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{{Short description|2020 non-fiction book by Peter Strzok}}
{{Short description|2020 non-fiction book by Peter Strzok}}
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{{infobox book | <!-- See [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Novels]] or [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Books]] -->
{{infobox book | <!-- See [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Novels]] or [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Books]] -->
| name = Compromised: Counterintelligence and the Threat of Donald J. Trump
| name = Compromised: Counterintelligence and the Threat of Donald J. Trump
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| caption = First edition cover
| caption = First edition cover
| author = [[Peter Strzok]]
| author = [[Peter Strzok]]
| subject = Investigates the administration of Donald J. Trump as a source of Russian intelligence
| subject = Investigates the administration of Donald J. Trump as a source of Russian intelligence
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| cover_artist = Brian Moore
| cover_artist = Brian Moore
| country = USA
| country = USA
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| language = [[English language|English]]
| language = [[English language|English]]
| series =
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| genre = Nonfiction
| genre = Nonfiction
| publisher = [[Houghton Mifflin Harcourt]]
| publisher = [[Houghton Mifflin Harcourt]]
| release_date = September 8, 2020
| release_date = September 8, 2020
| english_release_date =
| english_release_date =
| media_type = Print (hardback)
| media_type = Print (hardback)
| pages = 350
| pages = 350
| isbn = 978-0-358-23706-8
| isbn = 978-0-358-23706-8
| preceded_by =
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{{Trump–Russia relations}}
{{Trump–Russia relations}}
'''''Compromised: Counterintelligence and the Threat of Donald J. Trump''''' is a 2020 non-fiction book authored by former FBI agent [[Peter Strzok]].<ref>{{Cite web|date=September 27, 2020|title=New York Times Combined Print & E-Book Nonfiction|url=https://www.nytimes.com/books/best-sellers/2020/09/27/combined-print-and-e-book-nonfiction/|access-date=April 3, 2021|website=The New York Times}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|date=September 16, 2020|title=Washington Post hardcover bestsellers|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/books/washington-post-hardcover-bestsellers/2020/09/16/4ba1122a-f798-11ea-89e3-4b9efa36dc64_story.html|access-date=April 3, 2021|newspaper=The Washington Post}}</ref> as Deputy Assistant Director of the FBI counterintelligence division, Strzok led the FBI’s [[Crossfire Hurricane (FBI investigation)|Crossfire Hurricane]] investigation of alleged Russian influence upon President [[Donald Trump]] and Trump's 2016 campaign. Strzok’s book recaps the full arc of Crossfire Hurricane.<ref>Bertrand, Natasha. [https://www.politico.com/news/2020/09/05/peter-strzok-would-like-to-clear-a-few-things-up-409280 “Peter Strzok would like to clear a few things up”], [[Politico]] (5 Sep 2020): Strzok “led the FBI’s Russia investigation, dubbed Crossfire Hurricane….Strzok’s new book, obtained by POLITICO ahead of its release next week, recaps the full arc of Crossfire Hurricane…."</ref>
'''''Compromised: Counterintelligence and the Threat of Donald J. Trump''''' is a 2020 non-fiction book authored by former FBI agent [[Peter Strzok]].<ref>{{Cite web|date=September 27, 2020|title=New York Times Combined Print & E-Book Nonfiction|url=https://www.nytimes.com/books/best-sellers/2020/09/27/combined-print-and-e-book-nonfiction/|access-date=April 3, 2021|website=The New York Times}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|date=September 16, 2020|title=Washington Post hardcover bestsellers|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/books/washington-post-hardcover-bestsellers/2020/09/16/4ba1122a-f798-11ea-89e3-4b9efa36dc64_story.html|access-date=April 3, 2021|newspaper=The Washington Post}}</ref> As Deputy Assistant Director of the FBI counterintelligence division, Strzok led the FBI's [[Crossfire Hurricane (FBI investigation)|Crossfire Hurricane]] investigation of alleged Russian influence upon President [[Donald Trump]] and Trump's 2016 campaign. Strzok's book recaps the full arc of the investigation<ref>Bertrand, Natasha. [https://www.politico.com/news/2020/09/05/peter-strzok-would-like-to-clear-a-few-things-up-409280 "Peter Strzok would like to clear a few things up"], [[Politico]] (5 Sep 2020): Strzok "led the FBI's Russia investigation, dubbed Crossfire Hurricane….Strzok's new book, obtained by POLITICO ahead of its release next week, recaps the full arc of Crossfire Hurricane…."</ref> and portrays Trump as profoundly corrupt, and a serious threat to [[national security]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/05/us/politics/peter-strzok-book.html|title=Ex-F.B.I. Agent in Russia Inquiry Says Trump Is a National Security Threat|author=Goldman, Adam|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|language=en-US|url-status=live|date=September 5, 2020|access-date=July 17, 2023|archive-date=September 18, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200918175752/https://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/05/us/politics/peter-strzok-book.html}}</ref>

==Strzok served with special counsel==
He served on special counsel [[Robert Mueller]]'s investigative team until the Justice Department inspector general flagged critical text messages about President Trump Strzok had sent and received during the 2016 campaign. Probably most damaging was a text he sent to co-worker [[Lisa Page]], with whom he was conducting an extramarital affair. He sent Page the following text regarding a possible Trump election, “No. No he won’t. We'll stop it.”<ref name="Atlantic Article">{{cite web|website=Atlantic article on Strzok's congressional testimony|title=Traub, James, "The Peter Strzok Hearing and the Death of Shame/Decency Loses Its Moral Force"|date=July 18, 2018|url=https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2018/07/have-they-no-sense-of-decency/565415/|publisher=The Atlantic Magazine|access-date=22 November 2020}}</ref> This type of contact with the outside world is forbidden when serving with the FBI.{{cn}} The text soon went public.<ref name="Independent Article">{{cite web|website=Independent article on Book|title=Spocchia, Geno, "Ex-FBI agent regularly targeted by Trump bringing out book about president's links to Russia"|date=July 28, 2020|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/peter-strzok-book-trump-russia-fbi-agent-compromised-a9642076.html|publisher=Independent|access-date=4 November 2020}}</ref> Many believed the President and fellow Republicans overreacted to Strzok's blunder, as Trump once recklessly alleged Strzok and others in the FBI had plotted against his campaign and had even committed treason, though treason can be committed only by aiding an enemy of the United States such as Russia, not by offending a private American citizen, including the President.<ref name="Independent Article"/> Strzok filed a suit in August 2019 against the Bureau claiming they caved against "unrelenting pressure" from the Trump administration, and that he was "unfairly punished" for expressing his political opinions.<ref>Tucker, Eric, "Former FBI agent sues over firing due to anti-Trump texts", ''Albuquerque Journal'', pg. A6, August 7, 2020.</ref>

==Synopsis==
===Trump's accusations against Hillary Clinton===
Trump's statements in the summer of 2016 accusing Clinton of a crime for her use of confidential emails could have been responsible for a drop of roughly 1% of her National support in the polls. This would have significantly influenced the outcome of the historically close 2016 election. James Comey admitted publicly to reopening the investigation of Clinton's emails, in an ill-advised press conference only a few days before the election may also have led to a significant drop in Clinton's polling, and may have furthered the objectives of the Russian GRU who, according to the Mueller investigation, had hacked the e-mails months earlier before they found their way to WikiLeaks, a publication that made such information available to the public.<ref name="Comey announcement of emails">{{cite web|website=ABC News|title=Pecorin, Allison, "Comey made announcement on Clinton email probe days before election to give himself 'cover': Trump spokesperson"|url=https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/comey-announced-reopening-clinton-email-probe-days-election/story?id=54470601|publisher=ABC|access-date=November 4, 2020}}</ref><ref name="compromise"/> When the FBI investigation under Strzok concluded that nothing was criminal in Clinton's actions, the Trump campaign made no reference to the statement, nor retracted their assertion that Clinton had committed a crime, rather repeatedly pushing the line that, although found innocent of a crime, Clinton had gotten a "sweet" deal from the FBI.<ref>Russia definitely hacked the Clinton emails in June of 2016 in Strzok, Peter, (2020) ''Compromised: Counterintelligence and the Threat of Donald J. Trump'', Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Boston, New York, 978-0-358-23706-8, Chapter 5, pg. 82</ref><ref name="Russia hacking">Russia began investigating Hillary Clinton's private emails immediately after Trump's request to do so in July in Weissmann, Andrew (2020) ''Where Law Ends: Inside the Mueller Investigation''. Random House, New York, pgs. 218-220</ref>

===Appearing to deny business dealings with Russia===
On January 10, 2017, Buzzfeed first published some of the [[Steele dossier]] online. Misleadingly, considering he was simultaneously conducting business for a Trump Tower to be built in Moscow, Trump tweeted, "I HAVE NOTHING TO DO WITH RUSSIA -- NO DEALS, NO LOANS, NO NOTHING!"<ref name="sanctions"/>


==Author's background==
===Misleading statements by Sessions===
[[Peter Strzok]] had been a lead agent in the FBI's "Operation Ghost Stories" against Andrey Bezrukov and Yelena Vavilova, a Russian spy couple who were part of the [[Illegals Program]], a network of Russian sleeper agents who were arrested in 2010.<ref>{{cite news |date=July 11, 2018 |title=GOP stunt to smear counter-intel expert Strzok ripe for backfire |publisher=MSNBC |url=https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/gop-stunt-to-smear-counter-intel-expert-strzok-ripe-for-backfire-1275196995963?playlist=associated}}</ref> By July 2015, he was serving as the section chief of the [[FBI Counterintelligence Division#Organization|Counterespionage Section]], a subordinate section of the FBI's [[FBI Counterintelligence Division|Counterintelligence Division]].<ref name="CNN changed description">{{Cite news |last1=Jarrett |first1=Laura |last2=Perez |first2=Evan |date=December 4, 2017 |title=FBI agent dismissed from Mueller probe changed Comey description of Clinton |work=[[CNN]] |url=http://www.cnn.com/2017/12/04/politics/peter-strzok-james-comey/index.html |access-date=December 4, 2017}}</ref> In addition to leading the FBI's Crossfire Hurricane investigation, Strzok also served on special counsel [[Robert Mueller]]'s investigative team until the Justice Department inspector general flagged critical text messages about President Trump Strzok had sent and received during the 2016 campaign. Probably most damaging was a text he sent to co-worker [[Lisa Page]], with whom he was conducting an extramarital affair. He sent Page the following text regarding a possible Trump election, "No. No he won't. We'll stop it."<ref name="Atlantic Article">{{cite web|website=Atlantic article on Strzok's congressional testimony|title=Traub, James, "The Peter Strzok Hearing and the Death of Shame/Decency Loses Its Moral Force"|date=July 18, 2018|url=https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2018/07/have-they-no-sense-of-decency/565415/|publisher=The Atlantic Magazine|access-date=22 November 2020}}</ref> The text soon went public.<ref name="Independent Article">{{cite web|website=Independent article on Book|title=Spocchia, Geno, "Ex-FBI agent regularly targeted by Trump bringing out book about president's links to Russia"|date=July 28, 2020|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/peter-strzok-book-trump-russia-fbi-agent-compromised-a9642076.html|publisher=Independent|access-date=4 November 2020}}</ref>
That same week, Trump appointee Attorney General Jeff Sessions, in his confirmation hearings erroneously claimed "I have been called a surrogate at a time or two in that campaign (2016) and I didn't have--did not have communications with the Russians, and I'm unable to comment on it." Not long after Sessions recused himself from all aspects of the Russian investigation after evidence was shown that he'd had at least two meetings with Russians, both strongly suspected of having ties to the Kremlin, during the campaign. Though a staunch and longtime Trump supporter, Sessions was later fired by Trump, for what many, including Strzok, believe was his reticence to put pressure on Mueller and the direction of the Russia investigation.<ref name="sanctions">Strzok, Peter, (2020) ''Compromised: Counterintelligence and the Threat of Donald J. Trump'', Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Boston, New York, 978-0-358-23706-8, Chapter 10, pg. 196-9</ref>


Many believed the President and fellow Republicans overreacted to Strzok's blunder, as Trump once recklessly alleged Strzok and others in the FBI had plotted against his campaign and had even committed treason, though treason can be committed only by aiding an enemy of the United States such as Russia, not by offending a private American citizen, including the President.<ref name="Independent Article"/> Strzok filed a suit in August 2019 against the Bureau claiming they caved against "unrelenting pressure" from the Trump administration, and that he was "unfairly punished" for expressing his political opinions.<ref>Tucker, Eric, "Former FBI agent sues over firing due to anti-Trump texts", ''Albuquerque Journal'', pg. A6, August 7, 2020.</ref>
===Removing Russian sanctions===
[[File:Michael T Flynn.jpg|upright=.8|left|thumb|Michael Flynn]]
On December 29, 2016, prior to the inauguration, Trump's National Security Adviser [[Michael Flynn]] spoke twice by phone with Russian diplomat [[Sergai Kislyak]], and it was recorded on tape that he had discussed the possibility of relaxing the economic sanctions imposed by President Obama against Russia. The discussion might be considered of questionable legality as Trump did not yet formally hold office, and the 1799 Logan Act forbid non-government entities from conducting foreign negotiations on behalf of the United States. Relaxing sanctions aroused more suspicion by certain members of Strzok's FBI investigation because the action conflicted with a standing policy of the reigning Presidential administration, and because the Trump administration was known to have economic and political ties with Russia through the previous actions of campaign manager Paul Manafort to elect a Ukrainian President sympathetic to Russian interests, and Trump's ongoing negotiations to obtain a Trump Tower in Moscow.


== Premise ==
Perhaps most importantly, Obama's sanctions were primarily a response to Putin and Russia's interference in the 2016 election which most analysts clearly believed benefitted the Trump campaign, a fact Trump party loyalists never mentioned. Strzok and members of his investigative team believed the discussion of Trump's intent to remove such sanctions may have signaled to many in Russian intelligence that their interference in America's future elections, the cornerstone of American Democracy, would be tolerated by the United States. Flynn covered his oversight by denying he had discussed sanctions in a statement to vice-president elect Pence, and when his lie was discovered, he was fired from office.


Strzok's study of Trump's life, and his knowledge and observations as a leading counterintelligence agent in the FBI, led him to believe Trump was and is "''compromised''" and thus, wittingly or unwittingly, indebted to [[Vladimir Putin|Putin]]. He describes the many things (''[[kompromat]]'') Trump did and said before and during his presidency that made him vulnerable to blackmail and pressure from foreign adversaries. Strzok posits the question: "When a president appears to favor personal and Russian interests over those of our nation, has he become a national security threat?"<ref>[https://www.nbcnews.com/news/amp/ncna1235125 "Ex-FBI agent Strzok due out with book about Trump, Russia"], [[Associated Press]] via [[NBC News]] (28 Jul 2020).</ref> He mentions one very public example related to [[Business projects of Donald Trump in Russia|Trump's business projects in Russia]] that created the necessary conditions for Trump to be [[Kompromat|compromised]]:<ref name="Lozada_9/5/2020">{{cite news | last=Lozada | first=Carlos | title=Review - He investigated Clinton and Trump. Then the Justice Department turned on him. | newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] | date=September 5, 2020 | url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/2020/09/05/he-investigated-clinton-trump-then-justice-department-turned-him/ | access-date=April 8, 2023}}</ref>
In his professional role as an FBI investigator, Strzok speculated Trump himself had ordered Flynn to discuss the removal of sanctions as it was Trump's formerly stated intent to do so. As National Security Adviser, Flynn had the highest security clearance available, another reason why all his actions with regards to Russia, already a military adversary of the United States in the Crimea, would need to be met with considerable caution, and watched carefully by American intelligence. The Trump administration had previously discussed the possibility of removing economic sanctions on Russia, an action that Strzok believed could possibly be interpreted as an attempt to align themselves with the objectives of wealthy Russian oligarchs and the Russian government under Putin.<ref name="sanctions"/>


{{blockquote|As candidate and again as president, Trump lied about his business ties with Russia. "The moment Trump said publicly, 'I have no business dealings with Russia,' he knew he was lying. Putin knew he was lying, and the FBI had reason to believe he was lying. But American citizens didn't know that." Strzok emphasizes, "In this moment Trump became compromised."}}
===Contacts with Russian intelligence===
[[File:Viktor Yanukovych 27 April 2010-1.jpeg|upright=.4|right|thumb|Yanukovych, 2010]]
[[Konstantin Kilimnik]], Manafort's former employer who according to the FBI had close ties to Russian intelligence and the GRU. Both Manafort and Rick Gates had met with Kilimnik on several occasions, providing him with critical poling data on the battleground states in the 2016 election. [[Viktor Yanukovych]], a 2010 Ukrainian President of Russian birth was accused of corruption and voting fraud during his administration. After fleeing the Ukraine for Russia in 2014, Yanukovych was accused of "mass killings of civilians" by his successor. Yanukovych was backed by Russia in 2010 and Manafort had played an important role in managing his campaigns with the aid of Kilimnik. Yanukovych was strongly backed by Eastern Ukraine, a region that was close to Russia both geographically and politically. Russia needed Ukraine to transport its oil and gas to Europe, but Ukraine depended on Russia for nearly all of its energy needs. According to Strzok, under Yanukovych, a leader who never had American support, Russia enjoyed de facto control of Ukraine, and funneled him millions in bribes to control his favor.<ref>Strzok, Peter, (2020) ''Compromised: Counterintelligence and the Threat of Donald J. Trump'', Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Boston, New York, 978-0-358-23706-8, pgs. 300-301</ref>


== Reception ==
Also present was Sergei Millian, a United States citizen of Belarusian descent, who had attempted to land a job with Trump campaign aid [[George Papadopoulos]]. Strzok's investigations led to charging Papadopoulos with having lied to the FBI about the timing and extent of his contact with a professor who promised to connect him to high Russian officials. Papadopoulos was one of the first Trump campaign aids to be investigated. After serving only twelve days in jail, he later wrote a book claiming Strzok's investigation was part of a conspiracy to depose Trump. Trump and certain media would eventually have success claiming Strzok's counterintelligence investigation was a conspiracy to depose Trump, and variously an act of treason, as a [[Deep State]] operative seeking to destroy Trump, or a coup to depose Trump.<ref name="sanctions"/>
⚫
[[Carlos Lozada (journalist)|Carlos Lozada]] of ''The Washington Post'' gave a favorable review, of a "compelling tale" but criticized the strength of Strzok's bias against Trump in some instances. Strzok considers Trump a liar who presided over a "heap of perfidy and treachery", a leader "gleefully wreaking havoc on America's political institutions and norms." But Lozada noted importantly that Strzok's description of Trump's being "compromised", did "not mean that the president received regular orders from Russia" or that he did Putin's bidding at Putin's immediate request. Strzok posited that the "compromised liar need not be told what to do ... It all unspools without anyone's ever having to say a word." Trump's extramarital affairs, his issues with his charitable Trump foundation, and his own questionable financial background, particularly the strong suspicion of tax evasion, also compromise him "badly and in a myriad of ways", Strzok contends. And, in turn, a compromised president pursued policies and adopted positions that Strzok sees as "highly suspicious, highly consistent, and highly advantageous to America's historic adversary (Russia)." Strzok, according to Lozada, still considered Trump's criminality as a grey area, however this view may be open to debate. When asked by Robert Mueller if Trump's behavior warranted a conspiracy, Lozada noted Strzok replied "I was skeptical that all the different threads amounted to anything more than bumbling incompetence." Strzok wrote "In my view they (Trump's staff) were most likely a collection of grifters pursuing individual personal interests."<ref name="Lozada_9/5/2020"/>


[[Nicholas Fandos]] of ''The New York Times'' praised the book, and wrote "A former Army officer, Mr. Strzok . . . rose quickly through [the FBI's] ranks, earning a reputation within the bureau as one of its most savvy and reliable counterintelligence agents."<ref name="Fandos_7/12/2018">{{cite web | last=Fandos | first=Nicholas | title=F.B.I. Agent Defends Actions in Russia Inquiry in Contentious House Testimony | website=[[The New York Times]] | date=July 12, 2018 | url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/12/us/politics/fbi-agent-house-republicans.html | access-date=April 8, 2023}}</ref>
===2020 election===
[[File:Dr. Mark T. Esper – Secretary of Defense.jpg|upright=.4|left|thumb|Dr. Mark Esper, 2019]]
Strzok observed that attempts to discredit media could be attributed to Trump's accusing the American press of being an "enemy of the people", and his frequently labeling well-researched media reports from a multitude of newspapers, including the award-winning ''The New York Times'' and ''The Washington Post'', as "fake news".<ref name="compromise"/>
[[File:William Barr.jpg|upright=.4|right|thumb|William Barr]]
By influencing Republican election officials in battleground states to make pointless recounts or delay the final certification of votes due to what American courts repeatedly ruled as evidence-less claims of fraud, Strzok claims Trump could be seen as attempting to co-opt the power of election officials, and the rightful power of the American electorate in a Democracy. When Attorney General Barr made a statement after the 2020 election that he believed widespread voter fraud had not occurred in the 2020 election, Trump allegedly pressured him to resign. An argument could be made that this action again coopted the power of the American judicial system.<ref name="intro">Strzok, Peter, (2020) ''Compromised: Counterintelligence and the Threat of Donald J. Trump'', Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Boston, New York, 978-0-358-23706-8, pg. xxiii</ref>


⚫
[[James Traub]] of ''The Atlantic'' strongly praised Strzok's sense of duty in conducting his counterintelligence investigation of Trump. Traub criticized congressional Republicans for attempting to use Strzok's extramarital affair with Lisa Page and poorly timed text as a way of destroying his credibility, while overlooking the relevance and importance of his investigation and service to his country. When asked by Texas Congressman [[Ted Poe]] in a congressional oversight hearing how he could conduct an honest and unbiased investigation after texting that he would stop Trump from winning the election, Strzok replied "A judge asks jurors, 'Are you able to set aside your personal opinions and render a judgment based on the facts?' and I and the men and women of the FBI every day take our personal beliefs and set them aside in vigorous pursuit of the truth wherever it lies." Poe replied to Strzok, "I don't believe you".<ref name="Atlantic Article"/>
==Critical reviews==
⚫
Carlos Lozada of ''The Washington Post'' gave a favorable review, of a "compelling tale" but criticized the strength of Strzok's bias against Trump in some instances. Strzok considers Trump a liar who presided over a "heap of perfidy and treachery", a leader "gleefully wreaking havoc on America's political institutions and norms." But Lozada noted importantly that Strzok's description of Trump's being "compromised", did "not mean that the president received regular orders from Russia" or that he did Putin's bidding at Putin's immediate request. Strzok posited that the "compromised liar need not be told what to do ... It all unspools without anyone's ever having to say a word." Trump's extramarital affairs, his issues with his charitable Trump foundation, and his own questionable financial background, particularly the strong suspicion of tax evasion, also compromise him "badly and in a myriad of ways", Strzok contends. And, in turn, a compromised president pursued policies and adopted positions that Strzok sees as "highly suspicious, highly consistent, and highly advantageous to America's historic adversary (Russia)."<ref name="Washington Post">{{cite web|website=Washington Post|author=Lozada, Carlos|title="He investigated Clinton and Trump. Then the Justice Department turned on him."|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/2020/09/05/he-investigated-clinton-trump-then-justice-department-turned-him/|access-date=4 November 2020}}</ref> Strzok, according to Lozada, still considered Trump's criminality as a grey area, however this view may be open to debate. When asked by Robert Mueller if Trump's behavior warranted a conspiracy, Lozada noted Strzok replied "I was skeptical that all the different threads amounted to anything more than bumbling incompetence,”. Strzok wrote "In my view they (Trump's staff) were most likely a collection of grifters pursuing individual personal interests."<ref name="Washington Post"/> [[Nicholas Fandos]] of ''The New York Times'' praised the book, and wrote "A former Army officer, Mr. Strzok . . . rose quickly through [the FBI's] ranks, earning a reputation within the bureau as one of its most savvy and reliable counterintelligence agents."{{cn}}


⚫
Lloyd Green of the ''Guardian'', who did opposition research for the political campaign of [[George H. W. Bush]] in 1988, also considered the book "compelling reading", but fundamentally disagreed with Strzok's assertion that Trump's "willingness to accept political assistance from an opponent like Russia – and it follows, his willingness to subvert everything that America stands for." He notes that Strzok believed "Our investigations revealed Donald Trump's willingness to further the malign interests of one of our most formidable adversaries, apparently for his own personal gain." Green doles out some criticism of the FBI investigation of Michael Flynn as Strzok appears somewhat contradictory in his evaluation of Flynn as cooperative in demeanor but "repeatedly and inexplicably" lying on other issues. Green most strongly criticized Strzok for his glossing over his extensive and ultimately destructive relationship with Lisa Page, as they were believed to have sent over 20,000 emails to each other, including those used to show he had a bias against Trump.<ref>{{cite web|newspaper=[[The Guardian]]|author=Green, Lloyd|title=Compromised review: Peter Strzok on Trump, Russia and the FBI|url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2020/sep/20/compromised-review-peter-strzok-donald-trump-russia-fbi?ref=hvper.com/|language=en-GB|date=September 20, 2020|access-date=July 23, 2023}}</ref>
⚫
James Traub of ''The Atlantic'' strongly praised Strzok's sense of duty in conducting his counterintelligence investigation of Trump. Traub criticized congressional Republicans for attempting to use Strzok's extramarital affair with Lisa Page and poorly timed text as a way of destroying his credibility, while overlooking the relevance and importance of his investigation and service to his country. When asked by Texas Congressman [[Ted Poe]] in a congressional oversight hearing how he could conduct an honest and unbiased investigation after texting that he would stop Trump from winning the election, Strzok replied "A judge asks jurors, 'Are you able to set aside your personal opinions and render a judgment based on the facts?’ and I and the men and women of the FBI every day take our personal beliefs and set them aside in vigorous pursuit of the truth wherever it lies." Poe replied to Strzok, "I don't believe you".<ref name="Atlantic Article"/>


⚫
== See also ==
⚫
Lloyd Green of the ''Guardian'', who did opposition research for the political campaign of [[George H. W. Bush]] in 1988, also considered the book "compelling reading", and observed Strzok's discovery of Trump's “willingness to accept political assistance from an opponent like Russia – and it follows, his willingness to subvert everything that America stands for.” He notes that Strozok believed "Our investigations revealed Donald Trump's willingness to further the malign interests of one of our most formidable adversaries, apparently for his own personal gain." Green doles out some criticism of the FBI investigation of Michael Flynn as Strozok appears somewhat contradictory in his evaluation of Flynn as cooperative in demeanor but "repeatedly and inexplicably" lying on other issues. Green most strongly criticized Strzok for his glossing over his extensive and ultimately destructive relationship with Lisa Page, as they were believed to have sent over 20,000 emails to each other, including those used to show he had a bias against Trump.<ref name="The Guardian">{{cite web|website=The Guardian review of Book|title=Green, LLoyd, "Compromised review: Peter Strzok on Trump, Russia and the FBI"|date=September 20, 2020|url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2020/sep/20/compromised-review-peter-strzok-donald-trump-russia-fbi?ref=hvper.com/|access-date=November 4, 2020}}</ref>


⚫
==See also==
{{Portal|Russia|United States}}
{{Portal|Russia|United States}}
* [[Hillary Clinton email controversy]]
* [[Hillary Clinton email controversy]]
* [[Peter Strzok]]
* ''[[The Case for Impeachment]]''
* ''[[The Case for Impeachment]]''
* ''[[Dezinformatsia (book)|Dezinformatsia: Active Measures in Soviet Strategy]]''
* ''[[Dezinformatsia (book)|Dezinformatsia: Active Measures in Soviet Strategy]]''

Revision as of 03:54, 5 March 2024

Compromised: Counterintelligence and the Threat of Donald J. Trump
First edition cover
AuthorPeter Strzok
Cover artistBrian Moore
SpracheEnglisch
SubjectInvestigates the administration of Donald J. Trump as a source of Russian intelligence
GenreNonfiction
PublisherHoughton Mifflin Harcourt
Publication date
September 8, 2020
Publication placeUSA
Media typePrint (hardback)
Pages350
ISBN978-0-358-23706-8
Trump–Russia relations
Business interactions
Russian election interference
Investigations and reports
Menschen
Deception and conspiracy theories
Literature
Kategorien

Compromised: Counterintelligence and the Threat of Donald J. Trump is a 2020 non-fiction book authored by former FBI agent Peter Strzok.[1][2] As Deputy Assistant Director of the FBI counterintelligence division, Strzok led the FBI's Crossfire Hurricane investigation of alleged Russian influence upon President Donald Trump and Trump's 2016 campaign. Strzok's book recaps the full arc of the investigation[3] and portrays Trump as profoundly corrupt, and a serious threat to national security.[4]

Author's background

Peter Strzok had been a lead agent in the FBI's "Operation Ghost Stories" against Andrey Bezrukov and Yelena Vavilova, a Russian spy couple who were part of the Illegals Program, a network of Russian sleeper agents who were arrested in 2010.[5] By July 2015, he was serving as the section chief of the Counterespionage Section, a subordinate section of the FBI's Counterintelligence Division.[6] In addition to leading the FBI's Crossfire Hurricane investigation, Strzok also served on special counsel Robert Mueller's investigative team until the Justice Department inspector general flagged critical text messages about President Trump Strzok had sent and received during the 2016 campaign. Probably most damaging was a text he sent to co-worker Lisa Page, with whom he was conducting an extramarital affair. He sent Page the following text regarding a possible Trump election, "No. No he won't. We'll stop it."[7] The text soon went public.[8]

Many believed the President and fellow Republicans overreacted to Strzok's blunder, as Trump once recklessly alleged Strzok and others in the FBI had plotted against his campaign and had even committed treason, though treason can be committed only by aiding an enemy of the United States such as Russia, not by offending a private American citizen, including the President.[8] Strzok filed a suit in August 2019 against the Bureau claiming they caved against "unrelenting pressure" from the Trump administration, and that he was "unfairly punished" for expressing his political opinions.[9]

Premise

Strzok's study of Trump's life, and his knowledge and observations as a leading counterintelligence agent in the FBI, led him to believe Trump was and is "compromised" and thus, wittingly or unwittingly, indebted to Putin. He describes the many things (kompromat) Trump did and said before and during his presidency that made him vulnerable to blackmail and pressure from foreign adversaries. Strzok posits the question: "When a president appears to favor personal and Russian interests over those of our nation, has he become a national security threat?"[10] He mentions one very public example related to Trump's business projects in Russia that created the necessary conditions for Trump to be compromised:[11]

As candidate and again as president, Trump lied about his business ties with Russia. "The moment Trump said publicly, 'I have no business dealings with Russia,' he knew he was lying. Putin knew he was lying, and the FBI had reason to believe he was lying. But American citizens didn't know that." Strzok emphasizes, "In this moment Trump became compromised."

Reception

Carlos Lozada of The Washington Post gave a favorable review, of a "compelling tale" but criticized the strength of Strzok's bias against Trump in some instances. Strzok considers Trump a liar who presided over a "heap of perfidy and treachery", a leader "gleefully wreaking havoc on America's political institutions and norms." But Lozada noted importantly that Strzok's description of Trump's being "compromised", did "not mean that the president received regular orders from Russia" or that he did Putin's bidding at Putin's immediate request. Strzok posited that the "compromised liar need not be told what to do ... It all unspools without anyone's ever having to say a word." Trump's extramarital affairs, his issues with his charitable Trump foundation, and his own questionable financial background, particularly the strong suspicion of tax evasion, also compromise him "badly and in a myriad of ways", Strzok contends. And, in turn, a compromised president pursued policies and adopted positions that Strzok sees as "highly suspicious, highly consistent, and highly advantageous to America's historic adversary (Russia)." Strzok, according to Lozada, still considered Trump's criminality as a grey area, however this view may be open to debate. When asked by Robert Mueller if Trump's behavior warranted a conspiracy, Lozada noted Strzok replied "I was skeptical that all the different threads amounted to anything more than bumbling incompetence." Strzok wrote "In my view they (Trump's staff) were most likely a collection of grifters pursuing individual personal interests."[11]

Nicholas Fandos of The New York Times praised the book, and wrote "A former Army officer, Mr. Strzok . . . rose quickly through [the FBI's] ranks, earning a reputation within the bureau as one of its most savvy and reliable counterintelligence agents."[12]

James Traub of The Atlantic strongly praised Strzok's sense of duty in conducting his counterintelligence investigation of Trump. Traub criticized congressional Republicans for attempting to use Strzok's extramarital affair with Lisa Page and poorly timed text as a way of destroying his credibility, while overlooking the relevance and importance of his investigation and service to his country. When asked by Texas Congressman Ted Poe in a congressional oversight hearing how he could conduct an honest and unbiased investigation after texting that he would stop Trump from winning the election, Strzok replied "A judge asks jurors, 'Are you able to set aside your personal opinions and render a judgment based on the facts?' and I and the men and women of the FBI every day take our personal beliefs and set them aside in vigorous pursuit of the truth wherever it lies." Poe replied to Strzok, "I don't believe you".[7]

Lloyd Green of the Guardian, who did opposition research for the political campaign of George H. W. Bush in 1988, also considered the book "compelling reading", but fundamentally disagreed with Strzok's assertion that Trump's "willingness to accept political assistance from an opponent like Russia – and it follows, his willingness to subvert everything that America stands for." He notes that Strzok believed "Our investigations revealed Donald Trump's willingness to further the malign interests of one of our most formidable adversaries, apparently for his own personal gain." Green doles out some criticism of the FBI investigation of Michael Flynn as Strzok appears somewhat contradictory in his evaluation of Flynn as cooperative in demeanor but "repeatedly and inexplicably" lying on other issues. Green most strongly criticized Strzok for his glossing over his extensive and ultimately destructive relationship with Lisa Page, as they were believed to have sent over 20,000 emails to each other, including those used to show he had a bias against Trump.[13]

See also

References

  1. ^ "New York Times Combined Print & E-Book Nonfiction". The New York Times. September 27, 2020. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
  2. ^ "Washington Post hardcover bestsellers". The Washington Post. September 16, 2020. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
  3. ^ Bertrand, Natasha. "Peter Strzok would like to clear a few things up", Politico (5 Sep 2020): Strzok "led the FBI's Russia investigation, dubbed Crossfire Hurricane….Strzok's new book, obtained by POLITICO ahead of its release next week, recaps the full arc of Crossfire Hurricane…."
  4. ^ Goldman, Adam (September 5, 2020). "Ex-F.B.I. Agent in Russia Inquiry Says Trump Is a National Security Threat". The New York Times. Archived from the original on September 18, 2020. Retrieved July 17, 2023.
  5. ^ "GOP stunt to smear counter-intel expert Strzok ripe for backfire". MSNBC. July 11, 2018.
  6. ^ Jarrett, Laura; Perez, Evan (December 4, 2017). "FBI agent dismissed from Mueller probe changed Comey description of Clinton". CNN. Retrieved December 4, 2017.
  7. ^ a b "Traub, James, "The Peter Strzok Hearing and the Death of Shame/Decency Loses Its Moral Force"". Atlantic article on Strzok's congressional testimony. The Atlantic Magazine. July 18, 2018. Retrieved November 22, 2020.
  8. ^ a b "Spocchia, Geno, "Ex-FBI agent regularly targeted by Trump bringing out book about president's links to Russia"". Independent article on Book. Independent. July 28, 2020. Retrieved November 4, 2020.
  9. ^ Tucker, Eric, "Former FBI agent sues over firing due to anti-Trump texts", Albuquerque Journal, pg. A6, August 7, 2020.
  10. ^ "Ex-FBI agent Strzok due out with book about Trump, Russia", Associated Press via NBC News (28 Jul 2020).
  11. ^ a b Lozada, Carlos (September 5, 2020). "Review - He investigated Clinton and Trump. Then the Justice Department turned on him". The Washington Post. Retrieved April 8, 2023.
  12. ^ Fandos, Nicholas (July 12, 2018). "F.B.I. Agent Defends Actions in Russia Inquiry in Contentious House Testimony". The New York Times. Retrieved April 8, 2023.
  13. ^ Green, Lloyd (September 20, 2020). "Compromised review: Peter Strzok on Trump, Russia and the FBI". The Guardian. Retrieved July 23, 2023.
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