United States: FBI suspects Donald Trump of being a Russian agent
"New York Times" spoke of the opening in 2017 of an investigation into the American president. Trump claims to have "never worked for Russia".
US President Donald Trump assured Monday that he had "never worked for Russia" after the New York Times revelations about the opening in 2017 of a federal police (FBI) investigation to determine if he was working for the Moscow account. “I have never worked for Russia,” the 45th President of the United States said from the snow-covered gardens of the White House. "I think it's a shame that you ask that question," he added before flying to New Orleans (Louisiana). "The people who launched this investigation [...] we did, I imagine, because I had sacked [James] Comey [the former boss of the FBI, Editor's note], which was an excellent thing for our country, ”said Donald Trump.
Asked about information from the Washington Post according to which he had sought to conceal the details of his conversations with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, the American president denied having acted in this way. "I know absolutely nothing, it's a lot of fake news [...] It was a meeting crowned with success", he affirmed, referring, it seems, to the summit of Helsinki in July 2018 with Vladimir Poutin. At the end of this meeting, Mr. Trump sparked an outcry, including from his own camp, for being particularly conciliatory towards Mr. Putin during a joint press conference with the strongman of the Kremlin, especially on the issue of Russian interference in the 2016 US presidential campaign.
According to the New York Times, the investigation by the US federal police was quickly merged with that opened by Special Prosecutor Robert Mueller on suspicion of collusion between Moscow and the Republican candidate's campaign team in the 2016 presidential election. The FBI opened its investigation, which included a counterintelligence component and a criminal component, following the dismissal of its director James Comey by Donald Trump in May 2017, reports the New York daily, citing anonymous sources.
Wow, just learned in the Failing New York Times that the corrupt former leaders of the FBI, almost all fired or forced to leave the agency for some very bad reasons, opened up an investigation on me, for no reason & with no proof, after I fired Lyin 'James Comey, a total sleaze!
- Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 12, 2019
Donald Trump was once again not kind in his words. A "liar", a "real junk", a "crooked cop": the President of the United States had violently attacked Saturday January 12 to the former director of the FBI James Comey. "Wow, I just heard from the failed New York Times that the corrupt former FBI executives, almost all sacked or forced out of the agency for very bad reasons, have opened an investigation into me, without any reason or evidence. , when I fired that liar from James Comey, a real junk! The President of the United States had tweeted early in the morning.
Suspicions of a link between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin
The counterintelligence strand was to determine whether the billionaire had consciously or unconsciously worked for Moscow, and the criminal strand dealt with the dismissal of James Comey, the newspaper writes, according to which it is not known whether investigations into the counterintelligence aspect are continuing. currently. Also according to the New York Times, the FBI had suspicions about Donald Trump's possible ties to Russia as early as the 2016 presidential campaign. But it did not open an investigation until President sacked James Comey, who had refused to swear allegiance to him and put an end to initial investigations into possible collusion with Russia.
Contacted by AFP, the FBI declined to comment on the subject.
"The FBI was in turmoil [...] because of Comey's mismanagement at its head," Donald Trump commented on Twitter on Saturday. “My dismissal of James Comey was a great day for America. He was a crooked cop, ”he added, referring in another tweet to“ the failures who tried to [him] play a trick ”.
.... the FBI was in complete turmoil (see N.Y. Post) because of Comey’s poor leadership and the way he handled the Clinton mess (not to mention his usurpation of powers from the Justice Department). My firing of James Comey was a great day for America. He was a Crooked Cop ......
- Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 12, 2019
" It's absurd. James Comey was sacked because he is a partisan and discredited sucker, ”added White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders. "The idea contained in the New York Times article that President Trump was a threat to the security of the United States is ludicrous in itself and does not deserve a response," said the foreign minister for his part. American Mike Pompeo in an interview with CBS.
Donald Trump categorically denies any collusion with Russia
Personally targeted by the tenant of the White House, ex-FBI boss James Comey replied with a simple tweet, taking up a famous quote from former President Franklin D. Roosevelt: "I ask you to judge me by the enemies I have made for myself. "
Such reactions from the president "in no way negate the incredible gravity of these allegations," Democrat Jerrold Nadler, chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, said in a statement. “There is no reason to doubt the seriousness or professionalism of the FBI. This judicial commission "will take steps to better understand both the President's actions and the FBI's response to this behavior, and to ensure that these career investigators are protected against ever more outrageous attacks by the President." Trump, ”he warned as Democrats won a majority in the House of Representatives in the midterm elections in November.
Donald Trump, who categorically denies any collusion with Russia, regularly criticizes the investigation by Robert Mueller, a former director of the FBI, which he considers a "witch hunt" and a plot to delegitimize his presidency. The Russian investigation led to multiple indictments and convictions of close collaborators of the president.
His former lawyer Michael Cohen was sentenced to three years in prison, including for breaches of campaign finance legislation. Paul Manafort, who was once director of Donald Trump's campaign team, was found guilty of financial embezzlement linked to activities in Ukraine prior to the 2016 presidential election. And Michael Flynn, former counsel to the National Security President, pleaded guilty to lying to investigators about his ties to Russian officials.
The Washington Post persists and signs
The now undeniable Russian contacts of candidate Trump's team reports, citing former and current government officials, that there is no detailed record of Donald Trump's dealings with Vladimir Putin at five different locations over the past two years. last years. At the end of one of his meetings with the Russian president, in Hamburg in 2017, the Republican billionaire would have even taken possession of the notes of his interpreter, asking him not to share the content of the conversation with the other members of his administration. , writes the daily.
The Washington Post, owned by Amazon boss Jeff Bezos, is "primarily a lobbying tool for Amazon," Donald Trump accused on Fox. "The Washington Post article is so outrageously inaccurate that it does not even deserve a response," commented White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders. "Leftist media wasted two years trying to fabricate a false collusion scandal" between Moscow and Donald Trump's campaign team in the 2016 presidential election, she added.
