CNN's political director: We now see connection between Trump and Russia and that connection “is Donald Trump Jr.”

David Chalian: “For the first time” we see data points between Trump and Russia “trying to damage Hillary Clinton”

From the July 10 edition of CNN's Anderson Cooper 360:

Video file

ANDERSON COOPER (HOST): David Chalian, how important is this news?

DAVID CHALIAN: I think it’s pretty significant because I think we have moved to a different place now. Throughout the last six months when Donald Trump said no collusion, he had some sense that there was no data point out there that people could say hey, during the campaign, X talked to Y. This is connected to Russia and connected to trying to damage Hillary Clinton. Now we have that. Now for the first time we actually have those data points, and it is Donald Trump Jr., as you were just discussing with Jeff, Anderson. Nobody closer. I mean this is somebody who was in senior strategy meetings, traveling the country as a surrogate. We know at that very time, around June ninth last year is when staff shakeups were happening inside the Trump orbit, because of the children, the Trump children's involvement with that. This is now central to the candidate talking about damaging information on Hillary Clinton which would be helpful to Donald Trump from somebody who is a Russian national, our foreign adversary who The Times is reporting has ties to the Kremlin.

Previously:

Right-wing media declare Trump Jr.'s meeting with a Russians a “nothingburger”

Trump Jr. loves far right Internet trolls -- and they love him back

Fox News lawyer falsely claims that it wouldn't be illegal for the Trump campaign to collude with Russia