Thread: Mueller's Russian Interference investigation

Originally Posted by tomcat

Originally Posted by Slick

Im skeptical

maybe Breitbart will refute the story...just for the sake of balance, I mean...not because they have sources...probably good people in both those organizations...

I am reminded of the old anecdote about the football supporter who comes upon a dog attacking a child. He kicks it in the head and kills it.

Later, a reporter says to him "This will make a great headline. Liverpool Fan saves child from killer dog!".

He says "I'm not a Liverpool fan though, I support Everton".

"Ah", says the reporter. "Everton Thug murders family pet".

Originally Posted by tomcat

probably good people in both those organizations

I was hoping sharp-eyed posters would recognize a tRump paraphrase...

Originally Posted by harrybarracuda

Originally Posted by tomcat

Originally Posted by Slick

Im skeptical

maybe Breitbart will refute the story...just for the sake of balance, I mean...not because they have sources...probably good people in both those organizations...

I am reminded of the old anecdote about the football supporter who comes upon a dog attacking a child. He kicks it in the head and kills it.

Later, a reporter says to him "This will make a great headline. Liverpool Fan saves child from killer dog!".

He says "I'm not a Liverpool fan though, I support Everton".

"Ah", says the reporter. "Everton Thug murders family pet".

Fucked up part is that your old anecdote is mostly true nowadays.

great article on the sense of fear enveloping the white house.

White House aides with legal exposure to these events have quickly reached four conclusions, according to conservations with Jonathan Swan and me:

Mueller is burrowing in hard on the obstruction of justice angle.

The "angry, meandering" draft White House justification for firing Comey — which was never released, but obtained by Mueller — could be used as evidence of Trump's unvarnished thinking when venting to staff.

Legal fees, with white-collar attorneys charging $1,000 an hour, get cripplingly expensive pretty quick. Watch for outside legal defense funds to pop up quickly.

The investigation's financial dimensions are worrisome. The focus on Michael Cohen, a Trump lawyer and confidant whose business dealings are intertwined with the president's, has been particularly troubling for those in Trump's close orbit. Cohen dealt with some colorful characters. And when plans for the Trump Tower in Moscow are fully picked apart, other questionable Russian characters may be drawn in.

Republicans close to the White House say every sign by Mueller — from his hiring of Mafia and money-laundering experts to his aggressive pursuit of witnesses and evidence — is that he's going for the kill.

https://www.axios.com/mueller-haunts...484317509.html



they're so fcuked.

Flynn refusing to appear before Senate Intel Committee: report

Former national security adviser Michael Flynn is refusing to comply with a request to appear before the Senate Intelligence Committee, CNN reported Tuesday.

Flynn first refused to comply with a subpoena to testify before the committee back in May.

Flynn left the White House in February after reports emerged that he had failed to reveal conversations with Russian officials about removing sanctions against the country in the month before President Trump’s inauguration.

Robert Kelner, Flynn's lawyer, declined to comment to CNN for the story.

The former general has offered to testify before the House and Senate intelligence committees in exchange for immunity, but lawmakers have rejected the deal.

Both committees are conducting their own investigations into Russian interference in the election, including Trump and his campaign officials’ ties to Russia.

Flynn refusing to appear before Senate Intel Committee: report | TheHill

...lock him up...

^ A heap of them are heading for jail if they are caught lying.

Russia probes pose loyalty test for Team Trump

Current and former White House aides caught up in the probe are being advised by their attorneys to tell the truth – even if that might hurt the president.

Lawyers representing Donald Trump’s current and former aides are giving their clients one simple piece of advice: Don’t lie to protect the president.

As special counsel Robert Mueller and congressional investigators prepare to question high-ranking aides — including Hope Hicks, Reince Priebus and Sean Spicer — in the coming weeks, Trump’s long history of demanding his employees’ complete loyalty is being put to the test.


But Trump stalwarts know the president is closely following the media coverage of the Russia case — and the last thing they want is to be deemed a turncoat whose answers end up becoming further fuel for investigators.

Several of the lawyers representing current and former aides told POLITICO they’re actively warning their clients that any bonds connecting them to Trump won’t protect them from criminal charges if federal prosecutors can nail them for perjury, making false statements or obstruction of justice.

“What I always tell clients is you can’t protect anybody. You can only hurt yourself,” said a lawyer representing a client involved in the Russia probe. The attorney added that any overt attempts to protect Trump will raise wider suspicions of a cover-up, making matters “worse for everybody.”

more Russia probes pose loyalty test for Team Trump - POLITICO

...lock them up...

Originally Posted by misskit

Flynn refusing to appear before Senate Intel Committee: report

Former national security adviser Michael Flynn is refusing to comply with a request to appear before the Senate Intelligence Committee, CNN reported Tuesday.

Flynn first refused to comply with a subpoena to testify before the committee back in May.

Flynn left the White House in February after reports emerged that he had failed to reveal conversations with Russian officials about removing sanctions against the country in the month before President Trump’s inauguration.

Robert Kelner, Flynn's lawyer, declined to comment to CNN for the story.

The former general has offered to testify before the House and Senate intelligence committees in exchange for immunity, but lawmakers have rejected the deal.

Both committees are conducting their own investigations into Russian interference in the election, including Trump and his campaign officials’ ties to Russia.

Flynn refusing to appear before Senate Intel Committee: report | TheHill

So a federal subpoena is optional? The scumbag obviously has a lot to hide.

Originally Posted by thailazer

Originally Posted by misskit

Flynn refusing to appear before Senate Intel Committee: report

Former national security adviser Michael Flynn is refusing to comply with a request to appear before the Senate Intelligence Committee, CNN reported Tuesday.

Flynn first refused to comply with a subpoena to testify before the committee back in May.

Flynn left the White House in February after reports emerged that he had failed to reveal conversations with Russian officials about removing sanctions against the country in the month before President Trump’s inauguration.

Robert Kelner, Flynn's lawyer, declined to comment to CNN for the story.

The former general has offered to testify before the House and Senate intelligence committees in exchange for immunity, but lawmakers have rejected the deal.

Both committees are conducting their own investigations into Russian interference in the election, including Trump and his campaign officials’ ties to Russia.

Flynn refusing to appear before Senate Intel Committee: report | TheHill

So a federal subpoena is optional? The scumbag obviously has a lot to hide.

Exactly.

He might as well turn up and plead the fifth.

Originally Posted by harrybarracuda

He might as well turn up and plead the fifth.

Trump: "If you’re innocent, why are you taking the Fifth Amendment?"

Originally Posted by AntRobertson

Originally Posted by harrybarracuda

He might as well turn up and plead the fifth.

Trump: "If you’re innocent, why are you taking the Fifth Amendment?"

From where?

His mouth orifice.

Originally Posted by AntRobertson

His mouth orifice.

Just that he usually talks shit and you know what orifice is used for that.

I think his orifices are interchangeable.

Anyways he said it repeatedly during the campaign, that instance during a rally: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/...=.99562e6b2e85 (*Spoiler* Trump has plead the fifth himself in the past)

Flynn made an issue out of it too at the time for that matter. Hypocrites be hypocriting.

Trump team forced for first time to hand over documents to Mueller's Russia investigation

Mr Mueller has refused to comment on developments
Andrew Buncombe New York @AndrewBuncombe 14 hours ago

The Trump administration has reportedly started handing over documents to the special counsel’s team investigating possible collusion between the President’s 2016 campaign and Russia’s alleged effort to interfere with the election.

Earlier this summer, it was revealed that special prosecutor Robert Mueller had requested the White House preserve a number of documents relating to various members of Donald Trump’s campaign team.

He asked it to preserve evidence relating to former general Michael Flynn, who was forced to resign as Mr Trump’s national security adviser, as well as to a June 2016 meeting between a Kremlin-linked Russian lawyer and the President’s eldest son, son-in-law and campaign manager.

Now it has emerged the White House has begun passing some of the those documents to Mr Mueller’s team, as he continues his probe into possible collusion and even obstruction of justice.

The Daily Beast said that Jones Day, the New York law firm representing Mr Trump’s campaign, had assigned lawyers to find documents relating to Mr Mueller’s investigation, and that John Dowd, a veteran Washington lawyer who is representing Mr Trump, is personally delivering them.

Mr Dowd said he was “too tied up” to speak on Tuesday. However, he told the Daily Beast the campaign was in “total cooperation” with Mr Mueller.

“Jones Day has got a wonderful team handling the production,” Mr Dowd said.

The Trump campaign has previously turned over documents to congressional investigators, but this was reportedly the first instance of documents produced for Mueller’s office at the Justice Department. It may suggest that Mr Mueller’s investigation and those being carried out by officials on Capitol Hill, may be focussing on common ground.

Earlier this year, it was reported that Mr Mueller’s office had asked that the White House preserve any documentation relating to the meeting in the summer of 2016 between Mr Trump’s senior aides and Russian lawyer Natalia Veselnitskaya.

Donald Trump Jr said he had agreed to the meeting after being told the lawyer wanted to provide incriminating material about Hillary Clinton. He said she actually offered no such information but rather wanted to press him about the Magnitsky Act, a US law that blacklists several Russians linked to the 2009 murder of another Russian lawyer, Sergei Magnitsky.

“If its what you say I love it,” Mr Trump Jr initially said, when told about the information he claimed he had been offered.

Ms Veselnitskaya has denied working for the Russian authorities or offering any incriminating information to the Trump campaign.

Trump team forced for first time to hand over documents to Mueller's Russia investigation | The Independent

here we go....

Mike Flynn’s Son Is Subject of Federal Russia Probe


Michael G. Flynn, the son of President Donald Trump's former national security adviser, is a subject of the federal investigation into Russian meddling in the presidential election and possible collusion between Moscow and the Trump campaign, according to four current and former government officials.

The inquiry into Flynn is focused at least in part on his work with his father's lobbying firm, Flynn Intel Group, three of the officials said. It's unclear when the focus on Flynn began.

Barry Coburn, who said he is serving as the younger Flynn's legal counsel, said he couldn't comment on the matter.

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news...-probe-n800741


this could be how it all comes crumbling down....the general wants to keep his son out of jail and turns on trump.

"the general wants to keep his son out of jail and turns on trump."

more likely: tRump tweets that the perfidy of the general and his son is...sad...agrees with "lock 'em up" crowd...

Facebook gave more info to Mueller on Russian ad buys than to Congress: report


The information Facebook turned over to special counsel Robert Mueller about Russian ad purchases during the 2016 election is more than it gave to Congress, The Wall Street Journal reported Friday.

The social network reportedly shared with Mueller copies of the ads that were purchased as well as details on what targeting options were used to purchase the ads. Facebook also gave Mueller information on the accounts that purchased the ads, according to the Journal.


Facebook did not give the same information to Congress because it didn’t want to disrupt Mueller’s investigation or violate U.S. privacy laws, according to the report.

CNN reported Friday night that Mueller's team was given copies of the ads, as well as information about the accounts that bought them, after obtaining a search warrant for the information.

more Facebook gave more info to Mueller on Russian ad buys than to Congress: report | TheHill

Uncle Ju's prediction......move to impeach brought within 6 months.

Originally Posted by tomcat

"the general wants to keep his son out of jail and turns on trump."

more likely: tRump tweets that the perfidy of the general and his son is...sad...agrees with "lock 'em up" crowd...

You're not suggesting orange cunto would throw anyone under the bus to save his own skin, are you?

I'm suggesting he'd be driving the bus...

^^^Senator Mark Warner tweeted that the ads on Facebook were paid in rubles and that he was not kidding.

https://twitter.com/markwarner/statu...31496737935361


I started looking around for what the ads were for and found this from a few days ago.


Exclusive: Russia Used Facebook Events to Organize Anti-Immigrant Rallies on U.S. Soil


Pushing fake news was just one component of the Russian campaign to shape American minds.

Part two: organizing anti-immigrant events echoing themes from the pro-Trump press.



Russian operatives hiding behind false identities used Facebook’s event-management tool to remotely organize and promote political protests in the U.S., including an August 2016 anti-immigrant, anti-Muslim rally in Idaho, The Daily Beast has learned.

A Facebook spokesperson confirmed to The Daily Beast that the social-media giant “shut down several promoted events as part of the takedown we described last week.” The company declined to elaborate, except to confirm that the events were promoted with paid ads. (This is the first time the social-media giant has publicly acknowledged the existence of such events.)

The Facebook events—one of which echoed Islamophobic conspiracy theories pushed by pro-Trump media outlets—are the first indication that the Kremlin’s attempts to shape America’s political discourse moved beyond fake news and led unwitting Americans into specific real-life action.

“This is the next step,” Clint Watts, a former FBI agent and expert on Russia’s influence campaign, told The Daily Beast. “The objective of influence is to create behavior change. The simplest behavior is to have someone disseminate propaganda that Russia created and seeded. The second part of behavior influence is when you can get people to physically do something.”

Last week Facebook acknowledged for the first time that Russia used false identities and about 3,000 ads to spread politically divisive posts to Americans before and after the election. The content, according to an expert on Facebook’s advertising system, was likely seen by between 23 and 70 million people, based on the $100,000 ad buy alone.

Much of the Russian Facebook propaganda campaign has since been deleted. But bits and pieces remain visible in search-engine caches, including a 2016 notice on Facebook Events—the site’s event-management and invitation tool—announcing an Aug. 27 rally in a rural Idaho town known to welcome refugees.



“Due to the town of Twin Falls, Idaho, becoming a center of refugee resettlement, which led to the huge upsurge of violence towards American citizens, it is crucial to draw society's attention to this problem,” the event notice began. The three-hour protest was titled “Citizens before refugees,” and would be held at the City Council Chambers beginning at 11 a.m. The notice provided the street address and ended with a fiery exhortation.

“We must stop taking in Muslim refugees! We demand open and thorough investigation of all the cases regarding Muslim refugees! All government officials, who are covering up for these criminals, should be fired!”

The event was “hosted” by “SecuredBorders,” a putative U.S. anti-immigration community that was outed in March as a Russian front. The Facebook page had 133,000 followers when Facebook closed it last month.

Although 48 people clicked that they were “interested” in the protest, only four said they went to City Council Chambers that day, according to the event page, possibly because it was a Saturday and the Council was not in session. It is also possible to claim attendance on Facebook at an event that didn’t exist. Some of the profiles of interested rallygoers listed themselves as Twin Falls residents.

Facebook did not explain if the “several promoted events” were upcoming ones at the time of the account deactivation or were events that had already occurred at the time of deactivation. But the spokesman confirmed that the “promoted” events were paid events, akin to the inflammatory ads that the company disclosed last week.

Far-right, pro-Trump firehoses Breitbart, InfoWars, and WorldNetDaily had pushed a series of stories implying immigrants were taking over Twin Falls since the beginning of 2016. The stories reached a fever pitch in the month before SecuredBorders’ event.


A WorldNetDaily writer called Chobani’s plan to hire immigrants to work at the Twin Falls plant an “Islamic surge” in a January 2016 piece once titled “American Yogurt Tycoon Vows to Choke U.S. With Muslims.” (That post’s headline has since been changed, and the “Islamic surge” wording was removed.)

One InfoWars article claimed that Chobani’s workers were responsible for a “500 percent increase in tuberculosis in Twin Falls.”

InfoWars and Alex Jones published videos with the titles “MSM Covers For Globalist’s Refugee Import Program After Child Rape Case” and “Idaho Yogurt Maker Caught Importing Migrant Rapists,” which have since been removed.

When Chobani sued InfoWars over the claims in April, Jones initially claimed that he was “not backing down, I’m never giving up, I love this” and that “I’m choosing this as a battle. On this I will stand. I will win, or I will die.”

Jones settled three weeks later, and was forced to issue a retraction of the false stories InfoWars invented about immigrants in Twin Falls. Some of the offending articles and videos have since been removed.

Breitbart, which was not sued by Chobani, still has a story titled “TB spiked 500 percent in Twin Falls During 2012, As Chobani Yogurt Opened Plant” on its website.

(Tuberculosis cases rose from one to six in 2012, then dropped back down to two in 2013. There is no proof in the article tying tuberculosis to immigrants.)

The tuberculosis story was posted one day before SecuredBorders’ real-life rally was set to take place in Twin Falls.

The story was one of dozens of negative Breitbart stories about immigrants in Twin Falls in August of 2016. In the month before SecuredBorders created its Facebook event, Breitbart posted 37 articles about immigrants in Twin Falls.

Many of the stories, like one titled “Twin Falls Rape Special Report: Why Are the Refugees Moving In?” revolve around what Breitbart called a “gang rape” that Twin Falls County Prosecutor Grant Loebs said was misreported.

“There was no gang rape, no knife attack, and we did not charge anybody with rape because no rape occurred,” Loebs told the Magic Valley Times News.

“There is a small group of people in Twin Falls County whose life goal is to eliminate refugees, and thus far they have not been constrained by the truth.”

Exclusive: Russia Used Facebook Events to Organize Anti-Immigrant Rallies on U.S. Soil

^ Sorry for how that all looks. Still getting used to the new forum and can't be assed to work on it anymore.