5 times Donald Trumps team denied contact with Russia
The New York Times and CNN are both reporting that members of Donald Trump's campaign spoke with Russia frequently during the campaign.
It's worth noting that their reporting includes significant caveats. Most importantly, it's not clear these discussions involved the campaign. The Times says the contacts were with “Russian intelligence officials,” while CNN says it was with “Russian nationals known to U.S. intelligence.” And, as the Times notes, “it is not unusual for American businessmen to come in contact with foreign intelligence officials, sometimes unwittingly, in countries like Russia and Ukraine, where the spy services are deeply embedded in society.”
So basically, conclusions that this proves collusion between the Trump campaign and the Russian government are premature. That claim is based on the preponderance of evidence rather than any real, conclusive — and even anonymously sourced — reporting.
But importantly, the new reports do seem to contradict claims the Trump campaign and now the Trump White House have made about their lack of contact with Russia. They have said in various ways that there was no contact, on multiple occasions, and as recently as Tuesday afternoon.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2017/02/15/4-times-donald-trumps-team-denied-contact-with-russia/?tid=test_hp_curation&utm_term=.56600e9d9bf1
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