j*********r
发帖数: 24733 | 1 Conflicting reports emerged Thursday about whether the co-founder of the
opposition research firm behind the infamous "dossier" allegedly detailing
President Trump's ties to Russia would testify before the Senate
Intelligence Committee next week.
Glenn Simpson, a former Wall Street Journal reporter who helped found Fusion
GPS in 2010, was asked to appear at a scheduled July 19 hearing about the
role of foreign lobbying in last year's presidential election.
However, Politico, citing two sources, reported that Simpson did not plan to
testify. The report added that it was not immediately clear whether the
committee planned to compel Simpson to testify. By contrast, The Washington
Times reported Thursday that Simpson would testify before the panel.
During the campaign, Fusion GPS contracted former MI-6 agent Christopher
Steele to build a report on Trump's financial and social connections in
Russia. The dossier included a number of sordid allegations about Trump's
sexual proclivities, which the president has repeatedly denied.
On Wednesday, Fox News reported that Fusion GPS had ties to Russian efforts
to undermine U.S. sanctions that were led by attorney Natalia Veselnitskaya.
Veselnitskaya was at the center of a political storm earlier this week
after Donald Trump Jr. made public emails indicating that he had taken a
meeting with Veselnitskaya on the promise of receiving damaging information
about Hillary Clinton.
Investment manager Bill Browder has alleged that Simpson was retained by
Veselnitskaya's client, Prevezon Holdings, as part of an effort to repeal
the Magnitsky Act, named for Sergei Magnitsky — an attorney who was beaten
to death in a Moscow prison after accusing Russian authorities of stealing
hundreds of millions of dollars through tax refunds and then laundering the
money through New York banks.
Browder, a former Magnitsky client, told Fox News that Simpson was "using
all of his media contacts to get a smear campaign going against Magnitsky
and myself. He also seems to be able to get articles stopped. Simpson has
unusual influence because he was often a big source to these reporters on
other stories.”
Browder has also claimed that "Veselnitskaya probably tried 12 different
angles to get to Trump and also to Clinton for that matter" and said she had
"every possible incentive to get to both sides” since her goal was to get
the Magnitsky Act repealed, and apparently not to influence the U.S.
election."
In a statement, Fusion said it had nothing to do with the Trump Jr. meeting.
“Fusion GPS learned about this meeting from news reports and had no prior
knowledge of it. Any claim that Fusion GPS arranged or facilitated this
meeting in any way is absolutely false,” the statement read. | s*******0
发帖数: 511 | | t*******d
发帖数: 12895 | |
|
