Today Donald Trump Jr. will meet behind closed doors with the House Intelligence Committee as part of the ongoing Trump-Russia investigation. Trump Jr. can expect to be grilled on last night’s breaking news that Russian lawyer Natalie Veselnitskaya confirmed he asked her for information about Hillary Clinton in their now-infamous June 2016 meeting at Trump Tower.
“Donald Trump Jr.’s reckless behavior is the pinnacle of collusion between the Trump campaign and the Russian government,” said American Bridge Rapid Response Director Emily Aden. “Junior should be very, very nervous about today’s interview. He’s going to have to answer for his meetings with Russian operatives about the 2016 campaign as well as his unbelievable communications with Wikileaks before, during, and after the group published emails stolen by the Russians in the final weeks of the campaign. And, he has to do it all without lying, which we’ve learned is nearly impossible for anyone in Trump’s orbit.”
Here are five key questions Trump Jr. will likely face from congressional investigators:
1. What exactly did Trump Jr. discuss with Russian government official and top Putin ally Alexander Torshin in May 2016 at the NRA conference?
2. Did Trump Jr. know that at the same time he met with Torshin, Torshin was also trying to set up a meeting between Donald Trump and Vladmir Putin? Torshin sent his request via an email from Rick Clay to Rick Dearborn, Rick Gates, Jared Kushner, and Paul Manafort with the subject “Russian backdoor overture and dinner invite?”
3. What did Trump Jr. share about his June 2016 meeting with his father in the days immediately preceding and following June 9th? Did his father ask him to request information about illegal donations to the Clinton Foundation?
4. What did Trump Jr. share with his father about his three conversations with Wikileaks in September and early October 2016 right before Wikileaks published John Podesta’s emails stolen by Russian hackers?
5. How does Trump Jr. explain his continued conversations with Wikileaks in October 2016 after the group began publishing Podesta’s emails–including conversations about publicizing emails stolen by the Russians–as anything other than collusion?