Transcripts For CSPAN2 Key Capitol Hill Hearings 20140612 :

november of last year, we requested that the taliban provide a newf o li >>re >> january this year we received that video and it was disturbing. some of you may have seen the video. it showed a deterioration of it of his physicalstat appearance and mental state compared to previously.ntel our entire intelligence community carefully analyzed every part and concludederge sergeant bergdahl health was poor and possibly declining. this gave growing urgency toin act and in april of this year after briefly suspending engaged with us they again signaled interest of talks of the exchange but at that point we intensified our discussions about security assurances and assistance particularly security assurances in particular. i may 12th we signed a memorandum of understanding the dealing the specific security measures to be undertaken and enforced by them if they need to take these were transferred that beh memorandum of understanding was signed othn behalf of united states government included with those negotiations and commitments from the government white travel restrictions monitoring information sharing and limitations on sharing as well as other issues that we will detail of the clothes portion of the hearing in thend classified documentation letternt that i sent to this committee last week.at that memorandum ofnder understanding has been sent to the congress with theco leadership, the committeesmm and every member of congress has an opportunity to reviewra that memorandum ofnd understanding in a closed setting. we received a warning friday -- this talks about sergeant bergdahl safety were growing. we move forward with a direct negotiations how to carry out that exchange of fire if the tabes to agreeth to the mechanics of the exchange may 27th following three days of intensive talks.iv to receive a personal commitment to uphold and enforce the security arrangements to move forward with that exchange on that day. has the opportunity to a tape of the release became clear wein became increasingly concerned for any delay orr leaks that derailed the deal or further endangered sergeant bergdahl. we were told by the q'uatari of any type of leak which jeopardize the event and our military personnel would be exposed to the possible ambush russert dudley's scenarios in dangerous territory that we did not control. and we were given now information on where the hand of poker.d for all of these reasons and more these genes needed to take place quickly and efficiently and quietly. we believe the exchange was the last best opportunity after was set in motion only 96 hours passed before it sergeant bergdahl was it our hands.cert there was great uncertainty about if the deal would go forward.befo with that general area of the handoff and we did not know the precise location until one hour before or.s when sergeant bergdahl was handed over safely tod special operations forces that the taliban would hold up their end of the deal. said not until we recoveredtr him on may 31st at the walled with the detainee's the president's decision to move forward with the transfer of these detainees was a tough call. i supported is to and i stand by its progress secretary of defense to determine whether the tabes d atet guantanamo we can beody transferred to the custody of another country. i take that responsibility diem seriously. deal seriously. as i do any responsibilityi neither the president's national security council are under i they were members of the taliban. which controlled much of afghanistan's prior, all the territory to america's invasion and overthrow of that regime. they were enemy belligerents detained under the law of war, and taken to guantanamo in late 2001 and 2002. they've been in the u.s. kid toddy at zbaun mow since then, 12, 13 years, but they have not been implicated in any attacks against the united states, and we had no basis to prosecute them in a federal court or military commission. it was appropriate to continue to consider them for an exchange, as we had been over the last few years, as congress had been told that we were. and if any of these detainees ever try to rejoin the fight, they would be doing so at their own peril. there's also always always some risk associated with the transfer of detainees from guantanamo. this is not a risk-free business. we get that. the u.s. government has transferred 620 detainees. 620 detainees from guantanamo since may, 2002. with 532 transfers occurring during the bush administration. and 88 transfers occurring during the obama administration. in the case of these five detainees the security measures qatar put in place led me as secretary of defense to determine consistent with the national defense authorization act that the risk they posed to the united states, our citizens and our interests, were substantially mitigated. i consulted with all of the members of the president's national security team and asked them, as they reviewed all the details, they reviewed the draft of my notification letter, the specific line by line, word by word details of that letter, i asked for their complete reviews, the risks associated, and i asked either concur or object to the transfer. the secretary of state, the attorney general, secretary of homeland security, director of national intelligence, and the chairman of the joint chiefs of staff all supported this transfer. all put their names on it. there was complete unanimity on this decision, mr. chairman. the president and i would not >> we will need to learn again how to work together, how to compromise how to make pragmatic decisions. in the upcoming midterm elections americans will have choices to make about which path they want to go down and if we will make the investments we needed our people. but for a lot of us in the private and non-profit sector we have work to do also. government does not have a monopoly on good ideas obviously indeed if it wanted it could not and should not try to solve all the problems by itself. we have a responsibility to do what we can. [inaudible conversations] >> good morning the judiciary committee will come to order without objection we will declare a recess at anytime. we welcome everyone to the oversight hearing and i will begin by recognizing myself for the opening statement. we'll come mr. comey to your first appearance since your confirmation as the seventh director of the fbi we are happy to have you here with us today and i commend your distinguished service to our nation and a confident you will serve honorably at the helm of the fbi. last week marked the one-year anniversary of the first leak of classified material by edward snowden a criminal betrayal of his country in arguably the most of it can the kid u.s. history. over the past year the house judiciary committee conducted oversight over the apple collection program and spearheaded house passage of the freedom act this bipartisan information national-security program that it provide expanded of america's intelligence gathering. although the leaks by pay the -- we have been a bit is for congressional reform the passage of the bipartisan legislation in a way no way condones or excuses' is action the consequences of what he did not be a fully realize. i want to thank director comey and men and women of the fbi to work closely with members of the committee, house intelligence and leadership to kraft usa freedom act reform in such a way to preserve capabilities while simultaneously achievingç the global collection another dark day in american history exactly one year nine months ago our diplomatic mission and benghazi was attacked for americans including our ambassador were killed the administration tried to blame the attack on a video critical of his long but we now know that was not the case it was premeditated carried out by islamist politicians. , in august 2013 relearned the justice department filed criminal charges against several individuals for their alleged involvement in the attack however as of to date no one has been apprehended. i of interested to hear more from director comey on the status of the fbi investigation. i know you may be reticent to comment of the ongoing investigation that the american people deserve to know if we should expect them to bring to justice the killers who murdered four of our citizens. i am also interested to hear more of the investigation into the i.r.a. start getting of conservative groups. last year your predecessor director mueller informed the committee the fbi was investigating the matter and was hesitant to answer questions if there was the ongoing criminal investigation. earlier this year the official said that no criminal charges were expected in the matter and on super bowl sunday president obama stated there was not even a smidgen of corruption in connection with the irs targeting. then on april 8 before this committee attorney general holder claims the investigation is still ongoing and led by longtime obama and democratic national committee donors. of may 21st also declined to answer questions about the matter explaining the investigation is ongoing. frustration is mounting over the scandal and basic facts are unknown or contradicted by this administration. is there an investigation has there been progress? what is the status? why did the justice department and fbi continued to assert that the investigation is ongoing despite the assertion that no crime was committed? do you disagree? those facts and circumstances led the house to approve a resolution calling on the attorney general to appoint a special counsel. how could we trust investigation is carried out when the president claims no corruption occurred? i hope you can shed some light on that today the american people deserve no less. finally a wish to discuss the reestablishment of the domestic terrorism is executive committee that was first established by janet reno in the aftermath of the oklahoma city bombing to disrupt homegrown terrorism threats to reform their unit attorney-general holder said tragic incidents like the boston marathon bombing and active as shooters situations like fort could dash have clear examples we must disrupt will laughter's a with the arms of a nation. and it was necessary to respond to the teaching terrorist threat by the al qaeda core of leadership and but i take serious issue with the notion that america faces a reduce risk from al qaeda even cited by general holder the shooting and the bombing be like the fact that other extremism is on the decline so what does the attorney general really intend to target with the dtec? the answer that in part by stating'' we may concern ourselves with the continued danger reface from individuals within our own borders motivated by other causes including anti-government a animus. was the group advocating for smaller government overtaxes be included if with anti-government animus? given it appears to have used the irs to intimidate its political opponents the reestablishment of the dtec should cause us to stand up and take notice of the forward to these and other important topics today as well as other issues of significance to the fbi and the country it is my pleasure to recognize the ranking member for his opening statement. >> thank you chairman goodlatte we will continue director comey for your first appearance before the house judiciary committee since taking office september 4, 2013. i have great confidence personally in your commitment to fairness and the rule of law. and in 1996 as assistant united states attorney for the eastern district of virginia, it you were appointed prosecutor in the bombing case in saudi arabia. in 2002 for the southern district of new york you have a wide variety of complex, high profile cases to help the district return to some measure of normalcy in the aftermath of the attacks of september 11. in 2004 serving as deputy attorney general of the united states, you refused to certify the bush administration's lawless dragnet surveillance program then confronted senior white house personnel at the hospital when the administration sought to gain approval from mr. ashcroft directly. time and time again you have demonstrated your basic commitment to the rule of law even in dramatic circumstances. that is why i am pleased you are here at the helm of the fbi on this, the first anniversary of our public discussion of the government domestic surveillance programs. the house passed h.r. 3361 the usa freedom act that i played a significant role to bring forward. this legislation designed to end domestic polka collection across the board applies to you to 15 of the patriot act the fis the did register authorities and national security statutes. i am proud to have voted the only measure to pass the house to throwback any aspect of government surveillance since the passage of the fisa act of 1970 act. but balks collection is only one aspect of the of problem over the past few years our early difficulties with national security letters notwithstanding the new fbi has proven a responsible custodian of the new legal authorities granted to the bureau after september 11. for the most part uses the tools congress has provided in the manner intended but the fbi is the end user of massive amounts of data without and a warrant or individualized suspicion. of course, this raises serious civil liberties concerns. director comey you have a struggle to bring in unlawful surveillance and i hope you will continue to work with this committee to help us restore a measure of public trust in this area. although we have spent much of the last decade focused on counterterrorism is critically important to the bureau balance the national security function with the of law-enforcement mission and in this vein of mr. director, i would like to discuss with you the oscar joe of the violence in this country. yesterday's shooting at the high school in oregon is at least the 74 school shooting since the tragedy in newtown connecticut late 2012. the fbi maintains the background check system the bureau is often called upon to participate with the investigation of high-profile shootings. because i believe a more complete background check system would help to stem the tide of violence i look forward to your views in this manner we phase many threats from oversees the fbi plays a fundamental role in extremist violence here at home as well. the bureau has called the sovereign citizen of movement of growing domestic threats according to the anti-defamation league between 2009 and 2013 there were 43 violent incidents between law-enforcement officials and government extremists. 30 police officers have been shot, 14 have been killed to these numbers we must add those officers shot and killed in las vegas. these are not isolated incidents. director comey congress has the power of the fbi with considerable authority including legislation to brutality extremism. i put like to hear more about how the bureau puts these laws and resources to use. it represents 5% of the world's population but incarcerates 25% of the world prisoners. the bureau of prisons is strained to the breaking point. so why the fbi often recommends federal prosecutions in cases letter already prosecuted in this state course of the offender faces is a trial with two separate jurisdictions. the fbi plays a critical role to protect our nation's computer networks from cybercriminals and we must do more to prevent the infiltration of the cybersystem from economic and financial criminals. i would like to hear about the challenges presented from the international aspect. finally i applaud the deputy attorney-general on the recording of federal custodian interviews and your support of this new policy. of with this new presumption all fbi custodial interviews will be recorded and it helps all sides of the case. prosecutors can share recorded confessions with the jury for those who feel they have been treated unfairly can fall back on recorded evidence. there are few exceptions that gives me pause but i want to see this new policy and i look forward to the fbi priorities today. i will use my a communications to fill in any questions that may not be able to be covered within that period. thank you and the chairman and i yield back in the balance of time. >> without objection all other members opening statements will be made a part of a record. our only witness the director is joining us today. please rise we will begin by swearing you and.yqóráyn>z >> day swear the testimony you're about togie6v give is te truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth so help you god? >> i do. >> let the record reflect director comey answered in the affirmative. being sworn in as the director of the fbi director comey began his career in the united states attorney's office in the southern district of new york as the assistant u.s. attorney and later became the assistant attorney in the eastern district of virginia. director comey returned to new york city after the 9/11 terror attacks and became a u.s. attorney for the southern district of new york. late 2003 was appointed to be the deputy attorney general under john ashcroft. director comey a graduate of william and mary and university of chicago law school. we welcome you to your first appearance as fbi director before the house judiciary committee and look forward to your testimony. the reinstatement is entered into the record in its untidy please summarize your testimony within five minutes and you may begin. thank you. >> thank you mr. chairman, good to be back after the eight year break right here representing and expressing the gratitude of the people of the fbi. you have supported them in the bipartisan basis one of the challenges i discovered was the impact of sequestration on my troops now we have been adequately funded things to the support of the people in this room and we're grateful we have much to do. we are national security and law enforcement organization. i will see a few words about counterterrorism but i will talk about cyberthat touches everything that is responsible for a and it is not a thing but a vector we have connected our entire lives to the internet where are our children play, a health care information, finances, a social lives and government secrets, infrastructure almost everything that matters is connected to the internet soon our refrigerators will be in our lives so the people that we do us harm steal our information and secrets or damage to infrastructure come to do those bad things so what touches everything the fbi is responsible for. it is difficult to imagine a better way to explain it as the sheriff showed me of bullet shot from a machine gun but the clincher and his group had given birth to the modern fbi in the twenties because they heralded as a new type of crime with asphalt the in the automobile allowed criminals to commit crimes with shocking speed all across the country and we needed a national force to respond and that is the fbi. that cyberfactor is that times 1 million. dylan sure could 91,000 robberies in the same day from his pajamas and belarus. that is the challenge we face with cyber. it blows away the concept of time and spice they have shrunk a the world because they can move at the speed of light through the internet. so i know only nine months in that mine tenure will be dominated to make sure we are equipped and deploy and train that we shrink the world and we are well of the way banks to the work of my predecessor i hope you saw some of the good work we have done with respect to the chinese and massive criminal enterprises this is no different than kicking in your front door or stealing a company's most precious property be have to treated that way to send a message we will find you a hand to touch you significantly wherever you are in the world because we will not put up with this just because it happens in cyberspace. that issue will dominate over the next 10 years. briefly, a counterterrorism you mentioned the threat from al qaeda but i do see the thread diminished in the region but at the same time i see the progeny of al qaeda at the franchise is thriving in the pork the governor or uncovered spaces around the gulf, north africa or the mediterranean. this remains a huge threat to us through the group's that have been in the news and others we wake up every morning worrying about and go to bet worrying about it with the confluence of that virulence with the progeny al qaeda with syria. it has become the breeding ground the training ground for thousands of chief toddies around several including dozens from the united states we can draw a line from afghanistan in the '80s three 9/11 and we're determined not to allow all of wine from today's syria to a future 9/11 and determined to anticipate the diaspora that will happen at some point and respond aggressively in advance. we also face the challenge from the people from homegrown violent extremist and don't like the terms alone wolf but they are not directed by al qaeda but inspired and a train to to re-emerge from their basement or bedroom to do something terrible and domestic terrorism is something the fbi that the unit has been busy nothing has changed in that regard we spend a lot of time about and using resources to address the hour national security organization counterintelligence is the big part but nothing we can talk about because most is done in the shadows but an important part of the work done extremely well of the realm the world. we're also a law enforcement organization out there every day to lock up violent criminals people that would harm your kids corrupt public officials and all manner of bad guys that touch our responsibilities that remain combined in ways that make sense to me. i will close by saying as you have alluded to people are asking good questions about government power in that is a great thing. people should be skeptical. i am and the country was founded of people that were skeptical so they balanced among three branches that is great but to the extent icahn to answer those questions i hope they would give me the spacing in time to listen to the answers that is the angel of the details are reason why it matters when i get lawful process to search to get content of some bad guys feeling about a plot or enterpriser reason i need to be able to attract that lawful process the wrestle phone and someone who was kidnapped a child or fleeing from justice all of those matter a great deal and i believe they reflect the government working as it should it is hard for me to find the space it and time in a windstorm that i live right now. thank you to the fbi we do have aircraft carriers or satellites but i have the amazing people that is the magic of the fbi thank you for the resources to hire them i saw an intelligence analysts last week it is the lifeblood that makes it through and an honor for me to be the director. i look forward to your questions. >> we will now proceed under the of five vitter ruled a double begin by recognizing myself. as i indicated we have questions about the ira's targeting investigation so my first question is, is there an ongoing investigation to the targeting of conservative groups? >> yes, sir, a very active investigation. >> can you explain why there is an investigation given the president said there was not even a smidgen of corruption? >> i'd be notice respect to the president biden care about the characterization of it that we care about the troops there was a reasonable basis to believe crimes we have been committed so we are conducting an investigation. >> he was simply wrong? >> i don't know what he meant there in what context i don't mean any disrespect i have tremendous respect for him in the office but it does not matter what someone says about its. >> can you give an indication of the conduct of the investigation or who is heading that up for what we might expect with the information bait -- made available to assure that this type of activity is addressed and someone will be held accountable if corruption is found to anybody's doorstep? >> i can only say a little because by law i cannot comment on the open investigation but for good reason we don't want the bad night -- the bad guys to know where we're going so that is true with everything not just this case. but the accountable executive is a chair ref terrific executive but it is something i read dawn on a regular basis but i cannot say more about where we are. >> the offices of inspector general beginning 2010 the fbi reverse course on a longstanding policy the office of inspector general access to a grand jury information with their review i am aware you were asked about this recently and the pledge to avoid stonewalling to find out more about this but we rely heavily on the work of the office of inspector general to overfed some -- to oversee our duty is will you resolve this dispute in the expeditious manner to allow them to effectively carry out their mission? >> i think the inspector general is the central. i have of a great deal of respect for the person who holds that office and i have told him the inspector general is the pain in the we are but it is vital just like the dentist makes me better to have him fully informed and robust. this is a legal issue what we are allowed to share with grand jury material and we are called title three but where we are now strass the justice department legal counsel what we can do. and if they should change the law. >> get your testimony to find out more about this since that testimony? >> we immediately went back to talk to the new general counsel and found out there was the difference of view what the law permitted and that the core of the being we will ask them to tell us how to follow it. >> is this what you can share as well? >> we're interested to know their position whether any action is necessary on our part. number of companies have announced they are notifying customers when it bought a force requested a recipe now unless accompanied by a court ordered a gag order and that it is expressly for have bedded on the face of the subpoena. is this a change of practice? how does this impact your investigation? >> it is a trend not just the fbi but state and local law-enforcement parts of the of windstorm leads more and more providers to say in the past they could have to say upon of drug to the report of the process now they are inclined to tell the person that is what we have to grapple with. >> had you seen significant instances of prominent companies notifying targets of investigation like child abuse or sexual assaults or drug trafficking that was requested by subpoena? that to know that the process was withdrawn to figure out some other way to track this guy. this. >> so that lack of cooperation impeded that ability to go after suspected criminals? >> that is what i have been told. >> we interested to have you apprise us of the problems thisddsí in the ways you think we may be helpful with that as well. it is now my privilege to yield to the gentleman for his questions for five minutes. >> director comey, yesterday's shooting and a high school in oregon is a 74th school shootings since the attack on sandy hook elementary in 2012. can you tell me what your agency is doing to address gun violence? and in what ways the judiciary committee can be of help to you? >> debut. in a bunch of different ways, first of all, mention my behavioral analysis units the big brains that quantico made famous in the "silence of the lambs" movie we had people that are doing nothing about what are the markers of this behavior what are the indicators or the of clues to push that information to help educate folks on what they might spot so they look forward we're also a doing trade around the country to help them learn to respond in those incidents but one of the key things to make sure you have not left to leave open into the school's own ambulance king get through the police cars the first responders come into about then it is blocked we had a mass stabbing and the chief had gotten that trading kept a delayed opening and kids were saved because they could get out right away to go to the hospital so we're doing a lot of that training and doing a tremendous game work to reduce gang work. >> but the background check requirements is a general feeling that ought to be expanded. to you have the view that you can discuss with us this morning? >>. >> with that background check system the they have been in the news since sandy hook trying to get better to find out what records to push to a us but the policy question is for the department of justice. the legislature feels the background check requirements should be expanded in be made more exclusive. we are trying desperately in calling on someone in the fbi to give us direction. it is true we ended full collection in the general sense through the usa freedom act but i am concerned about large collections. and there is some privacy and advocates that are concerned about it. as the law exists today, can you describe how much information and the fbi could collect within a single section 215 order? >> i know now sitting here i can quantify the of legislation the house passed that you mention it makes good sense to me to collect in bulk. there is not a particular number but we could not collect the amount of records not tethered to the legislation. >> section 702 of fisa is focused on united states persons outside of the united states. but the government doesn't take in large amounts of information above the united states persons through this authority. does the fbi used information obtained under section seven of two in criminal investigations? >> bedtime has expired. >> because i avenue i want to talk about something that is classified. let me check. >> the answer is, we do but to talk about details we need to be in a classified setting. >> thank you. >> the recognize the gentleman for five minutes. >> good to have you with us. i asked the predecessor to a9 about the benghazi investigation of course, his testimony is in the opening statement as well. i said then and now the entire scenario continues to use stick in my craw. i am not suggesting you are guilty but someone has not done a good job in my opinion. referring to the "huffington post" article that explains october 18, 2012 "the new york times" reporter kirkpatrick spent hours with unhanded a hotel as he sat down and drink with the governments of libya a long do you share my frustration and the media can gain access but we cannot lay a glove on him? >> i am not sure i would express. >> assuming we haven't. >> i would not express it as frustration i have been in this business a long time i know journalist can get access that we can so that does not surprise me. >> mrs. clinton appeared before a senate hearing in response to one of the questions she said what difference does it make? it is my belief in the issue whether a skier or indirect or direct involvement with it does make a difference. do you concur? >> i take the benghazi matter very, very seriously. it is one i am very close to a and briefed on a regular basis putting a lot of work into and have made progress but the details i cannot talk about. >> i appreciate that. >>. >> i you cannot go into great detail with the passage of each day we're one step further removed that would not be pleasing at all. >> what you should know about the fbi is we never give up. >> began to express criticism. >> let me talk about the attorney-general in the area of marijuana enforcement with the divergence of assets from the prosecution to natural institutions in states where marijuana has obtained legal status. i presume that includes colorado and the state of washington and. with that fbi investigation of violent crime and drug trafficking that oftentimes spills over at the international borders. >> i am not familiar with the policy sitting here but i see it does not have much of an impact my troops have not mentioned it to me. i do not think so. >> i yield back. >> the gentleman from new york. >> director comey the national security permits the fbi to obtain the stuff that you could get under section and 215 order under fis of. the president's review group to identify principal regions by fbi officials of section 250 orders must be issued by the board recommended that all statutes should use the same oversight dissemination that is currently used with those orders. we have done that in the house version of the usa freedom act. given the overlap is it necessary? >> is the essential to the basic building block just does grand jury subpoenas are the basic building blocks they are very different from to 15 only giving information in limited circumstances like subscriber information, and i sp identification, no content, financial records records, a metadataum. sure. but not with any kind of bold fashion. so the basic building blocks of our investigation i had a talk with the review group about this and i think they were dead wrong respectfully i don't think there is any reason why on earth would be making a harder to get a national security letter that i needed my most important matters that does not make any sense to me. >> do you think those restrictions are included in the usa freedom act passed by the house that those are okay.ç >> in the h.r. 3361 bill that the house passed it will be required of the basic use of section 215 on a selection term. how does that definition limit the government's ability to obtain information? some critics have said you could ask for it area covered or does it go to. >> no. with that clear legislative intent to so the of thoughtful people we're happy to discuss said to bar some of the things. >>. >> as long as that did not accidentally preclude that makes total sense? if a terrorist is in a hotel then we need to use a lawful process for food is in every room that he is in 712. i have no use but if the other language i am happy to discuss. >> how many are issued in the given year. >> the number is in the thousands because of the basic building block but thousands of them. >>. >> but to prevent the funds to compel a journalist to talk about sports -- of the sorts. of "the new york times" reporter who will refuse to name his confidential source , 49 states have issued some form of protection to reporters who refuse to testify about sources. kid you give us your opinion tottery protect freedom of the press to allow sources of what has happened with not be there without confidential sources but they have clamped down. what you think about the 0.despite those secrecy requirements we get the information we need? >> but my need to investigate the most serious offenses to have a robust press. i am not up to speedy enough that is for the department of justice when we should not ever investigate the most important cases at the news gathering function of. >> and we recognize the gentleman from california. >> there has been a lot of coverage the fbi had a and has said since 2010 the database of 1.1 million records of the nonprofit organizations that they resent based on education and individuals working for you. i & you have returns those records so they no longer have records. >> they return seven sometimes. >> isn't it true they were to include the 61 '03 informational and? >> that was an issue i've read about and heard about. >> if they send us information and asking us to return the information under subpoena that the basis was it contained that information is that true? >> i think that is right. >> if the irs could release that information you're not authorized to receive it as said database so is that a violation of the law under 6103? >> my recollection is 63 -- a6103 is to protect private information and there is the number of legal hurdles including cuts way to share the information was available lois lerner did send a database that included 6103 information to the fbi in 2010. isn't that true? >> i don't know who sent it. >> the department of justice gave us emails. some questions that are important to the fbi but that they never had of valid reason to have a database with taxpayer individual informational nonprofits? but i have a valid basis to some public information it is through the guide star web site wide you need the data base? >> i don't know. >> answer that for the record i would appreciate that. on what basis internal memos are available there reason to have been searchable for match and if it was publicly available. white you need a searchable database rather than andy you know, today of the reason the fbi on the ongoing basis would need any nonpublic information from taxpayers including the information from the of nonprofits? >> we use it to with investigations. >> recorders but do you have ongoing investigations that were begun in 2009, 10, a levin that concerned referrals from the irs or nonprofit to the fbi? >> i don't know of any from that period of time. i not saying there are not i am just not aware. >> to the best of your knowledge, have you relinquish to subpoena all documents related to lois lerner and transfers from the irs? >> i don't know the status of that. with the fbi? the retinoblastoma as i am sure we did our best to be fully compliant. >> do you agree the robust oversight that the american people should inherently be suspicious or concerned when identifiable information is transferred from the irs to the fbi without a warrant? direct a chivalrous know the taxpayer information is protected according to the law that is why i remember taking it seriously. >> to your knowledge what does the fbi do with this database in the three years it was in its possession? >> i have last. land standing is the analysts in the division look to see if doj would ask us to do something so it sat on her final the last four years. >> so is it safe to assume of the fbi did not ask for it had no purpose and the irs encourage her to take it it was part of a coordinated effort to produce say investigation that never materialized? >> i don't know how to answer that. >> your time is expired. >> when the employer tries to get background information on prospective employees be heard complaints the information and is an completely and people lose the opportunity for jobs. what is the fbi doing to upgrade their information? >> this information in our database? >> some of it is yours, the state sometimes it is not included but you don't know. of you could get back to me. also sex trafficking 40 road has sex with a 40 year-old that is great? is a crime diminished because it is a paid for? >> the child is still violated. >> does the fbi recognize those encounters to bring prosecutions? >> i think so does the fbi have a process to deal with the child victims? >> yes, sir. >> what is the process? >> our office of victims of crimes works with the sex trafficking investigation to make sure the kids are treated like the victims that they are in the gateway to services provided in the locality that we rescue the child. >> there is the term called organized retail theft they drop bin up the interstate clean off a couple of shells -- shows what is the fbi doing to address this? >> i don't know enough to answer i am not familiar. >> eight individual identification theft we have the breach of data that are valuable usury fuel the steel a couple thousand dollars from each account nobody investigates. what is the fbi doing to deal with the identification of to grab day credit card then take a couple thousand dollars and keep going? >> it is not a focus a lot of our work must organize to a criminal group but we try to take the resources to spend on the more complicated intrusions then offer training that is a gap of behalf to local and state enforcement that is over the internet. >> a lot of that crosses the state lines so the local police is virtually incapable to deal with that. you making sure there is a national investigation with the breach and people use the credit card information in? >> with respect to the large-scale intrusion and the identity theft a and with three spock -- with respect if we don't connect to a more sophisticated rate we've tried to hand it to our state and local partners to give the expertise they need to work it. >> the gentleman from california asking about the targeting of conservative groups by the irs. i am aware of some liberal groups that were targeted are you investigating those also? >> i want to be careful what i say-;h2v'jñ:oçs]-ññgsyváf,yce investigation with respect to the irs medicated medicaid and medicare fraud were they doing? >> it is of big part of the work across the country especially in pockets with a significant amount of medicare and medicaid fraud program is just in tampa of visiting my troops it is the major focus around the country. >> finally the challenges of dealing with the term loan wolf you don't like but how you prevent crimes from happening if there is only one crime involved? >> very difficult. but the very brave people of my behavioral unit tried to push out to local police departments markers. looking at the history of these cases you can almost always find something somebody saw in person or on the internet or social media, a marker this person was radicalizing so we tried to alert our partners and maintain a robust presence in the online world for these people will go to get the training say are looking for to do these terrible things. >> the chair recognizes the gentleman from iowa. >> thank you for your testimony. i recommend your staff and cut out the 56 minutes use it as training for other members that come before the judiciary committee. that was an excellent opening statement. >> i married a woman from iowa. [laughter] >> it made a difference to me. i recall your testimony it was received a positive fashion and to reiterate june 8, 2005 to catch a terrorist with his hands on the check many steps ahead of preventive and disruptive measures as quickly as he can to incapacitate the tar get the right moment to in surveillance and pen registers with the search warrants allow us to do that. i take you stand on that statement today from what i have heard in the actions you have followed through on. and to think about the taste of i would ask, can you describe if you believe it makes us safer and how? >> has a country, it doesn't make us safer bet it does not make us less saved but there are benefits offering assurances to people who have legitimate questions it leaves us no less safe and we were. >> do you have more confidence in the private sector holding as opposed to the government? . . and what you see the 18 month. of time, would you see merit to having, being able to negotiate with the private sector to go into that data beyond 18 months? can you foresee that? >> it could happen and it could be cases where is useful where we discover something is older and we need to check it. >> that the freedom act forecloses that opportunity. >> for the purposes of that particular metadata program yes it does. >> so it is possible that there is data beyond 18 months that would be critical to an investigation and it would be things that were considered by the people you referred to as experts who ask for five years of data. >> it's possible. see which most everything is. the southern border persons of interest from nations of interest. what can you tell us about how that situation might have changed over the last four or five years pecks are we getting more or less and from what countries would you be the most concerned about? >> i don't know enough nine nine-month stint to give an assessment of the numbers. it's a big focus of ours but i'd have to get back to on the particulars of it. >> would you have a sense that those numbers are increasing or decreasing? >> i have the sense that it is increasing. it's a particular worry for me with respect to syria because i can no-fly a bad guy to keep them from going to syria but may look across into mexico to get out and come back the same way across the land border. that's one of the ways in which i worry about it. >> and you have a number on what percentage of the illegal drugs that are consumed in america come from or through mexico? >> is very high north of 80% i would estimate sitting here. >> and when the d.a. says 80 to 90% that was inconsistent with your response. and you have any data that you can share with us the mite indicate that violence in central let's say south of the united states the violence rates within those societies and how that might affect our society as we see masses of people coming here? >> i don't other than i have a sense even after nine months is a significant issue especially in some of the countries in central america. >> and americans will become victims? thank you for your testimony and thank you mr. chairman. i yield back the balance of my time. >> the chair recognizes the gentleman from california ms. loftis for five minutes. >> thank you mr. chairman and thank you director call me. i'm heartened by your statement and i appreciate your service to our country and your commitment to the rule of law. it's great to hear you. i think you know we are in a an interesting time where obviously we want to pursue -- people who would violate the law and the same time in the digital age our expectations of privacy are shifting and getting it right in terms of legislation is not an easy task so i have some questions for you about databases. it's my understanding that this is a question not a statement that the fbi's next generation identification database is going to include pictures for facial recognition. is that correct? >> yes. mugshots. we are trying piloting the use of mugshots along with their fingerprint database to see if we can find bad guys by matching pictures with mugshots. >> now i further understand and again this is a question not a statement that in addition to mugshots there they would be civilian pictures as well in this database. is that correct? >> that's not my understanding. as i understand it what we are using is mugshots arrest photos. >> so they would not be pictures included from state dmv's in the database? >> i don't think so. yeah the next gem identification as i understand it is about mugshots. i think there are circumstances when state census records they will send us pictures of people who are giving special driver's licenses to transport children or explosive materials but as i understand those are not part of the database. >> i would very much if that is not correct please do let me know. do we have an idea of what kind of false positive we would have in terms of matches using the photo recognition technology software? >> we don't yet. that is why we are violating it to see how good is it and how useful useful is it to law enforcement across the country but i don't know the answer to that. >> it's been reported and again i don't know that this is accurate that the database when fully -- i mean obviously there's a pilot there's a plan if it works to fully expand it that there would need approximately 52 million faces by the year 2015 in the database. do you know whether that figure is accurate? >> i don't. >> can you check to find out? >> sure. >> because what has been reported and again this is contrary to what you are reporting was that there would be several million pictures that would not be mugshots that would be coming from civilian sources which is something that i am greatly interested in. >> i saw some of the same media and that is what led me to ask my folks what is the deal with this and explains nation to me was the pilot is the mugshots because those are repeatable and we can count on the quality of them and they are tied to criminal conduct clearly so there was not a plan where we are going to add other nonmugshots photos. if i got that wrong i will fix x it with you. >> i appreciate that. it's my understanding that the contractor who was building this next generation identification database is a company called morpho trust also built the state department facial recognition database which contains 244 million faces. will your next generation identification system be capable of importing -- importing the state state department records do you know? >> i don't know. i have not heard of that as either a current capability or intended capability. i will get back to on that. >> i would appreciate that very much. the reason why yesterday we had a vote on the appropriations bill that passed to prohibit the collection and retention of driver's license plates on cars. it's not that that's in plain sight but i think one of the issues that we need to get right and we would welcome your input on this is things that are in plain sight that we know are not private take on a different quality when they become part of a massive database that can be searched. so if you walk outside your front door you are in plain sight and you know your neighbor can see you but you don't really expect that would be photographed and be part of a massive database so that the government could know where you are at any given time. so the pictures, the identifiers on vehicles are useful to law enforcement go where do we draw the line of privacy for the american people? i would be very interested in your thoughts on that. obviously we are out of time now but if you could provide your best judgment on where that line should be drawn it would be greatly appreciated. >> thank you. >> the chair recognizes the gentleman from texas mr. gohmert for five minutes. >> thank you mr. chairman and thank you director for being here. we appreciate you taking on the job you have taken on which includes the unpleasant task of having to come and talk to us but thank you for being here. you mentioned in your opening statement about syria being in breeding ground for. terrorism. i had met with some libyans who had originally been rebels and the so-called arab spring and they were telling me that there are terrorists camps springing up all over eastern libya and that's the area they came through to meet with me in egypt. are you aware of any terrorist training cramps springing up in libya these days? >> it's not something i know a lot about and it's probably not something i want to talk about in open session even the little i do know. >> since you mentioned syria i wanted to see if you knew anything about libya because these were people that they said were radicals so much in charge of the rebel efforts that they were quite active but anyway we know that on the border particularly texas with mexico there is this massive influx of particularly children and i keep hearing from people that have been there that have been working with them and articles that are being published. the information is pretty basic even though a spokesman for the administration says they don't know why there's this huge influx. they keep saying they are hearing that amnesty is coming and they will not be sent home and apparently as i've been hearing from border patrol but they are not being allowed to do their job and secure our border. i got a report from some border patrol from october 2008 to april of 2014 texas identified a total of 177,000588 criminal million defendants booked into texas county jails and those 177,000 have been identifieidentified through the secure communities initiative with 611,000234 individual criminal charges and so i'm wondering even though apparently what i'm hearing from the border patrol they are not being allowed to do their job and to protect america's borders. is the fbi stepping in and picking up the slack and the least of the tens of thousands that are pouring in being able to check to see their criminal backgrounds? >> given, something i've read about in the media and given our responsibilities and authorities it's not something that i have focused on or i believe we are focused on significantly. there are lots of other agencies that are but not the fbi. >> the department of homeland security is supposed to be that they are not letting the border patrol do their job. they are being told with a massive numbers don't turn them away and let them come in. this is what i'm hearing from the border patrol. let them come in and then of course they are being shipped around the country to be cared for. but i would suggest direct or since you are in charge of the federal bureau of investigation and we know that this massive hundreds of thousands of crimes have been committed by people coming in illegally just in texas that it is something the fbi has got to pick up the slack on. the border is not going to be protected by homeland security then it's going to fall directly on doj and i know it may not be warranted but it's happening. let me ask you shifting gears your predecessor was not aware that the mosque in cambridge boston area were founded the islamic society of austin founded and signed the papers by a guy named al-amoudi that the fbi did a great job proving the case where he is now doing 23 years for supporting terrorism. looking back on base tsarnaev headset that russia gave us what questions do you think would be appropriate to ask in the mosque that fbi agents never did? they went there according to the director mueller in their outreach program but not to question whether or not tsarnaev had been radicalized. what questions do you think would be appropriate in a mosque and if you think they are appropriate when you give notice of somebody being radicalized? see the particulars i don't know well enough to answer but in general we want to be able to ask whatever questions are logical leads for us to follow no matter where it is whether it's a mosque or a church or a grocery store if we have a reason to ask a question we want to be able to ask it. >> that mosque has ties to radicalism and hasn't been followed up i can tell you by the fbi and i would urge you to do that. it is a radical hotbed and i appreciate your time here today. i yield back. >> the time of the gentleman has expired. the chair recognizes the drum and from georgia for five minutes. >> thank you mr. chairman. sir thank you for your service to the nation. we are living during a time where we and counter threats to our national security on a daily basis and we are fortunate to have agencies like the fbi protecting us. recently however the question has come up as to whether the relationship between the government's interests in prosecuting the unauthorized disclosure of classified information and the public's interest in a free press and that it's been knocked off balance. has the fbi ever used journalists as a cover for their agents and if so can we get a commitment that won't happen again? >> not to my knowledge. >> thank you. journalists continue to find themselves in the crosshairs of programs of sensibly designed to catch terrorists. what measures has the fbi taken to ensure that journalists are not targeted and that they remain free to do their work without fear? >> we have an extensive set of rules that govern how we interact with the media during any investigation with its national security or criminal that are contained within our investigation. an operations guide and a set of both that the department of justice regulations that the attorney general has promulgated so we follow that very very carefully. >> thank you. since the attorney general released a revised guidelines regarding the gathering information from journalists has the fbi been involved in surveillance of journalists and as a coordinates with nsa on these issues? >> to my knowledge no. we have not been involved in surveillance of journalists in the same with respect to the nsa. >> already. on another note in many reverse stings fbi agents using confidential informants decide on the amount of drugs including ones that trigger harsh mandatory minimum penalties. research demonstrates that these triggering amounts impact minorities disproportionately. given the possibility of that vyas unconscious or not, whether or not it plays a role in the decisions of what to charge a target with? isn't it prudent to instruct your agents in terms of this issue, how to avoid the consequences of any bias in that regard? >> bias is something i think we have to worry about in all human affairs especially when you have the law enforcement power that we exercise is something we talk a lot about inside the fbi but to make sure that our culture is one rooted to every possible extends throughout the organization and being blind to color and orientation to origin and following the facts. the charging decisions in drug cases that you mentioned are made by the fbi. those are made by federal prosecutors so that's not something the fbi agent is going to drive. >> well recognizing the power of prosecutors to decide on the charges to indict if there is still a lot of discretion with agents when it comes down to persons whom they are investigating and decide to arrest, what to charge them with and those decisions are made to be subject to to some care and some oversight by superiors in that department. >> i agree very much. >> thank you and i yield back. >> the chair thanks the gentleman and recognizes the gentleman from ohio for five minutes the director thank you for being here and thank you for what you do. appreciate what you and your agents do every single day. do you believe director that the attorney general should name a special prosecutor in the investigation of the targeting of conservatconservat ives by the internal revenue service? >> i don't think that's something for the fbi director to comment on. >> every single republican in the house that we should and 26 them at that said we should including ms. delfini in mr. mr. garcia overwhelming bipartisan majority said we infection do that based on what we have heard and learned about this investigation over the last year. but you don't believe we should do that? >> i said i don't believe it's something the fbi director should be opining on. >> let me go back to where mr. issa was a few minutes ago. we learned from freedom of information requests judicial watch that the department of justice attorney richard pilgrim met with lois lerner and 2002 we interviewed mr. pilger and we discovered an interview discs of information were given to the fbi from the internal revenue service and in fact we got a letter on june 2 a little over a week ago from the department of them just as telling us there were 21 discs that were provided by the internal revenue service to the federal bureau of investigation containing 1.2 million pages of information two days later we got another letter where basically the same mr. keswick of the department of justice said we forgot to tell you something. 21 discs 1.2 million pages of information and some of that information included confidential information protected by internal revenue code section 6103. so we have a database that you have had for four years which not according to us but according to the department of justice lawyer mr. keswick and the irs contained information that is confidential against the law. you've had this illegal database for four years. did you use anything in that database in a four year time span? >> no. >> not at all? >> my understanding is and was look at the table of contents to see what was on it. >> are you sure about that? >> shuras i can be. >> remember we got the e. and l. from mr. pilger from lois lerner this is this. the fbi says raw format is the best because they can put it in their system like excel or this is a direct medication from mr. pilger and ms. lerner. you have it in the format you want and and you didn't use it and you had for four years and you didn't use of? >> that's my understanding. >> we know six visits from the fbi to in person fbi to in-person and four but found while her application for c-4 status is pending and you are telling us none of this information was used to target people like ms. engelbrecht? >> that's what i'm telling you. >> wanted to turn the information back? when did you first learn you have this database that was never used an illegal database 1.2 million pages when did you learn you have this information? >> me personally? today is wednesday. i think monday. >> the new director to know you have this for the last four years and you just learned a week ago? >> i don't think anything was being done with that and was sitting with the intelligence analysts. did you know if there was a legal taxpayer information? do you know for court order was used to get this? >> i think the was -- the disk was sent by the irs. >> so the justice department said the irs sent a legal confidential taxpayer information? >> my understanding no court order and they sent us the discs which were represented as being publicly available information. >> the federal bureau of investigation had 1.2 million pages of confidential taxpayer information and this was never used to target people where we have examples like katherine engelbrecht who got six visits from the fbi while her application was pending. and they are supposed to believe we just had it and we gave it back sorry no harm no foul? >> they should believe that because i'm saying it and because what they know about the fbi. >> let me go back to the first question. the very first question. 26 democrats every single republican in the house said we need a special prosecutor. as the chairman said in his opening statement organization on january 13 according to "the wall street journal" or organization leaked to "the wall street journal" saying no one would be prosecuted. i'm just saying what "the wall street journal" said. >> i don't know if they said the fbi personally leaked that. >> the president said there's not even a smidgen in the person heading the investigation is the the -- and now we know it's been in the hands of the fbi given it to him and the format the fbi wanted and you were saying the head of the fbi should not comment on whether it's a special prosecutor not. spare don't think the reactor should be offering of you on that. what i care of ballot is to buy folks think it's? >> i think american people would like a special special prosecutor bins by the fact that we have 22nd -- 26 democrats in every single republican saying that very same thing. >> that may be so but i say given my role is not something i should be giving a view on. >> the chair recognizes the gentleman from puerto rico mr. mr. peer rec for five minutes. >> thank you mr. chairman. director welcome to the committee. i commend you on your demeanor and responsiveness of this hearing up until now. as i did when dhs secretary appeared before the committee last month i would like to outline the narrative and ask you to comment. puerto rico is home to fewer than 4 million american citizens in 2009 there were about 900 homicides on the island. in 2010 that were nearly 1000 homicides and in 2011 there were 1100 homicides. an average of 3a day. the most violent year in the territory's history history. each year homicide rate was twice as high as any state. most murders in puerto rico are links to the drug trade. puerto rico is within u.s. customs on in use by organizations transporting narcotics from south america to the u.s. mainland. given the crisis i examined the level of resources that doj and dhs were dedicating to combat drug related violence in puerto rico and came away discouraged. the federal law enforcement foot and on the island was inadequate. i have done everything possible to press upon officials the need for an improved federal response to drug related violence in puerto rico both for its own sake and for the sake of communities in the u.s. mainland on the eastern border and so on. starting in 2012 my message finally began to register particularly at dhs. the agency created task force charged with taking steps to reduce puerto rico's murder rate the coast guard has substantially increased the amount of the time -- last year it i.c.e. searched items were they made hundreds of arrests and seized a vast quantities of drugs and cbp once had assumed control of the counter drug program earlier this year in southern puerto rico had been -- since 2011. i know doj agencies have enhanced their efforts as the u.s. attorney for part a rico confirmed this very weak when i met with her i have been particularly impressed with the firearms and crime reduction initiative and joined doj and dhs throughout much of puerto rico. i've also been impressed by other initiatives to which the fbi plays an important role like the anti-carjacking initiatives and the creation of seven strike forces consisting mostly of local federal officers to target drug traffickers and violent criminals i it was something i didn't know much about before taking this job and a lot of folks to understand that each of the problem. i think it was my second day as the fbi director i went to our command center to watch as my hostage rescue team and a bunch of my swat teams participated a huge take down one of the housing projects. the problem is centered in the free housing projects so it is something we spent a lot of time on. not knowing that you and i were going to me today last week i sent a note to the whole office thanking them for all the work they have been doing on public corruption and violent crime of all sorts of its sorts of it's something we are very focused on. whether we will put more agents they are not i can't tell you sent -- sitting right here but as you know every six months we do a review of our threats and where resources are and that process is going on right now. i don't know the answer sitting here. it's something we are very focused on. we have some things going on right now but i can't talk about that you will read about soon and more effort by us to lock up some of these bad guys. >> ad-lib forward to it. see the time of john mudd has expired and the chair recognizes it as a gentleman from texas mr. poe for five minutes. >> the tenor of my question has to do with federal government agencies intimidation against citizens whether it's legal or illegal and whether agencies working together to intimidate citizens and specifically i want to talk about one of my constituents catherine engelbrecht. she and her husband run a small business. they started in truth a vote to different organizations. they filed in july 2010 with the irs for nonprofit status. since they did that and i know you don't have this information in front of you but let me read to you what happened to them after that was filed. the fbi's domestic terrorism unit first inquired about the organization. what in the world is the fbi terrorism unit, it sounds terrible. what is that? >> it's not terrible. it's men and women. >> it sounds very serious not terrible. >> it's or domestic terrorism that investigate people who want to engage in acts of violence here in united states not connected to an al-qaeda type group. >> i appreciate what you said and i don't mean it's a terrible unit that i just mean to sound serious and something we are concerned about. that was in 2010. 2011 barron inquired by the domestic terrorism unit again. january personal audit of enterprises by the irs. in march irs questions the nonprofit application. the fbi inquiry repatriates. october trip to vote questions nonprofit application. 2011 in june december but also in november fbi inquired three more times with the king st. patriots. february 2012 the irs questions them again. 2012 february king st. patriots the irs questions there application and asked questions about where they abandon what meetings this catherine engelbrecht speaking out and who had she spoken to and who is she speaking to my in the future and copies of the speeches are requested and who attended all of these meetings. once again they are investigated like i said in february the king st. paid -- patriots the same situation and the bureau of alcohol, tobacco and firearms investigates. the audit catherine engelbrecht's business. we filed a federal inquiry to see if they would run a federal investigation. quick response no they are not under federal investigation. in july osha audits them. december texas commission on environmental quality audits them. the irs in december questions them again and march of 2013 that i arrests asked the more questions and finally the bureau of alcohol tobacco and firearms question them on an unscheduled audit. based on that information is it illegal for different government agencies to work together to intimidate some individual business? >> without legitimate investigative purpose? >> sharon does the justice department said in a letter to me they are not under investigation. >> my problem is i don't know enough about the situation to comment and i don't know whether those dots are all connected. i hope they are encounters with my folks were pleasant and professional. i expect that they were but i don't know enough to say. >> understand but does that raise suspicion to you? is different -- interesting all these different government agencies over certain. lack of time that suddenly start investigating an organization that the justice department said is not under criminal best to geisha and? does that look a little suspicious? >> i can imagine them wondering about it but based on what you said i don't know enough about their business. i just can't say. >> just a general hypothetical. it seems to me that it looks like there might be a coordinator at effort here by different departments. if there is a coordinated effort hypothetical, take this case away, hypothetical is that some violation of federal law for different agencies to work to intimidate let's say? >> as you said without proper investigative purpose it's terrible and i suspect it's unlawful in some respects but again i don't know. >> i know that. >> and you know i can't comment. i can imagine that we would be part of some effort to intimidate someone as an investigative purpose. just can't say it. >> i think the chairman and i have other questions i would like to submit for the record. >> the gentleman may do so under there was a committee. the chair recognizes the gentleman from tennessee mr. cohen for five minutes. >> thank you mr. chairman. first of all it's very good to see you. i was pleased with your appointment. the last time i saw you was i think when you were here for the hearings about the justice department and some unusual circumstances in which you were heroic in your duties and so is truly commendable that you were appointed and you are serving. we have had the last few days of congress moments of silence, a moment of silence has almost become a regular ritual for killings. we had one yesterday for the school shooting in oregon. we lost a child. we have won the day before for killing of law enforcement folks in nevada. there was just student who was killed in seattle pacific for five days earlier who didn't get a moment of silence. we were here but their consulate happening and i think since newtown i think there've been 74 shootings in schools. what can congress do to provide the fbi and law enforcement in general tools to reduce gun violence in these types of tragic deaths? do you have any recommendations for us of something we can get accomplish that law enforcement would find an important element? >> with respect to the fbi, we are trying a lot of different things. again as i began i thank you for the budget support we have been given. we are applying those resources to train to try to push out clues and indicators about what might indicate someone is about to do one of these things. there's a lot of different things we are doing. i mentioned earlier one of the challenges i'm told we face international instant background is getting good mental health records from the states in the states are trying to get their act together but i can't sit here and suggest a particular legislative fix at this point. but i agree with you. i call whenever a law enforcement officers killed in line of duty in the united states. i've been on this job for nine months and i make way too many calls. we lost two great people with families to a brutal execution in las vegas so i share your pain and that. are there certain guns that should not be allowed or cartridges are chambers whatever cartridges that may be unnecessary for people to enjoy sport and shooting that might be used more for mass killings? >> that's something i'm not expert enough to answer. it really is an something for the fbi to answer. >> thank you sir. public corruption you said is your top criminal following. in 2010 the supreme court found honest services statute unconstitutional and the efforts to resurrect that have stalled. i'm concerned about public trust and public authority in government. do you have any thoughts about how we can or should pass a new honor services statute and/or other? would that be an important tool to you in fighting public corruption? >> has been -- the reason is such a high priority for us it is work we are uniquely good at and we are uniquely needed in the country. >> you haven't studied the statue per se in the supreme court decision? >> i used to use the statue when i was a prosecutor in virginia and new york but beyond that i don't know enough to comment on particular legislation. >> thank you. you are building a new building for having a new building built. >> i hope so. >> when do expect that to be finished? >> they have told me it's a gsa of project and they told me five to seven years. i looked at the clock and i have nine years and three months ago. it is so badly needed but it's sometime in my tenure. >> sometime during your tenure. i would hope that you would consider recommending or acting in such a way to name that doubling for someone who reflects the moderate fbi and somebody who the american public would have faith and re-instill faith in the fbi because they are a person who would be part of the new fbi and the new way we do things. in your tradition of respecting the constitution and the rule of law. >> thank you sir. >> your welcome and i yield back the balance of my time. >> the chair recognizes the gentleman from south carolina mr. gowdy for five minutes. >> thank you mr. chairman. director you have excellent agents in south carolina and i know would mean the world to you you -- to them if you the chance to tell them one of their fellow citizens from south carolina appreciates their work. there's a gentleman by the name of jim lana men in particular that really is a credit to the bureau. >> i'm visiting all 56 by the end of year. i will be in columbia and i will find that guy and embarrass him. >> i probably just did embarrass him. let me know when you are visiting and i will make sure the senator graham is not serving in the state. jimmy jordan asked you about the irs targeting scandal. i'm not going to ask you about it because you can't comment and it's not fair for me to ask you a series of questions where you have to say you can't comment. i just want to make an observation to maybe try to help you understand where jimmy is coming from. you used to be in a courtroom where you had challenges for cause and you had preemptory challenges and i have never argued that the cause a prosecutor was particularly engaged in active or maxed out to a particular political party i've never argued that was a challenge for cause. of course that person can still be fair but out of the universe of all potential federal prosecutors, why anyone would pick someone in a sensitive investigation that involves political targeting with that background just mystifies me and again i'm not going to ask you to comment. i'm just going to ask you to think about the fact that we do have a special prosecutor statute where there is a conflict or where it furthers the interests of justice. and when you have a chief executive who put in my judgment the department of justice and the bureau and a very awkward position by saying there's not a smidgen of corruption when the investigation is not over and when you have a prosecutor that has deep political ties. i would just ask you in the quietness of your own soul to reflect upon whether or not we can never have a fact pattern that warrants a special prosecutor if it's not this. what in your judgment are the limits of prosecutorial discretion? >> certainly the law is a clear limit. you operate that discretion within the law and obviously a sense of integrity and fair dealing that should be at the core of all federal prosecutors of our culture and our federal prosecutor. you know the federal prosecutor culture that that's an important limit of discretion. that's probably the short answer. >> do you think that there's there is a difference between the exercise of prosecutorial discretion and the wholesale failure to in or see certain category of the law? >> potentially. i don't know what you are referring to be sure. >> when your agents are asked by a member of the grand jury about drug amounts you and i both know they are going to tell it to them when they are asked by a judge about drug amounts they are going to tell the truth and when they are asked by a probation officer about drug amounts they are going to tell the truth and we do have mandatory minimums. some people like them and some people don't it's still the law and i am troubled when any attorney general regardless of affiliation directs a group of prosecutors to no longer include in the charging document the drug amount. surely there is a limit on what prosecutorial discretion is and i will ask it differently. there are certain laws that forbid conduct of possession of child pornography. there are certain laws that require conduct like registering for selective service and there are certain laws that required you to make reports to congress. surely prosecutorial discretion is not available in all of those categories of law. >> as you know in the federal system there is tremendous prosecutorial discretion. it's one of the reasons that the sentencing guidelines in some of the movements may have been imposed but i guess i don't know which of those categories again. i would imagine there's a certain amount of discretion a prosecutor has discretion on even whether to prosecute. >> i agree with that but if congress a director relied to file a report by july the first of each year about how many 924e 's you prosecute them if you can get away with saying in the exercise of my discretion i'm not going to comply with that law. politics is one thing. the law is something else and when we use the word prosecutorial discretion to excuse the failure to enforce the category of law i think we are doing a real disservice to the concept of prosecutorial discretion i think we are doing a disservice to our public. thank you mr. chairman. >> the chair thanks the gentleman recognizes the gentleman from california ms. chu for five minutes. >> thank you. director comey i'm concerned about the individuals who have been placed on the watch lists such as the no-fly list and placed their base on incorrect information. the consequences for wrongful inclusion on the no-fly list can be devastating. people are stigmatized as terrorist barred from commercial flight altogether detained and interrogated and subject to long-term investigation. these people may lose the ability to maintain employment that requires travel or because the government shares information about individuals inclusion on the watch list with a prospective employer. watch list entries have a high areas like the doj inspector general reports through the most recent 2014 ig report suggests that there are concerns regarding the agency's processes and procedures. the report found redundant and inefficient processes that clog the system and says the fbi average is 44 businesses to add suspect did terror suspects referred by their agencies but it takes twice as long 78 days on average to remove cleared suspects, former suspects. director comey i believe defending our nation against terrorism is important but i also think we have to carefully balance that with their civil rights and liberties under the law

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