That's not alleged Russian spy Mariia Butina in an Oval Office meeting with Trump
Update 9:25 a.m. ET: After this article was published, several journalists confirmed that Butina is indeed not pictured in a widely circulated photo of President Trump meeting with Russians in the Oval Office. The woman in question is an NSC staffer. Our headline has been updated, and our original article appears below.
Just one day after U.S. prosecutors unsealed criminal charges against Mariia Butina, an alleged Russian agent, eagle-eyed readers noticed a 2017 Oval Office visitor who looks mysteriously like the Russian national.
In a photo published last year by The New York Times, Russian officials and Russian media are gathered in the Oval Office with President Trump. Skulking in the background of the photo is a woman who some people say is Butina, who was accused Monday of conspiracy against the United States. Back when Trump was a presidential nominee, the Justice Department said, Butina tried to broker secret meetings between him and Russian President Vladimir Putin, allegedly at the behest of Russian officials.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Not everyone is convinced that the photo constitutes smoking-gun evidence that Butina managed to infiltrate high-level meetings with Trump; some skeptics, like Talking Points Memo's Josh Marshall, say the image isn't definitive. Others, like pollster Matt McDermott, noted that the only reason this photo is available to the public in the first place is because it was released by Russian state media.
Until the photo is confirmed one way or the other, take a look for yourself below. Summer Meza
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Summer Meza has worked at The Week since 2018, serving as a staff writer, a news writer and currently the deputy editor. As a proud news generalist, she edits everything from political punditry and science news to personal finance advice and film reviews. Summer has previously written for Newsweek and the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, covering national politics, transportation and the cannabis industry.
-
The Onion is having a very ironic laugh with Infowars
The Explainer The satirical newspaper is purchasing the controversial website out of bankruptcy
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
'Rahmbo, back from Japan, will be looking for a job? Really?'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
What's next for electric vehicles under Trump?
Today's Big Question And what does that mean for Tesla's Elon Musk?
By Joel Mathis, The Week US Published
-
Ukraine fires ATACMS, Russia ups hybrid war
Speed Read Ukraine shot U.S.-provided long-range missiles and Russia threatened retaliation
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
New York DA floats 4-year Trump sentencing freeze
Speed Read President-elect Donald Trump's sentencing is on hold, and his lawyers are pushing to dismiss the case while he's in office
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Wyoming judge strikes down abortion, pill bans
Speed Read The judge said the laws — one of which was a first-in-the-nation prohibition on the use of medication to end pregnancy — violated the state's constitution
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
US sanctions Israeli West Bank settler group
Speed Read The Biden administration has imposed sanctions on Amana, Israel's largest settlement development organization
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Gaetz ethics report in limbo as sex allegations emerge
Speed Read A lawyer representing two women alleges that Matt Gaetz paid them for sex, and one witnessed him having sex with minor
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Biden allows Ukraine to hit deep in Russia
Speed Read The U.S. gave Ukraine the green light to use ATACMS missiles supplied by Washington, a decision influenced by Russia's escalation of the war with North Korean troops
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Sri Lanka's new Marxist leader wins huge majority
Speed Read The left-leaning coalition of newly elected Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake won 159 of the legislature's 225 seats
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Biden arrives in Peru for final summits
Speed Read President Joe Biden will meet Chinese President Xi Jinping, visit the Amazon rainforest and attend two major international summits
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published