Sign up for our daily briefing
Make your busy days simpler with Axios AM/PM. Catch up on what's new and why it matters in just 5 minutes.
Stay on top of the latest market trends
Subscribe to Axios Markets for the latest market trends and economic insights. Sign up for free.
Sports news worthy of your time
Binge on the stats and stories that drive the sports world with Axios Sports. Sign up for free.
Tech news worthy of your time
Get our smart take on technology from the Valley and D.C. with Axios Login. Sign up for free.
Get the inside stories
Get an insider's guide to the new White House with Axios Sneak Peek. Sign up for free.
Catch up on coronavirus stories and special reports, curated by Mike Allen everyday
Catch up on coronavirus stories and special reports, curated by Mike Allen everyday
Want a daily digest of the top Denver news?
Get a daily digest of the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Denver
Want a daily digest of the top Des Moines news?
Get a daily digest of the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Des Moines
Want a daily digest of the top Twin Cities news?
Get a daily digest of the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Twin Cities
Want a daily digest of the top Tampa Bay news?
Get a daily digest of the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Tampa Bay
Want a daily digest of the top Charlotte news?
Get a daily digest of the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Charlotte
Cover courtesy of Regnery Publishing
In his new book — soon to make the Fox News/opinion circuit — former Trump campaign adviser Carter Page details his 2016 trip to Russia to deliver a commencement speech at the New Economic School (NES), which later became a subject of keen interest to the FBI.
Between the lines: On Tuesday, the Senate Intelligence Committee released the final volume of its Russia report, which revealed Page “was likely a subject of interest to Russian officials during the 2016 election, given that he was the only member of the Trump Campaign's foreign policy advisory team publicly identified as a Russia expert.”
- The report stated that Page's invitation to speak at the Russian school "was extended because of the Russian sponsors' perception of his role in the Trump campaign.”
Excerpt:
"Shlomo Weber, a professor of economics in Russia and at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, invited me to speak to the graduating class of 2016 at the New Economic School in Moscow—an event independent of my work with the campaign." ...
"I ran the invitation by Corey Lewandowski to make sure that the campaign didn’t see any issues with it and suggested that perhaps Donald Trump might want to speak in my place. It was a well organized venue in which the candidate could display his foreign policy credentials. Presidential candidates often use foreign trips to showcase what they would look like as America’s head of state abroad." ...Corey replied to my email: “If you want to do this, it would be outside of your role with the DJT for President campaign. I am certain Mr. Trump will not be able to attend.”...
"For inviting me to give the speech, Shlomo Weber would later be interrogated by the FBI at “Madeline’s Cafe” [sic] in Dallas. The following July he joined a long list of other academics, many holding American passports, who would be interrogated about their interactions with the infamous Carter Page."— Carter Page in his forthcoming book, " Abuse and Power: How an Innocent American Was Framed in an Attempted Coup Against the President"
Go deeper: Read the full excerpt