Schiff Wonders If ‘Russians May Have Laundered Money Through the Trump Organization’

by Susan Jones, CNSnews:

President Trump told The New York Times last week that Special Counsel Robert Mueller would be crossing a line if he were to investigate his and his family’s finances.

On Sunday, Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), the ranking member of the House intelligence committee was asked for his reaction to those comments.

“Well, I had a couple of impressions,” Schiff told CBS’s “Face the Nation.” “First, the president is clearly worried that Bob Mueller is going to be looking into allegations, for example, that the Russians may have laundered money through the Trump Organization.

That is really something, in my opinion, he needs to look at because what concerns me the most is, anything that could be held over the president’s head that could influence U.S. policy, that would be among the most powerful form of compromise. So I think it is something he needs to look at.

“It’s something plainly the president is very concerned about, but clearly within the scope of Bob Mueller’s investigation.”

Schiff said Mueller has been authorized to look into “Russian connections with the Trump campaign and anything that arises from that,” including “financial issues” and the Russians using their “financial leverage over people to influence policy.”

“That’s what they do in Europe,” Schiff said. “It’s part of why they like business leaders as heads of state, because they can enter into business transactions before or during that then can be used as a way of influencing their decision making. And, of course, that would be detrimental to U.S. interests.

Host John Dickerson asked Schiff if there’s any evidence that the Russians have some kind of financial leverage over Trump:

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