Glenn Simpson, co-founder of Fusion GPS, is taking the 5th and will not testify to his or his firm’s role in the compilation of the discredited Trump-Russia “Dossier.”
Meanwhile, Paul Manafort and Donald Trump, Jr. have agreed to a closed Q&A with the Senate Judiciary Committee, and Jared Kushner will testify in a closed session before the Senate Intelligence Committee.
The Washington Examiner reports:
The co-founder of the firm that authored the infamous “Russian dossier” on President Trump will not testify before the Senate Intelligence Committee next week.Fusion GPS co-founder Glenn Simpson and his attorneys said Simpson was traveling and wouldn’t be available. But they also appeared to vent some frustration at the committee when they wrote that Simpson was “profoundly disturbed” that the hearings were becoming functions of “partisan agendas” in his opinion, Reuters reported.The unsubstantiated dossier, sometimes referred to as the “Steele Dossier,” has been a contentious item with a long, strange history in the ongoing investigations into Russian meddling in the 2016 elections.
According to Fox News, both Senators Grassley (R-IA) and Feinstein (D-CA) have confirmed that Simpson will take the 5th.
Glenn Simpson, whose Fusion GPS firm has been tied to anti-Trump efforts and pro-Russian lobbying, will not talk to lawmakers in response to a subpoena, the leaders of the Senate Judiciary Committe said Friday.
Committee chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, and ranking member Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., confirmed in a statement that they subpoenaed Simpson to appear before the committee Wednesday as part of a hearing about the influence of foreign lobbying in last year’s presidential election.
“Simpson’s attorney has asserted that his client will invoke his Fifth Amendment rights in response to the subpoena,” Grassley and Feinstein said.
By contrast, Manafort and Trump, Jr. have agreed to testify before a closed panel.
A U.S. Senate panel has agreed to let President Trump’s eldest son and his former campaign manager testify behind closed doors next week in connection with its probe into possible Trump administration ties to Russia.
Both Donald Trump Jr. and former campaign manager Paul Manafort confirmed the deal reached with the Senate Judiciary Committee, ABC News reported.
The agreement allows both Trump Jr. and Manafort to avoid public testimony when the committee conducts a hearing next week on Capitol Hill.The Trump administration has denied any wrongdoing in connection with Russia.A statement from the office of committee chairman Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, said the deal means the panel no longer needs to subpoena Trump Jr. and Manafort to appear before them.
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