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🔍 All things Mueller - What we know he has on Trump 'n Co

General Discussion
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#22

We’re on 3 level chess here


Is it that you mean
obstruction that Kelly might have been questioned about.

Comments

1 That meeting between McCabe, Rosenstein discussing who might be taking the lead regarding the Comey investigation, and what Kelly might have seen?

2 That WAPO article re: Rosenstein suggesting taping the Prez and the 25th Amendment must have gotten Rosenstein in real trouble
and maybe Kelly brokered a ‘truce’ between Rosenstein still leading the Mueller probe, and staying in his position etc. Curious that Rosenstein was able to save his job and ‘face,’ in all of that.

3 Obstruction - Kelly has seen a lot of it
and participated in it. His unwavering support of T.

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#23

Sorry, I meant to refer to the retaliation against McCabe after the probe began. Most of which was encouraged by the White House. Trump must have blamed McCabe for the obstruction probe. Chief of staff would have plenty of insight into this and many other instances of the President obstructing Justice as well as political retaliation against members of the FBI and Justice department.

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#24

From CNN:

Sorry, I missed this tidbit. I must need more coffee. :woman_shrugging:t2:

The Mueller questions to Kelly centered on a narrow set of issues in the investigation of potential obstruction of justice, chiefly Kelly’s recollection of an episode that took place after new reporting emerged about how the President had tried to fire Mueller.

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#25

This looks like another Giuliani eff up to me. What could possibly be the upside of leaking this extremely damaging information about your client? G. is trying to spin it this way: Trump is being persecuted by Mueller because Mueller tried to force Manafort to lie about him in an incriminating way. But Manafort is Mr. LieyMcLieFace himself so that’s hardly a convincing argument.

And there’s this: We’re about to gain some insight into Manafort’s lies when Mueller files his report in court today. If the report says Manafort lied about Trump then I guess you could say Giuliani was getting out ahead of the story, but, really, getting out ahead by a couple hours? Is that even effective – doesn’t it just draw more negative attention to his client? And suppose this lie is not in the filing (or is so redacted we can’t confirm it), then Giuliani just royally screwed his client by exposing something that would best be left hidden away as long as possible.

Typical chaos from Giuliani. :roller_coaster: (you can’t see it, but the wheels are coming off of that roller coaster). :slightly_smiling_face:

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#26

The Sentencing memo is in for Cohen


Michael Cohen, Trump’s Ex-Fixer, Should Get Prison Term of About 4 Years, Prosecutors Say - The New York Times

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#27

Here are the docs :point_down:

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#28

Corroborating evidence that Cohen was in touch with Russians in 2015 in hopes of getting ‘political synergy’ and ‘synergy on a government level.’ This is where it implicates T
Trump was advised on this
and T wanted to have that connection.

Pundits are calling this the evidence that T could be prosecuted as a FELON for this exact issue. Mueller is covering his bases with having SDNY handling these issues, and spreading out the prosecutorial (sp) front.

In one of the filings, Mueller details how Cohen spoke to a Russian who “claimed to be a ‘trusted person’ in the Russian Federation who could offer the campaign ‘political synergy’ and ‘synergy on a government level.’”

The filing says the meeting never happened.

Cohen also discussed a Moscow real estate deal that could have netted Trump’s business hundreds of millions of dollars and conversations with a Russian intermediary who proposed a meeting between Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin as well as offering synergy with the campaign, prosecutors said.

Cohen, dubbed Trump’s “legal fixer” in the past, also described his work in conjunction with Trump in orchestrating hush money payments to two women — a porn star and a Playboy model — who said they had sex with Trump a decade earlier. Prosecutors in New York, where Cohen pleaded guilty in August in connection with those payments, said the lawyer “acted in coordination and at the direction” of Trump.

Despite such specific allegations of Trump’s actions, the president quickly tweeted after news of the filings: “Totally clears the President. Thank you!”



Despite the fact that the meetings did not take place, the discussions are considered evidence of wrong doing and especially implicates T into the conspiracy with another government. :statue_of_liberty::man_dancing::boom:

In a footnote, special counsel Robert Mueller’s team writes that Cohen conferred with Trump “about contacting the Russia government before reaching out to gauge Russia’s interest in such a meeting,” though it never took place.

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#29

Manafort doc here :point_down:

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#30

What Manafort lied about
From CNN

Excerpt

Manafort lied about interactions with business associate with ties to Russian intelligence, Mueller says

Special counsel Robert Mueller said on Friday that former Trump campaign chairman Manafort lied to investigators about his interactions with Konstantin Kilimnik, his former business associate who has ties to Russian intelligence.

Specifically, prosecutors discussed with Manafort more than one meeting he had with Kilimnik.

There are very few public details about their interactions. But questions of collusion have swirled around Kilimnik, given his long-time closeness to Manafort and his links to Russian intelligence agencies that were aggressively meddling in the election. Mueller’s team said earlier this year that the FBI believes Kilimnik had active ties to Russian spies in 2016.

Prosecutors said they caught Manafort in lies about Kilimnik because they have “electronic communications” and “travel records.” Mueller’s team said they confronted Manafort with this evidence, and he acknowledged his lies. But besides these breadcrumbs, critical parts from Friday’s filing about Kilimnik were heavily redacted by Mueller’s office.

The Washington Post reported previously that Manafort and Kilimnik met twice during the campaign. Manafort acknowledged to the Post that they discussed WikiLeaks releases against the Democratic National Committee because they were in the news at the time. Mueller’s team said Friday that Manafort lied to them about a “meeting with Kilimnik,” but the section is heavily redacted.

The Post also reported that Manafort and Kilimnik exchanged emails in 2016 about the offering “private briefings” about the campaign to Oleg Deripaska, a prominent Russian oligarch. Manafort has said those briefings never occurred.

Kilimnik has denied working for Russian intelligence. Manafort denies colluding with any Russians.

Kilimnik and Manafort were charged with obstruction of justice in June, for trying to influence witnesses who could testify at Manafort’s trial. Manafort pleaded guilty to obstruction in September, but Kilimnik lives safely in Russia, out of the reach of US courts.

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#31

I want to Re-Up some commentary that Lawfare Blog wrote last year. This was speculative, well reasoned commentary on their part, described as

“an overview of the facts known today, and . . . then put forth seven different theories of the Russia Connection case that might account for those facts. We present these in ascending order of potential menace, from the most innocent to the most alarming. In doing so, we attempt to narrow the field of discussion—or at least provide a disciplined framework for assessing the possibilities—and give readers guidance as to what to watch for as investigations on both the legislative and executive sides move forward.”

  • Theory of the Case #1: It’s All a Giant Set of Coincidences and Disconnected Events

  • Theory of the Case #2: Trump Attracted Russophiles

  • Theory of the Case #3: The Russian Operation Wasn’t Really About Trump at All

  • Theory of the Case #4: Russian Intelligence Actively Penetrated the Trump Campaign—But Trump Didn’t Know

  • Theory of the Case #5: Russian Intelligence Actively Penetrated the Trump Campaign—And Trump Knew or Should Have Known

  • Theory of the Case #6: Kompromat

  • Theory of the Case #7: The President of the United States is a Russian Agent

:thinking: After today’s news we are currently living in Theory 5.

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#32

Thank you @Pet_Proletariat

Hard to express how relieved I/we are to finally see evidence of what we’ve suspected for so long.

Thx for revisiting the original concept
How deep is this (lying) Prez in it???

And today
pretty deep.
:boom:

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#33

You’re welcome but honestly I couldn’t get their theories out of my head. I didn’t post before because it was just theory but today needed the scale.

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#34

Filed under Swamp Chronicles

In September, 2015, Trump approved Cohen’s plan to reach out to the Russian government. That November, Cohen “spoke with a Russian national who claimed to be a ‘trusted person’ in the Russian Federation who could offer the campaign ‘political synergy’ and ‘synergy on a government level.’ ” Cohen’s contact “repeatedly proposed” a meeting between Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, suggesting that it would have a “phenomenal” effect on Trump’s efforts to build a Trump Tower in Moscow, which Mueller’s filing calls the “Moscow Project.”

The memo notes that Cohen did not pursue the meeting, “in part because he was working on the Moscow Project with a different individual who Cohen understood to have his own connections to the Russian government.” That December, Cohen—with Trump’s knowledge and approval—began working with Felix Sater, a longtime Trump associate with Russia connections, on the Trump Tower Moscow proposal. In the following months, Cohen spoke with a Kremlin adviser. Cohen and Sater ultimately did discuss a meeting between Putin and Trump. (The meeting did not occur.) Mueller, in his memo, makes certain that readers know that Cohen was not acting on his own but “continued to work on the project and discuss it with Individual-1”—Trump—“well into the campaign.”

The filing comes close to suggesting collusion without actually making that case. Mueller notes that Cohen’s effort to engage Russia with Trump’s knowledge and consent “occurred at a time of sustained efforts by the Russian government to interfere with the U.S. presidential election.” Mueller provided another hint by praising Cohen for providing the special counsel’s office “with useful information concerning certain Russia-related matters core to its investigation.” There is arguably only one matter core to the Mueller investigation, as defined by Mueller’s appointment as special counsel: “to ensure a full and thorough investigation of the Russian government’s efforts to interfere in the 2016 presidential election . . . [and] any links and/or coordination between the Russian government and individuals associated with the campaign of President Donald Trump.” If Cohen’s information is core to the Mueller investigation, it is reasonable to conclude that Mueller does, indeed, believe he can prove that there was collusion between the Trump campaign and the Russian government. :man_dancing::statue_of_liberty:

However—perhaps maddeningly for people who have been waiting for clarity on Mueller’s investigation—he does not, in the sentencing memo, lay out the details of possible collusion. But the document tells another damning story: Cohen repeatedly lied about his work, on behalf of Trump, to make money and develop political ties with the Kremlin. His lies were “a deliberate effort” intended “to set the tone and shape the course of the hearings in an effort to stymie the inquiries.”

For the President and those close to him, these are terrifying and damning documents. The prosecutors from the Southern District have now named Trump as the person who directed a crime for which another man will presumably go to prison. Meanwhile, Mueller has demonstrated that he has evidence to show that Trump used his campaign for personal enrichment at the expense of American interests and lied about it, in a way that suggests knowledge of guilt. It may not, in the end, be part of a collusion plot. But it is very bad.

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#35

KellyAnne’s hubby chimes in
(and he does from his lawyer’s perch)

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#36

@PreetBharara

A day which will live in infamy

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#37

Here’s an excellent summary of the five areas where Mueller has the goods on Trump.


A flurry of recent activity this past week all points in the same direction: Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation will likely implicate the president, his campaign, and his close associates in aiding and abetting a Russian conspiracy against the United States to undermine the 2016 election.

First, Mueller has clearly identified collusion in the efforts of top Trump aides and associates to contact WikiLeaks. In a draft plea agreement provided to conservative operative Jerome Corsi, Mueller details how Roger Stone, who the special counsel notes was in frequent contact with Donald Trump and senior campaign officials, directed Corsi to connect with WikiLeaks about the trove of stolen materials it received from Russia. Corsi subsequently communicated WikiLeaks’ release plan back to Stone, and the Trump campaign built its final message around the email release. That is collusion.

Second, we now know that Trump’s personal lawyer Michael Cohen and former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn have provided evidence to Mueller related to collusion. In Cohen’s sentencing memo, Mueller said that Cohen provided his office with “useful information” on “Russia-related matters core to its investigation.” The core of Mueller’s investigation is collusion. In Flynn’s sentencing memo Mueller said that Flynn’s false statements to the FBI about his calls with the Russian ambassador during the transition were “material” to the investigation into links or coordination between Russia and “individuals associated with the Trump campaign.”

Third, Mueller has found definitive proof that Trump was compromised by a hostile foreign power during the election. In his plea deal, Cohen revealed that Trump had repeatedly lied to voters about the then-candidate’s financial ties Russia. While Trump claimed during the campaign to have no business dealings with Russia, he was negotiating a wildly lucrative business deal not with Russian businessmen, but with the Kremlin itself. Trump’s team even reportedly tried to bribe Russian President Vladimir Putin by offering him a $50 million penthouse


Fourth, we know that Trump has engaged in an increasingly brazen attempt to cover up his actions: installing a political crony to head the Department of Justice by potentially illegal means in an effort to shut down the investigation; using his former campaign chairman and convicted criminal Paul Manafort to find out information about Mueller’s investigation; and even appearing to offer Manafort a pardon if he helps him obstruct the Russia probe


Lastly, federal prosecutors have told us Trump broke the law to influence the 2016 election by hiding evidence of his affairs. Trump clearly had no qualms about breaking the law to win an election


Mueller is coming. And he is clearly coming for Trump. Not simply for obstructing justice but for conspiring with a hostile foreign power to win an election. This is a scandal unlike any America has ever seen.

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#38

Last week, the WSJ reported that Mueller is investigating a boat trip during which Manafort may have met Konstatin Kilimnik. He is a Russian intelligence asset (according to court filings) and long-time business partner of Manafort. Kilimnik is the person Manafort conspired with in witness tampering – he is also under indictment for that crime, but unfortunately is out of reach, residing somewhere in Russia.

This boat trip gained new relevance with yesterday’s filing of Manafort’s sentencing memo. The section titled “Interactions with Kilimnik” is heavily redacted. Could a mention of the boat trip be underneath one of those black bars?

I’m very curious as to what might be the significance of this possible meeting between Manafort and Kilimnik. Perhaps Mueller’s interest is related to the fact that Tom Barrack was aboard – he’s a Trump confidant, major campaign fund raiser, and billionaire whose fortunes are tied up with the UAE. Barrack’s presence made it an especially intriguing excursion – if all the alleged players were present, it represented a nexus of connections between Trump, his close friend/fund-raiser, his criminal campaign manager, Russian Intelligence, and the UAE! Sure wish I could have been a fly on the state room wall. :ear:

Special counsel Robert Mueller reportedly believes that President Donald Trump’s campaign chairman, Paul Manafort, lied about his lobbying income and meeting with a Russian-Ukrainian political operative, The Wall Street Journal reported


One particular line of inquiry Mueller is probing is a boat trip that Manafort took with Tom Barrack, Trump’s friend and real estate developer, after Manafort resigned from the Trump campaign in August 2016.

Investigators are trying to figure out if Manafort met with Kilimnik on that trip, The Journal reported.

Kilimnik is a former Russian military intelligence officer, whose name grabbed headlines last year when it emerged that Manafort may have tried to use his role in the Trump campaign to resolve a financial dispute with Russian-Ukrainian oligarch Oleg Deripaska, an ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

(This is the Business Insider’s summary of the WSJ story – if you subscribe to the WSJ, you can read the full, original story here.)

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#39

Transcript of Comey’s testimoney before the House Judiciary Committee :point_down:

https://judiciary.house.gov/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/Comey-interview-12-7-18_Redacted.pdf

I hevent read it yet, so I don’t know if there’s anything juicy, this is more of a bookmark post.

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#40

AP sums up the new information.

The FBI’s counterintelligence investigation into potential ties between the Trump campaign and Russia initially focused on four Americans and whether they were connected to Russian efforts to interfere in the 2016 presidential election, former FBI Director James Comey told lawmakers during hours of closed-door questioning.

Comey did not identify the Americans but said President Donald Trump, then the Republican candidate, was not among them.

:thinking:

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#41

Thx for posting, our friend Kyle Griffin gives us this tidbit.

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