Tag: Russia investigation

Trump is So Angry About Mueller, He Mostly Just Eats and Watches TV: Report

The following article by Harriet Sinclair was posted on the Newsweek website April 11, 2018:

Credit: Evan Vucci/AP

Updated | President Donald Trump was so angry about the FBI’s raid on his personal lawyer Michael Cohen, that he spent much of the weekend brooding, eating or just watching TV.

The president has openly expressed his frustration with the Monday raid on Cohen. “Attorney–client privilege is dead! ” he tweeted on Tuesday, following up with another message that simply read: “A TOTAL WITCH HUNT!!! ” in a repeat of the language the president has previously used to describe the ongoing probe into possible connections between Russia’s interference in the 2016 campaign and the Trump team. Continue reading “Trump is So Angry About Mueller, He Mostly Just Eats and Watches TV: Report”

Trump’s flimsy case for firing Rod Rosenstein

The following article by Amber Phillips was posted on the Washington Post website April 11, 2018:

In the short time since President Trump found out the FBI raided his private lawyer’s home and office, he sure seems to have been seriously considering firing someone involved.

One person directly in Trump’s line of fire is Rod J. Rosenstein, the deputy attorney general at the Justice Department. Rosenstein is arguably more endangered than special counsel Robert S. Mueller III or Attorney General Jeff Sessions, for a few reasons: Continue reading “Trump’s flimsy case for firing Rod Rosenstein”

Trump Sought to Fire Mueller in December

The following article by Maggie Haberman and Michael S. Schmidt was posted on the New York Times website April 10, 2018:

Robert Mueller

In early December, President Trump, furious over news reports about a new round of subpoenas from the office of the special counsel, Robert S. Mueller III, told advisers in no uncertain terms that Mr. Mueller’s investigation had to be shut down.

The president’s anger was fueled by reports that the subpoenas were for obtaining information about his business dealings with Deutsche Bank, according to interviews with eight White House officials, people close to the president and others familiar with the episode. To Mr. Trump, the subpoenas suggested that Mr. Mueller had expanded the investigation in a way that crossed the “red line” he had set last year in an interview with The New York Times.

Continue reading “Trump Sought to Fire Mueller in December”

Five things to know about Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska

The following article by Max Greenwood was posted on the Hill website April 7, 2018:

© Getty Images

The Trump administration’s decision to hit dozens of Russian oligarchs, companies and government officials with sanctions on Friday took direct aim at those close to President Vladimir Putin.

Among those hit by the penalties was Oleg Deripaska, a billionaire aluminum magnate who once had ties to former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort. Continue reading “Five things to know about Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska”

Mueller asking Russian oligarchs about any donations to Trump campaign: report

The following article by Brett Samuels was posted on the Hill website April 4, 2018:

Credit: Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images

Special counsel Robert Mueller’s team has reportedly questioned whether Russian oligarchs illegally sent cash donations to President Trump’s campaign or inauguration.

CNN reported Wednesday that Mueller’s team stopped two oligarchs during recent trips to the U.S. and made a voluntary document and interview request to a third Russian oligarch.

In one case, Mueller’s team stopped an individual after his jet landed at a New York airport to search his electronic devices. It is not clear if the second oligarch was searched, CNN reported. Continue reading “Mueller asking Russian oligarchs about any donations to Trump campaign: report”

Mueller told Trump’s attorneys the president remains under investigation but is not currently a criminal target

The following article by Carol D. Leonnig and Robert Costa was posted on the Washington Post website April 3, 2018:

Special counsel Robert Mueller told the president’s lawyers that Trump’s a subject in his probe, not a target. The Post’s Carol Leonnig explains the difference. (Jenny Starrs/The Washington Post)

Special counsel Robert S. Mueller III informed President Trump’s attorneys last month that he is continuing to investigate the president but does not consider him a criminal target at this point, according to three people familiar with the discussions.

In private negotiations in early March about a possible presidential interview, Mueller described Trump as a subject of his investigation into Russia’s interference in the 2016 election. Prosecutors view someone as a subject when that person has engaged in conduct that is under investigation but there is not sufficient evidence to bring charges. Continue reading “Mueller told Trump’s attorneys the president remains under investigation but is not currently a criminal target”

From Mueller to Stormy to ‘emoluments,’ Trump’s business is under siege

The following article by Jonathan O’Connell and David A. Fahrenthold was posted on the Washington Post website March 30, 2018:

Trump Tower in New York is the headquarters of the president’s business. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

The carefully maintained secrecy around President Trump’s finances is under unprecedented assault a year into his presidency, with three different legal teams with different agendas trying to pry open the Trump Organization’s books.

On one side is special counsel Robert S. Mueller III, who has subpoenaed Trump Organization documents as part of his wide-ranging investigation into the 2016 campaign. On another is Stormy Daniels, the adult-film actress seeking internal correspondence as part of her effort to be freed from a nondisclosure agreement centering on an alleged affair with Trump. Continue reading “From Mueller to Stormy to ‘emoluments,’ Trump’s business is under siege”

Three of Mueller’s witnesses say Jeff Sessions lied to Congress

The following article by Tommy Christopher was posted on the ShareBlue Media website March 18, 2018:

Attorney General Jeff Sessions has a lot to answer for, and almost no one on his side.

Trump spent his weekend assailing special counsel Robert Mueller. But the investigation just ramped up again as three witnesses claim Attorney General Jeff Sessions lied to Congress.

In November, Sessions testified that he “pushed back” against former Trump campaign adviser George Papadopoulos’ proposal for the campaign to work with the Russians. But in the same breath, he also denied even remembering that the meeting with Papadopoulos took place.

And in a new report from Reuters, three witnesses who have spoken to either Mueller’s team or congressional investigators challenged Sessions’ claims. Continue reading “Three of Mueller’s witnesses say Jeff Sessions lied to Congress”

What Michael Flynn Could Tell the Russia Investigators

The following article by David Kocieniewski and Lauren Etter was posted on the Bloomberg website March 19, 2018:

The former national security adviser mingled business with government. That could help Robert Mueller look for similar overlaps among Trump insiders.

Then-national security adviser Michael Flynn at the White House in February. Credit:
Carolyn Kaster, AP

It started with helping a friend pitch the Pentagon on a smartphone chip and moved on to more ambitious plans to sell nuclear reactor security in the Middle East and then to high-priced lobbying for the Turkish government.

Michael Flynn, who joined Donald Trump’s presidential campaign as a top military adviser, never believed the candidate would win and often treated the election like a business opportunity, associates say. Now, as Special Counsel Robert Mueller bears down on Trump, Flynn is a key cooperating witness.

A three-month Bloomberg investigation has found that Flynn, who was fired for having lied to the FBI and the vice president about his contacts with Russians, had a slew of other problematic entanglements. Previously unreported documents, including Pentagon contracts, emails and internal company papers, point to overlapping business conflicts around the world. Continue reading “What Michael Flynn Could Tell the Russia Investigators”

Fact-checking Trump’s error-filled tweetstorm about the Mueller probe

The following article by Glenn Kessler was posted on the Washington Post website March 18, 2018:

President Trump continues to insist the Democrats are responsible for any story relating to Russian interference in the 2016 election. (Video: Meg Kelly/Photo: Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post)

In a series of tweets March 17 and 18, President Trump made a number of inaccurate or misleading statements about the investigations of Russian interference in the 2016 presidential campaign. As a reader service, here’s a quick guide to his claims. Continue reading “Fact-checking Trump’s error-filled tweetstorm about the Mueller probe”