# Trump associates may have coordinated with Russians, according to US officials **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [March 23, 2017, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799 "2017-03-23T00:28:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 13
**Author:** ![Defensive\_Indifference](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/defensive_indifference/32/6502_2.png) [@Defensive\_Indifference](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Defensive_Indifference)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2017, 3:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/242 "2017-05-16T03:42:07Z")
You mean members of the Trump admin said that the Trump admin didn’t do anything wrong? Thank goodness! For a moment there I thought we were in trouble. Trump did get the Comey story off the news though. Leaking this story is surely a subtle Jedi mind trick, and Trump has us liberals right where he wants us. ---
**Author:** ![Fubaya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c2a13f/32.png) [@Fubaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fubaya)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2017, 3:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/243 "2017-05-16T03:47:58Z")
In Trump’s defense, he’s really really stupid and you bunch of Negative Nellies always focus on the bad stuff. What about the fact that didn’t blurt out the nuke codes or give them the Declaration of Independence as a gift? He’s showing great restraint. ---
**Author:** ![GIGObuster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gigobuster/32/421_2.png) [@GIGObuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GIGObuster)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2017, 3:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/244 "2017-05-16T03:53:50Z")
> [@Sam\_Stone](#): > > I think Trump is an ass, but McMaster has a sterling reputation for telling the truth. So was Colin Powell… ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2017, 4:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/245 "2017-05-16T04:11:45Z")
Pretty sure we were reminded about Mike Flynn’s “sterling reputation”. As well as what a total straight-shooter Comey was. ---
**Author:** ![Fubaya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c2a13f/32.png) [@Fubaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fubaya)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2017, 5:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/246 "2017-05-16T05:06:27Z")
> [@Sam\_Stone](#): > > Also, whoever leaked that to thepress committed a felony. The law is a little shaky, but information is classified/declassified by the president, so if he revealed classified information, it is implied that he declassified it first. If someone leaked it, they can claim it was declassified by the president. If Trump says he didn’t declassify it, they would both theoretically go to jail. ---
**Author:** ![Merneith](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/57b2e6/32.png) [@Merneith](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Merneith)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2017, 12:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/247 "2017-05-16T12:46:33Z")
Trump confirms that he babbled, doubles down on the “it’s not illegal if the President does it” defense. From Trump’s Twitter - > \*\* As President I wanted to share with Russia (at an openly scheduled W.H. meeting) which I have the absolute right to do, facts pertaining… \*\* — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 16, 2017 \*\* …to terrorism and airline flight safety. Humanitarian reasons, plus I want Russia to greatly step up their fight against ISIS & terrorism.\*\* — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 16, 2017 Further reading: > **[Trump: I have ‘absolute right’ to share facts with Russia](https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/333550-trump-i-had-absolute-right-to-share-facts-with-russia/)** > > President Trump on Tuesday defended revealing sensitive information to top Russian diplomats, saying in pair of early morning tweets that he has an “absolute right” to do so.Trump tweet… > **[Donald Trump Says He Has The Right To Share Info With Russians](https://www.huffpost.com/entry/donald-trump-washington-post-report_n_591a393be4b05dd15f0aa0e6?b8=&ncid=inblnkushpmg00000009%2Cinblnkushpmg00000009)** > > Who cares if the information is classified? > **[@realDonaldTrump bumbles into his administration's latest cleanup effort](https://www.salon.com/2017/05/16/realdonaldtrump-bumbles-into-his-administrations-latest-clean-up-effort/)** > > "I have the absolute right," to share intel with the Russians, Trump argued on Twitter early Tuesday morning > **[White House shifts to vigorously defending Trump's Russia meeting](https://www.politico.com/story/2017/05/16/trump-defends-sharing-information-russia-238433)** > > Trump's national security adviser calls conversation 'wholly appropriate' but refuses to say whether the president divulged classified information. ---
**Author:** ![gytalf2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/ac91a4/32.png) [@gytalf2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gytalf2000)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2017, 12:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/248 "2017-05-16T12:58:40Z")
> [@Merneith](#): > > Trump confirms that he babbled, doubles down on the “it’s not illegal if the President does it” defense. > > From Trump’s Twitter - > [x.com](https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/864436162567471104) > > \*\* As President I wanted to share with Russia (at an openly scheduled W.H. meeting) which I have the absolute right to do, facts pertaining… \*\* > — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 16, 2017 > > \*\* …to terrorism and airline flight safety. Humanitarian reasons, plus I want Russia to greatly step up their fight against ISIS & terrorism.\*\* > > — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 16, 2017 > Further reading: > > [http://thehill.com/homenews/administration/333550-trump-i-had-absolute-right-to-share-facts-with-russia](http://thehill.com/homenews/administration/333550-trump-i-had-absolute-right-to-share-facts-with-russia) > > [Donald Trump Says He Has The Right To Share Info With The Russians | HuffPost Latest News](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/donald-trump-washington-post-report_us_591a393be4b05dd15f0aa0e6?b8&ncid=inblnkushpmg00000009&ncid=inblnkushpmg00000009) > [http://www.salon.com/2017/05/16/realdonaldtrump-bumbles-into-his-administrations-latest-clean-up-effort/](http://www.salon.com/2017/05/16/realdonaldtrump-bumbles-into-his-administrations-latest-clean-up-effort/) > [http://www.politico.com/story/2017/05/16/trump-defends-sharing-information-russia-238433](http://www.politico.com/story/2017/05/16/trump-defends-sharing-information-russia-238433) Holy crap! Wotta worthless sack o’ shit! I’d like to see him impeached and removed. But would Pence do any better? Is he in cahoots with the Russkies too, I wonder? ---
**Author:** ![Merneith](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/57b2e6/32.png) [@Merneith](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Merneith)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2017, 1:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/249 "2017-05-16T13:09:14Z")
Pence? He was in charge of the transition process while Sergey Kislyak was playing footsie in Trump Tower with Michael Flynn and Jared Kushner and Jeff Sessions. Don’t forget - the Russians hacked both the DNC & the RNC. The Russians have material on both the Republicans and the Democrats. They released the Democratic material to put the Republican in the Whitehouse. They held back the RNC material … purely out of the goodness of their hearts, I guess? [https://mobile.nytimes.com/2016/12/09/us/obama-russia-election-hack.html?\_r=0&referer=](https://mobile.nytimes.com/2016/12/09/us/obama-russia-election-hack.html?_r=0&referer=) > [@David E Sanger & Scott Shane for NYT](#): > > American intelligence agencies have concluded with “high confidence” that Russia acted covertly in the latter stages of the presidential campaign to harm Hillary Clinton’s chances and promote Donald J. Trump, according to senior administration officials. > > They based that conclusion, in part, on another finding — which they say was also reached with high confidence — that the Russians hacked the Republican National Committee’s computer systems in addition to their attacks on Democratic organizations, but did not release whatever information they gleaned from the Republican networks. ---
**Author:** ![Fiveyearlurker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/da6949/32.png) [@Fiveyearlurker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiveyearlurker)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2017, 1:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/250 "2017-05-16T13:15:03Z")
Any other day [this would be a pretty major story](http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/manafort-got-3-5m-mystery-mortgage-paid-no-tax-n759866). Manafort, Trump’s campaign manager got an unrecorded 3.5 million dollar loan through a shell corporation on the day he was ousted from the campaign for having ties to pro-Russian groups. Hard to track the money, but, obviously there is a Trump link in there: _“A review of New York state and Suffolk County records shows the loan was made by S C 3, a subsidiary of Spruce Capital, which was co-founded by Joshua Crane, who has partnered with Donald Trump on real estate deals. Spruce is also partially funded by Ukrainian-American real-estate magnate Alexander Rovt, who tried to donate $10,000 to Trump’s presidential campaign on Election Day but had all but the legal maximum of $2,700 returned.”_ This is going to be more about money laundering and campaign finance than Russians. ---
**Author:** ![coremelt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4491bb/32.png) [@coremelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/coremelt)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2017, 1:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/251 "2017-05-16T13:43:07Z")
> [@Merneith](#): > > Trump confirms that he babbled, doubles down on the “it’s not illegal if the President does it” defense. Right, but pretty much directly contradicting the spin his team was doing the night before. So remember lets keep the timeline clear: 1. Trump fires Comey claiming its about emails (of course) 2. The very next fucking day he meets the Russian foreign minister and ambassador and blabs confidential information which US allies which provided it did not give permission to share, possibly resulting in the death and torture of the intelligence source 3. Trump then admits in the Lester Holt interview that he fired Comey because of Russia 4. 1. is leaked, White House flat out denies it, Trump confirms and contradicts them in his early morning twitter rant… Come on, there’s only two possibilities here: Either Trump has dementia and is unfit to serve or he’s deeply comprised by Russia and guilty of treason. (actually, why not both???) ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2017, 1:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/252 "2017-05-16T13:44:48Z")
From here, looks like the Russian kleptocracy has butt-load of money but need it cleaned. Every crook wants his “run away!” money stashed in a totally respectable situation for the day the shitski hits the fan. And they got billions, more billions on the way. Remember “The Producers”, the scam of a purposeful failure? Read about the massive Azerbijan hotel that Trump was in the thick of? Not only was it designed not to succeed, it was designed so that it could not possibly succeed. Maybe be a Disturbin’ Legend, but the story goes that as the American Mafia got organized, there was more cooperation and tolerance between Italian/Sicilian mobsters and Jewish mobsters, Meyer Lansky being the classic example. And the Jewish mobsters told the Italians “Take your money and put it through a front business, and pay the taxes, then its legit and its yours!”. Italians, for the most part, wouldn’t listen, wouldn’t give the money that they stole fair and square to gummint. Guess who died in his bed, and who died in jail. ---
**Author:** ![Steve\_MB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steve_mb/32/5339_2.png) [@Steve\_MB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steve_MB)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2017, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/253 "2017-05-16T14:38:35Z")
> [@Sam\_Stone](#): > > Um, from what I have read, that story has been contradicted by just about everyone in the room. > > This is what happens when you abandon journalistic standards and start running stories based on singular, anonymous leaks. You become a tool for anyone who wants to smear someone else. > [@Merneith](#): > > Trump confirms that he babbled, doubles down on the “it’s not illegal if the President does it” defense. > > From Trump’s Twitter - > [x.com](https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/864436162567471104) > > \*\* As President I wanted to share with Russia (at an openly scheduled W.H. meeting) which I have the absolute right to do, facts pertaining… \*\* > — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 16, 2017 > > \*\* …to terrorism and airline flight safety. Humanitarian reasons, plus I want Russia to greatly step up their fight against ISIS & terrorism.\*\* > > — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 16, 2017 > Further reading: > > [http://thehill.com/homenews/administration/333550-trump-i-had-absolute-right-to-share-facts-with-russia](http://thehill.com/homenews/administration/333550-trump-i-had-absolute-right-to-share-facts-with-russia) > > [Donald Trump Says He Has The Right To Share Info With The Russians | HuffPost Latest News](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/donald-trump-washington-post-report_us_591a393be4b05dd15f0aa0e6?b8&ncid=inblnkushpmg00000009&ncid=inblnkushpmg00000009) > > [http://www.salon.com/2017/05/16/realdonaldtrump-bumbles-into-his-administrations-latest-clean-up-effort/](http://www.salon.com/2017/05/16/realdonaldtrump-bumbles-into-his-administrations-latest-clean-up-effort/) > > [http://www.politico.com/story/2017/05/16/trump-defends-sharing-information-russia-238433](http://www.politico.com/story/2017/05/16/trump-defends-sharing-information-russia-238433) Sam, are you ever going to get tired of lying in the dirt and staring up at Donald holding that football again? ---
**Author:** ![Fiveyearlurker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/da6949/32.png) [@Fiveyearlurker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiveyearlurker)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2017, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/254 "2017-05-17T16:50:51Z")
> [@Fiveyearlurker](#): > > Wanna bet there are more subpoenas coming? > [@Okrahoma](#): > > I don’t expect any that are not Flynn (or Carter Page, though he’s too much of an idiot to be charged) related. But if there are any, THEN the breathless revelations of subpoenas would be justified. These are just ho-hum. Hey look. More [subpoenas](http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/feds-subpoena-records-3-5m-mortgage-manaforts-home-n759866). \* "Federal investigators have subpoenaed records related to a $3.5 million mortgage that former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort took out on his Hamptons home just after leaving the campaign, according to a source familiar with the matter. The mortgage document that explains how Manafort would pay back the loan was never filed with Suffolk County, New York — and Manafort’s company never paid up to $36,000 in taxes that would be due on the loan."\* “\*A review of New York state and Suffolk County records shows the loan was made by S C 3, a subsidiary of Spruce Capital, which was co-founded by Joshua Crane, who has partnered with Donald Trump on real estate deals. Spruce is also partially funded by Ukrainian-American real-estate magnate Alexander Rovt, who tried to donate $10,000 to Trump’s presidential campaign on Election Day but had all but the legal maximum of $2,700 returned. \*” I’m sure there is a totally legitimate reason this happened on the same day that he was taken off the campaign for his links to pro-Russian groups. Also, in the news this morning: Another one of Trump’s [“few exceptions”](https://www.wsj.com/articles/russian-state-run-bank-financed-deal-involving-trump-hotel-partner-1495031708) to his dealings with Russia. No doubt on the up and up. "\*VEB, a Russian state-run bank under scrutiny by U.S. investigators, financed a deal involving Donald Trump’s onetime partner in a Toronto hotel tower at a key moment for the project, according to people familiar with the transaction. Alexander Shnaider, a Russian-Canadian developer who built the 65-story Trump International Hotel and Tower, put money into the project after receiving hundreds of millions of dollars from a separate asset sale that involved the Russian bank, whose full name is Vnesheconombank. "\* So, according to you, this is now time for “breathless revelations”, no? This is going to be about money and campaign finance with a deliciously ironic soupcon of Russian money laundering. ---
**Author:** ![Fotheringay-Phipps](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/d9b06d/32.png) [@Fotheringay-Phipps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fotheringay-Phipps)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2017, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/255 "2017-05-17T17:22:48Z")
That’s the problem with these types of allegations. If you’re treating a business deal involving a “onetime partner” as a Trump contact with the Russians, then there’s no limit. Trump must have had hundreds of partners in his various business deals over the years, and each of these “onetime partners” has any number of other business ventures. It’s inevitable that you can find this type of link to Russian banks (or German, British, French etc. banks). This is all nothing. But hey, do you know how many people linked to the Clintons mysteriously turned up dead? ---
**Author:** ![Okrahoma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/90db22/32.png) [@Okrahoma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Okrahoma)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2017, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/256 "2017-05-17T17:24:42Z")
> [@Fiveyearlurker](#): > > Also, in the news this morning: > > Another one of Trump’s [“few exceptions”](https://www.wsj.com/articles/russian-state-run-bank-financed-deal-involving-trump-hotel-partner-1495031708) to his dealings with Russia. No doubt on the up and up. > > "\*VEB, a Russian state-run bank under scrutiny by U.S. investigators, financed a deal involving Donald Trump’s onetime partner in a Toronto hotel tower at a key moment for the project, according to people familiar with the transaction. > > Alexander Shnaider, a Russian-Canadian developer who built the 65-story Trump International Hotel and Tower, put money into the project after receiving hundreds of millions of dollars from a separate asset sale that involved the Russian bank, whose full name is Vnesheconombank. "\* This is pathetic. One-time-Trump-partner finances something with a Russian bank. Exactly how is Trump involved? ---
**Author:** ![Fiveyearlurker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/da6949/32.png) [@Fiveyearlurker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiveyearlurker)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2017, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/257 "2017-05-17T17:26:20Z")
_“U.S. investigators are looking into any ties between Russian financial institutions, Mr. Trump and anyone in his orbit, according to a person familiar with the probe. As part of the investigation, they’re examining interactions **between Mr. Trump** , his associates and VEB, which is now subject to U.S. sanctions, said another person familiar with the matter”_ Nothing about the subpoena, **Okrahoma**? ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2017, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/258 "2017-05-17T17:26:56Z")
😃 The President of the United States needs money from a Russian bank that was outlawed (or a State enterprise) 26 years ago, is run by people raised to be Communists and now have to answer to an ex-KGB agent, and yon President cannot even get a loan from a bank in a traditional capitalistic society (except for Duetschebank (sp)). But that’s normal. 😃 Nothing to see here! ---
**Author:** ![Okrahoma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/90db22/32.png) [@Okrahoma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Okrahoma)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2017, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/259 "2017-05-17T17:31:29Z")
> [@Fiveyearlurker](#): > > _“U.S. investigators are looking into any ties between Russian financial institutions, Mr. Trump and anyone in his orbit, according to a person familiar with the probe. As part of the investigation, they’re examining interactions **between Mr. Trump** , his associates and VEB, which is now subject to U.S. sanctions, said another person familiar with the matter”_ > > Nothing about the subpoena, **Okrahoma**? Again, pathetic. Manafort. Carter Page. Flynn. When will you finally get to Trump? ---
**Author:** ![Fiveyearlurker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/da6949/32.png) [@Fiveyearlurker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiveyearlurker)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2017, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/260 "2017-05-17T17:33:14Z")
> [@Okrahoma](#): > > **I don’t expect any that are not Flynn (or Carter Page**, though he’s too much of an idiot to be charged) related. But if there are any, THEN the breathless revelations of subpoenas would be justified. These are just ho-hum. (bolding mine) I could have sworn that goal post was around here somewhere. ---
**Author:** ![Okrahoma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/90db22/32.png) [@Okrahoma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Okrahoma)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2017, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/261 "2017-05-17T17:34:33Z")
> [@Fiveyearlurker](#): > > (bolding mine) > > I could have sworn that goal post was around here somewhere. Manafort. Still a pathetic try. On par with “one-time-Trump-business-partner” crap you tried to pull above. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799.md?page=12) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799.md?page=14)