Former National Security Adviser Susan Rice’s high-powered attorney released a written statement to Congressional investigators over the weekend, saying the senior Obama official did “nothing unusual” when she sent a strange email to herself on Inauguration Day.
The lawyer was responding to questions submitted by Senators Chuck Grassley and Lindsey Graham regarding the “unusual” message, reportedly outlining a key meeting between senior Obama staffers regarding the Trump campaign’s ties to Russian officials.
“There is nothing ‘unusual’ about the National Security Advisor memorializing an important discussion for the record,” attorney Kathryn Ruemmler said in a statement.
“The Obama White House was justifiably concerned about how comprehensive they should be in their briefings regarding Russia to members of the Trump transition team, particularly Lt. General Michael Flynn, given the concerning communications between him and Russian officials,” she added.
The former NSA was thrust into national headlines days ago, when Congressional leaders were made aware of the email Rice sent to herself during Trump’s inauguration; raising new questions over her role in surveilling senior Trump aides during the 2016 presidential election.
h/t The Hill
BOMBSHELL: Susan Rice Admits She 'Unmasked' Senior Trump Officials
Former National Security Advisor Susan Rice told members of the House Intelligence Committee she intentionally “unmasked” senior Trump associates because of a meeting held between campaign officials and a crown prince from the United Arab Emirates.
According to CNN, Rice told lawmakers in a private hearing that Obama officials requested the identities of Trump’s aides because they were concerned over a New York City meeting between a U.A.E. Sheikh and those with close ties to Trump’s transition team.
The Sheikh reportedly met with Michael Flynn, Jared Kushner, and Steve Bannon in New York City on December 15th.
Rice said the Obama administration was interested in the meeting because other U.A.E. officials intentionally concealed the visit from American officials; raising alarm bells over the nature of the trip and whether it related to “foreign collusion” in the 2016 presidential election.
The former National Security Advisor admitted to the House Intelligence Committee that she specifically requested the “unmasking” of Americans who were mentioned in intelligence reports associated with the visit.
Earlier this year, Susan Rice denied she intentionally revealed the identities of senior Trump officials, saying “The allegation is that somehow the Obama administration officials utilized intelligence for political purposes […] That’s absolutely false.”
h/t Daily Caller
COMEY CHAOS: Susan Rice’s ‘UNUSUAL’ Email Raises NEW QUESTIONS About Comey’s Testimony
A bombshell email from former National Security Advisor Susan Rice sent during President Trump’s inauguration is raising serious questions over former FBI director James Comey’s congressional testimony; highlighting possible inconsistencies over high-level meetings with President Obama during Trump’s transition.
Rice’s email -sent to herself on January 20th, 2017- detailed ongoing discussions between James Comey, Barack Obama, and other senior staffers regarding Russian election interference; prompting Congressional leaders to question why he never mentioned the meetings while speaking under oath.
“I spoke alone with President Obama twice in person (and never on the phone) – once in 2015 to discuss law enforcement policy issues and a second time, briefly, for him to say goodbye in late 2016,” Comey said during his opening statement.
“Yet Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, and Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., earlier this week released an email Rice sent to herself on Inauguration Day 2017, detailing an Oval Office meeting held Jan. 5 with Obama, Comey, then-Vice President Joe Biden, then-Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates and herself,” writes Fox News.
The email raises serious questions over former President Barack Obama’s involvement in the FBI’s investigation into allegations the Trump campaign “colluded” with Russian officials, as well as the administration’s involvement in Hillary Clinton’s email scandal.
