Must-read: FBI counter-intelligence agent's affidavit in connection with Maria Butina's arrest for seeking to influence US politics at direction of Russian government. This is how it works 1/ justice.gov/opa/press-rele…
FBI special agent explains what Russian influence operations are, the strategic intent behind and why Russian penetrations of US political institutions and policymaking circles are dangerous 2/ 
The FBI agent details how Butina, working at the direction of senior Russian government official Aleksandr Torshin sought to penetrate senior GOP circles and the NRA leadership. It covers activities from March 2015 onward 3/
The FBI agent quotes at length from private messages between Butina and Torshin planning their operation and its results. Their goal was nothing less than to engineer an overhaul in US policy toward Russia via the GOP and NRA. 4/
And if that weren't audacious enough, the duo also work on setting up a back channel to senior GOP leaders in fall 2016, according to a US political operative they hired to support their effort 5/
Following Trump's election, the duo seem to have been plugged into discussions about who would be named Secretary of State 6/
At today's Trump-Putin press conference they announced a new experts council consisting of academics, former officials, retired military officers to come up with ideas on reinvigorating US-Russian relations. Butina/Torshin pushed a similar idea right after the 2016 election 7/
The affidavit at great length highlights the role of two unnamed US persons connected to the GOP and NRA who assisted Butina and Torshin in their conspiracy. Who are they? Hint: their names are already out there (h/t @timkmak) 8/
The affidavit also explains in detail that Torshin and Butina were coordinating their activities with senior Kremlin officials. They were not freelancing. 9/
Finally (and this is my favorite part of the saga): the affidavit dwells on Torshin's and Butina's efforts to use the January 2017 National Prayer Breakfast to push their conspiracy forward. Why? 10/
Because Torshin was supposed to meet w @realDonaldTrump at that event. It got cancelled at the last-minute by a vigilant White House staffer worried about Torshin's connections to Russian organized crime. Somehow the FBI agent left that part out 🤔 @Isikoff /END
