In the face of a potential administration headed by former Vice President Joe Biden, Attorney General William Barr has set his sights on protecting Special Counsel John Durham and his investigation into the origins of the Crossfire Hurricane operation.

Barr said that he appointed Durham as a Special Counsel in October under the same statute that governed former Special Counsel Robert Mueller and his Russian collusion investigation, The Associated Press reported.

The scope of Durham’s investigation has been narrowed to look into the actions of FBI agents involved in the Russian collusion investigation known as Crossfire Hurricane.

“Under federal regulations, a special counsel can be fired only by the attorney general and for specific reasons such as misconduct, dereliction of duty, or conflict of interest. An attorney general must document such reasons in writing,” The AP said.

This would provide Durham with protections from being fired during a potential Biden administration if a cause is not met.

The Crossfire Hurricane investigation began when allegations that the Russians helped President Donald Trump defeat former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in the 2016 presidential election began circulating.

“I decided the best thing to do would be to appoint them under the same regulation that covered Bob Mueller, to provide Durham and his team some assurance that they’d be able to complete their work regardless of the outcome of the election,” the Attorney General said.

The current investigation had a much broader scope when it began but it has been “narrowed considerably” and is “really is focused on the activities of the Crossfire Hurricane investigation within the FBI,” he said.

The attorney general said he expects Durham to detail any additional prosecutions that could come and report his findings for everyone to see.

In his order, Barr said he authorized Durham “to investigate whether any federal official, employee or any person or entity violated the law in connection with the intelligence, counter-intelligence or law enforcement activities” as it pertains to the 2016 presidential campaigns, those associated with the campaigns or the administration of President Trump."

“This is a major development + reflects serious nature of the evidence WASHINGTON (AP) — Barr appoints Durham special counsel to keep investigating Russia probe origins under the new administration,” CBS reporter Catherine Herridge said.

https://twitter.com/CBS_Herridge/status/1333866489749901314?s=20

“READ: Order Establishing Special Counsel. Language matters. Criminal. Scope FBI + Mueller team  ‘The Special Counsel is authorized to investigate whether any federal official, employee, or any other person or entity violated the law in connection with the intelligence, + counter-intel, or law-enforcement activities directed at the 2016 presidential campaigns, individuals associated with those campaigns + individuals associated with (Trump) administration including but not limited to Crossfire Hurricane’ + Special Counsel Mueller,” she said.

https://twitter.com/CBS_Herridge/status/1333872366519263235?s=20

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