The top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee is pressing FBI Director Kash Patel to examine whether a Russian oligarch’s financial support for Donald Trump Jr.’s wedding celebrations poses a counterintelligence risk.
Rep. Jim Himes, D-Conn., sent Patel a letter Thursday demanding information about the FBI’s response to reports that Umar Kremlev, a Russian businessman with ties to President Vladimir Putin, paid hundreds of thousands of dollars toward the May wedding events in the Bahamas.
“If accurate,” Himes wrote, the reporting “presents significant counterintelligence concerns that must be thoroughly investigated by the FBI.”
ProPublica reported Monday that Kremlev paid for expenses that included the rental of a private island where a reception was held and guests stayed, as well as a fireworks display. Trump Jr. and his wife, Bettina, confirmed that Kremlev hosted two nights of celebrations after their private wedding ceremony. Bettina Trump described it as an “extraordinarily generous wedding gift from a friend” and rejected suggestions that the gift carried a political motive.
Himes asked whether the FBI knew about Kremlev’s relationship with Trump Jr. or the payments before they became public and whether the bureau had assessed if Kremlev, his organizations or Russian nationals who attended the event acted on behalf of the Russian government. He also asked whether the FBI had provided or planned to provide Trump Jr. and U.S. government officials who attended with a defensive counterintelligence briefing.
Himes requested a written response by Sept. 30.
The arrangement has drawn scrutiny from congressional Democrats. House Oversight Committee ranking member Robert Garcia, D-Calif., opened an investigation this week, seeking records from Trump Jr. and the White House about the celebrations and Trump Jr.’s relationship with Kremlev.
“The idea that the son of a president is going to have this wedding paid for essentially by someone with close ties to the state, close ties to Putin, is pretty outrageous and, quite frankly, just completely corrupt,” Garcia told MS NOW on Tuesday.
Patel was questioned about the matter on Tuesday during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., asked Patel whether the FBI was examining potential counterintelligence concerns about Kremlev’s relationship with Trump Jr. Patel said he was unfamiliar with the reporting but the FBI would “look at whatever information comes our way, and analyze it.”
Himes argued in the letter that although Trump Jr. is not a public official, his status as the president’s son and his regular access to senior policymakers could make him a “natural target for foreign espionage and influence operations.”
Former U.S. intelligence officials have also raised concerns, saying the funding of part of the wedding celebrations had hallmarks of the tactics foreign intelligence services use to cultivate relationships and gain access.
Marc Polymeropoulos, a former senior CIA official who contributes to MS NOW, wrote on X that intelligence services use social gatherings to collect information, develop relationships and try to influence perceptions.
“If I was invited for a multi day wedding bash with multiple targets everywhere, available to chat with and schmooze and build relationships with in a beautiful tropical setting filled with booze and relaxation,” Polymeropoulos wrote. “I’d think I’d hit the recruitment jackpot.”
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