The Biden FBI targeted eight Republican senators’ personal cell phone information as part of an investigation that evolved into lawfare against Donald Trump, new records published Monday show.
The agency document released by Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, indicates that the FBI sought and obtained the cell phone “tolling data” of eight GOP senators and Rep. Mike Kelly, R-Penn., as part of its “Arctic Frost” inquiry in 2023. That investigation ultimately became Special Counsel Jack Smith‘s elector lawfare against Trump.
According to a Senate Judiciary Committee press release, the FBI obtained the data “about the senators’ phone use from January 4 through January 7, 2021.” The information, the presser noted, “shows when and to whom a call is made, as well as the duration and general location data of the call,” but “does not include the content of the call.”
The eight Senate Republicans targeted in the probe include Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, Bill Hagerty and Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee, Josh Hawley of Missouri, Dan Sullivan of Alaska, Tommy Tuberville of Alabama, Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, and Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming.
“Based on the evidence to-date, Arctic Frost and related weaponization by federal law enforcement under Biden was arguably worse than Watergate,” Grassley said in a statement. “What I’ve uncovered today is disturbing and outrageous political conduct by the Biden FBI. The FBI’s actions were an unconstitutional breach, and Attorney General Bondi and Director Patel need to hold accountable those involved in this serious wrongdoing.”
What’s particularly notable about the document released by Grassley’s team is that, according to the senator, it was discovered in the FBI’s “Prohibited Access” file.
As The Federalist’s Margot Cleveland previously explained, “material coded ‘Prohibited Access’ in the FBI’s Sentinel case management system will not appear in search results, meaning that users of Sentinel would not know that information relevant to their search even exists.”
“If Sentinel users do not know that relevant evidence exists, the DOJ cannot possibly provide exculpatory or impeachment evidence to criminal defendants or fulfill their discovery obligations in civil cases. Nor could the DOJ and FBI find all responsive documents for Freedom of Information Act requests, or in response to congressional inquiries or investigations by the inspector general,” Cleveland wrote. “And the FBI cannot possibly properly investigate criminality if its agents do not even know of potentially relevant evidence.”
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It is this “Prohibited Access” database, Cleveland noted, where several “[d]ocuments related to the Trump/Russia-collusion [hoax]” were filed, which “prevented agents in the Washington Field Office from identifying potentially relevant evidence concerning whether Fusion GPS contractor Nellie Ohr lied to Congress about her role in the Crossfire Hurricane hoax.” It’s also worth noting that the U.S. attorney examining materials related to the Biden family’s corrupt business activities in Ukraine was unaware of the FBI’s ability to effectively make certain materials invisible by coding them under “Prohibited Access.”
“Whether files rendered invisible in Sentinel were likewise wrongfully withheld from Congress, the inspector general, or those submitting FOIA requests also remains unknown and will be until we get answers to some fundamental questions,” Cleveland wrote.
Shawn Fleetwood is a staff writer for The Federalist and a graduate of the University of Mary Washington. He previously served as a state content writer for Convention of States Action and his work has been featured in numerous outlets, including RealClearPolitics, RealClearHealth, and Conservative Review. Follow him on Twitter @ShawnFleetwood