- The special counsel Robert Mueller dropped a significant revelation in his list of questions for President Donald Trump.
- According to the list, published this week by The New York Times, Mueller is interested in asking Trump about any efforts by the Trump campaign — including by his former campaign chairman, Paul Manafort — to reach out to Russia for help ahead of the 2016 US election.
- Until now, news reports and testimony have indicated that any offers of assistance were on Russia's end.
- The question suggests Mueller has evidence that members of the campaign, particularly Manafort, reached out to Russia or Russia-linked actors.
- Thirteen of the 48 questions on the list deal with collusion.
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Mueller dropped a bombshell in his list of questions for Trump in the Russia probe
The special counsel Robert Mueller is interested in finding out what knowledge, if any, President Donald Trump had of efforts by his campaign — including those of his former campaign chairman, Paul Manafort — to ask Russia for assistance before the 2016 US election.
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The vast majority of the 48 questions the special counsel Robert Mueller wants to ask President Donald Trump in an interview have been public knowledge for some time, with one major exception.
Toward the end of the list, published on Monday by The New York Times, was this question: "What knowledge did you have of any outreach by your campaign, including by Paul Manafort, to Russia about potential assistance to the campaign?"
There has been no public indication, through news reports or testimony, that the Trump campaign reached out to Russia or Russia-linked actors for help ahead of the 2016 election. The offers of assistance — like a June 2016 Trump Tower meeting and communications involving the former Trump campaign aide George Papadopoulos — were all on Russia's end.
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Mueller's inclusion of a question about outreach to Russia from the campaign's side — specifically from Manafort, the former campaign chairman — suggests he has information involving such an offer.
Manafort and Rick Gates, his longtime deputy, have been charged with dozens of counts related to financial crimes, conspiracy against the US, and failure to register as foreign agents.
While Manafort has maintained he is innocent, Gates pleaded guilty in February to two counts related to conspiracy and making false statements to the FBI. Experts said at the time that his plea deal indicated he had something of significant value to offer Mueller.
Gates also sat for a "Queen for a Day" interview with Mueller, during which a defendant answers any and all questions from investigators, including about their case and any other criminal activity they may have witnessed.
Mueller is digging deep into possible collusion
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The question about outreach is one of 13 on the list related to possible coordination between the Trump campaign and Moscow around the 2016 election.
The rest of the questions largely focus on events involving Manafort; Roger Stone, the GOP strategist who was an informal adviser to Trump; Jared Kushner, Trump's son-in-law and senior adviser; and Michael Cohen, Trump's longtime personal lawyer.
Mueller wants to know more from Trump about:
- The June 2016 Trump Tower meeting involving Manafort, Kushner, Donald Trump Jr., and Russian lobbyists who had promised dirt on Hillary Clinton, the Democratic nominee.
- Trump's 2013 trip to Moscow and his interactions while there with the Azerbaijani-Russian developer Aras Agalarov and his son, Emin, as well as Russian officials.
- Trump's involvement in efforts by Cohen and the Russian businessman Felix Sater at the height of the campaign to build a Trump Tower in Moscow.
- Discussions during the campaign about meeting Russian President Vladimir Putin.
- Discussions during the campaign about sanctions on Russia.
- Trump's involvement in a change to the 2016 GOP platform about arming Ukraine against Russian aggression.
- The Democratic National Committee hack and subsequent dissemination of stolen materials, as well as communications among Stone, his associates, WikiLeaks, and WikiLeaks' founder, Julian Assange.
- Kushner's attempts during the transition period to set up a back-channel line of communication between the Trump team and Russia using Russian diplomatic facilities.
- A January 2017 meeting in Seychelles of the Trump adviser Erik Prince, representatives of the United Arab Emirates, and a Russian investor close to Putin.
- A Ukraine-Russia "peace plan" proposed in the early days of Trump's presidency that appeared to favor Moscow.
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