Former Intelligence Officer Says He May Have Been Napolitano’s Source In British Wiretapping Claim

You know how the grapevine goes…

Somebody has some information, and they tell it to somebody. That somebody tells somebody else, who turns around and tells a few others.

The invent of the internet has made the grapevine much more extensive, but as it has always been with the grapevine, as the tale is spread, it tends to gather and collect “enhanced” details, until it finally ends up looking like something very different than when it started.

Apparently, that’s what happened with Fox News’ legal analyst, Judge Andrew Napolitano and the twisted tale of British intelligence’s culpability in wiretapping Trump Tower.

Larry Johnson, a former CIA analyst and Fox News contributor spoke with CNN’s “Reliable Sources” on Sunday and revealed that he may have served as the unwitting source for Napolitano’s tale.

He additionally says Napolitano – much like what happens with the internet – got it wrong.

Johnson said two sources told him that the British intelligence agency GHCQ had been passing information through back channels about the intelligence community’s meddling in U.S. politics, even before Thursday’s press briefing. That was when Spicer cited allegations Napolitano made — apparently fueled partially by Johnson — earlier in the week on Fox News that the GHCQ had spied on Trump.

“Now, I had known about the fact that the British through GHCQ were passing information back-channel. This was not done at the direction of Barack Obama. Let’s be clear about that. It was being done with the full knowledge of people like John Brennan and Jim Clapper,” Johnson said Sunday.

And Napolitano apparently got the information from a message board.

“I’m not saying the British GHCQ was wiretapping Trump’s Tower. … [Napolitano] shouldn’t have used the word wiretap. I call it an ‘information operation’ that’s been directed against President Trump and people like John Brennan,” Johnson said.

Napolitano reportedly directed the New York Times to call Johnson after facing skepticism regarding his U.K. wiretapping claim.

Napolitano used Johnson’s anonymous sources, so he has no idea who those sources were.

“I’m hearing it from people who are in a position to know. … I posted that on the discussion board and one of the individuals there shared that with the judge. I don’t know what his other sources are. All I know is what I know,” Johnson told CNN.

“What’s ironic is I was a Fox News analyst through 2002 to 2003. I never spoke to Judge Napolitano then and I hadn’t spoken to him until he called me on Saturday,” Johnson added.

Odd how people turn up when they want information, or at least a juicy story.

Meanwhile, Fox News still maintains they have no clue what Napolitano was talking about.

The House Intelligence Committee begin hearings on possible Russian meddling in the 2016 election on Monday. The plan is to include an investigation into any wiretapping, as well, but so far, the Trump administration has not offered any evidence.

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