"The Other Bombshell in Flynn Story: Contacts with Russia during the campaign"

[kpete]

News stories and headlines overnight are focused on the revelation that Michael Flynn discussed sanctions with Russia’s Ambassador in December phone calls, which flatly contradicts what Vice President Pence, White House Spokesman Sean Spicer, and Flynn himself had previously publicly asserted. The story, broken by Greg Miller, Adam Entous and Ellen Nakashima at the Washington Post, contains a potentially even more explosive revelation: Russian contacts with Donald Trump’s inner circle during the presidential campaign, an allegation that the Trump administration has also previously categorically denied.

..............


III. The New Revelations

Last night’s Washington Post story itself is primarily focused on Flynn’s December phone calls. Nonetheless, the Post also states, in passing: “The talks were part of a series of contacts between Flynn and (Ambassador] Kislyak that began before the Nov. 8 election and continued during the transition, officials said.”

The Post notes that Vice President Pence made two assertions—one dealing with the December calls and the other “a more sweeping assertion, saying there had been no contact between members of Trump’s team and Russia during the campaign.” The Post then writes:

Neither of those assertions is consistent with the fuller account of Flynn’s contacts with Kislyak provided by officials who had access to reports from U.S. intelligence and law enforcement agencies that routinely monitor the communications of Russian diplomats. Nine current and former officials, who were in senior positions at multiple agencies at the time of the calls, spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss intelligence matters

.

The Post also writes that the Russian Ambassador recently remarked on contacts prior to the election:

“Kislyak said that he had been in contact with Flynn since before the election, but declined to answer questions about the subjects they discussed.”

Way more:
https://www.justsecurity.org/37630/bombshell-flynn-story-contacts-russia-campaign-russian-hacking/

and this:

Link to tweet

[Squinch]

1. To me that's THE bombshell. That's what makes this the biggest treasonous act against

the American political system in history. And that's not hyperbole.

Think of it: they colluded with Russia to invalidate the American electoral system and install a Russian puppet president.

There is no parallel in history. I can't think of any bigger act against the United States that has ever been perpetrated.

Can you?

[brush]

2. I saw that clip of the handshake. Pence didn't even look at Flynn...

talk about a cold shoulder, that was it.

After Pence move past him Flynn's face just dissolved.

He got the message big time that he was on the way out, and well he should be.

If the transcripts of his phone calls say what is being hinted at, he colluded with the Russians behind President Obama's back.

He's in deep shit and it sounds very close to treason.

Wasn't this guy a general? Aren't generals supposed to be smart? How the hell does he not know that the intel community monitors Russian diplomats calls? How the hell does he not know not to go behind the president's back by making promises about the sanctions coming off?

For that matter, how does the whole trump campaign, including its orange leader, think that colluding with Putin and Russia by accepting their help in winning the election was never going to be uncovered?

Too many dummies in that campaign and now the cabinet, including Flynn and DeVos.

[Trust Buster]

3. Yes, but Flynn could destroy Trump if he talks. Don't count your chickens on that "on his way out"

thinking.

[brush]

6. I don't think they need him to talk. They've got the goods on him and much more.

It's drip, drip, drip, and the drips are betting bigger and more frequent.

This stuff is all going to come out. Flynn is just the first domino.

[Trust Buster]

7. And, by "they" you mean the Sessions' Justice Department ?

[brush]

13. Of course not. When you've got the Washington Post and New York Times...

and other media outlets finally putting their best people on it, and the intel community wanting it out, it'll happen.

Watergate happened despite Nixon's Justice Department.

trump's admin has bungled everything since they've been in office.

You think that's going to stop all of a sudden with top reporters looking to become the next Woodward and Bernstein snooping around?

[Trust Buster]

14. John Mitchell's Justice Department gummed up the dorks for years. I think Mitchell will look like

a saint compared to Sessions. And, this Joe Scarborough notion that Congress is the same as it has always been is just plain false. Republicans control Congress and have no motivation to do the right thing. They control oversight power. You inadvertently place your hopes in Sessions and Chaffets. I don't.

[brush]

15. Media outlets don't work for the trump admin.

And Mitchell didn't stop Watergate from breaking.

It'll come out.

[Trust Buster]

16. Media outlets have limited news cycles in todays digital world. Time is our enemy. Right wing news

sites will delegitimize main stream reporting on this issue. This isn't your father's country anymore.

[brush]

18. Ahhh... what's up? You sound like you want the story to go away.

Has it occurred to you that there are people in the media who are actual patriots in sense that they are as outraged as many of us here on DU that Putin meddled in our election and very likely helped install his very own stooge in the White House, and they are determined to not let it stand?

[Trust Buster]

19. No, I'm just speaking to the reality that now exists in this country. For every media personality

that is a "patriot", there is now a far Right media personality who will call that "patriot" a traitor. A recent poll showed that Trump supporters trust Trump over the mainstream media by a wide margin. Our country has fundamentally changed over the past 20 years. In this new country, Benghazi was afforded 8+ investigations by Republicans. It has gone totally political and Republicans control the oversight. I would love to see this corrupt Administration held to account. But, I'm not holding my breath.

[brush]

21. trump got 42% of the 50% of the people who actually voted, which translates ...

Last edited Sat Feb 11, 2017, 08:18 PM - Edit history (1)

to around 25% percent of the people. The dumb asses who vote for trump are way outnumbered by we who didn't.

Hold your breath all you want but the rest of us aren't.

We're resisting and will continue to encourage those who snope and dig up the info on this illegitimate pos in the White House.

[Trust Buster]

22. I will resist as well. But, that has nothing to do with a Sessions Justice Department and a

Republican controlled Congress refusing to fulfill their oversight obligations to this country.

[brush]

23. Pls get off that. Sessions and his DOJ are not all-powerful, just as Mitchell's wasn't

People find a way. Don't underestimate American ingenuity, especially when treason and fascism are afoot.

God, get some optimism about you.

This Russian/Comey assisted coup will not stand.

Too many people are determined that it will not.

The Flynn story is just the beginning.

[Trust Buster]

24. Uh, yes they are that powerful. If this country wanted Democrats calling the shots, they would

have elected them. We are in a very weakened position for the next 4 years. If you wish to ignore that reality, then that is your right. Please don't tell me that I have to ignore the political reality of the moment.

[brush]

25. Apparent realities have a way of changing. Remember the much needed autopsy the repugs...

Last edited Sat Feb 11, 2017, 08:19 PM - Edit history (2)

needed after 2012?

And as I've said before, only 25% of Americans voted for trump so there's going to be continued opposition to his attempts at installing fascism.

We ain't done yet.

Hope you pick the right side to be on.

[Trust Buster]

26. Kind of snarky. I will resist either the best of them. Acknowledging the Republicans strength to

obstruct the Russia investigation has nothing to do with the Resistance. It is just measuring the enemies strengths and weaknesses.

[brush]

30. Regarding the repugs and their allegedly all-powerful position...

It's long but well worth the read:

http://www.theweeklings.com/golear/2017/01/24/dah-donald-russian-blood-money-and-the-fbis-case-against-trump/

Again, we ain't done yet.

[triron]

27. You ignore that the election was illegitimate it seems

by your implication. Anyway even despite the hacking and voter suppression, Hillary still won by
3 million votes.

[wordpix]

10. If Flynn is on his way out, what about Trumputin who gave the order?

I guess catch the small fry in order to catch the big kahuna

[Trust Buster]

4. Let us not forget that Trump's dirty trickster, Roger Stone, tweeted on Aug. 21 that the Podesta

hack dump was next. This was before Podesta or our intelligence services even knew that Podesta was hacked.

[dalton99a]

17. Yep.

[democrank]

5. Let's see how long it takes for Republicans to speak out against this in-house traitor.

A majority of Republicans in government have, with either vocal approval or winks and nods, okayed just about everything Trump and his administration have done. It's party over country, each and every time.

[wordpix]

29. and it's the Grand Oligarchy Party we're talkin about

[Cracklin Charlie]

8. Kick

[fishwax]

9. keep that slow burn going--more info is bound to come out

[wordpix]

11. ready for a huge conflagration myself

burn up this admin and start over with HRC or bring Pres. O back

VP Dense looks like is in collusion

[fishwax]

12. if it comes out after the midterms, it could be President Pelosi

But that requires work, from all of us, to make sure the tidal wave keeps growing between now and November 2018.

[malaise]

20. Pence knew

Power by any means

[DittoTheCat2]

28. Pense

I don't think that Trump is smart enough to have put this whole thing into place on his own. He (Pence) is handpicked for VP by someone other than Trump.