Senate committee investigating Russia asks for documents from Jill Stein

Jill Stein, the Green Party's 2016 presidential nominee, has been approached by the Senate Intelligence Committee and asked to turn over documents as part of its investigation into Russian meddling in the election, her former communications director told BuzzFeed News Monday.

Dennis Trainor Jr. said Stein told him about the request on Friday, and he was informed because during the campaign, his personal cellphone was a "primary point of contact" for people who wanted to speak with Stein, including several producers from the Russian state-funded news agency RT who called him to book Stein appearances. Trainor told BuzzFeed News he will likely cooperate, but will first seek legal counsel. When asked by BuzzFeed News what the committee was looking for from Stein's campaign, committee chairman Sen. Richard Burr (R-N.C.) responded, "collusion with the Russians."

In 2015, Stein attended a gala in Moscow hosted by RT, sitting at the same table as Russian President Vladimir Putin and President Trump's future National Security Adviser Michael Flynn, who recently pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI over his contacts with Russian officials. Stein has said she was not paid to go to the dinner and had to cover her own travel costs.

The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

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.

Sign up