White House denies Trump briefed on 'Russia Afghanistan assassination plot'
New York Times claims
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The White House has denied reports that Donald Trump ignored a warning from US intelligence that the Russian military had offered bounties to Taliban-linked militants in Afghanistan to kill American troops and other coalition forces.
The New York Times reported the claim on Friday, triggering a storm of accusations that the president had failed to protect US and allied troops, including those from Britain.
Citing officials briefed on the matter, the Times said the US determined months ago that a Russian military intelligence unit linked to assassination attempts in Europe had offered rewards for successful attacks last year.
Islamist militants, or armed criminal elements closely associated with them, are believed to have collected some bounty money, the newspaper said. The White House, the CIA and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence initially declined requests from Reuters for comment on the report.
On Saturday afternoon, the White House denied Mr Trump had been briefed on the matter, but did not dispute that US troops were being targetted, something likely to give the story further life.
“The United States receives thousands of intelligence reports a day and they are subject to strict scrutiny. While the White House does not routinely comment on alleged intelligence or internal deliberations, the CIA Director, National Security Advisor, and the Chief of Staff can all confirm that neither the President nor the Vice President were briefed on the alleged Russian bounty intelligence," press secretary Kayleigh Mcenany said in a statement.
"This does not speak to the merit of the alleged intelligence but to the inaccuracy of the New York Times story erroneously suggesting that President Trump was briefed on this matter.”
See below to see how the drama played out:
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Republican senator Chuck Grassley, a Trump ally, has bizarrely berated Sean Hannity for Donald Trump's failure to outline what goals he would pursue in any second term.
Fact-checking Trump's claims about coronavirus testing
Donald Trump's persistent see-no-evil posture on coronavirus testing — if you don't look for the virus, the cases go away — defies both science and street sense. Yet he took it a step further with a comment suggesting that testing be restrained so the pandemic doesn't look so bad.
His aides passed that off as a joke. Mr Trump contradicted them, saying he wasn't kidding. Then he contradicted himself, saying he was.
So it went over the past week as America's reckoning with disease and racism navigated a fog of falsehoods and distortions from the president. An example:
TRUMP: “You know testing is a double-edged sword. ... Here's the bad part. When you test to that extent, you are going to find more people, find more cases. So I said to my people, 'Slow the testing down please.'” — Tulsa, Oklahoma, rally June 20.
THE FACT: First, it's not true that he ordered testing slowed. The government's top public health officials testified one by one to Congress that Trump told them no such thing.
White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany said the comment was “made in jest” and other senior aides similarly brushed it off as not serious. Mr Trump didn't play along. “I don't kid,” he said Tuesday when asked about the remark.
Then he reversed himself, telling Fox News on Thursday, “Sometimes I jokingly say, or sarcastically say, if we didn't do tests we would look great.” But holding back on testing is “not the right thing to do".
Mr Trump's broader point — “If you don't test, you don't have any cases,” he also said — flips science on its head. No one disputes the fact that testing for the virus is key to controlling it. Testing is only one measure of the pandemic. It is also measured by hospitalisation and death, which continue even if authorities were to close their eyes to spreading sickness.
Covid-19 has killed about 125,000 people in the US. Infections are far higher than are known because many who get the disease and pass it on are not tested.
Associated Press
Arguments break out over statue of Abraham Lincoln
Fierce arguments broke out by a statue of Abraham Lincoln in the nation’s capital on Friday night as dozens of protesters hoping to remove it confronted a handful of people eager to defend the monument.
The Emancipation Memorial in Lincoln Park, which depicts an African American man kneeling at the feet of Lincoln, has emerged as a flashpoint during the ongoing protests over the killing of George Floyd. Earlier this week, some demonstrators vowed to remove the statue, arguing it promotes white supremacy and ignores the pivotal role slaves played in fighting for their own freedom.
But others, including prominent African American historians, have pointed out that the statue was commissioned and paid for by a group of African Americans.
Read more:
The Florida Department of Health reported 9,585 new cases of coronavirus on Saturday, the Orlando Sentinel reports, surging past the previous daily high for positive cases.
President retweeted petition calling for Roger Stone to be pardoned
Earlier today the president added to speculation that he will pardon his former adviser Roger Stone before he reports to federal prison, by retweeting a story about a petition calling for him to do so.
Mr Stone was sentenced to 40 months in prison in February for witness-tempering and lying to Congress in relation to the probe into Russia's interference in the 2016 election.
Thanking his supporters, Mr Stone made his feelings known in an instagram post.
Lindsey Graham calls for response
South Carolina senator Lindsey Graham has called for a response from the administration to the media reports of Russian covert action supporting Taliban attacks on US troops.
He tweeted: "I expect the Trump Administration to take such allegations seriously and inform Congress immediately as to the reliability of these news reports."
He went on to voice concerns about the planned withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan.
US fighter jets intercept Russian military aircraft near Alaska (again)
"This year alone, NORAD forces have identified and intercepted Russian military aircraft including bombers, fighters, and maritime patrol aircraft on ten separate occasions when they have flown into the ADIZ," says NORAD commander General Terrence O'Shaughnessy. "Despite Covid-19, we remain fully ready and capable of conducting our no-fail mission of homeland defence."
Focus on the timeline
Anger about reports of covert Russian action in Afghanistan against US troops focuses on not just the apparent inaction of the Trump administration upon receiving the reports, but also the president's subsequent praise of Russia.
The famous Nixon-era quote "What did the president know and when did he know it?" springs to mind.
Russia denies reports
The Russian Embassy in Washington, DC, responded to the reporting in the New York Times calling it "new fake stories" that ignores cooperation between the two countries.
Back to the White House
The president has finished his game of golf at Trump National in Virginia, and is heading back to the White House, according to the in-town pool report.
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