Former CIA Director James Woolsey Dined with Trump at Mar-a-Lago Over the Weekend
A key witness in the special counsel probe ate dinner with President Donald Trump over the weekend at Mar-A-Lago.
James Woolsey, the former CIA director and board member at Mike Flynn’s lobbying firm, took part in a “lengthy conversation” Saturday with the president, reported Business Insider.
The conversation was revealed by a tipster to Politico Playbook.
Woolsey, who was the guest of Newsmax chairman Chris Ruddy, spoke with Trump at the main dinner table, where the president and first lady Melania Trump dined with Marvel Entertainment Chairman Ike Perlmutter and his wife Laurie.
Seated nearby were Eric and Lara Trump, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross and his wife Hilary, Howard and Michele Kessler, Kimberly Reed, Lee and Erika Lipton, Jack and Barbara Nicklaus, Bret and Amy Baier, and Robin and Richard Bernstein.
Woolsey was present at a Sept. 19, 2016, meeting where Flynn and Turkish government officials discussed forcibly removing Muslim cleric Fethullah Gulen from the U.S. — a plot that has fallen under investigation by special counsel Robert Mueller.
The former CIA director notified Vice President Joe Biden through a mutual friend about the meeting, which he believed may have covered illegal actions.
Woolsey’s spokesman confirmed last month that Mueller’s team had interviewed the former intelligence official about the meeting, and both Wooley and his wife have been in contact with the FBI since Mueller started overseeing the Russia investigation.
Attorneys for Flynn and his son have stopped sharing information about the case with Trump’s legal team, which may be a signal that they’re cooperating with investigators.
Woolsey’s spokesman declined to specify what he spoke to Trump about over the weekend, but their conversation will almost certainly interest Mueller.
The former CIA director served as a senior adviser to the Trump transition before abruptly quitting in January, the day before the president-elect was due to receive a detailed briefing on Russian election interference.
Woolsey was reportedly uncomfortable that he was sidelined on intelligence discussions between Trump and Flynn.
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