Conservative commentator Mark Levin said the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court should be eliminated.
“It’s time to abolish the FISA court,” Levin said Thursday evening on Fox News. “It’s time to create a new counterintelligence-related court. It should not consist of existing federal judges,” he added, before listing off other changes he would like to see.
Mark Levin: “It’s time to abolish the FISA court. It’s time to create a new, counter intelligence-related court. It should not consist of existing federal judges.” @marklevinshow #Hannity pic.twitter.com/nipC2YquCb— Fox News (@FoxNews) March 2, 2018
His comments come after a Republican memo was released last month that claims the FBI used information from the unverified “Trump dossier” written by former British spy Christopher Steele to obtain a warrant from the secret FISA court to put Carter Page, a former Trump campaign aide, under surveillance.
Levin demanded that Congress investigate whether the Justice Department and the FBI engaged in “misconduct” before the FISA court, partially because of the role the dossier played in the obtaining a surveillance warrant.
Levin criticized the judges and said the his organization, the Landmark Legal Foundation, has urged FISA court Judge Rosemary Collyer to “do something” about “alleged abuses” from the Justice Department and the FBI.
He also inquired whether the FBI notified her that the dossier had been authored by Steele and was part of opposition research partly funded by the Democratic National Committee and Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign.
Collyer reportedly said there is “no matter pending before the court with respect to which such an appearance would be proper” in response to Levin.
“This FISA judge … was misdirected,” Levin said. “[Courts] have the power to reach back and hold people accountable [for contempt].”
He said he was disheartened that FISA judges have been behaving “like they have no role” in the investigation.
“Something smells like a rat,” Levin said.
