Russian Bank and the Trump Campaign

[The Barbarian]

In June, 2016, after news broke that the Democratic National Committee had been hacked, a group of prominent computer scientists went on alert. Reports said that the infiltrators were probably Russian, which suggested to most members of the group that one of the country’s intelligence agencies had been involved. They speculated that if the Russians were hacking the Democrats they must be hacking the Republicans, too. “We thought there was no way in the world the Russians would just attack the Democrats,” one of the computer scientists, who asked to be identified only as Max, told me.
...
“People think the Internet runs on its own,” Max told me. “It doesn’t. We do this to keep the Internet safe.” The hack of the D.N.C. seemed like a pernicious attack on the integrity of the Web, as well as on the American political system. The scientists decided to investigate whether any Republicans had been hacked, too. “We were trying to protect them,” Max said.
...
Examining records for the Trump do Alerts 9 main, Max’s group discovered D.N.S. lookups from a pair of servers owned by Alfa Bank, one of the largest banks in Russia. Alfa Bank’s computers were looking up the address of the Trump server nearly every day. There were dozens of lookups on some days and far fewer on others, but the total number was notable: between May and September, Alfa Bank looked up the Trump Organization’s domain more than two thousand times. “We were watching this happen in real time—it was like watching an airplane fly by,” Max said. “And we thought, Why the ... is a Russian bank communicating with a server that belongs to the Trump Organization, and at such a rate?”
Was There a Connection Between a Russian Bank and the Trump Campaign?

And another piece fits into the puzzle.

 

[HTacianas]

In June, 2016, after news broke that the Democratic National Committee had been hacked, a group of prominent computer scientists went on alert. Reports said that the infiltrators were probably Russian, which suggested to most members of the group that one of the country’s intelligence agencies had been involved. They speculated that if the Russians were hacking the Democrats they must be hacking the Republicans, too. “We thought there was no way in the world the Russians would just attack the Democrats,” one of the computer scientists, who asked to be identified only as Max, told me.
...
“People think the Internet runs on its own,” Max told me. “It doesn’t. We do this to keep the Internet safe.” The hack of the D.N.C. seemed like a pernicious attack on the integrity of the Web, as well as on the American political system. The scientists decided to investigate whether any Republicans had been hacked, too. “We were trying to protect them,” Max said.
...
Examining records for the Trump do Alerts 9 main, Max’s group discovered D.N.S. lookups from a pair of servers owned by Alfa Bank, one of the largest banks in Russia. Alfa Bank’s computers were looking up the address of the Trump server nearly every day. There were dozens of lookups on some days and far fewer on others, but the total number was notable: between May and September, Alfa Bank looked up the Trump Organization’s domain more than two thousand times. “We were watching this happen in real time—it was like watching an airplane fly by,” Max said. “And we thought, Why the ... is a Russian bank communicating with a server that belongs to the Trump Organization, and at such a rate?”
Was There a Connection Between a Russian Bank and the Trump Campaign?

And another piece fits into the puzzle.

It was Putin making illegal campaign contributions to the Trump campaign.

Now the only piece of the puzzle left to put in place is for us to find a definition for the term "DNS Lookup".

 

[The Barbarian]

Well, there might be an innocent explanation. I just can't think of one, at this time.

 

[The Barbarian]

It was Putin making illegal campaign contributions to the Trump campaign.

Well, Mueller will sort it all out, I think. He's been regularly knocking off crooked Trump underlings, several of who are now cooperating against Trump.

 

[Fantine]

It's really more of a triangle, it seems. The Trump Organization server in Pennsylvania is in the middle. Alfa Bank (Russian Bank) connects with the Trump computer. Spectrum Health (owned by Richard DeVos, Jr., Betsy's husband) was at the other end.

And DeVos' brother, Blackwater Mercenary Erik Prince, was simultaneously arranging a meeting in the Seychelle Islands between the Trump Organization and Russian officials to establish a back channel.

But maybe that server in Pennsylvania (that mysteriously disappeared) was part of the backchannel.

This story comes from a Christian publication....

Is the Trump/Alfa Bank Story Legit?

 

[Maria Sweet]

In June, 2016, after news broke that the Democratic National Committee had been hacked, a group of prominent computer scientists went on alert. Reports said that the infiltrators were probably Russian, which suggested to most members of the group that one of the country’s intelligence agencies had been involved. They speculated that if the Russians were hacking the Democrats they must be hacking the Republicans, too. “We thought there was no way in the world the Russians would just attack the Democrats,” one of the computer scientists, who asked to be identified only as Max, told me.
...
“People think the Internet runs on its own,” Max told me. “It doesn’t. We do this to keep the Internet safe.” The hack of the D.N.C. seemed like a pernicious attack on the integrity of the Web, as well as on the American political system. The scientists decided to investigate whether any Republicans had been hacked, too. “We were trying to protect them,” Max said.
...
Examining records for the Trump do Alerts 9 main, Max’s group discovered D.N.S. lookups from a pair of servers owned by Alfa Bank, one of the largest banks in Russia. Alfa Bank’s computers were looking up the address of the Trump server nearly every day. There were dozens of lookups on some days and far fewer on others, but the total number was notable: between May and September, Alfa Bank looked up the Trump Organization’s domain more than two thousand times. “We were watching this happen in real time—it was like watching an airplane fly by,” Max said. “And we thought, Why the ... is a Russian bank communicating with a server that belongs to the Trump Organization, and at such a rate?”
Was There a Connection Between a Russian Bank and the Trump Campaign?

And another piece fits into the puzzle.

Are you suggesting a conspiracy has run amok?

 

[The Barbarian]

Are you suggesting a conspiracy has run amok?

Perhaps. Most people get caught up in this after being in financial trouble, and someone else suggests a possible way out. Then it goes from there. Trump was in severe financial trouble, and no American banks would lend him money because he had failed to pay back his previous loans. Then a German bank with Russian links lends him money.

Then more and more of his backers are Russian. So did some one in Russia make him an offer he couldn't refuse?

It's still circumstantial as far as we know. But we don't know what Mueller now knows that we don't.

 

[Fantine]

Manafort has met with Mueller 9 times in the past few weeks (I heard this from an admittedly unreliable source, Colbert, but even if it was a prelude to a joke I am comfortable repeating it). There is a feeling that, between Cohen, Manafort, Trump's accountant and 13 tax lawyers combing through Trump's tax returns that Mueller is just waiting for the election to be over to end our national nightmare.