President Trump has finally admitted that the Trump Tower meeting between top members of his campaign and a Russia-linked lawyer were meant to get dirt on his political opponents. This recent statement is in stark contrast to previous accounts issued by the President on what truly transpired during the meeting. Trump sent a tweet on Sunday morning confirming details about the meeting. In what the president may have thought was a form of defence, it may not be that simple.
Trump also said that there was nothing illegal about the meeting adding that such things happen all the time in politics. The Trump team had issued a statement in July 2016 noting that the meeting with the Kremlin-linked lawyer was about the adoption of Russian children. Reports indicate that the tweet is already in the hands of special counsel Robert Mueller for more scrutiny.
People who are close to the president and his legal team have voiced their concern that commenting on sensitive matters publicly could land Trump into legal troubles. At a time when the president may be under investigation for possible collusion with Russia and to some extent obstruction of justice, tweets like the one sent on Sunday may not help his situation. Just the other week Trump called on Attorney General Jeff Sessions to end the Mueller probe calling it a stain on America.
Trump’s Sunday morning tweet was designed to portray the Trump Tower meeting as something normal and routine. However, recent reports indicate that Mueller’s team is already looking into whether the meeting was in any way used to facilitate the sabotage of the Hillary Clinton campaign in collusion with Russian agents. It’s illegal in the US for a campaign to receive and accept any help from a foreign government or individual.
Trump and his son have repeatedly denied that they ever had any dirt on Hillary Clinton. Nonetheless, a number of legal experts are arguing that the fact that Trump agreed to a sit down with a foreign government for the sole purpose of helping his election campaign could constitute a breach of law. A report on the Washington Post had indicated that the President was worried about the possible legal exposure of his son as a result of this meeting. The president denied these claims on the Sunday morning tweet.
President Trump also distanced himself from the meeting saying that he knew nothing about it. Details about the Trump Tower meeting were first revealed in July two years ago. At the time, Trump issued a statement through his Twitter account confirming the meeting but he claimed that it was something normal and routine. The president said that any politician would have done the same.
There was no evidence of what was discussed at the meeting at the time. Details on the meeting were later exposed after emails exchanged by Trump’s son and his Russian contact were revealed by the media. The Trump team has since denied that there was any wrongdoing. The Russian probe will, of course, get more exciting with this latest tweet.
