Who says sending anti-Trump texts to your girlfriend doesn't pay?
Sure, such texts cost Peter Strzok his 22-year career with the FBI, but they also seem to garner the disgraced former agent a lot of support – enough to raise more than $130,000 for his legal expenses in just 10 hours on a GoFundMe page.
The page, launched Monday by "Friends Of Special Agent Peter Strzok," seeks $150,000 to be "put into a trust dedicated to covering Pete’s hefty – and growing – legal costs and his lost income."
"Peter Strzok, a man who has spent his entire life working to help keep us and our nation safe, has been fired," reads a message on the GoFundMe page. "He needs your help."
The post goes on to say that Strzok has "been the target of highly politicized attacks, including frequent slanderous statements from President Trump, who actively – and apparently successfully – pressured FBI officials to fire Pete."
It also says his firing did not follow the FBI’s "normal and independent process" because it overruled "the decision of the career professionals in the FBI’s disciplinary division."
In less than half a day, the page drew in donations from more than 3,000 donors. The largest were three donations of $1,000.
Strzok's lawyer confirmed Monday that his client had been fired, joining former Director James Comey and former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe as high-profile FBI officials driven out since President Donald Trump took office.
Strzok had become the poster child for the perceived anti-Trump "deep state" among his supporters after it was revealed he sent text messages to his girlfriend (and co-worker) vowing to stop Trump from winning the 2016 election.
Those texts cost him his spot on special counsel Robert Mueller's team and fed claims that the entire Russia probe is a partisan "witch hunt."
But Strzok, who also was part of the investigation into Hillary Clinton's use of a private email server, insisted during a heated hearing with lawmakers last month that his personal opinions of Trump hadn't affected his work.
Strzok's GoFundMe success is not unprecedented. Earlier this year a similar fundraising campaign for McCabe raised more than $500,000.
