Priebus Says WH Doesn't 'Know Of' Any Contact With Russia By Trump Campaign

[DonViejo]

Source: Talking Points Memo



By ESME CRIBB Published FEBRUARY 19, 2017, 10:11 AM EDT

White House chief of staff Reince Priebus said Sunday that the White House does not "know of any contacts with Russian agents" by members of President Donald Trump's campaign.

Chuck Todd asked Priebus on NBC News' "Meet the Press" whether Trump could "say definitively that nobody in his campaign, nobody that he's been associated with, had any contacts with any Russian agents." Priebus flatly denied it.

"No. First of all, the answer is no, and we don't know of any contacts with Russian agents," he said. "I've talked to the top levels of the intelligence community, and they've assured me that that New York Times story was grossly overstated and inaccurate and totally wrong."

The New York Times and CNN reported on Tuesday, citing U.S. officials, that members of Trump's campaign staff made contact with Russian officials several times before the 2016 election.

Read more: http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/priebus-denies-involvement-trump-campaign-russian-officials

[mac56]

1. Yeah.

[PatSeg]

2. He spoke to "top levels of the intelligence community"?

Nothing to see here folks! They just keep digging deeper and deeper. A wiser person would get the hell out of that administration before the shit hits the fan.

[Blue Idaho]

3. So KellyAnn Conjob's credibility is shot...

Sean Spicer and that nasty little fascist Stephen Miller can't be trusted any further than you can throw them. So now it's time for Preibus to destroy his credibility... At this rate the WH won't have a single credible spokesperson by day sixty.

Lying should be an automatic disqualification for anyone in any administration - including the President.

[Maeve]

6. Reince has credibility?

Not any that I've ever noticed, but I could have missed it...

[Blue Idaho]

7. Well...

Up until now he's managed to sidestep the "Home of the Whopper" club - but that ends right about now.

[lisa58]

9. Hahaha...

I love the 'Home of the Wopper' club - can I use that?

And you're right, that does end now.

[Blue Idaho]

19. Yes - Please do!

[not fooled]

18. If a propagandist spews forth

but no one listens (or gives them a platform),

did they make a sound?

[Blue Idaho]

20. I agree

Once a spokesperson has proven themselves to be a habitual liar - the are useless on any news program.

[Bernardo de La Paz]

4. He's using weasel wording: "agents" instead of "contacts", "top levels" instead of Pompeo

They appointed Pompeo, so of course he will reassure them with a wink and a nod.

Thus if it is found that there were contacts with Russians, then Prince Rebus would say "but they weren't agents!" And then if they were found to be agents, he would say "but nobody knew they were agents!" and then if it is discovered that people in the campaign (say Flynn) knew they were agents, Rebus would say "but nobody told me they were agents!"

It is possible that Prince Rebus is correct, possible that there was no contact with Russians during the campaign, but I would assign a low probability for it and would not take that side of a bet.

[KewlKat]

14. yes i agree....agents....same as manafort....no agent

He knew of.

[Cracklin Charlie]

5. Asked:

Whether Trump could "say definitively that nobody in his campaign, nobody that he's been associated with, had any contacts with any Russian agents".

Answer: "No. First of all, the answer is no"


He could not say, when asked directly, that there was no involvement between the campaign and Russia. Sounds like Rancid just told the truth.

[lisa58]

8. He knows there was contact...

He just doesn't want to imply it was done with the campaign's knowledge- which is impossible

[DeminPennswoods]

10. Nixon wasn't a crook and

Clinton did not have sex with that woman either.

The FBI and CIA already know who talked to whom and when. Many Trump'ers seem to be hanging their hat on the NYT's story quoting the intelligence community leakers saying the contacts were with Russians "known to them" as meaning that the contacts weren't Russian agents. But on MSNBC, on former CIA agent said that phrase was agency shorthand for known Russian agents/operatives. IOW, the CIA wouldn't "know" about them unless they were agents/operatives.

[jmowreader]

21. According to D.C. Law, Clinton didn't have sex with that woman

All lawyers are required to take a three-credit class on splitting hairs. Both Clintons are lawyers.

D.C. law says there are only two things that are sex, and oral isn't one of them. That's all they did, so according to law he didn't have sex with her.

[yallerdawg]

11. Why should we believe a word out of this man's mouth?

"Flynn never talked to Russians about sanctions."

There you go. End of credibility.

[Kolesar]

12. Techies in the CIA are going to keep finding and leaking the evidence

Then Priebus will get washed out with all the other scum.

[kimbutgar]

13. I bet the intelligence agencies have recordings and phone records and maybe even

Videos of chump people going into the Russian embassy. TSA flight info when they went to Russia? You don't think the CIA has a camera on the embassy in DC all the time to record visitors? Chump and Rancid think they are smarter than the intelligence agencies!!! I don't think so.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

15. "...the White House does not "know of any contacts...."

I'm referring to the building of course.

Oh, you mean the people who work there. Why didn't you say so?

[milestogo]

16. That pretty much tells you where his head is at.

[MyMission]

17. they don't know nothin about nothin

that's true enough.
And the WH is a building. The building couldn't know. They are all denying accountability, but no one's in charge at the WH, and yet they're all just following orders to tow the line, deny, lie, deny. Mind boggling, thought provoking crap.
Great photo above!

[Solly Mack]

22. If I was a Putin lackey I'd deny it too.

Course, Priebus is so low on the pecking order, he only gets to kiss Trump's ass.