Authoritarianism
The Plot To Sell America’s Foreign Policy For Foreign Oil And Steal An Election In 40 Tweets
The plot to sell America’s foreign policy for foreign oil and steal an election in the bargain began at the Mayflower Hotel. See below:
1) Per @NYMag, Paul Manafort took over the Trump campaign on April 16, just 72 hours before Trump mathematically eliminated his competition. pic.twitter.com/SsIUo589By
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 24, 2017
2) The timing was intentional: Manafort, hired in March, was slated to become the campaign's key player as soon as Trump became the nominee.
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 24, 2017
3) On April 21, 48 hours after clinching, Trump announced the first major foreign policy address of his life. It was scheduled for April 27.
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 24, 2017
4) The speech, arranged by Jared Kushner in mid-March, was to be hosted by the Center for the National Interest, a conservative think tank. pic.twitter.com/yXj3J7DpQJ
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 24, 2017
5) The Center is _widely_ known to have "ties to the Russian regime of President Vladimir Putin," per Politico. https://t.co/emCt0lnBkf
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 24, 2017
6) The speech was slated to be at the National Press Club, an august venue with a _long_ history of staging secure events with large crowds. pic.twitter.com/cuq5492nkO
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 24, 2017
7) Less than 24 hours before the speech, it was cancelled. The Trump campaign (i.e., Manafort) declared the venue was too small and unsafe.
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 24, 2017
8) So Manafort moved the event to the Mayflower Hotel: a smaller, less secure site. The decision confirmed the campaign's excuses were lies. pic.twitter.com/EtgLxhMXYh
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 24, 2017
9) The two things the Mayflower had that the NPC didn't were (a) 581 private rooms for private meetings, and (b) restricted, VIP-only areas. pic.twitter.com/kt1rBExo0i
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 24, 2017
10) The latter was important because Manafort wanted Trump to hold an intimate, 24-person cocktail hour in the Mayflower's VIP Senate Room.
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 24, 2017
11) Among the 24 at the event: Trump, CNI event coordinator Heilbrunn, Jeff Sessions, Kushner, Lewandowski, Manafort, and four ambassadors. pic.twitter.com/jVPRY2XZHv
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 24, 2017
12) Another VIP at the event was Iran-Contra figure Bud McFarlane, one of America's chief advocates for a bargain with Russia on oil access. pic.twitter.com/hj6TJhLujN
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 24, 2017
13) The four ambassadors were the only four ambassadors in the world (out of 195 total) that the Putin-linked CNI had invited to the event.
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 24, 2017
14) The _biggest oil deal in Russia's history_ occurred in December of 2016. It involved the coordination of entities from three countries.
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 24, 2017
15) Individuals from those three countries—RUSSIA, ITALY, and SINGAPORE—negotiated the sale of 19.5% of Russia's state oil company, Rosneft. pic.twitter.com/WL28N2kZg3
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 24, 2017
16) The #Russiagate scandal involves claims Trump was given 0.5% of Rosneft and aid in getting elected in exchange for lifting US sanctions. pic.twitter.com/epnrPl9ngo
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 24, 2017
17) The Rosneft deal closed Dec. 5-7. During that time McFarlane visited Trump Tower. It's believed Russian ambassador/spy Kislyak did too. pic.twitter.com/DvUGL4W0V9
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 24, 2017
18) WSJ wrote in April 2016 that Trump met separately with the ambassadors at the Mayflower and was effusive. Quote: https://t.co/ZDUKoGnuJ3
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 24, 2017
19) “Trump met at a VIP reception with Russia’s ambassador to the U.S., Sergey Kislyak. He warmly greeted Kislyak and 3 other ambassadors."
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 24, 2017
20) The ambassadors at the Mayflower: RUSSIA! ITALY! SINGAPORE! And the Philippines–which is routinely cited as a Rosneft expansion target. pic.twitter.com/lkziVxMM6l
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 24, 2017
21) So Trump warmly, privately chatted with the 3 Rosneft-deal nations at a cocktail hour right before his _first big foreign-policy event_.
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 24, 2017
22) In his speech Trump called for a Russian detente: "We desire to live peacefully and in friendship with Russia…we are not bound… pic.twitter.com/LY1s6ZdE4k
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 24, 2017
23) to be adversaries. We should seek common ground based on shared interests…an easing of tensions and improved relations with Russia… pic.twitter.com/I4eKvtqvpy
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 24, 2017
24) is possible..[I hope to] make a deal under my administration that’s great for America but also good for Russia." https://t.co/z0OA6pmXbh
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 24, 2017
25) Richard Burt, CNI and Russian Alfa Bank adviser, _crafted the speech_. He was also _Putin's pipeline lobbyist_. https://t.co/7Ubf6jsYq6
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 24, 2017
26) The only Kislyak meeting Sessions _never_ disclosed to Congress, _even after accusations of perjury_, was the meeting at the Mayflower. pic.twitter.com/D8mzXi2xNa
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 24, 2017
27) But per the organizer of the Mayflower Hotel event, Jacob Heilbrunn of the CNI, a third Sessions-Kislyak meeting _definitely_ occurred.
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 24, 2017
28) Heilbrunn on the VIP event: "At a reception in the Senate Room of the Mayflower, a number of politicians and Trump advisers, such as…
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 24, 2017
29) … Senator Jeff Sessions and ambassadors [from Russia and the other nations] congregated before the event." https://t.co/MaOzmAqY2E
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 24, 2017
30) The VIP event _wasn't_ just a receiving line as Trump claimed. It was a "cocktail meet-and-greet"–a full event. https://t.co/qnbY6u56uw
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 24, 2017
31) That Sessions would feel the need to hide his contact with Kislyak at the Mayflower event after accusations of perjury raises red flags. pic.twitter.com/FiSyrw89SD
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 24, 2017
32) The White House saying it has “no recollection” of any of the VIPs at Trump's _biggest-ever foreign policy event_ is also a red flag. pic.twitter.com/bTQsz5JJ2Z
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 24, 2017
33) When Kislyak was asked if he’d met Trump or members of his team during the campaign he replied, "What do you consider a campaign?"
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 24, 2017
34) Kislyak went on to _fail_ to disclose his meeting with Trump at the Mayflower, citing only a meeting at the RNC. https://t.co/4ft7A3WGii
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 24, 2017
35) We know Manafort and Kislyak would have known each other, as Manafort indirectly worked for Putin for years. https://t.co/xGws9Rvgm4
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 24, 2017
36) We know Manafort set up the Mayflower event and was available for meetings at it–as was Kushner, who later met secretly with Kislyak. pic.twitter.com/nOnWyPZB4x
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 24, 2017
37) Congress must investigate _any_ Mayflower meetings between Sessions, Manafort, Kushner, Kislyak and the Italian/Singaporean ambassadors.
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 24, 2017
38) We know the White House lied about Mayflower. We know Sessions has. We know Kislyak has. And we know the Rosneft players were present. pic.twitter.com/9BIKLipInj
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 24, 2017
39) We know there was ample time/space for "sidelines" meetings. And we know Walid Phares was also there, and Trump Jr., and Stephen Miller. pic.twitter.com/JgjowPR15D
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 24, 2017
40) So other than the RNC and suspicious Trump Tower meetings in December, the Mayflower Speech should get the _most_ attention in Congress. pic.twitter.com/8mPUhCC4bp
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 24, 2017
CREDITS/ADDITIONAL DOCS) Thanks to @grantstern and to Politico. The New York Magazine article on Manafort is below. https://t.co/QIKySu2Ftr
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 24, 2017
NOTES) At several points I used "oil" instead of "oil/gas" or "oil/LNG" or just "LNG" (liquefied natural gas). This was Twitter shorthand.
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 24, 2017
ADDITIONAL DOCS 2) Information on the Rosneft sale taken largely from this excellent Reuters article on the topic: https://t.co/7GU1ygNmix
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 24, 2017
I do think that if the genesis of #Russiagate is traced to Trump's Mayflower speech (4/27/16), we'll likely call this the Mayflower Scandal. pic.twitter.com/M2J0LpaTAy
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 24, 2017
ADDITIONAL DOCS 3) Here is the CNI press release announcing the attending ambassadors: pic.twitter.com/x5fQp7P6ok
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 24, 2017
DOCS 4) Flynn-Kushner-Kislyak's Trump Tower meeting was clandestine: press saw nothing, suggesting alternate entry. https://t.co/2eelsHOwr5
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 24, 2017
DOCS 5) CNI ('06): McFarlane says Russia's LNG reserves are key to any strategy weaning US from M.E. oil dependence. https://t.co/SROdTe2bPu
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 24, 2017
DOCS 6) The Steele Dossier, written by the former head of MI6's Russia desk (known for excellent sources in Russia): https://t.co/1SX9NFCzbm
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 24, 2017
DOCS 7) _Not normal_: "Kislyak broke the diplomatic norm against attending campaign events" to go to the Mayflower. https://t.co/xVG4a0FvrO
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 24, 2017
DOCS 8) Italian Ambassador Varricchio was at the Mayflower with Team Trump and in Italy with Putin and Team Rosneft: https://t.co/YterFaT58P
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) March 24, 2017
