Former Campaign Aide Points the Finger at Both Trump and Sessions

We could also title this piece: Revenge of the Low-level Coffee Boy.

It would appear that while President Trump is aiming his barbs at Attorney General Jeff Sessions for recusing himself from the Russia probe and not, as Trump believes his role to be, standing as a blockade between he and whatever went on with Russia during the election, that they both have reason to sweat.

Jeff Sessions certainly had reason to recuse himself – ethical reasons – so at least there’s that.

Trump, on the other hand, is not a man who has ever shown any concern for the burden of ethical behavior.

Late Friday night, a court filing on behalf of George Papadopoulos, former aide to the Trump campaign, suggested that during the campaign, not only the candidate was hot for the idea of setting up a meeting with Russian president Vladimir Putin, but then-Senator Sessions was more welcoming of the idea than has previously been stated.

For those who are late to the party, George Papadopoulos is the origin figure for the Russia probe.

While serving as a foreign policy aide to Trump’s campaign team, he drunkenly boasted to an Australian diplomat in a bar about the meetings the Russians wanted to set up between their president, Putin, and candidate Trump.

That Australian diplomat reached out to his American counterparts, out of an abundance of caution, and the wheels were set in motion.

Papadopoulos offered up this latest nugget through his legal team as part of a criminal sentencing request. He pleaded guilty in October to one count of lying to investigators. He’s hoping his cooperation now will get him credit for time served and leniency in his sentencing. If his attorneys are successful in getting him the most lenient sentence – probation – he could claim that as the time served since he made his plea nearly a year ago. If the court agrees, he will go free when they announce his sentence on September 7. Otherwise, he could be looking at six months in prison.

Coincidentally (or maybe not), this new request from Papadopoulos’ attorneys comes on the same day a lobbyist for Ukrainians admitted in court to committing criminal obstruction, by lying in his testimony to Congress.

So many liars in this Russia probe, for some reason.

Papadopoulos “was the first domino, and many have fallen in behind,” his attorneys write Friday. “Despite the gravity of his offense, it is important to remember what Special Counsel said at George’s plea of guilty: he was just a small part of a large-scale investigation.”

The attorneys for the “low level coffee boy” have attempted to project this image of their client as being young and eager to stand out, make his mark with the Trump team.

“Mr. Papadopoulos is ashamed and remorseful,” Papadopoulos’ attorneys wrote Friday. “His motives for lying to the FBI were wrongheaded indeed but far from the sinister spin the government suggests.”

It was a European professor in London by the name of Joseph Mifsud, claiming to have connections in the Russian government, who stirred Papadopoulos’ eagerness, according to his defense team.

“Professor Mifsud paid young George little attention until learning of his position as one of Trump’s foreign policy advisers,” they write.

Papadopoulos also spoke to the FBI investigators at that time about another foreign policy adviser for Trump with Russia connections, Carter Page, and about Mifsud and others.

Papadopoulos admits to lying to the FBI about his knowledge of the hacked Clinton emails.

“Out of loyalty to the new president and his desire to be part of the administration, he hoisted himself upon his own petard,” Papadopoulos’ attorneys write.

Call him “young” a few more times. It should have about as much effect as the White House saying he was just a “low-level coffee boy.”

So how is Papadopoulos now explaining himself? What is he offering for leniency?

He’s giving some insight to how his offer of setting up that meeting between members of Trump’s campaign team and Putin went down, while in a round table meeting, early in 2016.

“While some in the room rebuffed George’s offer, Mr. Trump nodded with approval and deferred to Mr. Sessions who appeared to like the idea and stated that the campaign should look into it. George’s giddiness over Mr. Trump’s recognition was prominent during the days that followed,” Papadopoulos’ lawyers wrote in a court filing Friday. Papadopoulos’ legal team said that he has shared with special counsel Robert Mueller his recollections of the March 31, 2016, meeting.

Sessions, when asked about that meeting under oath, said that he “pushed back” on the idea of the Putin summit. CNN previously reported that Trump “heard him out,” according to another adviser in the room, when Papadopoulos proposed the idea and offered to help execute it.

That could really prove troublesome for Jeff Sessions, should prosecutors decide to dig further.

Is this an “Eric Holder Operation Fast and Furious” situation?

Well, it’s not like Sessions allowed over a thousand guns to leave the country, into the hands of violent Mexican cartel members, or that there are hundreds of Mexican and American bodies in the ground because of it, but it’s not without difficulties.

So while Trump continues to snipe at Sessions, he does so at his own peril. There may come a time when Sessions is looking to pull his own tail out of the fire.