The FBI secret society is a

conspiracy theory A conspiracy theory is an explanation for an event or situation that invokes a conspiracy by sinister and powerful groups, often political in motivation, when other explanations are more probable.Additional sources: * * * * The term has a nega ...

claiming the existence of a group of U.S.

Federal Bureau of Investigation The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic intelligence and security service of the United States and its principal federal law enforcement agency. Operating under the jurisdiction of the United States Department of Justice, ...

(FBI) employees with a collective goal of undermining the

Presidency of Donald Trump Donald Trump's tenure as the 45th president of the United States began with his inauguration on January 20, 2017, and ended on January 20, 2021. Trump, a Republican from New York City, took office following his Electoral College victory ...

. The claim was based on the content of a text message sent between two employees of the FBI in 2016. The content of the message was later revealed to likely be a joke and the conspiracy theory was proven false.

Personalities

The two FBI investigators were central to the conspiracy claim: # FBI agent

Peter Strzok Peter Paul Strzok II (, like ''struck''; born March 7, 1970) is a former United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agent. He was the Deputy Assistant Director of the FBI's Counterintelligence Division and led the investigation into R ...

, who was a senior FBI agent working for Special Counsel

Robert Mueller Robert Swan Mueller III (; born August 7, 1944) is an American lawyer and government official who served as the sixth director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) from 2001 to 2013. A graduate of Princeton University and New York ...

2017 Special Counsel investigation The Mueller special counsel investigation was an investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 United States elections, links between associates of Donald Trump and Russian officials, and possible obstruction of justice by Trump and his ...

looking into any links or coordination between Trump's presidential campaign and the Russian government. # FBI Lawyer Lisa Page, a trial attorney on Mueller's team. Strzok was having an affair with Page. The claims regarding a secret society within the FBI and its agenda were mostly promulgated by Republican Senators and their supporters amongst the media.

Timeline

On November 9, 2016, a day after the 2016 United States elections, a

text message Text messaging, or texting, is the act of composing and sending electronic messages, typically consisting of alphabetic and numeric characters, between two or more users of mobile devices, desktops/ laptops, or another type of compatible comput ...

was sent from Lisa Page to Peter Strzok, using their government-issued phones. The content of the message was: Strzok did not reply to the message and there is no further mention of a "secret society" in texts either before or after the one from Page. The message made reference to

Vladimir Putin Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin; (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who holds the office of president of Russia. Putin has served continuously as president or prime minister since 1999: as prime min ...

-themed calendars that Strzok had purchased for the FBI agents working on the early stage of the Russia investigation. On January 23, 2018, Representative

Trey Gowdy Harold Watson "Trey" Gowdy III (born August 22, 1964) is an American television news personality, former politician, and former federal prosecutor who served as the U.S. representative for from 2011 to 2019. His district included much of the Up ...

made claims on

Fox News Insider The Fox News Channel, abbreviated FNC, commonly known as Fox News, and stylized in all caps, is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Conservatism in the United States, conservative cable television, cable List of news televisi ...

about the text message including that it revealed a "stunning level of anti-Trump bias" within the FBI. "It's the day after the election and it's the same two people who were discussing a little bit later in the texts the damage they had done with the Clinton investigation and how they could 'fix it' and make it right," Gowdy said. "That is a level of bias that is stunning among law enforcement officers." Senator

Ron Johnson Ronald Harold Johnson (born April 8, 1955) is an American accountant, businessman, and politician serving as the senior United States senator from Wisconsin, a seat he has held since 2011. A Republican, Johnson was first elected to the U.S. Se ...

, chair of the

United States Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs The United States Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs is the chief oversight committee of the United States Senate. It has jurisdiction over matters related to the Department of Homeland Security and other homeland s ...

, appeared on Fox News on January 23, 2018, and reported that an unnamed “informant” had told him about secretive “off-site” meetings among FBI agents. “That secret society, we have an informant that’s talking about a group that was holding secret meetings offsite,” Johnson claimed. Johnson also claimed that the meetings involved "a number of high level, FBI officials," though he declined to identify the officials involved or whether the informant worked at the FBI. On January 24, 2018

ABC News ABC News is the news division of the American broadcast network ABC. Its flagship program is the daily evening newscast ''ABC World News Tonight, ABC World News Tonight with David Muir''; other programs include Breakfast television, morning ...

reported the text they had obtained verbatim. The text messages seemed to confirm prior speculation on right-wing websites and cable news, including Fox News personality

Sean Hannity Sean Patrick Hannity (born December 30, 1961) is an American talk show host, conservative political commentator, and author. He is the host of ''The Sean Hannity Show'', a nationally syndicated talk radio show, and has also hosted a commentar ...

's personal website. Hannity claimed that a "recent treasure trove of text messages exchanged between FBI officials reveal a covert 'secret society' at the bureau, suggesting a cabal of officials at the Department of Justice sought to oppose President Trump the day after his election. According to Fox News, Peter Strzok –a senior FBI agent involved in the investigation of Hillary Clinton’s private email server- sent multiple messages to DOJ lawyer Lisa Page, mentioning a 'secret society' to fight the Trump agenda in November 2016." He also stated that "Senator Ron Johnson raised eyebrows throughout Washington Tuesday night, telling reporters the GOP legislator has an informant inside the FBI who confirmed the existence of an anti-Trump ‘secret society’ at the Department of Justice." A day later Johnson changed his claims about the secret society, amid backlash from Senator

Chuck Schumer Charles Ellis Schumer ( ; born November 23, 1950) is an American politician serving as Senate Majority Leader since January 20, 2021. A member of the Democratic Party, Schumer is in his fourth Senate term, having held his seat since 1999, and ...

. Schumer said "It looked delusional. It looked paranoid. What began as an attempt to discredit the investigator has now devolved into delusional, self-serving paranoia." Johnson responded that "We're not going to be deterred at all by whatever comments, derogatory-wise, that Sen. Schumer made" and alleged "corruption at the highest levels of the FBI." Johnson did amend his previous statement saying that he had used the term "secret society" only because Strzok and Page had done so. Johnson said he was not surprised when he read about the secret society because he is part of "the committee that whistle-blowers come to to talk about all kinds of problems throughout the federal government." "Everything I take with a grain of salt," he added. Johnson told reporters that he wasn’t sure what the text between the two FBI officials actually meant and that “secret society” was simply the term used by the two officials. Claims were also made that there were additional messages which confirmed the secret society and the bias against Trump but the Representatives who made the claims refused to release the texts to the media. At this point the text message was suspected of being a joke and was portrayed that way in the media.

Conclusion

The message between Page and Strzok was an attempt at humor because they were disappointed after the election and the joke "seemed less funny" the day after Donald Trump won. Former White House ethics lawyer Richard Painter summed up the situation as follows: Other than misusing their government-issued phones, neither Strzok or Page broke the law. Most likely they communicated on their work phones to hide their affair from their spouses and were not plotting against Trump. He said, "They’re making a big whoopty-do about nothing.... If they had been using their personal phones to talk about Trump, they would have been perfectly in their right to do so. You are bound to find career government workers who don’t like Trump, and you’re bound to find career government workers who send text messages about not liking Trump, and among those you are going to find some that are in each other’s beds when they shouldn’t’ be. Big deal. Congress shouldn’t be wasting our money looking through the texts of these bozos. The only people whose time it’s worth going through their texts are divorce attorneys on behalf of their spouses."

References

{{Reflist, refs= {{cite web , title=The full 'secret society' text between FBI agents: Was it meant in jest? , website=

, date=25 January 2018 , url=https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/full-secret-society-text-fbi-agents-meant-jest/story?id=52592241 , access-date=11 May 2022 {{cite news , first1=Devlin , last1=Barrett , first2=Sean , last2=Sullivan , url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/republicans-hammer-mueller-fbi-as-russia-investigation-intensifies/2017/12/06/4a6097ca-dabb-11e7-b1a8-62589434a581_story.html , title=Republicans hammer Mueller, FBI as Russia investigation intensifies , newspaper=

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...

, date=December 6, 2017 , access-date=11 May 2022 {{cite news , last1=Bice , first1=Daniel , last2=Glauber , first2=Bill , title=Wisconsin Sen. Ron Johnson walks back claims of an anti-Trump 'secret society' within FBI , newspaper=

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel The ''Milwaukee Journal Sentinel'' is a daily morning broadsheet printed in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where it is the primary newspaper. It is also the largest newspaper in the state of Wisconsin, where it is widely distributed. It is currently o ...

, date=25 January 2018 , url=https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/investigations/daniel-bice/2018/01/25/wisconsin-sen-ron-johnson-walks-back-claims-anti-trump-secret-society-within-fbi/1065135001/ , access-date=12 May 2022 {{cite news , url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2018/01/25/the-gops-silly-secret-society-conspiracy-theory/ , title=The GOP's thoroughly silly 'secret society' FBI conspiracy theory , newspaper=

, date=January 25, 2018 , access-date=12 May 2022 , last=Blake , first=Aaron {{cite web , url=https://www.politico.com/story/2018/01/25/fbi-secret-society-chuck-schumer-369446 , title=Schumer knocks Johnson as 'delusional' over FBI 'secret society' flap , website=

Politico ''Politico'' (stylized in all caps), known originally as ''The Politico'', is an American, German-owned political journalism newspaper company based in Arlington County, Virginia, that covers politics and policy in the United States and intern ...

, date=January 25, 2018 , access-date=12 May 2022 , first=Kyle , last=Cheney {{cite web , url=https://www.cnn.com/2018/01/24/politics/fbi-secret-society-analysis/index.html , title=The FBI's 'secret society,' explained , publisher=

CNN CNN (Cable News Network) is a multinational cable news channel headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable news channel, and presently owned by ...

, date=January 25, 2018 , access-date=12 May 2022 , last=Cillizza , first=Chris {{cite web , title=Gowdy on FBI Agents' Texts About 'Secret Society': A 'Stunning Level of Bias' , website=

, date=23 January 2018 , url=https://insider.foxnews.com/2018/01/23/fbi-secret-society-texts-trey-gowdy-fbi-agents-peter-strzok-lisa-page , access-date=11 May 2022 {{cite news , last1=Gerstein , first1=Josh , title=In texts, FBI agents on Russia probe called Trump an 'idiot' , url=https://www.politico.com/story/2017/12/12/fbi-agents-trump-mueller-texts-294156 , work=

, date=December 12, 2017 , access-date=11 May 2022 {{cite web , url=http://thehill.com/homenews/senate/370707-ron-johnson-its-a-real-possibility-that-ex-fbi-agents-secret-society-text-was , title=GOP senator: 'Real possibility' that FBI 'secret society' text was a joke , website= The Hill , date=January 25, 2018 , access-date=12 May 2022 , last=Greenwood , first=Max {{cite web , title=FBI CONSPIRACY? Text Messages Show Anti-Trump 'SECRET SOCIETY' at DOJ , website=Hannity.com , date=23 January 2018 , url=http://hannity.com/media-room/fbi-conspiracy-text-messages-show-anti-trump-secret-society-at-doj/ , access-date=11 May 2022 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210516014741/https://hannity.com/media-room/fbi-conspiracy-text-messages-show-anti-trump-secret-society-at-doj/ , archive-date=2021-05-16 {{cite web , title=DOJ DISGRACE: FBI Informant CONFIRMS Anti-Trump 'SECRET SOCIETY' at DOJ , website=Hannity.com , date=24 January 2018 , url=http://hannity.com/media-room/doj-disgrace-fbi-informant-confirms-anti-trump-secret-society-at-doj/ , access-date=11 May 2022 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210613082902/https://hannity.com/media-room/doj-disgrace-fbi-informant-confirms-anti-trump-secret-society-at-doj/ , archive-date=2021-06-13 {{cite news , url=https://edition.cnn.com/2018/01/25/politics/abc-news-fbi-secret-society-text/index.html , title='Secret Society' text includes reference to Putin-themed gag gift , publisher=

, last1=Herb , first1=Jeremy , last2=Jarrett , first2=Laura , last3=Karimi , first3=Faith , date= January 25, 2018 , access-date=12 May 2022 {{cite web , url=http://www.newsweek.com/fbi-secret-society-texts-republicans-say-suggest-massive-conspiracy-are-not-790487 , title=THE GOP SAYS IT HAS EVIDENCE OF A SECRET SOCIETY AT THE FBI—BUT NO ONE IS ALLOWED TO SEE IT , website=

Newsweek ''Newsweek'' is an American weekly online news magazine co-owned 50 percent each by Dev Pragad, its president and CEO, and Johnathan Davis (businessman), Johnathan Davis, who has no operational role at ''Newsweek''. Founded as a weekly print m ...

, date=January 25, 2018 , access-date=12 May 2022 , last=Lanktree , first=Graham {{cite web , url=https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/congress/gop-lawmakers-seize-secret-society-texts-cast-doubt-fbi-n840856 , title=GOP lawmakers seize on 'secret society' texts to cast doubt on FBI , work=

NBC News NBC News is the news division of the American broadcast television network NBC. The division operates under NBCUniversal Television and Streaming, a division of NBCUniversal, which is, in turn, a subsidiary of Comcast. The news division's var ...

, date=January 24, 2018 , access-date=12 May 2022 , last=Memoli , first=Mike {{cite news , first=Shimon , last=Prokupecz , url=http://www.cnn.com/2017/07/13/politics/peter-strzok-special-counsel-russia-fbi/index.html , title=Special counsel brings on FBI official who oversaw Clinton email investigation , website=

, date=July 13, 2017 , access-date=11 May 2022 {{cite news , title=Sen. Johnson backs off 'secret society' claim , last1=Raju , first1=Manu , last2=Stracqualursi , first2=Veronica , date=January 25, 2018, publisher=

, url=https://www.cnn.com/2018/01/25/politics/ron-johnson-secret-society-texts/index.html , access-date=12 May 2022 {{cite web , last=Palma , first=Bethania , title=FACT CHECK: Do FBI Agents Have an Anti-Trump 'Secret Society'? , publisher=

Snopes ''Snopes'' , formerly known as the ''Urban Legends Reference Pages'', is a Fact checking, fact-checking website. It has been described as a "well-regarded reference for sorting out myths and rumors" on the Internet. The site has also been see ...

, date=June 16, 2018 , url=https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/do-fbi-agents-have-a-secret-society/ , access-date=11 May 2022 {{cite news , last1=Johnson , first1=Kevin , title=Peter Strzok, FBI agent removed from Robert Mueller's Russia probe, called Trump an 'idiot' , url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2017/12/12/peter-strzok-fbi-agent-removed-muellers-russia-probe-called-trump/946913001 , work=

USA Today ''USA Today'' (stylized in all uppercase) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth on September 15, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headquarters in Tysons, Virgini ...

, date=December 12, 2017 , access-date=11 May 2022 , quote=Peter Strzok, a counter-intelligence agent who also helped run the investigation into Hillary Clinton's use of a private email server, expressed a clear preference for the Democratic candidate while leveling expletive-laden insults against Republicans 2018 controversies in the United States

Secret society A secret society is a club or an organization whose activities, events, inner functioning, or membership are concealed. The society may or may not attempt to conceal its existence. The term usually excludes covert groups, such as intelligence a ...

Conspiracy theories in the United States Trump administration controversies

Personalities

Timeline

Conclusion

See also

References