Consciousness of guilt

Why has President Trump spent two years trying to halt, control, and discredit the Russia investigation?

President Trump.
(Image credit: Illustrated | BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP/Getty Images)

This is the editor's letter in the current issue of The Week magazine.

Before he was muzzled for excessive candor a few weeks ago, Rudy Giuliani made a startling concession. "I never said there was no collusion between the campaign" and Russia, President Trump's lawyer said. He was only saying that Trump himself hadn't colluded with Russia. The reasons for this tactical retreat have become obvious. Last week, a federal judge ruled that former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort had repeatedly lied to prosecutors about his contacts with a Russian agent, Konstantin Kilimnik. As campaign chairman, Manafort gave Kilimnik "very detailed" polling data and discussed a "peace plan" for Ukraine favorable to Vladimir Putin. Special counsel Robert Mueller's team also revealed last week that it had proof that Trump adviser Roger Stone had direct contact with Russian hackers who stole Democratic emails and with WikiLeaks, which later published them. During this time, Stone admits, he frequently spoke to his pal Trump.

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William Falk

William Falk is editor-in-chief of The Week, and has held that role since the magazine's first issue in 2001. He has previously been a reporter, columnist, and editor at the Gannett Westchester Newspapers and at Newsday, where he was part of two reporting teams that won Pulitzer Prizes.