The government has alleged Butina was introduced to having influence U.S. politics, including high-ranking members of the National Rifle Association and organizers of the National Prayer Breakfast, that would ultimately give her a surprising level of access to conservative politicians, including — in one memorable interaction captured on video — to then-candidate Donald Trump.
Butina has acknowledged that, with conservative operative Paul Erickson, she drafted a proposal called “Description of the Diplomacy Project” in March of 2015 which was later sent to the Russian Official, in which she said that she had already “laid the groundwork for an unofficial channel of communication with the next U.S. administration.” The Russian Official, the agreement said, confirmed that her proposal would be at least partially supported.
Butina's friend Aleksander Torshin - the deputy governor of Russia’s central bank, met with Donald Trump Jr in May 2016.
Butina's partner Conservative operative Paul Erickson set up the meeting, suggesting that the convention could serve as a point of “first contact” between Trump and Russia and that “Putin is deadly serious about building a good relationship with Mr. Trump.”
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