Smoking Gun Email Links Hillary Clinton Directly
Clinton Linked to Trump-Russia Narrative in Declassified Durham Report
A newly declassified appendix to Special Counsel John Durham’s 2023 report suggests Hillary Clinton approved a plan in 2016 to link Donald Trump to Russia, then denied it to the FBI. Senate Judiciary Chair Chuck Grassley released the annex, which supports claims that the FBI mishandled its investigation into Trump’s campaign.
The annex cites Russian intelligence memos, including alleged emails from Leonard Benardo of George Soros’ Open Society Foundations. Benardo reportedly said, “Later the FBI will put more oil into the fire,” and Clinton approved an “idea about Trump and Russian hackers hampering U.S. elections.”
Though some officials questioned the emails’ authenticity, others assessed they were “likely authentic” and a result of Russian cyber intrusions. Clinton, John Podesta, and Jake Sullivan all denied knowledge, calling it “Russian disinformation” and “ridiculous.”
Still, the annex concludes Clinton’s team may have sought to “encourage scrutiny of Trump’s purported ties to Russia” and expected the FBI to act.
