WOW. Russia Confirms Contact With Trump Campaign

Well this is good to know. Now. Our newly minted President-elect and his campaign team did in fact have contact with Russian officials throughout and lied about it, right up to the end.

Moscow had contacts with Trump team during campaign, Russian diplomat says

MOSCOW — Russian government officials conferred with with members of Donald Trump’s campaign team, a senior Russian diplomat said Thursday, a disclosure that could reopen scrutiny over the Kremlin’s role in the president-elect’s bitter race against Hillary Clinton.

The statement came from Russia’s deputy foreign minister, Sergei Ryabkov, who said in an interview with the state-run Interfax news agency that “there were contacts” with the Trump team.

“Obviously, we know most of the people from his entourage,” Ryabkov said.

“We have just begun to consider ways of building dialogue with the future Donald Trump administration and channels we will be using for those purposes,” Ryabkov was quoted as saying.

Ryabkov provided no further details, and his remarks drew a swift denial from Trump spokeswoman Hope Hicks, who said the campaign had “no contact with Russian officials” before Tuesday’s election.

More form Haaretz:

Senior Russian Official Admits Maintaining Contact With Trump Campaign

"There were contacts" with influential people close to Trump, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov told the Interfax news agency on Thursday. "I don't say that all of them, but a whole array of them, supported contacts with Russian representatives."

Another influential Russian, pro-Kremlin political analyst Sergei Markov, also denied allegations of Russian interference in the election, but said “maybe we helped a bit with WikiLeaks,” the Guardian reported.

Ugh.

dup post

What is the problem here?

More from Heat Street who published a story the night before the election purporting that a source was confirming that an FISA warrant had been issued over contacts between the Russian government and the Trump campaign.

The night before the election, I reported that in October the FBI sought, and was granted, a secret FISA court warrant giving U.S. counter-intelligence agents permission to examine the activities of “U.S. persons” in Donald Trump’s campaign with ties to Russia.

Counterintelligence sources now further tell me that US intelligence has gained legal permission to look at transcripts of phone conversations that were held by Trump advisor Carter Page while he was in Russia in July.

Mr. Page, as reported by Heat Street in July, said he was in Russia as a private individual giving an academic lecture. He also met with some Russian officials, including the Deputy Prime Minister of Russia, Arkady Dvorkovich. These meetings were at the time couched as private ones — not official contacts between the campaign and the Russian government. Russian media were skeptical of that explanation at the time.

Hope Hicks is still denying that any such contact took place despite the statements by Sergei Ryabkov:

Trump’s team, however, on Thursday flatly denied the new reports, according to the Wall Street Journal. Asked if Mr. Ryabkov’s comments were accurate, Trump campaign spokeswoman Hope Hicks said “absolutely not”.

Mr. Ryabkov’s statement to Russian news agency Interfax that “Russian representatives” were “staying in touch” with the Trump “entourage” appear to my counter-intelligence sources to be an effort to make covert contacts now look like routine communications. But my source speculate that Mr. Ryabkov’s statement actually an indication that Russia sought to use people in the Trump camp as so-called “agents of influence”.

My counter-intelligence sources also suggest that, by openly acknowledging Russian contacts with the Trump campaign, the Kremlin may be looking to “throw Trump under the bus” … exposing his camp to further FBI investigations about its ties to Russia and weakening his new administration.

EDIT:

To clarify, Hope Hicks said that Ryabkov's statements were not accurate not that contact hadn't happened.

originally posted by: drewlander
What is the problem here?

Well most Hillary supporters are really scrapping the barrel now. Even the fact that her campaign was deliberately creating a "boogeyman" to distract from all the slime that follows her and is still ungoing.

The disconnect is real.

a reply to: EternalShadow

So a Russian diplomat confirms that they did in fact have contact with apparently multiple folks within the Trump campaign which was denied and denied by Trump and his team and your answer is what?

her campaign was deliberately creating a "boogeyman"

Well we can agree about one thing:

The disconnect is real.

You're displaying cognitive dissonance at it's absolutely worst.

Would it not be normal for foreign powers to have contact, like just talking to each other, with the leading presidential candidates? I mean, if not, then there's something to discuss, but if it's just part of the course then...

Also,

Glorious American-Russian alliance to vanquish ISIL when?

Genuine question.

a reply to: Ohanka

I heard the PM of Canada called Trump the night he won. I bet Canada is usurping the process.

So what? Hillary Clinton received debate questions in advance.




Cheat for cheat, all dead meat!

dup post

Oh no!

Not diplomacy!


We want war with russia like hillary promised!

The problem is the hypocrisy of people.

If Hillary did similar certain people would be yelling like hyenas “Hillary is a criminal” “Hillary is a traitor”


When they dig underneath all the dirt Trump did to win this election believe me it will make Hillary look like Joan of Arc

a reply to: theantediluvian

Did Trump have contact with Russia ................. was that a no .

And I say to this.......so what.

a reply to: theantediluvian

If a tree falls in the forest and no one is around, does it make a sound?

a reply to: theantediluvian

What's "wow" about this? We are not Russia's enemy. We are an ally. And with Trump, hopefully an even better ally than ever before.