McCain predicts more ties between Russia and Trump campaign will be uncovered
Mar 28, 2017, 10:42 AM | Updated: 8:21 pm
(AP Photos)
PHOENIX — U.S. Sen. John McCain said he expects an investigation will uncover more ties between Russian officials and President Donald Trump’s campaign.
“One thing I can predict to you unequivocally, there will be more coming out,” McCain told CBS News on Tuesday.
But it will likely take time for those ties to be found. The longtime senator said he expects the investigation will be similar to that of other scandals in that it will not be short-lived.
“These things happen periodically in Washington, whether it be Watergate or whether it be much lesser kind of scandal,” McCain said.
“One thing we know: Once they get started, they aren’t over for quite a while.”
McCain said he expects the investigation to drag on because there are a lot of questions surrounding several members — both former and current — of Trump’s staff.
“I didn’t know the president’s son-in-law would somehow be involved in this issue,” he said. “There’s so many questions about Mr. (Roger) Stone and Mr. (Paul) Manafort and we find more about Gen. (Mike) Flynn.”
The latest Trump staffer to fall under scrutiny is Jared Kushner, the son-in-law McCain mentioned. Vnesheconombank — which is under U.S. sanction — said this week that it had met with Kushner during the campaign.
The White House said Kushner was “doing his job” by reaching out to foreign officials, but McCain said the bank used to be affiliated with Russian President Vladimir Putin and is known to be a front.
“We all know that oligarchs run the Russian economy and we know that it’s all corrupt – many of them have been sanctioned,” he said. “That’s the reason why inquiries need to be made.”
Kushner has agreed to speak to the Senate intelligence committee, which is investigating Russia’s interference in the 2016 election.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.