Trump Reacts to Critical Report on FBI: 'Scammed'

The report didn't go as far as he hoped, but former President Trump is still looking to quickly capitalize on withering new criticism of the FBI's investigation of him. "I, and much more importantly, the American public have been victims of this long-running and treasonous charade started by the Democrats—started by Comey," Trump told Fox News Digital, referring to former FBI chief James Comey. "There must be a heavy price to pay for putting our country through this." Trump also took to Truth Social, where he asserted the "American Public was scammed," per the Hill. The former president spoke after the release of special counsel John Durham's report that slammed the FBI's investigation, called Crossfire Hurricane, into alleged ties between Trump's 2016 campaign and Russia.

• The criticism: In a nutshell, Durham "found that the FBI acted too hastily and relied on raw and unconfirmed intelligence when it opened the Trump-Russia investigation," per the AP. Among other things, it faulted agents for falling victim to "confirmation bias" in their Trump suspicions. “An objective and honest assessment of these strands of information should have caused the FBI to question not only the predication for Crossfire Hurricane, but also to reflect on whether the FBI was being manipulated for political or other purposes,” the report said. "Unfortunately, it did not.”
• Full report: You can read the report in full here.

• Charges: Trump had previously predicted the report would reveal the "crime of the century," though Durham's four-year investigation resulted in only three low-level prosecutions, two of which resulted in jury acquittals, per USA Today. In the third, a former FBI lawyer received probation after pleading guilty to altering an email regarding surveillance of a Trump aide. (Durham's own probe has been the subject of criticism.)
• What's next: Trump's GOP allies in Congress also plan to trumpet the report. Rep. Jim Jordan already has said he hopes to have Durham testify before the House Judiciary Committee next week, reports the Hill.
• A recommendation: The 300-page report ends with a quick recommendation that the FBI create a position for either an agent or a lawyer to oversee politically sensitive investigations, per the Washington Post.

(More John Durham stories.)