Tag: Russia

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Jared Kushner Discussed Setting Up White House/Kremlin Secret Channel Of Communication With Russian Officials


 The Washington Post is reporting Donald Trump’s closest adviser, son-in-law Jared Kushner, spoke to high level Russian officials regarding setting up a secret line of communication with the Kremlin.

Jared Kushner and Russia’s ambassador to Washington discussed the possibility of setting up a secret and secure communications channel between Trump’s transition team and the Kremlin, using Russian diplomatic facilities in an apparent move to shield their pre-inauguration discussions from monitoring, according to U.S. officials briefed on intelligence reports.

Ambassador Sergei Kislyak reported to his superiors in Moscow that Kushner, son-in-law and confidant to then-President-elect Trump, made the proposal during a meeting on Dec. 1 or 2 at Trump Tower, according to intercepts of Russian communications that were reviewed by U.S. officials. Kislyak said Kushner suggested using Russian diplomatic facilities in the United States for the communications.

The meeting also was attended by Michael Flynn, Trump’s first national security adviser.

The White House disclosed the fact of the meeting only in March, playing down its significance. But people familiar with the matter say the FBI now considers the encounter, as well as another meeting Kushner had with a Russian banker, to be of investigative interest.

Now, why would you want to hide your communications with Russia unless you were doing something you shouldn’t?

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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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NY Magazine: Trump Son-In-Law Jared Kushner Is “Person Of Interest” In Russian Probe

Earlier today, the Washington Post reported that a current associate of Donald Trump has been reported as a “person of interest” in the ongoing investigation into possible ties between Russia and Donald Trump’s campaign.

A New York Magazine reporter now says that person is Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law.

The Washington Post said a senior advisor to Mr Trump was among people investigators wanted to speak to. A New York magazine reporter then said the person in question was Mr Kushner, 36, who is married to Mr Trump’s eldest daughter and who flew out of Washington on Friday night to accompany the president on his first official foreign trip.

The Post said the person under investigation was close to the President, but did not identify them. However, the number of people who fit such a profile would be very small.

Yashar Ali, a contributor to New York magazine said on Twitter: “It’s Jared Kushner. Have confirmed this with four people. I’m not speculating.”

The White House did not immediately respond to calls and emails from The Independent seeking comment. The Trump Organisation, which controls the President’s financial interests, also did not respond to queries.

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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.

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Trump Denies Collusion On His Part, More Nuanced Regarding His Campaign

Standing next to Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos Calderón at a joint press conference today, President Donald Trump categorically denied there was any collusion between him and Russia during the 2016 election cycle.

Collusion between his campaign staff and Russia? He was a little more nuanced on that.

Additionally, when asked point-blank if he had ever requested former FBI Director Jim Comey to “close or back down” on the FBI investigation into former National Security Adviser Mike Flynn, Trump abruptly declared, “No. No. Next question.”

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Trump: Special Counsel Investigating Russian Interference In Election “Hurts The Country”

President Trump

Yesterday, Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein announced he had appointed former FBI Director Robert Mueller as special counsel, taking over the investigation into Russia’s alleged meddling in the 2016 election.

The White House issued this statement last night on the president’s behalf:

“As I have stated many times, a thorough investigation will confirm what we already know — there was no collusion between my campaign and any foreign entity. I look forward to this matter concluding quickly. In the meantime, I will never stop fighting for the people and the issues that matter most to the future of our country.”

Very adult sounding, no?

Well, in a lunch meeting with network news anchors and reporters today, President Trump struck a very different tone saying the special counsel investigation “hurts the country!”

Via CNBC:

“I believe it hurts our country terribly, because it shows we’re a divided, mixed-up, not-unified country,” Trump said. “And we have very important things to be doing right now, whether it’s trade deals, whether it’s military, whether it’s stopping nuclear — all of the things that we discussed today. And I think this shows a very divided country.”

“It also happens to be a pure excuse for the Democrats having lost an election that they should have easily won because of the Electoral College being slanted so much in their way. That’s all this is. I think it shows division, and it shows that we’re not together as a country. And I think it’s a very, very negative thing. And hopefully, this can go quickly, because we have to show unity if we’re going to do great things with respect to the rest of the world.”

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Trump Denounces “Single Greatest Witch Hunt Of A Politician In American History”

Even as more information emerges about Trump’s associates contacting Russian officials during the 2016 election, President Trump continues to rant on Twitter that he is the victim of “the single greatest witch hunt” ever.

This from the man who led a year’s-long campaign to prove that Barack Obama was born in Kenya.

This morning via Trump Twitter:

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Department Of Justice Names Special Counsel To Oversee Russian Investigation

Politico is reporting the Department of Justice has named a special prosecutor to handle the ongoing investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election.

Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein named former FBI Director Robert Mueller to oversee the probe.

“Based upon the unique circumstances, the public interest requires me to place this investigation under the authority of a person who exercises a degree of independence from the normal chain of command,” Rosenstein said in a statement. “A special counsel is necessary in order for the American people to have full confidence in the outcome. Our nation is grounded on the rule of law, and the Public must be assured that government officials administer the law fairly.”

UPDATE – President Trump issued this statement regarding the appointment of Robert Mueller as Special Counsel:

“As I have stated many times, a through investigation will confirm what we already know — that there was no collusion between my campaign and any foreign entity. I look forward to this matter concluding quickly. In the meantime, I will never stop fighting for the people and the issues that matter most to the future of our country.”

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Washington Post: President Trump Revealed Highly Classified Information To Russian Officials

From The Washington Post:

President Trump revealed highly classified information to the Russian foreign minister and ambassador in a White House meeting last week, according to current and former U.S. officials, who said Trump’s disclosures jeopardized a critical source of intelligence on the Islamic State.

The information the president relayed had been provided by a U.S. partner through an intelligence-sharing arrangement considered so sensitive that details have been withheld from allies and tightly restricted even within the U.S. government, officials said.

The partner had not given the United States permission to share the material with Russia, and officials said Trump’s decision to do so endangers cooperation from an ally that has access to the inner workings of the Islamic State. After Trump’s meeting, senior White House officials took steps to contain the damage, placing calls to the CIA and the National Security Agency.

“This is code-word information,” said a U.S. official familiar with the matter, using terminology that refers to one of the highest classification levels used by American spy agencies. Trump “revealed more information to the Russian ambassador than we have shared with our own allies.”

[snip]

In their statements, White House officials emphasized that Trump had not discussed specific intelligence sources and methods, rather than addressing whether he had disclosed information drawn from sensitive sources.

Just to underline that last point: The Washington Post reported Trump revealed intelligence from a secret source, not that Trump revealed the source itself.

Remember, this was the meeting that Trump allowed a Russian state news organization to be present and take photos, but no U.S. media outlet.

You may recall Trump turned the entire presidential election into a referendum on Hillary Clinton’s handling of “unmarked,” low-level classified info.

Now this.

Let’s take a trip on the way-back machine: