Special counsel blasts FBI over its 2016 Trump-Russia election probe

May 15 (UPI) -- A special counsel says the FBI should not have conducted its investigation into allegations that Donald Trump conspired with Russia during the 2016 election.

Special counsel John Durham, who was appointed by Trump-appointed Attorney General William Barr, said in the report that the FBI poorly analyzed critical pieces of information and may have acted on confirmation bias in its investigation.

Durham was appointed to analyze the Trump-Russia investigation, named "Crossfire Hurricane," in 2019.

"The conduct in 2016 and 2017 that Special Counsel Durham examined was the reason that current FBI leadership already implemented dozens of corrective actions, which have now been in place for some time," the FBI said in a statement.

"Had those reforms been in place in 2016, the missteps identified in the report could have been prevented. This report reinforces the importance of ensuring the FBI continues to do its work with the rigor, objectivity, and professionalism the American people deserve and rightly expect."

Durham's investigation led to three court cases, yielding two acquittals and one guilty plea. Kevin Clinesmith, an attorney for the FBI, pleaded guilty to doctoring an email and avoided a jail sentence. Russian analyst Igor Danchenko and Clinton campaign lawyer Michael Sussman were acquitted of charges.

The report suggested that FBI employees pursued the investigation into Trump's ties with Russia much more aggressively than allegations that Hilary Clinton's campaign was assisted by foreign entities.

"There was a complete lack of information from the Intelligence Community that corroborated the hypothesis upon which the Crossfire Hurricane investigation was predicated," the report said, referring to the hypothesis that Trump colluded with Russia to influence the 2016 election.

"In short, it is the office's assessment that the FBI discounted or willfully ignored material information that did not support the narrative of a collusive relationship between Trump and Russia."

While the investigation led to procedural changes within the FBI, the report offers additional reforms, including a "career position for a nonpartisan FBI agent or lawyer" to challenge the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act application and other steps in the investigation.