Russiagate - Images

Sorted By:

Putins owns the Republican party

NOW I DON'T JUST OWN YOUR DONALD TRUMP OWN YOUR REPUBLICAN HOUSE AND SENATE TOO littlegreenfootb alls.com/memes

NOW I DON'T JUST OWN YOUR DONALD TRUMP OWN YOUR REPUBLICAN HOUSE AND SENATE TOO littlegreenfootb alls.com/memes

russiagate vladimir putin republican party gop united states senate house of representatives corruption conspiracy cover up collusion obstruction of justice treason

Exxon-Mobil lobbyist Pete Sessions claims Russians sanctions "hurt business"

"We should not move it straight to the floor," House Rules Committee Chairman Pete Sessions, R-Texas, told CNN. He has expressed his concerns about some provisions in the bill problems to companies in Dallas, Texas, that l represent" and argued it could put them at a competitive disadvantage Il thathe says are "huge

"We should not move it straight to the floor," House Rules Committee Chairman Pete Sessions, R-Texas, told CNN. He has expressed his concerns about some provisions in the bill problems to companies in Dallas, Texas, that l represent" and argued it could put them at a competitive disadvantage Il thathe says are "huge

russiagate pete sessions exxon-mobil rosneft conspiracy collusion cover up oil sanctions

Peter Smith's involvement

Then, a few weeks into my interactions with Smith, he sent me a document, ostensibly a cover page for a dossier of opposition research to be compiled by Smith's group, and which purported to clear up who was involved. The document was entitled "A Demonstrative Pedagogical Summary to be Developed and Released Prior to November 8, 2016," and dated September 7. It detailed a company Smith and his colleagues had set up as a vehicle to conduct the research: "KLS Research", set up as a Delaware LLC "to avoid campaign reporting," and listing four groups who were involved in one way or another. The first group, entitled "Trump Campaign (in coordination to the extent permitted as an independent expenditure)" listed a number of senior campaign officials: Steve Bannon, Kellyanne Conway, Sam Clovis, Lt. Gen. Flynn and Lisa Nelson. The largest group named a number of "independent groups / organizations/ individuals /resources to be deployed." My name appears on this list. At the time, I didn't recognize most of the others; however, several made headlines in the weeks immediatelv prior to the election

Then, a few weeks into my interactions with Smith, he sent me a document, ostensibly a cover page for a dossier of opposition research to be compiled by Smith's group, and which purported to clear up who was involved. The document was entitled "A Demonstrative Pedagogical Summary to be Developed and Released Prior to November 8, 2016," and dated September 7. It detailed a company Smith and his colleagues had set up as a vehicle to conduct the research: "KLS Research", set up as a Delaware LLC "to avoid campaign reporting," and listing four groups who were involved in one way or another. The first group, entitled "Trump Campaign (in coordination to the extent permitted as an independent expenditure)" listed a number of senior campaign officials: Steve Bannon, Kellyanne Conway, Sam Clovis, Lt. Gen. Flynn and Lisa Nelson. The largest group named a number of "independent groups / organizations/ individuals /resources to be deployed." My name appears on this list. At the time, I didn't recognize most of the others; however, several made headlines in the weeks immediatelv prior to the election

russiagate peter smith kls research steve bannon kellyanne conway sam clovis mike flynn lisa nelson conspiracy cover up collusion treason

Peter Smith's involvement

Although it wasn't initially clear to me how independent Smith's operation was from Flynn or the Trump campaign, it was immediately apparent that Smith was both well connected within the top echelons of the campaign and he seemed to know both Lt. Gen. Flynn and his son well. Smith routinely talked about the goings on at the top of the Trump team, offering deep insights into the bizarre world at the top of the Trump campaign. Smith told of Flynn's deep dislike of DNI Clapper, whom Flynn blamed for his dismissal by President Obama. Smith told of Flynn's moves to position himself to become CIA Director under Trump, but also that Flynn had been persuaded that the Senate confirmation process would be prohibitively difficult. He would instead therefore become National Security Advisor should Trump win the election, Smith said. He also told of a deep sense of angst even among Trump loyalists in the campaign, saying "Trump often just repeats whatever he's heard from the last person who spoke to him," and expressing the view that this was especially dangerous when Trump was away.

Although it wasn't initially clear to me how independent Smith's operation was from Flynn or the Trump campaign, it was immediately apparent that Smith was both well connected within the top echelons of the campaign and he seemed to know both Lt. Gen. Flynn and his son well. Smith routinely talked about the goings on at the top of the Trump team, offering deep insights into the bizarre world at the top of the Trump campaign. Smith told of Flynn's deep dislike of DNI Clapper, whom Flynn blamed for his dismissal by President Obama. Smith told of Flynn's moves to position himself to become CIA Director under Trump, but also that Flynn had been persuaded that the Senate confirmation process would be prohibitively difficult. He would instead therefore become National Security Advisor should Trump win the election, Smith said. He also told of a deep sense of angst even among Trump loyalists in the campaign, saying "Trump often just repeats whatever he's heard from the last person who spoke to him," and expressing the view that this was especially dangerous when Trump was away.

russiagate peter smith donald trump mike flynn james clapper dni barack obama cia

Peter Smith's involvement

But following the DNC hack and watching the Russian influence campaign surrounding it unfold in near real-time, Smith's comment about having been contacted by someone from the "Dark Web" claiming to have Clinton's personal emails struck me as critically important. I wanted to find out whether this person was merely some fraudster wanting to take Smith for a ride or something more sinister: that is, whether Smith had been contacted by a Russian intelligence front with intent to use Smith as part of their scheme by laundering real or forged documents. 03

But following the DNC hack and watching the Russian influence campaign surrounding it unfold in near real-time, Smith's comment about having been contacted by someone from the "Dark Web" claiming to have Clinton's personal emails struck me as critically important. I wanted to find out whether this person was merely some fraudster wanting to take Smith for a ride or something more sinister: that is, whether Smith had been contacted by a Russian intelligence front with intent to use Smith as part of their scheme by laundering real or forged documents. 03

russiagate peter smith e-mails emails conspiracy cover up collusion treason donald trump

Trump's concessions to Putin

If Trump attempts to loosen sanc involvement in the conflict in eastern Ukraine or its interference in the 2016 U.S. election, Congress could defy him by pursuing even stronger penalties. And if he offers platitudes for Putin without addressing Russia's election meddling, it will renew questions about whether Trump accepts the findings of his own intelligence officials that Russia intended to disrupt the democratic process on his behalf ssia for its

If Trump attempts to loosen sanc involvement in the conflict in eastern Ukraine or its interference in the 2016 U.S. election, Congress could defy him by pursuing even stronger penalties. And if he offers platitudes for Putin without addressing Russia's election meddling, it will renew questions about whether Trump accepts the findings of his own intelligence officials that Russia intended to disrupt the democratic process on his behalf ssia for its

russiagate donald trump vladimir putin concessions treason conspiracy ukraine sanctions crimea rosneft oil

Trump's concessions to Putin

The president is boxed in," said Nicholas Burns, a former 25 U.S. ambassador to NATO under President George W Bush. "Why would you give Putin any kind of concession at the first meeting? What has he done to deserve that?" He added, "If you try to curry favor offer concessions, pull back on the pressure, he'll take advantage. He'll see weakness in a vacuum." 03

The president is boxed in," said Nicholas Burns, a former 25 U.S. ambassador to NATO under President George W Bush. "Why would you give Putin any kind of concession at the first meeting? What has he done to deserve that?" He added, "If you try to curry favor offer concessions, pull back on the pressure, he'll take advantage. He'll see weakness in a vacuum." 03

russiagate donald trump vladimir putin concessions treason conspiracy ukraine sanctions rosneft crimea

Stephen King's The Winning

stephen king the shining donald trump vladimir putin russiagate maga memes

It's Mueller Time!

IT'S TIME @williamlegate

IT'S TIME @williamlegate

russiagate robert mueller special counsel miller beer

Sergeant Mike Pence Schultz

I SAW NOTHING... I HEARD NOTHING... I KNOW NOTHING...

I SAW NOTHING... I HEARD NOTHING... I KNOW NOTHING...

russiagate mike pence hogan's heroes sergeant schultz

Peter Smith didn't die in vain 4

"We knew the people who had these were probably around the Russian government," Mr. Smith said U.S. intelligence agencies have accused the Russians of stealing emails from the Democratic National Committee and Mrs. Clinton's campaign chairman, John Podesta, and providing them to WikiLeaks last summer as part of a multifaceted operation to interfere with the election and help Mr. Trump's campaign Mr. Trump on July 27 publicly encouraged Russia to go further and find the Clinton "emails that are missing." Asked about that on Monday, White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer said Mr. Trump was joking

"We knew the people who had these were probably around the Russian government," Mr. Smith said U.S. intelligence agencies have accused the Russians of stealing emails from the Democratic National Committee and Mrs. Clinton's campaign chairman, John Podesta, and providing them to WikiLeaks last summer as part of a multifaceted operation to interfere with the election and help Mr. Trump's campaign Mr. Trump on July 27 publicly encouraged Russia to go further and find the Clinton "emails that are missing." Asked about that on Monday, White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer said Mr. Trump was joking

russiagate mike flynn peter smith wikileaks dnc conspiracy

Peter Smith didn't die in vain 3

His project began over Labor Day weekend 2016 when Mr. Smith, a private-equity executive from Chicago active in Republican politiCS said he assembled a group of technology experts, lawyers and a Russian-speaking investigator based in Europe to acquire emails the group theorized might have been stolen from the private server Mrs. Clinton used as secretary of state, Mr. Smith's focus was some 33,000 emails Mrs. Clinton said were deleted because they were deemed personal. Mr. Smith said he believed that the emails might have been obtained by hackers and that they actually concerned official matters Mrs. Clinton wanted to conceal-two notions for which he offered no evidence. Mrs. Clinton gave the State Department tens of thousands of emails related to official business. Former Federal Bureau of Investigation Director James Comey said in July 2016 there was no evidence the private server had been hacked but held out the possibility it could have been In the interview with the Journal, Mr. Smith said he and his colleagues found five groups of hackers who claimed to possess Mrs. Clinton's deleted emails, including two groups he determined were

His project began over Labor Day weekend 2016 when Mr. Smith, a private-equity executive from Chicago active in Republican politiCS said he assembled a group of technology experts, lawyers and a Russian-speaking investigator based in Europe to acquire emails the group theorized might have been stolen from the private server Mrs. Clinton used as secretary of state, Mr. Smith's focus was some 33,000 emails Mrs. Clinton said were deleted because they were deemed personal. Mr. Smith said he believed that the emails might have been obtained by hackers and that they actually concerned official matters Mrs. Clinton wanted to conceal-two notions for which he offered no evidence. Mrs. Clinton gave the State Department tens of thousands of emails related to official business. Former Federal Bureau of Investigation Director James Comey said in July 2016 there was no evidence the private server had been hacked but held out the possibility it could have been In the interview with the Journal, Mr. Smith said he and his colleagues found five groups of hackers who claimed to possess Mrs. Clinton's deleted emails, including two groups he determined were

russiagate mike flynn peter smith james comey federal bureau of investigation conspiracy

Peter Smith didn't die in vain 2

A Trump campaign official said that Mr. Smith didn't work for the campaign, and that if Mr. Flynn coordinated with him in any way, it would have been in his capacity as a private individual. The White House declined to comment. Special Counsel Robert Mueller is investigating Russian attempts to sway the U.S. election and whether there was collusion between Russians and the Trump campaign. President Trump has denied any collusion and called the investigation a "witch hunt," The Russian government has denied it interfered in the election Mr. Smith died at age 81 on May 14, which was about IO d interviewed him. His account of the email search is believed to be his only public comment on it. ays after the Journal The operation Mr. Smith described is consistent with information that has been examined by U.S.

A Trump campaign official said that Mr. Smith didn't work for the campaign, and that if Mr. Flynn coordinated with him in any way, it would have been in his capacity as a private individual. The White House declined to comment. Special Counsel Robert Mueller is investigating Russian attempts to sway the U.S. election and whether there was collusion between Russians and the Trump campaign. President Trump has denied any collusion and called the investigation a "witch hunt," The Russian government has denied it interfered in the election Mr. Smith died at age 81 on May 14, which was about IO d interviewed him. His account of the email search is believed to be his only public comment on it. ays after the Journal The operation Mr. Smith described is consistent with information that has been examined by U.S.

russiagate mike flynn peter smith conspiracy robert mueller special counsel

Peter Smith didn't die in vain 1

In conversations with members of his circle and with others he tried to recruit to help him, (he GOP operative, Peter W. Smithl implied he was working with retired Lt. Gen. Mike Flynn, at the time a senior adviser to then-candidate Donald Trump "He said, 'T'm talking to Michael Flynn about this-if you find anything, can you let me know?" said Eric York, a computer-security expert from Atlanta who searched hacker forums on Mr. Smith's behalf for people who might have access to the emails. Emails written by Mr. Smith and one of his associates show that his small group considered Mr. Flynn and his consulting company, Flynn Intel Group, to be allies in their quest.

In conversations with members of his circle and with others he tried to recruit to help him, (he GOP operative, Peter W. Smithl implied he was working with retired Lt. Gen. Mike Flynn, at the time a senior adviser to then-candidate Donald Trump "He said, 'T'm talking to Michael Flynn about this-if you find anything, can you let me know?" said Eric York, a computer-security expert from Atlanta who searched hacker forums on Mr. Smith's behalf for people who might have access to the emails. Emails written by Mr. Smith and one of his associates show that his small group considered Mr. Flynn and his consulting company, Flynn Intel Group, to be allies in their quest.

russiagate mike flynn peter smith conspiracy eric york

Grassley and Graham send a letter for FISA information

United States Scnat COMMITTEE ON THE AUDICARY WASHINGTON DC 2050 627 June 27, 2017 ONI The Honorable Rod J. Rosenstein Deputy Attorney General U.S. Department of Justice 950 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W Washington, DC 20530 The Honorable Andrew McCabe Director Federal Bureau of Investigation 935 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W Washington, DC 20535 Dear Deputy Attorney General Rosenstein and Acting Director McCabe: We are writing to request information regarding FISA-related actions by the FBI and the Justice Department in the course of the investigation of Russian interference in the 2016 election, including the investigations into allegations of collusion between the Trump campaign and the Russians. As explained below, we are writing to request the following related materials: all proposed FISA applications that the FBI and Justice Department submitted to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC); the FISC's responses to such proposed FISA applications; all final, signed FISA applications that the FBI and the Justice Department submitted to the FISC; and the FISC's responses to the final, signed applications. Media reports and the FISC's 2016 annual report provide reason to believe that, in the course of these investigations, the FBI and Justice Department may have submitted proposed FISA applications that the FISC preliminarily evaluated and stated it would reject, which the FBI and Justice Department then modified and resubmitted. Media reports also provide reason to believe that the FBI and Justice Department may have submitted some final, signed FISA applications in these matters that the FISC rejected outright. The Committee needs all of these documents to evaluate fully the FBI's and Justice Department's actions in this situation. Under Rule 9(a) of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court's Rules of Procedure, the government provides the Court its proposed FISA applications at least seven days before filing its final, signed FISA applications. This preview gives the Court the chance to assess each proposed application before actually ruling on it, and to recommend changes to the government. As noted in the Report of the Director of the Administrative Office of the U.S Courts on Activities of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Courtsfor 2016("2016 FISC Report"), "[iln some instances, the Court examinations resulted in the govermment making material changes to applications and certifications; Deputy Attorney General Rosenstein and Acting Director McCabe June 27, 2017 for example, proffering additional facts to support a required judicial finding of probable cause or to The 2016 FISC Report, which provides annual statistics about the Court's actions in general, states that in 2016 the FISC denied nine applications or certifications, and denied in part or modified 365 orders3 While the 2016 FISC Report provides Congress and the public this information, it does not report "any modifications made by the government to [a proposed] application or certification that it had submitted pursuant to Rule 9(a) while we understand that this may be part of a routine FISC process, it is important for the Committee to understand fully the context of and basis for requests to the FISC related to this particular matter. We have some reason to believe these processes have been used in these investigations. For example, on January 11, 2017, the Guardian reported that: [The FBI applied for a warrant from the foreign intelligence surveillance court (FISA) over the summer in order to monitor four members of the Trump team suspected of irregular contact with Russian officials. The FISA court turned down the application asking FBI counter-intelligence investigators to narrow its focus.5 The next day, the BBC stated that Justice Department attormeys involved in the investigation of Russian election interference submitted a FISA application to the FISC focused on two Russian banks, reporting: Their first application, in June, was rejected outright by the judge. They returned with a more narrowly drawn order in July and were rejected again. There have been subsequent media reports claiming the FBI submitted and received approval of a FISA application in the investigation that was based on the political opposition research dossier. In order for the Committee to asses this situation, please provide the following information by no later than July 11, 2017: 1. Copies of all proposed and all final signed FISA applications submitted to the FISC relating to: Russian interference in the 2016 election; allegations of collusion between people associated with the Trump campaign and Russia; and any known Trump associates regardless of context. 2. Copies of all FISC responses to the above-mentioned applications in which the Court notified the FBI or Justice Department that it would not grant the proposed applications or recommended changes. If any such FISC responses were provided orally, rather than in 2016 final 0.pdf ld s Julian Border, John McCain Passes Dossier Alleging Secret Tr mp-Russia Contacts to FBL THE GUARDIAN (Jan. 11, Paul Wood, Trump Compromising Claims: How and Why Did We Get Here? BBC NEWS (Jan. 12, 2017) Evan Perez, Shimon Prokupecz, and Mamu Raju, FBI Used Dossier Allegations to Boister Trump-Russia Investigation CNN (Apr. 18, 2017) Deputy Altorney General Rosenstein and Acting Director McCabe June 27, 2017 writing, please provide copies of all FBI or Justice Department records memorializing or otherwise referencing the relevant FISC responses. 3. Copies of all FISC orders relating to the above-mentioned applications, whether denying the applications and certifications, denying the orders, modifying the orders, granting the orders, or other types of orders. We anticipate that some of these documents may be classified, some may not, and others may contain both classified and unclassified information. Please deliver any documents containing classified information to the Office of Senate Security and provide all unclassified documents directly to the Committee. If you have any specific requests with regard to the Committee's handling of unclassified material, please raise those with us in advance. Thank you for your prompt attention to this important matter. If you have any questions, please contact Patrick Davis of my Chairman Grassley's Committee staff at (202) 224-5225 or Lee Holmes of Chairman Graham's staff at (202) 224-5972. Sincerely Lindsey O. Graham Charles E. Grassley Chairmanon the Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime and Terrorism Committee on the Judiciary cc: The Honorable Dianne Feinsteirn Ranking Member Senate Committee on the Judiciary The Honorable Sheldon Whitehouse Ranking Member Subcommittee on Crime and Terrorism

United States Scnat COMMITTEE ON THE AUDICARY WASHINGTON DC 2050 627 June 27, 2017 ONI The Honorable Rod J. Rosenstein Deputy Attorney General U.S. Department of Justice 950 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W Washington, DC 20530 The Honorable Andrew McCabe Director Federal Bureau of Investigation 935 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W Washington, DC 20535 Dear Deputy Attorney General Rosenstein and Acting Director McCabe: We are writing to request information regarding FISA-related actions by the FBI and the Justice Department in the course of the investigation of Russian interference in the 2016 election, including the investigations into allegations of collusion between the Trump campaign and the Russians. As explained below, we are writing to request the following related materials: all proposed FISA applications that the FBI and Justice Department submitted to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC); the FISC's responses to such proposed FISA applications; all final, signed FISA applications that the FBI and the Justice Department submitted to the FISC; and the FISC's responses to the final, signed applications. Media reports and the FISC's 2016 annual report provide reason to believe that, in the course of these investigations, the FBI and Justice Department may have submitted proposed FISA applications that the FISC preliminarily evaluated and stated it would reject, which the FBI and Justice Department then modified and resubmitted. Media reports also provide reason to believe that the FBI and Justice Department may have submitted some final, signed FISA applications in these matters that the FISC rejected outright. The Committee needs all of these documents to evaluate fully the FBI's and Justice Department's actions in this situation. Under Rule 9(a) of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court's Rules of Procedure, the government provides the Court its proposed FISA applications at least seven days before filing its final, signed FISA applications. This preview gives the Court the chance to assess each proposed application before actually ruling on it, and to recommend changes to the government. As noted in the Report of the Director of the Administrative Office of the U.S Courts on Activities of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Courtsfor 2016("2016 FISC Report"), "[iln some instances, the Court examinations resulted in the govermment making material changes to applications and certifications; Deputy Attorney General Rosenstein and Acting Director McCabe June 27, 2017 for example, proffering additional facts to support a required judicial finding of probable cause or to The 2016 FISC Report, which provides annual statistics about the Court's actions in general, states that in 2016 the FISC denied nine applications or certifications, and denied in part or modified 365 orders3 While the 2016 FISC Report provides Congress and the public this information, it does not report "any modifications made by the government to [a proposed] application or certification that it had submitted pursuant to Rule 9(a) while we understand that this may be part of a routine FISC process, it is important for the Committee to understand fully the context of and basis for requests to the FISC related to this particular matter. We have some reason to believe these processes have been used in these investigations. For example, on January 11, 2017, the Guardian reported that: [The FBI applied for a warrant from the foreign intelligence surveillance court (FISA) over the summer in order to monitor four members of the Trump team suspected of irregular contact with Russian officials. The FISA court turned down the application asking FBI counter-intelligence investigators to narrow its focus.5 The next day, the BBC stated that Justice Department attormeys involved in the investigation of Russian election interference submitted a FISA application to the FISC focused on two Russian banks, reporting: Their first application, in June, was rejected outright by the judge. They returned with a more narrowly drawn order in July and were rejected again. There have been subsequent media reports claiming the FBI submitted and received approval of a FISA application in the investigation that was based on the political opposition research dossier. In order for the Committee to asses this situation, please provide the following information by no later than July 11, 2017: 1. Copies of all proposed and all final signed FISA applications submitted to the FISC relating to: Russian interference in the 2016 election; allegations of collusion between people associated with the Trump campaign and Russia; and any known Trump associates regardless of context. 2. Copies of all FISC responses to the above-mentioned applications in which the Court notified the FBI or Justice Department that it would not grant the proposed applications or recommended changes. If any such FISC responses were provided orally, rather than in 2016 final 0.pdf ld s Julian Border, John McCain Passes Dossier Alleging Secret Tr mp-Russia Contacts to FBL THE GUARDIAN (Jan. 11, Paul Wood, Trump Compromising Claims: How and Why Did We Get Here? BBC NEWS (Jan. 12, 2017) Evan Perez, Shimon Prokupecz, and Mamu Raju, FBI Used Dossier Allegations to Boister Trump-Russia Investigation CNN (Apr. 18, 2017) Deputy Altorney General Rosenstein and Acting Director McCabe June 27, 2017 writing, please provide copies of all FBI or Justice Department records memorializing or otherwise referencing the relevant FISC responses. 3. Copies of all FISC orders relating to the above-mentioned applications, whether denying the applications and certifications, denying the orders, modifying the orders, granting the orders, or other types of orders. We anticipate that some of these documents may be classified, some may not, and others may contain both classified and unclassified information. Please deliver any documents containing classified information to the Office of Senate Security and provide all unclassified documents directly to the Committee. If you have any specific requests with regard to the Committee's handling of unclassified material, please raise those with us in advance. Thank you for your prompt attention to this important matter. If you have any questions, please contact Patrick Davis of my Chairman Grassley's Committee staff at (202) 224-5225 or Lee Holmes of Chairman Graham's staff at (202) 224-5972. Sincerely Lindsey O. Graham Charles E. Grassley Chairmanon the Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime and Terrorism Committee on the Judiciary cc: The Honorable Dianne Feinsteirn Ranking Member Senate Committee on the Judiciary The Honorable Sheldon Whitehouse Ranking Member Subcommittee on Crime and Terrorism

russiagate chuck grassley lindsey graham united states senate judiciary committee federal bureau of investigation rod rosenstein andrew mccabe fisa christopher steele patrick davis obstruction of justice conspiracy cover up consciousness of guilt

Trump-Putin meeting comes with "deliverables"

Donald Trump has told White House aides to come up with possible concessions to offer as bargaining chips in his planned meeting next week with Vladimir Putin, according to two former officials familiar with the preparations. National security council staff have been tasked with proposing "deliverables" for the first Trump-Putin encounter, including the return of two diplomatic compounds Russians were ordered to vacate by the Obama administration in response to Moscow's interference in the 2016 election, the former officials said. It is not clear what Putin would be asked to give in return

Donald Trump has told White House aides to come up with possible concessions to offer as bargaining chips in his planned meeting next week with Vladimir Putin, according to two former officials familiar with the preparations. National security council staff have been tasked with proposing "deliverables" for the first Trump-Putin encounter, including the return of two diplomatic compounds Russians were ordered to vacate by the Obama administration in response to Moscow's interference in the 2016 election, the former officials said. It is not clear what Putin would be asked to give in return

russiagate donald trump vladimir putin national security council conspiracy cover up sanctions exxon-mobil ukraine crimea capitulation treason

Humor time!

BREAKING: Investigators see no evidence of Trump Administration ties to America

BREAKING: Investigators see no evidence of Trump Administration ties to America

russiagate donald trump memes

Trump normalizing Russia's cyber-warfare

A source familiar with the President's thinking said he views Russia's action as something that "everybody has been doing to each other for years. Everybody spies," the source said. "He believes that intel operations hack each other." The result: Trump sees the Russian hacking story as "nothing new." In fact, the source said, Trump views it as "the establishment intelligence community trying to frame a narrative that is startling to the average viewer, but he regards it as business as usual. Intelligence experts disagree. They describe Russia's actions as far from the usual foreign espionage attempts.

A source familiar with the President's thinking said he views Russia's action as something that "everybody has been doing to each other for years. Everybody spies," the source said. "He believes that intel operations hack each other." The result: Trump sees the Russian hacking story as "nothing new." In fact, the source said, Trump views it as "the establishment intelligence community trying to frame a narrative that is startling to the average viewer, but he regards it as business as usual. Intelligence experts disagree. They describe Russia's actions as far from the usual foreign espionage attempts.

russiagate donald trump russia cyber-warfare conspiracy obstruction of justice consciousness of guilt

Trump is obsessed over Russia investigation

The President doesn't differentiate between investigations into Russian election meddling and investigations into potential collusion between Trump campaign associates and Russia, according to sources that have spoken to Trump about the issues. Tlhe President's muted interest in election interference stands in stark contrast to the collusion investigation, which has consumed his attention. Trump takes questions about Russia personally, sources said, because he sees them as an effort to undermine the legitimacy of his presidency. "He thinks one equates with the other," one Republican congressional source said. "He can't admit anything that may taint his election. He is more hung up on how it affected the election outcome than what Russia did."

The President doesn't differentiate between investigations into Russian election meddling and investigations into potential collusion between Trump campaign associates and Russia, according to sources that have spoken to Trump about the issues. Tlhe President's muted interest in election interference stands in stark contrast to the collusion investigation, which has consumed his attention. Trump takes questions about Russia personally, sources said, because he sees them as an effort to undermine the legitimacy of his presidency. "He thinks one equates with the other," one Republican congressional source said. "He can't admit anything that may taint his election. He is more hung up on how it affected the election outcome than what Russia did."

russiagate donald trump russia conspiracy obstruction of justice consciousness of guilt

FBI visits Kaspersky for counter-intelligence purposes.

FBl agents on Tuesday paid visits to at least a dozen employees of Kaspersky Lab, a Russia- based cyber-security company, asking questions about that company's operations as part of a counter-intelligence inquiry, multiple sources familiar with the matter told NBC News In a classic FBI investigative tactic, agents visited the homes of the employees at the end of the work day at multiple locations on both the east and west coasts, the sources said.

FBl agents on Tuesday paid visits to at least a dozen employees of Kaspersky Lab, a Russia- based cyber-security company, asking questions about that company's operations as part of a counter-intelligence inquiry, multiple sources familiar with the matter told NBC News In a classic FBI investigative tactic, agents visited the homes of the employees at the end of the work day at multiple locations on both the east and west coasts, the sources said.

russiagate federal bureau of investigation fbi kaspersky labs counter-intelligence