Four things we learned from the 13 Russian indictments.
slatten49 wrote:
By Aaron Blake February 16
We have the first indictment in the investigation by Robert S. Mueller III that actually has to do with Russian meddling in the 2016 election. The special counsel on Friday indicted 13 Russians in connection with a large-scale troll farm effort aimed at influencing the election in violation of U.S. law.
The indictment of the Internet Research Agency comes on top of two Trump advisers having pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI — Michael Flynn and George Papadopoulos — and two more being indicted on charges of alleged financial crimes that predated the campaign — Paul Manafort and Rick Gates. Nobody is in custody and Russia does not extradite to the United States, but the document from the secretive Mueller investigation does shed plenty of light where there previously wasn't any.
So what does the new indictment tell us? Here's what we can say right away:
1. It doesn't say the Trump campaign colluded with Russia, but doesn't rule it out either.
The words “in this indictment” mean Rosenstein's comments are pretty narrow.
Update: In a statement, Trump and the White House suggested that the announcement "further indicates ... that there was NO COLLUSION between the Trump campaign and Russia." Again, it doesn't provide any direct indication.
By Aaron Blake February 16 br br We have the fir... (
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Translation: They'll still try until 2018 is over and they lose more but it's the ONLY card the Dems have.
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2. It just got a lot harder for Trump to dismiss Mueller's probe as a “witch hunt.”
At one point in the indictment, a price tag is put on the effort: $1.25 million in one month, as of September 2016. To put that in perspective, that's as much as some entire presidential campaigns were spending monthly during the primaries. And that lends credence to the idea that this was a large-scale effort connected to the Russian government.
President Trump has often sought to downplay the idea that Russia interfered in the 2016 election
And the document would seem to make pretty clear that the Mueller investigation isn't just targeted at taking down Trump, either.
2. It just got a lot harder for Trump to dismiss M... (
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Russian internet trolls? Pretty expensive fish. At any rate, until she lost the hag and Obama
both downplayed Russian interference even though they were sitting on it. I don't particularly care but I've watched the Democrat attempt to use this to unseat the President and apparently it's mostly BS as far as Trump goes.
Is Mueller's investigation targeted at taking down others until they get Trump?
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3. We still have no idea whether Russia flipped the 2016 election (despite Pence's claim).
In his remarks to reporters, Rosenstein also specified that the indictment doesn't determine whether Russia's interference effort changed the results of the 2016 election. He said there was “no allegation in the indictment of any effect on the outcome of the election.”
Director Mike Pompeo and Vice President Pence. Even this week, Pence said at an Axios event that it was “the universal conclusion of our intelligence communities that none of those efforts had any impact on the outcome of the 2016 election.”
3. We still have no idea whether Russia flipped th... (
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It is bogus...the Dems were in the most danger of being hurt by the truth and since Putin wanted us to interfere in his plans in Syria and couldn't get Obama to cooperate he made sure the truth got out so Trump would win and Pence
knows that!
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4. The effort wasn’t just pro-Trump or anti-Clinton.
The troll farm wasn't just focused on Trump and Hillary Clinton. In fact, it picked sides in both primaries and opposed and supported multiple other candidates.
“They engaged in operations primarily intended to communicate derogatory information about Hillary Clinton, to denigrate other candidates such as Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio, and to support Bernie Sanders and then-candidate Donald Trump,” the indictment says. It says the troll farm had decided whom it was supporting by February 2016, when the primaries were getting off the ground, and it instructed its specialists to "use any opportunity to criticize Hillary and the rest (except Sanders and Trump — we support them.)”
It’s possible the primary advocacy was simply meant to boost Trump and hurt Clinton, but it’s notable that the troll farm effort played in those primaries too.
4. The effort wasn’t just pro-Trump or anti-Clinto... (
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Russian internet trolls? What did they say that internet trolls here don't say? Politicians for that matter?
BigMike wrote:
Russian internet trolls? What did they say that internet trolls here don't say? Politicians for that matter?
Moldy thinks im Russian bot, what do you think Mike??? Always wanted to be a spy..lol
proud republican wrote:
Moldy thinks im Russian bot, what do you think Mike??? Always wanted to be a spy..lol
Old Moldy thinks everyone that isn't a Lefty is in collusion with the Russkies.
![](https://static.onepoliticalplaza.com/images/smilies/sm09.gif)
You're a Russian, and you lead these right wingers around like the pied piper.
moldyoldy wrote:
You're a Russian, and you lead these right wingers around like the pied piper.
I have been here since 1979, dont think anything Russian is left in me,Moldy....Its good that you think of me as a leader........
![](https://static.onepoliticalplaza.com/images/smilies/sm09.gif)
moldyoldy wrote:
You are definitely a Russian bot, always stirring up the right wingers. How much is putin paying you?
I think it's more likely that teabag09 is a Russian bot ;)
proud republican wrote:
Moldy thinks im Russian bot, what do you think Mike??? Always wanted to be a spy..lol
Spybot? An anti-malware program, I think. Doesn't sound all that glamorous.
![](https://static.onepoliticalplaza.com/images/smilies/sm17.gif)
proud republican wrote:
LOL I know,right???.......Maybe i should be like 0... (
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Here's a Russian spybabe I miss:
BigMike wrote:
Here's a Russian spybabe I miss:
I kind of look like this from the neck down...lol
proud republican wrote:
I kind of look like this from the neck down...lol
Then I shall be right over to check you out.
![](https://static.onepoliticalplaza.com/images/smilies/sm09.gif)
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