Tag Archives: collusion

Dem Senator Wants Open Hearing With Junior About His “False Testimony” On Meetings With Foreigners

NBC News reports: Sen. Chris Coons, D-Del., says the president’s son, Donald Trump Jr., may have provided “false testimony” to the Senate Judiciary Committee when he was asked about the Trump campaign’s involvement with foreign governments and foreign nationals. In a two-page letter Thursday to Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, the chairman of the panel, Coons said that information in recent …

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James Clapper Rips Into Trump’s Orwellian “Spygate” Lies: “Up Is Down, Black Is White, Peace Is War”

“He deliberately spun it, distorted it. I mean this is George Orwell — up is down, black is white, peace is war. That’s exactly what I didn’t say. I took aversion to the word spy, it was the most benign version of information gathering. The important thing is the whole reason the FBI was doing this was concern over what …

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Mueller Responds To Media Lawsuits: Probe Is Factually And Legally Interconnected, It Must Remain Private

Talking Points Memo reports: Special Counsel Robert Mueller stressed that his investigation into Russian election meddling was ongoing and consisted of “multiple lines of non-public inquiry,” in a court filing Wednesday evening in a lawsuit brought by media companies seeking the release of certain records related to the probe. “Many aspects of the investigation are factually and legally interconnected: they …

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Giuliani Reverses On Mueller Interview: Trump Should Do It, It Gets It Over With, It Makes My Client Happy

The Washington Post reports: President Trump’s lawyer Rudolph W. Giuliani switched gears Wednesday, saying that he would prefer the president grant an interview to special counsel Robert S. Mueller III’s office and that a decision would be made within “the next couple weeks.” “I guess I’d rather do the interview. It gets it over with it, it makes my client …

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Trump Seeks To Narrow Scope Of Mueller Interview

CNN reports: Donald Trump’s legal team is trying to narrow the scope of the President’s potential interview with special counsel Robert Mueller to questions on Russia-related matters that occurred before Trump’s election, multiple sources familiar with the matter told CNN. Trump’s lawyers, who are urging Mueller to wrap up his investigation, are looking for a way to get him to …

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White House Announces Meeting With DOJ And FBI To Review “Highly Classified Information” On Russia Probe

PBS NewsHour reports: The White House says President Donald Trump’s Chief of Staff John Kelly plans to “immediately set up a meeting” with congressional leaders and the FBI, Justice Department and Director of National Intelligence to review “highly classified and other information they have requested” related to the Russia investigation. Rep. Devin Nunes, an ardent Trump supporter and head of …

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Putin Hails Trump As “Good And Strong Entrepreneur”

Bloomberg reports: Even when Donald Trump is threatening sanctions against a vital Russian energy project, President Vladimir Putin still has nothing but praise for his American counterpart. “Donald isn’t just president of the United States, he’s also a good and strong entrepreneur,” Putin said at talks with German Chancellor Angela Merkel in Russia’s Sochi on Friday. “He’s also promoting the …

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Trump Contradicts Giuliani On FBI Informant

Trump is contradicting his own lawyer again: Rudy Giuliani, who is representing President Donald Trump in the Russia investigation, said Friday he doesn’t know for sure if the FBI had an informant in the Trump campaign. “Here’s the issue that I really feel strongly about with this informant, if there is one. First of all, I don’t know for sure, …

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Giuliani Claims Mueller Has Limited Scope Of Trump Interview To Two Topics, Won’t Ask About Cohen

CNN reports: Rudy Giuliani said Friday that special counsel Robert Mueller has agreed to narrow the scope of a potential interview with President Donald Trump from five topics to two. The former New York City mayor told CNN’s Chris Cuomo on “New Day” that Mueller is not considering asking the President about his former personal attorney Michael Cohen, who’s under …

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Senate Transcripts: Kushner Was “Infuriated” When Trump Tower Meeting Delivered No Dirt On Hillary

The Daily Beast reports: Jared Kushner became “agitated” and “infuriate[d]” at the infamous June 2016 Trump Tower meeting when a Kremlin-connected lawyer droned on about U.S. sanctions, instead of delivering on a promise to provide damaging information on Hillary Clinton. That’s according to Rob Goldstone, a British music promoter and friend of the Trumps who helped set up the meeting …

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Giuliani: Mueller Team Told Us They Can’t Indict Trump

CNN reports: Special counsel Robert Mueller’s team has informed President Donald Trump’s attorneys that they have concluded that they cannot indict a sitting president, according to the President’s lawyer. “All they get to do is write a report,” Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani told CNN. “They can’t indict. At least they acknowledged that to us after some battling, they acknowledged that …

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Senate Judiciary Committee Releases Transcripts Of Interviews With Participants Of Trump Tower Meeting

The Hill reports: The Senate Judiciary Committee on Wednesday morning released the transcripts from a slate of interviews with participants of the now-infamous Trump Tower meeting in June of 2016. Among the transcripts is the panel’s interview of President Trump’s eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., who accepted the meeting with a woman described as a Russian government lawyer offering political …

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Trump Rages That He Needs “Better TV Lawyers”

The Washington Post reports: The president vents to associates about the FBI raids on his personal attorney Michael Cohen — as often as “20 times a day,” in the estimation of one confidant — and they frequently listen in silence, knowing little they say will soothe him. Trump gripes that he needs better “TV lawyers” to defend him on cable …

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Pence To Mueller: It’s Time To Wrap It Up [VIDEO]

CNBC reports: Vice President Mike Pence says it’s time for special counsel Robert Mueller to conclude his probe of Russian interference in the 2016 election. He says: “In the interests of the country, I think it’s time to wrap it up.” Pence spoke to NBC News following the release of three Americans held by North Korea. Pence adds: “I would …

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Mueller Has Grilled Blackwater Founder Erik Prince

The Daily Beast reports: Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s team has spoken with Blackwater founder Erik Prince, two sources familiar with the matter tell The Daily Beast. It was not immediately clear what questions Mueller’s team had or what information Prince shared with the special counsel. Prince attended a now-controversial meeting with the head of Russia’s sovereign wealth fund in the …

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Russian Trolls Plead Not Guilty Of Pro-Trump Trolling

Politico reports: A Russian company tied to a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin entered a not-guilty plea Wednesday in a U.S. criminal case charging that it funded internet trolls and polarizing social media advertisements in a bid to boost Donald Trump’s chances of winning the 2016 presidential election. Prosecutors from special counsel Robert Mueller’s office allege that the …

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Avenatti Calls On Cohen To Release Bank Statements

Via Mediaite: When Avenatti joined ABC’s George Stephanopoulos to talk about the payments [from Russian oligarch Viktor Vekelsberg], he reiterated that “something doesn’t smell right,” and Cohen’s dealings suggest that he might be selling access to Trump. Avenatti said there’s “no question” about the accuracy of his report, but there is something the president or his attorney can do if …

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NYT Confirms Russian Payments To Michael Cohen

The New York Times reports: A shell company that Michael D. Cohen used to pay hush money to a pornographic film actress received payments totaling more than $1 million from an American company linked to a Russian oligarch and several corporations with business before the Trump administration, according to documents and interviews. Financial records reviewed by The New York Times …

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Mueller Team Grills Russian Oligarch About “Hundreds Of Thousands” In Payments Made To Michael Cohen

CNN reports: Special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigators have questioned a Russian oligarch about hundreds of thousands of dollars in payments his company’s US affiliate made to President Donald Trump’s personal attorney, Michael Cohen, after the election, according to a source familiar with the matter. Viktor Vekselberg, chairman of asset manager Renova Group, is an oligarch close to Vladimir Putin, and …

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Avenatti Accuses Cohen Of Taking $500K From Russian Oligarch: “Monies May Have Reimbursed” For Payoff

The Washington Times reports: The attorney for Stormy Daniels publicly accused President Trump’s personal lawyer Tuesday of taking money from a Russian oligarch, possibly as reimbursement for the hush money he had paid. Michael Avenatti made the accusation on Twitter against Michael Cohen, who has acknowledged paying $130,000 to the adult-film star whose real name is Stephanie Clifford. Mr. Avenatti …

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