Sabrina Siddiqui: Maria Butina’s Cooperation Could Shed Light on How Widespread Russian Involvement Was

RUSH EXCERPT:

SIDDIQUI: “ Well, Maria Butina spent years ingratiating herself with conservative activists, Republican Party operatives and according to prosecutors, able to infiltrate the highest levels of the NRA, one of the most powerful groups, not just in Washington, but frankly, the country. And one of the things that’s significant about Butina is she had, of course, initially pleaded not guilty to charges of conspiracy and acting as an agent of a foreign government. What the terms are of her plea agreement, we do not yet know. She posed a request he to then candidate Trump, getting him on the record for the first time about U.S. Sanctions against Russia and his desire to improve ties between Washington and Moscow. There’s going to be an open-ended question as to whether or not she was able to have any contacts within the Trump campaign. But also I think her cooperation could shed light on how widespread Russian involvement was in the democratic process prior to the presidential and, of course, the tactics that they were able to use to reach the most powerful players in Washington.“