Tucker: Source Says Podesta Brothers & Manafort, Not Trump, ‘Central Figures’ in Russia Probe
FOX News Insider
A thus-far-reliable source who used to be involved with Clinton allies John and Tony Podesta told Tucker Carlson that press reports appearing to implicate President Trump in Russian collusion are exaggerated.
The source, who Carlson said he would not yet name, said he worked for the brothers’ Podesta Group and was privy to some information from Robert Mueller’s special investigation.
While media reports describe former “Black, Manafort & Stone” principal Paul Manafort as Trump’s main tie to the investigation, the source said it is Manafort’s role as a liaison between Russia and the Podesta Group that is drawing the scrutiny.
The “vehicle” Manafort worked for was what Carlson called a “sham” company with a headquarters listed in Belgium but whose contact information was linked to Kiev, the Ukrainian capital.
Manafort was, at the time, representing Russian business and political interests during the Obama era.
The source said the Podesta Group was in regular contact with Manafort while Hillary Clinton was America’s chief diplomat.
In 2013, the group hired away one of Clinton’s deputies, David Adams, effectively establishing contact between the Washington firm and Clinton’s office in Foggy Bottom, D.C.
The source said Tony Podesta spoke regularly with Clinton and was the one who personally hired Adams.
During this time, the Uranium One deal was being facilitated by the White House.
According to Carlson, “Manafort was clear that Russia wanted to cultivate ties to Hillary” because she appeared to be the presumptive 45th president.
Carlson said the media’s description of the probe being focused on Trump as an individual is “mostly bogus” if the source’s explanation pans out.
Carlson said he has checked out some of the information given by the source, and it has thus far proved accurate.
John Podesta was Clinton’s campaign chairman, and Manafort served as Trump’s campaign chief during the summer of 2016.
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