Thread by @ClimateAudit

originally, Fusion GPS said that they retained Steele on June 17, 2016, almost immediately after being retained by DNC on June 17, 2016. In new book, Fusion approached DNC on Mar 1; were retained on Apr 20 and retained Steele "mid-May". Why original misinformation?

2/ Howard Blum, Vanity Fair, Apr 2017
vanityfair.com/news/2017/03/h… gave colorful story that Simpson, then looking for client for oppo research, was inspired by Jun 17 WaPo article on Trump-Russia, pitched DNC, then hired Steele on same day

3/ earlier (Oct 31, 2016), David Corn in Mother Jones archive.is/qhaHT#selectio… had also placed Steele hiring "in June"

4/ in Oct 2017, Perkins Coie stated that it was approached by Fusion in "early March" and that they engaged Fusion "in April". These dates are a little vague, but appear to be true.
assets.documentcloud.org/documents/4116…

5/ in Nov 2017, Luke Harding of Gurdian, stenographer to Steele, theguardian.com/news/2017/nov/… said that Steele's work on Trump begin in "April" and that all Steele "knew at first" was that client was a law firm

6/ in Aug 2018 deposition in connection with Gubarev v Buzzfeed lawsuit, Steele said that he was engaged by Fusion in accordance with an oral agreement "in June 2016".
media.washtimes.com/media/misc/201…

7/ Fusion book says (p62) that Steele hired Fusion for help re Manafort [presumably on behalf of Deripaska] "before Trump tapped Manafort to run his campaign". (Manafort appointed campaign chairman on Mar 29/2016. So this previously unknown episode is before then.

8/Fusion book says that approach to DNC initially made on March 1, with engagement being finalized on April 20. (This is almost exactly the same date as DNC being informed of hack by MISDepartment.)

9/ "in "early May" (p73), Fusion's Berkowitz prepared a 15-page "tour de sleaze", perhaps the "proto-dossier", in which Carter Page, as well as Manafort, is mentioned.

10/ after (or concurrent with) Berkowitz proto-dossier, Simpson called Steele "Let's meet soon" (p 74)

11/ Simpson traveled to UK in "mid-May", first going to Scotland re Trump golf courses, then meeting Steele at Heathrow to brief him on his task.

12/ bottom line: Steele assignment for DNC began at least one month earlier than original story. Wonder why?

13/ it has impact on other chronologies of interest, tho this may just be coincidence. For example, on June 7, Carter Page (and Stephen Miller) were invited to Cambridge symposium organized by Schrage (Halper student), where Page met Halper on Jul 11-12 right after Moscow speech

14/ if Steele retained on June 17, then invitation could not be related; but, with earlier date, other possibilities arise. I'm going to do a separate thread on hypothesis that Halper not only spied on Page, but was source of Steele dossier smear

15/ one good suggestion forf false original data of mid-June: to deceptively make it appear as response to mid-June articles on Russia hacking of DNC