Trump campaign asks federal court to throw out Russian interference case

[JURIST] US President https://www.donaldjtrump.com/”>Donald Trump’s [campaign website] campaign attorney Michael Carvin [professional profile] filed a brief [text, PDF] on Tuesday in the US District Court for the District of Columbia [official website] asking the court to dismiss a lawsuit that accuses the Trump campaign of conspiring with Russian operatives. The case was originally filed [POLITICO report] on behalf of three Democratic Party [official website] affiliates who claim the Trump campaign conspired with Russian operatives to publish data illegally obtained from the Democratic National Committee on Wikileaks. The Trump campaign argued that the case is meritless as the affiliates lack the factual support to sustain their claims of collusion. The campaign’s attorney also noted that the complaint “foreshadows” an impending “fishing expedition” into Trump’s tax records, business relationships, real estate projects, and many other controversial aspects of the President’s past. A decision on the brief is expected in the coming weeks.

Allegations of Russian connections have been a problem for the Trump administration since the early stages of his presidency. In June US Attorney General Jeff Sessions testified [JURIST report] before the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence in relation to his alleged ties to Russia and its coordination with President Donald Trump’s campaign in 2016. When asked why he had initially stated those conversations did not take place, Sessions said that he was flustered by the questioning and misunderstood what was being asked of him. He also said that he did not recuse himself from the investigations because of his failure to disclose [JURIST reports] those meetings. In May Former FBI director James Comey testified [JURIST report] in front of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence. Earlier in May the committee issued a subpoena [JURIST report] compelling former National Security Adviser Lieutenant General Michael Flynn to provide documents related to the committee’s investigation into Russian interference during the 2016 presidential election. Also in May former acting US Attorney General Sally Yates testified [JURIST report] before the Senate Judiciary Committee stating that she had warned about Flynn’s vulnerabilities to blackmail by Russia less than a week after President Donald Trump assumed office. In March now-former FBI Director James Comey confirmed [JURIST report] that the FBI was investigating allegations of Russian interference with the 2016 US presidential election.