Russia Putin: Kremlin accuses US of meddling in election
January 30, 2018 by admin
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Vladimir Putin seems certain to win in March after an opposition leader was barred from standing
An expected US report that could sanction Kremlin-linked oligarchs is an attempt to influence Russia’s March presidential election, Moscow has said.
The US treasury report is expected to detail the closeness of senior Russian political figures and oligarchs to President Vladimir Putin, who is standing for re-election.
US officials accuse Russia of meddling in the 2016 US presidential elections.
Kremlin representatives have repeatedly denied the allegations.
Mr Putin’s spokesman said the forthcoming report would be analysed.
Last year, US President Donald Trump enacted new sanctions on Russia but he accused Congress of overreaching itself and preventing him from easing penalties on Russia in the future.
The US president has repeatedly rejected any allegations that his campaign staff colluded with Russia to help him defeat Hillary Clinton at the November 2016 presidential election.
The allegations voiced by the US intelligence community are currently being investigated by Congress and a special investigator.
- The Trump-Russia saga in 200 words
- Russia: The ‘cloud’ over the White House
So what did Mr Putin’s spokesman say?
Dmitry Peskov said the US report was a “direct and obvious attempt to influence the elections” on 18 March.
However, he added that he was sure the list would not affect the vote.
The Kremlin has pledged to help limit further damage to Russian oligarchs and businesses that could be on the list.
Last year, President Putin reportedly met top businessmen behind closed doors to discuss the issue.
Last week, the boss of Russia’s VTB bank, Andrei Kostin, told the Financial Times that if the US slapped more economic sanctions against Russia it would be “a declaration of war”.
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Mr Putin is seen as the clear favourite to win the March elections.
His main opposition rival, Alexei Navalny, has been barred from standing in the race. He was briefly detained during a protest rally on Sunday.
What do we know about the US report?
The US treasury department has to finalise the document on Monday, after which it is expected to hand the report over to Congress.
It is not known whether the names of those on the list will be publicly revealed or kept secret or indeed how many people and entities are on the list.
Being on the list does not automatically trigger sanctions but such penalties could be activated any time later by the US.
What about previous anti-Russian sanctions?
The US first imposed penalties in response to Russia’s annexation of Ukraine’s southern Crimea peninsula in March 2014 after an unrecognised referendum on self-determination.
Together with the EU, the US later extended sanctions over Russia’s role in the conflict in eastern Ukraine, which has claimed more than 10,000 lives.
Russia denies sending troops and arming separatist rebels but says Russian volunteers have been helping the rebels.
Last week, the US treasury imposed additional sanctions against 21 individuals and 19 individuals in connection with the Ukrainian crisis.
The US and Russia have also been at loggerheads on other major crises, including Syria, Iran and North Korea.
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Hillary Clinton’s ‘Fire and Fury’ reading on Grammys slammed by Nikki Haley, Donald Trump Jr.
January 30, 2018 by admin
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Grammy Awards show slams President Trump
Michael Knowles shares his perspective on ‘Fox Friends First.’
Hillary Clinton’s surprise Trump-bashing cameo during the 60th Annual Grammy Awards on Sunday night caused at least a couple of viewers to switch channels, namely the president’s U.N. ambassador, and Trump’s oldest son. But the producer of the Grammys said the telecast stands by the controversial cameo.
Grammys host James Corden set up a pre-taped bit about who might take home next year’s spoken word award.
“We know that our current president does love winning awards and the good news is he may just be the subject of next year’s winner [for Best Spoken Word Album],” Corden announced. “The question I’ve got is, who’ll be the narrator?”
Outspoken anti-Trump stars John Legend and Cher then auditioned to be the narrator for Michael Wolff’s book “Fire and Fury” about Trump’s White House.
Snoop Dogg, DJ Khaled and Cardi B also read excerpts from the book during the fake auditions.
Finally, Clinton read from the book and Corden declared, “That’s it! We’ve got it!”
Clinton said, “You think so? The Grammy’s in the bag?”
Corden replied, “In the bag!”
The segment resulted in wild applause from the star-studded crowd. But not all were pleased. United States Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley slammed the bit. However, the harshest words came from Donald Trump Jr.
I have always loved the Grammys but to have artists read the Fire and Fury book killed it. Don’t ruin great music with trash. Some of us love music without the politics thrown in it.
— Nikki Haley (@nikkihaley) January 29, 2018
I disagree. That part ruined the Grammys. Such a shame.
— Nikki Haley (@nikkihaley) January 29, 2018
After the show, Grammys Executive Producer Ken Ehrlich said getting Clinton to appear in the skit wasn’t tough. However, he credited Corden with sealing the deal.
“She kind of took a couple of days to say ‘yes,’ but ultimately she saw the script, she knew what we were doing and she liked it.”
Clinton recorded the segment near her home on Friday, the Grammys producer added.
Ehrlich said he was aware the bit was getting some backlash, but he told reporters backstage, “We stand by what we did.”
Fox News’ Leora Arnowitz contributed to this report.
You can find Sasha Savitsky on Twitter @SashaFB.