In the past several days a name has resurfaced, only this time with some more attention than in prior reports. The name is Oleg Deripaska, a Russian billionaire who is likely much more of a central figure than previously explained.
Byron York recently outlined new documents showing the communication between Trump Dossier author Christopher Steele and DOJ official Bruce Ohr. Within the early 2016 discussions, Chris Steele appeared to be advocating to Bruce Ohr on behalf of Oleg Deripaska who was banned from travel into the U.S. by the State Department.
(Byron York) Emails in 2016 between former British spy Christopher Steele and Justice Department official Bruce Ohr suggest Steele was deeply concerned about the legal status of a Putin-linked Russian oligarch, and at times seemed to be advocating on the oligarch’s behalf, in the same time period Steele worked on collecting the Russia-related allegations against Donald Trump that came to be known as the Trump dossier. The emails show Steele and Ohr were in frequent contact, that they intermingled talk about Steele’s research and the oligarch’s affairs, and that Glenn Simpson, head of the dirt-digging group Fusion GPS that hired Steele to compile the dossier, was also part of the ongoing conversation. (more)
I strongly urge you to read the York article because I’m going to expand on the Deripaska angle from the context of the reader understanding it.
From the emails it appears Steele and Ohr were discussing Deripaska during a period of February to May (ish) of 2016. This is important context moving forward because this was the period during the presidential primary candidacy of Donald Trump as the GOP nominee was solidified; Trump won. This is also the period when we know that “contractors” with the FBI were doing unauthorized searches of the NSA and FBI database for opposition research…. this connects to Fusion GPS.
In essence, Christopher Steele was interested in getting Oleg Deripaska a new VISA to enter the U.S. Steele was very persistent on this endeavor and was soliciting Bruce Ohr for any assistance. This also sets up a quid-pro-quo probability where the DOJ/FBI agrees to remove travel restrictions on Deripaska in exchange for cooperation on ‘other matters’.
Now we skip ahead a little bit to where Deripaska gained an entry visa, and one of Oleg Deripaska’s lawyers and lobbyists Adam Waldman was representing his interests in the U.S. to politicians and officials. In May of 2018, John Solomon was contacted by Adam Waldman with a story about how the FBI contacted Deripaska for help in their Trump Russia investigation in September of 2016.
Keep in mind, this is Waldman contacting Solomon with a story.
Waldman told Solomon a story about how his client Oleg Deripaska was approached by the FBI in September of 2016 and asked for help with information about Paul Manafort and by extension Donald Trump. Within the backstory for the FBI and Deripaska was a prior connection between Robert Mueller and Deripaska in 2009.
Again, as you read the recap, remember this is Waldman contacting Solomon. Article Link Here – and my summary below:
♦In 2009 the FBI, then headed by Robert Mueller, requested the assistance of Russian billionaire Oleg Deripaska in an operation to retrieve former FBI officer and CIA resource Robert Levinson who was captured in Iran two years earlier. The agent assigned to engage Deripaska was Andrew McCabe; the primary FBI need was financing and operational support. Deripaska spent around $25 million and would have succeeded except the U.S. State Department, then headed by Hillary Clinton, backed out.
♦In September of 2016 Andrew McCabe is now Deputy Director of the FBI, when two FBI agents approached Deripaska in New York – again asking for his help. This time the FBI request was for Deripaska to outline Trump’s former campaign manager Paul Manafort as a tool of the Kremlin. Deripaska once hired Manafort as a political adviser and invested money with him in a business venture that went bad. Deripaska sued Manafort, alleging he stole money. However, according to the article, despite Deripaska’s disposition toward Manafort he viewed the request as absurd. He laughed the FBI away, telling them: “You are trying to create something out of nothing.”
This story, as told from the perspective of Adam Waldman -Deripaska’s lawyer/lobbyist- is important because it highlights a connection between Robert Mueller and Oleg Deripaska; a connection Mueller and the DOJ/FBI never revealed on their own.
I wrote about the ramifications of the Solomon Story HERE. Again, hopefully most will review; because there’s a larger story now visible with the new communication between Christopher Steele and Bruce Ohr.
I think the Left’s attempts at drawing this out and making it more and more involved and convoluted has resulted in a mind-boggling mess that most Americans will never fully understand.
And I think this has been deliberate.
Remember, it started out that TRUMP “colluded” with the Russians.
It has morphed into proofs that the LEFT, “Deep State” conspired with Russians.
No wonder the Left wants a confused jury pool.
Let’s see… so hearing Deripaska’s testimony would be collusion, but using him to provide false information about Trump in order to try (they failed) to assure a Hillary win, in exchange for a visa, is NOT collusion?
Once again, the left provides an example of how you can always tell what they are doing by what they accuse others of doing.
August 10, 2018 — How the Russians nearly hacked the 2016 Florida election
“Nearly” is presently the subject of a heated dispute. According to Senator Bill Nelson, they’ve successfully done so; Governor Rick Scott demands proof.
August 10, 2018 — Nelson-Scott feud escalates over claim that Russian hackers are in voting systems
@Greg: How about paper ballots and voter ID, why isnt Nelson requesting a secure way to cast a ballot. He knows he has no platform, the leadership of the DNC is crap his screaming the Russians did it before it happens perhaps a nice straight jacket or he could show us his time machine or crystal ball.
with the proper t shirt
July 17, 2018 — The Cybersecurity 202: Russia hacking tactics exposed in Mueller indictment still a threat, election officials say
With sophisticated malware, it shouldn’t be assumed that what has been detected is everything that has happened. We’re not talking about the work of amateur hackers; the threat could be malware developed using the cyber capabilities of a hostile nation state. It’s a mistake to reduce this all to the level of a partisan spat between a senator and a governor. The fact that people have been purposely conditioned to view everything in such terms is now one of our serious exploitable vulnerabilities.
@Greg: Why is it there is never any liberal concern about Democrats having close contacts with wealthy Russians who are interfering in our election process?
It’s pretty irresponsible of Nelson to raise this accusation without any intention of verifying it or explaining how the threat is being met. Basically, he is shouting “fire” in a crowded theater, creating panic for his own motives.
@Greg: So, since the loss of his majority in Congress would be disruptive to Trump’s agenda and the nation, the Russian goal now must be to defeat every Republican. Therefore, any elections in which Republicans lose is confirmed as the result of Russian interference and should be reversed. We’ll show those Ruskies.