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May 26, 2017 07:43 PM UTC

BREAKING: Jared Kushner is in Big, Big Trouble

  • 53 Comments
  • by: Colorado Pols
President Trump, left, embraces son-in-law Jared Kushner.

From the Washington Post:

Jared Kushner and Russia’s ambassador to Washington discussed the possibility of setting up a secret and secure communications channel between Trump’s transition team and the Kremlin, using Russian diplomatic facilities in an apparent move to shield their pre-inauguration discussions from monitoring, according to U.S. officials briefed on intelligence reports.

Ambassador Sergey Kislyak reported to his superiors in Moscow that Kushner, son-in-law and confidant to then-President-elect Trump, made the proposal during a meeting on Dec. 1 or 2 at Trump Tower, according to intercepts of Russian communications that were reviewed by U.S. officials. Kislyak said Kushner suggested using Russian diplomatic facilities in the United States for the communications.

The meeting also was attended by Michael Flynn, Trump’s first national security adviser…

…Current and former U.S. intelligence officials said that although Russian diplomats have secure means of communicating with Moscow, Kushner’s apparent request for access to such channels was extraordinary.

It’s really become impossible to foresee a scenario in which this doesn’t end badly for President TrumpJared Kushner, and Trump’s family in general. Good luck explaining this one, Trump supporters.

 

Comments

53 thoughts on “BREAKING: Jared Kushner is in Big, Big Trouble

    1. The question I have is "Why did Kushner And Flynn want a secret communications channel to Russia? Secret from whom? Why Russia? Why is Trump all buddy-buddy with Saudi Arabia (a country that funds a lot of the radical Islamist Imams across the Middle East), and antagonistic to Europe and NATO?

      From the evidence in front of us it looks like Trump is activel implementing Russia's goals of weakening NATO.

      Reminds me of Nixon & Kissinger's secret bombing of Cambodia in the Vietnam War. Secret from whom? The freakin' Cambodian's knew they were being bombed. Oh – Secret from the American people.

      The Republican Party has been full of traitors to the US for a looooong time.

  1. Carnholio, report for shill duty!  Earn your miserable 40 kopecks an hour!   Be sure to blame it on Ted Kennedy!  And Yalta!  Mother Russia needs you, fool, and you're nowhere to be found.  Shill up or it's the Lefortovo prison for you, Comrade!

    I know you're not very smart, but you can goggle the Lefortovo.  It makes the Lubianka look like Mar-a-lago.

    1. I'm sure he's waiting for his talking points. Maybe the secret Russian communication channel is down. Either that, or Trumps entourage is all jet-lagged.  Trumps twitter feed finally came back on line, but maybe it is still a bit constipated.

      Isn't it weird that the whole family went on the Pageant? Maybe Jared, Ivanka and Melania were holding daddy's hand. In my experience dealing with dementia sufferers, they get particularly confused when they get tired.

    2. V

      This is serious stuff.

      After the election the new administration tried to reach out to another country.

      OMG.

      Even worse, they tried to keep the content of the conversations confidential.

      Mon Dieu.

      I know the thought of having the conversations with foreign nations not on the front page of the newspapers may sound unusual, but that is the way it used to be before the Dems tried a silent coup after their most recent loss.

      1. Yeah, why should Jared be forced to use totally secure lines at secure locations already available to him and other top level officials for these conversations?

        He merely wanted to use the secure lines in the Russian embassy so that the back channel conversations couldn't be monitored by, uh, US intelligence agencies.

        Naturally for totally benign motives, right? Probably didn’t want to disclose his CommerzBank ATM PIN number over an insecure line…

      2. I'm a little surprised to see you of all people coming to the aid of Jared Kushner.

        First, he is, or up until recently was, a registered Democrat whose brother supported HRC.

        And second, I would think that when it came to the West Wing pissing matches, you'd come down squarely on the side of your Prince of Darkness, Steve Bannon.

        What gives?

  2. Kushner often described as the most loyal of Trump's inner circle. Trump admires him for how Kushner stood by his father when the father went to prison. Will Kushner's loyalty extend to falling on the sword for his father in law? Does Trump have any loyalty to the father of his grandkids, or will he hang him out to dry?

    1. Poor, poor, Count . . . 

      . . . and, the all-time worst sandwich evah!! . . . 

      "Jared, Jared, hmmmm, oh you mean that loser? — he begged and begged my daughter for a date, she only went out with him a couple of times because she felt so sorry for him.  She's wonderful like that. Long, long, long time ago.  Not sure I ever met him, maybe once at a dinner where I was honored for being the guest of honor.  You should meet Ivanka's new fiancé, great guy, fantastic man, Timkoyevah Putinovitch!  I'm looking forward to adding him to my cabinet.  Soon, soon.  She just converted to Eastern Orthodox, by the way …"

  3. But Donald Trumpov had no idea his son-in-law was meeting with Russian spies and Putin-owned bankers in Trump Tower last December!  Comrade Trumpov swears neither he nor anyone ("that he knows of") in his circle has EVER had any dealings, financial or otherwise, with Russians!  

    And you can take that to the Commerzbank!

  4. Be patient, all. Soon either Andrew or Moderatus will drop by and explain why there is nothing of note in this matter. Of course, it's all fake news. 

  5. While it's always enjoyable to watch another piece to the Russia puzzle fall neatly into place, this one does trouble me.

    Kushner and his wife, while completely devoid of any actual governmental experience, are probably the sanest two people in the White House. Anyone who is slightly-right-of-center, center, or center-left should be concerned about his fall from grace.

    It means that Steve Bannon is winning.

    1. Did he do something???? . . . 

      But then, seriously, there were all those pesky background check interviews that all these co-conspirators had to pass for their security clearances . . . 

      But hell, I'm sure they all followed that first and immutable rule of  DrumpfService — always, always, always speak the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth — so, you're probably right, absolutely nothing whatsoever to worry about …

      1. It would seem prudent to suspend the security clearances of those who have demonstrably given false or misleading information to obtain that clearance, particularly if they are a person of interest in an ongoing criminal investigation.

        I believe the FBI has the ability to do that, and if anyone subsequently gave classified information to the one without proper clearance, would also be subject to prosecution.

        This could get even more interesting/tangled/weirder (if that is even possible).

    2. Don't know…does it not seem suspicious? One of the Fuhrers' generals says, "No biggie…we do it all the time". You believe anything that deflects inquiry from your liege…when are you gonna wise up, Negev? You have been conned…taken…skinned…whatever you want to call it.

      Just open your wallet and be prepared to empty it. Might be prudent to start looking for a nearby soup kitchen. Unless your income is at least $250,000, the Republican party is about to have their way with your net worth…

      Welcome to the New Feudalism brought to you by Donald Trump and his Merry Band of Billionaires.

      1. Before you start in with the deflection speech I would submit you answer the question. I'm no scholar but as it sits it appears you are the one deflecting.

         

         

          1. Got it. Thank you. So it is more about the coverup than the "crime". I have seen this before.  I'll abstain from the spoiler alert…

             

        1. Until we know the content, which the Russians have, we don't know if Kushner's setting up a back channel for communication within Russian secure parameters was illegal.

          But seriously, Negev, what the hell innocent explanation can there be for meeting with an adversary country, without diplomats, without national security people or precautions, on enemy territory during the Presidential transition, led by a 36 year old real estate broker with zero diplomatic or military experience?

          Kushner may have been seeking Russian loans to cover his massive debts.  Mike Flynn who was also at that meeting, has said that "relaxing sanctions" would allow for Russian loans to people associated with the Trump campaign.

          Per Nayeera Haq, former State Dept. Spokesperson,  at 1:51: "This is not a back channel. This is espionage."

          Per Malcolm Nance, CIA analyst at 11:17 "I feel that we are standing to danger right now. Everyone in that office needs their security clearances pulled right now. "

           

          It shows contempt for national security norms. That's not shocking – Trump shows contempt for all government norms. It's why his base loves him so. But when you start screwing around in territory like leaking US secrets to the enemy, and  Trump has, and maybe his son-in-law has, too, when you start putting the American military and spies and assets in danger of their lives, then you need to get the hell out of power.

          At minimum, Kushner should have his security clearance revoked, and should resign as Senior Adviser to the President.

          1. "Until we know the content, which the Russians have, we don't know if Kushner's setting up a back channel for communication within Russian secure parameters was illegal."

            What we do know is that Kishner discussed, but did not set up a back channel.  So if the Russians have content obtained from a back channel that was never set up, I too am very suspicious and wonder how that information was obtained.  

            "But seriously, Negev, what the hell innocent explanation can there be for meeting with an adversary country, without diplomats, without national security people or precautions, on enemy territory"

            For starters the meeting was held at Trump Tower, and it is very telling that you would find this enemy territory. Second, it is his job, and it is expected to meet with foreign ambassadors, the Clinton team did it too, and the meeting does not appear to be the issue, it's the lack of disclosure of the meeting which seems to be the trouble.  

            "Kushner may have been seeking Russian loans to cover his massive debts.  Mike Flynn who was also at that meeting, has said that "relaxing sanctions" would allow for Russian loans to people associated with the Trump campaign."

            True. He may have wanted a three-way with Putin and his horse too. I'm not seeing a source link to your quote on that paragraph, which, if we put the same test you did to Gorsuch into action, would disqualify you from this discussion. But I get it and certainly don't hold speculation against you, as this could very well be the case. 

            "Per Malcolm Nance, CIA analyst at 11:17 "I feel that we are standing to danger right now. Everyone in that office needs their security clearances pulled right now. ""

            Oh, ok. Is that the CIA analyst that also nominated a Trump property for an ISIS suicide bombing? That's awesome. 

            "when you start putting the American military and spies and assets in danger of their lives, then you need to get the hell out of power."

            Yeah, republicans  played that card with Bengazi and look how that turned out. Pot, meet kettle.  

            "At minimum, Kushner should have his security clearance revoked, and should resign as Senior Adviser to the President."

            I agree with you on this. This nepotism bullshit does not sit well with me either. He should have never been able to be hired for this position, in my opinion unqualified, and most likely on the take.

            The efforts to take down the current government with the data on hand seems premature to me, and is desensitizing the population to piddly-dink accusations. It is my humble opinion that if you just give the Trump administration a chance to actually do something other than defend legal and prescribed procedures, they will offer a treasure trove of legitimate fodder in which to bury themselves….

            You know the feeling you get when republicans yell "Bengazi!' or "private server!"? "Russia!" has become that type of phrase. That facepalm trigger that has proven ineffective and  shuts off the opposition's ability to continue rationally. Why do you want that? It did not work for the republicans, what makes you think it will work for you?

             

            1. There really is nothing, no evidence, no testimony, which will ever convince you of the dangers of Trump/ Russia collusion. Almost all of Trump’s family and cabinet members have had secret dealings with Russian oligarchs. Most of the time, money seems to be the motivating factor. But according to you, there is no corruption. The “liberal media” is making it all up.

              Your mind is made up – I won't confuse you with facts. In WWII, you would have been an apologist for the Third Reich. In the face of massive disappearances by Jews, and reports of horrific mass murders, you would have been smugly declaring that nobody knows for sure, the evidence is not all in, don’t listen to “hysterics”, everything is hunky dory.

              Case in point – your citing the Moonie rag Washington Times to attempt to discredit Malcolm Nance's warnings about possible spies in the inner Trump circle. The Wash Times article cites a tweet by a guy with the alias "neontaster" who proclaims that he photoshops stuff. neontaster is in turn, citing a tweet by someone named Dustin Glebel. Nothing by Nance at all.

              I'm glad that we agree on the danger of nepotism, and that Jared Kushner should have his security clearance revoked.

              Now I'm going to go do patriotic Memorial Day stuff. Have a good one.

              1. There is plenty of evidence that would convince me of the dangers of a Trump/Russia collusion. You just have not provided it. In the void of compelling evidence the "liberal media" (source?) is reporting on facts that do not prosecute historically for other candidates.

                While the Nazi rhetoric is kinda played out now too I would submit to you that I would not be an apologist for the Third Reich. I have seen the pictures. I have been to Dachau. The evidence is all in. Where is the commensurate evidence of the Trump crimes?

                Heres Snopes take on Nance's tweet and the original image. It contains the same level of evidence you have on Kushner. How you interpret it is entirely up to you. 

                 

                1. Frankly, Negev, the level of stupidity across the board in the Trump  ​​​​​crime family administration is so staggeringly high I'm not sure these idiots could muster the requisite mens rea if they tried!

  6. I've said it before and I'll say it again. It wouldn't surprise me if the first order of business after lunch last January 20 was signing undated, blanket pardons for all members of Trump's family.

    Hell, he probably threw in pardons for Ivana and Marla because he was in such a good mood.

  7. Carnholio!  Report for Shill duty, damnit!  Remember, no Republican can be guilty of any crime because Ted Kennedy killed a woman in a car crash, so there.  Carnholio!  

    Where is that shameless shill when you need him?

     

     

        1. Cory will get primaried, just like the Tea Partiers have been doing to those Republicans who aren't ideologically pure in their view. 

            1. Um, no. Not by a long stretch. If Bernie Sanders, whom I assume you would designate as a "left wing nut", had been elected, the country would be in much better shape today.

              We'd be well on our way to single payer health care, and not  becoming a global embarrassment.

              Who else do you consider to be a nut, who is "just as bad" as the equivalent Tea Party Republican? Elizabeth Warren? Nina Turner? Maxine Waters? Keith Ellison?

              You know, Barack Obama was considered to be too extreme, and unelectable by many establishment Dems at first. You?

                1. As delightful as that sounds, no. You should know that when I make a claim, it is well sourced. 

                  I wrote:

                  You know, Barack Obama was considered to be too extreme, and unelectable by many establishment Dems at first.

                  So here are a representative sample of Democratic commentators and strategists who did not think Obama could win during the early to middle primary season. I'm not going to include the many right wing nut jobs, the birthers, the Muslim conspiracy, the Jeremiah Wright fetishists, etc. 

                  In May of 07 , there were plenty of Democratic consultants and big names who said that BHO had zero chance.

                  Clinton was leading in polls all through 2007, and was endorsed by Gov. Eliot Spitzer, Lt. Gov. David Paterson, Attorney General Andrew Cuomo, Tom Vilsack, and Evan Bayh.  She had more superdelegates – 169 to Obama's 63.

                  4/07

                  The press was lukewarm on Obama – this NYT op-ed by Fish , speculating on who HRC should choose as her veep, said that 'Obama has already caught all the fire he is able to ignite."

                  3/08 Mark Penn, HRC's pollster and strategist, said that Obama "can't win the general election". In an email, Penn wrote: "The right knows Obama is unelectable except perhaps against Attila the Hun…"

                  In 2/08, the primary fight was getting nasty. BHO and HRC were basically tied (841-837)in delegates by February 8.

                  04/08 Evan Bayh, who came out strongly for HRC, said that BHO would be a "weak general election candidate" after the 4/08 "clinging to guns and religion" gaffe. Ed Rendell was a bit more circumspect – Ed would switch to BHO in another month, anyway. But Dem strategist Saunders also said in the NYT that Obama was "unelectable"

                  In May of 08, BHO was polling 12 points ahead of HRC. Still, many liberal pundits feared that he could not win the general election – because of his race, his inexperience, etc.

                  By June of 08, Obama had the lead in pledged delegates. HRC refused to concede, however, and Nancy Pelosi had to bring the hammer down on the uncommitted superdelegates to get them to commit.

                  So there was no universal DNC support for Obama. People were hedging their bets, waiting to see which way to jump until the very end.

                  07/08 Debbie Wasserman Schultz, then co-chair of HRC's campaign, secretly reached out to Obama's campaign when the delegate math went against her candidate.

                  Finally, Hillary Clinton herself graciously pledged her support to Obama from the floor, ending a roll-call vote., and disappointing the PUMAs.

                  But there were still plenty of people who doubted that Obama could win in the general election.

                  08/08
                  Kylopod, writing on Kos, tracked a dozen liberal and conservative pundits who famously wrote that BHO could not be elected to the Presidency.

                  The rest is history – Obama won in a landslide, turned out to be a transformational President. I worked to elect him, and am proud that I did.  But there were many doubters, even within the Democratic ranks. OK's Senator Boren called Obama "too liberal", even while pledging to vote for him.

                  Being a Democratic consultant conveys no automatic wisdom – the consultant class was at a loss to explain  Obama's popularity vs. Clinton in '08, advised state candidates to back away from the ACA in 2014,  and they could not explain what people saw in Bernie Sanders in 2016. Consultants simply do not understand why the DNC should not accept unlimited corporate contributions and have lobbyists as superdelegates.

                  But anything can and does happen in contemporary American politics. Establishment Dems did not think Obama could win at first. Later, they came around. They did not predict that Sanders would get as far as he did. They still don't like or trust him. But they rely on Sanders and fellow progressive Elizabeth Warren to push for health care reform in the Senate.

                  An Obama is a once in a generation phenomenon. Maybe we'll get lucky again, in time to save our democracy and planetary ecosystem. If so, I would hope that you, and others like you, would learn from past mistakes, and not dismiss dissenting views out of hand.

                   

  8. Today's update from the New York Times:

    WASHINGTON — Jared Kushner, the president’s son-in-law and senior adviser, was looking for a direct line to President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia — a search that in mid-December found him in a room with a Russian banker whose financial institution was deeply intertwined with Russian intelligence, and remains under sanction by the United States.

    Federal and congressional investigators are now examining what exactly Mr. Kushner and the Russian banker, Sergey N. Gorkov, wanted from each other. The banker is a close associate of Mr. Putin, but he has not been known to play a diplomatic role for the Russian leader. That has raised questions about why he was meeting with Mr. Kushner at a crucial moment in the presidential transition, according to current and former officials familiar with the investigations.

    Trying to set up secret communications with Mr. Putin in the weeks after the election would not be illegal. Still, it is highly unusual to try to establish channels with a foreign leader that did not rely on the government’s own communications, which are secure and allow for a record of contacts to be created.

    His bank is controlled by members of Mr. Putin’s government, including Prime Minister Dmitri A. Medvedev. It also has long been intertwined with Mr. Putin’s inner circle: It has been used by the Russian government to bail out oligarchs close to Mr. Putin, and has helped fund the Russian president’s pet projects, such as the Winter Olympics in Sochi in 2014.

    Vnesheconombank has also been used by Russian intelligence to plant spies in the United States. In March 2016, an agent of Russia’s foreign intelligence service, known as the S.V.R., who was caught posing as an employee of the bank in New York, pleaded guilty to spying against the United States.

    The spy, said Preet Bharara, then the United States attorney in Manhattan, was under “the guise of being a legitimate banker, gathered intelligence as an agent of the Russian Federation in New York.”

    Mr. Gorkov is a graduate of the academy of the Federal Security Service of Russia, a training ground for Russian spies. Though current and former Americans said it was unlikely that Mr. Gorkov is an active member of Russian intelligence, they said his past ties to the security services in Moscow were a reason he was put in charge of the bank.

    I'm sure this has a very innocent explanation that Gerbils will supply very soon.  

    And he'll also favor us with any late-breaking updates on the Ted Kennedy-Chappaquiddick investigation.

    1. (It's past his beddy time . .  .)

      This just in (h/t FOX news, and the Chaffee County Republican Party):

      Kennedy was likely just a patsy . . . 

      . . . Reports are that Hillary arranged the entire doings.  She got him drunk, killed Kopechne, planted her dead body in his car, and then drove them both off the bridge . . . 

      . . . to protect a 22 year-old Bill Clinton (who Kopechne had threatened with revelations of their sordid affair), and also to simultaneously clear the field of a potential rival from his future Presidential run 

      . . . Russian computer analysts found the evidence linking Clinton to the murder among her e-mails. They were working to establish back channels with Kushner to get the evidence in front of the public. Everyone was worried that if Clinton found out, Kushner would become her next certain victim, hence the need for all the secrecy and the secured communications.

      That's the kind of calculatingly evil person Donald Trump, and Kushner, have sacrificed their billionaire lifestyles to save this country from, you ungrateful libs!

    2. Is this the same Bank Putin gave Podesta stock in which he transferred to his daughter a few days before he signed on to Hillary's campaign?

      Tough to keep track of all the intrigue.

      Maybe he was looking for a list of shareholders?

      1. Your concern for the purity of our Democratic souls is touching. It's so very unselfish of you to keep reminding us of the deep divisions in our party. We had no idea that "the billionaires" and corporatists were running things.

        None of us read or ever get on the internet; we're completely dependent upon the goodwill of nice, stanch Republicans like you to tell us about the corporate corruption in our own party.  Your party ran a depraved, racist con artist who promised to break the democratic system.

        That's probably the one campaign promise your guy will keep.

        He promised not to cut Medicare or Medicaid or Social Security or Va benefits; all of those have deep proposed cuts in his proposed budget.

        He promised to bring jobs back to America, drain the swamp, and help the working person. Those have so far been empty promises. 

        Instead, he's exporting jobs, filling the swamp with Russian  partisans, and proposing to ruin the hopes of working people.

        So how are you going to keep a 2018 bloodbath from voting out your folks?

        Only one way – keep the divisions going. Widen and deepen them. Keep catapulting the propaganda:  "Both sides do it", "Everyone's equally corrupt", "Voting doesn't matter""Vote for the strong man because it's a scary, scary world."

        Your are a loyal foot soldier for your cause. We will certainly give your dire warnings about the corruption of all Democratic candidates all the credence you deserve.

  9. So, days late and a ruble short, shill boy finally gets his new talking points.  No longer does he blame Trump's crimes on Ted Kennedy.  Now, they are John Podesta's fault.

    My bringing up the spectre of Lefortovo prison really got to you, didn't it, shillboy?  If you'd read Solhenitsyn, Tolstoy and Anyonov-Ovseyenko, as I have, you would have to goggle everything.

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