Bolton Changes Tune: Now Refuses To Answer ‘Russian Bounties’ Questions After Stoking The ‘Scandal’

By middle of last week we observed of the Russian bounties to kill American troops in Afghanistan story that “at this point this non-story looks to be dead by the weekend as it’s already unraveled.”

Indeed by Thursday and Friday, as more Congressional leaders received closed door intelligence briefings on the allegations which originated with an anonymously sourced NY Times report claiming Trump supposedly ignored the Russian op to target Americans, the very Democrat and Republican lawmakers previously hyping it as a ‘major scandal’ went conspicuously silent. 

Recall too that John Bolton, busy with a media blitz promoting his book, emerged to strongly suggest he had personal knowledge that Trump was briefed on the matter. The former national security adviser called the Trump denial of being briefed “remarkable”. Well, look who is now appearing to sing a different tune. A week ago Bolton was all too wiling to voluntarily say Trump had “likely” been briefed and that was a big scandal. The whole story was indeed dead by the weekend:

Was @AmbJohnBolton aware of Russian-paid bounties on American service-members when he was National Security Adviser? He declines to answer.

WATCH –> pic.twitter.com/fnl28mfn2C

— Face The Nation (@FaceTheNation) July 5, 2020

Other reports said Bolton has been telling people he had personally briefed the president:

Former national security adviser John Bolton told colleagues that he personally briefed President Donald Trump about intelligence that Russia offered Afghan militants bounties to kill American troops, U.S. officials told the Associated Press.

Bolton briefed Trump on the matter in March of 2019, according to the report, a year earlier than previously reported by The New York Times. The information was also included in at least one presidential Daily Brief, according to the AP, CNN and The Times. The AP earlier reported that it was also included in a second presidential Daily Brief earlier this year and that current national security adviser Robert O’Brien discussed the matter with Trump.

His Sunday refusal to even address the question – again after he was all too willing to speak to the issue a week ago when it was driving headlines – speaks volumes. 

Now that even The Washington Post awkwardly walked back the substance of much of its reporting on the ‘Russian bounties’ story, Bolton has conveniently gone silent. 

Another attempt to revive the Russiagate narrative bites the dust, but in record time.

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Days ago The Hill TV convincingly demolished the whole concocted narrative: 

“One of the most transparent Washington hit jobs I’ve ever seen.”