A Republican who was convicted of funneling illegal Russian money to Donald Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign has been denied bail while he appeals his conviction.
Jesse Benton won’t be getting bail:
JUST IN: DC Circuit declines to grant bail pending appeal to Jesse Benton, sentenced to 18 months in prison for using Russian donor's $$$ to set up meeting w/ Trump during 2016 campaign. Order: https://t.co/VoOqHlcH1s Earlier: https://t.co/TaCkU0NZKc
— Josh Gerstein (@joshgerstein) July 17, 2023
Benton was charged in 2021 and eventually convicted of taking $100,000 from a Russian national and funneling $25,000 to the Trump campaign. The Russian national wanted to donate to Trump so that he could get a face-to-face meeting, and there is no indication that the Trump campaign was involved in the scheme.
The plot does show that the Russians were sniffing all around the Trump campaign in 2o16, and how deeply infested the Republican Party has become with foreign/Russian cash.
The holes in campaign finance laws in the United States create huge potential problems for both parties, but the Russians clearly had an interest in Trump, and there has been no sign that Trump’s interest in getting help from Russia in 2024 has lessened in any way.
There is a good reason why after nearly eight years, Trump and his MAGA allies in Congress continue to try to discredit the Russia investigation.
For all of the talk of Trump’s authoritarian dreams and criminality, the one central element of Trump that hasn’t changed is that he appears to be conflicted and up for sale to foreign governments.
Russia is a shadow that forever follows Trump, and it will continue to do so for as long as he is in politics.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
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