Social media consultant Jason Sullivan, hired by Roger Stone, a longtime adviser to President Donald Trump, reportedly received two subpoena related to the Russia probe last week. (Photo: @JasonSullivan_/Twitter)
Mueller Has Subpoenaed Trump Adviser Roger Stone's Social Media Consultant: Report
The move suggests the special counsel is looking into whether the Trump campaign had advance knowledge of DNC emails allegedly hacked by Russian intelligence and published by WikiLeaks
Special Counsel Robert Mueller has issued two grand jury subpoenas for a social media consultant hired by Roger Stone, a longtime adviser to President Donald Trump, before the 2016 election, Reuters revealed Wednesday.
While Mueller's office declined to comment, a lawyer for Jason Sullivan, the consultant, confirmed the subpoenas were delivered to his legal team last week. Sullivan heads the social media firm Cyphoon.com, and Stone supposedly hired him to help with strategy for a pro-Trump political action committee established by Stone.
The development gives some indication of the direction of Mueller's probe into allegations that Russians attempted to influence the 2016 presidential election and that members of the Trump campaign may have known about or even been involved with those efforts.
The subpoenas, Reuters notes, "suggest that Mueller is focusing in part on Stone and whether he might have had advance knowledge of material allegedly hacked by Russian intelligence and sent to WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, who published it."
Stone appeared before the House Intelligence Committee in September and denied allegations of collusion with Russians during the election, but as The Hill points out, "Stone has made contradicting statements about whether he knew in advance that WikiLeaks was going to publish a trove of hacked Democratic National Committee emails."
Citing sources familiar with Mueller's investigation, Reuters reports the special counsel "has been probing whether anyone associated with the Trump campaign may have helped Assange or the Russians time or target the release of hacked emails and other social media promoting Trump or critical of Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton," which suggests there could be more subpoenas in the pipeline.
The subpoenas issued to Sullivan reportedly require the social media consultant to appear before a grand jury on May 18 in Washington, D.C., and to "bring documents, objects, and electronically stored information," the details of which were not publicly disclosed.
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, The U.S. is on a fast track to authoritarianism like nothing I've ever seen. Meanwhile, corporate news outlets are utterly capitulating to Trump, twisting their coverage to avoid drawing his ire while lining up to stuff cash in his pockets. That's why I believe that Common Dreams is doing the best and most consequential reporting that we've ever done. Our small but mighty team is a progressive reporting powerhouse, covering the news every day that the corporate media never will. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. And to ignite change for the common good. Now here's the key piece that I want all our readers to understand: None of this would be possible without your financial support. That's not just some fundraising cliche. It's the absolute and literal truth. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. The final deadline for our crucial Summer Campaign fundraising drive is just days away, and we’re falling short of our must-hit goal. Will you donate now to help power the nonprofit, independent reporting of Common Dreams? Thank you for being a vital member of our community. Together, we can keep independent journalism alive when it’s needed most. - Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Special Counsel Robert Mueller has issued two grand jury subpoenas for a social media consultant hired by Roger Stone, a longtime adviser to President Donald Trump, before the 2016 election, Reuters revealed Wednesday.
While Mueller's office declined to comment, a lawyer for Jason Sullivan, the consultant, confirmed the subpoenas were delivered to his legal team last week. Sullivan heads the social media firm Cyphoon.com, and Stone supposedly hired him to help with strategy for a pro-Trump political action committee established by Stone.
The development gives some indication of the direction of Mueller's probe into allegations that Russians attempted to influence the 2016 presidential election and that members of the Trump campaign may have known about or even been involved with those efforts.
The subpoenas, Reuters notes, "suggest that Mueller is focusing in part on Stone and whether he might have had advance knowledge of material allegedly hacked by Russian intelligence and sent to WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, who published it."
Stone appeared before the House Intelligence Committee in September and denied allegations of collusion with Russians during the election, but as The Hill points out, "Stone has made contradicting statements about whether he knew in advance that WikiLeaks was going to publish a trove of hacked Democratic National Committee emails."
Citing sources familiar with Mueller's investigation, Reuters reports the special counsel "has been probing whether anyone associated with the Trump campaign may have helped Assange or the Russians time or target the release of hacked emails and other social media promoting Trump or critical of Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton," which suggests there could be more subpoenas in the pipeline.
The subpoenas issued to Sullivan reportedly require the social media consultant to appear before a grand jury on May 18 in Washington, D.C., and to "bring documents, objects, and electronically stored information," the details of which were not publicly disclosed.
Special Counsel Robert Mueller has issued two grand jury subpoenas for a social media consultant hired by Roger Stone, a longtime adviser to President Donald Trump, before the 2016 election, Reuters revealed Wednesday.
While Mueller's office declined to comment, a lawyer for Jason Sullivan, the consultant, confirmed the subpoenas were delivered to his legal team last week. Sullivan heads the social media firm Cyphoon.com, and Stone supposedly hired him to help with strategy for a pro-Trump political action committee established by Stone.
The development gives some indication of the direction of Mueller's probe into allegations that Russians attempted to influence the 2016 presidential election and that members of the Trump campaign may have known about or even been involved with those efforts.
The subpoenas, Reuters notes, "suggest that Mueller is focusing in part on Stone and whether he might have had advance knowledge of material allegedly hacked by Russian intelligence and sent to WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, who published it."
Stone appeared before the House Intelligence Committee in September and denied allegations of collusion with Russians during the election, but as The Hill points out, "Stone has made contradicting statements about whether he knew in advance that WikiLeaks was going to publish a trove of hacked Democratic National Committee emails."
Citing sources familiar with Mueller's investigation, Reuters reports the special counsel "has been probing whether anyone associated with the Trump campaign may have helped Assange or the Russians time or target the release of hacked emails and other social media promoting Trump or critical of Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton," which suggests there could be more subpoenas in the pipeline.
The subpoenas issued to Sullivan reportedly require the social media consultant to appear before a grand jury on May 18 in Washington, D.C., and to "bring documents, objects, and electronically stored information," the details of which were not publicly disclosed.