Without Evidence, Trump Accused Former Pres. Obama of Wiretapping
In a series of tweets on Saturday, without offering evidence, Donald Trump accused former President Obama of tapping the phones in Trump Tower prior to the 2016 presidential election.
Twitter screenshot
Trump has mastered the art of leveling false allegations against political rivals. Despite only holding office a few weeks, Trump remains in campaign mode. He recently tweeted, “Terrible! Just found out that Obama had my "wires tapped" in Trump Tower just before the victory. Nothing found. This is McCarthyism!”
Before Trump’s wiretapping allegation, Attorney General, Jeff Sessions recused himself from any federal probe of collusion between the Trump campaign and Russian during the 2016 presidential election, stating, “I have decided to recuse myself from any existing or future investigations of any matters related in any way to the campaigns for President of the United States."
On Friday Trump accused Senate minority leader, Chuck Schumer of inappropriate contact with Russia. In an attempt to distract from his ties to the Kremlin, Trump tweeted, "We should start an immediate investigation into @SenSchumer and his ties to Russia and Putin. A total hypocrite!” Included in the tweet was a picture of Sen. Schumer apparently speaking with Russian president Vladimir Putin. This attempt by Trump to deflect from his own impropriety was not subtle.
But Schumer did not accept Trump's public criticism. Schumer fired back, "Happily talk re: my contact with Mr. Putin & his associates, took place in '03 in full view of press & public under oath. Would you and your team?" Clearly Trump would be against having his Russian dealings (if they exist) exposed to the public for scrutiny. The implication is plainly obvious - folks interacting with the Russians that have nothing to hide have no objection to sharing their Russian communications publicly.
Obama’s spokesmen has since denied Trump's claims.
Trump surrogates and administration officials have been linked to Russia. Released by the National Intelligence Community, the declassified intelligence report issued in January stated that Russia hacked the 2016 presidential election, and then National Security adviser Michael Flynn was forced to resign over misleading statements he made about conversations with Russia. Flynn's tenure broke a record for fewest days served as National Security Advisor. According to the New York Times, FBI Director James B. Comey asked the Justice Department to reject Trump’s allegation of wiretapping by the Obama administration.
The full details of the Trump administration's relationship with Russia remains unknown as Trump and administration officials avoid addressing the issue or flatly deny it exists. But one thing is certain, usually, 'where there's smoke, there's fire.'
