Tag: Donald Trump

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Washington Post: Jared Kushner Is Now A Focus In Russian Investigation

The Washington Post is reporting that President Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, has become a focus in the current investigation into possible ties between the Trump campaign and Russia.

Kushner, who held meetings in December with the Russian ambassador and a banker from Moscow, is being investigated because of the extent and nature of his interactions with the Russians, the people said.

The Washington Post reported last week that a senior White House official close to the president was a significant focus of the high-stakes investigation, though it did not name Kushner.

FBI agents also remain keenly interested in former Trump national security adviser Michael Flynn and former campaign chairman Paul Manafort, but Kushner is the only current White House official known to be considered a key person in the probe.

The Post has not been told that Kushner is a target — or the central focus — of the investigation, and he has not been accused of any wrongdoing. Target is a word that generally refers to someone who is the main suspect of investigators’ attention, though prosecutors can and do bring charges against people who are not marked with that distinction.

According to reports, Kushner did not include December meetings with Russian officials on his security clearance forms.

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Donald Trump Attends NATO Summit

Speaking to fellow heads of state in front of NATO’s new headquarters, President Trump called out those countries who he feels do not contribute their fair share.

From CNN:

“Twenty-three of the 28 member nations are still not paying what they should be paying and what they are supposed to be paying for their defense,” Trump said, delivering these remarks as heads of state of the other NATO countries looked on. “This is not fair to the people and taxpayers of the United States,” Trump said.

“2% is the bare minimum for confronting today’s very real and very vicious threats,” Trump said. “If NATO countries made their full and complete contributions, then NATO would be even stronger than it is today, especially from the threat of terrorism.”

You can see the reaction of some of those countries’ leaders below. They look quite enchanted, no?

And then there was this winning moment when Trump pushed Montenegro Prime Minister Dusko Markovic aside so that he could stand in front of the group.

I guess this is what Trump means by “America first.”

Watch below.

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Fox News Poll: Trump’s Approval Rating Drops To 40%

Now, when you’re a Republican president and your approval numbers drop like this in a Fox News poll, you’re in some kind of trouble.

According to the latest Fox News poll:

• President Trump’s approval numbers are down to 40% from 45% last month in the same poll.

• Disapproval rating rose 5 points to 53%.

• Trump shows erosion of support among whites without a college degree, falling 9 points from last month to 53% this month.

• Independent voters’ approval fell 8 points from last month to 34% this month.

• Back in December only 32% of respondents believed Russia’s influence aided Trump in the presidential election. Now, that number has grown to 44%.

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Trump Visits The Western Wall

During his time in Jerusalem, President Trump visited The Western Wall, also referring to by some as the “Wailing Wall.”

We all know Trump likes walls, so how could he possibly pass up this opportunity?

This makes Trump the first sitting president to visit the wall. Barack Obama visited the Western Wall in 2008, when he was a presidential candidate.

Both left “notes of prayer” in cracks in the wall.

You can see the contents of both notes below.

President Obama’s note

President Trump’s note (click the image to enlarge)
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Trump Asked Intelligence Chiefs To Deny Any Evidence Of Russian Collusion During 2016

President Trump

Apparently, when then-FBI Director James Comey failed to comply with President Trump’s request to “drop” the investigation into former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn’s communication with Russia, Trump turned to the Director of National Intelligence and the National Security Agency Director for similar favors.

In separate appeals, Trump asked them to publicly deny the existence of any evidence of collusion during the 2016 election.

They declined.

From CNN:

The President’s treatment of Comey has raised questions about whether he abused his powers by seeking to discredit the FBI investigation or risked giving the impression that he was obstructing justice, a debate now given new life by the latest revelations.

Trump spoke to Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats and National Security Agency Director Adm. Michael Rogers after Comey revealed in March that the bureau had launched a probe into alleged collusion. Both Coats and Rogers were uncomfortable with the nature of the President’s request and refused to comply, the sources with knowledge of the situation told CNN.

Coats declined to comment during a Senate armed services committee hearing Tuesday, that had been previously scheduled.

The White House declined to comment on the details of Trump’s contacts with Rogers and Coats.

The revelations deepen the intrigue over alleged links between Trump’s campaign and Russia, and follow the President’s firing of Comey and subsequent statement he sacked him because of the Russia probe.

After the first story regarding Trump and Comey, you could almost buy into a “well, he’s new with governmental politics.” “He’s a little naive about how these things work.”

But bouncing from Comey to Coats to Rogers, clearly Trump knew he was asking something far outside normal protocol.

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Viral Video: Melania Slaps Donald Trump’s Hand Away At Israel Arrival

Silent moments between Donald and Melania Trump have made social media tongues wag over the past few months, from Melania’s Inauguration Day frown to her National Anthem nudge.

Add to the list what appears to be Melania slapping the Donald’s hand away seeming to refuse to hold his hand as they arrived in Tel Aviv today.

Silly little social media things here and there, but after a while you have to wonder what is going on behind the scenes of the Trump marriage.

Watch below.

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Trump: I Never Mentioned Israel When I Shared Intel With Russia

President Trump took a moment today during a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to tell the press that he never mentioned the name “Israel” during an Oval Office meeting with Russian officials earlier this month.

“I never mentioned the word or the name Israel. Never mentioned during that conversation,” Trump said in Jerusalem. “They’re all saying I did, so you have another story wrong. Never mentioned the word Israel.”

However, as Kyle Griffin of MSNBC correctly states, divulging the source of the shared intel during the Oval Office meeting with Russian officials was never the issue.

By volunteering this information, Trump has now publicly disclosed more classified information for the purpose of attacking the press for something no one said.

Watch Netanyahu wince as Trump makes his statement in the video below.

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Washington Post: Russian Investigation Now Eyeing Current White House Official

The news gets worser and worser for President Trump.

The Washington Post is reporting that the current investigation looking into Russian interference during the 2016 presidential election now has a “person of interest” who is a current White House official.

The senior White House adviser under scrutiny by investigators is someone close to the president, according to these people, who would not further identify the official.

The revelation comes as the investigation also appears to be entering a more overtly active phase, with investigators shifting from work that has remained largely hidden from the public to conducting interviews and using a grand jury to issue subpoenas. The intensity of the probe is expected to accelerate in the coming weeks, the people said.

The sources emphasized that investigators remain keenly interested in people who previously wielded influence in the Trump campaign and administration but are no longer part of it, including former national security adviser Michael Flynn and former campaign chairman Paul Manafort.

Flynn resigned in February after disclosures that he had lied to administration officials about his contacts with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak. Current administration officials who have acknowledged contacts with Russian officials include President Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, as well as Attorney General Jeff Sessions and Secretary of State Rex Tillerson.

People familiar with the investigation said the intensifying effort does not mean criminal charges are near, or that any such charges will result.

White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer issued this statement: “As the president has stated before, a thorough investigation will confirm that there was no collusion between the campaign and any foreign entity.”

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Trump Told Russian Officials Firing “Nut Job” James Comey Relieved “Great Pressure” On Him


 The New York Times is reporting that President Trump told Russian officials during an Oval Office meeting that he had fired FBI Director James Comey (whom he described as “crazy, a real nut job”) and in doing so had removed “great pressure” on him.

In attendance at the meeting were Russia’s foreign minister, Sergey V. Lavrov, as well as Russian ambassador to the United States, Sergey I. Kislyak.

“I just fired the head of the F.B.I. He was crazy, a real nut job,” Mr. Trump said, according to the document, which was read to The New York Times by an American official. “I faced great pressure because of Russia. That’s taken off.”

Mr. Trump added, “I’m not under investigation.”

The conversation, during a May 10 meeting — the day after he fired Mr. Comey — reinforces the notion that Mr. Trump dismissed him primarily because of the bureau’s investigation into possible collusion between his campaign and Russian operatives. Mr. Trump said as much in one televised interview, but the White House has offered changing justifications for the firing.

The White House document that contained Mr. Trump’s comments was based on notes taken from inside the Oval Office and has been circulated as the official account of the meeting. One official read quotations to The Times, and a second official confirmed the broad outlines of the discussion.

Sean Spicer, the White House press secretary, did not dispute the account.

This is really wild, wild stuff, folks.