Octopus Overlords

Overall statistics

At least 12 Trump associates had contacts with Russians during the campaign or transition.
There were at least 19 face-to-face interactions with Russians or Kremlin-linked figures.
There were at least 51 communications -- meetings, phone calls, email exchanges and more.
This flies in the face of at least nine blanket denials from Trump world of any contacts with Russia.

In 1987, a young real estate developer traveled to the Soviet Union. The KGB almost certainly made the trip happen.

It was 1984 and General Vladimir Alexandrovich Kryuchkov had a problem. The general occupied one of the KGB’s most exalted posts. He was head of the First Chief Directorate, the prestigious KGB arm responsible for gathering foreign intelligence.

Kryuchkov had begun his career with five years at the Soviet mission in Budapest under Ambassador Yuri Andropov. In 1967 Andropov became KGB chairman. Kryuchkov went to Moscow, took up a number of sensitive posts, and established a reputation as a devoted and hardworking officer. By 1984, Kryuchkov’s directorate in Moscow was bigger than ever before—12,000 officers, up from about 3,000 in the 1960s. His headquarters at Yasenevo, on the wooded southern outskirts of the city, was expanding: Workmen were busy constructing a 22-story annex and a new 11-story building.

In politics, change was in the air. Soon a new man would arrive in the Kremlin, Mikhail Gorbachev. Gorbachev’s policy of detente with the West—a refreshing contrast to the global confrontation of previous general secretaries—meant the directorate’s work abroad was more important than ever.

Kryuchkov faced several challenges. First, a hawkish president, Ronald Reagan, was in power in Washington. The KGB regarded his two predecessors, Gerald Ford and Jimmy Carter, as weak. By contrast Reagan was seen as a potent adversary. The directorate was increasingly preoccupied with what it believed—wrongly—was an American plot to conduct a preemptive nuclear strike against the USSR.

It was around this time that Donald Trump appears to have attracted the attention of Soviet intelligence. How that happened, and where that relationship began, is an answer hidden somewhere in the KGB's secret archives. Assuming, that is, that the documents still exist.

malchior wrote: Wed Nov 22, 2017 2:09 pm I dumped this story in the Russia thread but it indeed opens a lot of questions. On top of that we have an hour long conservation with putin yesterday. They spoke for an hour about Syria? Really? And they still haven't implemented the new Russian sanctions. This couldn't stink more.

Lawyers for Michael T. Flynn, President Trump’s former national security adviser, notified the president’s legal team in recent days that they could no longer discuss the special counsel’s investigation, according to four people involved in the case, an indication that Mr. Flynn is cooperating with prosecutors or negotiating such a deal.

...

That agreement has been terminated, the four people said. Defense lawyers frequently share information during investigations, but they must stop when doing so would pose a conflict of interest. It is unethical for lawyers to work together when one client is cooperating with prosecutors and another is still under investigation.

Kraken wrote: Thu Nov 23, 2017 11:07 pm While I'm as impatient as the next guy for the endgame, I also enjoy the water-torture aspect.

El Guapo wrote: Thu Nov 30, 2017 12:36 pm https://twitter.com/dcexaminer/status/9 ... 4070673408

Something on his mind?

Captain Caveman wrote: Fri Dec 01, 2017 10:29 am (he certainly could've been charged with a lot more).

Zaxxon wrote: Fri Dec 01, 2017 10:28 am Source.

Though [Flynn] wasn't initially considered for the top job, Trump's daughter, Ivanka Trump, and son-in-law Jared Kushner made it clear to the Trump transition team that they wanted him there, CNN has reported.

msteelers wrote: Fri Dec 01, 2017 10:53 am Should we be getting our hopes up already? What are the chances that he is only charged with lying to the FBI because that's all that Mueller can prove at this point?

Captain Caveman wrote: Fri Dec 01, 2017 10:55 am

msteelers wrote: Fri Dec 01, 2017 10:53 am Should we be getting our hopes up already? What are the chances that he is only charged with lying to the FBI because that's all that Mueller can prove at this point?

Doubtful. The dude was just caught planning a freaking kidnapping while national security advisor. He's been on the payroll of some shady motherfuckers. He was in contact with Russians making deals to lessen sanctions. The guy was central to a lot, and the fact that he's only getting charged with lying means that he's singing.

msteelers wrote: Fri Dec 01, 2017 11:03 am

Captain Caveman wrote: Fri Dec 01, 2017 10:55 am

msteelers wrote: Fri Dec 01, 2017 10:53 am Should we be getting our hopes up already? What are the chances that he is only charged with lying to the FBI because that's all that Mueller can prove at this point?

Doubtful. The dude was just caught planning a freaking kidnapping while national security advisor. He's been on the payroll of some shady motherfuckers. He was in contact with Russians making deals to lessen sanctions. The guy was central to a lot, and the fact that he's only getting charged with lying means that he's singing.

But that's the thing that gets me. The National Security Advisor planning a kidnapping while in office is a huge friggin deal. Would Mueller let that go entirely just to flip on somebody higher up the chain?

Captain Caveman wrote: Fri Dec 01, 2017 10:46 am This strikes me as a much bigger deal than the Manafort indictment. An indictment is the end of the line, but this is a plea deal which signifies ongoing cooperation. And from a central figure no less, who must be providing a lot of evidence on bigger fish... and there aren't too many bigger fish than a national security advisor.

Ralph-Wiggum wrote: Fri Dec 01, 2017 11:08 am

msteelers wrote: Fri Dec 01, 2017 11:03 am

Captain Caveman wrote: Fri Dec 01, 2017 10:55 am

msteelers wrote: Fri Dec 01, 2017 10:53 am Should we be getting our hopes up already? What are the chances that he is only charged with lying to the FBI because that's all that Mueller can prove at this point?

Doubtful. The dude was just caught planning a freaking kidnapping while national security advisor. He's been on the payroll of some shady motherfuckers. He was in contact with Russians making deals to lessen sanctions. The guy was central to a lot, and the fact that he's only getting charged with lying means that he's singing.

But that's the thing that gets me. The National Security Advisor planning a kidnapping while in office is a huge friggin deal. Would Mueller let that go entirely just to flip on somebody higher up the chain?

If it's the best way to nail multiple people up the chain, sure.

Paingod wrote: Fri Dec 01, 2017 11:18 am One might think you're suggesting the Orange Mancheeto has a guilty conscience.

That would require a minimal level of humanity, though.

msteelers wrote: Fri Dec 01, 2017 11:03 am

Captain Caveman wrote: Fri Dec 01, 2017 10:55 am

msteelers wrote: Fri Dec 01, 2017 10:53 am Should we be getting our hopes up already? What are the chances that he is only charged with lying to the FBI because that's all that Mueller can prove at this point?

Doubtful. The dude was just caught planning a freaking kidnapping while national security advisor. He's been on the payroll of some shady motherfuckers. He was in contact with Russians making deals to lessen sanctions. The guy was central to a lot, and the fact that he's only getting charged with lying means that he's singing.

But that's the thing that gets me. The National Security Advisor planning a kidnapping while in office is a huge friggin deal. Would Mueller let that go entirely just to flip on somebody higher up the chain?