Sessions now says he was aware of Papadopoulos-Russia contacts — contradicting his sworn testimony: report

[Amica Nostra 4,803]

https://www.rawstory.com/2017/11/sessions-now-says-he-was-aware-of-papadopoulos-russia-contacts-contradicting-his-sworn-testimony-report/

 

Attorney General Jeff Sessions reportedly now admits that he was aware of George Papadopoulos’s efforts to arrange meetings between the Trump campaign and Russia — a seemingly direct contradiction of sworn testimony he gave to the Senate.

Sources tell NBC News that Sessions now remembers rejecting a proposal by Papadopoulos to set up a meeting between Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

NBC News reporter Ken Dilanian, appearing on MSNBC Thursday afternoon, explained that this was significant because “he testified under oath that he was aware of no discussions with Russians, at least concerning collusion in the election.”

Dilanian then reported that many in Congress now want Sessions to come back and clarify his testimony — which would mark the third time that Sessions has had to “amend his recollections” of known contacts between the Trump campaign and Russian officials.

Sessions originally testified that he had no contacts with any Russian officials during the 2016 election, although he later admitted that he met with former Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak in his capacity as a senator.

 

CNN reported on Thursday that Sessions was present at a March 2016 meeting in which Papadopoulos said he had been working to arrange a meeting between Trump and Putin, thus raising new questions about his earlier congressional testimony.

In particular, CNN noted that Sessions failed to disclose the meeting “despite a persistent set of questions from Democrats and some Republicans about Russia during multiple hearings on Capitol Hill.”

[JimandChristy 1,689]

How many times is this guy going to perjure himself? He's been called before committees twice and lied twice. Hope he goes down with the Trumptanic

[eieio 1,594]

Must be true

[Dashinka 24,797]

9 hours ago, eieio said:

Must be true

Sure, CNN was cited.  The original fake news network.

 

13 hours ago, JimandChristy said:

How many times is this guy going to perjure himself? He's been called before committees twice and lied twice. Hope he goes down with the Trumptanic

Explain how this was perjury?  Sessions was aware of a low level staffer anxious to get ahead claiming he could dig up dirt on Hillary (didn't Hillary hire a foreign agent to do the same thing) and he shot it down.  Did Sessions know Papodopoulos actually met with the Professor?  Also, I don't think lying to Congress is a crime, but regardless, I think you need to provide proof that Sessions is anything other than a politician.

[CaliCat 3,957]

16 hours ago, JimandChristy said:

How many times is this guy going to perjure himself? He's been called before committees twice and lied twice. Hope he goes down with the Trumptanic

 

It's not considered perjury. It's now called alternate facts. LOL. 

 

[Jacque67 7,328]

Session's should spill the beans like John Dean

 

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/13/style/john-dean-richard-nixon-watergate-donald-trump.html

[smilesammich 10,727]

[Amica Nostra 4,803]

4 hours ago, Jacque67 said:

Session's should spill the beans like John Dean

 

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/13/style/john-dean-richard-nixon-watergate-donald-trump.html

 Better to turn first

[Amica Nostra 4,803]

9 hours ago, Bill & Katya said:

Sure, CNN was cited.  The original fake news network.

 

Explain how this was perjury?  Sessions was aware of a low level staffer anxious to get ahead claiming he could dig up dirt on Hillary (didn't Hillary hire a foreign agent to do the same thing) and he shot it down.  Did Sessions know Papodopoulos actually met with the Professor?  Also, I don't think lying to Congress is a crime, but regardless, I think you need to provide proof that Sessions is anything other than a politician.

It is a crime to lie under oath in the Senate, always has been. So if your defense is that well he may be a list but not a perjurer, that is not accurate.

https://www.thenation.com/article/jeff-sessions-keeps-lying-to-the-senate/

Attorney General Jeff Sessions is facing renewed questions about his sworn testimony before the Senate in the aftermath of reports that he was told about contacts at least two former Trump campaign officials had with Russia.

The former Trump foreign-policy adviser Carter Page told the House Intelligence Committee that he informed Sessions about a trip he took to Russia in July 2016, according to CNN, which Page claims was unconnected to the campaign.  Separately,  a participant in a March 2016 meeting of Trump’s foreign-policy advisers told The New York Timeshe recalled Sessions “vehemently” opposing a proposal from George Papadopoulos to set up a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Papadopoulos pleaded guilty to making false statements to the FBI on Monday, and federal documents showed that he was offered “dirt” obtained by the Russian government on Trump’s 2016 rival, Hillary Clinton.

 

That information appears at odds with Sessions’s testimony during his confirmation hearing in January 2017. When Minnesota Democrat Al Franken asked what Sessions would do “if there is any evidence that anyone affiliated with the Trump campaign communicated with the Russian government in the course of this campaign,” Sessions replied that he was “not aware of any of those activities.”  In October, Franken asked Sessions directly: “You don’t believe that surrogates from the Trump campaign had communications with the Russians? Is that what you’re saying?”

“I did not, and I’m not aware of anyone else that did, and I don’t believe it happened,” Sessions said.

[Jacque67 7,328]

11 hours ago, Il Mango Dulce said:

 Better to turn first

Word.

[jg121783 3,921]

Papadopoulos was a low level volunteer (who appears to have ties to the democrats) who was probably there just to attempt to set Trump up for something. If this is what Mueller and the left are hanging their hat on to prove Russian collusion it is pretty pathetic.

[Amica Nostra 4,803]

5 hours ago, jg121783 said:

Papadopoulos was a low level volunteer (who appears to have ties to the democrats) who was probably there just to attempt to set Trump up for something. If this is what Mueller and the left are hanging their hat on to prove Russian collusion it is pretty pathetic.

 

5 hours ago, jg121783 said:

Papadopoulos was a low level volunteer (who appears to have ties to the democrats) who was probably there just to attempt to set Trump up for something. If this is what Mueller and the left are hanging their hat on to prove Russian collusion it is pretty pathetic.

•  

•  Trump’s claim that Papadopoulos had inconsequential role is unraveling

Papadopoulos represented the Trump campaign several times.

KILEY KROHNOV 4, 2017, 12:12 PM

 

 

PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP SPEAKS WITH REPORTERS BEFORE DEPARTING TO ASIA, NOV. 3, 2017. CREDIT: AP PHOTO/EVAN VUCCI

As soon as it became public that former Trump campaign aide George Papadopoulos had pleaded guilty to making false statements to the FBI, members of the administration have sought to distance themselves from Papadopoulos and minimize the role he played on the campaign.

However, Papadopoulos was in Cleveland during the Republican National Convention last summer, and spoke on a panel organized by the American Jewish Committee about U.S. foreign policy, NBC News reported Friday. An AJC spokesperson told NBC Papadopoulos was invited to speak on the panel as “a Trump campaign foreign policy adviser.” Then, last September, Papadopoulos gave an interview to the Russian Interfax News Agency in which he’s described as “one of U.S. presidential candidate Donald Trump’s foreign political advisors.”

During Trump’s inauguration in January, Papadopoulos also met with Israeli leaders as a Trump foreign policy adviser, NBC reported.

This runs counter to the picture the administration has been trying to paint this week. White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders described Papadopoulos’ role with the campaign as “extremely limited, it was a volunteer position, and again, no activity was done in an official capacity on behalf of the campaign.”

President Donald Trump tweeted that “few people knew the young, low level volunteer,” despite having praised Papadopoulos as an “excellent guy” during a March 2016 interview. That same month, Trump tweeted a photo of himself at a table with several advisers, including then-Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-AL) and Papadopoulos. During the meeting, Papadopoulos presented his idea of using Kremlin connections to arrange a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

 

Hidden bombshell in Papadopoulos’ plea indicates Trump’s role may soon take center stage

There was no evidence that Trump knew about any campaign contacts with Russians or their intermediaries. Until now.

Papadopoulos’ plea, unsealed by special counsel Robert Mueller on Monday, indicates then-candidate Trump may have played a more active role than the White House is describing. In reference to the March 2016 national security meeting, the plea states, “When defendant PAPADOPOULOS introduced himself to the group, he stated, in sum and substance, that he had connections that could help arrange a meeting between then-candidate Trump and President Putin.”

According to the New York Times, Trump wasn’t a passive observer, but “listened with interest and asked questions of Mr. Papadopoulos.” After hearing Papadopoulos’ proposal, Trump “didn’t say yes, and he didn’t say no.”

But on Friday, Trump told reporters, “It was a very unimportant meeting… don’t remember much about it.” Sanders gave reporters the same line earlier this week.

In February of this year, Trump was asked whether anyone who advised his campaign had contacts with Russia “during the course of the election.” Trump responded, “Nobody that I know of.”

#DONALD TRUMP, #GEORGE PAPADOPOULOS, #POLITICS, #RUSSIA INVESTIGATION

 

•  

© 2017 ThinkProgress

Powered by WordPress.com VIP

 

Edited November 4, 2017 by Il Mango Dulce

[jg121783 3,921]

11 hours ago, Il Mango Dulce said:

 

•  

•  Trump’s claim that Papadopoulos had inconsequential role is unraveling

Papadopoulos represented the Trump campaign several times.

KILEY KROHNOV 4, 2017, 12:12 PM

 

 

PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP SPEAKS WITH REPORTERS BEFORE DEPARTING TO ASIA, NOV. 3, 2017. CREDIT: AP PHOTO/EVAN VUCCI

As soon as it became public that former Trump campaign aide George Papadopoulos had pleaded guilty to making false statements to the FBI, members of the administration have sought to distance themselves from Papadopoulos and minimize the role he played on the campaign.

However, Papadopoulos was in Cleveland during the Republican National Convention last summer, and spoke on a panel organized by the American Jewish Committee about U.S. foreign policy, NBC News reported Friday. An AJC spokesperson told NBC Papadopoulos was invited to speak on the panel as “a Trump campaign foreign policy adviser.” Then, last September, Papadopoulos gave an interview to the Russian Interfax News Agency in which he’s described as “one of U.S. presidential candidate Donald Trump’s foreign political advisors.”

During Trump’s inauguration in January, Papadopoulos also met with Israeli leaders as a Trump foreign policy adviser, NBC reported.

This runs counter to the picture the administration has been trying to paint this week. White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders described Papadopoulos’ role with the campaign as “extremely limited, it was a volunteer position, and again, no activity was done in an official capacity on behalf of the campaign.”

President Donald Trump tweeted that “few people knew the young, low level volunteer,” despite having praised Papadopoulos as an “excellent guy” during a March 2016 interview. That same month, Trump tweeted a photo of himself at a table with several advisers, including then-Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-AL) and Papadopoulos. During the meeting, Papadopoulos presented his idea of using Kremlin connections to arrange a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

 

Hidden bombshell in Papadopoulos’ plea indicates Trump’s role may soon take center stage

There was no evidence that Trump knew about any campaign contacts with Russians or their intermediaries. Until now.

Papadopoulos’ plea, unsealed by special counsel Robert Mueller on Monday, indicates then-candidate Trump may have played a more active role than the White House is describing. In reference to the March 2016 national security meeting, the plea states, “When defendant PAPADOPOULOS introduced himself to the group, he stated, in sum and substance, that he had connections that could help arrange a meeting between then-candidate Trump and President Putin.”

According to the New York Times, Trump wasn’t a passive observer, but “listened with interest and asked questions of Mr. Papadopoulos.” After hearing Papadopoulos’ proposal, Trump “didn’t say yes, and he didn’t say no.”

But on Friday, Trump told reporters, “It was a very unimportant meeting… don’t remember much about it.” Sanders gave reporters the same line earlier this week.

In February of this year, Trump was asked whether anyone who advised his campaign had contacts with Russia “during the course of the election.” Trump responded, “Nobody that I know of.”

#DONALD TRUMP, #GEORGE PAPADOPOULOS, #POLITICS, #RUSSIA INVESTIGATION

 

•  

© 2017 ThinkProgress

Powered by WordPress.com VIP

 

I still fail to see how this guy played a significant role in the Trump campaign. The guy was a low level volunteer and the article you posted does absolutely nothing to refute that. If this is all the left has to hang their hat on as far as Russian collusion goes that's pretty pathetic after almost a year of investigations and millions of dollars spent.