WASHINGTON (AP) — The Latest on the ongoing investigations into Russia meddling in the 2016 election (all times EDT):
3:55 p.m.
The Senate Judiciary Committee is in talks with representatives of Donald Trump Jr. and Paul Manafort about testifying at a hearing next week.
That’s according to committee chairman Chuck Grassley, an Iowa Republican.
The committee has invited Trump Jr. and Manafort, the one-time chairman of the Trump campaign, to a Wednesday hearing on a law governing the registration of foreign lobbyists.
Grassley’s office says he and the committee’s top Democrat, Dianne Feinstein of California, want “voluntary cooperation” but have not ruled out subpoenas to force participation in the hearing.
Both Trump Jr. and Manafort attended a June 2016 meeting at Trump Tower with a Russian-American lawyer. In agreeing to the meeting, Trump’s oldest son was told he’d be presented with damaging information on his father’s opponent, Hillary Clinton.
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2:50 p.m.
Former National Security Adviser Susan Rice has met with staff on the Senate Intelligence Committee as the panel probes Russian interference in the U.S. election.
A spokeswoman for Rice confirmed that the closed-door meeting happened Friday. Erin Pelton says Rice was pleased to cooperate with the investigation “given its extraordinary national significance.”
In addition to Rice, the panel is interviewing several members of former President Barack Obama’s administration this week. Panel staff met with former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper on Monday and former Obama chief of staff Denis McDonough on Tuesday.
President Donald Trump has said Rice may have committed a crime when she asked intelligence analysts to disclose the name of a Trump associate mentioned in an intelligence report. Rice has said she did nothing improper.
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8:30 a.m.
White House aide Kellyanne Conway says it’s only fair to expose any potential conflicts of interest of investigators helping Robert Mueller examine Russia’s interference in the 2016 election and possible ties to the Trump campaign.
Conway tells Fox News’ “Fox & Friends” that members of Mueller’s team have contributed to Democrats Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama in the past. She says: “It’s relevant that people know what the motivations are. That is not an attack on the team. That is what’s fair is fair.”
This comes as Mueller’s probe into Russia’s election meddling appears likely to include some of the Trump family’s business ties.
On Friday, Conway said Americans are interested in the financial details of Mueller’s staff: “Let’s at least have the transparency and accountability speak for itself.”
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3:15 a.m.
President Donald Trump’s legal team is evaluating potential conflicts of interest among members of special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigative team.
That’s according to three people with knowledge of the matter.
The revelation comes as Mueller’s probe into Russia’s election meddling appears likely to include some of the Trump family’s business ties. Trump attorney Jay Sekulow tells The Associated Press Thursday that the lawyers “will consistently evaluate the issue of conflicts and raise them in the appropriate venue.”
The people with knowledge of the matter insisted on anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the matter publicly.
