READ IT OR WATCH IT
President Donald Trump downplayed Tuesday the significance of a former campaign adviser pleading guilty to lying to federal officials.
“Few people knew the young, low level volunteer named George, who has already proven to be a liar,” Trump tweeted in reference to George Papadopoulos, who was a member of the campaign’s foreign policy advisory team.
Papadopoulos pleaded guilty on Oct. 5 to lying to federal officials about his ties to individuals allegedly connected to the Russian government. The campaign aide repeatedly attempted throughout the campaign to set up meetings between campaign officials and folks from the Kremlin.
During his only known meeting with President Trump on March 31, 2016 with the rest of the campaign foreign policy advisory team, Papadopoulos brought up the idea of Trump meeting with Putin. This was promptly shot down by then-Alabama senator Jeff Sessions, who was also the head of the foreign policy committee.
The White House has been brushing off Papadopoulos’ importance since court documents were released Monday.
“He was not paid by the campaign, he was a volunteer on a…council that met once,” White House press secretary Sarah Sanders said Monday. “I’m not here to speak on behalf of the thousands of people that may have volunteered on the campaign.”
During the election, one source close to Trump maintained to The Daily Caller that the foreign policy advisory team was something quickly put together in order to present a semblance of professionalism in the Trump campaign. (RELATED: How Did George Papadopoulos End Up On The Trump Campaign?)