# 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:** 2
**Author:** ![Simplicio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c37758/32.png) [@Simplicio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Simplicio)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/21 "2017-03-26T14:18:02Z")
> [@Sunny\_Daze](#): > > A CNN correspondent and Harvard professor, Juliette Kayyem, is saying this on twitter: > " > From my sources and what has been openly reported, it increasingly looks like #Flynn may have a deal with the FBI. #trumprussia" > > I look forward to hearing more. Eh, again, this is just someone putting widely spread rumors in the mouth of anonymous sources to make them seem more sexy and credible. If he were willing to say that Flynn actually did cut a deal it would be noteworthy, but the fact that Flynn _might_ have is the opposite of news. Its second hand reporting of someone elses guesses. Probably a lost cause, but I wish the major media outlets would knock this off. ---
**Author:** ![Ann\_Hedonia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ann_hedonia/32/319_2.png) [@Ann\_Hedonia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ann_Hedonia)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/22 "2017-03-26T17:25:51Z")
> [@Simplicio](#): > > So 9 months after Trump’s campaign chair resigned over his ties to Russia, 6 months after another advisor bragged about knowing in advance when Russian anti-Hillary info dumps were coming, a month after his National Security Director resigned over the same and a few weeks after his AG recused himself from the investigation for lying about a meeting with the Russian Ambassador during the campaign: “Trump Associates may have colluded with Russians” seems like kind of a weird headline. Then there was the time Trump went on national TV and asked Russia to hack his opponent’s e-mail. My view is that the damage has been done whether or not the allegations are true. Russia has denied their involvement up to now. But if they wanted to, they could leak evidence of collusion. So they now OWN Trump by virtue of this issue. And everyone is talking about the timing of Trumps pro-Russia positions on Ukraine but I think his anti-NATO positions are even more damning. And The Bannon Breitbart alt-right Paleo-conservative contingent is totally into Russia. > **[Everything You Need to Know About Steve Bannon, Breitbart, & Russia](https://www.dailykos.com/story/2016/11/18/1601406/-Everything-You-Need-to-Know-About-Steve-Bannon-Breitbart-Russia)** > > Steve Bannon, Breitbart, & The Alt-Right Is Working With Russia and Here is Proof The modern Alt-Right sees themselves as a modern “Pat Buchanan,” John Birch, and William F. Buckley far right intellectuals that want to bring down Western,... [https://townhall.com/columnists/patbuchanan/2013/12/17/is-putin-one-of-us-n1764094](https://townhall.com/columnists/patbuchanan/2013/12/17/is-putin-one-of-us-n1764094) ---
**Author:** ![Simplicio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c37758/32.png) [@Simplicio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Simplicio)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/23 "2017-03-26T18:55:27Z")
> [@elucidator](#): > > Somebody in the Trump camp? Yeah, sure, but not him. Gonna have to see a lot of evidence to get over my conviction that nobody would be dumb enough to tell him a secret that fucking big. I doubt trust is something Putin has a lot of. I don’t think the Russians ever thought this scam would get this far. Part of the point was to make it pretty clear that Trump was their guy, to embarrass the US at how far an obviously compromised candidate could get. Indeed, when the intel dossier was published a few months ago, a lot of the media focus was unsurprisingly on the story of Turmps supposed urine fetish. But most of the actual document was about how the Russians were getting increasingly freaked out about how well their plan was working, fearing that the end result would just be a pissed off President Hillary and an American Public ready for the Cold War part deux. ---
**Author:** ![Fuzzy\_wuzzy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a8b319/32.png) [@Fuzzy\_wuzzy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fuzzy_wuzzy)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/24 "2017-03-26T19:12:31Z")
> [@Ann\_Hedonia](#): > > **Then there was the time Trump went on national TV and asked Russia to hack his opponent’s e-mail.** > My view is that the damage has been done whether or not the allegations are true. Russia has denied their involvement up to now. But if they wanted to, they could leak evidence of collusion. So they now OWN Trump by virtue of this issue. > > And everyone is talking about the timing of Trumps pro-Russia positions on Ukraine but I think his anti-NATO positions are even more damning. And The Bannon Breitbart alt-right Paleo-conservative contingent is totally into Russia. > > [Everything You Need to Know About Steve Bannon, Breitbart, & Russia](http://www.dailykos.com/story/2016/11/18/1601406/-Everything-You-Need-to-Know-About-Steve-Bannon-Breitbart-Russia) > > [https://townhall.com/columnists/patbuchanan/2013/12/17/is-putin-one-of-us-n1764094](https://townhall.com/columnists/patbuchanan/2013/12/17/is-putin-one-of-us-n1764094) Trump did no such thing. ---
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/25 "2017-03-26T19:25:12Z")
> [@Fuzzy\_wuzzy](#): > > Trump did no such thing. How do you figure? It was widely [reported](http://www.politico.com/story/2016/07/trump-putin-no-relationship-226282) at the time. From that link: > [@](#): > > “I will tell you this, Russia: If you’re listening, I hope you’re able to find the 30,000 emails that are missing,” the Republican nominee said at a news conference in Florida. “I think you will probably be rewarded mightily by our press.” ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/26 "2017-03-26T19:34:15Z")
> [@Ann\_Hedonia](#): > > And everyone is talking about the timing of Trumps pro-Russia positions on Ukraine but I think his anti-NATO positions are even more damning. And The Bannon Breitbart alt-right Paleo-conservative contingent is totally into Russia. > > [Everything You Need to Know About Steve Bannon, Breitbart, & Russia](http://www.dailykos.com/story/2016/11/18/1601406/-Everything-You-Need-to-Know-About-Steve-Bannon-Breitbart-Russia) > > [https://townhall.com/columnists/patbuchanan/2013/12/17/is-putin-one-of-us-n1764094](https://townhall.com/columnists/patbuchanan/2013/12/17/is-putin-one-of-us-n1764094) That seems a bit like confirmation bias. Trump’s ‘anti-NATO’ position is better described as browbeating NATO into increasing their defense spending. That’s not in Putin’s interest. And Trump has been a huge proponent of fracking and more oil drilling, which affects Russia’s bottom line directly. Putin also can’t be thrilled with Trump’s plan to heavily invest in expanding the U.S. military, nor can he be particularly happy with Trump’s strong Israel positions or the apparent shift towards a more aggressive policy towards Iran, For every thing Trump has said or done that would seem to benefit Russia, there are multipke others that are a direct threat to Russian interests. So it’s very hard to see why Putin would want Trump over Hillary, whose state department watched fecklessly as Russia gained territory and power around the world. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/27 "2017-03-26T19:39:04Z")
> [@Fuzzy\_wuzzy](#): > > > [@Ann\_Hedonia](#): > > > > Then there was the time Trump went on national TV and asked Russia to hack his opponent’s e-mail. > > Trump did no such thing. [‘Russia, if you’re listening, I hope you’re able to find the 30,000 emails that are missing.’](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gNa2B5zHfbQ&t=0m32s) ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/28 "2017-03-26T20:41:10Z")
Actually, I think that was sheer sarcasm, which is hard to parse when the speaker has no actual sense of humor or irony. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/29 "2017-03-26T20:45:03Z")
> [@Sam\_Stone](#): > > That seems a bit like confirmation bias. Trump’s ‘anti-NATO’ position is better described as browbeating NATO into increasing their defense spending. That’s not in Putin’s interest. And Trump has been a huge proponent of fracking and more oil drilling, which affects Russia’s bottom line directly. Putin also can’t be thrilled with Trump’s plan to heavily invest in expanding the U.S. military, nor can he be particularly happy with Trump’s strong Israel positions or the apparent shift towards a more aggressive policy towards Iran, > > For every thing Trump has said or done that would seem to benefit Russia, there are multipke others that are a direct threat to Russian interests. So it’s very hard to see why Putin would want Trump over Hillary, whose state department watched fecklessly as Russia gained territory and power around the world. And Mr. Tillerson, prime minister of the sovereign nation of Exxon? His plan to cut a deal with Russia, pump a whole bunch of petrodollars into Putin’s pocket? Did you miss that part, or was it inconvenient? You did notice that he is now SecState, yes? ---
**Author:** ![Fuzzy\_wuzzy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a8b319/32.png) [@Fuzzy\_wuzzy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fuzzy_wuzzy)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/30 "2017-03-26T21:40:55Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > [‘Russia, if you’re listening, I hope you’re able to find the 30,000 emails that are missing.’](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gNa2B5zHfbQ&t=0m32s) Which is not the same as asking Russia to hack his opponent. The hack had _already_ occurred. I shouldn’t have to point out that Clinton’s server had been wiped. The emails were completely missing. Not a trace of them were left according to multiple sources and investigations. Trump was asking the Russian’s to find(in another statement he asked them to release) the 30,000 emails. He was assuming the “hacking” had already taken place. The only way on Gods earth 30,000 wiped Clinton emails could have been found was if Russia _already_ had them in their possession _before_ they were wiped. Unless that is you believe the 30,000 emails were somehow still on Clinton’s server after this statement by Trump? ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/31 "2017-03-26T21:45:58Z")
> [@Fuzzy\_wuzzy](#): > > Which is not the same as asking Russia to hack his opponent. Yes, it is. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Ace](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/6bbea6/32.png) [@Johnny\_Ace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Ace)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/32 "2017-03-26T21:54:53Z")
> [@Sam\_Stone](#): > > For every thing Trump has said or done that would seem to benefit Russia, there are multipke others that are a direct threat to Russian interests. So it’s very hard to see why Putin would want Trump over Hillary, whose state department watched fecklessly as Russia gained territory and power around the world. Because Putin hates and fears Hillary far more, and probably knew that Trump would be a feckless opponent. ---
**Author:** ![Fuzzy\_wuzzy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a8b319/32.png) [@Fuzzy\_wuzzy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fuzzy_wuzzy)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/33 "2017-03-26T22:00:08Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > Yes, it is. That’s that settled then. Im still confused as to how a wiped and destroyed server can be hacked. 😕 Far more likely Trump was talking of an event which took place long before he’s discussing it on the campaign trail clips. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/34 "2017-03-26T22:27:45Z")
She destroyed the server? What, put it in a server destroyer machine, had it ground up? Those things are kinda expensive, maybe you should check your source on that. Either that, or refrain from embellishment. If its not too much trouble. ---
**Author:** ![Simplicio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c37758/32.png) [@Simplicio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Simplicio)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/35 "2017-03-26T22:39:50Z")
> [@Fuzzy\_wuzzy](#): > > He was assuming the “hacking” had already taken place. The only way on Gods earth 30,000 wiped Clinton emails could have been found was if Russia _already_ had them in their possession _before_ they were wiped. > > Unless that is you believe the 30,000 emails were somehow still on Clinton’s server after this statement by Trump? Or the recipients of the emails were hacked. One likely place to look for such emails might be the gmail account of her campaign chairperson, for example. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 11:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/36 "2017-03-26T23:46:55Z")
> [@Johnny\_Ace](#): > > Because Putin hates and fears Hillary far more, and probably knew that Trump would be a feckless opponent. Other stories are that he never actually expected his blackmailee to _win_ (who did?), but only wanted his primary antagonist, President Clinton, to be incurably weakened politically, with the possible bonus of discrediting democracy itself among Americans. ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2017, 12:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/37 "2017-03-27T00:27:41Z")
> [@Sam\_Stone](#): > > For every thing Trump has said or done that would seem to benefit Russia, there are multipke others that are a direct threat to Russian interests. So it’s very hard to see why Putin would want Trump over Hillary, whose state department watched fecklessly as Russia gained territory and power around the world. 1. Hillary would have **actively** sought to combat Russian aggression. That’s a lot worse than having someone getting in your way, every once in a while, by happenstance. 2. Hillary is competent. Where Trump works against Putin, he’ll do so incompetently. One thing that hasn’t gotten much press, but seemed pretty clear from the Politico timeline, is that Bernie Sanders was also aided by Russia during the primaries. Putin **really** didn’t want Hillary to get the job. ---
**Author:** ![Snarky\_Kong](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a183cd/32.png) [@Snarky\_Kong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snarky_Kong)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2017, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/38 "2017-03-27T01:07:55Z")
Golly gee guys, why can’t you see that asking someone to publicly release digital records that are hidden is completely different than asking them to hack. And why don’t you stop assuming that a president that calls for sanctions relief, recognizing Russia military conquests, cooperation on Syria, and destruction of the most dominant military alliance in world history would be preferred by Putin. Going to far out on a limb! ---
**Author:** ![Fuzzy\_wuzzy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a8b319/32.png) [@Fuzzy\_wuzzy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fuzzy_wuzzy)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2017, 5:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/39 "2017-03-27T05:49:39Z")
> [@elucidator](#): > > She destroyed the server? What, put it in a server destroyer machine, had it ground up? Those things are kinda expensive, maybe you should check your source on that. Either that, or refrain from embellishment. If its not too much trouble. Nope. Sorry, it was her phones that were physically destroyed; her server was wiped. Every piece of evidence as good as destroyed. Everything. How can it then be hacked? Perhaps you can tell those on this thread embellishing against Trump to stop embellishing too. I suspect you won’t. ---
**Author:** ![Fuzzy\_wuzzy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a8b319/32.png) [@Fuzzy\_wuzzy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fuzzy_wuzzy)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2017, 5:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/40 "2017-03-27T05:56:38Z")
> [@Simplicio](#): > > Or the recipients of the emails were hacked. One likely place to look for such emails might be the gmail account of her campaign chairperson, for example. Once again though, that would be a hack that had already occurred. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799.md?page=3)