Podcast Summary

The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show – The Truth with Lisa Boothe: "The Greatest Political Scandal? Unpacking the Truth Behind the Trump-Russia Probe"

Host: Lisa Boothe
Guest: Jason Chaffetz (former House Oversight Chairman, Fox News Contributor)
Date: November 27, 2025
Podcast Network: iHeartPodcasts

Overview

This episode, hosted by Lisa Boothe, features a deep-dive conversation with Jason Chaffetz exploring recent revelations and declassified documents related to the origins and conduct of the Trump-Russia investigation—termed here as "the greatest political scandal." They examine the roles of key Obama administration officials, Hillary Clinton, and the intelligence community, focusing on what’s newly uncovered, who initiated the probe, alleged media complicity, and why accountability continues to elude Washington.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. What’s New in the Declassified Documents?

[05:33 – 09:08]

• Jason Chaffetz explains that while some revelations may seem repetitive, there’s verifiable new evidence in recent declassifications:

  • Alleged Direct Involvement by Hillary Clinton: Newly exposed witness emails indicate Hillary Clinton "personally signed off" on the plan to link Trump to Russia—a first-hand written account (but not a confession by Clinton herself).
  • Obama’s Active Participation: Barack Obama is now shown, via documents, to have directed intelligence officials to rewrite findings to alter the assessment about Russian interference shortly before Trump’s inauguration.
  • Direct Quote:

    “The startling evidence that is quote, unquote new is Hillary Clinton personally signing off on it… Now I'm paraphrasing, but that's essentially the allegation.”
    – Jason Chaffetz [06:09]

• The motivation, as alleged, was to delegitimize Trump’s victory and protect both Obama and Clinton from fallout over Hillary's email scandal.

2. Who Started the Trump-Russia Probe?

[09:08 – 13:02]

• The probe’s genesis, based on the evidence Chaffetz cites, was rooted in Clinton campaign funding, routed through law firm Perkins Coie (Mark Elias) as a “legal expense,” and used to commission the infamous Steele dossier.
• Former intelligence heads (Clapper, Brennan, Comey) are implicated as willing executors of the plan, ignoring red flags about the dossier’s credibility and using it to obtain FISA warrants on Trump campaign associates.
• The FISA process is scrutinized: Warrants required verification, which Chaffetz asserts was absent, and that “they knew, or they should have known that the underlying predicate, the Steele dossier, was bogus, and therefore they lied to the court.” [12:32]

3. The Irony of Alleged Russian Disinformation

[13:02 – 15:41]

• Lisa Boothe points out (with Grassley’s research) that Steele’s sources were linked to the Kremlin—thus, the Clinton campaign inadvertently pushed Russian disinformation in its effort to accuse Trump.

  “In an effort to push the narrative that Trump was cozy with the Russians, they were pushing Russian disinformation from sources that were tied to the Kremlin.”
  – Lisa Boothe [13:32]

• Chaffetz adds that US intelligence had intercepted Russian communications discussing Clinton's scheme to implicate Trump, and that even Russian intelligence foresaw Biden would drive the narrative publicly.

  “They [the Russians] foreshadowed exactly that Joe Biden would do this. And then… he goes out there and he's one of the first ones making these allegations, just like the Russians said that Clintons would do.”
  – Jason Chaffetz [14:52]

4. Media and Intelligence Community Complicity

[15:41 – 18:21]

• Media’s role is dissected through the lens of the Steele dossier's release:
  • Intelligence officials (notably James Comey) briefed Trump on unverified material, leaking the existence of the briefing to the press, thus giving media outlets cover to publish the smear.

  “James Comey… set Trump up, juiced him up with the salacious details they knew to be false, and then… gave the green light to the media to then run with all this.”
  – Lisa Boothe [16:44]

• Pattern of leaks, lack of media accountability, and conflicting testimony by figures such as Brennan are discussed.

5. Obama’s Knowledge and Involvement

[21:53 – 23:15]

• Lisa directly presses Chaffetz on whether Obama “knew exactly what was happening and basically spearheaded this whole thing?”
• Chaffetz answers unequivocally:

  “The evidence is now showing that he did know and that he was not just informed, but an active player in making some key decisions. That’s pretty… I just feel lied to by him.”
  – Jason Chaffetz [22:01]

• He cites a pattern of Obama-era scandals (IRS, Fast and Furious, press surveillance), disputing the “scandal-free administration” narrative.

6. Human Cost and Near-Impact on Elections

[23:15 – 23:59]

• Lisa and Jason recount the personal and political impact—how careers and finances were destroyed for Trump associates (e.g., Michael Caputo), and how close the scheme came to swinging the 2016 election.

7. Complexity, Accountability, and Media’s Role

[24:07 – 25:30]

• Lisa voices concern that the case's complexity could deter public interest or understanding.
• Chaffetz argues the major failure is the national media’s lack of curiosity or retraction, and notes the Pulitzer prizes awarded for Russiagate coverage have never been rescinded—despite being based on debunked narratives.

8. Predictions and Path Ahead—Possible Consequences?

[25:30 – 31:46]

• Chaffetz is skeptical about accountability (“the answer is no”), citing repeated failure to prosecute or even fire officials for clear abuses.
• He outlines three possible avenues for consequences:
  • FISA abuse prosecutions (Comey and others for allegedly fraudulent applications)
  • Congressional hearings (with Comey, Brennan, Clapper summoned for new testimony, which may reset the statute of limitations)
  • Potential Fifth Amendment pleas (predicts officials will refuse to answer for fear of self-incrimination)
• He expresses frustration with systemic lack of enforcement or even follow-up after referrals for prosecution—even for unrelated, egregious cases.

  “It's sad, it's wrong… I can go… for 20 hours and list case after case after case. And it's frustrating… I want them to be held accountable. But… it's terribly frustrating.”
  – Jason Chaffetz [30:33]

9. Hillary Clinton, Email Scandal, and Unanswered Questions

[38:19 – 41:36]

• Chaffetz shares a personal reflection on his direct involvement investigating Benghazi and Hillary’s emails, highlighting a key moment:
  • Clinton denied under oath sending or receiving classified info; FBI Director Comey later affirmed such material was found.
  • Chaffetz issued a criminal referral for lying to Congress but “I don't think they did anything with that. I would love to know what happened to that.”
• He sees the “string that’s still never been dealt with” as emblematic of chronic accountability failure in Washington.

10. Closing Thoughts: The Persistence of Truth

[32:28 – End]

• Chaffetz ends with some optimism, claiming, “the American people figure this out… the national media, that’s for sure.” He believes public perception, if not legal justice, will ultimately check the "nefarious" actors.

Memorable Quotes

• On the new evidence:

  "...the first hardcore firsthand account in writing that said HRC has approved this."
  – Jason Chaffetz [06:13]

• On Obama’s involvement:

  “The evidence is now showing that he did know and that he was not just informed, but an active player in making some key decisions...”
  – Jason Chaffetz [22:01]

• On media complicity:

  “How many people pulled off awards and Pulitzer Prizes doing all this work… did anybody apologize, do a retraction, provide… None. And that's what's sickening.”
  – Jason Chaffetz [24:29]

• On FISA abuse and possible prosecutions:

  “My guess where there's the most vulnerability...is this FISA warrant… There has to be a consequence for lying to the court.”
  – Jason Chaffetz [26:46]

• On the cycle of unaccountability:

  “It's frustrating… I want them to be held accountable. But… it's terribly frustrating.”
  – Jason Chaffetz [30:33]

Notable Segment Timestamps

• 03:20 – 04:43: Episode setup – Introduction to topic and guest.
• 05:33 – 09:08: What’s new in the declassified Russia probe documents.
• 09:08 – 13:02: Probe origins—Clinton, Obama, and the intelligence community.
• 13:02 – 15:41: Russian disinformation and the irony of the Trump-Russia narrative.
• 15:41 – 18:21: Media’s role in publicizing the dossier.
• 21:53 – 23:15: Obama’s knowledge and complicity.
• 23:15 – 23:59: Personal/political costs and the 2016 election.
• 25:30 – 28:55: Accountability, congressional action, and possible Fifth Amendment pleas.
• 30:14 – 31:46: The continuing lack of consequences for D.C. officials.
• 38:19 – 41:36: Chaffetz’s personal reflections on the Clinton investigation.
• 32:28 – 34:43 & 41:36 – end: Optimism about truth prevailing and closing thoughts.

Tone and Language

• Tone: Conversational, passionate, occasionally exasperated but optimistic; colored by deep skepticism toward political and media establishments.
• Language: Direct, informal, candid; Chaffetz draws on personal experience, Boothe presses for clarity and makes pointed observations.

Takeaway

This episode provides a comprehensive, insider-oriented breakdown of the evolving Trump-Russia probe narrative, with a strong emphasis on newly declassified information, the alleged orchestration at the highest levels of the Obama administration, the crucial role of media, and the systemic obstacles to accountability. For skeptics of the original Russia collusion story, it paints a vivid picture of a scandal whose political, legal, and journalistic reverberations continue to unfold.