The 20-minute gathering in Manhattan seemed to have everything: Donald Trump Jr. meeting with a Kremlin-linked lawyer. In Mueller’s final report, however, the Trump Tower meeting is little more than a blip, just one of a host of incidents that drew his attention.
-- When news first broke in July 2017 about the now-famous Trump Tower meeting, it looked like just the caught-in-the-act moment critics thought could ensnare Donald Trump.
Story continuesPut simply, it’s hard to catch someone red-handed committing collusion, obstruction or even campaign finance violations -- no matter how suspicious or unpatriotic it might look to a legal layperson.The meeting, Mueller concluded, ultimately didn’t amount to illegal collusion because the Trump campaign officials weren’t well-versed in the law and the information that was promised by the Kremlin-linked lawyer didn’t pan out.
The same day, Goldstone reportedly emailed Trump Jr. to say that the Crown Prosecutor of Russia wanted to offer the Trump campaign"official documents and information that would incriminate Hillary and her dealings with Russia," according to the report. Rick Gates, who was the deputy campaign chairman at the time, testified that Trump Jr. announced at a regular planning meeting that he"had a lead on negative information about the Clinton Foundation," according to the report. But Gates also recalled inexplicably that the meeting involved Kyrgyzstan, Mueller said.
Kushner became aggravated and asked"[w]hat are we doing here?" according to the report. Akhmetshin then turned the conversation to U.S. sanctions imposed under the Magnitsky Act and Russia’s retaliation prohibiting the U.S. adoption of Russian children, according to the report. "I hope this favor was worth for your dad -- it could blow up," Goldstone said. He later lamented that their relationship with"mr T has been thrown down the drain," according to the report.
Canada Latest News, Canada Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Mueller report: No evidence Trump knew about Trump Tower meeting in advanceMueller report 'found no documentary evidence' to indicate that President Trump knew ahead of time about the June 2016 Trump Tower meeting between top campaign officials and a Kremlin-connected lawyer.
Read more »
Ari Melber: Why Mueller did not charge Donald Trump Jr.MSNBC Chief Legal Correspondent Ari Melber breaks down Mueller's view of the 2016 Trump Tower meeting and why Mueller declined to prosecute members of the Trump campaign, including Donald Trump Jr., who attended the meeting. Melber notes that Mueller did not view their knowledge as reaching the high bar for criminal campaign finance prosecution.
Read more »
Mueller: President's efforts to mislead press on the Trump Tower meeting were not criminal'There's a sentence here that's all but an explicit invitation to Congress to impeach the President ... This is an invitation to Congress to say 'you can do it using the impeachment power,'' JeffreyToobin says about the Mueller report.
Read more »
Here are Donald Trump’s written responses to Robert Mueller about the Trump Tower meeting“I have no recollection of learning at the time that Donald Trump Jr., Paul Manafort, or Jared Kushner was considering participating in a meeting in June 2016,” Trump wrote.
Read more »
Analysis | How Sean Hannity aided the Trump Tower meeting clean-up effortAccording to the Mueller report, Hannity knew about the meeting weeks before the Times did.
Read more »
'I do not recall': Read Trump's written answers to Mueller on Russian contacts, Trump Tower meetingPresident Donald Trump, in his written answers to special counsel Robert Mueller, said more than 30 times that he did not 'recall' or 'remember' or have an 'independent recollection' of events related to the Russian investigation.
Read more »
Live updates: Mueller considered charging Donald Trump Jr. over the Trump Tower meeting. Here's why he didn'tHere's how President Trump responded to the release of the Mueller report while he was speaking at the Wounded Warrior Project's Soldier Ride. Live updates on the report:
Read more »
We still don't know why Mueller didn't charge Trump with obstructionAnalysis: While the Mueller report gave us a window into the special counsel's thinking, here's what remains unanswered about his decision on obstruction.
Read more »
Why Mueller Didn't Charge Trump With ObstructionIn Robert Mueller's report on Russian interference in the 2016 election, the special counsel looked at several actions by the president but avoided judgement on whether President Trump obstructed justice. WSJ's Gerald F. Seib explains. Photo Illustration: Adele Morgan
Read more »