Hereâs the Problem With the White Houseâs Story on the Papadopoulos Scandal â Mother Jones
George Papadopoulos
The answer to that seemingly unimportant question is suddenly a key element of the deepening scandal surrounding the campaignâs contacts with Russia  following revelations that one member of the team  George Papadopoulos  communicated with Russians connected to the Kremlin. White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders has said several times that the answer is one  implying that the foreign policy council was an unimportant body and  Papadopoulos  was a minor player in the campaign.
 Papadopoulos  admitted to special counsel Robert Muellerâs investigative team that  he  had ongoing contacts with Kremlin intermediaries during the campaign. The White House quickly downplayed the significance of the revelation last week  claiming that  Papadopoulos  was barely involved with the campaign. The campaign was certainly aware of  his  connections to Russia because  Papadopoulos  suggested using them to set up a meeting between Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin at a March 2016 meeting of the foreign policy team with Trump present. But  Sanders  has emphasized that that was itâthat the campaignâs foreign policy team  a group of volunteer advisers headed by now-Attorney General Jeff Sessions  met only that one time.
âIâm telling you that  he  was a volunteer member of an advisory council that literally met one time â  Sanders  said during a press briefing on October 30.
But on Thursday  Page told the House Intelligence Committee that  he  spoke to Sessions at a dinner in Washington  DC  in June 2016 about an upcoming trip  he  was making to Russia. According to CNN  the dinner was a gathering of members of the foreign policy council. âA source familiar with the meeting told CNN that the encounter occurred at a dinner at the Capitol Hill Club  attended by members of the Trump national security team  including Sessions â the network reported. âNear the end of the dinner  Page approached Sessions to say hello and thanked the then-senator for the dinner  and Page also mentioned  he  was headed to Russia. Sessions didnât respond and moved on to the next person waiting to shake  his  hand  this source said.â
The answer to that seemingly unimportant question is suddenly a key element of the deepening scandal surrounding the campaignâs contacts with Russia  following revelations that one member of the team   [TGT] communicated with Russians connected to the Kremlin. White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders has said several times that the answer is one  implying that the foreign policy council was an unimportant body and   [TGT] was a minor player in the campaign.
  [TGT] admitted to special counsel Robert Muellerâs investigative team that   [TGT]   had ongoing contacts with Kremlin intermediaries during the campaign. The White House quickly downplayed the significance of the revelation last week  claiming that   [TGT] was barely involved with the campaign. The campaign was certainly aware of   [TGT]   connections to Russia because   [TGT] suggested using them to set up a meeting between Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin at a March 2016 meeting of the foreign policy team with Trump present. But  Sanders  has emphasized that that was itâthat the campaignâs foreign policy team  a group of volunteer advisers headed by now-Attorney General Jeff Sessions  met only that one time.
âIâm telling you that  he  was a volunteer member of an advisory council that literally met one time â  Sanders  said during a press briefing on October 30.
But on Thursday  Page told the House Intelligence Committee that  he  spoke to Sessions at a dinner in Washington  DC  in June 2016 about an upcoming trip  he  was making to Russia. According to CNN  the dinner was a gathering of members of the foreign policy council. âA source familiar with the meeting told CNN that the encounter occurred at a dinner at the Capitol Hill Club  attended by members of the Trump national security team  including Sessions â the network reported. âNear the end of the dinner  Page approached Sessions to say hello and thanked the then-senator for the dinner  and Page also mentioned  he  was headed to Russia. Sessions didnât respond and moved on to the next person waiting to shake  his  hand  this source said.â