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NYT Reporter Calls Uranium One Scandal Reports ‘Tactical Political Strategy’ [VIDEO]

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Jack Crowe Political Reporter
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New York Times reporter Eric Lipton referred to the recent coverage surrounding former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s involvement in the Uranium One scandal as a “tactical political strategy” in a Thursday tweet.

Lipton’s employer, The New York Times, reported in 2015 that the Obama administration approved the acquisition of the Canadian mining company Uranium One by a Russian-backed firm. The 2010 merger gave the Russian firm Rosatom access to roughly 20 percent of American uranium deposits.

The story re-emerged after a bombshell report from the Hill, which revealed the FBI had gathered extensive evidence prior to the deal’s approval that the Kremlin compromised employees within an American uranium trucking firm in an effort to expand Russian access to U.S. uranium.

Additionally, the Russian beneficiaries of the Uranium One deal made generous donations to the Clinton Foundation numbering in the millions and paid substantial speaking fees to former President Bill Clinton.

The story has attracted widespread cable and print news coverage as lawmakers began publicly questioning exactly why the deal was approved after the FBI uncovered evidence of Russian espionage activities related to uranium acquisition.

The report prompted a joint congressional investigation led by the House Intelligence and Oversight and Government Reform Committees.

“We’re not going to jump to any conclusions at this time, but one of the things we’re concerned about is whether or not there was an FBI investigation — was there a DOJ investigation — and if so, why was Congress not informed of this matter? That will be the start of the probe,” head of the House Intelligence Committee GOP Rep. Devin Nunes of California told reporters Tuesday in the basement of the Capitol.

GOP Rep. Peter King of New York explained Monday that lawmakers have “very, very real concerns about why we would allow a Russian-owned company to get access to 20 percent of America’s uranium supply.”

“It’s important we find out why that deal went through,” he added.

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