# 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:** 71
**Author:** ![dasmoocher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/dbc845/32.png) [@dasmoocher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dasmoocher)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2017, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/1403 "2017-07-19T19:39:04Z")
> [@Fiveyearlurker](#): > > Assuming that Trump has a modicum of intelligence that having a personal meeting with no other Americans around is going to look really, really bad, it is logical to assume that the meeting, and its associated secrecy, was very important. > > Similar to hiding tax returns, the only reason to do it is if releasing them is even worse. Trump needed to say something in secret to Putin, and he was willing to risk the terrible optics to do it. **Donald Trump** : I pledge myself to your teachings. To the ways of the Oligarch. **Vladimir Putin** : Good. Good! The greed is strong with you, Donald Trump. A powerful Pawn you will become. Henceforth, you shall be known as Darth… Whiner. **Donald Trump** : Thank you… my Master. **Vladimir Putin** : Darth Whiner… rise. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2017, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/1404 "2017-07-19T19:49:18Z")
Maybe the “J.” stands for “Jar-Jar”? ---
**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:** [July 19, 2017, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/1405 "2017-07-19T19:52:37Z")
> [@Fiveyearlurker](#): > > …Similar to hiding tax returns, the only reason to do it is if releasing them is even worse. Trump needed to say something in secret to Putin, and he was willing to risk the terrible optics to do it. > [@dasmoocher](#): > > **Donald Trump** : I pledge myself to your teachings. To the ways of the Oligarch. > **Vladimir Putin** : Good. Good! The greed is strong with you, Donald Trump. A powerful Pawn you will become. Henceforth, you shall be known as Darth… Whiner. > … Or: TRUMP: I’m having a terrible time with this awful guy Mueller. I can’t ask you this over the phone, obviously–those nasty intelligence-service guys would be listening in–so I’ll ask now: could you get me some of that, what’s it called, pomolium? polandian? Something like that. That umbrella-tip stuff. PUTIN: Polonium. Well, maybe it could be worked out if we had our US compounds returned to us and if you let, oh, two hundred of my people in with no fussing over their credentials and background. TRUMP: How about three hundred? And feel free to have a couple of ships bring in whatever equipment you need–there won’t be any trouble at the ports. PUTIN: Donald, you are a true patriot. Your people have no idea what a major difference you are making in the history of the United States–your picture will be on the covers of all the textbooks! TRUMP: (dreamily) You think? Oh, that’s amazing. In the meantime, tell me about yourself. How did you become such an awesome guy??? ---
**Author:** ![The\_Devil\_s\_Grandmother](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/74df32/32.png) [@The\_Devil\_s\_Grandmother](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Devil_s_Grandmother)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2017, 7:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/1406 "2017-07-19T19:55:16Z")
> [@The\_Tooth](#): > > Do you believe him? Yes, I do. Mr. Rove is a professional vote-getter and politician. He knows the rules (and probably exactly how far you can bend them) of American political campaigns. If Rove had been on Trump’s staff, stupid shit like soliciting foreign nationals for campaign donations would not have happened. I can believe that if Trump Jr. had cc’d that email to Rove instead of Manafort, Rove would have run up three flights of stairs to set young Trump on fire, and burnt the server the email had been on. ---
**Author:** ![Thing\_Fish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecb155/32.png) [@Thing\_Fish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thing_Fish)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2017, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/1407 "2017-07-19T20:07:21Z")
I don’t believe that Karl Rove would _actually_ hesitate to do illegal and immoral things if he thought he could get away with them, but at least he’s smart enough to know what to say when asked that question on the record by a reporter. His statement is relevant insofar as it rebuts the Trumpist talking point that there is some reasonable question about whether Trump Jr’s actions were wrong. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2017, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/1408 "2017-07-19T20:11:39Z")
Well, now, it isn’t both an illegal act and something he did until he actually gets convicted. That’s what at least one of our most prominent legal beagles would say, anyway. ---
**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 19, 2017, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/1409 "2017-07-19T20:18:47Z")
> [@Okrahoma](#): > > No, I don’t. Neither do you. Neither do you know that nothing untoward went on when [Obama was talking to Medvedev](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2012/03/26/world/26prexy2_cnd/26prexy2_cnd-blog480-v2.jpg). > > Oh you do know. Because a [hot mic caught it](http://www.weeklystandard.com/obama-to-russia-after-my-election-i-have-more-flexibility/article/634473). But notice - no one other than Obama there from the US side. Did that bother you? No, because Obama was neither bending over backwards to accommodate Russian interests nor under investigation for colluding with the Russian government. ---
**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 19, 2017, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/1410 "2017-07-19T20:27:43Z")
> [@Channing\_Idaho\_Banks](#): > > Melania was sitting right next to Putin. Why don’t we ask her what was said? I think we can safely wait for Mueller to talk to her himself…although she could invoke spousal privilege. Hmm…maybe if Trumpy is bad enough to her in the interim… 🙂 ---
**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:** [July 19, 2017, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/1411 "2017-07-19T20:30:45Z")
> [@Channing\_Idaho\_Banks](#): > > Melania Trump was seated next to Vladimir Putin. Who is in charge of the seat arrangements? I’m interested in the answer to this, too. (Journalistic investigation of the whole thing is clearly still underway; maybe we’ll get answers within a day or two.) ---
**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 19, 2017, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/1412 "2017-07-19T20:33:48Z")
> [@Sherrerd](#): > > I’m interested in the answer to this, too. > > (Journalistic investigation of the whole thing is clearly still underway; maybe we’ll get answers within a day or two.) Probably some Polish official, since they were the host country. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2017, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/1413 "2017-07-19T21:10:09Z")
What if Trump finds a covert listening device hidden on Melania? A _very_ covert listening device…wink, wink, say no more… ---
**Author:** ![Fiveyearlurker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/da6949/32.png) [@Fiveyearlurker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiveyearlurker)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2017, 10:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/1414 "2017-07-19T22:21:25Z")
Junior and Manafort will[testify in public](http://www.cnn.com/2017/07/19/politics/paul-manafort-donald-trump-jr-jared-kushner-testify/) on 7/26. Any predictions? ---
**Author:** ![BeepKillBeep](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/9e8a1a/32.png) [@BeepKillBeep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BeepKillBeep)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2017, 10:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/1415 "2017-07-19T22:25:23Z")
> [@Fiveyearlurker](#): > > Junior and Manafort will[testify in public](http://www.cnn.com/2017/07/19/politics/paul-manafort-donald-trump-jr-jared-kushner-testify/) on 7/26. Any predictions? A lot of “I don’t recall Senator.” ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2017, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/1416 "2017-07-19T22:39:27Z")
Link says “behind closed doors”. Under oath? With attorney present? ---
**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 19, 2017, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/1417 "2017-07-19T22:41:51Z")
> [@Fiveyearlurker](#): > > Junior and Manafort will[testify in public](http://www.cnn.com/2017/07/19/politics/paul-manafort-donald-trump-jr-jared-kushner-testify/) on 7/26. Any predictions? Manafort will come across as a smart man who goes one level beyond keeping his yap shut, to actually trying to convince you to join the forces of evil, without ever coming close to admitting a single thing. Junior, on the other hand, will be taken apart by the Dems and give a whole bunch of material for them to work with, without ever realizing that he’s being a dumbass until after it is pointed out to him later. His only chance is if he literally refuses to say anything the whole time. ---
**Author:** ![Fiveyearlurker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/da6949/32.png) [@Fiveyearlurker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiveyearlurker)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2017, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/1418 "2017-07-19T22:50:07Z")
> [@elucidator](#): > > Link says “behind closed doors”. Under oath? With attorney present? Kushner is not public. Other two are. Not sure what, if anything, that means. ---
**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 19, 2017, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/1419 "2017-07-19T22:50:27Z")
> [@Fiveyearlurker](#): > > Junior and Manafort will[testify in public](http://www.cnn.com/2017/07/19/politics/paul-manafort-donald-trump-jr-jared-kushner-testify/) on 7/26. Any predictions? My prediction: pain. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/lSPNQ82Sq4E/hqdefault.jpg "Prediction - Pain.wmv") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lSPNQ82Sq4E) That, or a lot of weasel words that people on my side will see as smoking guns and people on the other side will see as total vindication of the Trump administration. So I guess my prediction is pain. ---
**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 19, 2017, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/1420 "2017-07-19T23:16:35Z")
> [@Fiveyearlurker](#): > > Kushner is not public. Other two are. Not sure what, if anything, that means. Not sure why Donnie is going public. That just seems stupid. Manafort, my guess would be that they think he’s sufficiently compelling that he’ll be able to spin things in a nice direction. Maybe throw some curveballs in there to make the Obama administration look bad and the whole thing look like a conspiracy set up by the Clinton campaign. ---
**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 20, 2017, 1:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/1421 "2017-07-20T01:18:12Z")
They’ll invoke the 5th amendment. If junior actually testifies, he’ll get carved up like a turkey. ---
**Author:** ![alphaboi867](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alphaboi867/32/3898_2.png) [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2017, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799/1422 "2017-07-20T01:37:28Z")
> [@Johnny\_Ace](#): > > I think we can safely wait for Mueller to talk to her himself…although she could invoke spousal privilege. Hmm…maybe if Trumpy is bad enough to her in the interim… 🙂 If she insists on going through with the divorce that was supposedly worked out before the election that could certainly be one hell of a bargaining chip in the settlement negotiations. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799.md?page=70) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-associates-may-have-coordinated-with-russians-according-to-us-officials/782799.md?page=72)