The news broke that Federal Investigator Mueller made his first indictments in the Russian investigation. Amidst terror attacks, mass shootings, white supremacy demonstrations, revocation of civil rights, and the dissolution of Obamacare, the indictments are not the wildest thing to have come in the past year. However, if you’ve been overwhelmed by all the recent media chaos you may have missed this pivotal moment in the Trump legacy and what it may spell for him moving forward.
The investigations began under FBI director James Comey, who Trump removed from office in early May. Following his dismissal, Comey took to the media, throwing verbal jabs at our current POTUS and discrediting him whenever possible. The position has since been filled by Mr. Robert Mueller. Throughout the summer, Mueller and his staff of lawyers interviewed more than two dozen individuals linked to the Trump campaign regarding their involvement and communication with Russian officials. For a while, it seemed the investigation wasn’t gaining any traction and the public soon lost interest. In the past few days, however, Mueller’s advances have opened Panadora’s box and shed light on a truth stranger than fiction.
On Monday, October 30th, Mueller went after Paul Manafort, Trump’s campaign advisor, and Richard Gates, Manafort’s associate, charging each with twelve indictments culminating in and supporting the penultimate charge: “Conspiracy against the United States”. Both plead not guilty. However, George Papadapoulos, a former member of the foreign policy advisory panel to Donald Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign, confessed to making false statements to the FBI regarding Russian communications and admitted to multiple attempts to provide “dirt” on Hillary Clinton to the Trump campaign via Russian officials. White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders now claims that
Papadapoulos was not close to the campaign, despite past statements by Trump sharing kind regards to the young lawyer.
As the case continues to unfold, Manafort appears to be in a corner; he was unequivocally linked to working for the Ukrainian government, amassing $18 million in the process, most of which he hid in offshore accounts to avoid paying taxes. Media experts thus far have implied there is a strong likelihood he will roll and reveal information that links other Trump campaign leaders to colluding with the Russians, and Mueller closer to the truth.
Other notable individuals under scrutiny include Jeff Sessions, Jared Stone Jr, Michael Flynn, Jared Kushner, and Michael Cohen.
Sessions recused himself from the initial iteration of the Russia Investigation, citing his prior involvement with the Trump campaign. It has since come to light, however, that during Trump’s election campaign, Sessions met with a Russian ambassador – a fact he neglected to share with the FBI. He has since turned over documents to the FBI.
Stone Jr talked with Julian Assange of WikiLeaks before the Clinton materials were released, but claims his interactions were perfectly legal.
Michael Flynn reportedly discussed sanctions with Russian ambassadors during the Obama administrations and misled both the FBI and Vice President Mike Pence.
Jared Kushner discussed secret back channels with Russian ambassadors and was present at a meeting between Trump Jr and a Russian lawyer for smearing the Clintons, which was documented over emails. He incriminated himself by lying about his involvement.
Michael Cohen, a long-term member of Trump’s legal counsel, has been subpoenaed for documents following his refusal to comply with the investigation
New information has emerged confirming suspicions that the Russian instigators have used Facebook ads to target voters in Michigan and Wisconsin who may have anti-Muslim leanings. As Wisconsin was a battleground in the election, this revelation has raised further questions regarding the extent and impact of Russian influence on the 2016 election. The ads are being carefully scrutinized to determine whether there was a correlation between the ads’ presence and Trump’s victory in these key districts within the states.
Where has Trump been during all of this? Sources close to the President have indicated that Trump has been incredibly frustrated with the proceedings. He has taken to twitter to deter attention from the investigation, and continues to smear at Clinton and Democrats, all the while pushing his tax reformation ahead of the scandals. If a final link is established between Trump and Russia I’d be keeping a close watch, because then the show will really be getting started.