Andrew McCabe: Without FISA We Won’t Be Able to Surveil Hamas Terrorists

ACOSTA: “But your commander-in-chief and you have access to the Presidential Daily Brief. For example, you — you have access to classified information, we will go down that road. That’s a different kind of road for Donald Trump. But you are aware of what this — this capability does in terms of gathering intelligence information to make sure acts of terrorism are stopped before they happen on U.S. soil. And Andrew, I mean, I do want to ask you about this. Former Attorney General Bill Barr spoke to CNN about this, and Barr was ripping Trump for pressuring Republicans to block reauthorizing it. Let’s listen to this talk about a new assignment.”
[Clip starts]
Barr: “We’re faced with probably the greatest threat to the homeland from terrorist attack, and our primary means of defending against that is FISA. And to take that tool away, I think, is going to result in successful terrorist attacks and loss of life.” [clip ends]
ACOSTA: “Is that possible, Andrew?”
McCabe: “It is absolutely possible. The former attorney general is exactly right here. And you’re right, Jim, some — anyone who has been a consumer of the intelligence that section 702 provides us and that, of course, would include former President Trump should understand the significance of that. And then let’s overlay on the time that we’re talking about right now. Israel is at war with Hamas. Hamas, we know has a presence here in the United States. The idea that we would turn off the prime vision, the prime insight that we have into terrorists who are overseas, terrorists like Hamas terrorists, who may in fact be talking to people in the United States and planning activities here, we don’t know that, but it’s certainly a top priority for the FBI right now, the idea that we would turn off that flow of information, which is entirely lawful and has survived every court challenge, is just astounding to me. There is no one in the community, in the intelligence community who would support such a thing.”
ACOSTA: “All right. Andrew McCabe, thank you very much for the straight talk. Always appreciate it.”