Justice Department will not charge ex-FBI deputy McCabe
A former deputy FBI director and frequent target of President Donald Trump's wrath will not face criminal charges.
Lawyers for Andrew McCabe on Friday (February 14) said they'd received a letter from prosecutors that the investigation into their client was closed.
McCabe was a deputy director who oversaw two of the bureaus highest-profile and most politically volatile cases: the 2016 probe into Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton's use of a private e-mail server, and an investigation into whether Donald Trump's campaign conspired with Russia to win the 2016 election.
And that investigation landed McCabe in Trump's crosshairs.
(SOUNDBITE) (English) ACTING FBI DIRECTOR ANDREW MCCABE, SAYING:
"Sir, we consider it to be a highly significant investigation."
McCabe briefly took charge of the FBI after Trump fired director James Comey, and he asserted that it was taking the Russia probe seriously.
Shortly thereafter, McCabe found himself increasingly the target of Trump's tweets.
The president accused him, without evidence, of participating in a conspiracy to protect Hillary Clinton and undermine Trump's presidency.
In 2018 the attorney general at the time, Jeff Sessions, fired McCabe in what was seen as retaliation. Trump cheered the move.
Then came the criminal case: The D-O-J began investigating whether McCabe lied to investigators about leaks to the media.
That was the case McCabe's lawyers said was closed Friday.
The closure is sure to anger the president.
But it comes after Attorney General William Barr asserted in an interview this week that he "would not be bullied."
The White House declined to comment.
