Most of GOP leadership has been compromised by Russian money: Trump biographer

[Amaryllis]

And we are all SO shocked! None of us had ANY IDEA R leadership was compromised, or that this is the reason behind McConnell refusing to bring the resolution protecting Mueller up for a vote, or why none of them will stand up to Trump...
Finally, someone is saying it out loud.

https://www.rawstory.com/2018/11/gop-leadership-compromised-russian-money-trump-biographer/

A biographer who detailed the relationship between Donald Trump and the Russian mob explained that Russia’s financial links to the United States extend far beyond the president.

Craig Unger, author of House of Trump, House of Putin: The Untold Story of Donald Trump and the Russian Mafia, wrote in a Reddit AMA that one of the biggest surprises in his book is how Trump has been compromised “for decades.”

snip

In the 90’s, Unger wrote, Russians began sending money to Rep. Tom DeLay (R-TX), a longtime congressman who later became House Majority Leader. He also suggested that the mafia was sending money to other Republicans as well.

“I believe most of the GOP leadership has been compromised by” Russian money, the author added. “The Republican Senatorial Campaign Committee run by Mitch McConnell got millions from [Soviet-born businessman] Leonard Blavatnik.”

“As for the endgame,” Unger concluded, “I think it is already [beginning] to unravel.”

[C_U_L8R]

1. Funneled through the NRA?

No wonder so many Republicans are suddenly 'retiring'

[Hermit-The-Prog]

12. over $175 million from "unknown sources"

From CNBC back in Feb:

The NRA is among the largest "dark money" organizations, reporting the greatest amount of campaign spending without revealing the source of the funds — over $35 million in the 2016 election cycle alone. Still, this amount was just a fraction of the over $175 million in reported campaign-related spending that came from unknown sources.

https://www.cnbc.com/2018/02/15/nra-russia-and-trump-money-laundering-poisoning-us-democracy-commentary.html

[Duppers]

18. Maria Butina is probably talking.

I posted earlier...

Can Mueller takes these criminals down too? He probably has proof they knew a lot. These rethugian leaders accepted money from a Russian spy, Maria Butina. How can they claim ignorance?

[Jeffersons Ghost]

27. k&R! Mueller can do MUCH more; so can Putin: Read IT all...

Mueller's weapon of choice is still an FBI FISA Warrant: read ALL of this...

https://www.democraticunderground.com/100211491422

GOTCHA
The National Security Agency is the only government group that actually listens...
Maybe, FBI online agents are finally "listening" too...

http://www.msnbc.com/brian-williams/watch/from-russia-with-love-trump-sought-business-in-moscow-for-years-1384469059692
The National Security Agency is the only government group that actually listens...

[uponit7771]

2. Yep, wouldn't doubt it is the NRA giving it to them

[Amaryllis]

4. Guessing NRA is one of multiple sources. It's so vast...it's sounding more and more like those

novels and movies where a conspiracy spans continents. LIke a Tom Clancy novel.

[uponit7771]

5. +1

[Jarqui]

3. This is a problem for them

https://www.washingtonpost.com/apps/g/page/national/read-the-transcript-of-the-conversation-among-gop-leaders-obtained-by-the-post/2209/

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/may/17/putin-pays-donald-trump-kevin-mccarthy-recording

In an exchange first reported by the Washington Post, McCarthy said: “There’s …there’s two people, I think, Putin pays: [California Representative Dana] Rohrabacher and Trump … [laughter] … swear to God.”

According to the transcript, speaker Paul Ryan immediately responded: “This is an off-the-record … [laughter] … NO LEAKS … [laughter] … alright?!”

How Putin's oligarchs funneled millions into GOP campaigns
https://www.dallasnews.com/opinion/commentary/2018/05/08/putins-proxies-helped-funnel-millions-gop-campaigns

In 2015-16, everything changed. Blavatnik's political contributions soared and made a hard right turn as he pumped $6.35 million into GOP political action committees, with millions of dollars going to top Republican leaders including Sens. Mitch McConnell, Marco Rubio and Lindsey Graham.

In 2017, donations continued, with $41,000 going to both Republican and Democrat candidates, along with $1 million to McConnell's Senate Leadership Fund.

That's why Trump won't get removed from office by impeachment. He can pardon them.

[Amaryllis]

6. I remember that. Surprised it didnt get more press. Maybe with Schiff heading up house intel it

will re-emerge.

[KPN]

11. Pardon them? Fuck that. The pitchforks and

torches come out at that point. I want them to suffer for all the suffering they have caused for millions of people for so long. A pound of flesh from each one of these treasonous bastards.

[Jarqui]

14. I think we should substitute rakes for the pitchforks

To control Trump's burning of the country

[Hassler]

7. McConartist was more concerned with court packing than his own immediate future. Lock. Him. Up.

[Amaryllis]

8. I thought all along that this is a huge reason why they were so eager to push Kavenaugh though

before the election. They need him there to protect themselves when it all comes out, given his views on executive power/ indictments, etc.

[Midnightwalk]

9. Link to the ama

For anyone else who wants to read, here's a link

[link:https://www.reddit.com/r/politics/comments/a1ip6e/im_craig_unger_journalist_and_nyt_bestselling/?utm_term=2c8ead43-cd54-4425-9d38-bf10021e557b&utm_medium=search&utm_source=reddit&utm_name=all&utm_content=8|]

[Amaryllis]

10. What's ama?

[moondust]

13. "Ask Me Anything"

Live interview section on Reddit where anybody can post questions.

[Duppers]

19. Thank you!

Looks interesting.

[underpants]

15. Remember in 2006 the GOP RNC was dead

W was trashed. They lost 54 seats in the House and lost the Senate. The Virginia GOP was so broke from sexual harassment cases that John Warner and George Allen had to bail it out or it couldn't have put people on the ballot.

About this time many of the "Four Sisters" were ending there mega donations (I think) it was a perfect time for the Kochs and Russians to swoop in and established their place.

[MsLeopard]

17. +1,000. nt

[triron]

16. McConnell is complicit.

[Botany]

20. "The Republican Senatorial Campaign Committee got millions from Leonard Blavatnik."

[world wide wally]

21. Lock 'em all up!

[C Moon]

22. Then they'll find that one planted Democratic candidate who used Russian money...

and the news will focus on that person.

[Fuzzpope]

23. Critical system failure, re: 2016.

OK, so here is my question:

How is it possible that Obama did not know that this was going on? Obama may not have been running again, but I have a very hard time believing that he allowed critical gaps in his intelligence to completely overlook the huge amounts of dark money getting pumped into the Republican party.

When McConnell threatened to claim partisanship when Obama briefed him on the FBI Trump investigation, how did Obama not know that McConnell was already dirty and running full power interference for Trump?

I just don't buy that. This had to be looming in front of the Democrats in plain sight, are we seriously supposed to believe that investigative reporters out gunned our intelligence community?

Something fucking stinks in Chi Town, and no, I'm not blaming Obama at all, I'm just pondering the fact that this was able to happen in broad daylight.

Trump's Russian connections were known, had been known for some time prior.

I don't know if it was a conspiracy within the intelligence apparatus, I know that the NYC FBI was dirty and working with Ghouliani, but how much further in did the conspirators penetrate towards DC?

I fully believe to execute the Trump conspiracy that there had to have been a *great* many more boots on the ground, hands on the levers, the gateways, running servers, it would have required a massive team effort to slip past the national security apparatus.

[lindysalsagal]

30. Obama knew, but because it looked like HRC had it, he didn't want to throw a grenade that might

have it's own backlash with independent voters, and I agree, he was right. Now we know how tenuous her victory was. He had a 6th sense about it. People would not have believed him if he had said it: It would have been seen as an attempt to effect the outcome.

[OAITW r.2.0]

38. My read as well.

[MFGsunny]

40. Agree 100000%

[Amaryllis]

49. He was caught between a bunch of lousy options and took the one he thought was best given

the many very complex factors he had to weigh. I often wonder if he wishes he had made a different choice.

[lindysalsagal]

50. I think he was right. As much as the frumpers want to see a slugmatch, it's not going to work for ou

our side. Remember flip-flopper? (john Kerry) The gop uses any flimsy excuse to throw hate and many people lap it up.

There were decades of hillary hate and Obama couldn't work miracles and suddenly regain their trust. It's taken months of mueller and his base is as solid as ever.

[Amaryllis]

52. I think so too. ALways easy to look back and wonder about the other choice, the one not made. I hope

he hasn't lost sleep over it, because he was in an untenable situation.

[UCmeNdc]

24. Why were the Russians at the GOP 2016 convention?

Why?

[MBS]

35. It seemed so odd at the time - and now, so telling n/t

[ffr]

25. Including Vice President Mike Pence. I'll put money on it.

"Just to button up one question. Did any advisor or anybody in the Trump campaign have any contact with the Russians...?"

Mike Pence: "Oh of course not..."

@2:35m

[MBS]

36. Agreed that he's in deep, too.

I want all of them gone.

[Hortensis]

26. Amaryllis, this was reported when uncovered months ago

by investigative journalists. This is huge, just not discussed nearly enough -- by US, it seems you would agree.

In any case, I read about it and it was discussed then, including the amounts donated to PACs serving specific high-ranking Republicans, etc.

Of course, and let's go ahead and say this out right loud to anyone who can't walk away fast enough: Those who took Russian money are the same Republican legislators who put the loophole into the law that allowed unlimited secret money to be funneled to them by hostile foreign governments.

[Amaryllis]

44. I do remember that and was disappointed it got so little coverage; hence my comment that finally

someone is talking about it. This article was from yesterday, even though that info came out many months ago.

[Hortensis]

45. It IS good that it's being covered some more.

Agree 100%. For whatever reasons, this is a usual pattern for news media, though. The news cycle for the end of the world would last at most maybe 2 weeks even if it wasn't happening for 3 weeks.

When a new development comes along to push something back to the surface, then it's covered more, sometimes a lot more. The journalists who covered it haven't forgotten and are still digging or at least keeping an eye on it.

I've been waiting and waiting for more on the computer/IT people in or associated with Trump's background, including a couple of troublemaking, antidemocratic libertarian billionaires I've taken a grudge to.

[Amaryllis]

46. I'm waiting for Rachel et all to start talking about it in relation to McC refusing to bring the

bill protecting Mueller to a vote, and in general continuing to support T no matter what, and Nunes's actions, etc. etc. How long have we all know they were complicit?

[Hortensis]

48. Or as I put the question,

Do they have plausible deniability?

[Achilleaze]

28. republicans betray America - sold the USA out

for money. There's your "republican family values" right there. Deplorable.

[lindysalsagal]

29. Dozens of local governors might be appointing replacements for gop congresspeople

If we're lucky and their locals demand they resign....

[Drahthaardogs]

31. They ALL took the dirty Russian money!

I have been saying this for two years.

[libdem4life]

47. If one takes it, everyone else has to keep up. It's all about the money

for getting elected. If you're honest, without a significant skeleton, they don't want you because there is nothing to keep you in line. What we're seeing here is the underbelly of Patriarchy starting to show. "This is how it's done." is a mantra for entry. Those leaving the ship...retiring...either are sick of it or about to get dragged into it. The rest...only time will tell. And sad to say, it infected both parties for the same reason. If they do it, we have to....to keep up. It's insidious.

[allgood33]

32. Been saying this ever since Trump war ejected into the Presidency.

When truth is stranger than fiction, it's difficult to get people to listen.

[allgood33]

33. The entire Benghazi GOP brigade, including those who retired last year is included.

And you can tell by their votes and their protecting Trump in every way: McConnel, Rubio, Graham...Ryan, Just include the entire list of current House and Senate GOP and cross off the half dozen from the list who are not tainted by Russian money. It's easier than trying to list the ones who are owned.

[duforsure]

34. I suspect

There are many gop people in Congress really shaking in their shoes they'll also be exposed for knowingly taking funneled monies from putin and his corrupt friends through donors, NRA,and other groups before this is all done. Some for their campaigns ,some for themselves, and some both will prove to be a huge disaster for them all. The gop sticking with trump will destroy the party so badly it'll be decades before people trust them again. The gop is working for putin now, and when they get exposed it'll be really worse than anyone thought.

[mucifer]

37. that's why mcconnell won't protect Mueller

[OAITW r.2.0]

39. Adding to this thread....

Another dot....why did the GOP change their platform plank to accommodate Putin/Russia wrt their aggression in the Ukraine? That was after Manafort came onboard to run Trump's campaign. Manafort had been running the political show for the Putin puppet in the Ukraine.

[not_the_one]

41. Heads. Must. Roll.

After this is all over I want to be very sincere when I thank Donald Trump for absolutely destroying the republican party... It couldn't happen to a more deserving bunch.

But they must all be held accountable.

[Autumn]

42. It's been obvious for a while. My question is what will Dems do about it?

If this is swept under the rug it will continue. This has to be common knowledge in the Senate and the House.

[Initech]

43. They are all in on it!!!

[empedocles]

51. Because of conspiracy law and Rico, this is important problem, as 'cons dig in.

[beachbum bob]

53. Sounds like another House investigation and hearing...bring in McConnel, nunes and

Ryan in under oath...bring in their staff. Let's have a real McCarthy witch hunt

[Amaryllis]

54. Assuming once Ryan is gone, he will no longer be immune to subpeonas, but is Mitch? Is there any

kind of senatorial immunity? WHat if he just refuses? WHo will make him?