—
It is silly that this Dossier is still treated like a 3rd-rate re-write of “Pulp-Fiction” — when the Report’s author has a long history of providing sound Intelligence, that is as factual, as his “means and methods” will allow.
And it doesn’t hurt that the author’s area of expertise is Russia. If anyone has the network of contacts to ferret to the “collusion” there, this former MI6-Agent does.
If the GOP had a similar such ‘treasure trove’ of “Dirt on Someone” (hmmm?) — do you think they would just sit on it ??? … “Have to wait for it to be ‘substantiated’” … “How do we know its not just a work of fiction?” … Yeah but, it hasn’t ALL been proven ‘factual’ yet, in a court of law.”
No. If it were the GOP’s windfall — they’d take it ALL at face value — and shout to the Fox News rafters!
And repeat ad-naseum to the far corners of the internet. (And then let the Democrats spend all their time, trying to prove them wrong ...)
YES. But Dems are better than that. Agreed. Still that doesn’t mean we can’t follow up on the “connected dots” in the Report — you know, try to back them up with “Real News”.
[pg 7]
COMPANY INTELLIGENCE REPORT 2016/095
RUSSIA/US PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION: FURTHER INDICATIONS OF EXTENSIVE CONSPIRACY BETWEEN CAMPAIGN TEAM AND THE KREMLIN
Summary
— Further evidence of extensive conspiracy between TRUMP's campaign team and Kremlin, sanctioned at highest levels and involving Russian diplomatic staff based in the US
— TRUMP associate admits Kremlin behind recent appearance of DNC e-mails on WikiLeaks, as means of maintaining plausible deniability
[...]
— Suggestion from source close to TRUMP and MANAFORT that Republican campaign team happy to have Russia as media bogeyman to mask more extensive corrupt business ties to China and other emerging countries
Detail
1. Speaking in confidence to a compatriot in late July 2016, Source B, an ethnic Russian close associate of Republican US presidential candidate Donald TRUMP, admitted that there was a well-developed conspiracy of co-operation between them and the Russian leadership. This was managed on the TRUMP side by the Republican candidate's campaign manager, Paul MANAFORT, who was using foreign policy advisor, Carter PAGE, and others as intermediaries. The two sides had a mutual interest in defeating Democratic presidential candidate Hillary CLINTON, whom President PUTIN apparently both hated and feared.
2. Inter alia, Source E, acknowledged that the Russian regime had been behind the recent leak of embarrassing e-mail messages, emanating from the Democratic National Committee (DNC), to the WikiLeaks platform.
CONFIDENTIAL/SENSITIVE SOURCE
------ ------ ------ ------
[pg 8]
CONFIDENTIAL/SENSITIVE SOURCE
[2. continues ...]
The reason for using WikiLeaks was "plausible deniability” and the operation had been conducted with the full knowledge and support of TRUMP and senior members of his campaign team. In return the TRUMP team had agreed to sideline Russian intervention in Ukraine as a campaign issue and to raise US/NATO defence commitments in the Baltics and Eastern Europe to deflect attention away from Ukraine, priority for PUTIN who needed to cauterise the subject.
[...]
4. In terms of the intelligence flow from the TRUMP team to Russia, Source E reported that much of this concerned the activities of business oligarchs and their families' activities and assets in the US, with which PUTIN and the Kremlin seemed preoccupied.
5. Commenting on the negative media publicity surrounding alleged Russian interference in the US election campaign in support of TRUMP, Source E said he understood that the Republican candidate and his team were relatively relaxed about this because it deflected media and the Democrats' attention away from TRUMP's business dealings in China and other emerging markets. Unlike in Russia, these were substantial and involved the payment of large bribes and kickbacks which, were they to become public, would be potentially very damaging to their campaign.
[...]
CONFIDENTIAL/SENSITIVE SOURCE
That’s just one Intelligence Sub-report (2016/095) on the topic of RUSSIA/US PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION.
Hmmm … that might warrant some further digging?
I underlined the points in those 2 pages — that I can quickly further substantiate by actual “Real-world News”.
Regarding: In return the TRUMP team had agreed to sideline Russian intervention in Ukraine as a campaign issue
The original amendment, which proposed that the GOP commit to sending "lethal weapons" to the Ukrainian army to fend off Russian aggression, was ultimately altered to say "provide appropriate assistance" before it was included in the party's official platform.
The altered amendment has come back into the spotlight amid reports that the campaign's chairman at the time, Paul Manafort, offered to exchange briefings about the campaign for debt repayment and/or cancellation from his contacts in Ukraine and Russia. [...]
On Friday, Gordon [Trump’s national-security policy representative] told Business Insider that he asked the co-chair "to consider tabling" the amendment "until the end," so that he would have time to alert his campaign colleagues about it.
"It was my decision to consult with the co-chair and inform him of Trump's position on Ukraine weapons," Gordon said.
— Business Insider — Sept 22, 2017
Regarding: TRUMP team had agreed to raise US/NATO defence commitments in the
Baltics and Eastern Europe to deflect attention away from Ukraine
America’s NATO allies may be on their own after November if Russia attacks them.
Donald Trump, the GOP presidential nominee, appeared to make U.S. military support for NATO member states conditional on whether those states have met their financial obligations to the bloc, which has served as the cornerstone of global security after World War II. The comments, in an interview with The New York Times, represent a marked departure from the security policy of every presidential nominee from either of the two major parties since NATO’s founding in 1949.
The Times asked Trump: “If Russia came over the border into Estonia or Latvia, Lithuania, places that Americans don’t think about all that often, would you come to their immediate military aid?”
TRUMP: I don’t want to tell you what I’d do because I don’t want Putin to know what I’d do. [...]
— The Atlantic — July 24, 2017
Regarding: The reason for using WikiLeaks was "plausible deniability”
— Collusion: Secret Meetings, Dirty Money, and How Russia Helped Donald Trump Win — by Luke Harding
Regarding: it deflected media and the Democrats' attention away from TRUMP's business dealings in China
The vast business dealings of Donald Trump, the Republican presidential frontrunner, are often purported by the candidate as proof he has the necessary skill set to lead the nation. But they can also lead to some controversy.
The latest potential headache for the New York businessman involves a 50-story luxury rental building being built in Jersey City, N.J., by Kushner Companies. Called Trump Bay Street, Bloomberg has reported the project has raised $50 million, with about 25% of the funding coming from loans through a visa program known as EB-5. That program is controversial as it gives foreigners a two-year visa in exchange for investing at least $500,000 in a project that is promised to create jobs.
As Bloomberg notes, many times the individuals awarded those visas have a good chance of obtaining permanent residency for themselves and their families. Also notable: Kushner Companies is led by Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner. [...]
— Fortune — Mar 7, 2016
I’m sure that there are many other Trump-incriminating Leads — just sitting in plain sight … if researchers would bother “read between the lines” of the ‘zombie’ Dossier report. (… No matter how many times the GOP tries to kill it.)
Intelligence is meant to provide Leads. It is up to dedicated investigative reporting to provide, the Rest of the Story. You know, Fill-in the details … Track down the Facts.
If we let the GOP constantly “set the rules” of the 21st-century ‘Reporting Game’ — guess what?
We end up with the mess we have now. Or worse.
Because in the real world, Cheaters usually Prosper.
That is until, someone has the balls guts enough to step up, and try to stop them …
However much the Cheaters will scream about the “sanctity” of their “fake standards” of Fairness, and Accuracy, and respect for ‘The Truth’ — that they will pull out of the trunk, dust off and “selectively apply” — whether they find it convenient.
Like whenever the Dems have the courage, to stand up and say “Enough, already!”
No More Corruption. No More Cheating to Win.