# 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:** 49
**Author:** ![Okrahoma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/90db22/32.png) [@Okrahoma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Okrahoma)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2017, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/963 "2017-07-14T02:05:01Z")
… Paul Begala goes crazy, urging US to “[blow up the KGB or GRU](https://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2017/07/13/paul_begala_we_should_be_considering_blowing_up_the_kgb_over_alleged_election_interference.html)”. ---
**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:** [July 14, 2017, 2:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/964 "2017-07-14T02:15:46Z")
> [@Okrahoma](#): > > … Paul Begala goes crazy, urging US to “[blow up the KGB or GRU](https://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2017/07/13/paul_begala_we_should_be_considering_blowing_up_the_kgb_over_alleged_election_interference.html)”. I believe you’re looking for the Stupid Liberal Idea of the Day thread. **Clothahump** would probably appreciate the help finding real live stupid liberal ideas for that one. What do Begala’s comments have to do with whether or not Trump coordinated with the Russians? Begala can say all kinds of crazy shit, and it doesn’t change the fact that Donald Trump Jr. admitted going to a meeting with a Russian lawyer specifically to get damaging information on Clinton. ---
**Author:** ![Okrahoma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/90db22/32.png) [@Okrahoma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Okrahoma)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2017, 3:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/965 "2017-07-14T03:01:46Z")
> [@Bayard](#): > > I believe you’re looking for the Stupid Liberal Idea of the Day thread. **Clothahump** would probably appreciate the help finding real live stupid liberal ideas for that one. Why not? It is somewhat (though tangentially) related, Begala’s stupid utterings are not worth starting a new thread over, and I avoid the Pit, because it’s a silly place where posters go to giggle like schoolgirls reveling in the prurient pleasure of uttering naughty words. ---
**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:** [July 14, 2017, 3:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/966 "2017-07-14T03:27:06Z")
> [@Okrahoma](#): > > … Paul Begala goes crazy, urging US to “[blow up the KGB or GRU](https://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2017/07/13/paul_begala_we_should_be_considering_blowing_up_the_kgb_over_alleged_election_interference.html)”. To be fair, he wasn’t really urging, so much as asking if we should blow up the KGB in retaliation. Either way, though, it’s an idiotic thought. ---
**Author:** ![Euphonious\_Polemic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/euphonious_polemic/32/3002_2.png) [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2017, 3:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/967 "2017-07-14T03:55:36Z")
My guess is that [Trump is going to need a new lawyer soon.](https://www.propublica.org/article/marc-kasowitz-trump-lawyer-threat-emails-maddow) > [@](#): > > Marc Kasowitz, President Trump’s personal attorney on the Russia case, threatened a stranger in a string of profanity-laden emails Wednesday night. He started with the classic “F\*ck you” and then sent more emails that got increasingly hostile and creepy; "“I’m on you now. You are fucking with me now Let’s see who you are Watch your back , bitch.” " I already know where you live, I’m on you. You might as well call me. You will see me. I promise." It’s been rumoured that Kasowitz has a bit of a problem with alcohol, and therefore getting a security clearance might be a challenge. I’d say that getting a security clearance will be impossible at this point. Probably a blessing in disguise for him - Just ask John Dean. ---
**Author:** ![Fubaya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c2a13f/32.png) [@Fubaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fubaya)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2017, 4:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/968 "2017-07-14T04:05:38Z")
> [@Euphonious\_Polemic](#): > > My guess is that [Trump is going to need a new lawyer soon.](https://www.propublica.org/article/marc-kasowitz-trump-lawyer-threat-emails-maddow) > **[Trump’s legal team faces tensions — and a client who often takes his own counsel](https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/trumps-legal-team-faces-tensions--and-a-client-who-often-takes-his-own-counsel/2017/07/13/07361fc6-67eb-11e7-8eb5-cbccc2e7bfbf_story.html?tid=pm_pop&utm_term=.a467da71086b)** > > Lawyers for Trump and Kushner struggle to enforce traditional legal boundaries in a chaotic White House. He’s trying to get the GOP to pay his legal fees. _Another question is who will pay the legal fees for the president and administration officials involved in the Russia inquiries. Some in Trump’s orbit are pushing the Republican National Committee to bear the costs, said three people with knowledge of the situation, including one who euphemistically described the debate as a “robust discussion.”_ ---
**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:** [July 14, 2017, 4:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/969 "2017-07-14T04:19:50Z")
> [@Fubaya](#): > > [https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/trumps-legal-team-faces-tensions--and-a-client-who-often-takes-his-own-counsel/2017/07/13/07361fc6-67eb-11e7-8eb5-cbccc2e7bfbf\_story.html?tid=pm\_pop&utm\_term=.a467da71086b](https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/trumps-legal-team-faces-tensions--and-a-client-who-often-takes-his-own-counsel/2017/07/13/07361fc6-67eb-11e7-8eb5-cbccc2e7bfbf_story.html?tid=pm_pop&utm_term=.a467da71086b) > > He’s trying to get the GOP to pay his legal fees. > > _Another question is who will pay the legal fees for the president and administration officials involved in the Russia inquiries. Some in Trump’s orbit are pushing the Republican National Committee to bear the costs, said three people with knowledge of the situation, including one who euphemistically described the debate as a “robust discussion.”_ Just in case anyone in the RNC is worried about running out of funds, I believe that Trump knows some people in Russia who would gladly spot you some cash. Very few questions asked. Maybe just the occasional favor. ---
**Author:** ![Fubaya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c2a13f/32.png) [@Fubaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fubaya)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2017, 4:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/970 "2017-07-14T04:23:14Z")
> [@Superdude](#): > > To be fair, he wasn’t really urging, so much as asking if we should blow up the KGB in retaliation. > > Either way, though, it’s an idiotic thought. I wouldn’t say he’s even asking either. It’s a thousand times more tame in the video. His point was that we were attacked and we should be debating how to retaliate for that attack. Blowing up the KGB was an off the cuff example of retaliating by force. There isn’t a bit of seriousness behind it. ---
**Author:** ![Merneith](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/57b2e6/32.png) [@Merneith](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Merneith)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2017, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/971 "2017-07-14T04:51:55Z")
Don the Con told a bunch of reporters that he just might have known about that meeting after all. [https://thinkprogress.org/trump-contradicts-himself-on-russian-lawyer-meeting-a73c7d9420b1](https://thinkprogress.org/trump-contradicts-himself-on-russian-lawyer-meeting-a73c7d9420b1) > [@think progress article above](#): > > On Wednesday, President Donald Trump told Reuters that, until the New York Times broke news of it on Saturday, he had not known about his eldest son’s June 2016 meeting with with a Kremlin-connected lawyer who had promised to provide the Trump campaign with incriminating information about Hillary Clinton. > > “No, that I didn’t know until a couple of days ago when I heard about this,” Trump said, asked if he knew about the meeting between the attorney and Donald Trump, Jr. (Adviser and son-in-law Jared Kushner also attended the meeting, as did campaign chairman Paul Manafort.) > > Shortly after that interview, Trump boarded Air Force One and took off for Paris, where he’s celebrating Bastille Day with French President Emmanuel Macron. On the flight there, he offered pool reporters remarks contradicting what he told Reuters. (Reporters initially thought their conversation with Trump was off the record, but the White House later released excerpts.) > > Asked about the meeting, Trump repeated his son’s story about how the Russian lawyer used the promise of dirt on Hillary to finagle a meeting that she really intended to make about adoption policy. > > “They talked about the adoption stuff, which was actually a big thing at the time, but nothing happened,” Trump said. > > But he went on to indicate that he may have known about the meeting before last weekend after all: “In fact maybe it was mentioned at some point,” he added. > > According to the White House pool report, Trump was quick to point out that while he may have been told about the meeting, he didn’t know that it was supposed to be about dirt on Hillary Clinton. He’s so pathological, he can’t bear the idea that people might think he was out of the loop, even if being out the loop is in his own best interest. ---
**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:** [July 14, 2017, 5:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/972 "2017-07-14T05:35:56Z")
One big thing jumps out at me in this discussion: I have a great deal of trouble trusting legal analysis from a Trump supporter. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2017, 6:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/973 "2017-07-14T06:04:30Z")
> [@Aspenglow](#): > > That’s true, and it is an element of conspiracy – one that can be hard to prove. Fortunately, my understanding is that proof is to the “reasonable person” standard, so if it can be shown that a reasonable person would or should have known it was illegal, then that’ll do. But then wouldn’t the prosecution need to prove that the defendant is a reasonable person? :D:p ---
**Author:** ![Aspenglow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspenglow/32/76_2.png) [@Aspenglow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspenglow)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2017, 6:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/974 "2017-07-14T06:20:43Z")
> [@kaylasdad99](#): > > But then wouldn’t the prosecution need to prove that the defendant is a reasonable person? :D:p Sometimes my brain rabbits around a bit… I was thinking about conspiracy because of Don Jr. and his cohorts, while simultaneously thinking about crimes that require proof of an element of intent, such as the one I cited later (aggravated mayhem). It’s why I checked to see if conspiracy actually required an element of intent. It doesn’t. My momentary confusion spilled over into the thread, I’m afraid… Personally, I think it would be quite a challenge to prove any of these characters in the dumpster fire that is the Trump presidency to be “reasonable.” :o But then, it’s a sure bet I’d be tossed off any jury. ---
**Author:** ![Aspenglow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspenglow/32/76_2.png) [@Aspenglow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspenglow)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2017, 6:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/975 "2017-07-14T06:22:20Z")
> [@Fubaya](#): > > [https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/trumps-legal-team-faces-tensions--and-a-client-who-often-takes-his-own-counsel/2017/07/13/07361fc6-67eb-11e7-8eb5-cbccc2e7bfbf\_story.html?tid=pm\_pop&utm\_term=.a467da71086b](https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/trumps-legal-team-faces-tensions--and-a-client-who-often-takes-his-own-counsel/2017/07/13/07361fc6-67eb-11e7-8eb5-cbccc2e7bfbf_story.html?tid=pm_pop&utm_term=.a467da71086b) > > He’s trying to get the GOP to pay his legal fees. > > _Another question is who will pay the legal fees for the president and administration officials involved in the Russia inquiries. Some in Trump’s orbit are pushing the Republican National Committee to bear the costs, said three people with knowledge of the situation, including one who **euphemistically described the debate as a “robust discussion.”** _ Absolutely cracked me up. Thanks for the laugh!! ---
**Author:** ![Ravenman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ravenman/32/2929_2.png) [@Ravenman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ravenman)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2017, 9:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/976 "2017-07-14T09:53:17Z")
> [@Okrahoma](#): > > … Paul Begala goes crazy, urging US to “[blow up the KGB or GRU](https://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2017/07/13/paul_begala_we_should_be_considering_blowing_up_the_kgb_over_alleged_election_interference.html)”. Do you think he means that literally? Like if he said, “Health care reform just blew up in the faces of Senate Republicans,” would you be mocking him because no Senator has been sent to the hospital due to burns and other trauma? But it is good to know that you are concerned for the well-being of Russian intelligence services that are working daily against the interests of this country. Very Christian of you. If you could only muster such concern for your fellow Americans who vote Democratic, you might be in line for sainthood. ---
**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:** [July 14, 2017, 11:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/977 "2017-07-14T11:47:34Z")
The Russian lawyer who met with Little Trump, Kushner, and Manafort brought another person to the meeting. According to NBC, that person was a Russian lobbyist and former counter intelligence officer. > **[Former Soviet counterintelligence officer at meeting With Donald Trump Jr....](https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/russian-lawyer-brought-ex-soviet-counter-intelligence-officer-trump-team-n782851?cid=sm_npd_nn_tw_ma)** > > The Russian lawyer who met with Donald Trump Jr. was accompanied by a Russian-American lobbyist — a former Soviet counterintelligence officer, NBC News has learned. If the guy was looking for some intelligence to counter, he was in the wrong room. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2017, 12:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/978 "2017-07-14T12:07:25Z")
> [@Okrahoma](#): > > I avoid the Pit You don’t seem to have any problem posting in [this thread](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=813085). ---
**Author:** ![Mighty\_Girl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7bcc69/32.png) [@Mighty\_Girl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mighty_Girl)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2017, 12:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/979 "2017-07-14T12:37:44Z")
> [@Merneith](#): > > Don the Con told a bunch of reporters that he just might have known about that meeting after all. > > [https://thinkprogress.org/trump-contradicts-himself-on-russian-lawyer-meeting-a73c7d9420b1](https://thinkprogress.org/trump-contradicts-himself-on-russian-lawyer-meeting-a73c7d9420b1) > > He’s so pathological, he can’t bear the idea that people might think he was out of the loop, even if being out the loop is in his own best interest. He’s tangling that loop around his own neck. Like the Spanish saying goes: sharpening the knife for his own throat. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2017, 2:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/980 "2017-07-14T14:03:42Z")
[The Russian lawyer who met with the Trump team after a promise of compromising material on Hillary Clinton was accompanied by a Russian-American lobbyist — a former Soviet counterintelligence officer who is suspected by some U.S. officials of having ongoing ties to Russian intelligence, NBC News has learned.](http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/russian-lawyer-brought-ex-soviet-counter-intelligence-officer-trump-team-n782851) Why would a lobbyist be there? Something about lobbying for the repeal of the Magnitsky Act, perchance? ---
**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:** [July 14, 2017, 2:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/981 "2017-07-14T14:08:11Z")
“Former” intelligence officer. Thread title can officially be changed now. Strike the “may.” ---
**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:** [July 14, 2017, 2:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/982 "2017-07-14T14:12:31Z")
> [@Skywatcher](#): > > [The Russian lawyer who met with the Trump team after a promise of compromising material on Hillary Clinton was accompanied by a Russian-American lobbyist — a former Soviet counterintelligence officer who is suspected by some U.S. officials of having ongoing ties to Russian intelligence, NBC News has learned.](http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/russian-lawyer-brought-ex-soviet-counter-intelligence-officer-trump-team-n782851) > > Why would a lobbyist be there? Something about lobbying for the repeal of the Magnitsky Act, perchance? Just curious- why would the US give him citizenship? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799.md?page=48) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799.md?page=50)