Right now, pundits, partisans and fans of politics, wonks and nerds, are pouring over the just released DOJ Inspector General report. I’m no different. (Read the report from IG Michael Horowitz here.)

One thing is clear: The whole 500+ page exercise comes down to one sentence: “We’ll Stop It.” The “We” being Peter Strzok, Lisa Page, Andrew McCabe, Sally Yates, Loretta Lynch and the rest of the DOJ/FBI cabal. The “It” was the election of Donald J. Trump. 

That One Line

We find the line in an August 6, 2016 text exchange between Page and Strzok. With the woe of a teen girl discovering Justin Bieber is back with Selena Gomez, Page emotes: “[Trump’s] not ever going to become president, right? Right?!”

Strzok replies: “No. No he won’t. We’ll stop it.” 

Fact One. Strzok and allies had the power to use the full force of the most powerful investigative bodies in the world to bring someone — anyone — down. (To say nothing of the power of the Intelligence Community led by John Brennan and James Clapper and a White House led by Barack Obama.) 

Fact Two: On July 31, 2016, just days before he assured his beloved “We’ll stop” Trump, Strzok and the FBI officially opened their investigation into Trump-Russia collusion. Strzok began to exercise that power. 

“We’ll Stop It.” Remember those words. History will rank up it there with “I Am Not a Crook,” “What Difference, At This Point, Does It Make?” and “He Made Him an Offer He Couldn’t Refuse.” A smoking gun in the effort to sabotage Trump? It’s a 21-gun salute to the willful abuse of power. The smoke can be seen from space … but not by MSNBC, CNN and other determined enemies of the President.

We’ll Stop It

“We’ll Stop It.” What do you get a billionaire who is the most powerful man on the planet for his birthday? Thanks to Strzok, the IG served up the hottest birthday number for a president since a ripe Marilyn Monroe cooed for JFK. Trump will be using that one phrase against the Russian investigation like a hand-fitted mallet in a game of whack-a-mole. With really slow moles.

“We’ll Stop It.” Many pundits are noting that the IG Report seems to clear Strzok of political bias impacting his actions. They must have missed this in the summary. It says of that text: “It is not only indicative of a biased state of mind but, even more seriously, implies a willingness to take official action to impact the presidential candidate’s electoral prospects.”

Further: “[W]e did not have confidence that Strzok’s decision to prioritize the Russia investigation over following up on the Midyear-related investigative lead discovered on the Weiner laptop was free from bias.”

“Midyear” is the name given the FBI investigation into Clinton’s use of a private email server to shuffle classified information. 

“Stay tuned,” Horowitz seems to be hinting. “My upcoming report on the Russia investigation is where the real fireworks are.”

Another Media Narrative Blown Away

There is so much in today’s epic report it’ll take days to fully grasp it. However, since it is Donald Trump’s birthday, let’s stick with one other observation.

How many times in the past year and a half have you heard Democrats, MSM, Comey and McCabe slam Donald Trump for damaging the integrity of the DOJ and FBI? He calls the leaders out for their antics and prejudices, and the MSM acts like he’s dynamiting the Hoover Building or tossing Lady Justice into Gitmo. 

But read even the summary of the IG Report. Horowitz repeatedly roasts Comey, Lynch, McCabe, Strzok, et al., for “the damage caused by their actions.” For piercing “the heart of the FBI’s reputation.”

Or an “error in judgment” that “created public confusion.” Or actions that “violated long-standing Department practice.” Or “unpersuasive justifications” for their actions. (What the rest of us call “lying.”) And on and on.

In other words, the IG is making it very clear: It ain’t Trump that harmed the reputation of the FBI and DOJ. The FBI and DOJ leadership harmed the reputation of the FBI and DOJ. 

Stay Tuned

There is much more to say about today’s Inspector General report. Please keep an eye on The Stream and follow me on Twitter @StreamingAl.