Assange saga
The resolution of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange’s long-standing legal battles with the US Justice Department is a significant moment that invites reflection on the delicate balance between national security and freedom of the press.
Donald Trump Jr., the US President’s eldest son, has released exchanges he had with the WikiLeaks Twitter account via direct messages during the 2016 presidential campaign, the media reported.
Trump Jr. tweeted the exchange on Monday, saying: “Here is the entire chain of messages with @wikileaks (with my whopping three responses) which one of the congressional committees has chosen to selectively leak. How ironic!”
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According to the released messages, WikiLeaks reached out to Trump Jr. just before midnight on September 20, 2016, regarding a political action committee (PAC)-funded, anti-Trump website.
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A source familiar with the matter told CNN that Congress has had the documents for a while, and Trump Jr. was briefly asked about the exchanges during a closed-door interview he had with the Senate judiciary committee in September.
Alan Futerfas, an attorney for Trump Jr., said: “Putting aside the question as to why or by whom such documents, provided to Congress under promises of confidentiality, have been selectively leaked, we can say with confidence that we have no concerns about these documents and any questions raised about them have been easily answered in the appropriate forum.”
Trump Jr. responded to two of the messages initiated by WikiLeaks, the one sent on September 21, 2016, and then again on October 3, 2016.
In the October 3 exchange, the WikiLeaks Twitter account sent a message to Trump Jr. that said: “Hiya, it’d be great if you guys could comment on/push this story,” and proceeded to link to a quote from Clinton suggesting a drone strike against WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, according to the messages shared by Trump Jr.
“Already did that earlier today,” Trump Jr. wrote back. “It’s amazing what she can get away with.”
Monday’s revelation comes amid several investigations into possible links between President Donald Trump campaign’s and Russia.
Trump Jr. faced scrutiny after it was disclosed that he had agreed to meet a Russian attorney in June 2016 who promised “dirt” on Clinton.
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