High Level Summaries
Disclaimer: All of these are summaries of the words of others. They are not being represented here as either fact or as the opinion of the webmaster unless specifically stated. All statements and assertions should be read as if prefaced by “(name of person being summarized) states that …” Any content that I add will be surrounded by [brackets] and will likely include a link or reference to the source.
William Browder’s Opening Statement
(Opening Statement to Senate Judiciary Committee – July 26, 2017)
U.S.-born William Browder was a highly successful investment manager in Russia for several years. He exposed corruption among Russia’s oligarchs, and these efforts were initially supported by Putin because it weakened Putin’s opposition. As Putin became more powerful, he started wanting a cut of any illicit money taken in by the oligarchs and the Russian mafia: Browder’s anti-corruption efforts were no longer welcome, and neither was Browder. He was falsely accused of tax evasion, and hired attorney Sergei Magnitsky to prove him innocent. When Magnitsky found evidence that supported Browder and took it to Russian authorities, he was jailed, treated harshly, and died in prison a year later. To avenge his death, Browder successfully advocated in the U.S. for the Magnitsky Act, which freezes the U.S. assets of all wealthy Russians responsible for Magnitsky’s death, including Putin.
Natalia Veselnitskaya’s Notes
(Notes allegedly used by Russian lawyer at Trump Tower meeting)
Relations between the U.S. and Russia have become needlessly strained as a result of the Magnitsky Act. William Browder’s story that resulted in passage of the Magnitsky Act is a lie. Browder avoided paying an enormous amount of taxes in both Russia and the United States, and Sergei Magnitsky was an accomplice to his criminal activity. (As a side note, New York billionaires, the Ziff brothers – major Democratic donors – illegally invested with Browder for years, and if they donated to Hillary Clinton, that money would therefore be tainted.) The U.S. should repeal the Magnitsky Act so that relations between Russia and the U.S. can improve. Because Putin retaliated for the Magnitsky Act by banning adoption of Russian orphans by Americans, a removal of the Magnitsky Act will likely also benefit helpless orphans who have been unduly harmed by Putin’s response to the Magnitsky Act.
Steele Dossier
(Memos developed by Christopher Steele while investigating Trump’s business ties in Russia as part of opposition research)
There appears to be a significant collaborative effort between the Kremlin and the Trump Campaign to help Donald Trump win the 2016 Presidential election. The Kremlin had extensive “kompromat” on both Trump and Clinton, and is actively engaging in cyber operations against the Clinton Campaign. Their kompromat on Trump is sufficient to blackmail him. Major Kremlin objectives appear to be to destabilize the west, achieve removal of U.S. sanctions against Russia, and weaken U.S. policies that negatively impact Russia.
Simpson Testimony #1 – Prevezon Case
(Testimony of Fusion GPS founder Glenn Simpson before Senate Judiciary Committee on August 17, 2017)
Law firm Baker Hostetler hired Simpson’s company, Fusion GPS, to research information that could vindicate their client, Cyprus-based investment company Prevezon Holdings. Prevezon had been accused of money laundering by the U.S. Department of Justice. Russian lawyer Natalia Veselnitskaya was Prevezon’s attorney, and she hired Baker to help with such a major case. During the research, Simpson discovered that William Browder – a major enemy of Vladimir Putin – was the source of the money laundering allegations against Prevezon. Browder was very evasive and reluctant to testify to his accusations against Prevezon under oath. Simpson compiled a large amount of public information on Browder that seemed to call into question Browder’s credibility. During the course of his involvement with the case, Simpson ended up at two group dinners with Veselnitskaya, both the evening before and after her Trump Tower meeting, and was also at a hearing for Prevezon with her on the day of the Trump Tower meeting. Simpson was unaware of Veselnitskaya’s Trump Tower meeting until it was reported in the news.
Simpson Testimony #2 – Prevezon Case
(Testimony of Fusion GPS founder Glenn Simpson before House Intelligence Committee on November 14, 2017)
More details that further fill out Simpson’s previous testimony, including an admission that the information from his research for Prevezon was likely used by Veselnitskaya at the Trump Tower meeting to help her argue against the Magnitsky Act and as her “dirt” on Hillary Clinton. Simpson’s research had not been intended to be used in that way, and Simpson had been unaware that Veselnitskaya might have been acting on behalf of the Russian government.
Simpson Testimony #1 – Trump Investigation
(Testimony of Fusion GPS founder Glenn Simpson before Senate Judiciary Committee on August 17, 2017)
Fusion GPS was hired by a Republican client during the 2016 Presidential primaries – and then by a Democratic client after the Republican Convention – to research Donald Trump. The goal was to learn everything about Trump, good and bad, to provide an accurate picture to the client. Early indications in the research were that Trump had connections to organized crime, particularly Russian organized crime. After exhausting public records, Simpson hired former British intelligence officer/Russia specialist Christopher Steele to see what more he could learn from his contacts in Russia. Steele was alarmed when he uncovered an apparent operation by the Kremlin to help Trump win the U.S. Presidential election. Out of a sense of professional duty, Steele reported his findings to the FBI.
Simpson Testimony #2 – Trump Investigation
(Testimony of Fusion GPS founder Glenn Simpson before House Intelligence Committee on November 14, 2017)
More details that further fill out Simpson’s previous testimony, including his and Steele’s belief that Steele’s information was not being acted on by the FBI. This belief raised deep concern between them that there was something questionable happening at the FBI, and caused them to take their information to the press.
Nunes Memo
(Document compiled by the office of U.S. Rep. Devin Nunes (R-CA))
The information used to obtain a FISA warrant to monitor communications of Trump Campaign foreign policy adviser Carter Page was illegitimate, because it’s direct basis and indirect basis were the Steele dossier – a document funded by a partisan source and therefore not credible. Its use indicates a possible campaign within the FBI and intelligence community to undermine Trump.
Read more of this special series:
The Trump-Russia Web
- Part 1: Introduction
- Part 2: What’s What (Glossary)
- Part 3: Who’s Who (Glossary)
- Part 4: Timeline, Key Relationships, Key Places
- Part 5: High-Level Summaries
- Part 6: William Browder
- Part 7: Natalia Veselnitskaya
- Part 8: The Steele Dossier
- Part 9: Fusion GPS
- Part 10: Glenn Simpson and the Prevezon Case
- Part 11: Glenn Simpson and the Trump Investigation
The Week In Trump 