Politico | Here are the Russia probe conspiracy theories debunked by the DOJ inspector general report

The investigation was not tainted by political bias and was adequately predicated, the report found

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A hand written draft of a tweet for US President Donald Trump about the report of Justice Department Inspector General Michael Horowitz is seen in front of the president. Photo: Reuters

Published: 1:30pm, 10 Dec 2019Updated: 4:11pm, 10 Dec 2019

This story is published in a content partnership with POLITICO. It was originally reported by Caitlin Oprysko politico.com on December 9, 2019.

The release on Monday of a long-awaited watchdog report threw plenty of bones to partisans on both sides of the aisle. While the Justice Department’s inspector general, Michael Horowitz, ripped the FBI‘s handling of applications for surveillance warrants on members of the Trump campaign, he also determined that the years-long investigation into whether President Donald Trump or members of his 2016 campaign colluded with Russia to interfere in his election had not been tainted by political bias and was adequately predicated.

It also debunked a number of conspiracy theories advanced by the president or his allies over the last several years. Here are some of the top claims refuted by Horowitz’s report.

The Steele dossier didn’t play a role in opening the Russia probe

Horowitz faulted investigators for various aspects of their use of the so-called Steele dossier, including relying too heavily on it for warrants for surveillance applications when concerns had been raised about its validity and its source of funding. But Horowitz refuted the claims propagated by Trump that the Russia investigation had its roots in the unverified, salacious allegations in the dossier.

The FBI began its investigation at the end of July 2016, based on a tip it received days before about a Trump campaign adviser, George Papadopoulos, from a foreign ally.