Tag: Trump campaign

Mueller reveals how Roger Stone’s indictment is linked to the Russian hacking case

When Special Counsel Robert Mueller issued the indictment against Roger Stone, a long-time ally of President Donald Trump, he filed it while noting that it was connected to another case: the indictment of Russians who hacked Democratic emails during the 2016 campaign.

Stone has been charged with lying to Congress, tampering with a witness, and obstructing justice.

Stone’s lawyers objected to the assertion that the cases were connected, a motion that could have triggered the case to be assigned to a different judge. But on Friday, Mueller responded to the lawyers’ objections and revealed why the cases are connected:

View the complete February 15 article by Cody Fenwick on the AlterNet website here.

Mueller says Paul Manafort should serve 19-24 years in prison

Prosecutors for special counsel Robert Mueller said in a new court filing that President Trump’s former campaign manager Paul Manafort should serve between 19.5 and 24.5 years in prison for the financial crimes for which he was convicted in a Virginia court last August.

“In the end, Manafort acted for more than a decade as if he were above the law, and deprived the federal government and various financial institutions of millions of dollars. The sentence here should reflect the seriousness of these crimes, and serve to both deter Manafort and others from engaging in such conduct.”

Why it matters: This would essentially be a life sentence for the 69-year-old Manafort. He is also facing a separate case in D.C., where a judge recently ruled that he had violated his plea agreement with Mueller and could therefore lose out on any potential leniency he might be offered.

View the complete February 15 article by Zachary Basu on the Axios website here.

Judge issues partial gag order in Roger Stone case

Credit: Seth Wenig, AP Photo

A federal judge on Friday issued a gag order in the Mueller investigation’s case against longtime Trump adviser Roger Stone, restricting the attorneys for both parties from making statements to the media or the public that could influence the outcome of the trial.

Why it matters: The gag order also restricts Stone from making comments within the vicinity of the courthouse. Stone, who filed a response opposing the gag order last week, is a notoriously brash and theatrical political operative who frequently posts on social media about his view that the Mueller investigation is a partisan “witch hunt.” The judge did not say she would impose additional restrictions on Stone at this time, but may reconsider in the future.

View the complete February 15 article by Zachary Basu, which includes the court filing, on the Axios website here.

Trump blasts former FBI official McCabe after explosive interview

President Trump on Thursday lashed out at Andrew McCabe after the former FBI deputy director revealed he opened a probe into whether Trump obstructed justice when the president fired James Comey as FBI chief in 2017 amid the Russia investigation.

In a string of morning tweets, Trump wrote that the “disgraced” McCabe “pretends to be a ‘poor little Angel’ when in fact he was a big part of the Crooked Hillary Scandal & the Russia Hoax” and “a puppet for Leakin’ James Comey.”

The president added that an internal watchdog report that was used to justify McCabe’s ouster was “devastating.”

View the complete February 14 article by Jordan Fabian on The Hill website here.

Drama hits Senate Intel panel’s Russia inquiry

Drama is building around the Senate Intelligence Committee’s Russia investigation after the panel’s top Republican and Democrat clashed over what their findings reveal two years after they opened their inquiry.

The Senate probe is viewed as the most bipartisan congressional investigation into Russian interference, with committee Chairman Richard Burr (R-N.C.) and Vice Chairman Mark Warner (D-Va.) walking in lockstep on most matters.

However, fractures have emerged recently after Burr publicly stated that none of their evidence indicates the Trump campaign conspired with Russia during the 2016 presidential campaign.

View the complete February 14 article by Olivia Beavers and Morgan Chalfant on The Hill website here.

Federal judge finds Paul Manafort lied to Mueller probe about contacts with Russian aide

Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort had a meeting with Russian political operative Konstantin Kilimnik, just blocks away from Trump Tower on Aug. 2, 2016. (Monica Akhtar/The Washington Post)

Former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort lied to prosecutors with special counsel Robert S. Mueller III about matters close to the heart of their investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election, a federal judge ruled Wednesday.

The judge’s finding that Manafort, 69, breached his cooperation deal with prosecutors by lying after his guilty plea could add years to his prison sentence and came after a set of sealed court hearings.

Manafort’s lies, the judge found, included “his interactions and communications with [Konstantin] Kilimnik,” a longtime aide whom the FBI assessed to have ties to Russian intelligence.

View the complete February 13 article by Spencer S. Hsu on The Washington Post website here.

Trump field tests 2020 campaign attack lines amid latest shutdown drama

President Trump joined by Homeland Security Secretary Nielsen, Rep. McCarthy and Rep. Scalise in the White House Rose Garden Credit; Alex Wong, Getty Images

‘We have to stop politicking every minute,’ Democratic Rep. Nita Lowey shoots back

President Donald Trump tested a new 2020 script Monday night during a raucous rally in El Paso, slamming some new Democratic faces and policy proposals to the delight of a rowdy crowd.

But that doesn’t mean familiar targets and chant-encouraging lines were missing from the campaigner in chief’s roughly 80 minutes on stage in the West Texas border city. The president appeared to be field-testing which 2016 campaign lines to keep in his arsenal and which new ones might keep the conservative base energized — and angry at Democrats.

In some ways, the rally could have been held in 2015 or 2016.

View the complete February 12 article by John T Bennett on The Roll Call website here.

Americans view Mueller as more credible than Trump, but views of his probe are scattered

As the special counsel investigation seems to be nearing its final stage, Americans view Robert S. Mueller III as far more credible than President Trump, but the public has scattered and partisan perceptions of Mueller’s motives and what he has found so far, according to a new Washington Post-Schar School poll.

Fifty-six percent to 33 percent, more say they trust Mueller’s version of the facts than Trump’s. And by nearly as wide a margin, more believe Mueller is mainly interested in “finding out the truth” than trying to “hurt Trump politically.”

Nearly two years into his investigation, Mueller has charged 34 people and secured guilty pleas from some of Trump’s closest advisers, including his former campaign chairman, deputy campaign chairman, national security adviser and personal lawyer. The special counsel has alleged 25 Russians, including 12 military officers, conspired to hack Democrats’ emails and wage a social media influence campaign to sway the outcome of the 2016 election, and described in astonishing detail how they did so.

View the complete February 12 article by Scott Clement and Matt Zapotosky on The Washington Post website here.

Trump Campaign Used Donor Cash To Pay Kushner’s Legal Bills

President Trump with Steve Bannon (R) and Jared Kushner (C) in 2017. Credit: Carlos Barria, Reuters

Trump’s re-election campaign has used thousands of dollars from donors to pay legal fees for Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, who is a multi-millionaire.

ABC News reports that nearly $100,000 donated to the campaign has gone to pay off Kushner’s liabilities. Two payments were made to the firm Winston & Strawn LLP for a total of $97,904. Kushner’s lawyer Abe Lowell has been part of the firm since May 2018.

Kushner’s net worth has been reported to be anywhere from just north of $320 million to as much as $800 million, and his combined net worth with his wife Ivanka Trump could be over $1 billion. A 2016 report from Forbes estimated that the Kushner family, headed by Jared’s father Charles Kushner, had a $1.8 billion dollar fortune.

View the complete February 9 article by Oliver Willis on the National Memo website here.

Dems ready to issue subpoena for phone records linked to Trump Tower meeting

Democrats on the House Intelligence Committee are preparing to issue a subpoena as soon as Thursday to obtain phone records linked to the June 2016 Trump Tower meeting between Trump campaign officials and a Russian lawyer, two sources familiar with the matter tell The Hill.

The subpoena will be the first order Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) will issue as committee chairman, and the process of preparing the order came one day after the committee became formally constituted.

Details about the specifics of the subpoena remain unclear, but the order goes to the heart of the committee’s plan to investigate ties between the Trump campaign and Russia.

View the complete February 7 article by Olivia Beaver on The Hill website here.