Durham seals the deal, but Steele stands by dossier.

Former British Spy Christopher Steele Stands by Discredited Dossier

The controversial dossier compiled by former British spy Christopher Steele has been widely discredited, with a British judge ordering Steele to pay damages to a Russian bank that was falsely targeted in the report. Special Counsel John Durham has also released a report highlighting numerous inaccuracies and fabrications in the document.

Steele Defends His Work

Despite the criticism, Steele is standing by his dossier. He claims that the document, which was funded by Hillary Clinton’s 2016 presidential campaign, “has not been discredited” and that its “main tenets continue to hold up well.” Steele has called on American journalists to “put the record straight on this.”

Steele’s report was heavily relied upon by the FBI during its investigation into whether the Trump campaign conspired with Russia. However, no evidence has emerged to support the allegations made in the dossier. Steele’s sources and sub-sources have either admitted to fabricating the claims or said they were embellished in the dossier.

Durham’s Findings

According to Durham, Steele’s primary source for the dossier, Igor Danchenko, lied about his contacts with a Belarusian-American businessman he claimed was a major source for the dossier. Danchenko also lied to the FBI about his contacts with Democratic operative Charles Dolan, who provided some information that ended up in the dossier.

The purported source for another salacious claim in the dossier—that former Trump lawyer Michael Cohen met with Kremlin officials in Prague—disavowed the allegation in interviews with the special counsel.

Despite these findings, Steele dismissed Durham’s report as “a partisan conspiracy theory.” However, Durham is not the first investigator to poke holes in Steele’s report. Justice Department inspector general Michael Horowitz also laid out many of the fabrications in the dossier in a report in December 2019.

Conclusion

It remains to be seen whether Steele’s claims will hold up under further scrutiny. However, it is clear that the dossier has been widely discredited and that its accuracy is highly questionable.

• Steele’s report has been widely discredited
• Special Counsel John Durham has released a report highlighting numerous inaccuracies and fabrications in the document
• Steele is standing by his dossier, despite the criticism
• No evidence has emerged to support the allegations made in the dossier
• Steele’s sources and sub-sources have either admitted to fabricating the claims or said they were embellished in the dossier
• Durham’s report has been dismissed by Steele as “a partisan conspiracy theory”