As Senate Investigates Russia's Role In Proliferation Of Fake News, Fake News Purveyors Deny Any Trump-Russia Connection

Many Fake News Purveyors Also Push Debunked Claim About Clinton And Russia

As the Senate Intelligence Committee holds a hearing on the role Russia played in trying to influence the 2016 election in favor of President Donald Trump -- and its use of fake news to do so -- fake news purveyors in recent days have been dismissing any possible connection between Trump and Russia. They are calling allegations about Trump’s connections to Russia “bogus,” “fake news,” and “slander[ous],” because there is “zero evidence” behind them. At the same time, many of them are pushing a debunked conspiracy theory that former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, while in office, gave 20 percent of American uranium to Russia in exchange for favors.

Senate Intelligence Committee Examines Russian Use Of Fake News To Impact Election

Senate Intelligence Committee Is Examining Russian Role, And Use Of Fake News, In Election. On March 30, the Senate Intelligence Committee held “its first public hearing on Russian meddling in the US election,” which will include interviewing experts about “how Russian agents and an army of trolls utilized ‘fake news’ throughout the 2016 election.” From the March 30 article on CNN.com:

The Senate intelligence committee opened its first public hearing on Russian meddling in the US election Thursday with calls for nonpartisanship, citing ongoing foreign interference that threatens “the heart of our democracy.”

“The vice chairman and I realize that if we politicize this process, our efforts will likely fail,” Committee Chairman Richard Burr, a North Carolina Republican, said in his opening remarks. “The public deserves to hear the truth about possible Russian involvement in our elections, how they came to be involved, how we may have failed to prevent that involvement, what actions were taken in response, if any, and what we plan to do to ensure the integrity of future free elections at the heart of our democracy.”

[...]

Senate lawmakers also plan to interview former National Security Agency Director Keith Alexander and FireEye chief executive Kevin Mandia, a pair of cybersecurity experts, who are expected to answer questions about how Russian agents and an army of trolls utilized “fake news” throughout the 2016 election. [CNN.com, 3/30/17]

There Have Been Allegations That Trump Associates Colluded With Russia In 2016 Election. CNN reported that the FBI may possible have “information that indicates associates of President Donald Trump communicated with suspected Russian operatives to possibly coordinate the release of information damaging to Hillary Clinton's campaign.” From the March 23 article:

The FBI has information that indicates associates of President Donald Trump communicated with suspected Russian operatives to possibly coordinate the release of information damaging to Hillary Clinton's campaign, US officials told CNN.

This is partly what FBI Director James Comey was referring to when he made a bombshell announcement Monday before Congress that the FBI is investigating the Trump campaign's ties to Russia, according to one source.

The FBI is now reviewing that information, which includes human intelligence, travel, business and phone records and accounts of in-person meetings, according to those U.S. officials. The information is raising the suspicions of FBI counterintelligence investigators that the coordination may have taken place, though officials cautioned that the information was not conclusive and that the investigation is ongoing.

In his statement on Monday Comey said the FBI began looking into possible coordination between Trump campaign associates and suspected Russian operatives because the bureau had gathered “a credible allegation of wrongdoing or reasonable basis to believe an American may be acting as an agent of a foreign power.” [CNN.com, 3/23/17]

Fake News Purveyors Dismiss Any Trump-Russia Connection

Mad World News: “PROOF: Trump-Russia Connection BOGUS, Evidence PLANTED By Obama’s Spies.” In a piece headlined “PROOF: Trump-Russia Connection BOGUS, Evidence PLANTED By Obama’s Spies,” fake news purveyor Mad World News claimed that former President Barack Obama and FBI Director James Comey “are in cahoots to impeach President Donald Trump” by “fabricat[ing]” evidence of “the hacking of the Democratic National Committee by Russians to sway the election” and of “Trump colluding with the Russians.” From the March 29 article (emphasis original):

Shocking new evidence shows Barack Obama and FBI Director James Comey are in cahoots to impeach President Donald Trump, proving the hacking of the Democratic National Committee by Russians to sway the election is entirely fabricated and Trump colluding with the Russians is completely fake too, all planted by ruthless cyber spies hired by Obama and the Democrats, with help from Comey. This hardcore proof will blow your mind.

[...]

Crowdstrike is the private cyber security firm the DNC hired, and it was from Crowdstrike that a report was issued stating they found malware on the DNC servers called “Fancy Bear.” According to Crowdstrike, Fancy Bear is a Russian hacking group, and they allege that they can trace it back to the Russian intelligence agency called GRU.

This is where the whole Russia hacking our election and Trump colluding with the Russian narrative comes from. You’d expect the FBI to have investigated the DNC servers to confirm the existence of Fancy Bear, but James Comey testified that the DNC denied several requests from the FBI to look into their servers.

[...]

Yet, we know there is absolutely nothing connecting Trump to colluding with the Russians, and now, we know that the FBI’s “evidence” comes from the discredited cyber firm, Crowdstrike. That was Comey’s “smoking gun,” this Crowdstrike report. He used it to make allegations that the FBI has an ongoing investigation into Trump and the Russians; it’s preposterous! [Mad World News, 3/29/17; Media Matters12/14/16]

Right Wing News: “Liberals Are Screaming About Trump’s Ties To Russia, Even When They Don’t Exist.” Fake news purveyor Right Wing News claimed in a March 28 article that “liberals are screaming about Trump’s ties to Russia, even when they don’t exist,” and that Hillary Clinton “received big money from Russia in exchange for favors” including “her sale of Uranium to Russia,” “a deal that could very well destroy America.” [Right Wing News, 3/28/17; Media Matters, 12/14/16]

TruthFeed: “Trump Has Enough Of Fake Russia Media Stories And Implicates The Clintons.” In a piece headlined “BREAKING : Trump Has Enough of Fake Russia Media Stories and Implicates the Clintons,” fake news purveyor TruthFeed claimed that Trump “has had enough of the media’s fake Trump Russia conspiracy theories and decided to expose the truth about who TRULY has the ‘Russian’ issue.” The article then claims Clinton “gave Russia control over about 20 percent of U.S. uranium.” From the March 28 article:

Yesterday evening, President Trump decided he has had enough of the media’s fake Trump Russia conspiracy theories and decided to expose the truth about who TRULY has the “Russian” issue.

[...]

The Uranium One story is among the incidents detailed in Peter Schweizer’s Clinton Cash. A quick recap: Uranium One was originally a Canadian company, bought out by Russia’s state atomic energy agency, Rosatom.

[...]

According to Clinton Cash, the total donations from Uranium One shareholders to the Clinton Foundation exceeded $145 million, in the run-up to Hillary Clinton’s State Department approving the Rosatom deal, which gave Russia control over about 20 percent of U.S. uranium. [TruthFeed, 3/28/17; Media Matters, 12/14/16]

Before It’s News: The “Trump-Russian Conspiracy” By The “Dishonest Media” Has “Zero Evidence.” Fake news purveyor Before It’s News claimed that the “whole Trump-Russian conspiracy angle” was something “the dishonest media keeps foisting on us, despite there being zero evidence to that effect.” It added that Trump “used one of his favorite political weapons, Twitter, to ask the questions no one has been asking,” regarding “how Hillary Clinton allowed 20% of our uranium to go to Russia.” From the March 29 article:

The whole Trump-Russian conspiracy angle that the dishonest media keeps foisting on us, despite there being zero evidence to that effect, is getting tired by now. Conveniently ignoring the fact that there is plenty of evidence of dealings with the Russian; just not on the Trump side. And now, President Trump has used one of his favorite political weapons, Twitter, to ask the questions no one has been asking.

In the following video, Right Wing News dives deep into the true dealings with the Russians that our politicians have entered into. Namely how Hillary Clinton allowed 20% of our uranium to go to Russia, and John McCain attempting to solicit campaign funds from the Russians. Then there’s the issue of John Podesta’s own Russian connections. But that’s just scratching the surface; the rabbit hole that is the Clinton uranium deal goes deep, far deeper than you can imagine. Will the public ever realize the full extent of the Clintons’ corruption? [Before It’s News, 3/29/17; Media Matters, 12/14/16]

The Washington Feed: Alleged Trump Ties To Russia Are “Fake News” With “No Evidence.” Fake news purveyor The Washington Feed claimed that Trump “defended himself against the onslaught of fake news that has been wafting from the left about his campaign’s supposed Russian ties.” It added that there was “no evidence of any kind to be found to support this rumor,” and that instead Clinton made a “deal” that “put ‘one-fifth of U.S. uranium interests in Russian hands.’” From the March 29 article (emphasis original):

Donald Trump said in dual tweets on Monday that the House Intelligence Committee needs to investigate “a deal” with a Russian company called Rosatom and a Canadian mining company that has direct ties to the Clinton Foundation. The scheme put “one-fifth of U.S. uranium interests in Russian hands,” according to the Washington Examiner. The President again defended himself against the onslaught of fake news that has been wafting from the left about his campaign’s supposed Russian ties, calling them “a hoax.”

The deal happened with Uranium One, a company in Canada that is owned by Clinton Foundation “patron” Frank Giustra. The irony of a charity owning a company that produces a product that kills people even in peaceful use is not to be missed. Nor is the fact that this is one of the associations that caused Clinton to be questioned enough in the voter’s minds that they chose Trump instead. The deal not only signed over vast amounts of America’s uranium, but it also happened while Clinton was the Secretary of State. It “required the approval of an inter-agency committee that included the State Department,” as confirmed in the Examiner article. This means that she was heading the agency that needed to oversee the transaction fairly in order to ascertain whether this was a good deal for the nation. How very convenient, no?

[...]

On the Democrat side of the debate is Clinton accusing Trump of having ties with Russia that lead to him getting the benefit of leaks while on the road to the White House. There is no evidence of any kind to be found to support this rumor and even if it were true, how can Putin be blamed? The leaks showed real satanic spirit cooking, provable corruption and ties to brutal sharia dictatorships like Saudi Arabia where woman (sic) are abused as a past time (sic). If it were true that Putin did this (he did not), America should be sending him “Thank You” cards, borsht, (sic) or vodka for sparing us such a terrible fate, not condemning the man. If it were true, he did our country a great service, for even an enemy who saves one from drowning is not such a terrible foe that he deserves no thanksgiving, is he? [The Washington Feed, 3/29/17; Snopes.com, 1/18/17]

The Angry Patriot: “There Is Absolutely No Connection Between Trump And Russia,” And Media Are “Slander[ing]” Trump For Saying Otherwise. Fake news purveyor The Angry Patriot claimed that Democrats and “their cronies working for the mainstream media” were “slander[ing]” Trump by “accusing him of being a Russian agent,” and that there is “absolutely no connection between Trump and Russia.” Instead, the article claimed Trump brought “attention to the pay-to-play crimes of Hillary Clinton — in connection with Russia.” From the March 28 article:

President Trump was forced to circumnavigate the press and talk directly with the American people through social media. He took to Twitter and Facebook to personally bring attention to the pay-to-play crimes of Hillary Clinton — in connection with Russia.

[...]

The Democrats, and their cronies working for the mainstream media, have been attempting to discredit President Trump by accusing him of being a Russian agent. President Trump has been spied on by multiple government agencies since last June, yet no evidence has emerged to connect him to Russia.

Thus, this slander is a diversionary tactic to cover up the treason committed by the Democrats. President Trump isn’t falling for it. The crimes of Hillary Clinton, and her close aide John Podesta, must be brought to light.

[...]

There is absolutely no connection between Trump and Russia, but there is strong evidence of pay-to-play between Hillary Clinton and the Russians. Hopefully, this is the beginning of one of Trump’s most important campaign promises: to “lock her up.” [The Angry Patriot, 3/28/17; Media Matters, 12/14/16]

Clinton Uranium Conspiracy Has Been Debunked

The Uranium Claim Came From Breitbart.com’s Peter Schweizer And Has Been Discredited. The uranium claim, which Trump invoked in a series of tweets on March 27, comes from Breitbart.com senior editor and Clinton Cash author Peter Schweizer. His uranium conspiracy theory regarding Clinton has been discredited by news reports, which reported that it is “based on little evidence,” that an “official involved in the process said Clinton had nothing to do with the decision,” that separate state, federal, and foreign agencies also had to approve the deal, and that the deal started based on diplomatic initiatives that began during former President George W. Bush’s administration. [Media Matters, 3/28/17, 2/16/17]