It's like the Mafia, only way bigger and richer. The "oligarchs" (dictionary definition: "a person who belongs to a small group of people who govern or control a country" in Russia are extremely wealthy business people who are rich because of their connections to the government - and government officials like Putin and Medvedev are rich because of their connections with the oligarchy. It's really all part of the same system. It's safe to say that the wealthiest people in Russia did not become wealthy because of their business acumen but because they were in bed with Putin et al. For years they have been siphoning off the money generated by Russia's oil and gas production, the only significant source of wealth in Russia.

So: If you are doing business in Russia that involves any substantial financial transactions, you can be pretty damn sure that your business partners are criminals, and that by doing business with them you are becoming part of their enterprise. I'd bet kroner to kruggerands that what SCROTUS and his minions are trying so hard to cover up is not just the Russians' attempts at electronic election-rigging, but the underlying financial crimes that are likely part of the quid pro quo - or blackmail. Putin wants to help Trump win because he thinks Trump will lift the sanctions, but he has leverage as well. Far more damaging than the golden showers kompromat is what the Russians probably have on him related to to financial matters. The answer to just about any complex investigation can be found if you follow the money - this was also true of Watergate. The financial crimes are likely to be along the lines of tax evasion, money laundering and racketeering. Why doesn't SCROTUS want to disclose his tax returns? Probably as much on account of what's not in them as what is.

Tie up the relationships among Manafort, Carter Page, Flynn, etc., and now Kushner, the bankers in Cyprus, Russia and Ukraine, Ambassador Kislyak....