# 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:** 20
**Author:** ![mikecurtis](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mikecurtis/32/3284_2.png) [@mikecurtis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mikecurtis)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2017, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/382 "2017-06-21T18:06:40Z")
He won’t always be President! mc ---
**Author:** ![Fiveyearlurker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/da6949/32.png) [@Fiveyearlurker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiveyearlurker)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2017, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/383 "2017-06-21T20:06:04Z")
> [@Euphonious\_Polemic](#): > > For the 27% core, there is nothing, literally nothing that would make them change their support of Trump. Everything can be explained away as either a good thing, or a fake thing. That’s deplorable. If only there were a basket for such people. ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2017, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/384 "2017-06-22T16:43:34Z")
[Possible smoking gun.](http://www.politicususa.com/2017/06/22/hacking.html) Though politicususa has a left bent, they are quoting Time which is pretty much straight up neutral. > [@](#): > > The Trump campaign could use the private data of voters to build a database that would help them their campaign to specific voters. If the Russian hacked data ended up with the Trump campaign, that would be the collusion smoking gun. The data would be extremely valuable to the Trump campaign, and if Trump was working with Russia could be useful in helping the Russians tamper with voter records to undermine U.S. democracy. Before you say the connection has yet to be proven, you’re right. But what else would the Russians do with hacked election data, if not make it available to their favored candidate? ---
**Author:** ![Fiveyearlurker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/da6949/32.png) [@Fiveyearlurker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiveyearlurker)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2017, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/385 "2017-06-22T16:59:34Z")
> [@BobLibDem](#): > > [Possible smoking gun.](http://www.politicususa.com/2017/06/22/hacking.html) > > Though politicususa has a left bent, they are quoting Time which is pretty much straight up neutral. > > Before you say the connection has yet to be proven, you’re right. But what else would the Russians do with hacked election data, if not make it available to their favored candidate? Well, Trump did seem pretty certain that the election was being rigged, if I remember correctly. ---
**Author:** ![Fiveyearlurker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/da6949/32.png) [@Fiveyearlurker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiveyearlurker)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2017, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/386 "2017-06-22T17:07:39Z")
This puts stories like [this one from election day](http://www.newsobserver.com/news/local/counties/durham-county/article113225473.html) into a new light, no?: \*"Durham County Board of Elections Chair Bill Brian said the county took its electronic voting system offline after problems popped up at several precincts. Poll workers were unable to look up voter registration information digitally, so they turned to paper records. That requires the use of paper forms, and when some precincts ran out of the forms, voting ground to a halt. “It appeared that some of the data from prior elections had not been cleared out, and people were being improperly listed as having already voted,” Brian said. “They didn’t have the right software, it appears. Why that happened, we don’t know yet.”"\* If voting was made more difficult in some counties than others, that is no different than changing a vote. If this is true (usual caveats), how doesn’t this invalidate the whole damn thing? ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2017, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/387 "2017-06-22T17:20:13Z")
> [@Fiveyearlurker](#): > > This puts stories like [this one from election day](http://www.newsobserver.com/news/local/counties/durham-county/article113225473.html) into a new light, no?: > > \*"Durham County Board of Elections Chair Bill Brian said the county took its electronic voting system offline after problems popped up at several precincts. Poll workers were unable to look up voter registration information digitally, so they turned to paper records. That requires the use of paper forms, and when some precincts ran out of the forms, voting ground to a halt. > > “It appeared that some of the data from prior elections had not been cleared out, and people were being improperly listed as having already voted,” Brian said. “They didn’t have the right software, it appears. Why that happened, we don’t know yet.”"\* > > If voting was made more difficult in some counties than others, that is no different than changing a vote. If this is true (usual caveats), how doesn’t this invalidate the whole damn thing? IF it’s not invalid if the republicans do it, it’s not invalid if the russians do it either. ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2017, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/388 "2017-06-22T17:25:50Z")
> [@Fiveyearlurker](#): > > If voting was made more difficult in some counties than others, that is no different than changing a vote. If this is true (usual caveats), how doesn’t this invalidate the whole damn thing? All one needs to do is identify those counties and precincts that can flip a state and how many voters to disenfranchise it takes to do it. Do that in just a few states and you can steal the White House- and quite possibly did. ---
**Author:** ![Okrahoma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/90db22/32.png) [@Okrahoma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Okrahoma)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2017, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/389 "2017-06-22T18:44:32Z")
[LOL](https://scontent.fhou1-1.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/19366166_1814888291860645_2601832991809462671_n.jpg?oh=dc90846960ff2b8fa2c97706d59cfb5d&oe=59DF864A) ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2017, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/390 "2017-06-22T18:46:48Z")
> [@Okrahoma](#): > > [LOL](https://scontent.fhou1-1.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/19366166_1814888291860645_2601832991809462671_n.jpg?oh=dc90846960ff2b8fa2c97706d59cfb5d&oe=59DF864A) Bwahahahaazzzzzzz BobLibDem, there’s no such thing as a “possible smoking gun.” If you don’t see the smoke yet, you gotta wait. As for what else Russia could do with that data, they could use it to refine their Facebook and Twitter propaganda strategies. I’m still waiting. ---
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2017, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/391 "2017-06-22T19:53:44Z")
> [@BobLibDem](#): > > All one needs to do is identify those counties and precincts that can flip a state and how many voters to disenfranchise it takes to do it. Do that in just a few states and you can steal the White House- and quite possibly did. In last night’s show, Rachel Maddow laid out the case fairly clearly for a concentration of ‘messing with the voter rolls, etc.’ in counties and precincts that traditionally lean Democratic. (It’s her lead segment, which as is often the case, has a slow build–it starts with information about Oliver Stone’s Putin documentary/hagiography. Patience will be rewarded with the Democratic-leaning-precincts stuff after a couple minutes.) > [@](#): > > **US election officials still assessing Russian 2016 cyber attack:** > Rachel Maddow looks at how the US voting system consists of thousands of individual precincts, making it harder to hack as a whole, but also more difficult to monitor and defend, making assessment of Russia’s 2016 hack tricky. Duration: 24:57 > **[Rachel Maddow Show on MSNBC | Watch Rachel Maddow Live](https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show)** > > More about the MSNBC Rachel Maddow Show airing weeknights at 9 PM. Watch Rachel Maddow tonight or online with updated video & episodes at MSNBC. ---
**Author:** ![Okrahoma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/90db22/32.png) [@Okrahoma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Okrahoma)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2017, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/392 "2017-06-24T18:41:49Z")
[Dems push leaders to talk less about Russia](http://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/339248-dems-push-leaders-to-talk-less-about-russia) I really hope the “leaders” do not listen. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2017, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/393 "2017-06-24T19:32:08Z")
We’ve got that latest on that. It was totally a hoax that never happened and its Obama’s fault that it did. ---
**Author:** ![Fiveyearlurker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/da6949/32.png) [@Fiveyearlurker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiveyearlurker)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2017, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/394 "2017-06-24T22:29:33Z")
[Benjamin Wittes](https://twitter.com/benjaminwittes), pal of Comey, posted on Twitter some tease that something is coming. He’s posted “Tick, tick, tick” before, and there was a boom. ---
**Author:** ![asahi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asahi/32/8693_2.png) [@asahi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asahi)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2017, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/395 "2017-06-25T01:43:04Z")
Today was significant. Trump may not be able to brush aside controversies about his behavior as president, but he can absolutely muddy the waters and weaken the public’s resolve to get to the bottom of the case. He can absolutely make the argument that if the Russian attempts to hack the election weren’t important enough for Obama to stop, then why are we investigating them now? My criticism of Obama’s handling of Russia still stands. He was too much of a puss to confront Putin when it mattered, and his (and Kerry’s) attempts to lash out at Putin with 2 weeks left in their term was a fraudulent attempt at manhood. ---
**Author:** ![Fiveyearlurker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/da6949/32.png) [@Fiveyearlurker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiveyearlurker)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2017, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/396 "2017-06-25T01:45:27Z")
> [@asahi](#): > > He can absolutely make the argument that if the Russian attempts to hack the election weren’t important enough for Obama to stop, then why are we investigating them now? Of course he can make that argument. I mean, it’s an incredibly stupid argument, so I fully expect that he will make that argument. ---
**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:** [June 25, 2017, 2:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/397 "2017-06-25T02:39:35Z")
> [@Fiveyearlurker](#): > > [Benjamin Wittes](https://twitter.com/benjaminwittes), pal of Comey, posted on Twitter some tease that something is coming. He’s posted “Tick, tick, tick” before, and there was a boom. What was the boom last time? ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Economist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/c89c15/32.png) [@Evil\_Economist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Economist)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2017, 2:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/398 "2017-06-25T02:50:48Z")
> [@Bayard](#): > > What was the boom last time? [Here you go.](https://twitter.com/benjaminwittes/status/872509992938688512) ---
**Author:** ![asahi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asahi/32/8693_2.png) [@asahi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asahi)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2017, 2:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/399 "2017-06-25T02:55:37Z")
> [@Fiveyearlurker](#): > > Of course he can make that argument. I mean, it’s an incredibly stupid argument, so I fully expect that he will make that argument. You can call it “stupid” if you want. But if progressives are trying to peel away at Trump’s support, they’re going to have a hard time if all they do is rely on the Russia investigation. ---
**Author:** ![crucible](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/5f8ce5/32.png) [@crucible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/crucible)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2017, 1:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/400 "2017-06-25T13:02:01Z")
If Obama is honest, he will admit that he didn’t think Thrump had any chance of winning and was working on a quiet, powerful cyberresponse to Putin. I recall posting back then that I expected the Moscow Subway to suddenly grind to a halt and the sewage treatment plants to begin dumping raw sewage in to the River next to the Kremlin. I think that was, more than any other reason, the reason for what looked like a tepid response to Putin’s meddling. No expectation it was going to change anything, and HRC would be able to follow through on setting up the timebombs in the Russian computer systems. It could, validly, be called part of the response to the Ukraine rebel support and the Syrian tyrant support. In fact, Russians also have elections. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2017, 2:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/401 "2017-06-25T14:08:16Z")
> [@crucible](#): > > In fact, Russians also have elections. Tell another joke. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799.md?page=19) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799.md?page=21)