UPDATED: I Was Wrong About 'CR Cuts'
Yesterday a friend pointed out to me that I was mistaken regarding the meaning of a Peter Strzok reference to "CR cuts." For that I apologize. Here's the short version:
Whereas I thought that the words "CR cuts" referred to "tech cuts" associated with the Crossfire Razor, i.e., Michael Flynn case, in fact the reference is to the Steele dossier.
Now here's the longer explanation.
First, I want to be clear that this changes nothing regarding the Flynn/Kislyak conversations as far as issues of non-minimization or 'unmasking' are concerned. The testimony of disgraced former Director James Comey and of Andrew McCabe is explicit: Those conversations were written up, at least initially, in the form of 'tech cuts' and Flynn's name was not minimized or redacted. The reason for his name was not minimized was that Flynn was already the subject of a Full Investigation and thus fell within the exceptions to the minimization requirements. I've covered all that previously, and it all remains 'operative.' As a reminder, here's what a 'tech cut' is:
In FBI parlance a FISA order is referred to as "technical coverage". Or, simply, a "tech." The typed up summaries of, for example, telephone conversations captured in that way are referred to as "tech cuts" or, commonly, as "cuts."
Thus, I assumed that "CR" meant "Crossfire Razor" and "cuts" meant "tech cuts." However, there's a sort of dual context involved:
1) The context at the time Strzok and Lisa Page were texting, and
2) The context at the time I was writing.
To start with #2, I was writing in the context of new documentary revelations regarding the Flynn case, and debates about whether Flynn's name had ever been masked and, if not, why not. I was able to address those issues successfully, but then wrongly assumed, working from incomplete data, that "CR cuts" fell into the same category. In other words, I assumed that Strzok and Bill Priestap were objecting that DNI James Clapper should not be providing raw tech cuts to the White House.
Now we turn to #1. Here's the fuller data, the full text thread between Strzok and Page on January 3, 2017, slightly reformatted:
STRZOK: “Our material in the report is much better now. Don’t like an annex, but is what it is. Did you follow the drama over the PDB [Presidential Daily Brief] last week?”
PAGE: “Yup. Don’t know how it ended though.”
STRZOK: “They didn’t include any of it and Bill didn’t want to dissent.”
PAGE: “Wow. Bill should make sure Andy knows about that, since he was consulted numerous times about whether to include the reporting.”
STRZOK: “He [Priestap], like us, is concerned with over sharing. Doesn’t want Clapper giving CR cuts to WH. All political, just shows our hand and potentially makes enemies.”
PAGE: “Yeah, but keep in mind we were going to put that in the doc on Friday [January 6th], with potentially larger distribution than just the DNI.”
STRZOK: “The question is should we, particularly to the entirety of the lame duck USIC with partisan axes to grind.”
My friend argued, convincingly, that when Strzok speaks of "Our material in the report" he can't be referring to raw tech cuts. In fact, the FBI material--"our material"--is said by Strzok to be in an "annex" to the "report."
What then appears to be a digression regarding the PDB I take to be related: There had been some controversy over whether the material that is now in an annex to the report should be included in the PDB. A decision was made not to include "our material" in the PDB, and Priestap went along with that decision--probably despite the contrary wishes of Andy McCabe. Note that this dispute happened "last week." Since the Flynn/Kislyak calls happened on Friday, 12/29, the dispute must not have been regarding tech cuts of the calls.
Next we learn why Priestap went along with not including "our material" in the PDB--as well as what "our material" actually is: it's "CR cuts". Priestap didn't like what looks like raw data being turned over to the White House by Clapper.
To determine what "CR cuts" means, we refer to Comey's House testimony :
"Mr. Gowdy. Do you recall -- when I use the phrase "crown material," what does that refer to?
Mr. Comey. I think it refers to material that -- now called the Steele dossier. I mean, I could be wrong about that, but I think that's the name that the analysts use for that material.
Mr. Gowdy. I think you're correct. So do you recall whether any, quote, crown material or dossier material was included in the IC assessment?
Mr. Comey. Yes. I'm going to be careful here because I'm talking about a document that's still classified. The unclassified thing we talked about earlier today, the first paragraph you can see of exhibit A, is reflective of the fact that at least some of the material that Steele had collected was in the big thing called the intelligence community assessment in an annex called annex A."
From this we know that Steele dossier material was included in the ICA. The clincher comes in Lisa Page's final text, in which we learn that the "report" Strzok and page were discussing is certainly the ICA report that Page refers to as "the doc on Friday"--Friday, January 6, the day that the ICA report came out.
Thus we conclude that CR doesn't mean C rossfire R azor but rather CR own. According to Comey, "Crown material" was FBI analyst jargon for the Steele dossier, indicating that it was "Brit/UK material." In this context "cuts" must mean "selections, excerpts". Selections or excerpts from the Steele dossier. This raises an interesting question that we can't address here: Is use of the term "Crown material" with reference to the Steele dossier just analyst banter, or does it suggest that Steele's activities may have had a greater degree of official sanction than the British government wants us to believe?
It may be useful to conclude now with a sort of timeline tracking events in the plot against the incoming Trump administration from the week after Christmas, 2016, up to issuance of the ICA on January 6th. By doing so we'll see how the different threads of the plot are interwoven. This was a very busy time for the anti-Trump plotters.
* Things begin happening with the formulation of the ICA, designed to set in stone the public narrative that Putin "meddled" in the US election on behalf of Trump, thus establishing that Trump was an illegitimate president.
* At the same time, there must have been ongoing discussion on how to use the Steele dossier against Trump. As we've seen, portions of it were used in the ICA, placed in Annex A. But that wasn't the end of the matter, because the plotters wanted to find a way to get the dossier out to the public forum.
* Another line of provocative action was undertaken by Obama himself--the expulsion of Russian diplomats on 12/29, with the expectation of causing a crisis in US-Russian relations. That didn't happen, thanks to the efforts of Michael Flynn--and this may have been the sought after event, since the Obama administration very quickly sought to take advantage of it. The FBI quickly got some version of Flynn's conversations to Obama through James Clapper--possibly in the form of raw tech cuts but possibly in an oral briefing.
* That brings us to the eventful first week of January, 2017.
* On 1/3 we seek Strzok and Page texting about the ICA and the Steele "Crown" material.
* At the same time, however, other matters are on Strzok's mind. On 1/4 he texts Joe Pientka at WFO, telling Pientka to hold back the closing EC on Crossfire Razor (Michael Flynn) because "the seventh floor" (Comey and McCabe) are now involved in the Flynn matter.
* The next day, 1/5, Comey goes to the famous Oval Office meeting with all the highest level plotters. All of these matters are discussed:
- Obama is briefed on the ICA;
- The Steele "Crown" material is discussed; it is decided that Comey will brief Trump on the ICA but will use that briefing as a pretext to provoke Trump by teasing (attempting to blackmail?) him by telling him about the dossier and the likelihood that it will go public--in the most lurid terms possible.
- After the main meeting concludes, Obama takes Comey and Sally Yates aside to discuss the Flynn/Kislyak conversations. A stunned Yates learns of this for the first time, but notes that Obama already knows all about it. Keeping Crossfire Razor open is key to the attempt, later in the month, to frame Flynn.
UPDATE: J. E. Dyer, in a comment, writes:
On the main topic of this post, I concluded separately (as apparently you did originally) that the "CR cuts" reference was to Crossfire Razor. I still think that makes more sense than "Crown cuts."
I can see the force for this position. It would consist in recognizing a shifting of gears in the Strzok/Page texting, the wording of which is somewhat unclear on its face. That's what happens when you're interpreting a text without being inside the thought loop. To paraphrase how this interpretation would work:
* Strzok relates that Priestap went along with a group decision (within FBI/DoJ) not to include Dossier material in a PDB --even though McCabe wanted to. McCabe was apparently not present for that decision and Page is surprised that Priestap didn't insist on inclusion since he probably knew McCabe's desires.
* Strzok expands on the point by noting that both he and Priestap are concerned with "oversharing" and then (reading into his text) points out--in effect --that if Clapper (who, as DNI, produces the PDB) were allowed to include Dossier material in the PDB, Clapper might next want to include Flynn/CR/Crossfire Razor [tech] cuts in a PDB. The actual text isn't that clear. Strzok says that would be taken by the incoming Trump administration as the FBI overtly taking partisan sides.
* Page's response is the clincher, either way the text exchange is interpreted. She says, "keep in mind we were going to put that in the doc on Friday." Does "that" refer to Crown or Flynn? Could be either. If it refers to Flynn she's probably saying that Flynn related tech cuts had been considered for inclusion, but were apparently left out. As it is, we know that "Crown" Dossier material was included--in an annex to the full document.
Neither interpretation is totally straightforward, so we'll probably have to wait on events to be sure.