National Security

Publicist who set up Trump Jr. meeting wants to talk to Mueller: report

The British publicist who helped broker a meeting between Donald Trump Jr. and a Russian lawyer during the 2016 election wants to meet with special counsel Robert Mueller, according to a new report.

Sources familiar with the matter told NBC News that Rob Goldstone, who is currently living in Thailand, has been communicating with Mueller’s investigative team. Goldstone is expected to travel to the U.S. “in the near future,” according to NBC.

A lawyer for Goldstone told NBC News that “nothing is presently scheduled.”

{mosads}Goldstone, a former tabloid journalist turned publicist, is the manager for Emin Algarov, an Azerbaijani-Russian entertainment artist and businessman who has boasted of having a close relationship with President Trump.

Goldstone exchanged a series of emails with Trump Jr. in 2016 to set up a meeting with a Russian lawyer who was said to have damaging information on Hillary Clinton.

Trump Jr.’s meeting with the lawyer, Natalia Veselnitskaya, was also attended by President Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, as well as then-Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort and several other Russians. The meeting took place at Trump Tower in June 2016.

In one of the emails to Trump Jr. — under the subject line “Russia — Clinton – private and confidential” — Goldstone said the damaging information on Clinton promised to Trump Jr. was “part of Russia and its government’s support for Mr. Trump.”

“If it’s what you say I love it especially later in the summer,” Trump Jr. replied to Goldstone in one email.

Trump Jr. says the meeting ended up being a waste of time and that the lawyer really wanted to talk about Russian adoption rules, not Clinton. 

In July, Mueller requested White House staff save all documents and communications related to the meeting. Grand jury subpoenas related to the Trump Tower meeting were reportedly issued in August.