—
As they say, this breaking news just might be relevant … the FBI seems to think so:
FBI investigating whether Russian money went to NRA to help Trump
by Peter Stone And Greg Gordon, mcclatchydc.com/news — Jan 18, 2018 — WASHINGTON
The FBI is investigating whether a top Russian banker with ties to the Kremlin illegally funneled money to the National Rifle Association to help Donald Trump win the presidency, two sources familiar with the matter have told McClatchy.
FBI counterintelligence investigators have focused on the activities of Alexander Torshin, the deputy governor of Russia’s central bank who is known for his close relationships with both Russian President Vladimir Putin and the NRA, the sources said.
It is illegal to use foreign money to influence federal elections.
[...]
It would be illegal to follow through on promises of stolen “dirt” from foreign sources now too, wouldn’t it? Especially when the shady “Russian Contact” has plans to establish such a meeting ...
The NRA Is Part of the Trump–Russia Scandal Now
by Jonathan Chait, nymag.com — Jan 18, 2018
Russian intervention in the 2016 campaign has a number of complex threads. But the latest development is simple and old-fashioned. McClatchy reports that the FBI is investigating whether a Kremlin-linked Russian banker funneled money through the National Rifle Association to help elect Donald Trump. American law prohibits foreign campaign donations.
The banker, Alexsander Torshin, has close ties to Vladimir Putin, and the sort of shady connections one expects from an oligarch in the Putin circle. (He has been charged with money laundering overseas and links to mobsters.) Torshin is also a lifetime member of the NRA, hosted NRA delegations visiting Russia, has attended several NRA conventions, and has spoken with gun enthusiast Donald Trump Jr.
[...]
Did the Kremlin funnel payments to help Trump's campaign through the National Rifle Association?
by Tim Dickinson, rollingstone.com — Jan 18, 2018
[...]
Trump Connections
At the May 2016 NRA convention in Louisville, Kentucky, where Donald Trump accepted the group's endorsement, Torshin shared a table at dinner with the candidate's son Donald Jr. According to Bloomberg, Torshin claimed to also have met now-president Trump at the convention, and that: "He keeps photos of the event on his computer tablet."
The 2016 NRA convention came off just as Russians were actively seeking contact with the Trump campaign – just weeks earlier, a Russian conduit told Trump staffer George Papadopoulos that Russia had "dirt" on Hillary Clinton, including thousands of her emails. – and hoping to set up a meeting with Trump and Putin.
According to the New York Times, Torshin tried to set up a dinner meeting in Louisville at the time of the NRA convention with then-candidate Trump – with the aim of connecting Trump with Putin. The request was conveyed through a Trump ally in the Christian conservative world, who reportedly sent the campaign an email with the subject line: "Russian backdoor overture and dinner invite." (Trump did not attend that dinner.)
Separately, an NRA member, Paul Erickson – who had been part of the 2015 NRA delegation to Moscow – wrote an email titled, “Kremlin Connection," to Trump campaign adviser Rick Dearborn, according to the New York Times. Erickson reportedly told the campaign that Russia was "quietly but actively seeking a dialogue with the U.S." and would be seeking "first contact" at the NRA convention.
[...]
As the article goes on to explain — just a few weeks later the ‘Trump Brain-trust’ would go on and take that “exploratory meeting” with Russian envoys at Trump Towers. Throwing all caution to the wind.
Afterall, in Trumpworld, Dirt is Dirt … as long as it isn’t Dirt about them — which in that case the said Dirt doesn’t even exist. Not even under their well manicured fingernails.
No way. No how!