa. Democrats are the ones who instinctively talk about defunding the police. Democrats are the sponsors of these radical prosecutors like Alvin Bragg of New York and almost all of the major cities, who are intent on coddling criminals and ignoring victims. No bail, no jail. We see it every day in the news.   

This seems to be the gang supported by the senior people running the FBI in Washington. How is this possible? I don't think your typical FBI agents based in offices throughout the heartland of America are really like this. In fact, there's a lot of evidence that even the New York office is not like this and so, it is very clear that if this country is going to move back to its traditional, impartial rule of law and frankly restore a traditional, conservative attitude by the FBI, there has to be a complete, thorough house cleaning. 

The same is true for the CIA, but with 17 months left before the presidential election, it is essential that the FBI be prevented from once again interfering with that process and the scary thought is that the current president, Joe Biden, will never do it. He was a beneficiary of FBI meddling. As was Hillary Clinton, and Barack Obama. The only way the necessary house cleaning will occur is with a strong Republican president, but now, the second question has to be: Can a strong Republican president be elected under the threat of more FBI dirty tricks? Am I too cynical here? I don't think so.   

Look, today, the House Judiciary Committee and Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government held a hearing on how conservative whistleblowers have been purged by the FBI leadership.  

Let me quote from the conclusion of Chairman Jim Jordan's report on this effort: "Whistleblower testimony highlights that the FBI's partisan leadership is currently engaging in a ‘purge’ of agents who hold conservative political beliefs," and here is Mr. Jordan this morning:   

JIM JORDAN: If you're a parent attending a school board meeting; if you're a pro-lifer praying at a clinic, or you're a Catholic simply going to mass, you are a target of the government, a target of the FBI.

That's brutal stuff, but it's important, and the hearing uncovered numerous examples from whistleblowers who protested illegal activities or various abuses and misconduct in the FBI, who were severely punished by the front office, put on leave, transferred, loss of pay.   

One example rendered a whistleblower's family homeless because they couldn't get their personal effects, including young children’s clothing. Here's a rough comment from committee member Matt Gaetz:   

MATT GAETZ: A lot of the rot, the committee has learned, emerges out of headquarters, out of the Washington field office. [A whistleblower] described the conflict that existed as the Washington field office put pressure on other field offices around the country to engage in law enforcement work without predication.

The "rot" and "retaliation" charge is harsh, but it seems clear, the source is the Washington office. In other words, the top brass. Whistleblowers play an important role in our democracy and frankly, many of them are not at all political, but you've got a hide-bound management in the FBI that is impervious to even the most constructive criticism.   

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The treatment of the whistleblowers is a bad leading indicator for the direcrtion of the FBI. I want to say this upfront. I want to support the FBI. I want strong law and order in this country, impartial rule of law, but I don't know how this story is going to end. I don't see any real possibility of the kind of top-to-bottom house cleaning that is necessary. What patriots like Jim Jordan and Jim Comer are doing in the House is so very important, but at the end of the day, the FBI is part of the Justice Department.   

The Biden Justice Department under Merrick Garland is part of this left-wing conspiracy and ultimately they all report to President Joe Biden. This is tough stuff. I want a great FBI, but we don’t have it. I'll just conclude: Save America. Support the patriots who are trying to clean house and keep the FBI out of our elections.   

This article is adapted from Larry Kudlow’s opening commentary on the May 18, 2023, edition of "Kudlow."