On Thursday, MSNBC’s Brian Williams finally mentioned the words “Russia,” “uranium” and “Clinton” in the same segment BUT it was only to dismiss President Donald Trump’s criticism of the media’s failure to cover this week’s new revelations in the growing scandal.
Williams began his October 19 segment on The llth Hour program, by playing a clip of the President’s blast against the liberal media and then recited Trump’s earlier tweet: “Uranium deal to Russia, with Clinton help and Obama Administration knowledge, is the biggest story that Fake Media doesn’t want to follow.”
However, instead of telling his viewers about the important news from this week (like the fact that an FBI informant was threatened by the Obama administration), he brought on McClatchy White House correspondent Anita Kumar to dismiss the story as old news that they’ve already covered.
After Williams asked Kumar to “explain to our viewers why they’re gonna hear more on this Russia – this uranium scandal.” Kumar responded: “I have to say that he is wrong about one thing. We covered a lot about uranium during the campaign. This is a deal that took place during the Obama administration when Secretary Clinton was Secretary of State and the administration approved of it. But what he has forgotten is that we wrote tons of stories about this when she was a candidate for president. She is not president. So, things aren’t – you know – they’re not being covered as heavily any more.”
Kumar added “We are gonna hear about it because Chuck Grassley, the chairman of the Senate judiciary committee says he wants to look into this issue because a newspaper, The Hill, wrote about issues with that deal many years ago. They wrote about how there were all sorts of kickbacks and bribery and that sort of thing.”
That’s it. Just a vague reference to “kickbacks and bribery.” Kumar never went into details about the newest revelations dug up by The Hill’s John Solomon and Alison Spann. Details like the Obama administration knowing about about Russia’s payments to The Clinton Foundation and still allowed the uranium deal to go through and also how the administration threatened an FBI informant who wanted to come forward.
The following is the entirety of Williams’ 2 minute, 41 second segment as it was aired on the October 19 edition of MSNBC’s The 11th Hour with Brian Williams:
DONALD TRUMP: Uranium is a big subject. If the mainstream media would cover the Iranian scandal and that Russia has 20 percent of the uranium, for whatever reason, and a lot of people understand what those reasons may be, I think that’s your Russia story. That’s your real Russia story, not a story where they talk about collusion, and there was none. It was a hoax.
BRIAN WILLIAMS: President Trump today in the Oval Office, by the way, sitting next to the governor of Puerto Rico. Picking up on this thread. He started this morning on Twitter: “Uranium deal to Russia with Clinton help and Obama Administration knowledge is the biggest story the Fake Media doesn’t want to follow.” He continued: “Workers of firm involved with the discredited and Fake Dossier take the 5th. Who paid for it, Russia? The FBI or the Dems or all?” Then quoting Fox and Friends: “Russia sent millions to Clinton Foundation.”
For more please help us. I’m joined by Anita Kumar, White House correspondent for McClatchy newspapers. Alright Anita you get the tough job tonight. Explain to our viewers why they’re gonna hear more on this Russia – this uranium scandal. That’s the quote from the president. How it is we know anything about it and how big a deal this is?
[On screen headline: “Trump: No Collusion With Russia, ‘A Hoax’”]
ANITA KUMAR, MCCLATCHY: Well, I have to say that he is wrong about one thing. We covered a lot about uranium during the campaign. This is a deal that took place during the Obama administration when Secretary Clinton was Secretary of State and the administration approved of it. But what he has forgotten is that we wrote tons of stories about this when she was a candidate for president. She is not president. So, things aren’t – you know – they’re not being covered as heavily any more. But we are gonna hear about it because Chuck Grassley, the chairman of the Senate judiciary committee says he wants to look into this issue because a newspaper, The Hill, wrote about issues with that deal many years ago. They wrote about how there were all sorts of kickbacks and bribery and that sort of thing. There will be an investigation and people will be hearing more about it.
WILLIAMS: Anita, I’m not being flip here, but how is it he starts his day on this subject of uranium and Russia? Does his Twitter use continue to mirror the programming in the morning on Fox and Friends?
KUMAR: I think it does. I think he’s obviously watching TV and he’s tweeting. But, you know, I had someone tell me last week that’s very close to the president that you always think it’s that he’s watching TV. But sometimes it’s just that someone has walked into the room, obviously not probably not that early, but walked into the room and reminded him of something. It might have been something that happened weeks or months ago. And somebody says, remember that thing about Hillary Clinton months ago, and then he’s off on a tangent on Twitter again. Just sort of interesting.
