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- 1
- UNCLASSIFIED
- TESTIMONY OF CARTER PAGE
- Thursday, November 2, 2017
- U.S. House of Representatives,
- Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence,
- Washington, D.C.
- The committee met, pursuant to call, at 9:40 a.m., in Room HVC-304, the Capitol,
- the Honorable K. Michael Conaway presiding.
- Present: Representatives Conaway, King, LoBiondo, Rooney, Ros-Lehtinen,
- Turner, Wenstrup, Crawford, Gowdy, Stefanik, Hurd, Schiff, Himes, Sewell, Carson, Speier,
- Quigley, Swalwell, Castro, and Heck.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 2
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. CONAWAY: A quorum being present, the committee will come to order.
- I would like to welcome our witness, Dr. Carter Page. Thank you for being with us
- today. As a reminder to our members, we are and will remain in open session. This
- hearing will address only unclassified matters. Although this hearing is closed, a
- transcript will be produced and released to the public.
- Before we begin, I would like to take a few housekeeping matters. First, without
- objection, I move that each side shall be given 30 minutes each to ask Dr. Page questions.
- At the end of each GO-minute interval, I will ask unanimous consent to continue the
- alternating 3D-minute rounds.
- Without further objection, the chair is authorized to declare a recess of the
- committee at any time.
- At this time, I would like the witness to raise his right hand.
- Do you solemnly swear or affirm that the testimony you will give the committee will
- be the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help you God?
- MR. PAGE: Ido.
- MR. CONAWAY: Thank you.
- Dr. Page, before I give you the opportunity to make a brief opening statement, I
- would like to cover some basic information as well as provide you with the ground rules
- regarding today's hearing. First, the record today will reflect that the committee sent you
- a letter on May the 9th, 2017, May of 2017, requesting that you produce documents and
- appear before the committee for a voluntary interview.
- You responded by a letter, dated May 22nd, a copy of which, without objection, will
- be entered and included in the record.
- [The information follows:]
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 3
- UNCLASSIFIED
- ******** INSERT 1-1 ********
- UNCLASSIFIED
- G LOB ALE N ER G yeA P I TAL L L C
- BY CERTIFIED U.S. AND ELECTRONIC MAIL
- The Honorable K. Michael Conaway and Adam Schiff
- U.S. ,House of Representatives
- Permanent Select Conmiittee on Intelligence (HPSCI)
- Capitol Visitor Center HVC-304
- US Capitol Building
- Washington, DC 20515
- Dear Congressman Coi1awayand Congressman Schiff:
- May 22,2017
- Thank you for your recent correspondence requesting information regarding gove111Ii1entactive
- measures directed at the 2016U.S. election. In support ()fyour ongoing efforts and to help set
- thes-m;ge for my upcoming testimony before your Committee, I am pleased to present this initial
- collection,ofevidence to HPSCI which should significantly contribute to the discovery offacts
- within your mvestigation's publicly announced parameters. Having apparently come up with
- limited substance thus far, much of the other ongoing discourse on matters related to Russia in
- both chambers of the U~S. Congress as well as throughout our great country has become
- desperately all-encompassing and increasingly tangential. This race to the bottom in terms of
- irrelevancy has often only created further confusion in and damage to America. Rather than
- assist in the actual pursuit of truth, the deceptive smokescreen of leaks has further exacerbated
- cttrtent misunderstandings since most of that dialogue has remainedb6hind a selective cloud of
- partial secrecy.
- But in contrast, HPSCI's four highly*focused and analytic questions as set for your investigation
- on-March--l, 2017, reflect a distinct level of thoughtfulness and offer a constructive framework
- for analysis. 1 I greatly appreciate this opportunity to help set the record straight on eachoftbese
- fdur points following the false evidence, other illegal activities as well as additional extensive
- lies distributed by the Clinton campaign and their transnational associates. Working in
- coordination with the Ohama Administration, their transnationalcrlroinal associates which
- severely defamed me,; many other supporters of the Trump campaign and our democracy in
- general should hopefully soon gam. full. exposure. Unlike recent misleading illegal leaks, the
- proper legal procedutesof disclosure currently underway should further assist in this process.
- As per discussions with the HPSCI Senior Counsel for Counterterrorism onFriday, I tentatively
- look forward to testifying on the record regarding these matters before your Committee on .
- Tuesday, June 6, 2017. In support ofthatforthtoIhing appearance, I have recently been in
- contact with Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, Special Counsel Robert Mueller and
- other Justice Department officials regarding the mUltiple outstanding requests for immediate
- 1 Devin Nunes and Adam Schiff, "Intelligence Committee Chainnan, Ranking Member
- Establish Parameters for Russia Investigation," House Pennanent Select Committee on
- Intelligence website, March 1, 2017.
- [http://intelligence.ho!:b~e.g(}v/ne\vs/docllmentsingle.aspx?DocLlmentID=7(?1]
- 590 Madison Avenue, 21st floor, New York. New York 10022
- t: +1(212) 537 9258 I: +1(212) 5379281
- release of the illegitimate FISA warrants that were allegedly filed by the Obama Administration
- against me in 2016. My personal appeals for public disclosure have echoed recent loud cries
- across America's political spectrum from leftto right, including the American CiVil Liberties
- Union (ACLUiand Judicial Watch (JW).3 The Privacy Act of 1974 includes provisions which,
- "Grant individuals the right to seek amendment of agency records maintained on themselves
- upon a showing that the- records are not accurate, relevant~ timely, or complete.,,4 As a major
- affront to out democracy, the complete mockery that the Obama Administration allegedly made
- of the 2016 election makes such immediate steps essential today_
- Whereas I have never done anything wrong in Russia, no documents, records, electronically
- stored information includhlg email, coinmunication, recordings, data and tangible things could
- reasonably lead to the discovery of any facts within the investigation's publicly announced
- parameters as it relates to actions by the Russian government. As further proof of this reality, the
- forthcoming documents related to my alleged FISA warrant that currently remain somewhat
- classified and temporarily withheld from the public by the u.s. Government should soon
- lead to the discovery of a plethora of highly relevant facts within the investigation's
- publicly announced parameters once disclosed. In the immortal words of Judge Robert Bark,
- an "intellectual feasf' at the time of their release.
- Although I ooderstand that my forthcoming testimony might be held behind closed doors, I
- would request that some fonn of live public access may be allowed. For example, either livestreamed
- via the internet, on public-access television or perhaps C-SPAN-S. It is importailt that
- the American public have an opportunity to hear the tnith following the outrageous allegations
- that have been made against me on behalf of the Clinton campaign. On the oile hand and despite
- a historic level of surveillance last year, it seems understandable that keeping the failure of theTrump-
- collusion conspiracy theory covered up might offer a means oflimiting the
- embarrassment of this dry hole dug by those who have espoused such ideas. But since many
- 2 "With just the stroke oia pen, President Trump could provide the public with the information
- necessary to assess hiscIaims that the Obafna administration improperly surveilled bim and his
- associates." Neema Singh Guliani, "How rrumpCan Show Us Whether He Was Spied On,"
- ACLU Washington Markup Blog, Apri113, 2017. [https:liwww.ac111.org/bJogl\.vashingtonlnarkup!
- hc)\y-trump:.can-show-us-whether-he-was-spied]
- 3 Press Room, "Judicial Watch Sues for FBI Records on UK. 'Trump Dossier' ," Judicial Watch,
- May 16,2017. [http:lhv\vw. i udicialvvatch.onl/press ... rooI11/prcss-reIeases!judicial-watch-sues-Jbirecords-
- uk-trump-dossier{l
- "Hillary Clinton's national security crimes included running the most highly classified material
- the U.S. possesses across-her outlaw server without legal consequence. lfCommunications
- Intelligence is used as a partisan political weapon without people going to jail, we will have
- crossed the point of no return for institutional conuption in our government, our intelligence
- services and law enforcement" Chris Farrell,"On Watch: Episode 11 - 'CQrrupt Weaponizing
- of Intelligence Collection' ," Judicial Watch, March 28,2017.
- [hUp:llww\.v.judicialwatch.orglpress"room/press-reIeases!watch-cpisodc-ll-CA)rruptweaponizil1Q-
- inteIligence-collecJion!]
- 4 Office of Justice Programs~ Bureau of Justice Assistance.'~Privacy Act of 1974,5 U.S.C. §
- 552a," U.S. Department of Justice. [https:l/iLojg.gov/PrivacyLiberty/authorities!stntutes!l 279]
- 2
- members of your Committee seem legitimately interested in getting to the bottom of this whole
- story, it is only fair that some sort of a public~hearing might be similarly offered. The country
- deserves an opportunity to hear my defense after the severely defamatory testimony by Mr.
- Corney in front of your Committee on national television in loyal support of the ClintoniObama
- regime.
- As reported in an unfortunate front-page Washington Post article about the civil rights abuses
- committed against me which you might have seen: "Applications for FISA warrants, Corney
- said, are often thicker than his wrists, and that thickness represents all the work Justice
- Department attorneys and FBI a~ents have to do to convince a judge that such surveillance is
- appropriate in an investigation." Ifhis thickness is indeed the case for my FISA warrant, it will
- inevitably be filled with a potpourri of falsehoods from the ClintonJObama regime which
- fabricated this travesty from the outset. For the United States to end the continued delusional
- charade regarding Russia's connections with the new Administration, it is essential to gain public
- access to these related documents as a lllatterof the highest urgency in preparation for my
- planned testimony. Any assistance that HPSCIlllight be able to provide by further encouraging
- the federal authorities to. expedit~ this m.atter inadvailCe of our tentative meeting on June 6
- would be greatly appreciated, both by me and innumerable Americans.
- While initial steps have previously been taken by members of Congress to get to the bottom of
- these civil rights injustices, Senator GrassIey, Senator Feinstein,. Senator Graham and other
- distinguished members of the Senate Judiciary Committee Congress have expressed related
- concerns about potential wrongdoing by the U.s. Department of Justice and the FBI in 2016. In
- the wake of recent decisions by formerObama Administration appointees including Mr. Corney
- which may potentially linlit their ability to carry out their role as members of their Committee,
- they have noted the constraint on their capabilities as, "The FBI's primary oversight committee
- with broad jurisdiction over federal law enforcement, EISA and the nomination of fuenext FBI
- director. ,,6
- Last week, Senator Lindsey Graham also noted, "Congress has pretty muc.h been sidelined,not
- completely, but pretty much.,,7 His comments related to the rec~nt appointment of Special
- 5 Ellen Nakashima, Devlin Barrett and Adam Entous, "FBI obtained FISA warrant to monitor
- Tnunp adviser Carter Page" Washington Post; April 12, 2017.
- [https:llwww. washingtonp()st.coln/world/nationaI-secul'itvlflJi-()btained-lisa-warrant-to-monitorformer-
- trumQ-ad vi ser-carter-·pagel20 17/041 1 t 1620 192ea-l eOe-l1 e 7 -ad 74-
- 3a742a6e93a7 storv.html] .
- 6 NewsReleases,"Grassley, Feinstein Extremely Disappointed with Corney's Refusal t6
- TestifY before Judiciary Committee," Senator Chuck Grassley webSite, May 19,2017.
- [https:l/w\vw.grasslev.senate.t!ov/news!news-reIeases!grasslev-feinstein-extrcll1c1y-disappoil1tedconlcy
- ·s-refusal-testifv-iudiciarv] "U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina) on Former
- FBI Director Corney's Decision to Testify before the Senate Intelligence Committee and notthe
- Judiciary Committee," official Twitter feed for Senator lindsey Graham, May 19,2017.
- ~https:lltwitter.com/LindseyGrahalnSC/status/865732003634851840J
- Erin Kelly, "Sen. Lindsey Graham says FBI's Russia probe may block testimony to
- Congress," USA Today,-May 18,2017.
- 3
- , .
- Counsel Mueller and the legal jeopardy this may create forsorne Americans who have been
- swept up in the ongoing witch hunt. But as President Trump noted at the U.S. Coast Guard
- Academy commencement last Wednesday: "Over the course of your life, you will find that
- things ate not always fair. You will find that things happen to you that you do not deserve and
- that are hot always warranted. But you have to put your head down and fight, fight, fight.
- Never, ever; ever give up. Things will work out just fine."s By all accounts, theClintonJObama
- regime's fake FISA warrant targeting me for exercising my First Amendment rights is the most
- unwarranted abuse of power that I and most Americans have witnessed in any election
- throughout our lifetimes. We must get to the bottom of this as quickly and efficiently as
- possible. I cannot underscore enough the need for transparency surrounding last year's apparent
- transgressions by the U.S. Qovernmentwhich HPSCI is helping to expose.
- I hope that my answers to your four strategic questions below helps to partially fill that gap:
- A) Russian Government (the so-caUed "Putin regime,,9)
- Although I played no role in allY government active measures in the 2016 election other
- than being a target of the Obama Administration's efforts to support Mrs. Clinton's
- campaign, the only discussion I can recall where WikiLeaks even tangentia11ycrune up with any
- Russian occurred on the afternoon of Monday , October 24, 2016. In the moments before
- recording a TV interviewlO at RT'sstudios in London where I was visiting for a few days on my
- way to Johannesburg, the host and staff mentioned in passing that the news they saw about
- WikiLeaks in the U .K.papers seemed like h might potentially be interesting. However, they
- anecdotally noted inpas·sing that it was Wifoi1unate that there was no way to efficiently sort
- through the high number of documents Which had been released. Based Oil this limited verbal
- interaction, it seems lJrui.kely that Russian entities such as this televiSion network Were in any
- way directly involved hi the WikiLeakscyber activity. While I have seen no definitive evidence
- to support the January 6, 2017 intelligence report, my highly limited personal exposure to .reIated
- [https:l/vvwvv.usatodav .COD1/StoI'y/news/poiitics/20 17/05118/sen-lindscv-gralllml-says-H)i~russiaprobe-
- mav-block-testimonv-congress/I0184227-<U]
- 8 office of the Press Secretary, "Remarks by President Trump at United States Coast Guard
- Academy Commencement Ceremony," White Hel.Ise website, May 17, 2017.
- [htlPS://WViW. \\"hitehouse. !lOV /thc~prcss-ofl1ce/20 17/05/1 7 /remarks~president-trump-ul1 i tedstates-
- coast-uuard-academv-conuncnccment]
- 9 Devin Nunes and Adam Schiff, "Intelligence Committee Chainnan, Ranking Member
- Establish Parameters for Russia Investigation, "House Permanent Select Committee on
- Intelligence website, March 1, 2017.
- fhttp;l/i.ntell igence.house.govh:cws/documcntsingle,aspx?DocumentlD=767]
- o Gomg Underground RTchp, YOllTube, October 29,2016.
- [https://vv,\},fw_vontube.com/wrrtch?v=O\VEqGTOJEnS]
- 4
- issues seems to point to. a fundamentally different conclusionregardiilg potential Russian '
- involvement. .
- Aside from this very limited exposure to such potential topics which may speculatively suggest
- this opposite conclusion from that suggested by Obaina Administration officials, I have no
- personal information that the Russian government or anyone associated with it played any
- role in the 2016 U.S. election. Furthermore, during my visits to Moscow in July 2016 and
- December 2016, I was never approached by any Russian official or person associated with the
- Russian government who led me to in any way believe they had some intention to negatively
- impact the U.S. Government or the 2016 election which the Obama Administration was severely
- manipulating.
- By comparison, during the opening remarks of Senator Sheldon Whitehouse at a Senate
- Judiciary Subcommittee On Crime and Terrorism meeting earlier this month, he presented a
- helpful table for thinking about government active measures directed at the 2016 U.S. election. l1
- B) U.S.·Governmenf(the ClintonlObama regime)
- As stated in my response to Questiou.LA) above, nothing I have personally seen direct evidence
- of in a Russian context during 20 16 matches any of Senator Whitehouse's specific criteria.
- I-Iowever, based on his same analytic framework, below is a $uti1mary of the Clinton/Obama
- Regime Toolbox used in meddling in the 2016 election as per my direct personal experiences
- which that I describe in .the answers to your subsequent investigatory questions below:
- 11 "Opening Remarks of Senator· Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Senate Judiciary Subcommittee
- on Crime and Terrorism, May 8,2017," Senator Whitehouse website.
- [https:/lwwv.f.whitehouse.senate.Qovlinl0/media/docl20 17-05-
- 08%20SJCCTCX}?Ohearing%20opcnil]g%?Oremarks%20as%)20delivcred·ru;!l1
- 5
- Propaganda, Fake
- News
- Hacking and theft of .
- Timed leaks of
- damaging material
- Assassination and
- politic~l violence
- Investment control in
- key e.conomic sectors
- Shady business I
- imancial ties
- Corrupting I
- compromising
- politicians
- 2016 Dodgy Dossier saturated private media
- since August 2016; RFEIRL repeats.
- Yes, if unjustified FISA warrant news proves
- to be correct
- Felony #1: Illegal leaking of "Male-l"
- identity
- Felony #2: Illegal leaking ofUiljustifi¢d FI$A
- warrant
- Yes, threats to my life following Clinton
- campaign fake news & commentary
- Coercion related to miniscule Gazprom ADR
- investment following gangster tactics by
- Reid
- Cash payoffs related to 2016 Dodgy Dossier
- (Clinton associates <-> Steele)
- Cash payoffs related to 2016 Dodgy Dossier
- (U.S. Govet:nment <-> Steele)
- Although I still do not have sufficient information at this stage while I await the aforementioned
- disClosUre regarding the Obama Administration' sactions taken against me in this regard, Senator
- Grassley, Senator Graham and others members of the Senate Judiciary Committee have taken
- initial positive steps to helpaddtess the genuinely problematic active meaSures by the U.S.
- Government with foreign entities during the Obama Administration which unsuccessfully sought
- to influence last year's election. These matters are further described in my response to HPSCI
- Investigation Question 2.B), below.12
- .
- 12 Catherine Herridge, Pamela K. Browne and Cyd Upson, "Corney pressed for anti-Trump
- dossier in classified Russia report, Sources say," Fox News, May 05, 2017.
- [http://ww\v;foxncws.com/politicsI2017/0SI05/comev-prcsscd .. Jor-anti-trump-dossicr-inclassit1ed,;.
- russia-report-sources-sav.html]
- 6
- A) Russian Government (the so-called "Putinregime")
- I have had extensive experiences in Russia and with Russian people since the fmal days of the
- Soviet era in 1991 when 1 first visited as a U.S. Naval Academy Midshipman, I personally saw
- no active measures by the Russian government or other foreign entities to interfere in any
- political campaigns whatsoever - neither last yeatnor at any point throughout my life.
- Nonetheless, one way to protect the United States more effectively is to recognize that the
- American understanding of Russia and other countries remains woefully inadequate. Most often
- this has been based on outdated stereotypes. Worse yet, in many instances this understanding
- may have no basis in reality whatsoever as we have increasingly Seen over recent
- months. Because of this ignorance and as I have personally experienced throughout the course
- of the past year, the U.S. Government and media is easily manipulated byiudividuals, groups
- and other countries who do not put American interests first. The publicly-released findings by
- Obama Administration intelligence officials including James Corney seem to be based on
- inferences drawn from their personal beliefs about Russian President Vladimir Putin's
- motivations about which they have little or no actual knowledge or understanding.
- If our government had a bettertlllderstallding of Russia 8lld the way business is now conducted
- in Russia, the 2016 Dodgy Dossier which alleged I should have received amultibiIlion-dollar
- bribe after President Trump's victory in November would have been immediately dismissed as a
- work of fiction by these supposed subj ect~matter experts.
- B} u.s. Government (the Clinton/Obama regime)
- In Congressman Schiff's opening statement on March 20,2017, the Ranking Member very
- directly addressed related abuses by foreign entities during the 2016 U.S. election. This
- represented a highly relevant instance of external interference given the transnational actor
- Steele;s cOmiec:tion to Obama Administration officials and U.S. Government agents under their
- command which 'origi1lal1y assisted in misleading him:
- "According to Christopher Steele~a British - a fonner British intelligence officer, who
- is reportedly held in high regard by U.S. intelligence, Russian sources tell him that Page
- has also llad a secret m.eeting with Igor Sechin, CEO of the Russian gas giant, Rosneft.
- Sechinisreported to be a former KGB agent and close friend of Put in's .... Is it a
- coincidence that the Russian gas company, Rosneft, sold a 19 percent share after former
- British intelligence officer Steele was told by Russian sources that Carter Page was
- offered fees on a deal of just that size?"I3
- 13 Rowan ScarborOugh, "Desperate Dems cling to discredited spy dossier to link Trump to
- Russians," The Washington Times, March 21,2017.
- [http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/20 1 7 Imar/211discrecli ted-dossier-cletail ing4rumprussian-
- col I ll$/]
- 7
- The fact that Steele is "held in high regard by U.S. intelligence" seems to provide further
- supporting evidence of the extensive collusion between this transnational Clinton associate and
- the Obama Admitristration, as U.S. Government agencies allegedly supported their domestic
- political intelligence operation. . .
- Amongst many other complete lies·that originated from that foreign entity in his 2016 Dodgy
- Dossier, this above-mentioned excerpt regarding the.Rosneft sale from the highly inaccurate
- docl.l1l1ent concocted by the political consultant associated with the Clinton campaign Mr. Steele
- remained one of the primary false allegations against me throughout much of last year. Yet a
- month after the election, SwitzerIand-basedGlencore pIc was revealed as the actqal buyer of that
- stake in December 2016 - a company founded by Marc Rich. With respect to potential
- coincide11ces as Representative Schiff-alluded to on March 20, please note that I have never met
- with 'any member of Glencore's executive management. But there is someone.Whb .
- coincidentally has had an exceptionally close relationship with Glencore's top management via
- its founder. For further background, 1 would refer you to the 2001 proceedings before the House
- of Representatives Committee on Government Reform regarding "The Controversial Pardon of
- International Fugitive Marc Rich" which provides e.xtensive related details. As thenRepresentative
- Bernie Sanders said during those hearings:
- "I think it is important that we have this hearing, that we learn about what Mr. Clinton
- did and his terrible lapse in judgment, but if we are going to talk about money in politics,
- lees Hille about money in politics, the influence that money had on Mr. Clinton ... ,,14
- Congressnlan Schiff has recently warned of the potential for any, . "deeply disturbing pattern of
- distraction,distortion and downright fabrication" in the ongoing investigatiops in the 2016
- election. 15 You will find that any. objective comparison of the false allegations against me
- regarding my~upposed role in the Rosneft tranS~ction and the·actualacquh:et'S longhistory of
- re1afionswith Clinton campaign associates may stand as the quintessential example of the exact
- kind of disturbing pattern that you caution against.· I will·address this matter further in the
- contextofmy initial response to HPSCI Investigation Question #4, below ("What possible leaks
- of c.Ias.sifiedinformation took place related to the Intelligence COm.rr1uIiity AssessrnentoftheSe
- matters?").
- To help further illustrate how disgraceful this process of the U.S. Government's active measures
- with foreign entitles was during the Ohama Administration, it is also worthreca1ling some of last
- year's fmal misdeeds by forrrierGang of Eight member Harry Reid. Characteristic of some of
- the ongoing investigations which he helped instigate with Corney and typical of his personal
- level of integrity? Mr. Reid has previously stated that making prior false claims without any
- evidence during the preceding U .8, Presidential election in 20'12 was "one of the best things I've
- 14
- btt12s:IIIJ.Illllild.wikimc(;UQ.anl/v, ikiP.ed ia/commonsl III 2120QJ The Controversial Pardon_pL.Ll}t~IQ.f111QIHlL[u .
- gitive Mal'c Ric!1ndf
- 15 Darlene Superville, "Trump enlists Congress, ex-jntel chief denies wiretapping," PBS
- Newshour~ Match 5, 2017. D1UJl;11.!Y..l~bs.()ndnewsholJrlrui1d~)\vn/trllJllP-enlist$-congress-cx-inteI-thiefdenies-
- wirctaQ1w:mL] .
- 8
- ever done.:' 16 Although this is obviously almost the exact same thittgwhlch again happened
- against meaild the Ttulll.p carhpaign last year, it is my hope thatHPSCI might help restore the
- dignity of the U.S. Intelligence COmniittee and indeed the U.S. Congress by moving beyond the
- standards of such gangster tactics and the· transnational veritable organized crime l1etwork that
- Reid leveraged during the Clinton/Obama regime. 17 . .
- In addition to his standing as one of the early promoters of the 2016 Dodgy Dossier by illicit
- foreign entities, Harry Reid simultaneously further incited a federal case out of other complete
- nonsense by asking Director Corney to investigate my investments in Gazprom and supposed
- conflicts of interest this might create.18 Given the complete disaster that the ClintonJObama.
- regime made of U. S . .;. Russia relations and the related problems they inflicted on ·private industry
- across the Russian economy, I held no other financial or real estate holdings related to Russia
- during the period of the U.S. presidential campaigns other than this miniscule stake of
- Gazprom's American Depository Receipts.
- Demonstrating the extreme loyalty which James Corney maintained for the Clinton/Obama
- regime, it is worth noting that neither he nor any other member of the U.S. intelligence
- community ever responded in 2016 to my letter clarifying the facts in these matters (below).
- 16 Chris Cillizza, "Harry Reid1ied about Mitt Romney's taxes. He's still not sorry," Washington
- Post, September 15, 2016. [https:l/www.washingtonpost.comlnews/the-fixlwp/20 16/09/15/harryreid
- .. lied-about-mitt-romneys-taxes-hes-still-not-sorryl] Ben Terris, mI hate palm trees': The
- sentimentaljoumey of Harry Reid," Washington Post, September 14,2016 ..
- D1ttps:lhN\vw.washingtonpos1 .. com/lifestvle!stv!e/i-hate~palm·trees·the .. sentinlental-i()urnev-of: ..
- han"y-reidJ2016/09/14Iafcfc6bc-730 } .. 11 c6-be4f·3f42t2e5u49c siorv.ht1111]
- 17 Particularly in light of the alleged collusion with the 2016 Podgy Dossier authorin the U.K.,
- they precisely match the defInition ofTtansnational Organized Crime: "ThoseselfMperpetuating
- associations of individuals who operate transnationally for the purpose of obtaining power,
- influence, and monetary andJorcoDl1i1ercial gains, wholly or in part by illegal means, while
- pto~ectin,g their activities through a pattern of conuption ... "
- "Transnational Organized Crime: Glossary of Terms," FBI website.
- [https:/l\V\v\v.fbLgov/investlrrute/organized-c.rime]
- 18 Minority Leader Harry Reid letter to Director Comey, August 27,2016.
- [htt ps:i I assets.documentc1oud.o rg/doclllne n ts/3 () 35 844/Reid -Let tcr-to-Co tney _pd}]
- 9
- September 25, 2016
- The Honorable James Corney
- Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation
- 935 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
- Washington, DC 20535
- Dear Director Corney:
- 1 am writing to request the FBI's prompt end of the reported inquiry regarding my personal trip
- to Russia in July 2016 ~ an investigation which has been widely mentioned in the media. ,In this
- regard, I wanted to provide you with a few basic facts which should help underscore what a
- complete waste of time this Witch-hunt directed at me is.
- As you may be aware, the source of these accusations is nothing more than completely false
- media reports. Yet for the record, I have, not met this year with any sanctioned individual in
- Russia or any other country despite the fact that there are no restrictions on U.S. persons
- speaking with such individuals~
- I understand that my stake inPJSC Gazprom has also been brought to your attention. For your
- information, last month I sold my American Depository Receipts in Gazprom. At this time, I
- maintain no hOlding in the company within any of my investment entities or personal accounts.
- My prior stake in Gazprom which I divested last month represented a de minimis equity
- investment that I sold at a loss. It is hard to imagine why this might have been deemed relevant,
- but I wanted to mention it since you were asked to look into this matter.
- In bothering the Bureau· with such repeated appeals, the parties who have requested my
- investigation clearly fall to appreciate the risks they create for America with these shenanigans.
- Instead of allowing the staff of the FBI to focus the nation's limited resources onreal threats,
- these desperate and unfounded calls for myirtvestigation as a private citizen to advance political
- in.terests based. on nothipg more thall preposterous mainstream media reports is a true disgrace~
- Having interacted with members of the U.S. intelligence community including the FBI and CIA
- for many decade~; I appreciate the limitations on your staff's time and resources. Although I
- , have not been contacted by any member of your. team in recent months, I woUld eagerly await
- their' call to discuss any fmal questions they might have in the interest of helping them put these
- outrageous al1egationsto rest while allowing each of us to,shift our attention to useful matters.
- Thahk you in advance for your consideration.
- Sincerely,
- Carter Page
- I was never subsequently contacted last year by any official from the FBI as requested in the
- above correspondence. But I did eventually learn that an intensive domestic political
- surveillance operation was instead initiated on behalf of the Clinton/Obama regime.
- 10
- In concert with the corrupt Clinton/Ohama regime's practices of2016, I would be interested to
- learn if indeed similar related infonnation payoff propositions may be on offer in this instance.
- It has been reported that $50,000 was offered by the U.S. Government to the transnatioiull
- political research operatives of the Clinton campaign - apparently a special treat from the·Obama
- Administration to supplement whatever undisclosed, presumably larger amount was a.lready paid
- by Clinton associates for Steele's 2016 Dodgy Dossier, 19 The complete lies that the Dodgy
- Dossier hastily assembled might have carried potentially disastrous results for the integrity of the
- 2016 election had voters fallen for their dishonesty. But the factual information which I will be
- happy to provide you, assUl11ing my Hlegitinlate FISAwarrant is disclosed through some
- government transparency, might prove infinitely more valuable and relevant.
- Based on extensive reporting related to the completely tmjustified civil rights abuses committed
- against me in 2016, there is a widesprea4 need to protect ourselves in the future from similar
- illegal violations of our democracy by dishonest, corrupt politicians in the homeland seeking to
- advance their personal and partisan interests.
- Regru:dipg what We need to do to protect ourselves and our allies in the future, the first step is
- greater transparency. With the·changjng of the guard at the FBI and other U.S. Intelligence
- Community institutions,this process has already begun. However, a full public account of last
- year's civil rights crimes particularly as it relates to my alleged illegitimate FISA warrant will
- prove essential in this process. "
- In your March 20, 2017 hearing, the following exchange occurred:
- Congressman Schiff: Director Corney, I want to begin by attempting to put to rest
- several claims made by the president about his predecessor, namely that President ()bama
- wiretapped his phones. So that we can be precise, I want to refer you to exactly what the
- president said and ask you whether there is any truth to it.
- First, the president claimed, quote, tlTerrible. Just found out that Obama had my wires
- tapped in Trump Tower just before the victory. Nothing found. This is McCarthyism,"
- unquote.
- Director Corney, was the president's statement that Obarna had his wires tapped in Trump
- Tower a true statement?
- 19 Chuck Ross, "Here's How Much The FBI Planned" To Pay Trump Dossier Author," Chuck
- Ross, Daily Caller, Apri122, 2017. [hup:!ldnilvcalIer.c()ln/2017/04/22/heres-how-much.,the-l.hiplanned~
- to-Rav-1rllmp-dossier-~11llhort.l
- 11
- Comey: With respect ·to the president's tweets about alleged wiretapping directed at him
- by the prior administration~ I have no information that supports those tweets and we have
- looked carefully inside the FBI. The Department of Justice has asked me to share with
- you thEtt the answer is the same for the Department of Justice and all its components. The
- department has no infonnation that supports those tweets~ 20
- Based on revelations in the press thus far, I was the primary known person allegedly put under
- the most intensive surveillance by the Obama Administration as part of their 2016 domestic
- political intelligence operation. Assuming the FISA reports in the Washington Post, New York
- Times and other publications about me are correct, the facts should help dispel the
- misinformation that Congressman Schiff and other members of your Com.niittee received during
- Comey'stestimony. To the contrary, each of the President's tweets of March 4, 2017 were
- entirely correct as described in the analysis of his four related statements that day, below:
- "TERRIBLEl JUST FOUND OUT THAT OBAMA HAD MY 'WIRES TAPPED' IN
- TRuMP TOWER mST BEFORE THE VICTORY. N()TmNG FOUND. TIIIS IS
- MCCARTHYISM!"
- Although I stepped away from my role as an informal, unpaid canlpaign volunteer in the wake of
- the Clinton campaign's lies based on the 2016 Dodgy Dossier, like many millions of Americans I
- continued my support as a member of the Trump movement which I had maintained smce June
- 2015.
- The key defense that former Obama Administration appointees including James Corney might
- have made apparently centers on the word "my".
- In the English language, the word "my" is defmed as: "belonging to or ASSOCIATED WITH
- the speaker" (emphasis added).21 Although I previously served as avery junior member of the
- Trump movement who didn't actually have any direct one-on-one discussions ot meetings with
- our candidate, I have been labelled as a "Trump associate" in literally thousands of media articles
- and television programs. This labeling largely stemmed from consistent mischaracterizations by
- the Clinton associates which tried to smear the Trump campaign with false allegations of
- improper relationships with Russian officialswhich.never actually occurred .
- . Furthermore, in order to properly understand his personal lexicon which stems from the altruistic
- management philosophy of President Trump, it is useful bearing in mind his core campaign
- philosophy. P.er his Election Day victory speech:
- 20 Washington Post Staff, "Full transcript: FBI Director James Corney testifies on Russian
- interference in 2016 election," Washington Post, March 20,2017.
- [https:llwwVl. washingtonpOSLcom/news/post -poLi tics/\vp/20 1 7 /03/20/full-transcriRl-lbi -dircClorj.
- BJnes-comey-testifies-on-russian-interference-in-20 16-election/]
- 21 "My/' Oxford Dictionaries, Oxford University Press, 2017 .
- . [https:llcn.oxforddictionarics.com/definition/mv]
- 12
- "As I've said from the beginning, ourSo was not a campa.ign but rather an incredible and
- great movement, made up of millions of hard-working men and women who love their
- country and want a better, brighter future fotthemselves and for theirfamily ..... This was
- tough. This political stuff is nasty, and it is tough .... You've all given me such incredible 0
- support, and! ,viII tell you that we have a large group of people. You know, they
- kept saying we have a small staff. Not so small. Look at all of the people that we have.
- Look at all of these people.fl22
- Additionally, then-candidate Donald J. Trump also previously explained how his movement Was
- not about him but about us on countless other occasions last year. Again, in his final speech at
- the end of the campaign after victory had been declared, President-elect Trump noted: "I've just
- received a call from Secretary Clinton. She congratulated Us - it's about us - on our
- victory. ,,230
- "IS IT LEGAL FOR A SITTING PRESIDENT TO BE 'WIRE TAPPING' A RACE FOR
- PRESIDENT PRIOR TO AN ELECTION? TURNED DOWN BY COURT EARLIER. A
- NEW LOW!"
- Based on the actual facts in my case rather than the false information provic:led by the Clinton
- camprugnand their surrogates in the U.S. Government last year, members afmy legal team have
- informed me that the alleged actions °by the Obama Adniinistration are ceftainlynot legal. In
- order to prove this and rather thancontinum.g the current cover-up, access to the information that
- I have requested fromOthe U.S. Department of Justice will be essential. 0
- tfI'DBET A GOOD LAWYER COULD MAKE A GREAT CASE OUT OF tHE FACT
- THAT PRESIDENT OBAMA WAS TAPPING MY PHONES IN OCTOBER,JUST
- PRIOR TO ELECTION!"
- My legal team has confrrmed that great cases canObe made. However, in order to do so, the
- information requested for the public release of my FISA warrant application would be very
- helpful. Of greater significance, it would also help to clear up the wrongful misunderstanding
- held by a vastproportion of the American public. I am confident thatHPSCI will contribute to
- this process. .
- "HOW LOW HAS PRESIDENT OBAMA GONE TO T APP MY PHONES DURING THE
- VERY SACRED ELECTION PROCESS. THIS IS NIXONIW ATERGATE. BAD (OR
- SICK) GUY!"
- 22 "Transcript: Donald Trump's Victory Speech," New York Times, November 9; 2016.
- !https:IJvv')vw.nvtilnes.com/20 16/11/1 O/us/politics!trurnp-speec.h-transcript.htrnl)
- 3 "Transcript: Donald Trump's Victory Speech," New York Times, November 9, 2016.
- [httns:/lw\vw.nvtirnes.com/20 16/11 II a/us/pol itics/trump-spcech-transcript.html]
- 13
- Having previo~ly ~p()ken in favor of some of Mr. Trump'.s policies on Fox News Group
- programs during the 2016 campaign24 and given the peaceful relationship Ihave had with
- Russian citizens for many decades since my years in the U.S. Navy, it may be understandable
- why I would be the. primary associated political target if such sick activities had indeed been
- committed as alleged in the previously cited media reports and other publications. Although I
- have never had any direct relationship or meetings with President Trump despite previously
- serving as an informal,unpaid l11ember of one of his campaign's committees, I had frequently
- dined in Trump Grill, had lunch in Trump Cafe, had coffee meetings in the Starbucks at Trump
- Tower; attended events among other visits in2016. Asa sister skyscraper in Manhattan, my
- office at the ruM Building (590 Madison Avenue) is literally linked to the Trump Tower
- building by an atrium. So ifprior media reports are proved to be correct that surveillance was
- indeed undertaken against me and other Trump supporters according to the FISA documehtatioh
- you can provide, it will essentially be deemed as a proven fact that the: American people;s
- concerns that Trump Tower was under surveillance last year is entirely accurate. Please note that
- mymbbile phohe is always turned on and with me 24-hoursa day, except when I am in airplanem()
- d~ duringtlights. As an early Tnrrnpcampaign supporter since June 20 15artd a proud
- mernber of the historic Make America Great Again movement, yet another attack against me of
- this sort may well have been a de facto attack against the citizen who would eventually become
- our current President of the United States. Cle~ly, such potential abuses will be proven or
- disproven based on the information regarding the alleged illegal wiretapping of ine and any
- associated FISA warrants that the execlltive branch should soon provide.
- While a September 23,2016 news article stated that, "U.S. intelligence agencies have also
- received reports that Page met with another top Ptitin aide while in Moscow," 2~ it wasn;t until
- several mOilths later in January 2017 that the soUrce of-this false evidence became fully known:
- the Dodgy possier prepared on behalf of the "Hillary for America" campaign. As a potential
- severe case of election fraud, any FISA warrant would help ascertain whether criminal
- obstruction of justice in the form of false evidence may be the case. After the report by Yahoo
- News,the Clinton campaign rut out an equally false press release just minutes after the article
- was released that ,afternoon.2
- Compounding this transnationaldisinfonnation initiative, even the U.S. Government-funded
- propaganda outletsecho~d the lie~ advanced bytbe Clinton campaign' s D~d~~ Dossier~ again, in
- contrast to what Steele himself saId was "never supposed to be made publtc" ).As dutifully
- 24 For example: Fox Business, August 16,2016 [I1Up:/lfinnncc.yahoo.com/videoJjan-brewerobnma-
- not ... concerncd-224534·142.htmI]; Fox Business, "Varney & Co.," SeptemberS, 2016.
- 25 . Michael Isikoff, "U.S. intel o:fficials probe ties betweenTrumpadviserahd Kremlin," Yahoo
- News, September 23, 2016. [b.!..tQs:/IWV.lW. vahoo.com/nc\;vs/u-s-intel-on1cialli.:.nrobe-tiespet\
- veen-trump-adviser-nnd-kremli.n-175046002.htl11l]
- 26 Hillary for America, "Hillary for America Statement on Bombshell Report About Tr1lIl1p
- Aide's Chilling Ties To Kremlin," September 23,2016.
- [https:/lwww.hillarvC/intol1.com/bric [Jnu/slatcll1Cnts/20 161.09/23/11 i lIary- for-ameri <:i:l-statcmcnt-:
- on~b()mbshcll-r£Dort-abollt-trump-aidcs-chillinu-licsMw .. kremlin/]
- 27 Rowan Scarboroug4, "Ex-spy admits anti-Trump dossier unverified, blames Buzzfeed for
- publishing," Washington Times, April 25, 2017.
- 14
- recited by the Obama Administration-sponsored Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty news
- network in September 2016: "Yahoo News cited the same Western intelligence soUrce as saying
- that U.S. intelligence officials have received reports that Page has also met with Igor Diveikin, a
- right..:harid manofVyacheslav Volodin, Putin's firstde~uty cbiefof staff and a key architect of
- Russia's political landscape during Putih's thlrd term."z
- Just days before the election, the same U.S. Government-funded sources repeated these
- fabrications: "Another adviser, Carter Page, reportedly met with top Kremlin officials including
- those UiJ.der U.S. sanctions.,,29
- The propagation of these falsehoods was indee4 tl'ulystate,,;spoDsoted by bur taxpayer dollars
- with Radio Free EuropelRadio Liberty's FY 2016 budget of$108A million in direct federal
- subsidies.
- To help further put in context how outrageous the Clinton/Obama regune's witch hunt has been,
- it is worth considering the similar case study of General Flynn. Frustrated in the wake of her
- failed attempt to circumvent the long-delayed introduction of effective immigration pbliciesin
- the United States, SaUy Yates instead turned her attention to destroying the career of a
- distingllished American and potentially damaging the stability of the U.S. Government.
- Although I have nevertnet General Flynn, his recent experie1lces 111ake clear that arty minor
- variation between his. memory of a conversation during a vacation on the beaches of the
- Dominican Republic vs. the in-depth transcript kept by the deep state was simply concocted as
- an efficient mechanism offratnilig him and his colleagues for Severe personal damage. Having
- been falsely accused for potential '~blackinail" by U.S. officials who have little understanding of
- the inner workings of the Russian governrheilt myself, I have a deep, frrsthandappreciation of
- these McCarthy-style scare tactics despite having no relationship with Gen.eral FlYnn myself.
- From the start,· this entire exercise has seemed primarily:motivated as a means for suppression of
- dissent. Even Senator Feinstein admitted recently: ", .. when I saw atltree-star general in front of
- the Republican convention shouting' lock her up,' I thought, all nlygoodness, This w6u1d never
- happen~ it never has happened before, this is a three-star general of the United States military
- doing this With no evidence. And it made a big impression on me.,,30 Similar to my experiences,
- the retribution for this exercise of his FIrst Amendment rights cuts to the core of the matter. In
- any event, the preponderance of evidence related to the cases General Flynn referred to during
- his speech in Cleveland greatly exceeds anything in the 2016 Dodgy Dossier which eventually
- [http://w\vw.\vashint:;tontimcs,COln/news/20 17/apd25/christopher-steclc-admits-dossier-chargeunverifie/]
- 28 "Report: U.S. Intelligence Officials ExaminingTnunp Adviseris Russia Ties/' Radio Free
- Europe I Radio Liberty,·September 24, 2016. OlUp:/I\,vvv'w.rfcrl.org!alt-eport-us-intelliQence-
- ~tobe5-trurnp-advisers-russia-ties-kremlin/280 1 0062.htIlll]. .
- 9 Mike Eckel, "Reset To Overload: Russia-U.S. Ties Have Changed, No Matter Who Wins
- The Election," Radio Free Europe/ Radio Liberty, November 6,2016. [http://www.rferl.org/alus-
- election-trunlp-cUnton-relations-russial281 00058.htnl1J
- 30 Meet the Press transcript, NBC News, May 7,2017. [http://v/\vw.nbcnews.com!mect-thcprcss/
- mect;"pl'css-mav-7-20 17-n75600 I]
- 15
- became a cornerstone of the crooked initiative against me and other supporters of the Trump
- movement,first within the prior Administration and now amongst some actors in Congress.
- Instead, I appreciate that the beneficial framework created by HPSCI's parallel investigation now
- offers a factual and constructive pathway forward for our country.
- Although several other crimes by the Clinton/Obama regime during the 2016 election 'contiIiue to
- become known overtime, the possible le~s of classified infonnationwhich took place related to
- the Obama Adinlrristration'sInteUigence COrninUhity Assessment of these matters have thus far
- included two specific felonies which directly relate to me as outlined in my response to this
- question. The specific details provided here regarding these felonies help to further illustrate
- how completely unjusti:Qed their actions were - both the highly damaging leaks of this classified
- infonnati.on given the extreme falsehoods UPOll which they wetepased, as Well as theitRus$ia
- witch hunt more broadly:
- Felony #1: Illegal.leakingojmy identity as '~ale-l" in U.S.A. v. Evgeny Buryakov, Igor
- Spo1ysllev, and VictorPodobnyy - On Apri13, 2017, reporters at ABC News31 and 13UZzFeed
- 'News32 requested to meet in order to informrne that U.S. governrnentoperativeshad unlawfully
- disclosed my identity as Male-l in this 2015 case. This particular-incident follows an increasing
- series of similar revelations about other politically-motivated unmaskings in 2016.33 It relates to
- my brief interactioIls in 2613 with Victor Podobnyy,ajunior attache assigned to thePetmanent
- Mission of the Russian Federation to the United Nations.
- During my meeting with U.S. agents at New York's Plaza Hotel in June 2013 in support of their
- ongoin.g .investigation, I spoke with them at length about my research on international political
- economy which I had been completing as a, Fellow at the Center for National Policy in
- Washington. I brought this up because it seemed t() me that the resources of the U.S.
- Government might be better allocated towards addressing real national security threats,
- particularly given the recent Boston Marathon bOlnbingof-AprillS, 2013. Without question, the
- harsh retributioh subsequently takenagrunstmem.arked a direct retaliati()n against my dissenting
- position about the efficientuse of1imitedU~S. national security. resources. Per an article I had
- recently written and discussed with the U.S. agents (included below), the ClintonlObama regime
- 31 Brian Ross and Matthew Mosk~ "Truinp campaign adviser Carter Page targeted for
- recruitment by Russian spies," ABC News, Apr 4,2017. [http://abcncws.go.com/Politics!trumpcampaiQn-
- advis()r~cartel'-pao:e-targeted-russian-spie$/storv?id=46557506]
- 32 Ali Watkins, "A Former Trump Adviser Met With A Russian Spy," BuzzFeed News, April
- 3, 2017. [https:/lwww.buzzfeed.cOlTl/ulimwatkins/a-fonner-trull1p-adviser-mct-\\'ith-a-ru$sian-
- &pv] .
- 33Kxistina Wong, "Lindsey Graham: 'We Will Continue' to Look into Susan Rice's
- Unmasking," Breitbart News, May 4, 2017. D..l!..tR:llvvvv'\v.breHbarLcoll1/bi~governmentJ2017/
- 05/04/Iindsey-graham-we-will-continuc-to-look-into-sLlsan-rices-Ut1l11Usking/]
- 16
- had been, "Reflecting the highest principles· of cronyism rather than democracy," in many of
- their policy decisions. In my writings, I had also cited a recent quote from Maya Angelou which
- seemed of particular relevance given a range of ineffective policy approaches by Washington at
- the time: '~The philosophers tell us that poWer cdrrupts and absolute power corrupts
- absolutely.,,34 This h~ marked aneatlier instance of the corrupt influence campaign and related
- domestic political intelligence operations in support of failed policies, which would eventually
- blossom in full glory with the obnoxious civil rights violations based on complete lies displayed
- during the 2016 electioll. In short, my dissenting position led to damaging personal attacks by
- governmeiltoperatives under theObama Administration's command.
- With regards to the 2015 case where I agreed to provide support, the fmal scene of the movie
- "The Big Short" offets an instructive summary of the ClintonJObama regime's justice system,
- first led by their Attorney General from 2009 through 2Q15, Eric Holder.35 After essentially
- achieving very little in his 6-years in office, it is understandable why Holdet might want to target
- a token Russian banker· during his final months in office36 since only Zurich-based Credit '
- Suisse's Kareem Serageldin stood as another perfunctory accomplishment during his extended
- six-year tenn.
- As the journalist Matt Taibbi has described his activities in a 2015 artic1e, which has more
- recently proven to offer an accurate representatjon of the Clinton/Obama regime more generally:
- "Holder doesn't look it, but he was 'a revolutionary. He institutionalized a radical dualistic
- approach tocriInirutljustice, essen.tially creating a system of indulgences wherein the world's
- rIchest companiespaidcasb fOf theh:sinsand escaped the stem.er punishments the]aw
- dictated. ,,37
- 34 Maya Augelou, "The 2013 Time 100: Icons," Time, April 18, 2013.
- lhiID:/ltime 1 OO.time.comI20 13!041l8/6mc-l OO/sHdeimichelIc-obmua[)
- 5 "Blame the poor -clip from The Big Short," YouTube, January 14, 2016.
- !ht!pS:I/wvv'\v.youtllbe.c~)m/watch?v=nlCJl1lzEawWiO]
- 6 Office of Public Affairs, "Attorney General Holder Announces CbargesAgainst Russian Spy
- Ring in New York City," Departnlent of Justice website, January 26,2015.
- [https:llww'vv.justic.e.gov/opa/prlattorncy-general-holder-announees..:charges-against.-russian-spvring-
- ne\v-york-city]
- 37 Matt Taibbi, "Eric Holder, Wail Street Double Agent, Comes in From the Cold: Barack
- Obama's former top cop cashes In after six years of letting banks run wild," Rolling Stone, July
- 8,2015.
- [http://vvw\v.rofliIlgstone.comJpolitics!news!eric-holder-'vvaII-street-double-agent-comes-in-n·omthe-
- cold-20 150708] .
- 17
- In March 2003, the CeD:tury Foundation and the Stanley Foundation released ~ report entitled
- ;.~u .S. r.'orcign Policy and Chechnya~·. Written by Michael McFaul who was thel1 a Professor at
- . Stanford University prior to taking positions in the Obama Administration, the report included a
- review of various factoids on this topic. But the most valuable contribution it .offered was a
- window into the underlying source of age-old problems that have plagued the U.s.-Russia
- bilateral relatfonship to this day, Some of these very same obstacles may have helped pave the
- way for the tragedy that ()ccun~ed at the Boston Marathon on April 15, 2013. The report's
- conclusions essentially highlight fundamental philosophies, objectives and dilemmas that have
- stood in the way of vit~ cooperation:
- "US policy regarding Chechnya exposes the limits of American power even in an age of .
- unbridled US power. Russia's military interventions in Chechnya were policies thatUS
- foreign policy leaders would have liked to stop. In the end, however, policies pursued by
- both the Clinton and Bush administrations have had little impact on the course of the war
- in Chechnya."
- Reflecting persistent tendencies and aspirations toward unbridled US power, some of the options
- suggested in the article bordered on the truly draconian:
- "There were and are policyalternatives~ Clint6n and Bush could have sanctioned Russia
- by cutting off direct assistance to the Russian government. They could have suspended
- Russia from memb~rship in the 0-8. They could have postponed presidential summits.
- They :could have offered more htun~nitarian assistance to the region. Even more
- dramatically, they could have offeredtheit services as a niediatot~ Theoretically,
- Chechenand Russian officials could have met at Camp David in 1995 01'2001 to hammer
- btJ,ta political settlement. Hypothetically, they even could have recogni:z;ed the
- legitimacy 9ftheelected govenunent of Chechnyaandprovided direct assistance to the
- government in exile. " .
- Although US foreign tactics and ambitions have varied by region, these approaches of sanctions,
- slispensionsand meddling in internal affairs when not invited remain consistent with intrusive
- policies which have often afflicted America since the Cold War.
- In an epilogue written after a deadly Chechen terrorist attack and hostage seizure at the sold-out
- Dubrovka Theater in Moscow on October 23, 2002, McFaul added his bottom-line conclusion
- regarding certain cooperative approaches:
- "Most dramatically, Bush unambiguously framed his 'war on terrorism' and Putin's 'war
- in Checbnya' as part of one common struggle. The real losers of this united front are the
- people of Chechnya~"
- A debate has emerged whether the U.S. l11issed the chance to prevent the Boston bomhing.
- Although evidence will materialize over time and despite the acknowledgement eiU.S.
- government officials that a "trust deficit" may have negatively impacted the earlier
- investigations, the possibility of prevention might remain a controversy that can never be
- 18
- defmitively solved. However, there is one certainty that cannot be called into question: a more
- cooperative U.S.-Russian bil~teral relationship would clearly decrease the risks of such a
- potential event, both earlier this month and in the future. In this sens~, the recent tragedy in
- Boston could offer a valuable wake-up call for the U.S. government.
- Instead of putting in place excessive restrictions on Russian officials as seen in last year's
- Magnitskv Act which was reminiscent of the blacklists of the McCarthy era, establishing policies
- that instead build links could help to address a range of critical global challenges. 'Yet while
- Washington and its representatives sleep on the security front~ other actors are taking matters
- into their own hand in other arenas.
- Uncle Sam, please do no harm: Alternative forms of diplomacy in an era of gridlock
- Last week, a subtle theme penneated the second annual New York Times Energy for Tomorrow
- Conference. While on one hand dysfunction in the U.S. federal governtnent has instituted an era
- of gridlock, innovative initiatives across the private sector and atthe state andmunicipal1evel of
- government have continued to drive forward monumental change in the energy sector. In the
- wake of this structural evolution of governance, corporations and local communities have taken
- control of their oWn destiny through a diverse array ofrevoilitionary technologies and investment
- programs.
- In the context of U.S.-Russian relations, a similar example may be seen in the relationship of
- Exx.onMohil and Rosneft - the largest oil companies in each of these respective coutitrles.
- Through a diverse portfolio of agreements and related ventures, the two leading companies have
- continued to move forward on projects in the United States, Russia and beyond. Uncler the
- leadership of Igor Sechin, Rosneft's President and Management Board Chainnan? the company
- has taken steps to build bridges and advance the interests of both companies.
- At an investment conferel1ceorganized by the American Chamber of Commerce in Russia last
- week, a former Australiall diplomat named Glenn Waller was the star of the show. As the
- President ofExxonMobiI Russia, he offered telling comnlents regarding his company's joint
- accomplishments with Rosneft:
- ."1 was happy to hear from Ambassador McFaul that it has been discussed at the highest
- level between presidents. We have very strong support from various levels of the Russian
- govetnment."
- Consistent with the conClusions of the recent New York Times cometence,Waller;s quote did
- not indicate strong support from various levels of the Russian and US governments. A more
- active government support of the US businesses community's efforts most espeCially through the
- avoidance of efforts that seek to instigate hegemonic change could represent a strong initial
- move in that general direction.
- The frequently unjustified maltreatment of Russia and its leaders in the US media further
- en rains Ion .. standin tendencies toward misunderstanding,· thereby offering a su er-sized cover
- 19
- forequaIly large policy mistakes by the U.S. government. Despite the recent accomplishments
- of Igor Sechin,his article for the Time 100 was written by Vladimirtvfilov'- an exceptionally
- harsh critic who followed historic precedent in his write-up. In contrast, the Apri129 edition of
- Time magazine also included tributes to U.S. President Barack Obamaand the First Lady
- MichelleObama by HiI1ary Clinton and 1\1ava Angelou respectively. Reflecting the highest
- principles of cronyism rather than democracy, Clinton's future political career rests fumly on the
- continued success and popularity of the Obama Administration OVer the next three and a half
- years. Meanwhile, Angelou was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President
- Obama in 2011 -the highest civilian award. in the United States and in essence the ultimate pay ..
- off.
- Reminiscent of McFaul's earlier discussion oftmbridled U.S. power, Angelouirorucally
- mentions in her tribute, ~'The philosophers tell us that power corrupts and absolute power
- corrupts absolutely." While no person on this planet is completely free from sin in contrast to
- public relations spin, another political philosopher named Alexander Hamilton once iloted, "The
- strongest passions, and inost dangerous weaknesses of the hliman breast; ambition, avarice,
- vanity, the honorable or venial love offame,are all in conspiracy against the deSire and duty of
- peace." Although such failings may have helped enable the terror in Boston, a reevaluation of
- ambitions could set the stage fora future peace.
- Instead of WOllying about what decisions are made on high, effolts by American business lead~rs
- like ExxonMobil to continue establishing bilateral links play an invaluable service to both
- countries. While the palatial setting of Spaso House which Dr. McFaul now calls home may
- Ulldersta.ndably be a difficult place to acquire new humble perspectives regarding unbridled
- power, initial strides in the right ditectioQ.by business can offer further momentum which
- eventually changes the tone and'improves the broader bilateral relationship.
- BUilding a~leaner ftitqre
- Fortunately, the earlier policy alternatives outlined by McFaul were not followed and the
- Americanheadmaster did not suspend Russia from the G .. 8 school. To thecontrary,Russia
- currently holds the Chair of the more democratic and inclusive G-20. Under the leadership of
- President Putin, the Energy Sustainability \Vorkillg Group of the G-20 has takell important steps
- in the energy arena including in the area of green growth. The US Government's supportef such
- cutting-edge initiatives led by Russia offers a viable means for changing direction and following
- in the wake of the Rosneft-ExxonMobil ship.
- Characteristically overstepping his realm of responsibility once aga~ Corney recently
- pontificatecJ on Russia: "Certainly in my view, the greatest threat of any nation on earth, given
- their intention and their capability." This completely unfounded statement reflected a bias from
- the former F.B.I. Director that.may have contributed to - or at leastexacetbated -' the
- aforementioned misdeeds of the Obama Administration and the 9linton campaign for which he
- 20
- had loyally served as an invaluable sUlTogate.38 Similar baseless aspersions have recently been
- · cast against General Flynn as well.39
- Running parallel to these longstanding bigoted traditions amongst sornein the Bureau stretching
- back to the J. Edgar HooverlMcCarthy~era, the simplistic tactic of cataloging patriotic Americans
- as supposed targets for "recruitment" lives on, sadly. An, "unwitting playei in a Russian effort
- to gain access in Washington," was a label that Congressman Dana Rohrabacher and I each had
- stamped on us once again last Friday by the New York Times. Reflecting a level of
- commonsense that often alludes those Who have little or no experience in Russia including many
- of those who denigrated him in the article, Congressman Rohrabacher correctly noted: "Any time
- you meet a Russian member of their Foreign Ministry or the Russian government, you assume
- those people have something to do with Russian intelligence.,,4o To the contrary, the "unwitting"
- ones most often consist of those U.S. Government officials who have never enjoyed the
- opportunity to establish constructive relationships with any Russian Citizens at any point in their
- life.
- Felony #2: lllegalleakingojclassijied informatioll surrounding tlte c()l1tpletelYill1just/fied
- FISA warrant against me, wlticltfllrther enabledpart of the Clinton(Obamu regime's .
- domesticpoliticalintelligetlce operations and influence canzpaign in tlie 2016 election - On
- Aprll12, 2017, theWashingtdn Post published an article explaining that unnamed sources had
- revealed the completely ~justified F~SA warrant to in:ercegt m?, cdminuni~atio~s throughout
- thefirtal months of the reIgn of the ChntonlObama regtU1e. 1 Glven a grOWIng lIst of
- · unanswered questions and apparent abuses regarding this nonsensical invasion of privacy, it
- seems readily apparent that more revelations about these misdeeds will continue to be learned in
- the period to cOlne.42 My legal team and I ate cUtTently busy working on further steps to get to
- 38 Washington Post Staff, "Full testimony of FBI Director James Corney in which he discusses
- Clinton email investigation," Washington Post, May 3, 2017.
- [https:llww\v,.washIngtolTpostcom/ne\vs/post-politics/\'vp/20 17/05/03/read-the-full-tcstimolTV~Ortl)
- i-d.irector-jallles-coHlcv-in-vvhich-he-discusscs-clinton~email~illvestigationl]
- · .39 Gloria Borger, Pamela Brown, lim Sdutto, Marshall Cohen and Eric Lichtbl~u,"First on
- CNN: Russlatiofficials bragged they could use Flynn to influence Trump, sources say," CNN,
- May 20,2017. [http://edition.cnn.com/20 t 1105/19/potHics/n1.ichaer-nvnn-donald-trunlp-russia~
- in f1 uenee!]
- 40 Matt Apuzzo, Adam Goldman and Mark Mazzetti, "F.B.I. Once Warned .G.O.P.
- Congressman That Russian Spies Were RecrQ.iting Him," New YorkTimes,May 19,2017.
- Ihttps:J/vvvvvv.nvtil'nes.comJ20 17 /05/19/us/politics/dana-l'ohrabacher-russia~spies~htnlI]
- 1 Ellen Nakashima, Devlin Barrett and Adam Bntous, "FBI obtained FISA warrant to monitor
- Trump adviser Carter Pagel! Washington Post~ Apri112, 2017.
- [https:l/ww\.y,v.,rashingtonposi.com!vvorld/natiQnaI-sccurity/fbi~obtained-t1sa~\vtlrrtml-to-n10nitorfbrmer~
- trul1lp-adviser-carlCr-pagc/20' 7/04/ I ]/6/01 92ea-J eOc- I ] e7-ad74-
- ]H742a6e93a7 storv.html]
- 42 . Senator Charles E. Grassley, "Grassley Seeks Explanation for FBI's Inconsistent Info in
- Dossier Inquiry: Bureau's Scant Responses to Judiciary Probe Raise More Questions on Steele
- 21
- the bottom of-this abuse. I am highly confident that this expected disclosure will help facilitate a
- highly productive discussion when we meet next month.
- In sutnmary, theproblern.s that have unfortunately been created in U.S.-Russia relations over the
- course of many decades and acrOss presidential administrations from both parties have severely
- limited the ability of me as well as inany Americans to be apositive force for change thus far.
- It is my hope that a logical conclusion to your. current process based on actual facts, including the
- reality that I have never done anything wrong in Russia or with any Russian person,might
- help to. turn this increasingly dangerous tide between our two countries. This has been a primary
- personal objective since my first trip to Moscow as a U!S. Naval Academy Midshipman in Jooe
- 1991. It remains one of my primary obj ectives today, even though I have been completely
- demonized and indeed slandered literally around the world by the Clinton campaign due to my
- voicing highlybeuign yet realistic political and policy views.
- The story of the 2016 election was to a large extent a battle between powerful political and
- business interests on an epic scale vs. average citizens who simply want to honestly see
- improvements in this country. It is unfortunate that a small fish like me has been harassed by
- other members of Congress primarily in response to completely false allegations from a dossier
- that is 100% Inaccurate in every way as· it relates to me. This is particularly frustrating given the
- severe civil rights violations committed against me and which the Senate Judiciary is looking
- into.
- In contrast, the thoughtful framework for analysis set by HPSCI follows a more serious tradition
- of analysis in the House of Representatives that I observed in a prior era. As a First Class
- Midshipman at the U.S. Naval Academy, I was a Research Fellow with the House Armed
- Services Committee from September 1992 Ul1til May 1993 as part of my TridentScholar project
- I proudly serv~d under the leadership of the late Chairmatl, Congressman Les Aspin, Ph.D~, who
- first ran for Congress as a peace candidate in 1970 in opposition to the Vietn~ War. Given the
- prinoiples of serious, data~driven, unbiased analysis that I watched Congressman Aspin maintain
- ill his painstaking work ·with the HASe were a lifelong inspiration to me then. 1 hope that the
- facts Iean provide to yom COnimittee will help you continue these samehighet research
- standards once again. .
- My only reason forever wanting to get iIlvo1vedas a simple unpaid volunteer with the Donald 1.
- Trump for President campaign is that I have a longstanding passionate interest in foreign policy
- and strongly believed that our new President would help fix the problems that have negatively
- impacted U.S. national security over recent decades since the end of the first Cold War. Itwas
- also a key driver of mine in going to the U.S. Naval Academy, the reason I got my Ph.D. part
- time while working as a banker in London, the reason I got a fellowship at the Council on
- Foreign Relations to study these policy issues, why I spent my nights at Georgetown studying for
- my Masters in National Security while I worked as an Arms Control Action Officer in the
- Pentagon and the same reason I spent 6 years as a Fellow·at the Center for National Policy in
- ties," April 28, 2017. 01ttps:I!W\v,\v,grasslev.senatc.gov!ncws/news-rclcascs!grasslev-seeksexplanation-
- Jbi's-incol1sistent-info-dossier-inquirv]
- 22
- \VashingtOIl, also in my free time. I can linderstand that this continu.ed inquiry stems from
- completely false allegations by transnational aSsociates of the Clinton camp~gn who interfered
- with OlIT democracy. But I appreciate your invitation. to have a conversation onthese matters in
- open.session of your Committee to get to the bottom oftbis in a timely and sensible matiner.
- Thank you again for allowing me to contribute to this process of restoring the integrity of the
- U.S. intelligence community. I look forward to meeting \vith you in the coming weeks foiIowing
- the release of the contents afmy illegitimate FISA warrant.
- carter Page, Ph.D.
- 23
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. CONAWAY: In this letter, you indicated that you were not in possession of
- any responsive documents.
- 4
- The committee scheduled a voluntary interview with you on June 4th, 2017, but the
- interview was postponed at the request of the minority.
- The committee issued a subpoena to you on October 4th, 2017, directing the
- production of documents reasonably believed to be in your possession and your
- subsequent testimony.
- On October 10th of 2017, the committee received a letter from you in which you
- indicated your intention to invoke your Fifth Amendment privilege to not testify .
- . Without objection, a copy of that letter shall be included in the record.
- [The information follows:]
- ******** INSERT 1-2 ********
- UNCLASSIFIED
- GLOBAL ENERGY CAPITAL LLC
- BY ELECTRONIC MAIL AND FIRST CLASS MAIL
- The Honorable Robert S. Mueller III
- Special Counsel
- U.S. Department of Justice
- 950 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W~
- Washington, DC 20530
- The Honorable Richard Burr and Mark Warner
- U.S. Senate Select.Committee on Intelligence (SSeI)
- 211 Hart Senate Office Building
- Washington, D.C. 20510
- The Honorable Devin Nunes, K. Michael Conaway and Adam Schiff
- U.S. House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence (HPSCI)
- Capitol Visitor Center HVC-304
- US Capitol Building
- Washington, DC 20515
- October 10,2017
- Subject: Response to your indirect and direct data requests and testimony invitations
- Dear Special Counsel Mueller, Senator Burr, Senator Warner, Congressman Nunes,
- Congressman Conaway and Congressman Schiff:
- In the 225-year history since our Constitution's Bill of Rights was ratified on December 15,
- .1791, no common law precedent has existed for Article I or. Article II institutions to request that
- an individual or their advisors compile massive quantities of irrelevant data or provide testimony
- after that individual had already been illegally wiretapped based on false evidence and the
- felonious disclosure of information regarding such an unlawful search had previously been made
- available to the public. In the wake of last year's extreme obstruction of justice that allegedly
- occurred in the U.S. Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court, I am writing to inform you that it is
- my Intention to exercise the Constitutional protections offered by the privileges of the Fifth
- Amendment. Whereas the historic civil rights abuses committed against me have verifiably'
- represented a witch hunt first aimed directly at myself since the very beginning of these
- illegitimate efforts by U.S. Federal agencies, the Congress and media adversaries of Mr. Donald
- 1. Trump to illicitly influence the U.S. Presidential election through outrageous false information
- in the months leading up to November 8,2016\ initially during his campaign as a candidate and
- Michael Isikoff, "U.S. intel officials probe ties between Trump adviser and Kremlin," Yahoo
- News, September 23, 2016. [.bUps:/ /vvww. yahoo .com/news/u-s-inte1-officials-probe-tiesbetween-
- tn1U1p-adviser-and-kremlin-175046002.htn11]; "Report: U.S. Intelligence Officials
- Examining Trump Adviser's Russia Ties," Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty, September 24,
- 2016. [http://www.rferI.org/aJreport-us-intel1igence-probes-t.rUlTIp-advisers-russia-ties-
- 590 Madison Avenue, 21st noor, New York, New York 10022
- t: +lq12) 5379258 f: +1(212) 537 9281
- continuing more recently during the start of his term as the President of the United States, I also
- intend to take legal action to quash any related subpoenas and requests which may be directed at
- my advisors and other colleagues of mine. As I have told representatives of your respective
- organizations on countless occasions throughout many hours of voluntary discussions and as
- further demonstrated through hundreds of pages of supporting correspondence, I have never had
- any direct discussions, phone conversations, email correspondence, or face-to-face
- communications with President Trump at any point in my life.· I have also never done anything
- illegal in Russia or amidst my activities related to Russia since my first visit to Moscow as a U.S.
- Naval Academy Midshipman in June 1991. Thus, this ongoing investigative clean-up attempt
- and effort to find anything to further tarnish my name as a way of partially repairing the severe
- damage to our democracy that the Dodgy Dossier represented in 2016 now continues to violate
- every conceivable safeguard of due process guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution.
- I made an appeal to the U.S. Department of Justice, the FBI and the NSA 142-days ago on May
- 21, 2017, requesting that information, applications and other materials related to my illegitimate
- FISA warrant be expeditiously disclosed? Despite multiple subsequent requests to the U.S.
- Departmerit of Justice to expedite this disclosure both by myself as well as distinguished leaders
- of the U.S. Senate3 over the months since, no information has been provided as of today. By
- defmition, it is impossible to match the technological and data processing capabilities of the
- multiple U.S. federal agencies that illegitimately attempted to influence the 2016 election
- through their alleged surveillance and associated misinformation campaigns against me. As a
- result, and despite my having already voluntarily provided extensive personal information to
- representatives of each of your respective organizations, the parallel, exceptionally broad
- requests made by your Office and Committees could create more inherent risks given my
- infinitely more limited personal data processing capability as compared to the U.S. Government.
- In addition to other associated considerations, these risks include continued injury of both the
- judicial and extrajudicial variety in keeping with the precedent of highly damaging, illicit
- information disclosures as I have experienced throughout the past year.
- My latest understanding of the multidirectional legal attack that your respective organizations
- have continued to unnecessarily wage against myself and my colleagues is that you now have
- k[£In!illi.Z_~QlQ_QQ_~_:JltmJJ; Harry Reid letter to James Comey, August 27,2016.
- b!Jps://ass_ets.docu~neQ1fJQyd.OIg/do£!:!m.el~ts/3035_~44/Rei.9-Letter-to-C9l!1...9Y...:.12f1f
- 2 In response to the April 11, 2017 Washington Post report that, "The FBI obtained a secret
- court order last summer to monitor the communications of an adviser t6 presidential candidate
- Donald Trump, part of an investigation into possible links between Russia and the campaign, law
- enforcement and other U.S. officials said. The FBI and the Justice Department obtained the
- warrant targeting Carter Page's communications after convincing a Foreign Intelligence
- Surveillance Court judge that there was probable cause to believe Page was acting as an agent of
- a foreign power, in this case Russia, according to the officials." See Ellen Nakashima, Devlin
- Barrett and Adam Entous, FBI obtained FISA warrant to monitor Trump adviser Carter Page,
- Washington Post [available at http://wapo.stl2pr7kpE ].
- 3 For example: https://\Vw\v.judiciary.senate.gov/in1o/rnediaJdoc/20 17 -06-
- 27~)20CEG%20LOG%20to~~20DOJ%20FBT%20(proposed%20and%20finalo/020FISA 0/02 0 appli
- cations). pei:f
- 2
- interest in the reason why my fIrm Global Energy Capital LLC and I personally have not
- reported any revenue related to Russia throughout the past several years. In the world of
- international investments, complex emerging market transactions and jurisdictions have been
- known to require in excess of ten years to recognize a profit as has been seen in the work of
- some U.S.-based investment firms in Argentina, for example.4 While I have also been working
- diligently as an international political economy scholar and investment professional on other
- matters worldwide over the past nine years until defamatory media reports and the ongoing witch
- hunt ruthlessly disrupted my life, please be informed that I have predominantly been living on
- my life savings throughout this period. .
- In terms of other relev~nt legal precedent, the ongoing civil rights abuses that I have continued to
- be subjected to are closely equivalent to the illegal COINTELPRO (COunter INTELligence
- PROgram) projects conducted by the FBI aimed at surveilling, infiltrating, discrediting, and
- disrupting the peaceful activities of another anti-war scholar, Martin Luther King, Ph.D.s While
- I have otherwise received little protection or support in my efforts to get to the truth about the
- crimes committed against me and our democracy, with the exception of the brave actions of
- Senator Grassley and other members of the Senate Judiciary Committee, my ongoing civil
- actions in the U.S. District Court of the Southern District of New York6 should eventually help to
- gain additional belated discovery regarding more relevant activities that influenced the 2016 U.S.
- election, including those taken by agencies of the U.S. Government and private sector forces that
- have made efforts to harm myself and the Trump movement.
- In Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662,679 (2009), the Supreme Court held that, " ... to state a claim
- based on a violation of a clearly established right, respondent must plead sufficient factual matter
- to show that petitioners adopted and implemented ... policies at issue not for a neutral,
- investigative reason but for the purpose of discriminating ... " While the petitioners referenced by
- Justice Kennedy in that 2009 case were individuals of high moral integrity and professionalism,
- the ever increasing amount of factual matter that has continued to become available through
- ongoing legal and illegal disclosures have shown a clear pattern of discrimination and related
- illicit activities by the U.S. Government in 2016 against myself as an unpaid, informal supporter
- of the Trump Movement.
- I have already been subjected to extreme levels of extrajudicial punishment consistent with the
- patterns of a police state based on the felonious leaks related to the falsehoods stemming from
- the Dodgy Dossier as well as my illegitimate FISA warrants, in the form of domestic terrorist
- 4 Katia Porzecanski, Charlie Devereux, and Bob Van Voris, "Paul Singer Cuts Deal With
- Argentina After Ugly, IS-Year Dispute," Bloomberg February 29,2016.
- https:/hN\\T\v.bloolnberg.cOlnJnews/articles/2016-02-29/argentina-reaches-4-65-billion-deal-withluain-
- holdouts Tim R. Samples, "Rogue Trends in Sovereign Debt: Argentina, Vulture Funds,
- and Pari Passu under New York Law," 35 Northwestern Journal of International Law &
- Business, 49, 86. (2014)
- S Natsu Taylor Saito, "Whose Liberty - Whose Security - The USA PATRIOT Act in the
- Context of COIN TEL PRO and the Unlawful Repression of Political Dissent," 81 Oregon Law
- Review, 1051, 1132. (2002)
- 6 Carter Page v. Oath Inc., and Broadcasting Board of Governors, SDNY, 17-cv-06990.
- 3
- threats and other severe costs to myself and innocent people whomI am close to. I plan to
- continue to take the necessary steps within my power as a private citizen to resolve these
- unprecedented injustices.
- Although I also hereby decline the direct and iIfdirect requests for closed-door meetings \vith
- your respective organizations based on my Fifth Amendment rights and the considerations
- directly related· to the multiple civil rights abuses cited, supra, I would be happy to help in any
- way that I can to inform the public through transparent disclosure regarding what really
- happened in terms of government influence on the 2016 election. \Vith all due respect to the
- Congressional Intelligence Committees, there has been a complete double-standard in that people
- loyal to the Clinton-Ohama team such as Mr. Clapper, :tvfr. Corney and :tvrr. Brennan have
- frequently been allowed to provide highly damaging testimony in public against myself and
- others, \yh~le those of us who \vere falsely accused continue to be damaged by being stuck in
- closed-door sessions like criminals undergoing secret interrogation. Given the close ties that
- Facebook has \vith the Clinton and Obama teams7
- , I would be happy to offer balance at SSCI's
- upcoming proceedings on November 1, 20178 by providing more relevant perspectives regarding
- how U.S. state-sponsored and private media organizations used their platforms to spread
- misinformation in attempts to influence the 2016 election. \Vhereas the few hundred-thousand
- dollars of alleged social media ads reported thus far are minor in comparison to the hundreds of
- millions or billions of dollars of advertising revenues earned on the back of the fake ne\vs stories
- about me prior to the election, I believe my perspectives could prove invaluable to SSCI's
- forthcoming debate.
- Carter Page, Ph.D.
- "Found: Election collusion b~t\veen Facebook and Hillary - \VND.com," September 29,2017.
- http://\v\\,\v.\vnd,cOlnJ20 17!09/found-election-collusion-between-facebook-811d-hillaryl
- 8 Katie Bo \Villiams and Ali Breland, "Senate panel invites Facebook, Google to testify in
- Russia probe," The Hill, September 27,2017. http://thehill.com/homellews!senate!352743-
- senate-panel-iDvl tes-facebook -to-testi fv
- 4
- 5
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. CONAWAY: Following further discussions} we agreed that you would testify
- in this setting} and we appreciate you being here today.
- Dr. Page} questions during today's hearing may seem basic to you} but that is
- because we need to clearly establish facts relevant to our investigation. Please do not
- assume we know any facts that you have previously disclosed as any part of any other
- interview or review.
- We ask that you give complete and fulsome replies to your questions} based on
- your best recollection. If a question is unclear or you are uncertain in your response}
- please let us know. If you do not know the answer to a question or cannot remember}
- simply say so. If you need a break} please let us know.
- Asyou know} this hearing will be transcribed. There is a reporter making a record
- of these proceedings so we can easily consult a written compilation of your answers.
- Because the reporter cannot record gestures} we ask that you answer verbally. If you
- forget to do this} we may remind you to do so. You may be asked to spell certain terms or
- unusual phrases.
- You are entitled to a lawyer to be present for this interview} though you are not
- required to do so. And I see that you do not have counsel today. Are you currently
- represented by counsel?
- MR. PAGE: Not for this matter.
- MR. CONAWAY: Thank you.
- As a reminder} the record will reflect that you have been compelled to testify.
- Objections by you to any questions posed by members must be stated concisely and in a
- nonargumentative manner. If you raise an objection} the hearing will proceed. The
- testimony taken is subject to any objection.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 6
- UNCLASSIFIED
- As clearly stated in the subpoena issued to you on October 4th, you may refuse to
- answer a question only to preserve a testimonial privilege.
- Finally, you are reminded that you are providing testimony under oath and that it is
- unlawful to deliberately provide false information to Members of Congress or our staff.
- Before we proceed, we would like to have your opening statement and -- or before
- we proceed with your opening statement, I'll ask the ranking member for any comments
- that he might like to make.
- Adam.
- MR. SCHIFF: Thank you,Mr. Chairman. I donlt have any opening comments at
- this time. I look forward to the hearing.
- MR. CONAWAY: All right, thank you.
- Dr. Page, you are able to make an opening statement limited to 5 minutes, sir.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 7
- UNCLASSIFIED
- TESTIMONY OF CARTER PAGE, PH.D.
- MR. PAGE: Thank you for the opportunity to discuss the historic impact of big
- money opposition political research operations on the U.S. Intelligence Community over
- the past 14 months. As the American public has now learned, these epic fictitious stories
- primarily stemmed from the momentous world premiere of opposition political research
- from the dodgy dossier which maliciously attacked me and the Trump campaign in the final
- weeks preceding last year's election.
- Despite many illicit activities of the U.S. Government, clandestine political
- operatives, and some media outlets that effectively misled American voters in 2016, our
- country is fortunate that these outrageous fictional stories did not sufficiently reshape the
- outcome of last year's election in the ways originally intended. But millions of taxpayer
- dollars and extraordinary amounts of time have subsequently been wasted by HPSCI and
- other congressional committees in the unwitting response to lies from plutocrat-funded
- opposition political research consultants, in parallel with one of the worst intelligence
- failures in American history.
- In 2016, the new power of internet-enabled traditionallC propaganda tactics
- spread to the homeland for the first time in a Presidential election. In light of these
- attacks ag'ainst our democracy, a more strategic consideration of how the IC might adapt to
- prevent future disasters is urgently required. I hope that the lessons from the
- extraordinary damage suffered by the Trump campaign and myself may help America avoid
- future domestic attacks on our fundamental democratic principles and constitutional
- foundation.
- The two core themes of the politically biased intelligence report of January 6th,
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 2017, offer a valuable framework for analysis of the U.S. Government's own efforts to
- influence the 2016 election and undermine our country's liberal democratic order.
- 8
- First, the alleged U.S. cyber operations of wiretap against myself, as a previously
- unknown private citizen who volunteered as an informal, unpaid member of an early
- foreign policy advisory committee with the Trump campaign, marked a new low with this
- baseless domestic interference in our democracy prior to the 2016 election.
- Your full committee and I do not yet entirely know the details about how I was
- illegally hacked and wiretapped, but we should learn that soon, given the impending
- expected fulfillment of related outstanding requests from Congress and myself.
- Second, and in the interim, while these illicit domestic hacking activities remain
- undisclosed, what we do know for sure relates to the other theme of the politically
- motivated intelligence report from January 6th: The role of U.S. Government agencies,
- state-funded media, third-party intermediaries, and paid media users or trolls that are
- antithetical to the foundations of a properly functioning democratic society.
- The Senate has held various superfluous hearings this week with social media
- companies, but, as Senator Lindsey Graham correctly noted, domestic media assets can be
- used by terrorists to recruit in cyberworld people to their cause.
- This is precisely what occurred in the wake of the dodgy dossier. Following a
- familiar pattern that first began in September 2016, in the final months before last year's
- election, within hours of dodgy dossier recitals by members of this committee on March 20
- into the congreSSional record and on national television regarding the fabricated fairy tales
- about my alleged negotiations with Rosneft's CEO, a person whom I have never met at any
- point in my life, I received even more threats.
- In the interest of time and to avoid further shocking drama today, I ask that this
- transcript-and my full statement be submitted for the record. It's ironic that many U.S.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 9
- UNCLASSIFIED
- Senators have criticized private sector companies for passively allowing a few hundred
- thousand dollars of social media advertisements that virtually no one paid attention to,
- while many of these same legislators and other Members of Congress themselves
- authorized over $108 million to fund the first domestic propaganda operation in U.S.
- Presidential campaign history, which broadcast the false allegations of the dodgy dossier to
- the American electorate. Even more shocking is how this misuse of taxpayer dollars
- supplemented the illicit activities of large private media organizations and their executives
- to deceive U.S. voters, several of whom had themselves sponsored these same opposition
- political activities by Mr. Steele in the first place. Worse yet, many of these same political
- donors have also actively supported prominent Members of Congress.
- Whereas my name was so thoroughly tarnished during your committee's March 20,
- 2017, discussion with James Comey about the dodgy dossier on national television, in lieu
- of an essential requisite reintroduction of who I am and as a necessary belated correction
- of the record, I also request in the interest of time that my short biography be submitted
- for the record as per the attached exhibit included with this opening statement.
- In retrospect, the deference that the FBI and CIA allegedly accorded the
- DNC-funded dodgy dossier prepared by opposition research consultant Christopher Steele,
- who apparently hasn't stepped foot in Russia for many years, reveals either, A, a shocking
- collective ignorance of Russia and how Russia operates in the modern era; B, a politically,
- highly political biased agenda that dangerously violates the legal mandate of the U.S.
- Government agencies; or, C, all of the above. I'm sorry.
- [The statement of Mr. Page follows:]
- ******** INSERT 1-3 ********
- UNCLASSIFIED
- Testimony of Carter Page, Ph.D.
- Full Committee Hearing
- U.S. House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence ("HPSCI")
- 0900, Thursday, November 2, 2017
- I
- II
- Thank you for the opportunity to discuss the historic impact of big-money opposition political
- research operations on the U.S. Intelligence Community ("Ie") over the past 14-months. As the
- American public has now learned, these epic, fictitious stories primarily stemmed from the
- momentous world premierei of opposition political research from the Dodgy Dossierii which
- maliciously attacked me and the Trump campaign in the final weeks preceding last year's
- election. Despite many illicit activiti~s of the U.S. Government, clandestine foreign political
- operatives and some media outlets that effectively misled American voters in 2016, our country
- is fortunate that these outrageous fictional stories did not sufficiently reshape the outcome of last
- year's election in the ways originally intended. But millions of taxpayer dollars and
- extraordinary amounts of time have subsequently been wasted by HPSCI and other
- Congressional Committees in the unwitting response to lies from plutocrat-funded opposition
- political research consultants, in parallel with one of the worst intelligence failures in American
- history. In 2016, the new power of internet-enabled traditional IC propaganda tactics spread to
- the homeland for the first time in ~ presidential election. iii In light of these attacks against our
- democracy, a more strategic consideration of how the IC might adapt to prevent future disasters
- is urgently required. I hope that the lessons from the extraordinary damage suffered by the
- Trump campaign and myself may help America avoid future domestic attacks on our
- fundamental democratic principles and Constitutional foundation.
- The two core themes of the politically-biased intelligence report of January 6, 210iv offer a
- valuable framework for analysis of the U.S. Government's own efforts to influence the 2016
- presidential election and undermine our country's liberal democratic order. First, the alleged
- U.S. cyber operations and wiretap against myself" as a previously unknown, private citizen who
- volunteered as an informal, unpaid member of an early foreign policy advisory committee of the
- Trump campaign marked a new low with this baseless domestic interference in our democracy
- prior to the 2016 election. Your full Committee and I do not yet entirely know the details about
- how I was illegally hacked and wiretapped, but we should learn that soon given the impending
- expected fulfillment of related outstanding requests from Congress vi and myself. vii
- Second, and in the interim while these illicit domestic hacking activities remain undisclosed,
- what we do know for sure relates to the other general theme of the politically-motivated
- intelligence report from January 6: the role of U.S. Government agencies, state-funded media,
- third-party intermediaries, and paid media users or "trolls" that are antithetical to the foundations
- of a properly functioning democratic society. The Senate has held various superfluous hearings
- this week with social media companies but as Senator Lindsey Graham correctly noted, domestic
- media assets can be "used by terrorists to recruit in cyberworld people to their cause".viii This is
- precisely what occurred in the wake of the Dodgy Dossier.ix Following a familiar pattern that
- first began in September 2016 in the final months before last year's election, within hours of
- Dodgy Dossier recitals by members of this Committee on March 20 into the Congressional
- Record and on national television regarding the fabricated fairytales about my alleged
- negotiations with Rosneft's CEO, a person whom I have never met at any point in my life, I
- . '
- "
- received even more threats. In the interest of time and to avoid further shocking drama today, I
- ask that this transcript and my full statement be submitted for the Record. x
- It is ironic that many U.S. Senators have criticized private sector companies for passively
- allowing a few hundred thousand dollars of social media advertisements that virtually no one
- paid attention to, while many of these same legislators and other members of Congress
- themselves authorized over $108 million dollars to fund the first domestic propaganda operation
- in U.S. presidential campaign history which broadcast the false allegations of the DodgyDossier
- to the American electorate.xi Even more shocking is how this misuse of taxpayer dollars'
- supplemented the illicit activities of large private media organizations and their executives to
- deceive U.S. votersxii, several of whom had themselves sponsored these same opposition political
- research activities by Mr. Steele in the first place. Wor~e yet, many of those same political
- donors have also actively sponsored prominent members of Congress.
- Whereas my name was so thoroughly tarnished during your Committee's March 20,2017'
- discussion with James Corney about the Dodgy Dossier on national television, in lieu of an
- essential requisite reintroduction of who I am and as a necessary belated correction of the
- Record, I also request in the interest of time that my short biography be submitted for the Record
- as per the attached Exhibit, included with this opening statement.
- In retrospect, the deference that the FBI and CIA allegedly accorded the DNC-funded Dodgy
- Dossier prepared by opposition research consultant Christopher Steele who apparently hasn't
- stepped foot in Russia for many years reveals either:
- (A) a shocking collective ignorance of Russia and how Russia operates in th.e modem era,
- (B) a highly-politically, biased agenda that dangerously violates the legal mandate of these
- U.S. government agencies, or
- (C) all of the above.
- Given recent revelationsxiii that continue to drip out, it now appears increasingly likely that (C),
- all of the above, is the case. This should be truly alarming, particularly to members of HPSCI
- given your Committee's oversight responsibilities.
- On a more fundamental level, far deeper failures of the IC's largely consistent, traditional
- assessments regarding Russia stretch back long before the start of the Trump campaign in June
- 2015. Instead, it extends throughout the entirety of this institution's historyXiV as Daniel Patrick
- Moynihan, Ph.D. once astutely notedXV, speaking in part from insights gained during his term as
- the Vice Chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee.xvi Given the geopolitical stakes
- worldwide today, a more accurate standard of intelligence assessments particularly as it relates to
- Russia is now urgently required. Although Senator Moynihan's efforts towards achieving
- necessary reform stalled at the end of the first Cold Warxvi\ his poignant advice certainly applies
- now more than ever given where our great country finds itself today in the wake of last year's
- . unprecedented abuses in this capital city.
- Following many disasters precipitated overseas by the IC in the Middle EastXViii; Asiaxix, AfricaxX,
- Latin Americaxxi and beyond throughout its history, the recent embarrassments that the Dodgy
- Dossier helped create for our great country here at home carried extraordinary damage for many
- average American citizens such as myself, including human rights violations, domestic terrorist
- threats and efforts to undercut our democracy in 2016. I look forward to discussing these lessons
- learned with you in the hours and months to come. The fundamental reshaping of the U.S.
- intelligence apparatus is long overdue and last year's attacks against our democracy from
- Washington offer the perfect opportunity to belatedly embark upon this process that myoId boss
- Senator Moynihan once wisely suggested over a quarter-century ago.
- Exhibit:
- Reintroduction of Carter Page, Ph.D., to the
- U.S. House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence,
- following the extensive misinformation presented at the March 20, 2017
- Open Hearing based on the Dodgy Dossier
- Biography of Dr. Carter W. Page
- Carter Page is Founder and Managing Partner of Global Energy Capital LLC, a New York-based
- financial institution focused primarily on energy investments in developing markets. From 2010
- to 2016, he previously served as a Fellow at the Center for National Policy in Washington where
- he wrote on energy and foreign policy issues. He has lectured extensively worldwide and his
- past teaching experience includes service as an Adjunct Assistant Professor in the Center for
- Global Affairs at New York University.
- In early 2016, he volunteered as an informal, unpaid member of an early Trump campaign
- foreign policy committee. This committee met once with then-candidate Trump on March, 31,
- 2016; a meeting that Dr. Page did not have the opportunity to attend because he was previously
- scheduled to meet with senior U.S. military leaders far from Washington that day. He was never
- paid any money by the Trump campaign and he has never made any financial contributions to
- any politician since supporting fellow-Annapolis graduate John McCain's 2008 Presidential
- campaign. He never was asked to obtain nor was he provided negative information about
- anyone, including Mrs. Hillary Clinton, by any Russian person or entity". Notwithstanding these
- facts that the FBI absolutely knew, they allegedly obtained a FISA warrant to hack his computer
- and listen to every communication he made on a daily basis.
- He is the former Chief Operating Officer of the Energy & Power Group at Merrill Lynch. Until
- July 2007, he was Deputy Branch Manager of the bank's representative office in Moscow which
- he helped open in 2004. As an investment banker in Russia, he previously advised on a range of
- strategic and financing transactions in the energy and power sector.
- Carter is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, where he was a former International
- Affairs Fellow and Co-Director of the Council's study group on the Caspian Sea region from
- 1998 to 1999. In this capacity, he conducted research on economic and investment policy in the
- former Soviet Union and the Middle East.
- In addition to multiple tours in the Middle East and Europe as a U.S. Navy surface warfare
- officer, Carter previously served as the Navy's working group representative for nuclear
- nonproliferation policy issues in the Pentagon where he focused in part on negotiations with
- Russia. During this time, he drafted U.S. Navy positions concerning ongoing diplomatic
- negotiations and conducted comprehensive reviews of treaties, U.N. resolutions and Presidential
- Decision Directives. He briefed senior Navy officials regarding arms control and nuclear
- proliferation developments globally, including a special emphasis on Europe, Korea, and the
- Middle East. He also initiated and led weekly meetings of Service and Joint Staff action officers
- following the Navy's selection as lead service for an issue team during an in-depth Department
- of Defense strategic counterproliferation review.
- Since resigning from the U.S. Navy in 1998, he has worked in the private sector on commercial
- transactions as well as in academia. At no point in his life has he ever worked as an agent of any
- foreign government, either directly or indirectly.
- Carter graduated with Distinction from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1993, where he was a Trident
- Scholar and a Political Science Honors Major. He holds an M.A. in National Security Studies
- from Georgetown University (1994), an M.B.A. from New York University's Stem School of
- Business (2001), and a Ph.D. from the University of London's School of Oriental and African
- Studies (2012).
- Carter Page received his nomination to Annapolis from the late Congressman Hamilton Fish IV
- of New York in 1988.
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- x Transcript of threat received on March 2o"~ "2017 following the House Intelligence
- Committee's Open Hearing with James Corney regarding the false allegations from the Dodgy
- Dossier: "Yo, what's up man? Sounds like things are going pretty fucking good for you. Go to·
- trade out your fucking country for some fucking Russian dollars. We know what the fuck
- you've been doing, you piece of shit mother fucker. You think you're not, you know you're not
- in fucking in cahoots with fucking Rosneft and every fucking Russian oligarch over there? You
- fucking half-wit, fucking piece of shit. You deserve everything you fucking get. Every fucking
- thing you get. If it was up to me, after we fucking tried you for treason, we'd take you out in the
- street and beat the fucking piss out of you with baseball bats, you cock sucking mother fucker.
- Next time you turn your back on your fucking country, you'll fucking regret it."
- xi According to a May 2017 U.S. Department of State Office of Inspector General inspection,
- RFE had an approximate annual budget in FY 2016 of $108,414,000. U.S. Department of State
- Office of Inspector General, "Inspection of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty," May 2017.
- [https://oig.state.gov/systemlfiles/isp-ib-17-21.pd~J See also:
- https://vvw\v.bbg.gov/networks/rferl/
- xii See also another subsequent broadcast of Dodgy Dossier lies to American voters by U.S.
- state-sponsored propaganda outlets, 2 days before the 20 i 6 election: "Another adviser, Carter
- Page, reportedly met with top Kremlin officials including those under U. S. sanctions." Mike
- Eckel, "Reset To Overload: Russia-U.S. Ties Have Changed, No Matter Who Wins The
- Election," Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty, November 6,2016. [http://wvv'\v.rfer1.org/a/u-selectiol1-
- tnln1p-clinton-relatiol1s-nlssia/281 00058.html]
- xiii Adam Entous, Devlin Barrett, and Rosalind Helderman, "Clinton campaign, DNC paid for
- research that led to Russia dossier," Washington Post, October 24,2017.
- [https:llvvwvv.vvashingtonpost.comlworldlnational-security/clinton-campaign-dnc-paid-'forresearch-
- that-led-to-russia-dossier/20 17/1. O/24/226fabfD-b8e4-11 e7 -a908-
- a3470754bbb9 stO.ly.htnl1] Kenneth P. Vogel and Maggie Haberman, "Conservative Website
- First Funded Anti-Trump Research by Firm That Later Produced Dossier, New York Times,
- October 27, 2017. [https:llwww.nytimes.con1l20171l0/27/us/politics/trunlp-dossier-paulsinger.
- html] .
- xiv Tim Weiner, Legacy 0/ Ashes: The History o/the CIA, New York: Doubleday, 2007.
- xv Daniel Patrick Moynihan, "Do We Still Need the C.I.A.?", New York Times, May 19, 1991.
- xvi Daniel Patrick Moynihan, "The Peace Dividend," New York Review o/Books, J~e 28,
- 1990.
- [http://www.nybooks.cO.ln/artic1esIl990/06/28/the-peace-dividendl] Daniel Patrick Moynihan,
- Pandaemonium: Ethnicity in International Politics, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1993.
- xvii F or example, "Title III: Unification of United States Diplomacy - Requires the transfer to
- the Secretary of State of all the functions, powers, and duties of the Central Intelligence Agency
- (CIA) ... " See "S.236 - End of the Cold War Act of 1991," Sponsor: Sen. Daniel Patrick
- Moynihan [D-NY], 102nd Congress, January 17, 1991. [https:llwww.congress.govibil1Jl02ndcongress/
- senate-bill/23 6]
- xviii Robert L. Jervis, Why Intelligence Fails: Lessonsfrom the Iranian Revolution and the Iraq
- War, 1st Edition, Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 2011.
- xix "'Ifyou'knew how much we spend and how much money we'waste in this area, it would
- knock you off your chair. It's criminal!' - Senator Allen Ellender commenting on United States
- intelligence activities in 1971." See "The CIA's Secret Funding and the Constitution," Yale Law
- Journal, Vol. 84, Issue 3, January 1975, pp. 608-636.
- "I am a retired CIA officer who earned numerous awards and medals including the prestigious
- career intelligence medal. During my last ten years with the CIA I protected its false information
- on Vietnam. The deficiencies that created the Vietnam War permeate CIA operations and I felt
- an imperative to tell this to the American people and wrote a book about my experiences ... " See
- Ralph W. McGehee, "CIA: Ignorance Is Strength," Bill o/Rights Journal, Vol. 16, 1983, pp. 29-
- 33.
- Vietnam Veterans American v. Central Intelligence Agency, U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th
- Circuit, January 26, 2016.
- xx Adeno Addis, "International Propaganda and Developing Countries," Vanderbilt Journal 0/
- Transnational Law, Vol. 21, Issue 3, 1988, pp. 491 ... 548.
- xxi Jim Rasenberger, The Brilliant Disaster: JFK, Castro, and America's Doomed Invasion 0/
- Cuba's Bay o/Pigs, New York: Scribner, 2011.
- Notes:
- "Report: U.S. Intelligence Officials Examining Trump Adviser's Russia Ties," Radio Free
- Europe 1 Radio Liberty, 03:55 GMT, September 24,2016. [http://w\vw.rferLorg/aireport-usintelligence-
- probes-trump-advisers-russia-ties-kretnlin/2801. 0062.ht1111] Michael Isikoff, "U.S .
- . intel officials probe ties between Trump adviser and Kremlin," Yahoo News, September 23,
- 2016. [https:I/\\'\v\v.vahoo.cotnlnews/u-s-intel-officials-probe-ties-between-tru111p-adviser-andkrell1lin-
- 175046002.html] Matt Fuller, "Trump Campaign: That Adviser Reportedly Talking
- With Russian Officials Isn't An Adviser Anymore," September 25,2016.
- [http://w\vw.huffingtonpost.com/entry/trunlp-canlpaign-russia-carterpage
- us 57e7eb5ge4bOe80b1. ba299b9] ,
- 11 Ken Bensinger, Miriam Elder and Mark Schoofs, "These Reports Allege Trump Has Deep
- Ties To Russia," BuzzFeed News, January 10,2017.
- [11ttp8:I/vrV>,T\v. buzzfeed. c01n1kenbensinger/these-reports-allege-trump-has-deep-ties-to-russia]
- iii John .Hudson, "U.S. Repeals Propaganda Ban, Spreads Government-Made News to
- Americans," Foreign Policy, July 14,2013. [http://foreignpolicy.com/2013/07114/u-s-repealspropaganda-
- ban-spreads-government-made-news-to-atnericans/]
- Weston R. Sager, "Apple Pie Propaganda: The Smith-Mundt Act before and after the Repeal of
- the Domestic Dissemination Ban," 109 Northwestern University Law Review, 511, 546 (2015).
- See also "Propaganda, Intelligence, Espionage, and Related Matters," Trials of War Criminals
- before the Nuremberg Military Tribunals under Control Council Law, No. 10, Nuremberg,
- October 1946 - April 1949 (1953): " ... Govemmentmay claim for itself that in the struggle
- against bolshevism, the enemy of the whole world, it has achieved a victory ... "
- iv https:l/www.dni.gov/:files/documents/ICA 2017 OI.pdf
- v Ellen Nakashima, Devlin Barrett and Adam Entous, "FBI obtained FISA warrant to monitor
- Trump adviser Carter Page" WashingtonPost, April 12, 2017, p. AI.
- [https://www ;washingtonpost.co111/world/national-securityI1bi-obtained-fisa-warrant-to-1110nitorformer-
- trunrp-adviser-carter-page/20 17/041111620 192ea-1 eOe-ll e7 -ad7 4-
- 3a742a6e93a7 story.html] .
- vi Chuck Ross, "Paul Ryan Says FBI Will Tum Over Dossier Documents By Next Week,"
- Daily Caller, October 26, 2017. [http://dailycaller.con1l2017/1 O/26/paul-ryan-savs-±bi-\vill-turnQ.
- YS~r:.g.Q.§.~i.~I:g.~Y-_'=.nD_~!n~l.?Y:n~25J.:.1y'9_~k(] James Rosen, "DOJ, FBI show House investigators
- documents on anti-Trump 'dossier' ," Fox News, October 31,2017.
- vii Requests byCarter Page to the U~S. Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Investigation
- and the National Security Agency were filed 165 days ago on May 21, 20 I 7, pursuant to the
- provisions of the Freedom of Information Act ("FOIA"), 5 U.S.C. § 552, and the Privacy Act, 5
- U.S.C. § 552a.
- viii "Sen. Graham Begins Hearing on Russia Using Social Media to Meddle in Election; White
- House Daily Briefing. Aired 2:30-3p ET," CNN, October 31, 2017.
- [hltrEL!.!I~Ilscri.PJ§~1l!l:_~gm!.IRAN~J;"lSlr.ISl171Q.L~ ... LL~ill:.Q§'~1}.tlnl]
- IX Each of the libelous 2016 reports by the U.S. federal agency Broadcasting Board of
- Governor's grantee Radio Free Europe included links to "Share" the defamatory USG-sponsored
- propaganda reports via Facebook, Twitter, the Russian' social media platform VKontakte and
- Google Plus. For example, as included on the upper left-hand comer of the RFE's Republication
- website late on September 23, 2016, U.S. local time:
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. CONAWAY: All right, thank you.
- Mr. Page, we will run a 30-minute clock.
- Nick, you will give us a 5-minute warning.
- 10
- The majority side will start first, and 1111 turn to my colleague Mr. Rooney for -- oh,
- good. Welve got 30 minutes.
- MR. ROONEY: Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
- And 11m sure, through the questioning, weill get to the last part of your opening
- with regard to Mr. Steele as we move forward. Just a few background questions.
- When did you become affiliated with the Trump campaign?
- MR. PAGE: Officially, I became affiliated when I was announced in The
- Washington Post at the editorial board meeting in March 2016.
- MR. ROONEY: You were announced by The Washington Post?
- MR. PAGE: Well, I had been -- I had volunteered late in -- or I touched base with
- Ed Cox, who was the Republican chair for the State of New York in late 2015, and then he
- introduced me to various people in early 2016.
- MR. ROONEY: Okay.
- MR. PAGE: And so I volunteered then. I had an initial meeting in early January
- 2016, and -- but, again, I was officially a volunteer with an unpaid informal committee
- until -- until that announcement was made.
- MR. ROONEY: And then when that changed, what was your title then?
- MR. PAGE: Just an informal member of that committee.
- MR. ROONEY: What committee?
- MR. PAGE: The initial foreign policy committee, which I think then-candidate
- Trump mentioned was a work in progress and welre adding more people, et cetera.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 11
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. ROONEY: Were you paid?
- MR~ PAGE: I was never paid any money. And I never contributed any money to
- the Trump campaign or anyone affiliated with it.
- MR. ROONEY: How often did this committee meet?
- MR. PAGE: Infrequently. There was only one official meeting with
- then-candidate Trump, and I believe the date of that is March 31, 2016, if I'm not mistaken.
- MR. ROONEY: Were you at that meeting?
- MR. PAGE: I was not. I had a previously scheduled meeting with some of the top
- U.S. military commanders many thousands of miles away from Washington. So I was
- unable to attend.
- MR. ROONEY: Did you ever meet Mr. Trump?
- MR. PAGE: I have never met him in my life. I've been in a lot of meetings with
- him, and I've learned a lot from him, but never actually met him face-to-face.
- MR. ROONEY: Who was your supervisor?
- MR. PAGE: You know, again, it was an informal group. And I don't believe
- supervisor is a --
- MR. ROONEY: Well, who called the meetings? Like if I'm on an advisory board, I
- mean, somebody's sending out the email.
- MR. PAGE: Well, initially, we -- really, the -- when we started doing meetings was
- after that Mayflower speech in April, late April 2016. And J.D. Gordon was brought in,
- and he was sort of the de facto organizers for our group, although not -- there was no
- official command structure, because, again, it was an informal quasi think tank, if you will.
- MR. ROONEY: What was your relationship with the Russian Government?
- MR. PAGE: I have no direct relationship with the Russian Government. Just like
- several members of this committee might interact with certain businesspeople, I may have
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 12
- UNCLASSIFIED
- talked with certain Russian Government officials briefly, you know, over the years.
- MR. ROONEY: Did you talk to those Russian Government officials over the years
- on behalf of the Trump campaign in your role --
- MR. PAGE: Never, never. And I made that perfectly clear in the one trip that I
- took prior to the -- one trip I took in the entire time of the candidacy of Mr. Trump. Ano
- in that one trip of July 2016, I made it perfectly clear that I'm not representing him or the
- campaign.
- MR. ROONEY: What was that trip about?
- MR. PAGE: I have spoken at many universities. I did my Ph.D. in -- at the
- University of London's School of Oriental and African Studies on the political economy of
- developing markets, with a particular focus on Central Asia and surrounding regions,
- including Russia, China, and the Middle East. And so I've spoken at many universities
- around the world for many, many years, going back to when I first enrolled in that program·
- over I think, you know, 15 years or so ago. And I was invited, as I had been invited on
- many times before, to speak at the New Economic School. I've spoken in many leading
- Moscow universities or many leading Russian universities, and some of the top ones are in
- Moscow. And I was able to --
- there?
- MR. ROONEY: So you spoke at a university in Russia?
- MR. PAGE: Yes.
- MR. ROONEY: Did you meet with Russian Government officials while you were
- MR. PAGE: The only brief interaction I had with any Russian Government official is
- after this commencement program or after the -- after my commencement speech on that
- Friday in July -- I forget the -- I believe it was July 8th -- I briefly said hello to Arkadiy
- Dvorkovich.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 13
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. ROONEY: Who is he?
- MR. PAGE: He is a senior Russian Government official. He was also speaking.
- And he was -- he had been delayed because he had meetings with the government. And
- he came in, gave a brief speech. As he was walking out, I said hello to him.
- MR. ROONEY: Did you talk to h,im about any coordination with the Trump
- campaign in your role as the advisory board -- on the advisory board?
- MR. PAGE: No coordination whatsoever, no.
- MR. ROONEY: What did you all talk about?
- MR. PAGE: It was a very brief interaction. It was some nice pleasantries.
- cannot recall the precise words I said, but it was sort of best wishes, and, you know, that's
- about it.
- MR. ROONEY: Mr. Gowdy.
- MR. GOWDY: Thank you, Mr. Rooney.
- Mr. Page, I wrote down: volunteer, unpaid, informal, unofficial. I'm still trying to
- figure out what the hell your role was with the Trump campaign.
- MR. PAGE: Let me tell you something, Congressman Gowdy. Where I spent my
- most time, frankly -- and it goes back to this dodgy dossier. Most of it was responding to
- these false stories that kept being planted by -- in the media. So --
- MR. GOWDY: All right. Well, before we get to what you refer to as the dodgy
- dossier, I want to understand how you came to be in any way connected -- unofficial,
- volunteer, unpaid, I don't care what modifier you want to use. Who asked you to serve in
- that capacity on the Trump for President campaign?
- MR. PAGE: No one asked me. As I mentioned earlier, I was -- I touched base
- with Ed Cox, who is the chairman of the New York Republican Party, and he introduced me
- to a few people.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. GOWDY: How many conversations have you had with candidate and/or
- President Trump?
- 14
- MR. PAGE: I have never spoken with him at any time directly in my life. I spent
- many hours listening to him in great rallies. I've listened to him on TV. I understand
- kind of the concepts, but I -- no direct personal relationship in any way.
- MR. GOWDY: Well, Dr. Page, let me tell you what the lawyers hear when they
- hear that answer. They focus on the word "directly."
- MR. PAGE: Yes.
- MR. GOWDY: I'm not aware how you can speak to someone other than directly.
- So why did you use the word "directly"?
- MR. PAGE: I'm just being careful. You know, I'm a pro se litigant to try to fix
- some of these problems in another case in Southern District of New York, and I'm learning
- sort of being perfectly clear.
- I did -- you know, again, as part of the committee, there are certain people on that
- committee who have direct relationships, right? And so I'm being, you know -- we're
- under oath. I don't lie ever, but I want to be -- I want to be perfectly clear in that --
- MR. GOWDY: I appreciate your desire for clarity, but I want the record to be clear
- too. Have you had any conversations with then-candidate or now President Trump,
- directly or indirectly?
- MR. PAGE: The only thing, I have shared ideas with -- never -- the only thing that
- could, you know, if someone's really being a nitpicker on the legal front, is the indirect, you
- might say that people that talked with him, people that are members of our growing
- committee -- we started off as a very large -- you know, small group during the primaries.
- It kept growing over time. Some of those people I spoke with may have spoken with him.
- MR. GOWDY: Right. Well, that falls into the general field of conjecture or
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 15
- UNCLASSIFIED
- speculation. I'm just trying to figure right now on what you actually know. And if I
- understand your testimony correctly, you know that you have never spoken with candidate
- or President Trump?
- MR. PAGE: That is correct, sir.
- MR. GOWDY: Have you ever emailed with either candidate or President Trump?
- MR. PAGE: No. I -- no.
- MR. GOWDY: Text message?
- MR. PAGE: Never.
- MR. GOWDY: Any form of communication?
- MR. PAGE: No.
- MR. GOWDY: Has he ever sent you a message?
- MR. PAGE: Never. The only message is when I was trying to get my story out
- there, you know, again, very indirectly, but he did a tweet in early summer, late May/early
- June, where he was saying, you know, they should let -- the Congress should let him testify,
- which I'm greatly appreciative of. But that's the only --
- MR. GOWDY: Did you respond? Did you respond to that tweet?
- MR. PAGE: Not directly to him. Again, various people in the media, when that
- came out, there was a lot of questions I got from the media.
- MR. GOWDY: Well, we're going to try and make the record as clear as we can.
- Have you ever spoken with Donald Trump?
- MR. PAGE: Never.
- MR. GOWDY: Have you ever received a message from Donald Trump?
- MR. PAGE: No.
- MR. GOWDY: Have you ever emailed with Donald Trump?
- MR. PAGE: No.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. GOWDY: Text message?
- MR. PAGE: No.
- MR. GOWDY: Snapchat?
- MR. PAGE: No.
- MR. GOWDY: Instagram?
- MR. PAGE: Never.
- MR. GOWDY: Any form of communication with Donald Trump?
- MR. PAGE: Not directly, no.
- MR. GOWDY: And there again, 11m trying to figure out what you mean by IInot
- directly.1I
- MR. PAGE: Just being careful about people who are on our committee I know
- would be more in the -- again, in the upper echelon. So there are various volunteers.
- Some people are more senior than others. I was a low-level junior guy in this informal
- group, and some of the more senior people had.
- 16
- Sothatls the only -- thatls alilim referring to in terms of indirect. They may have
- talked about things, which I dont know anything about.
- MR. GOWDY: How did you learn of the hacking of the DNC server?
- MR. PAGE: Just through the news.
- MR. GOWDY: Did you ever have any conversations with anyone, American or not
- American, prior to the hacking of the DNC server about that?
- MR. PAGE: No.
- MR. GOWDY: How about the hacking of John Podesta IS email account, how did
- you learn about that?
- MR. PAGE: Through the media.
- MR. GOWDY: Did you ever have any conversations with anyone prior to the
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- hacking of John Podesta IS email about hacking it?
- MR. PAGE: No.
- MR. GOWDY: You went to Russia in July of 2016. Is that right?
- MR. PAGE: Yes, sir.
- MR. GOWDY: You said you met, if I wrote right, Russian officials.
- 17
- MR. PAGE: I said hello to -- 11m cautious. Again, in terms of defining terms, 1-- as
- live argued with various people that are attacking me from the media, therels a clear
- differential between a meeting per se and a meeting versus a greeting. Met, if you greet
- someone, you shake their hand briefly; I consider that having met that person. Again,
- being careful. In terms of actual meeting --
- MR. GOWDY: let me tell you how I want to be careful, Dr. Page. 11m more
- interested in the content as opposed to the duration. I really donlt care how long the
- handshake took.
- MR. PAGE: No substantive content.
- MR. GOWDY: Well, I need the names of those Russian officials.
- MR. PAGE: The one person I recall is Arkadiy Dvorkovich.
- MR. GOWDY: That would be official, singular.
- MR. PAGE: Yes. look, in the reception after this, at the hall where they were
- doing the graduation reception, there may have been some people whose kids are
- graduating from New Economic School. So 11m just, again, being as careful and through
- and as comprehensive as humanly possible.
- MR. GOWDY: Who asked you to go to Moscow?
- MR. PAGE: I was just invited. I -- there were a few Russian scholars who I met
- through previous speeches I had done in -- in -- what do you call it -- over the years while I
- was working on my Ph.D. and related to some of that research.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 18
- UNCLASSIFIED
- And so they had introduced me -- there were two coauthors of one article. And
- one of the coauthors who I knew personally, he worked -- he wrote a couple of articles
- with a scholar whose father ends up -- is director at New Economic School, and they invited
- me to come give a speech.
- MR. GOWDY: Was the Trump campaign aware of your visit to Moscow in July of
- 2016?
- MR. PAGE: I had asked if, you know -- I had mentioned it a few times to J.D.
- Gordon, and I had -- you know, again, it was a standing invitation. And I sent a note
- around toa few of the members of our team and--
- MR. GOWDY: Why?
- MR. PAGE: Just to make sure that -- again, I wanted to be very careful, because
- there was starting to be some -- there was starting to be some allegations about or
- concerns about Russia in general. And I just wanted to be careful, and just given the fact
- that my name was --
- MR. GOWDY: Well, if you wanted to be super careful, why did you go?
- MR. PAGE: Because I'm trying to live my life and it's something -- I've spoken at
- these universities for well over a decade.
- MR. GOWDY: Well, if it was unrelated with the Trump campaign, why did you feel
- the need to email some of your ad hoc committee members to let them know you were
- going?
- MR. PAGE: Committee members, but also some members of the official
- campaign; I just -- similar to the way I'm being very careful with you, I want to be overly
- cautious not to create any concerns, et cetera. So --
- MR. GOWDY: What were you worried about? What was the genesis of your
- desire for caution?
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 19
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. PAGE: Well, I think if you look back over the last 16 months, it was a very
- limited or benign version of that. Again, things can get spun in the media and with certain
- politicians that want to advance some concept or a message. I could never have imagined
- how crazy it would have gotten with -- particularly with Mr. Steele, et cetera. But
- anything's possible.
- MR. GOWDY: Welre going to get to Mr. Steele, but right now 11m trying to
- understand who you emailed and what the content of those emails were. If you were
- going to Moscow in July of 2016, who did you tell, why did you tell them, and what did you
- tell them?
- MR. PAGE: I had just mentioned that -- I forget the exact specifics, but I had
- mentioned to them, it was Corey Lewandowski and I believe Hope Hicks and J.D., just that I
- had received this invitation, you know, just wanted to let you know. And I forget the
- exact terminology.
- MR. GOWDY: Have you made those emails available to the committee?
- MR. PAGE: No, but I can.
- MR. GOWDY: All right. And did they respond?
- MR. PAGE: So Corey said, if you have interest, you know, if it's -- I forget the exact
- terms, but, you know, if you have -- 1111 add that to the record. But essentially he said, we
- can -- if youlre not going to -- you know, it has nothing --
- MR. GOWDY: I don't know. That's why 11m asking.
- MR. PAGE: No, not -- not -- if -- you know, if youid like to go on your own, not
- affiliated with the campaign, you know, that's fine.
- MR. GOWDY: And I assume you would have those emails too, the responses?
- MR. PAGE: I can provide that, yes.
- MR. GOWDY: Okay. I want to ask you about three words: collusion,
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- coordination, and conspiracy. Do those words have appreciably the same meaning to
- you, or do they have different meanings?
- 20
- MR. PAGE: They all -- the common denominator between those three is that I
- hear them a lot and it's quite confusing. All I know is anything even close to any of those
- particular definitions, I've never done, you know, as per my -- per my correct biography.
- MR. GOWDY: I got to make sure you and I have the same understanding of the
- words before we can make that next leap. So do those words have appreciably the same
- meaning, or do they have different meanings to you, collusion, conspiracy, coordination?
- MR. PAGE: The common denominator I see in terms of what I hear is there are
- things you shouldn't be doing. I don't do things that I should not be doing, both legally
- and ethically.
- MR. GOWDY: Well, you can coordinate lunch. There's nothing wrong with that,
- is there? So coordination is not an inherently malignant word.
- MR. PAGE: Well, it depends what you add onto that sentence.
- MR. GOWDY: Right now, I'm just asking you about the meaning. I haven't added
- anything onto it yet.
- MR. PAGE: I take your point. Yes.
- MR. GOWDY: Okay. Do you have any evidence, including yourself, include
- yourself in your response, any evidence of collusion between the Trump campaign and the
- Russian Government to access John Podesta or the DNC email accounts?
- MR. PAGE: I have no evidence at all.
- MR. GOWDY: Do you have any evidence between any member of the Trump
- campaign, official or unofficial, including yourself, to disseminate the information gathered
- as a result of those intrusions into, again, the DNC server and the Podesta emails?
- MR. PAGE: I do not.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. GOWDY: So you understand the distinction?
- MR. PAGE: Yes.
- 21
- MR. GOWDY: One is whether or not you conspired, colluded, coordinated with
- the accessing of the information.
- MR. PAGE: Yes.
- MR. GOWDY: And your testimony is no.
- MR. PAGE: Correct.
- MR. GOWDY: No evidence, regardless of the source?
- MR. PAGE: Yes.
- MR. GOWDY: And then the second question is the dissemination, even if you
- weren't part of the breach, the dissemination of that information.
- MR. PAGE: No.
- MR. GOWDY: No evidence whatsoever?
- MR. PAGE: None.
- MR. GOWDY: Never had conversation with anyone about it?
- MR. PAGE: No.
- MR. GOWDY: Have you ever had any conversations with Donald Trump Jr.?
- MR. PAGE: No.
- MR. GOWDY: Paul Manafort?
- MR. PAGE: Never.
- MR. GOWDY: Jared Kushner?
- MR. PAGE: I sent to Paul Manafort one email when we started getting attacked
- from the New York -- you know, it was actually The New York Times that sent an email to
- both him and myself. And I just replied to him with some, again, more political science
- concepts in terms of -- one of the authors had written a book on Russia, and I gave some
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 22
- UNCLASSIFIED
- points as to how some of the things in his research, in his written research, some of those
- ideas and concepts he had talked about in his book within, you know, recent years might
- have interest in terms of the campaign.
- MR. GOWDY: 11m a little confused. Did Mr. Manafort respond back to you?
- MR. PAGE: He never responded at all, no.
- MR. GOWDY: All right. How about George Papadopoulos, did you have any
- communications with him during the course of the campaign?
- MR. PAGE: I was included -- I had totally -- he was another member of our
- growing committee, and I saw him. I can't remember what -- which meetings exactly, but
- I did meet with -- he was in some of those group sessions that we had. And I was
- included on some emails with him, yes.
- MR. GOWDY: Have you made those available to the committee?
- MR. PAGE: I would assume, because it was on a large group, that -- I can. I can
- make that available. But I assume, since it's on a large group, you most likely would have
- received that from others already. But yeah.
- MR. GOWDY: Let's assume we haven't.
- MR. PAGE: I will provide that, yes.
- MR. GOWDY: How about Mike Flynn, any communications with him?
- MR. PAGE: I have never emailedhim.no. And live never spoken with him.
- MR. GOWDY: So, if I understand your testimony correctly, youlve never had any
- communication, never conspired, colluded, or coordinated with anyone with respect to the
- DNC or Podesta intrusions. Is that correct?
- MR. PAGE: That is correct.
- MR. GOWDY: Never had any communications with or colluded, conspired, or
- coordinated with anyone, American or otherwise, to disseminate the information gathered
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 23
- UNCLASSIFIED
- as a result of those intrusions. Is that correct?
- MR. PAGE: No. Let me mention one brief element which I think is interesting.
- MR. GOWDY: Okay.
- MR. PAGE: In October, I was in London, and I was -- I had an RT interview in the
- London studio of RT.
- MR. GOWDY: RT being Russia Today, for those who don It watch it.
- MR. PAGE: Yes, yes. One of the two mentioned in the January 6 Intel report,
- which I think is quite misleading.
- But when I spoke -- one of the broadcasters mentioned -- it was right when one of
- the -- the hacked leaks came out. And he mentioned to me: Well, it's too bad how this
- information is coming out, because I don't know, it's hard to make sense of it all .
- . So that was the only mention -- again, he was an RT representative -- you know,
- before I went on the air with him.
- MR. GOWDY: Okay. The intrusions, the results of the intrusions, and 11m just
- going to ask you broadly, efforts to interfere with, influence, voter suppression, anything
- related to'the 2016 either primary or general election cycles, have you had any
- conversations with any Americans, Russians, anyone, any human being about how to
- interfere with, influence, otherwise impact the 2016 election for Donald Trump?
- MR. PAGE: I have had extensive discussions with many people, both in Article I
- and Article II branch institutions within government and also private individuals, about the
- illicit steps taken against me and the false information with -- related to the hack against
- me and the wiretap against myself. So nothing in -- indirectly, that could affect President
- or then-candidate Trump and his campaign. So --
- MR. GOWDY: Why do you think the FBI is investigating you?
- MR. PAGE: I believe -- just based on things that have been leaked to the press,
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- there are allegations that it related to the dodgy dossier. So, in terms of those, the
- perceptions as to what I allegedly did.
- 24
- MR. GOWDY: I'm sure my colleagues are going to get into the dossier with you.
- But have you been interviewed by the FBI?
- MR. PAGE: I have, which was also leaked to The Washington Post in June.
- usually don't talk about those things, but it's been -- someone leaked that to The
- Washington Post. I can confirm that's the case, yes.
- MR. GOWDY: My guess is that the questions the FBI asked you might provide
- some roadmap as to what they think you may have done. So what were the questions
- the FBI had for you?
- MR. PAGE: They primarily related -- you know, it was an extensive series of many
- meetings, but they -- you know, the core foundation I would say, in terms of the overall
- structure, in March 2016 -- I'm sorry -- 2017; was related to those false allegations from the
- dodgy dossier.
- MR. GOWDY: All right. Well, you have made repeated references to false
- allegations in the dossier. So I'll finish up there. There were factual assertions made
- about you in what's -- we'll call it the dossier. Is it your position that some of those
- factual assertions are untrue?
- MR. PAGE: They are all untrue. Every word in that about me is completely false.
- MR. GOWDY: Every word? That's a big statement, Dr. Page.
- MR. PAGE: I would need to look. But in terms of every sentence, you know, they
- may say I have some -- you know, I was a supporter of the Trump campaign. The core
- allegations of that document werecertainly all false.
- MR. GOWDY: Which factual inaccuracies stand out to you the most?
- MR. PAGE: Yeah. The main ones were -- there were two main allegations
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 25
- UNCLASSIFIED
- against me: that I met two individuals, Igor Sechin, the CEO of Rosneft, and Mr. Diveykin,
- someone who I had never even heard of in my life. And each of those people I've never
- met in my life.
- And so there's a lot of allegations in this crazy document that, you know, I might
- be -- going back to the terminology you used with collusion, coordination, you know, et
- cetera, I might have done things like that with them, which is totally preposterous.
- MR. GOWDY: I've got a couple minutes left. I'll give that back to the chairman.
- MR. ROONEY: You were just discussing the dossier and, you know, can you -- and
- you were talking about this in your opening before you ran out of time.
- Can you expand in the last 2-1/2 minutes before the minority begins their questions
- on that thought process that you were discussing with the panel with regard to the dossier
- and Mr. Steele? Can you finish that thought that you were reading?
- MR. PAGE: Yeah. I think it goes back to the points I was making in my opening
- statement and the concern as these -- the realities surrounding this document continued to
- come out in the press and all these false allegations came.
- And that is that, you know, even though this one individual, Christopher Steele,
- has -- you know, by all allegations has not been in Russia for many years, to me, it's quite
- shocking the level of collective ignorance about Russia and how -- you know, what actually
- happens in Russia and how Russia really works today; and also the fact if the allegations are
- true, that there was coordination/collusion between him and the agencies of the U.S.
- Government, that to me implies a highly politically biased agenda that dangerously violates
- the legal mandate of these government agencies.
- So, to me, that's a major, major problem, both on a tactical level, looking at what
- happened over the last 24 months or whatever since President Trump first announced his
- candidacy, but also on a strategic level, because that is precisely -- these misanalyses by the
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 26
- UNCLASSIFIED
- U.S. Intelligence Community is a complete repeat of what happened at the end of the Cold
- War, when they totally missed -- they totally mis-assessed what was going on in Moscow
- and Russian institutions.
- MR. ROONEY: Have you been told by the Mueller investigation that you should
- be -- expected to be indicted?
- MR. PAGE: No.
- MR. ROONEY: I yield back.
- MR. CONAWAY: Mr. Schiff.
- MR. SCHIFF: Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
- Dr. Page, I want to ask you some questions about the subpoena you received. You
- were subpoenaed to produce all documents relevant to the investigation by early last
- month. Did you comply with the subpoena?
- MR. PAGE: I had mentioned to members of the -- members of staff that I have
- serious concerns about various issues related to both the disclosure but also you look at
- George Papadopoulos with his false statement.
- MR. SCHIFF: Dr. Page, my question is whether you complied with the subpoena
- that required you to produce all relevant documents to the committee. Did you comply?
- MR. PAGE: I pleaded my Fifth Amendment rights, yes.
- MR. SCHIFF: And you informed -- because this is the first that minority counsel is
- learning this. You pleaded your Fifth Amendment rights notto produce documents to the
- committee?
- MR. PAGE: 1-- I have a severe concern that there is a -- the information that was
- illegally wiretapped and hacked from my computer, it will not -- by definition, 11m a little
- guy with very limited technical resources. It cannot be as comprehensive as the
- information that was already illegally collected against me.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 27
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. SCHIFF: Dr. Page, my question is very simple. Have you complied with the
- subpoena, or have you not? Did you invoke the Fifth Amendment, or did you not?
- MR. PAGE: I invoked the Fifth Amendment, yes.
- MR. SCHIFF: And that was communicated to majority counsel?
- MR. PAGE: Yes. It was on an email.
- MR. SCHIFF: And Mr. Gowdy just asked you a couple questions, and you
- acknowledged that you have relevant evidence in the form of emails.
- MR. PAGE: I will be happy to provide those, yes.
- MR. SCHIFF: So it's your position that you can selectively invoke' the Fifth
- Amendment to provide certain documents but withhold other documents?
- MR. PAGE: Congressman Schiff, I want to help this committee in every way that I
- can. I just want to do that in a way that does not put me at jeopardy, both judicial, in the
- judicial system as we've seen with Mr. Papadopoulos, but also with the extrajudicial
- punishment that I have been submitted to. After your interaction with Mr. Comey on
- March 20th, 2017, I did receive significant personal domestic terrorist threats to myself.
- MR. SCHIFF: Dr. Page, is it your position that you have a Fifth Amendment right to
- provide non incriminating emails or documents to the committee but withhold
- incriminating documents from the committee and selectively comply with the subpoena?
- MR. PAGE: I -- there are no incriminating -- nothing I have done is incriminating or
- even unethical in any way. The only thing -- the only thing that --
- MR. SCHIFF: Dr. Page, if nothing you have is incriminating, then on what basis are
- you invoking the Fifth Amendment right?
- MR. PAGE: Because my concern is that the information I would provide to you, on
- two levels: Number one, there could be risks that the information is not comprehensive.
- And the information, which was already illegally hacked from my computer systems
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- by -- you know, based on some of these proceedings of the past year, will not match up.
- So that's my major concern.
- 28
- MR. SCHIFF: Well, Dr. Page, we'll have to discuss with the majority whether this is
- a proper invocation of the Fifth Amendment, as well as why we were not informed that you
- had invoked the Fifth Amendment.
- MR. PAGE: There's also -- again, if you read the specifics of the Fifth Amendment,
- it also refers to, you know, twice -- being twice in jeopardy of life and limb. The
- extrajudicial punishment I've been submitted to for over 14 months now represents the
- risks, you know.
- I've been submitted to risks of life and limb many more than twice related to these
- proceedings. So that's the other element. It's both the, again, judicial .,.- assuming that
- the legal system actually works this time, which by all indications did not work last year,
- but also the second element of the -- the extrajudicial punishment I've been threatened
- with.
- MR. SCHIFF: Just so that we're clear, though, Dr. Page, you are refu?ing to provide
- certain documents relevant to our investigation, such as documents that may pertain to
- your trip to Russia, on the basis that they may incriminate you?
- MR. PAGE: Nothing would directly incriminate me. The only thing that could put
- me in some risk for a very aggressive prosecutor is the lack of overlap with those two.
- The fact that some of the document -- you know, my documents will not be -- by definition,
- they cannot be as comprehensive as the documents which are already collected. The
- National Security Agency, CIA, and FBI have infinitely greater data processing capabilities
- than I do.
- MR. SCHIFF: Dr. Page, I'm really just trying to understand if you are invoking the
- privilege or not. Are you refusing to turn over certain documents to the committee that
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- are relevant to our investigation because you are invoking the Fifth Amendment?
- MR. PAGE: Yes. Yes, sir. And each of those elements within it, both judicial
- and extraJudicial.
- 29
- MR. SCHIFF: Dr. Page, what email services and addresses have you used over the
- last 2 years?
- MR. PAGE: I have
- And I'm also
- overloade-d.
- That's my business email.
- , just because it gets
- There's a -- one of the scholars I've worked with or I've interacted with over the
- years is a gentleman by the name of Gary Sick. He's a major expert in the Middle -- in the
- Middle East and based at Columbia University, and he sends tons of emails.Solhave a
- that's also -- you know, that I get those emails, which I look at, you
- know, maybe once a month or so when I get an opportunity.
- MR. SCHIFF: Did you have a Trump campaign email?
- MR. PAGE: Never, no.
- MR. SCHIFF: Apart from the three email accounts that you've mentioned, do you
- have any other email accounts?
- MR. PAGE: No. There is an which I believe is
- supposed to route to my but sometimes that works; sometimes it doesn't.
- I don't have a very sophisticated email system.
- MR. SCHIFF: So you don't have an AOL account or a Hotmail account or Yahoo
- account or any other email account?
- MR. PAGE:
- MR. SCHIFF: ?
- MR. PAGE:
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 30
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. SCHIFF: Have you used encrypted apps to communicate as well?
- MR. PAGE: Sometimes I use Due to the fact -- because
- I travel a lot and I'm a small fry, so it costs -- if you text from the U.K. or Russia on your U.S.
- cell phone, it's, you know -- can be up to $5 a minute. But if you do it via these
- internet-based apps, it's free, you know, unlimited. Or I think_ may charge you
- a dollar a year. So, just from an efficiency standpoint, I use those from time to time.
- MR. SCHIFF: And what other platforms do you use to communicate, either text,
- email, or otherwise?
- MR. PAGE: Well, the iPhone has an iMessage capability. So sometimes I do that
- from time to time. And I think standard text messaging I sometimes do as well.
- MR. SCHIFF: And from what phone number?
- MR. PAGE: Just -- again, related to the domestic terrorist threats I've faced, is it
- possible to -- if I start giving out all these -- this information, does this have to be -- could
- we make this, you know, outside of the record, or does this -- I'm happy to give you that
- information. I'm just trying to -- given the significant threats I've faced over time, over
- the last year, I want to just be careful. So is that something that, you know, we could do
- off the record or -- I forget the --
- MR. SCHIFF: It can be off the record. We can discuss with the majority how to
- deal with this. As I understand it, it was your request that this hearing be public and the
- majority's wish that it be public. But we will do our best to figure out how we can
- accommodate that concern.
- MR. PAGE: I can assure you -- now, those documents that you're requesting, will
- those -- you know, in terms of the email about joining the campaign, et cetera, some of
- those will have my phone number on it. Is that going to be made available to the public
- or --
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 31
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. SCHIFF: Dr. Page, alii can tell you is we will work with the majority to do our
- best to protect your personally identifiable information.
- MR. PAGE: Thank you so much. Okay. That number is--
- MR. ROONEY: Hold on a second. I don't think that it's relevant that he actually
- say his phone number for the record. He can write it down and give it to us rather than
- having it printed on the court reporter and then broadcast to the public. He's already
- given his email, which he's clearly going to have to change. I mean, that's a little bit
- over -- if he can write it down and give it to you, I think--
- MR. SCHIFF: Mr. Rooney, we're more than copacetic with having those sections
- redacted from the public record, but we do want to be able to gain access through third
- parties to communications if this witness is unwilling to provide them directly. And so
- knowing what cell phone account is going to be important in the investigation. But we
- are supportive of a redaction of this, but the committee does need the information.
- MR. ROONEY: That's fine. I just don't understand why it has to be made public
- for the world to consume.
- MR. SCHIFF: I'm not saying it should be made public. I am saying that the
- committee does need to know. So we are supportive --
- MR. ROONEY: I agree. He can write it down and give it to you. I don't know
- why it has to be issued into the report.
- MR. SCHIFF: I think that the witness ought to testify as to what--
- MR. ROONEY: His phone number is relevant to -- for the public consumption?
- mean, I -- he is here voluntarily to give his testimony to help this committee understand
- what he did during the campaign. I don't know that the American public needs to know
- what his phone number is.
- MR. SCHIFF: Mr. Rooney, we're in agreement--
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. ROONEY: You can.
- MR. SCHIFF: We're in agreement here.
- MR. ROONEY: All right.
- MR. SCHIFF: I don't why you're arguing. We support redacting this from the
- public record, but I do think that the witness ought to be under oath as to what phones
- he's using. So, unless you object to the witness being under oath as to his methods of
- communication, can we please allow the witness to answer?
- 32
- MR. ROONEY: I don't. I just don't think he needs to tell you his phone number
- out loud for the reporter to record. I think he can just give it to you.
- MR. PAGE: Sir, I am 99.9 percent certain that that is definitely within at least
- some of those emails which have been requested and which I will be happy to provide you,
- yes. And so, assuming that that is not going to be entered in the public record, I believe
- your request will be fully -- fully met with that.
- MR. SCHIFF: Dr. Page, I appreciate that.
- And, Mr. Conaway, will you support my request that this information be redacted
- from the public record?
- MR. CONAWAY: Yes. Rather than having it show up as a blank, why don't we do
- it in ways that protects his identity but puts the bulk of the -- you know, bodies of the
- emails, all those kind of things, into the public record, but in terms of actually him reading
- it into the"record and us having a blank in there, just have a statement that says he
- provided the committee with that number or something. But yes, we'll work together to
- make that happen.
- MR. SCHIFF: So, Dr. Page, the number that you'll provide the committee is your
- one and only cell phone number, or do you have more than one number?
- MR. PAGE: I have various numbers in -- so similar to what I was saying about
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 33
- UNCLASSIFIED
- trying to cut down on costs, because I travel a lot, I have a U.K. mobile number and a
- Russia, a Moscow SIM card that I use. And, again, the nice thing about U.K. in particular,
- when it's $5 a minute if I use my AT&T phone, in London, any incoming call if I'm talking to
- someone for an hour, an incoming call on a U.K. mobile is free. So it's -- that saves me
- $300, you know, on a l-hour call.
- MR. SCHIFF: So, Dr. Page, you will provide then your two phone numbers and
- your SIM card number to the committee prior to your departure today, or--
- MR. PAGE: I can give you the -- it's actually on my -- I need to -- it may be on my
- mobile phone. The Russia -- you said the SIM card number. I'm careful. There may be
- an identification -- there's a phone number associated with it. I'm not sure --
- MR. SCHIFF: Just the phone number.
- MR. PAGE: The phone number, yes.
- MR. SCHIFF: So you'll provide those, and those will be -- and you understand that
- that will be under oath -MR.
- PAGE: Yes.
- MR. SCHIFF: -- as to the accuracy?
- MR. PAGE: I don't lie, Congressman Schiff. So everything I say, whether it's
- under oath or not under oath, is going to be equally accurate and to the best of my
- knowledge. And, again, in paragraph 36 and 37 of the complaint I filed in U.s. District
- Court, Southern District --
- MR. SCHIFF: Dr. Page --
- MR. PAGE: -- I also redacted Michaellsikoff's number, who had meet with the
- Christopher Steele -- or Christopher Steele part of the dodgy dossier.
- MR. SCHIFF: Dr. Page, have you taken any action or urged others to take any
- action to conceal your communications that are the subject of this investigation?
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 34
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. PAGE: I don't understand the question. What are you driving -- 1-- the only
- thing I am cautious about is communications -- the members of our volunteer team, I'm
- cautious about the severe damage that's been done to their reputation based on these
- false allegations against me. So the only thing I'm -- I try to keep confidential is things
- that would hurt other people, so -- in terms of having their name associated with myself.
- So --
- MR. SCHIFF: Have you taken any steps, Dr. Page, to conceal any communications
- regarding individuals you may have met in Russia?
- MR. PAGE: No.
- MR. SCHIFF: And have you urged others to take any steps to conceal any
- communications with you or with others regarding any individuals you may have met in
- Russia?
- MR. PAGE: No.
- MR. SCHIFF: So you have never encouraged people to use encrypted applications
- to avoid detection?
- MR. PAGE: Well, the -- I -- when the dodgy dossier libeled me and -- or these
- articles which came out of the -- Christopher Steele's investigation came out, I started
- having, you know, serious reputational damage, but also these threats against my life and
- against, you know, people I'm close with.
- And so I may have spoken with or I may have tried to mention to certain people
- that I'm taking steps to try to protect my life and restore my life, which had been so
- thoroughly disrupted, given these false allegations from Christopher Steele's reporting and
- the media who had met with him and with Fusion GPS, which came out of that.
- MR. SCHIFF: Let me try to ask the question again, Dr. Page. Have you ever taken
- steps yourself or urged others to take steps to conceal either meetings or conversations
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- that you had while you were in Russia?
- MR. PAGE: No. To the best of my recollection, no.
- MR. SCHIFF: So you've never--
- 35
- MR. PAGE: Again, just to be very clear, every meeting I ever had in Russia was
- completely benign. It was nothing, you know, nothing I would be ashamed of having
- broadcast on national television, because, again, I've never done anything wrong, not only
- in those 2 years but throughout my life --
- MR. SCHIFF: Dr. Page, I want to make sure we have clarity. So you've never
- urged others to use encrypted apps or avoid using open communications regarding
- meetings in Russia?
- MR. PAGE: To the best of my recollection, no. And, again, anything within those
- meetings would be totally benign anyway. But I'm just -- again, being similar to my
- discussion with Congressman Gowdy, just being very careful. Again, to the best of my
- recollection. I'm just cautious.
- MR. SCHIFF: Dr. Page--
- MR. PAGE: There may have some administrative consideration in the back of my
- mind but, again, no judicial and/or extrajudicial concerns in terms of the content and
- substance of those meetings.
- MR. SCHIFF: Dr. Page, you were on television two nights ago with Mr. Hayes and
- stated that you had no meetings, no serious discussions with anyone high up or in any
- official capacity; it's just kind of man on the street, you know.
- Was that an accurate description of your trip to Moscow in July of last year?
- MR. PAGE: Absolutely. Absolutely.
- MR. SCHIFF: So no meetings with anyone high up or in any official capacity?
- MR. PAGE: No. Mostly scholars. Again, 1-- having done my Ph.D. in London
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 36
- UNCLASSIFIED
- and, you know, interacted with scholars around the world for decades, going back to my
- time at the -- even in my time in the Pentagon when I was -- would participate in various
- events at the Brookings Institution and others, there were certain scholars I would interact
- with there. So --
- MR. SCHIFF: So you had no private meetings with any senior Russian officials?
- MR. PAGE: No, sir.
- MR. SCHIFF: Now, Dr. Page, you mentioned Arkadiy-MR.
- PAGE: Dvorkovich, yes.
- MR. SCHIFF: -- Dvorkovich. I'll mispronounce his name. Is he the Deputy Prime
- Minister of the Russian Federation?
- MR. PAGE: I believe he might be, yes.
- MR. SCHIFF: And you don't consider him to be a high-up official or someone in an
- official capacity?
- MR. PAGE: I -- nothing I -- it was -- again, I did not meet with him. I greeted him
- briefly as he was walking off the stage after his speech.
- MR. SCHIFF: So you had no private meeting with him?
- MR. PAGE: Absolutely no, not in JUly.
- MR. SCHIFF: Did you have a private meeting with him at some later point?
- MR. PAGE: We did -- he stopped by a dinner I went to in December with people
- from the university, New Economic School. I was talking with them about possible
- research opportunities in the years to come. And so, you know, he -- he's a graduate of
- the university. He's a board member of the university, and he was invited, yes.
- MR. SCHIFF: And that was in December of last year?
- MR. PAGE: Yes. 2016, yes.
- MR. SCHIFF: But in July of 2016 you had no private meeting with him?
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 37
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. PAGE: No, absolutely not.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- [10:41 a.m.]
- MR. SCHIFF: Following your meeting, your trip to Russia, did you send a memo
- back to the campaign that conveyed the results of your trip to Russia?
- MR. PAGE: I did offer some thoughts about some of my takeaways and
- experiences there, yes.
- 38
- MR. SCHIFF: And in that document, Dr. Page, didn't you state, on Thursday and
- Friday, July 7 and 8, 2016: "Campaign Adviser Carter Page" -- you're referring to yourself
- in the third person -- "presented before gatherings at the New Economic School, NES, in
- Moscow, including their 2006 commencement ceremony. Russian Deputy Prime Minister
- and NES Board Member Arkadiy Dvorkovich also spoke before the event. In a private
- conversation, Dvorkovich expressed strong support for Mr. Trump and a desire to work
- together toward devising better solutions in response to the vast range of current
- international problems"?
- This is a document Bates stamped Dr. Page, did you write that?
- MR. PAGE: I did. It was a general sentiment of, you know, hope for the future.
- That's all he expressed in that brief hello.
- MR. SCHIFF: Dr. Page --
- MR. PAGE: It was literally -- it could not have been more than -- it was well less
- than 10 seconds, probably closer to 5 seconds than 10 seconds in terms of that interaction.
- MR. SCHIFF: So, Dr. Page, 2 days ago, you told the public on television you had no
- meetings with anyone except essentially the man on the street, correct?
- MR. PAGE: Yes.
- MR. SCHIFF: Two minutes ago, you said you had no private meeting with Arkadiy.
- Is that correct?
- MR. PAGE: Yes.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. SCHIFF: And now you say you did have a private conversation with him on
- the subject of U.S./Russia relations. Is that correct?
- 39
- MR. PAGE: I -- similar to my description of benefitting greatly from listening to
- speeches from both candidates, both Mrs. Clinton and Mr. Trump, during the campaign, I
- listen closely. I'm a student, a scholar, someone that really listens to try to understand
- the other person's perspec~ive and the other person's point of view and viewpoint.
- I listened -- I sat and listened in Russian to his speech in -- at the New Economic
- School on the grand stage in front of hundreds of people in the large auditorium. And it
- was primarily based on that feedback that --
- MR. SCHIFF: And, Dr. Page, is this one of the documents that you have withheld
- from producing to the committee?
- MR. PAGE: I have withheld -- again, I'm cautious because the information that's
- already been taken from me illegally, by all accounts, according to leaks to the press, is
- information that I want to be careful does not create any additional -- it can never be as
- comprehensive as the information that's already been taken from me.
- MR. SCHIFF: Dr. Page, I'm not sure I understand the answer. Is this a document
- that's in your possession that you withheld from the committee?
- MR. PAGE: I would be happy to give you that document, yes.
- MR. SCHIFF: Well, we have the document, Dr. Page. That's really not the point.
- But you had this document. You're aware that it was responsive to the subpoena and you
- refused to provide it?
- MR. PAGE: As part of the -- the main reason is, I'm cautious for those two reasons
- mentioned, that I don't want to create any inconsistencies, given the deep level of
- information that's already been illegally taken against me, totally outside any concept of
- the constitutional due process rights.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 40
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. SCHIFF: Dr. Page, Mr. Steele in the dossier makes reference to a meeting that
- you had with a representative of the Presidential administration. Did you meet with any
- representatives of the Presidential administration while you were in Moscow in July of last
- year?
- MR. PAGE: Just that brief greeting that I mentioned.
- MR. SCHIFF: So the only person you met -- you only met with a single person from
- the Presidential administration and that was Dvorkovich?
- MR. PAGE: Yes, sir, again, being very careful of the distinction been met and
- meeting, yes.
- MR. SCHIFF: Did you write in an email to Tera Dahl and J.D. Gordon, on July 8, "On
- a related front, I'll send you guys a readout soon regarding some incredible insights and
- outreach I've received from a few Russian legislators and senior members of the
- Presidential administration here"? Did you write that email, Dr. Page?
- MR. PAGE: I believe I did. And it goes back to the point I mentioned with
- listening to speeches, listening to particularly Arkadiy Dvorkovich's speech, right. Again,
- great insights just like I learned great insights -- even though I've met -- I've never met
- Donald J. Trump in my life, I've learned a lot from him, and I got great insights from that,
- from listening and studying the information that he -- that he's provided in public forums.
- That's -- that is the primary, primary source.
- MR. SCHIFF: Dr. Page, you've testified under oath that you met with no senior
- officials except for a hello to the person who turns out to be the Deputy Prime Minister of
- the Russian Federation?
- MR. PAGE: Uh-huh.
- MR. SCHIFF: You've also testified that, apart from him, you met no one from the
- Presidential administration, and yet on July 8, of last year, you wrote in an email to the
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 41
- UNCLASSIFIED
- campaign that you had incredible insights and outreach that you received from Russian
- legislators and senior members, plural, of the Presidential administration. Were you
- being honest in your communication with the campaign? Are you being honest in your
- testimony? Because it doesn't seem possible for both to be true.
- MR. PAGE: There has been -- again, great feedback and positive feelings were
- expressed in public forums and even just reading the newspaper in Russian that there was
- hope for the future. And it's very -- you know, the way I explain this to people is it's very
- similar to then-candidate Barack Obama's speech in Germany.
- If you remember, in 2008, he received a tremendous amount of positive feedback -MR.
- SCHIFF: Dr. Page --
- MR. PAGE: Yes.
- MR. SCHIFF: Dr. Page, I'm referring to Bates stamp in which you
- relate that you had received insights and outreach from Russian legislators and senior
- members of the Presidential administration. What members of the Presidential
- administration did you meet?
- MR. PAGE: No meetings. You know, it's insights versus outreach. The insights
- were primarily based on the materials or the ideas that I read in the press, similar to my
- listening to President Trump in the various speeches that I heard of his.
- MR. SCHIFF: What--
- MR. PAGE: Outreach, let me put it this way: I think scholars, in general, were
- also very enthusiastic about trying to end this second cold war that's been created. And
- so I think it was sort of a foregone conclusion -- it was pretty much understood that people
- would be happy -- if there was interest in terms of having a dialogue, I'm certain that the
- Russians would be more than willing to do that. That's what I was expressing, perhaps
- not in the most careful, cautious -- you know, if I had started my personal legal training
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 42
- UNCLASSIFIED
- previously, I probably would have used a different word, frankly speaking.
- MR. SCHIFF: Dr. Page, I don't think you need legal training to be able to
- distinguish between what you told the public 2 days ago that you essentially only met the
- man on the street --
- MR. PAGE: Yes.
- MR. SCHIFF: -- and what you have related privately to the Trump campaign, that
- you had met with Russian legislators and senior members of the Presidential
- administration.
- I yield back.
- MR. PAGE: I do not see the word "meeting" in this sentence, Congressman Schiff.
- I do not see the word "meeting." Again, outreach is available, and incredible insights
- were provided. 11m -- I wrote a SOO-page dissertation on related themes.
- That's, you know -- that's the primary insights. And the outreach is kind of an
- open -- open arms. Per John F. Kennedy's statement, never fear to, you know -- do not
- negotiate in fear; do not fear to negotiate. This is not even negotiation.
- This was about just having a warm conversation with individuals, similar to what
- then-candidate Barack Obama had in Germany 2008. I think that's a great way of
- understanding kind of the positive vibe, if you will, from primarily the man on the street,
- because that's kind of my greatest interaction.
- Just like my greatest interaction was -- again, having never met Donald J. Trump,
- the people at those rallies that I --where I was listening to some of the concepts that he
- was talking about in terms of policy, et cetera, that's the primary basis of my insights on
- both sides.
- MR. CONAWAY: All right. Thank you.
- Without objection, the chair and ranking member will be permitted to question the
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- witnesses for an additional 30 minutes each and may yield to other members at their
- discretion.
- So, now, on our side, before we move -- go ahead. Start the clock, Nick.
- 43
- To set the record straight with respect to notification of the minority about your
- attempt to plead the Fifth, we have in our possession a letter, dated October the 10th,
- 2017, at 3:42 p.m. In this letter from Dr. Page to Mueller, Burr, Warnerj Devin, me, and
- Adam Schiff: 11m writing to inform you that my intention to exercise the constitutional
- protections offered by the privileges of the Fifth Amendment.
- So, in that letter, he claims the Fifth. That came to us, to Kash Patel, at 3:42, on
- October 10.
- We then have another email from Kashto Nick, dated October the 10th, at 3:50,
- 8 minutes later, asking: Nick, please file and let minority know. Thanks.
- We then have an email from Nick to a variety of folks on the minority side, date
- stamped October the 10th, 2017, at 4:12. And so let the record reflect that we received it
- at 3:42; we passed it onto the clerk at 3:50; and the clerk passed it to the minority at 4:12.
- So, with that, we will --
- MR. SCHIFF: Would the gentleman yield?
- MR. CONAWAY: Yes.
- MR. SCHIFF: Mr. Chairman, we were informed by the majority that Mr. Page had
- agreed to testify and waive his Fifth Amendment if we allowed the transcript to be
- released. That was the understanding that was conveyed to the minority as the reason
- why we were departing from the committee's usual practice of publishing the transcript.
- Was that not accurate, Mr. Chairman?
- MR. CONAWAY: I don't know about that. You just said that we didn't let you
- know that he had pled the Fifth originally, and welre just correcting the record on your
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 44
- UNCLASSIFIED
- comment that we had withheld information from you relative to his original plea for the
- Fifth. So that's all I was doing was correcting that statement.
- So we'll now move on.
- MR. SCHIFF: Well, we were informed that Dr. Page had agreed not to invoke the
- Fifth if we had agreed to --
- Fifth --
- MR. CONAWAY: Well, that was subsequent to this letter.
- MR. SCHIFF: But that does not appear to be honored today, Mr. Chairman.
- MR. CONAWAY: What?
- MR. SCHIFF: The witness is still refusing to provide documents, is still invoking the
- MR. CONAWAY: Well, we can take that up. But you just said earlier, in kind of
- an off-handed, derogatory way, that we had not informed you that he had originally pled
- the Fifth. And I just wanted to correct the record, Adam, to say that we did on a relatively
- timely basis. I got it's 32 minutes out of whack, but we gave that to you guys back on
- October the 10th. And I was just correcting that statement.
- All the stuff that's happened since, his inability to provide -- or his refusal to honor
- our subpoena, you and I and the group can take that up with him subsequently, because
- I'm a bit offended that he's got those documents when he told us he didn't.
- So, nevertheless, he told us, we told you, and now we're moving on. So we've
- now killed 3 minutes of our time with a conversation that was simply intended to correct
- your original statement.
- So, with that, we'll move on.
- MR. GOWDY: Dr. Page, let me try to gain a little bit of clarity, and I won't take the
- remaining time.
- Going back to the FBI, how many times have you been interviewed by the FBI?
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. PAGE: In 2017, either four or five meetings.
- MR. GOWDY: How about 2016?
- MR. PAGE: 2016, I can't recall. I'm always very cautious, for confidentiality
- reasons, to not take notes. I don't recall when exactly, yeah. I've --
- 45
- MR. GOWDY: I try to be cautious too, Dr. Page, but it is not difficult for me to
- remember the number of times that the FBI has interviewed me in 2016 because the
- answer would be zero. I'm just wondering if you can recall whether the Federal Bureau of
- Investigation may have interviewed you in 2016?
- MR. PAGE: During that case related to Mr. Podobnyy, where -- which was also
- illegally leaked, that I was indeed Male No.1, someone leaked that to Politico and ABC
- News in April -- I had a meeting in the U.S. District Court, Southern District in New York -- or
- the U.S. Attorney's Office there on the criminal side -- I can't remember the exact
- timing -- and I spoke with them about that then.
- MR. GOWDY: Well, I'm not sure the manner in which you're referring. Would
- that be unrelated to the Trump campaign or today's -MR.
- PAGE: Totally unrelated, absolutely.
- MR. GOWDY: All right. So --
- MR. PAGE: And I would say, just to be clear, I was a witness to that prior case.
- MR. GOWDY: All right. Other than the Bureau, have you been interviewed or
- talked with any other law enforcement entities?
- MR. PAGE: I have spoken -- do you -- I'm not -- I'm sorry.
- MR. GOWDY: I hope not. I don't think so.
- MR. PAGE: Okay.
- MR. GOWDY: - - - - - - -- - --- - - - --- - - - - - - -- - ~-~
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 46
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. PAGE: Yeah, well, I know there's kind of overlap on this.
- MR. GOWDY: I hope not. You're telling us something we don't know.
- MR. PAGE: Well, I'm learning a lot about some of the gray areas which have
- been --
- MR. GOWDY: All right.
- the FBI would be the only law enforcement
- entity that you had spoken with?
- MR. PAGE: Yes. Yes.
- MR. GOWDY: And I'm trying to understand --
- MR. PAGE: I haven't gotten speeding tickets for many -- over 10 years, so I think
- no local -- I've spoken -- I had my fingers printed in the New York Police Department for my
- securities registration. I can't remember exactly when that was. That may have been
- about 2 years ago, I would say, something like that.
- MR. GOWDY: Okay. Thank you for that clarification.
- I'm trying to understand law enforcement's interest in you with respect to the
- jurisdiction of this committee, what we're investigating. And how many times have they
- interviewed you in connection with Russia's attempts to interfere with or influence the
- 2016 election cycle?
- MR. PAGE: Approximately four. They came up -- you know, typically when the
- FBI has reached out to me previously, they give me a call. This time, in early March 2017,
- they just showed up. I was in a lobby near Lincoln Center in the upper west side of
- Manhattan, and they just walked up to me.
- And I was so happy to see them because I had sent a letter to -- sorry. This is -- I'm
- glad you reminded me. I sent a letter to Director Comey on September -- Sunday,
- September 25, 2016, after the world premiere of the dodgy dossier when these false
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 47
- UNCLASSIFIED
- allegations were broadcast by Yahoo News and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, which is
- funded by the Federal agency Broadcasting Board of Governors.
- MR. GOWDY: I guess this is where 11m a little bit confused. Did the Bureau talk
- to you before the dossier was made public?
- MR. PAGE: Did not. And I was actually -- I was concerned about that. That
- represented a serious concern, particularly given the threats I had been subjected to and
- the severe personal damage, both to myself but, frankly, to the Trump campaign as well.
- MR. GOWDY: All right. I don't want to cut you off there, but 11m just trying to
- establish whether or not the Bureau talked to you before the dossier was made public.
- MR. PAGE: Not in -- not anytime between July 2016 and until the meeting that I
- just referenced, where they first came up and approached me in March.
- MR. GOWDY: And is it your testimony that all of the Bureau's questions to you are
- about allegations made in the dossier?
- MR. PAGE: Not all of, but that -- if -- I would say that that was a central
- foundation, and, again, it would sort of branch out from there. So also -- there were
- some questions also about ttlat prior case with Podobnyy as well.
- MR. GOWDY: All right. live written down four different words. I didn't think
- lid ever be going through this with anyone, but welve got to, I guess. You seem to draw a
- distinction between a meeting, a greeting, a conversation, and you hearing a speech.
- 50~ to the extent you may have said that you have met with senior members of
- Russian Government or legislators in Russia, were those meetings, greetings,
- conversations, or were you sitting in the audience listening?
- MR. PAGE: The greetings were to Arkadiy Dvorkovich and perhaps -- I believe
- there were a couple of legislators, again, in the audience, you know, people whose kids
- were graduating from this top Russian university, like if you go to Yale's commencement or
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- Stanford's commencement, and there may be some senior government officials -- or
- University of Pennsylvania's commencement -- who said hello very briefly. But so
- meetings and greetings -- or sorry, greetings and brief conversations would be each of
- those.
- 48
- In terms of listening to a speech, which is the primary focus and the primary thing I
- was driving at with these incredible insights, was really the primary focus of where I got my
- information.
- MR. GOWDY: So what you were trying to communicate is that you had derived
- incredible insight from having listened to someone make a speech?
- MR. PAGE: Certainly, yes, as I have from Mr. Donald J. Trump during the
- campaign.
- MR. GOWDY: Okay. Well, I want to lay those insights aside for a second and go
- back kind of to the gravamen of this investigation, which would be collusion, coordination,
- conspiracy, contact. Let's start with the word "contact" too.
- Any of those four words in connection with the unauthorized access of either the
- DNC server or Mr. Podesta's email?
- MR. PAGE: Absolutely not, in no way, shape, or form.
- MR. GOWDY: The dissemination of information collected as a result of those
- intrusions?
- MR. PAGE: No, with that exception of someone mentioned -- there was
- dissemination when I went to give that RT, you know, interview --
- MR. GOWDY: Right.
- MR. PAGE: -- public interview, and they mentioned that dissemination. That
- was an employee, a broadcaster of RT, and he mentioned that, oh, wow, all this
- information is coming out, and I don't know how to keep -- make any sense of it or keep
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 49
- UNCLASSIFIED
- track of it all. So he was just curious.
- MR. GOWDY: With Russians, either senior government officials, members of the
- legislative body, or to use your phrase "man" -- and let's also include woman -- "on the
- street," any conversations with any of those categories of people about how to interfere
- with or influence the 2016 American election?
- MR. PAGE: Absolutely not. Absolutely not-MR.
- GOWDY: -- two more things.
- MR. PAGE: Again, other than the points I made in my opening statement and
- related documents, letters to the committee about the interference with -- in these false
- stories coming out of, you knQw, coming from -- originating from Mr. Ste.ele related to the
- false allegations about me, that is the main --
- MR. GOWDY: Well, if I understand that testimony correct, the only conversations
- you have had are in correcting other people's misapprehensions about what role you
- played?
- MR. PAGE: That's correct, but it also had a much bigger impact by all indications
- on the 2016 election, because, again, these are falsehoods. And I had a conversation with
- Robby Mook about that last month.
- MR. GOWDY: Okay.
- MR. PAGE: Or sorry, end of September.
- MR. GOWDY: We'll save that for later.
- Have you filed a civil lawsuit in connection with the allegations made against you in
- the dossier?
- MR. PAGE: I have, yes.
- MR. GOWDY: Against whom, and what was the cause of action?
- MR. PAGE: It was against Oath Inc., which is the parent company -- it's a
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 50
- UNCLASSIFIED
- subsidiary of Verizon. It is the parent company of Yahoo News and Huffington Post or
- now known as Huff Post, where their name was changed.
- MR. GOWDY: And what was the specific cause of action?
- MR. PAGE: So there were four counts: One is defamation and defamation per se
- against Oath and Broadcasting Board of Governors/Radio Free Europe. The second count
- is acts of terrorism transcending national boundaries against Oath and BBG. The third is
- financing of terrorism against BBG. And the fourth is tortious interference against Oath
- and RFE and BBG.
- MR. GOWDY: And that lawsuit is filed?
- MR. PAGE: Yes, it was filed on September 14 in the U.S. District Court of the
- Southern District of New York.
- MR. GOWDY: Well, let's focus on your cause of action for defamation. What is
- the basis of your belief that you have been defamed?
- MR. PAGE: Yes. There was an article on Friday, September 23, 2016, that was
- the world premiere of the false allegations from the dodgy dossier. So -- which was then,
- late on that night, u.s. time or East Coast time, at 3:55 a.m., I believe, GMT on Saturday
- morning, September 24, 2016, there was a -- Radio Free Europe, the u.S. Government's
- propaganda network, put out this false report repeating the false information from the
- Yahoo News article.
- MR. GOWDY: So it is your testimony under oath today that the allegations made
- against you and the Steele dossier are demonstrably false?
- MR. PAGE: Demonstrably false and demonstrably damaging not just to myself but
- particularly to the Trump campaign and all of American democracy.
- MR. GOWDY: Well, I don't know"" that you have standing to assert it on behalf of
- the Trump campaign or the American democracy.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 51
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. PAGE: I'm not asserting it on behalf of them. I'm just noting, as a person
- who has studied national security and international relations and political science since my
- time as a political science honors major up Route 50 at the U.S. Naval Academy in
- Annapolis, there is -- that was definitely the biggest influence on the 2016 election in terms
- of these Russia-related allegations.
- MR. GOWDY: Well, you seem to want to talk about that, so let's talk about that
- for a second. Are you of the opinion that Russia did not attempt to interfere with our
- influence the 2016 election?
- MR. PAGE: I have not been thoroughly convinced of that. Alii
- know -- particularly given --
- MR. GOWDY: What would it take to thoroughly convince you of that?
- MR. PAGE: If the FBI or any other law enforcement agency had been allowed to
- examine the DNC's server, as opposed to CrowdStrike, which was also hired by the same
- law firm that hired Fusion GPS on behalf of -- or related to Christopher Steele. So there
- seems to be quite an overlap there.
- So'that, to me, intuitively, raises some serious questions in my mind and also given
- some of the other questions I had on -- with relation to the January 6, 2017, intelligence
- report.
- MR. GOWDY: Well, take the server out of it for a moment. Russia's efforts to
- influence social media, are you a birther when it comes to that? Do you not believe that
- Russia made an effort to sow the seeds of discord in our country?
- MR. PAGE: Congressman Gowdy, I can tell you this: There's been many days of
- hearings this week on the other side of the Hill in the Senate --
- MR. GOWDY: And here. '
- MR. PAGE: in terms of the social media?
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 52
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. GOWDY: And here.
- MR. PAGE: Oh, was there? 11m sorry. I missed that. But theylre talking about
- a couple hundred thousand dollars of ads, a couple hundred thousand.
- MR. GOWDY: Okay. Well, youlre wanting to debate scope. 11m wanting to
- debate intent, whether or not it happened. Regardless of scope, is it your position that
- Russia made no effort to interfere with or influence the 2016 election cycle?
- MR. PAGE: I have seen no intent, and based on all of the things live read, studied,
- heard --
- MR. GOWDY: Youlve seen no intent? No evidence or no intent?
- MR. PAGE: Based on my personal interactions, I saw no intent.
- MS. SPEIER: Personal interactions with whom?
- MR. PAGE: Just in terms of man on the street and people -- scholars in Russia, for
- example. In all of my trips over the past year and a half to Russia -- or my two trips to
- Russia in the past year and a half, live never seen any evidence of that type of interference.
- Again, everything I -- you know, the main allegations, to the best of my knowledge -- again,
- this is not my field of expertise.
- MR. GOWDY: Well, it has not stopped you from expressing an opinion.
- MR. PAGE: Alii know is that, in terms of trolls, the official definition of trolls,
- more or less, is people that use social media or media outlets to sow discord. That is
- precisely what happened with me with these false allegations from the dodgy dossier on
- September 23, 2016, and in the news flow that continued over the next 45 days leading up
- to the 2016 election.
- MR. GOWDY: So, if I understand your testimony correctly, you believe the
- allegations made against you that were publicly aired were more likely to have impacted
- the 2016 election than any efforts or interferences by the Russian Government?
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. PAGE: I have -- there's no question in my mind.
- MR. GOWDY: On that note, Mr. Chairman, I would yield back.
- MR. CONAWAY: All right. Mr. Schiff.
- MR. SCHIFF: Dr. Page, how did your July trip to Moscow come about?
- 53
- MR. PAGE: I had spoken at many universities in the past, and one of the scholars
- who I knew from those -- one of my prior lectures, was a coauthor -- he's a colleague of
- another scholar who's actually at the -- at Harvard University now.
- And his father -- the father of the individual at Harvard, his father is the rector, the
- senior person at the New Economic School in Moscow. And I was invited, as I had been
- invited on countless prior occasions over the years, to give a speech in Moscow at that
- university, the New Economic School.
- MR. SCHIFF: So this person who invited you, who are they? What's their name?
- MR. PAGE: There's Andrej Krickovic is the -- sorry. Andrej Krickovic -- the
- individual who invited me actually was Shlomo Weber. He's the rector of New Economic
- School.
- MR. SCHIFF: And how did he invite you?
- MR. PAGE: Via email. Via email, uh-huh.
- MR. SCHIFF: And who was the other person you mentioned with -- related to the
- university?
- MR. PAGE: So his son, Shlomo, you know, Professor Weber's son is Yuval Weber,
- W-e-b-e-r. He is a -- or at least, you know, then was a scholar at Harvard University.
- MR. SCHIFF: So but Shlomo Weber is the rector at the university in Moscow?
- MR. PAGE: Yes.
- MR. SCHIFF: And he's the one who invited you via email?
- MR. PAGE: Correct.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. SCHIFF: And when did he invite you by email?
- MR. PAGE: In the first half of 2016, March, April, probably April timeframe, I
- believe.
- MR. SCHIFF: Was it before or after you became affiliated with the Trump
- campaign?
- MR. PAGE: It was after.
- MR. SCHIFF: Was he aware that you were affiliated with the Trump campaign?
- MR. PAGE: He was, yes.
- MR. SCHIFF: Is that part of the reason why he invited you?
- 54
- MR. PAGE: I think there's a general -- as I was alluding to, a general interest in
- what's going on in the U.S. in this -- changing times, and so it may have indirectly been part
- of it. Again, the main reason I was invited is for the same reason I had been invited
- countless times in the past.
- MR. SCHIFF: Well, that's your supposition, right. This Mr. Weber at the
- university, he has ties to high-ranking Russian officials, does he not?
- MR. PAGE: Just like the -- Amy Gutmann, president of the University of
- Pennsylvania, has ties to Joe Biden and, you know, and was involved in the ONC in July
- of 2016, which happened in her hometown of Philadelphia. So similar to that, he has
- some ties.
- And, also, New Economic School, there are a few of the board members. It's a top
- Russian university, and just like top universities, such as Harvard, Harvard Law School,
- there are -- some of the board members or some of the people affiliated with that have
- government ties. So I think that's a, you know--
- MR. SCHIFF: So the answer is yes?
- MR. PAGE: Yes.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 55
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. SCHIFF: And high enough ties that he could get the Deputy Prime Minister to
- come to the same event he was inviting you?
- MR. PAGE: I think he's been there on many occasions, you know. I think, again,
- it's within -- he was there when -- he's definitely been in there at past graduations at the
- New Economic School. And, again, he's a graduate. I forget what year he graduated,
- maybe 'gO-something, but he's a graduate of New Economic School.
- MR. SCHIFF: So, Dr. Page, you're invited to come back to speak at the school at a
- time where individuals associated with the university are aware that you're now affiliated
- with the Trump campaign, correct?
- MR. PAGE: Yes. But I made very clear from the beginning that I'm not speaking
- on behalf of the Trump campaign.
- MR. SCHIFF: But at least part of their interest may have come from the fact that
- you were now affiliated with the u.s. Presidential campaign?
- MR. PAGE: They have tons of people speak from the United States. I think they
- may have had that same feeling for other Americans. Again, this is a time of change, and
- there are -- there is a general interest in things happening in America because--
- MR. SCHIFF: Dr. Page, did you read the information, the criminal information, that
- was filed against George Papadopoulos?
- MR. PAGE: No. I -- you know, some -- I was called by dozens of reporters, and I
- was focused on -- I actually needed to send a letter to the defendants in my case, and so I
- wasn't -- not really focused on that.
- MR. SCHIFF: So you haven't read the information that was filed agai,nst
- Mr. Papadopoulos into which he pled?
- MR. PAGE: A few people have picked out various points in there and asked me
- about some of those elements, particularly the August -- there's some reference -- if -- that
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 56
- UNCLASSIFIED
- they mentioned, in August 2016, there was a meeting. People asked me, am I the person
- referenced in that?
- And I told them, it's, you know, impossible that I could have been that person
- because I have -- starting in July, when these false allegations from the dodgy dossier came
- out --
- MR. SCHIFF: Dr. --
- MR. PAGE: -- in late July, I was trying to stay away from Russia-related matters to
- the greatest extent possible. So I would never be --
- MR. SCHIFF: Dr. Page, if you would try to focus on the question I'm asking.
- MR. PAGE: Please.
- MR. SCHIFF: So you haven't read the information?
- MR. PAGE: I haven't read all of it. I was zeroed in on that one point I was just
- alluding to.
- MR. SCHIFF: And are you familiar with the part of the information where it is
- related that the professor who was the link to the Russian authorities showed a new
- interest in Mr. Papadopoulos once he learned that Mr. Papadopoulos had an affiliation
- with the campaign? Are you familiar with that part of the information?
- MR. PAGE: I'm -- no, I didn't look at that closely. My only familiarity with that is
- when The Washington Post, Tom Hamburger from The Washington Post called me back in
- August about an email from that, you know, original time. And he was asking me, were
- you on that email chain?
- And I said: You know, I had some brief interactions with Mr. Papadopoulos, but I
- have no recollection.
- And he's like: Well, let me read you -- I have the text of that -- see whether you
- have that information.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 57
- UNCLASSIFIED
- And so I, you know, I checked my inbox and I found that email. I was one of many
- people included on that email chain.
- MR. SCHIFF: Would it surprise you, Dr. Page, to learn that the Russians had an
- interest in George Papadopoulos because he had the same position on the campaign that
- you did; that is, he was a new foreign policy adviser to candidate Trump?
- MR. PAGE: I don't know anything about that.
- MR. SCHIFF: According to the Papadopoulos information, after learning of his
- affiliation with the campaign, this professor arranged for other meetings for
- Mr. Papadopoulos. Once you did arrive in Moscow for the speech, did the gentleman
- who invited you to the university introduce you to members of the Ministry of Foreign
- Affairs or other Russians that you know or suspect may be affiliated with the Russian
- Government?
- MR. PAGE: Not to my recollection. There is -- again, at the reception -- there
- was a reception both before and after my speech. And there were some people standing
- around, and I was, you know, Mr. -- Professor Weber, there were people mingling.
- And, again, so similar to the -- my discussion with Congressman Gowdy about the
- distinction between any meetings versus a greeting, I may have greeted somebody, and I
- want to just be careful not to make any false statements. But no, you know, no direct
- discussions of that --
- MR. SCHIFF: So Professor Weber didn't introduce you to any Russian officials that
- you either knew or suspected were with the Russian Government?
- MR. PAGE: Not that I can recall, no. He may have -- again, there may have been
- a brief hello greeting, but that's -- I have no recollection of specifics along those lines.
- MR. SCHIFF: And did anyone you met while you were in Moscow during that trip
- later follow up with you to maintain communication with you?
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 58
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. PAGE: I stayed in touch with Shlomo Weber and some of the, you know,
- people who were part of our -- you know, some of the scholars. But --
- MR. SCHIFF: Some of the Russian scholars you met while you were there?
- MR. PAGE: Yeah, uh-huh.
- MR. SCHIFF: Which Russian scholars did you meet while you were there that you
- followed up with after you left?
- MR. PAGE: There were various email chains and so I--
- MR. SCHIFF: Dr. Page, 11m sure there were various email chains. That doesnlt
- help us very much.
- MR. PAGE: Okay.
- MR. SCHIFF: Who did you maintain communication with that you met during that
- July Moscow trip?
- MR. PAGE: The primary person would be Shlomo Weber, who I understand is an
- American citizen but also, you know, a person at that -- or a member of the administration
- of that university.
- MR. SCHIFF: And who else did you maintain communication with after that trip?
- MR. PAGE: There may have been some other people ccld, so such as Andrej
- Krickovic.
- MR. SCHIFF: And who is Andrej Krickovic?
- MR. PAGE: He is a Berkeley Ph.D., I believe, and he is a, I believe, a
- professor -- last I checked. live -- again, when all the false allegations came out against
- me, live sort of become pretty radioactive, so I havenlt talked with him recently. But last I
- saw, he was a professor at the Higher School of Economics, another kind of top economics
- school in Russia -- or based in Moscow though.
- MR. SCHIFF: And who else were you in communication with after that trip that
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- you had met with during that trip?
- MR. PAGE: In terms of?
- MR. SCHIFF: In other words, you said there may have been various emails.
- MR, PAGE: Yeah.
- 59
- MR. SCHIFF: Who did you stay in communication with or did you have any
- followup communication with that you had met while you were on that trip to Moscow?
- MR. PAGE: There were some, again, journalists from both the U.S. and Russia who
- were reaching out to me. And so --
- MR. SCHIFF: And which Russians did you maintain communication with or have
- communication with after the trip? Please be specific.
- MR. PAGE: I -- there was -- again, RT and Sputnik, various people would reach out
- to me for interviews. I donlt have the full recollection or list of that, but there was some
- general, you know, asking me questions and some, you know, exchange of ideas.
- But, again, everything in those discussions, to the best of my knowledge, was
- accurately portrayed as in complete contrast to some of the misportrayals of myself based
- on the false allegations of the dodgy dossier, which were in the process of coming out.
- I first got contacted -- related to that trip -- related to that trip, in July, late July
- of 2016, I was called by The Wall Street Journal asking me --
- MR. SCHIFF: Dr. Page, 11m not asking you if you were called by The Wall Street
- Journal.
- MR. PAGE: Yeah.
- MR. SCHIFF: 11m asking you: People that you met while you were in Moscow in
- July of last year that later followed up with some level of communication, either a call, an
- email, a text, who followed up with you that you met during that Moscow trip?
- MR. PAGE: Just journalists and scholars.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 60
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. SCHIFF: And which scholars?
- MR. PAGE: The main person in terms of direct interaction was Shlomo Weber and
- members of his team.
- MR. SCHIFF: And what other members of his team?
- MR. PAGE: I can get you that individual's name. I can't recall his name right
- now. Again, live been cut off from the world given these false allegations and all the
- terrible impact it has had on my life. So--
- MR. SCHIFF: And these otherindividuals, did you communicate directly with
- them, or were they only cc'd on emails between you and Mr. Weber?
- MR. PAGE: I can't recall. I may have been in direct contact from --
- MR. SCHIFF: And those direct contacts from time to time with these other
- unnamed individuals, did any of them concern the Trump campaign?
- MR. PAGE: To the best of my recollection, no. But to the point I was discussing
- with Congressman Gowdy, nothing related to any hacking or any illicit activity of any way,
- not only just in a legal sense but in an ethical sense.
- People -- again, as a scholar, as live done since my time working in the Cannon
- House Office Building while I was a fellow on the House Armed Services Committee, just
- research and ideas, you know. People had an intellectual shared interest, just like some
- of the scholars I worked with at the -- while I was a fellow in the House Armed Services
- Committee.
- MR. SCHIFF: How many people would you say that you had communication with
- that you met in Moscow after the trip?
- MR. PAGE: I would -- to the best of my recollection, probably no more than 10.
- But, again, nothing substantive in terms of anything that would be even vaguely related to
- this investigation, I can assure you, Congressman Schiff.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. SCHIFF: Well, I appreciate your assurances, Dr. Page. But I would much
- rather see the documents, given the disparity between your testimony and your public
- statements and the documents welve already seen.
- 61
- MR. PAGE: Which disparity? I thought we resolved that disparity. 11m not sure
- what youlre referring to.
- MR. SCHIFF: 11m not sure that we have.
- But in any event, Dr. Page, please tell us, to the best of your recollection, as many of
- the 10 people that you maintained communication with after you left Moscow.
- MR. PAGE: There was a -- again, those three individuals, so Shlomo Weber, Yuval
- Weber, and Andrej Krickovic, and a couple of scholars who were there, one of whom is
- American, and I canlt recall their names.
- MR. SCHIFF: And did you try to obtain any funding from any of these individuals
- that you had contact with in Moscow?
- MR. PAGE: No, never. No funding. You know, the only thing we had -- again,
- the only discussions that came up later in the year in December is the possibility similar to
- what live done throughout my life of maybe doing some joint research project in the years
- to come. But it was a general discussion in December of 2016, but nothing -- I never
- asked anyone for any money, thatls for sure.
- MR. SCHIFF: So did you have discussions in December of last year with Russian
- nationals about obtaining funding from them?
- MR. PAGE: Not -- I think the assumption was we would do it jOintly. You know,
- there would be a joint venture, just like Harvard. I went to a program at Harvard at the
- end of the first Cold War where they were doing --
- MR. SCHIFF: Dr. Page, 11m really not asking about your interactions with Harvard.
- MR. PAGE: But thatls the context of what I -- what they had in mind, where it was
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- a --
- MR. SCHIFF: Dr. Page, if you would --
- MR. PAGE: -- kind of a quasi jOint venture, if you will.
- MR. SCHIFF: -- who did you have discussions about working together with in a
- Russia-funded venture of some kind?
- MR. PAGE: I can't recall. I can't recall those specifics. Again--
- 62
- MR. SCHIFF: You can't recall having discussions over obtaining Russian funding for
- some project?
- MR. PAGE: No. No Russian -- I mean, no -- there were people -- we were -- I had
- broad discussions with. But, again, bear in mind the timing. The timing is essential,
- because this is December. And I've already have -- you know, you talk about -- and I think
- yourself and others have referred to this dark cloud, right. . The dark cloud was darkest
- over myself.
- MR. SCHIFF: Dr. Page, I'm not really asking about dark clouds.
- MR. PAGE: Yes. But that prevented--
- MR. SCHIFF: I'm asking you, did you have discussions at any time last year -- and
- then I'll ask you about this year -- at any time about obtaining Russian Government
- funding, Russian university funding, funding from Russian nationals for any purpose
- whatsoever?
- MR. PAGE: To the best of my recollection, no. Again, we -- a broad discussion
- about general think tank things, similar to Brookings Institution or Center for National
- Policy, where I was previously a fellow. I never solicited directly or indirectly from any
- Russian national for any financial backing of any sort, either personally or in the context of,
- you know, doing some informal working group.
- MR. SCHIFF: So you never sought Russian funding from any source?
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 63
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. PAGE: To the best of my recollection, no. Again, I just -- I don't want
- anything that I may have, you know, may have come up in a broad conversation to be
- taken out of context. That was not the intent, and there was nothing direct or definitive
- ever offered or suggested by myself.
- MR. SCHIFF:· Well, you're doing a lot of hedging, Dr. Page.
- MR. PAGE: I'm just -- I'm careful because I know how things -- like, yeah.
- MR. SCHIFF: Did you have a conversation with anyone at the university or anyone
- in the Russian Government or any Russian nationals that you met during your trip to Russia
- last year, either in July or in December, that concerned getting Russian Government or
- university funding for a joint effort, a think tank, a project, a thesis, any of the above?
- MR. PAGE: The main thing we talked about is joint funding from both U.S. side
- and the Russia side. Eventually, somewhere down the road, everything was held in
- abeyance given the darkest of dark clouds that was put over my head --
- MR. SCHIFF: So you did --
- MR. PAGE: -- in September 2016--
- MR. SCHIFF: -- have some discussions about a joint venture that would involve
- Russian funding?
- 2016 --
- MR. PAGE: I was not soliciting for Russian funding. There may have been -MR.
- SCHIFF: -- so was someone offering you --
- MR. PAGE: -- the concept -- yeah. Not -- nothing -- totally unrelated to the
- MR. SCHIFF: You were not soliciting? Were Russians--
- MR. PAGE: And nothing was offered. Actually, it's a good point. That
- university similarly, with the dark cloud over me, a similar dark cloud came over this
- university when they're constantly getting these crazy questions related to this dodgy
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- dossier.
- MR. SCHIFF: Dr. Page, I still want to bring you back to my question.
- MR. PAGE: Yes.
- 64
- MR. SCHIFF: Did you have a discussion with individuals affiliated with this
- university'that invited you over once you became affiliated with the Trump campaign
- about engaging in a joint venture that would receive in part Russian funding? Yes or no.
- MR. PAGE: I have no recollection of that, no.
- MR. SCHIFF: The information concerning George Papadopoulos mentions a
- professor .as well. Professor Joseph Mifsud has been at least speculated as to be possibly
- the professor mentioned. I don't know whether he is or not.
- MR. PAGE: Yes.
- MR. SCHIFF: Have you ever met professor Joseph Mifsud?
- MR. PAGE: No. Again, I'm cautious of having been in so many universities in
- Europe over the years. I -- you know, there may have been a greeting. I have no
- recollection of ever interacting with him in any way, shape, or form. Just to be as careful
- and thorough and precise as humanly possible. But I have no personal relationship with
- him.
- The only time I heard that name until Tom Hamburger from The Washington Post
- sent me an email -- or got in touch with me about it in August of this year was -- and I -- this
- email -- that I was one of many members on that email chain that George Papadopoulos
- had sent, which I'd totally forgotten. It was in one ear and out the other, like most of our
- broad disc;:ussions in the -- in our, you know, informal committee.
- MR. SCHIFF: When you were in Russia -- or let me back up.
- Prior to the July trip, who did you communicate with about the July trip from the
- Trump campaign?
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 65
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. PAGE: The first person was -- because, again, after these -- there were
- various -- as the campaign continued to expand, there was J.D. Gordon. He was probably
- the main person I spoke with.
- But the thing with J.D. is that -- again, we're an informal group, right. He was
- probably the most formal. I believe he may have even had -- if I'm not mistaken, he may
- have had a Trump campaign email address. I had spoken with him on that -- a few
- occasions that are -- you know, we'd get together for a dinner. I may have sent an email
- or two to him on that. And, again, he never definitively answered one way or another.
- MR. SCHIFF: So the people you were communicating with were J.D. Gordon.
- MR. PAGE: Uh-huh.
- MR. SCHIFF: I referenced another individual in the emails that you sent either
- from Russia or shortly thereafter, Tera Dahl.
- MR. PAGE: Yes.
- MR. SCHIFF: Who is Tera Dahl?
- MR. PAGE: To the best of my recollection, she's also someone that came in from
- the Washington, D.C., area. I was the only person up in New York. Most of our team
- was kind of inside-the-beltway people. I believe she may have had some -- I forget her
- official or quasi official title, but I believe she was a -- related to some sort of diplomatic
- outreach or something along those lines.
- But I have relatively minimal --
- MR. SCHIFF: She was a member of the campaign. She was not part of the
- foreign policy panel that you and Papadopoulos and others were a part of?
- MR. PAGE: I think she showed up at one of the dinners. That's probably how I
- got her -- that's probably how we got on the email chain. I forget the timing of that
- dinner. But, again, it was mostly informal conversations with people getting together
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- who are kind of very peripheral, yeah.
- MR~ SCHIFF: And Walid Phares, what was your relationship to him during the
- campaign?
- 66
- MR. PAGE: I believe he was also one of the five people in that initial -- you know,
- that was announced when our team -- or the people that were volunteers in the foreign
- policy realm, he's an expert in the Middle East. And I, you know -- I had heard of him just
- in the scholarly sense previously, but he was also involved in the -- as part of the informal
- team.
- MR. SCHIFF: And how much interaction did you have with George Papadopoulos?
- MR. PAGE: Very limited. Very limited. I cannot -- I think the last time I saw him
- was somewhere in the range of June 2016, you know. And, again, he was on some email
- chains at the very beginning.
- My -- to the best of my recollection, I don't recall him ever, for whatever reason,
- you know -- probably the most interaction I had -- or that he had with our team was, in
- terms of our, you know -- of the informal group, was in the first -- so I believe that
- Washington Post report came out in March. It was kind of nothing beyond April of 2016.
- Again, he may have showed up --
- MR. SCHIFF: Dr. Page, I'm confused. You said the last time you thought you saw
- him was in June of 2016?
- MR. PAGE: June, yeah. I believe --
- MR. SCHIFF: And at what function was that?
- MR. PAGE: That was at a dinner at the Capitol Hill Club in -- sorry, the whatever
- the name of the Republican club is just near the Capitol South Metro station. I forget
- what that's called. I hadn't been there before, but some of our members of our team got
- together there.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. SCHIFF: And who got together then?
- MR. PAGE: We were -- it was organized by Senator Sessions.
- MR. SCHIFF: And who was--
- MR. PAGE: Or, you know, he was the senior person there.
- MR. SCHIFF: And who was present?
- MR. PAGE: I don't recall exactly. I know I was there. I believe Keith Kellogg
- was there. I don't want to say, because I can't recall exactly the list of participants.
- 67
- MR. SCHIFF: But Senator Sessions and George Papadopoulos were also present?
- MR. PAGE: Yeah, I saw -- yeah.
- MR. SCHIFF: And did Senator Sessions convene the meeting?
- MR. PAGE: I can't recall specifically, no. I think it was J.D. that actually sent
- around the email, so I don't -- again, I'm careful of definitions in terms of convening or
- whatever. But I think J.D. may have let us know about it, yeah.
- MR. SCHIFF: So your recollection is J.D. emailed you to invite you to this meeting
- at the Republican club with Senator Sessions and others?
- MR. PAGE: Yes.
- MR. SCHIFF: And was it a dinner event, a dinner meeting?
- MR. PAGE: It was a dinner event, yes, dinner.
- MR. SCHIFF: And how long did the dinner last?
- MR. PAGE: I can't recall, probably the length of an average dinner, 2 hours, hour
- and a half kind of thing.
- MR. SCHIFF: And during the course of the dinner, this would have been the month
- preceding-your trip to Moscow?
- MR. PAGE: Yes.
- MR. SCHIFF: Did you inform the others present that you were going to Moscow?
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 68
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. PAGE: ' I mentioned it briefly to Senator Sessions as I was walking out the
- door, that 11m, you know -- 11m -- because I remember it was actually right -- I forget the
- exact date, but it was the Thursday night before I flew to Moscow to give my speech. So I
- mentioned to him in passing, so -- as we were talking out the door.
- Again, going back to my point about think tanks --
- MR. SCHIFF: ' But just a moment. This was the Thursday night before you left for
- Moscow?
- MR. PAGE: Yes.
- MR. SCHIFF: And what day did you leave for Moscow?
- MR. PAGE: I believe it was the Sunday, yeah.
- MR. SCHIFF: So 2 days before you left for Moscow --
- MR. PAGE: Not 2 days. There was Thursday -- so this is Thursday night. I just-MR.
- SCHIFF: Or 3 days?
- MR. PAGE: Yeah, something like that.
- MR. SCHIFF: And what did you tell him about your trip to Moscow?
- MR. PAGE: I just mentioned, 11m -- you know, originally I was trying to get a lot of
- work done prior to my trip because I knew lid be traveling over the coming weeks, but 11m
- glad to have had the opportunity -- that was the only time I ever met him. I said: 11m
- glad to have the opportunity to meet you. And I just -- 11m going to be traveling, but I
- will -- 11m going to give a -- you know, totally unrelated to the campaign, 11m going to give a
- brief -- or give a speech in Moscow.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 69
- UNCLASSIFIED
- [11:42 a.m.]
- MR. SCHIFF: If it was totally unrelated to the campaign, Dr. Page, why did you use
- the limited time you had to talk to the now Attorney General to tell him you were going to
- Moscow?
- MR. PAGE: It was in the c'ontext of saying, because I have -- 11m traveling. You
- know, itls like discussing your travel schedule. Just walking -- it was actually right at the
- end of the dinner walking out the door, saying, 11m glad I was able to, you know -- because
- it was a last minute thing where we got together, and I just mentioned it to him in passing.
- He had no reaction whatsoever. It was, you know --
- MR. SCHIFF: May I ask another question?
- MR. CONAWAY: Quickly.
- MR. SCHIFF: Thank you.
- Did you, in your raising this with the now Attorney General, convey that you hoped
- you could be helpful in terms of -MR.
- PAGE: Not a bit, no.
- MR. SCHIFF: -- the Presidentls desire to-MR.
- PAGE: Absolutely not.
- MR. SCHIFF: Let me finish the question, if you would.
- MR. PAGE: 11m sorry.
- MR. SCHIFF: The Presidentls desire to improve relations with Russia?
- MR. PAGE: In no way, shape or form. Again, it was just an administrative point
- that 11m glad -- you know, although I was -- had this other travel planned, I have this trip
- coming up, and 11m glad to have had this one opportunity to meet you. Yeah. And no
- discussion of substance in any way, shape or form, thatls for sure. And, again, it was sort
- of in one ear and out the other.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 70
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. CONAWAY: All right. Sir, without objection, the chair and ranking member
- will be permitted to question witnesses for an additional 30 minutes each and yield to
- other members at their discretion.
- Welve been at this 2 hours. Letls take a 5-minute break.
- [Recess.]
- MR. CONAWAY: All right. Weill recommence.
- While Mr. Gowdy is coming over, I had a couple of questions, Dr. Page.
- What was the title of your speech in Russia in July of 116?
- MR. PAGE: I sent at least one time a copy of it. I do not have -- if I had -- I donlt
- have that information handy. Itls in one of the letters I sent you.
- MR. CONAWAY: Okay. Justin general, what was the subject matter?
- MR. PAGE: The main theme was the concept of mutual respect where -- for all
- countries, particularly, you know, between China, Russia --
- MR. CONAWAY: Right. So but itls written--
- MR. PAGE: Political economy and how countries can do a lot better if they are
- having a constructive dialogue and working together on things as opposed to being in
- constant confrontation.
- MR. CONAWAY: Right. Was it published so therels a public record of it? Itls
- written?
- MR. PAGE: Great question. There has been no publication. It was actually
- based on a book that I wrote --
- MR. CONAWAY: Okay.
- MR. PAGE: -- based on my Ph.D. thesis. And due to the sort of anti-former Soviet
- Union, anti-Russia sentiment of various academic publishers, it was not published.
- MR. CONAWAY: Okay. Who paid for your travel costs to go to Russia and back?
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. PAGE: The university just paid for the basic travel costs. I was paid zero
- dollars for my actual --
- MR. CONAWAY: But it was based on receipts, or was it per diem?
- MR. PAGE: They booked a flight on Delta for me, and thatls it. Similar, I also
- did a -- I participated in --
- MR. CONAWAY: But a normal reimbursement of actual out-of-pocket--
- 71
- MR. PAGE: There was no reimbursement. Again, they bought me -- they booked
- a ticket, just like Cambridge University booked a ticket for the --
- MR. CONAWAY: Okay. I donlt need Cambridge; I just need the Russians.
- Mr. Gowdy, anything? All right. Weill yield.
- Mr. Schiff, 30 minutes.
- MR. SCHIFF: Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
- So the Russian university paid for your travel? They bought the tickets, the plane
- tickets?
- MR. PAGE: Yeah. Just an economy class, class flight, yeah. And 11m a Delta Sky
- Miles member, so I got, you know, upgraded to economy comfort on one way.
- MR. SCHIFF: And did they pay for your accommodations while you were there as
- well?
- MR. PAGE: Yeah. Yes, a basic hotel. The same hotel. I actually -- you know, I
- looked it up online. It was about a hundred dollars a night. You know, years previously,
- those same class of four-star hotels would be $300 a night, but, you know, it was pretty
- limited occupancy. 11m not sure what exactly they paid, but it was pretty humble, you
- know, much cheaper than -- probably the whole week was pretty close to what, you know,
- one night in a Capitol Hill hotel is here. So --
- MR. SCHIFF: In addition to your travel and your lodging, did they pay for your
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 72
- UNCLASSIFIED
- meals as well while you were there?
- MR. PAGE: There was a -- you know, like most hotels, there's -- the breakfast was
- included, you know. But -- and there were a couple of -- or a dinner that we went to.
- But I -- I had some dinners on my·own. There was no -- no stipend or -- I can't recall.
- think -- I remember going out to buy some -- some Russian food in one of the local grocery
- stores.
- MR. SCHIFF: So, Dr. Page, at a time when the university is aware you have now
- affiliation with the Trump campaign, they invite you to come to speak at the university and
- offer to pay your travel expenses. Is that correct?
- MR. PAGE: The same way on multiple occasions I have done in the past.
- mentioned Higher School of Economics. They had invited me previously. Other
- universities, as a scholar in political economy, international relations, I've been invited.
- You know, and I think the good example is Cambridge University the following week, you
- know, the same thing.
- MR. SCHIFF: And did you discuss the nature of your speech before you went over,
- with the Russian university?
- MR. PAGE: You know, actually, it's interesting. The first -- it's a good question.
- So, originally, I was just going to give the Friday afternoon speech or the commencement
- actual speech. What I ended -- you know, they asked, well, would you like to give a, you
- know, more of -- and, you know, again, you've been at commencement addresses, and
- they're sort of general topics, right? This, they asked whether you'd like to do a kind of
- more of a substantive scholarly discussion.
- And I said: Well, I could do that with --' based on my prior academic research.
- So it's -- they're two -- that was the Thursday night speech, and then Friday was the
- actual commencement. And the one -- the one that got spun incorrectly by the media is
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- the Thursday night speech, which, as I mentioned to Congressman Conaway, was about
- mutual respect, but they take -- you know, the media takes one sentence out of a
- 4,500~word speech and --
- MR. SCHIFF: Let me go back to my question.
- MR. PAGE: Yes.
- 73
- MR. SCHIFF: Before you went on the trip, did you discuss with the university what
- . you planned to say in your speech, the general theme of your speech or the contents of
- your speech?
- MR. PAGE: I -- in the -- the one thing I had discussed is, again, I'm not
- representing the Trump campaign, and I'm not going to talk about anything related to U.S,.
- politics, and like most commencement addresses, it's going to be a general inspiration, how
- to, you know, do better in -- you know, you're launching your new career. It's a
- commencement address and just general words of advice for new graduates.
- SOi in terms of the other speech, which became controversial based on completely
- false characterizations, that I did not -- wasn't even set up until I arrived in Moscow -MR.
- SCHIFF: And during that --
- MR. PAGE: -- to the best of my recollection.
- MR. SCHIFF: -- Thursday night speech, was that the speech in which you expressed
- criticism over U.S. sanctions over Russia's invasion of Ukraine? Was that a part of your
- speech or am I misrecollecting?
- MR. PAGE: I am 99.9 percent sure that that never -- again, in some of the
- documents I provided this committee, the full -- full transcript is in there. To the best of
- my recollection, there was no discussion of sanctions in that. There had been --
- MR. SCHIFF: Okay. I may be--
- MR. PAGE: -- in many other -- in many news articles, there had been false
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 74
- UNCLASSIFIED
- accusations about that, you know, following all the dodgy dossier allegations, but people
- mischaracterizing that and --
- MR. SCHIFF: I may be misremembering it. Was this the speech, though, that was
- portrayed as condemning the United States policy for being hypocritical?
- MR. PAGE: Mischaracterized. They picked out one --
- MR. SCHIFF: Did you use the word IIhypocritical ll in your speech?
- MR. PAGE: Can you please repeat your question?
- MR. SCHIFF: Did you use the word IIhypocritical ll in your speech?
- MR. PAGE: Can you say the full sentence?
- MR. SCHIFF: Did you use the word IIhypocritical ll in your speech?
- MR. PAG'E: Not with respect to Russia. I was talking about general interactions
- between Central Asia, U.S., Europe, China, Middle East, and Russia. So it's been
- completely misportrayed as a Russia issue. Again, the main focus on a macro level is
- mutual respect; it is a positive. And it was spun as a Russia-policy focus.
- MR. SCHIFF: Dr. Page, you were giving the speech in Russia. Do you think that
- might have affected how your audience was perceiving what you were trying to tell them?
- MR. PAGE: The feedback I received was -- that's not the -- that was not the case.
- Again, the concept of mutual respect -- mutual respect is something that actually China,
- China --
- MR. SCHIFF: Dr. Page, that's not my question. You talked about, if I understand.
- correctly, a hypocrisy of U.S. policy in promoting democratic ideals, and was that a part of
- your speech?
- MR. PAGE: It was not so specific, no. And, again, in those mischaracterizations,
- including in The Washington Post --
- MR. SCHIFF: What hypocrisy were you referring to then?
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 75
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. PAGE: Again, it's the concept of mutual respect. If we find ways of, you
- know, working -- both working together in an international relations context, but also not
- being so definitive as to the way other countries should operate.
- MR. SCHIFF: Dr. Page, let me take you back to--
- MR. PAGE: It's a little bit of a laissez faire kind of, you know--
- MR. SCHIFF: Let me take you back to what we were discussing before our break,
- the meeting you had at the Republican National Headquarters I think is the building you're
- referring to, if I understand correctly. What was the nature of the discussions at that
- meeting with Mr. Sessions, then-Senator Sessions -- was J.D. Gordon present?
- MR. PAGE: I believe he was.
- MR. SCHIFF: And George Papadopoulos you believe was there?
- MR. PAGE: I believe, yes, to the best of my recollection.
- MR. SCHIFF: What was the nature of the discussion?
- MR. PAGE: General foreign policy. If -- if the word "Russia" came up at all in that
- discussion, it was in passing. I have no r~collection of any serious intera'ction on that
- topic. I had actually met with Prime Minister Modi. I was in a meeting organized at Blair
- House across from the White House a couple weeks earlier. And I believe sort of some of
- the feedback and, you know, international relations concepts that were discussed in that
- meeting 3- weeks earlier, give or take, was the main topic of my -- when we went around
- the table, everyone -- you know, similar to the discussions here -- everyone kind of chipped
- in a few thoughts. Mine was primarily related to my -- the meeting I was invited to with
- Prime Minister Modi.
- MR. SCHIFF: So your comments during the meeting were only about your interest
- in Mr. Modi or--
- MR. PAGE: It wasn't -- again, sort of in an international relations context, just
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 76
- UNCLASSIFIED
- general approaches to the world. And, again, my -- I have no definitive recollection, but,
- you know, to the best of my recollection, that was the case because that, you know -- and,
- again, it was more generalized --
- MR. SCHIFF: Do you remember what Mr. Papadopoulos raised during the
- meeting?
- MR. PAGE: I have no recollection whatsoever. He -MR.
- SCHIFF: Did Mr. Papadopoulos make--
- MR. PAGE: The fact that probably in terms of that email, which is now the big
- controversy of back in March, I have no recollection of that. And, you know, I --
- MR. SCHIFF: Which email are you referring to, for the record?
- MR. PAGE: The one that was -- Tom Hamburger wrote about in his August 2016
- article about an email chain, which I think, you know --
- MR. SCHIFF: And the subject was what?
- MR. PAGE: That was that professor from London who you alluded to. I think his
- name was included in there.
- MR; SCHIFF: I'm not sure that I'm following. You're referring to an April-MR.
- PAGE: No, I believe it was March. It was late March --
- MR. SCHIFF: Late March/April--
- MR. PAGE: -- to the best of my recollection.
- MR. SCHIFF: Late March/April -- I'm sorry, late April-MR.
- PAGE: No, late March, I believe.
- MR. SCHIFF: Late March email from Mr. Papadopoulos?
- MR. PAGE: Yes, to a bunch of people.
- MR. SCHIFF: To a bunch of people, including yourself-MR.
- PAGE: Yes.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. SCHIFF: -- that made reference to a professor?
- MR. PAGE: Yes.
- MR. SCHIFF: And what, to the best of your recollection, did the email say?
- MR~ PAGE: The best of my recollection is what's in the Tom Hamburger article
- 77
- from 2 months ago in The Washington Post. And, frankly, I can't even recall what that is
- now. Again, my -- my recollection has been so overwhelmed with these false stories and
- trying to reestablish some level of justice in the United States that that is so far outside of
- my mind and brain right now that I really have no recollection, frankly, and although I will
- note that the, you know --
- MR. SCHIFF: Dr. Page, and weill try to find the article, but it's your recollection
- that you received and you were copied or you were copied on an email from George
- Papadopoulos that also involved J.D. Gordon, or was it just between the two of you?
- MR. PAGE: No, I believe that that was the main one for the group. And we -- I
- believe we had a call in April at some point, but a general discussion, you know, a general ~MR.
- SCHIFF: And this email that you recall included a mention of this professor
- that Mr. Papadopoulos had met on his trip to Italy and stayed in contact with in London?
- MR~ PAGE: No. To be clear, the first -- the one that's referenced in The
- Washington Post article was the one to a broader group. The only other email I recall
- getting from him is just setting up a brief introductory chat, like I had brief introductory
- chats with a lot of members of our committee. And, again, he was not very active in
- terms of some of our discussions.
- MR. SCHIFF: Dr. Page, I just want to make sure that 11m understanding what
- you Ire saying.
- MR. PAGE: Yes;
- MR. SCHIFF: Are you saying that there are two emails that you specifically recall,
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- one that was just between you and Mr. Papadopoulos regarding a meeting?
- MR. PAGE: No, no, no meeting. Just a call.
- MR. SCHIFF: Regarding a call?
- MR. PAGE: Yes.
- MR. SCHIFF: And that email was just between the two of you?
- MR. PAGE: Yes, I believe so.
- 78
- MR. SCHIFF: And then there's a second email, in which you were one of several
- parties who were copied, that took place in late March?
- MR. PAGE: I believe so, yes, as referenced in The Washington Post August 2017
- article.
- MR. SCHIFF: And this article made reference to a professor that George
- Papadopoulos had met?
- MR. PAGE: I believe so, yes.
- MR. SCHIFF: And what was conveyed about this professor?
- MR. PAGE: Just what was in The Washington Post article. I have no recollection
- beyond that. It's so far from my concern because I'm so concerned on other bigger issues
- that are really affecting this country and affecting my personal life, given these offenses
- that have been --
- MR. SCHIFF: Let me ask it this way: Were you aware that this professor that
- George Papadopoulos referenced in this email had introduced him to people with the
- Russian Government?
- MR. PAGE: I believe there may be some reference to that, per my recollection of
- reading it in The Washington Post, yeah.
- MR. SCHIFF: And--
- MR. PAGE: And having received it 16 months previously, while so many terrible
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- things had happened to me, including death threats', related to the false dodgy dossier.
- MR. SCHIFF: Dr. Page, letls not lose focus here.
- MR. PAGE: But my point is 11m not focused on that, for the reasons that it was
- totally --
- MR. SCHIFF: - MR. PAGE:
- MR. SCHIFF:
- MR. PAGE:'
- 79
- -
- MR. SCHIFF: _
- MR. PAGE:
- MR. SCHIFF:
- And I would ask also, Mr. Chairman, that we redact the reference.
- MR. CONAWAY: Without objection.
- MR. SCHIFF: Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
- MR. PAGE: Thank you for that.
- MR. SCHIFF: Okay. Let me -- outside of the email that you received that was
- referenced in The Washington Post, did you learn from any other source, apart from the
- email and the article about the email, about any subsequent contacts that George
- Papadopoulos had with Russians after meeting the professor?
- MR. PAGE: No, I have no recollection. Again, we had various phone calls and
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- group meetings. I don't recall any -- you know, that's the most detail was that first
- meeting or that first email chain that a bunch of people were on.
- MR. SCHIFF: Do you speak Russian, Dr. Page?
- 80
- MR. PAGE: The way I describe it is I can get my ideas across. And if I'm in a
- meeting, I understand what's happening. But it's like when you're talking to someone
- from a different country and they have -- it's not -- you know, it's hard on your ears. I'm
- not a very smooth Russian speaker. Maybe you could say that about my English as well.
- But I'm not -- I'm by no means fluent.
- MR. SCHIFF: You lived in Russia for how many years?
- MR. PAGE: Three years. 2004 to -- mid-2004 to mid '07.
- MR. SCHIFF: And did you become fluent while you were living there?
- MR. PAGE: I became better. I became better. I've lost it over recent years, just
- given the fact that I'm not doing much or going there much anymore.
- MR. SCHIFF: And just to conclude on the meeting with the then-Senator Sessions,
- did anyone bring up the topic of Russia during that meeting?
- MR. PAGE: I have no recollection of it. And I -- one thing I know for sure,
- nothing was ever discussed that was in any way beyond a policy, you know, broad policy
- context, in terms of definitive steps to do anything, particularly in the context of this
- investigation. Nothing remotely related to that.
- MR. SCHIFF: Was there any discussion of the President's desire to improve
- relations with Russia?
- MR. PAGE: Not to my recollection.
- MR. SCHIFF: So the only specific reference to Russia you can remember is your
- telling the then-Senator Sessions that you were imminently going to be leaving for
- Moscow?
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 81
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. PAGE: Not imminently, that I just -- I'm glad to have met him because I was
- able to rearrange my schedule because I'm getting ready to head overseas to Moscow and
- U.K. in the following weeks. And it was nice to meet you. He wanted to talk to the next
- person.
- No substance in terms of any content. And I was very clear that total -- I
- mentioned, you know, as I've -- as I made clear in all of my speeches, totally unrelated to
- the campaign, you know.
- MR. SCHIFF: So, during your conversation with then-Senator Sessions, are you
- saying that you explained to him that you were going to Russia, but you were not going to
- Russia as part of the campaign?
- MR. PAGE: Just briefly in passing. There was no explanation. I mentioned that
- I'm going there unrelated to the campaign. It was probably a six- or seven-word
- comment.
- MR. SCHIFF: And what was your point in bringing this up if it was unrelated to the
- campaign?
- MR. PAGE: Because I -- the point of bringing it up is I changed my schedule
- around. It was going to be my last 2 days.in the United States for 3 weeks. So I -- that
- Thursday night, I just -- just mentioned that I'm glad to have been able to do that. So it
- was more just sort of an administrative point.
- MR. SCHIFF: Now, this trip that was unrelated to the campaign, you wrote a
- memo in campaign format to debrief the campaign on your trip that was supposedly not
- about the campaign. Is that what we are to understand?
- MR. PAGE: I know J. -- again, J.D. is a fellow military officer, and he was kind of
- the de facto person that coordinated various things related to our informal working group.
- So I just thought, having previously been in the Navy as well and followed various formats,
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- UNCLASSIFIED
- something that might broadly be of interest. So I just followed the format that he's been
- looking at to the extent it might be of some general interest.
- MR. SCHIFF: Well, the memo that you wrote referred to insights and outreach
- . from members of the Russian Parliament and representatives of the Presidential
- administration, and expressed a willingness to share further information about that, did it
- not?
- MR. PAGE: I do not see further information. Where is that? I would -- I do not
- see that. Can you -- if you can show me where I said "sharing further information." I am
- not familiar with that verbiage.
- I may be wrong. Again, I'm focused on other things. But, to the best of my
- recollection, there's no -- certainly nothing information sharing in the context of the main
- things that this committee has been focused on for the last several months, but --
- MR. SCHIFF: "I'll send you guys a readout soon regarding some incredible insights
- and outreach I received from a few Russian legislators and senior members of the
- Presidential administration here."
- "I'll send you guys a readout soon." Dr. Page -MR.
- PAGE: That's not information.
- MR. SCHIFF: -- doesn't that imply that you have more to share with them on this
- subject?
- MR. PAGE: Just general things that I learned from listening to speeches,
- watching -- again, I hadn't watched Russian TV for many years, but watching Russian TV in
- my few days in Moscow there.
- MR. SCHIFF: So what you had in mind was you were going to share insights you
- learned by watching Russian TV? That does not sound like what you conveyed.
- MR. PAGE: I'm a scholar. It's similar to what I shared in that -- the context of my
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- 83
- UNCLASSIFIED
- speech. In any university, whether it's at New York University, New Economic School in
- Moscow, Berkeley, et cetera, in Dubai.
- MR. SCHIFF: Dr. Page, this is not what you conveyed to the campaign. You didn't
- say: I'm happy to share insights I gained from watching Russian TV.
- You said you met with or that you received incredible insights and outreach from a
- few Russian legislators and senior members of the Presidential administration.
- MR. PAGE; I would include outreach as being -- again, it was a general warm
- greeting. And to the extent that there was some interest in developing a further dialogue
- at some point down the road, I would be happy to share that.
- But, again, what -- it's interesting the timing. That's -- this email you're referring
- to is dated July 8, 2016. In the weeks that occurred after, again, I started getting all these
- calls related to the dodgy dossier. And I immediately -- you know, all these false
- allegations regarding Igor Sechin and Mr. Diveykin. You know, Sechin I had obviously
- heard of. Diveykin I had never heard of.
- So that quickly became water under the bridge. I would never -- you know, my
- ability and interest to do those types of -- to write that kind of -- descriptions in the future,
- not -- it was eminently clear that there was no interest whatsoever for sure, because
- everything that the -- you know, the campaign, not only at that time but also in the prior
- weeks -- so the communication I got from Wall Street Journal on July 26, 2016, is: We are
- told you met with Igor Sechin during your Moscow trip and discussed energy deals and
- possibility of U.S. Government of lifting sanctions on him and others.
- 50·1 --
- MR. SCHIFF: Dr. Page, you're going way beyond my question.
- MR. PAGE: No, but the reason why I did not ever follow up in terms of offering
- any additional insights is 18 days within -- after that email, I started getting these calls from
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- UNCLASSIFIED
- journalists that this false story line about me was out there. And eventually it became,
- you know; one of the lead news stories, one of the lead news stories starting on September
- 23rd, 2016.
- So my interest and ability to provide any input with respect to Russia was
- completely nil. And it was limited to nil to begin with.
- MR. SCHIFF: Dr. Page, I want to go back to something you said earlier, that you
- were a recipient of an email, either by being copied or otherwise, from George
- Papadopoulos that made reference to the professor. Do you remember that specifically?
- MR. PAGE: I had not remembered it until Tom Hamburger from The Washington
- Post told me about it in August 2016 -- or 2017, sorry.
- MR. SCHIFF: I don't believe that Tom Hamburger's article makes reference to a
- professor. So what I'd like to know is, did you receive a communication from
- Mr. Papadopoulos that made reference to a professor that he had met?
- MR. PAGE: Yes. When I looked -- I didn't -- I can't remember exactly what I told
- The Washington Post, but when I looked back -- I would not have given additional
- information. I think the main -- you know, similar to what I expressed in my opening
- statement, my focus is on other matters. And certainly I had no, you know -- that was an
- in one ear and out the other type of email. I had no recollection of it. And I made
- nothing of it, as I saw no one else made any -- you know, based on what I saw in that email
- chain, had any interest whatsoever either.
- MR. SCHIFF: Are you referring to Ivan Tinofeev?
- MR. PAGE: Who's Ivan Tinofeev?
- MR. SCHIFF: So that's not the professor you're referring to?
- MR. PAGE: No. You had mentioned a gentleman by the name of Mifsud I
- believe earlier.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. SCHIFF: Yes.
- MR. PAGE: There may have been one other name included in there, but I think
- Mifsud is the one whose name was in that email, if 11m not mistaken, to the best of my
- recollection.
- MR. SCHIFF: To the best of your recollection --
- 85
- MR. PAGE: There may have been another name as well, but I think just based on,
- again, news flow, thatls --
- MR. SCHIFF: So, to the best of your recollection, you remember receiving an email
- from George Papadopoulos that made reference to a Professor Mifsud?
- MR. PAGE: Yes, which I had not recalled. But when The Washington Post had
- called me about thi~ email in August 2017, I looked back and I found this email, which was
- no interest then and, frankly, probably even of less interest now, because 11m being
- so -- taking such proactive steps to try to fix the damage which has been done to my life.
- So I have very little interest, yeah.
- MR. SCHIFF: Ms. Speier.
- MS. SPEIER: Thank you.
- lid like to start off with why you became interested in wanting to get associated
- with the campaign. You referenced early on that you met someone in New York named
- Ed Cox. So could you just go through that a little bit more in depth?
- MR. PAGE: Certainly. He -- then-candidate Trump is, as live alluded to in a few
- letters to the leadership of this committee, was in the office building next to mine.
- Trump Tower is next to And live
- always had an admiration for PresidentTrump, kind of a -- just watching him and, you
- know, the successes hels had in a business context. What -- so that was right when he
- came down the escalator in June 2015, I was immediately, you know, just for -- on a
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 86
- UNCLASSIFIED
- character level was -- had a positive inclination.
- I believe it was a few months later that he started giving -- you know, he may have
- given a speech related to breaking out -- you know, 11m paraphrasing here, but having new
- approaches to the world in general, but U.S.-Russia relations in particular. And this is a
- concept which had been one of the things that originally got me interested in the U.S.
- Naval Academy back in -- when I was a sophomore or junior in high school, coming in and
- watching, you know, U.s.-Russia arms control negotiations and watching, you know,some
- . of the military leaders who were behind that. So I always had interest in nuclear policy
- and, you know, more constructive --
- MS. SPEIER: So you met with Mr. Cox and asked him if he could give you
- an -- sorne kind of introduction to the --
- MR. PAGE: No, no. I sent him an email in I believe December 2015, mentioning
- that I have some interest in --
- MS. SPEIER: In working on the campaign?
- MR. PAGE: In volunteering. In helping out, yeah.
- MS. SPEIER: And then what happened next?
- MR. PAGE: He introduced me to a few of the people on the campaign.
- MS. SPEIER: And who did he introduce you to?
- MR. PAGE: It was Corey Lewandowski.
- MS. SPEIER: So was it a few people, or was it just Corey Lewandowski?
- MR. PAGE: I believe originally Corey.
- MS. SPEIER: And what did Corey tell you?
- MR. PAGE: He said, "Letls meet Up," you know, "ild be happy to" -- because,
- again, Ed Cox is a respected individual. And so he --
- MS. SPEIER: Okay. Was that 5 minutes? Okay.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 87
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. CONAWAY: Let me read this in the record real quick, and we'll go back.
- Without objection, the chair and ranking member will be permitted to question the
- witness for an additional 30 minutes each and may yield to other members at their
- discretion.
- And I yield to myself such time as I may consume, and I yield that time back and so
- loo'k to the minority for their next 30 minutes.
- MR. SCHIFF: And I yield to Ms. Speier.
- MS. SPEIER: All right.
- So you meet with Lewandowski. Then what happens?
- MR. PAGE: Well, it's very interesting. It's one of the -- you know, it's a step
- beyond a meet and greet, going back to my discussion with Congressman Gowdy. When I
- showed up at his office in early -- in January 2016, he was -- I was waiting in the foyer there
- in the fourth floor of Trump Tower. And eventually, this guy was -- I'm a very busy -- a
- person that works really hard and is going in a lot of different directions, whether it's
- scholarship or business, et cetera. When I walked into his office after waiting for him for
- quite some time, he was literally --
- MS. SPEIER: "He" being Corey?
- MR. PAGE: Corey Lewandowski. He was very busy. And so, you know, we
- started talking, and I expressed some interest in foreign policy, and I'd like to volunteer and
- help out in some way if I can.
- And so -- but while that was happening, he was doing a half dozen different things.
- He had two cell phones going. People were running in and out of his office. So it was
- almost a fleeting moment in time.
- MS. SPEIER: Did you think working on the campaign would be helpful to you in
- terms of your business endeavors? Was that one of your motivations?
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. PAGE: The motivation is a general passion for international relations and
- foreign policy. That was the main desire. And also, going back to sort of my main
- interest of seeinga better situation for the United States and the world, which was the
- reason I went to the U.S. Naval Academy. So that's --
- MS. SPEIER: Do you have any U.S. clients wanting to do business in Russia?
- MR. PAGE: No, no.
- MS. SPEIER: Do you have any U.S. clients?
- MR. PAGE: Not right now. You know, my business --
- MS. SPEIER: Did you have any U.S. clients back in 2015 or 2016?
- 88
- MR. PAGE: There were various projects we were working on. Our main focus, I
- believe, to the best of my recollection, had shifted towards the Middle East and South
- Africa.
- MS. SPIER: You said "we." How many persons in your company?
- MR. PAGE: Now, there are -- it's essentially me, because --
- MS. SPEI·ER: And how manyin 2015?
- MR. PAGE: I have some people who are informal advisers or colleagues who work
- on a -- similar for those of you who are lawyers, on a contingency basis.
- MS. SPEIER: Okay.
- MR. PAGE: Certain groups, you know, individuals that, you know, will look at
- various opportunities. If things move forward, if the lawsuit goes to trial, then, you know,
- on a cont(ngency, if things work out, then you'll benefit. But in terms of -- if you define
- "employees" as paying a salary, no, I have no employees, and I had no employees then as
- well.
- MS. SPEIER: Thank you. Did you sign an NDA with the Trump campaign?
- MR. PAGE: I did, yes.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 89
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MS. SPEIER: And so you feel compelled to comply with that?
- MR. PAGE: I have not -- I had asked -- when I was -- had this terrible thing happen
- to me in September 2016 with the dodgy dossier, I sent a note to the person who I had
- spoken -- who I had originally signed it with, and I asked, you know, I just want to
- be -- because I signed the document in approximately March 2016. And I had -- you
- know, the agreement was, well, when it's countersigned, you'll get a copy.
- So I had asked then. I had asked a couple of times afterwards. And then, in
- September 2016, after that terrible situation happened with these false reports
- based -- you know, with the world premiere of the dodgy dossier and these false
- allegations, I had asked for a copy of that just to make sure.
- MS. SPEIER: Did you receive it?
- MR. PAGE: I did not. I never received it.
- MS. SPEIER: Did you have any accounts -- do you have any accounts in foreign
- banks?
- MR. PAGE: When I lived in United Kingdom, I had a_ account, just a local
- bank account. And I've had that -- I have that still. . I've had that since 2000, about 16
- years. So --
- MS. SPEIER: And that's your only account -- only foreign account that you have?
- MR. PAGE: That's my only foreign account right now. And there have been no
- additions to that other than interest in at least 8 years.
- MS. SPEIER: Have you met with the special counsel?
- MR. PAGE: I would prefer not to speak about that. And part of it -- there is -- I'm
- greatly appreciative -- when that letter that was referenced, the letter of October 10, 2017,
- the -- there were a number of, as alluded to, a number of groups and individuals who were
- sent this letter.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 90
- UNCLASSIFIED
- On the S~nate side, that information or part of the information was leaked. And I
- appreciate greatly that HPSCI has not leaked that information. And so, just because I'll
- say my understanding is that they don't -- the special counsel would not like those -- that,
- you know, the internal dealings of that organization to be disclosed to the media. So I
- would prefer not to comment on that.
- And for that same reason -- we went through a lot of documents that you'd like to
- include in the record -- I would request that this -- the document -- the letter that I sent to
- you as well as to the special counsel addressed to Special Counsel Mueller on October 10th
- not be included for that same reason, just in terms of confidentiality.
- MS. SPEIER: Did you request that this meeting be an open hearing?
- MR. PAGE: Yes.
- MS. SPEIER: So now you want to make an open hearing one that's a closed
- hearing?
- MR. PAGE: No. I'm just saying, as -- this committee has been far more courteous
- than the other --
- MS. SPEIER: You're missing my point. It's either an open hearing or -- and a
- transcript is -- a closed hearing with a transcript that is going to be provided publicly in 3
- days or it's not. You can't have it both ways.
- MR. PAGE: I would request that that piece of information -- yes, it was agreed,
- but I would request -- again, I'm trying to be as cooperative, helpful, and constructive for
- this committee as possible. To the extent that you could please not include that
- information related to the special counsel, I would certainly appreciate that.
- MS. SPEIER: All right. Let's move on.
- MR. PAGE: If you did decide to include it, you would be -MS.
- SPEIER: Do you have a Twitter account?
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 91
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. PAGE: No. Oh, sorry, I do. I never used it. I never tweeted in my life.
- set one up, , but --
- MS. SPEIER: And you've never had direct messages?
- MR. PAGE: Not via Twitter, no, nor any other social media, Facebook, Google Plus,
- whatever. No, I've got no -- I'm not active. I have never in my life been active on social
- media of that sort.
- MS. SPEIER: In your speech -- in the speech request that you forwarded to the
- Trump campaign, you mentioned a Herman Gref, who is the former Russian Minister of
- Economics and Trade who was going to be speaking. Was he there as well?
- MR. PAGE: He had to cancel, actually. No.
- MS. SPEIER: And then, in your comments, you say: "Please let me know if you
- have any reservations or thoughts on how you'd prefer me to focus these remarks."
- What is that supposed to mean?
- MR. PAGE: A note of courtesy, that if you have -- actually, may I please ask to see
- that document. I don't have that in front of me. If I could please see a copy of it.
- MS. SPEIER: It appears --
- MR. PAGE: It was an offer. If there's any -- again, it was a very constructive
- informal group that I was part of, and just as a courtesy, if there's any interest, you know,
- just from a conceptual standpoint, if you'd like me to include anything in that, I would be
- happy to mention it. Not only was there no interest, as alluded to, the response I
- received, you know, stated that, you know, this is totally unrelated to the campaign, full
- stop, which is exactly the way I handled it.
- Thank you.
- MS. SPEIER: It would appear that you were soliciting from the campaign any
- messagesyou would like to have conveyed to those in attendance at the New Economic
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 92
- UNCL.ASSIFI.ED
- School.
- MR. PAGE: I would not -- that sentence you're referring to, l would not -- can you
- repeat your question? I don't--
- MS. SPIER: It says: "Please let me know if you have any reservations or thoughts
- on how you'd prefer me to focus these remarks. II
- MR. PAGE: Okay. And how do you interpret that, you were saying?
- MS. SPEIER: WeU, how do you interpret that?
- MR. PAGE: I interpret that as just a courtesy. You know, if I'm going to be over
- there, you know, if there's anything that may -- it's primarily just as a private person,
- private figure who is just a volunteer in an informa·1 campaign. twas saying that I don't
- want to create any problems if there might -- you know, might be any concerns.
- MS. SPEIER: You didn't say problems. nprefer me to focus these remarks." It
- telegraphs to me that you're saying: If you want me to convey some kind of a message,
- ever so subtly or not, I'm happy to incorporate it in my speech.
- to.
- MR. PAGE: That was not my intention.
- MS. SPIER: And then you include a draft of your speech. By the way, this is
- MR. PAGE: Can I -- I don't have the draft speech in front of me.
- MS. SPEIER: WeU, that's Just the reference. You have the sheet that I'm referring
- MR. PAGE: But you say a draft speech. I don't see a draft speech.
- MS. SPEIER: If Key Messages} II and then you start your draft speech.
- MR. PAGE: Oh.
- MS. SPEIER: And then there's a few pages of your draft speech.
- MR. PAGE: No, no. There's a -- alii have is a paragraph that just talking, you
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 93
- UNCLASSIFIED
- know --
- MS. SPEIER: Right, but then there's two more pages that you don't have in front
- of you which they will provide you right now.
- MR. PAGE: Thank you.
- MS. SPEIER: Which is
- With that, I yield back.
- MR. PAGE: May I read this for a moment or-MS.
- SPEIER: You certainly may.
- MR. PAGE: It's, again, just talking about my life and my experiences, going back.
- MS. SPEIER: . Yes, the beginning of your draft.
- MR. PAGE: Yes. Which was totally benign, just for the record.
- MS. SPEIER: Well, that was just the beginning of the draft, it looks like. Okay.
- Thank you, I yield back.
- MR. PAGE: And if anything, you know, the subsequent day, because I gave this
- academic ·Iecture and it was misportrayed, if anything, I was even more careful and
- cautious. The reference I was making in terms of focus of the remarks was not a
- forward-leaning refocusing of the remarks. If anything, it was saying I want to be as
- cautious, careful, and nonproblematic as possible; so, if you have any concerns and you see
- something I don't see that might be a problem, then let me know in terms of, you know,
- avoiding any issues.
- And, again, beyond my wildest imaginations, I could never have imagined how
- aggressively my visit there was completely misportrayed, which is totally beyond who I am
- and what I've been throughout my entire life. So a complete fabrication.
- MR. SCHIFF: Mr. Quigley.
- MR. QUIGLEY: Good afternoon.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. PAGE: Good afternoon.
- MR. QUIGLEY: Thanks for being here.
- MR. PAGE: Thanks for having me.
- MR. QUIGLEY: Who is Victor Podobnyy?
- 94
- MR. PAGE: He is -- he -- he was -- in January 2013, he was a junior attache, kind of
- mid -- sort of mid to late 20s, junior attache based at I believe the consulate in New York
- City. A Russian -- a Russian diplomat.
- MR. QUIGLEY: And how did you know him?
- MR. PAGE: Yeah. One of my -- I went to a speech at Asia Society in January 2013
- on China and energy development in China. He happened to be in the audience, and
- we -- we struck up a conversation, as, you know, like in any interaction that --
- MR. QUIGLEY: Well, and after that conversation, did you meet him?
- MR. PAGE: We -- we met, to the best of my recollection, just once. We had a
- brief coffee at -- or a coke in the afternoon within the couple of months following that -MR.
- QUIGLEY: So you're saying you met him just for curiosity, mutual interest?
- MR. PAGE: 1-- before all this happened, I used to be a person that liked to interact
- with people from different cultures.
- MR. QUIGLEY: So that's your answer: you just wanted to interact, right?
- MR. PAGE: And also a general interest in Russia. And also to kind of practice my
- Russian, which I didn't have a chance to practice much.
- MR. QUIGLEY: Your answer is you only met him after that first time, you only had
- a separate meeting with him once?
- MR. PAGE: To the best of my recollection. There may have been some other
- brief interaction in passing, but I believe that's the only meeting, yeah. And we traded
- some emails, but that was about it.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. QUIGLEY: Were there any other forms of communication, phone, text?
- MR. PAGE: Email. Email, yes.
- MR. QUIGLEY: But no phone, no text?
- 95
- MR. PAGE: This is -- I can't remember the texts I send a week ago. This is 4-1/2
- years ago. So I have no recollection. We may have called each other to set up that
- coffee one afternoon in somewhere around March 2013, but in terms of any
- communications, I have no -- no recollection, and nor would it be relevant.
- In that meeting, in all of my other communications via email, it was all just
- general --I was teaching a class at New York University at the time on -- called, I believe it
- was entitled "Energy in the World." And just like I like to speak to my students on some
- of these topics of international political economy and energy, I had a similar conversation
- with him.
- MR. QUIGLEY: You said he was ajunior attache. Who did he claim to be when
- he talked to you?
- MR. PAGE: That's what he claimed to be, yes .
- . MR. QUIGLEY: Did he say why he wanted to meet with you, talk with you, get to
- know you?
- MR. PAGE: I can't recall, but, you know, it was sort of a shared -- we were -- there
- may have been other people I also interacted with at the Asia Society conference that I
- went to where we stayed in touch. Certainly, in many other instances. I mean, that's
- why you typically go to events like that is to meet people that might be interesting and who
- you might learn something from. And that's sort of the way I've lived my life for -- at least
- used to live my life until--
- MR. QUIGLEY: But--
- MR. PAGE: -- went out of control.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 96
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. QUIGLEY: I get it, but just in short, did he say to you why he wanted to meet
- with you?'
- MR. PAGE: I can't recall. I think it was a general interest. And certainly,
- every -- everything I recall from our discussions mirrored a general interest. And I can
- assure you, in that complaint or in the filing related to his case, he never asked me for
- anything or never asked, in terms of the things he alluded to in that -- in his wiretap.
- MR. QUIGLEY: What are you talking about, what he alluded to?
- MR. PAGE: I don't have the -- that document, that filing in front of me, but he
- was -- he was saying, well, words to the effect of we may be able to -- or, you know, I might
- be able to offer him something related to Gazprom and then screw him over. So--
- MR. QUIGLEY: Wait. Who said that?
- MR. PAGE: To the best of my recollection, this filing in --
- MR. QUIGLEY: No, but what did he say to you in that regard?
- MR. PAGE: Nothing. Good point. Nothing in that regard. It was just a
- general discussion. He never made any requests in terms of actually doing anything -MR.
- QUIGLEY: You said "actual" again. Did he mak~ any requests?
- MR. PAGE: The only thing we may have -- no requests that my students at New
- York University. There may have been --
- MR. QUIGLEY: Okay, let's pretend that's important. What did he request from
- you?
- MR. PAGE: I don't recall him requesting anything. I know what I shared with him
- were the exact same materials that I shared with my students at New York University, only
- at a much, much lower level. He had -- and his eyes were kind of glazing over, frankly.
- My students in my class that year were much more engaged and interested. He showed
- little to no interest at all.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 97
- UNCLASSIFIED
- . MR. QUIGLEY: Did he ever hand you any documents?
- MR. PAGE: I don't recall him ever handing me any documents. If he did, it was
- something like a newspaper, and it would be 1 year -- you know, again, something that I
- had no -- no interest in. Nothing that would ever constitute any kind of an offer or
- request for anything or anything related to actually doing business. There was never any
- business discussion. It was just like any --
- MR. QUIGLEY: Was it just nothing or a newspap.er or--
- MR. PAGE: I don't recall anything. I don't recall anything. But I know that he
- never asked me for anything substantively, asked me anything related to do with
- U.S.-Russia relations or international relations in general. It was just a few people having
- a general discussion about international relations, based on this one --
- MR. QUIGLEY: He didn't ask you about any energy companies in Russia?
- MR. PAGE: Well, I may -- you know, again, one of the -- one of the companies live
- worked with previously is Gazprom. I was an adviser for them for many years. And-MR.
- QUIGLEY: SO you two talked about Gazprom?
- MR. PAGE: It definitely came up, yes. And at that time, there was a big -- it was
- right at the time that the shale revolution was really taking off in the Permian Basin and
- really across the United States. And I had a relationship with Chesapeake Energy. At the
- time, it was the second largest natural gas producer in the United States. We were
- looking at various ways of doing natural gas vehicles.
- MR. QUIGLEY: Did he talk to you about what interest you might have in any
- respect at all in Gazprom or any other energy company in Russia?
- MR. PAGE: No. To the best of my recollection, it was me generally talking about
- some of the things I had been discussing at the time with Chesapeake Energy, and it was a
- general discussion about that. Again, he wasn't very engaged, interested, or -- or -- and
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 98
- UNCLASSIFIED
- that's the main reason why --
- MR. QUIGLEY: What did you say -- if I might, respectfully, what did you say to him
- about Gazprom?
- MR. PAGE: Just told him that I had previously worked with them and that I know
- that they are similar to Chesapeake Energy in the United States. With the glut of natural
- gas that there is across Texas, Oklahoma, and around the world, people such as Aubrey
- McClendon, who I knew at the time was the CEO and founder of Chesapeake Energy, they
- were looking for new ways to increase natural gas demand. And Russia, cojncidentally, at
- the same time was also looking to do that and also had made objectives of increasing the
- use of natural gas in vehicles.
- MR. QUIGLEY: Did he ever ask you if you had any interest in, if you wanted an
- additional or any interest in Gazprom?
- MR. PAGE: Not only did he never ask me that, to the best of my recollection, he
- would be the worst person on Earth to ask me that, because he's a guy that's this junior
- guy, based in an embassy -- or a consulate or whatever in New York City. And, again, I
- knew some of the people in -- have known people at Gazprom going back 15 years.
- MR. QUIGLEY: SO how did the word come up in the conversation?
- MR. PAGE: Because it's the main thing I was working on at the time. I bet if
- conversations that you have at lunch may talk about certain policies that you're --
- MR. QUIGLEY: Did he bring it up, or did you bring it up?
- MR. PAGE: I have no recollection of specifics of the conversation 4-plus years ago.
- But most likely, I -- I would -- if I were a betting man, I would bet that I brought it up,
- because it was my general interest. It's my passion of business development and
- international relations. And here's someone that is -- you know, is from Russia and is
- having a general conversation about. And, you know, again, it was something I had been
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 99
- UNCLASSIFIED
- focused on at the time and I -- I know --
- MR. QUIGLEY: Did you ask him about an interest you might have in obtaining an
- interest or more of anything of value relating to Gazprom?
- MR. PAGE: Absolutely not. And if I did have that interest at the time, he would
- be the -- probably one of the -- I wouldn't say the worst people on the planet, but in terms
- of other people involved in Russia of all the people I knew, probably the most-- the least
- relevant.
- MR. QUIGLEY: Did you hand him any documents ever, or email him any
- documents?
- MR. PAGE: I emailed him things that I emailed to my students at NYU.
- Per -- again, I wouldn't remember that if it hadn't been in the --
- MR. QUIGLEY: Why would you talk to -- send him information that you would
- send his students -- your students?
- MR. PAGE: My students.
- MR. QUIGLEY: Your students.
- MR. PAGE: Because he expressed a general interest. And, again, this is public
- information. You know, these are things that are readily available to the, again, average
- man or woman on the street who are interested. He definitively was not interested.
- MR. QUIGLEY: Do you still have these emails?
- MR. PAGE: No, I don't.
- MR. QUIGLEY: When was the last contact of any sort that you had with
- Mr. Podobnyy?
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 100
- UNCLASSIFIED
- [12:54 p.m.]
- MR. PAGE: I do not believe -- again, per the complaint, there was a -- you know,
- the FBI contacted me after it was revealed that I'm, quote/unquote, Male One. It was
- revealed that I talked with the FBI in, I believe, to the best of my recollection, June 2013.
- And I have no recollection of ever crossing paths with him ever since then.
- MR~ QUIGLEY: Who is Igor -- I'll pronounce this wrong -- Sporyshev?
- MR. PAGE: Is he one of the three people on the complaint? There were two
- other people that he was wiretap --
- MR. QUIGLEY: I just want to know if you know who he is.
- MR. PAGE: I don't know that name, no.
- MR. QUIGLEY: You've never met him?
- MR. PAGE: I've met hundreds or maybe thousands of people. That name
- doesn't ring a bell. It may ring a bell because we're talking about this case. There were
- two other Russians who were in the -- who were arrested related to this case. And to
- the -- I -- that name -- because we're talking about this now, I believe that may be why
- you're bringing it up and that's the same person.
- MR. QUIGLEY: I just want to know if -- well, you mentioned there's two other
- Russians mentioned in the investigation.
- MR. PAGE: Yeah.
- MR. QUIGLEY: To the best of your knowledge, who were those two other
- Russians?
- MR. PAGE: I don't recall those two names.
- What I do recall is, you know, when I read through that investigation, I had never
- met those other two people, and I don't believe I've ever talked with them since. I'm
- almost positive I haven't, because they've now been -- you know, they're no longer in the
- UNCLASSIFIED
- u.s.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. QUIGLEY: Well, what do you know about the Russian company Rosneft?
- MR. PAGE: Rosneft is the largest Russian oil company.
- MR. QUIGLEY: And you know it's a state-owned enterprise, right?
- 101
- MR. PAGE: Yes, although it's been partially privatized. They had an IPO, and so
- their shares are listed on various international and Russian stock exchanges.
- MR. QUIGLEY: And I apologize if you have answered this. The CEO of this
- company, Rosneft --
- MR. PAGE: Yes.
- MR. QUIGLEY: .-- Igor Sechin? Is that correct?
- MR. PAGE: Yes.
- MR. QUIGLEY: Your understanding is -- and I believe you've been asked this, but I
- apologize. You've never met this person. Is that what you said before? Or have you
- been asked?
- MR. PAGE: Not only have I never met him, he is the -- he's one of the top energy
- industry officials in Russia. And there is a quote, if -- I can read it to you, or you can look it
- up in my complaint --
- MR. QUIGLEY: No. You've answered the question. You've never met him.
- Have you ever communicated with him in any way, shape, or form?
- MR. PAGE: No, not with him.
- MR. QUIGLEY: Anybody associated with him, communicated with them in any
- shape or form?
- MR. PAGE: So there is a -- one of the people I worked with at -- or, not worked
- with. I was -- was the client, a junior member of staff, while I was living in Moscow, 2004
- to 2007, is a gentleman by the name of Andrey Baranov. He was on the investor relations
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- team at Gazprom. And a few years ago, he -- so I had known him for approximately a
- decade, you know, 10, 11 years. A pretty junior guy at the time, but he's a smart
- individual who has kind of risen up.
- MR. QUIGLEY: So what's his connection to Mr. Sechin?
- 102
- MR. PAGE: So he was at Gazprom for approximately 10 years while I knew him.
- And in approximately 2015 he was offered a position at Rosneft, and so he shifted over to
- Rosneft. And so I knew, you know -- he's an old, sort of, friend who I knew in that
- context.
- And so he is, I believe, head of investor relations at Rosneft and, like any investor
- relations person, knows the other executives at the company, including the CEO.
- MR. QUIGLEY: So did he, Mr. Baranov, ever communicate any information from
- the company itself? What did he talk to you about relating to this company, Rosneft?
- MR. PAGE: So, like any other investor relations situation -- investor relations, by
- definition, is typically public information, public information that's posted on their website,
- given to research analysts at Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs, other banks.
- The types of things we would talk about is just, again, similar to my general interest
- in energy markets, he would talk about those developments at the company. And so,
- similar to what he would tell other investors, I heard those types of, you know, feedback in
- my conversations with him.
- MR. QUIGLEY: Did he ever talk to you about the fact that that company was under
- sanctions by the United States?
- MR. PAGE: I have no recollection of that.
- MR. QUIGLEY: You have no recollection of ever talking to him about the fact that
- his company was sanctioned by the United States?
- MR. PAGE: See, this is where I'm careful, because sanctions, it's a key thing -- or
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 103
- UNCLASSIFIED
- it's a topic that's frequently discussed in general terms, just like tax policy might be
- discussed this week in Washington. So, similar to me talking to someone on Capitol Hill
- about tax policy, I don't want to say that I never talked about sanctions. It may have
- come up, like you might have talked about tax policy with someone similarly.
- Ce"rtainly, what I can tell you for sure is I have never had any discussions with him
- about changing any sanctions policy or things I could even conceivably do in that regard.
- MR. CONAWAY: The minority's time has expired. And we will recognize the
- minority for an additional 30 minutes.
- MR. SCHIFF: Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
- Before I yield back to my colleague, I just want to get further clarification on the
- document issue.
- On October 10th, you wrote to special counsel, as well as our committee, saying
- you intended to invoke the Fifth. Is that correct?
- MR. PAGE: Yes.
- MR. SCHIFF: Subsequently, you entered in discussions with majority counsel in
- which you agreed to testify as long as it was made public, and, in exchange, you would not
- invoke the Fifth. Is that correct?
- MR. PAGE: Yes. I want to help your committee-MR.
- SCHIFF: I'm just -- please. "
- MR. PAGE: Yes -- as much as possible. Yes.
- MR. SCHIFF: Did you inform majority counsel that you would nonetheless seek to
- invoke the Fifth regarding documentary production?
- MR. PAGE: The concerns I raised in that letter stand. The concerns I raised in
- terms of--
- MR. SCHIFF: My question, Dr. Page, is, when you agreed to testify, provided the
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 104
- UNCLASSIFIED
- transcript was made public, did you agree to waive your Fifth Amendment privilege, or did
- you clarify with majority counsel that you were only waiving it as to your testimony and not
- as to your documents?
- MR. PAGE: Testimony.
- MR. SCHIFF: Is that the discussion you had with majority counsel?
- MR. PAGE: I can't recall the specifics, but I told them that I want to help your
- committee get to the bottom of this to the greatest extent possible. And I think having a
- conversation like human beings as opposed to -- live already been hacked --
- MR. SCHIFF: Dr. Page, my question is very specific.
- MR. PAGE: Yes.
- MR. SCHIFF: Did you agree to waive your Fifth Amendment privilege, or did you
- clarify or specify to majority counsel that you were only waiving it as to testimony and you
- were going to maintain your privilege as to documents?
- MR. PAGE: That's correct, yes.
- MR. SCHIFF: That's--
- MR. CONAWAY: Would the gentleman yield?
- MR. SCHIFF: Yes.
- MR. CONAWAY: The majority's understanding is that our subpoena for his
- documents still stands in its entirety and that there was no agreement to accept, or
- whatever, the Fifth Amendment on his documents. So we expect to get the documents
- from Mr. Page, as the subpoena that we put out.
- MR. PAGE: Again, my main concern relates to the fact that I have -- there's been a
- ton of information collected against me illegally based on false pretenses and false
- evidence in the FISA court last year. And anything I could give you is both redundant and
- potentially contrary to that, because I do not have the data processing or storage
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- capabilities that the U.S. Government, including the National Security Agency, FBI, and the
- CIA, have in terms of the information that has already been illicitly collected against me.
- So that is my concern, as well as the other concern. Your committee has been
- respectful in terms of not leaking, but I have another concern that, you know, my data has
- already been --
- MR. SCHIFF: Dr. Page, my question was only regarding your invocation of the
- privilege.
- MR. PAGE: Yes.
- MR. SCHIFF: I will yield back to Mr. Quigley.
- MR. QUIGLEY: Thanks.
- When you were in Russia in July '16, did you meet with Mr. Baranov?
- MR. PAGE: We went -- there was a World Cup -- or a--
- MR. QUIGLEY: Just, first, yes or no.
- MR. PAGE: I stopped by an event he was at. Yes.
- MR. QUIGLEY: Did you plan ahead of time to meet at that location?
- MR. PAGE: Yes. Yes.
- MR. QUIGLEY: Okay. Did Mr. Baranov ever hand you any other documents, any
- documents at all, about his company?
- MR. PAGE: Not that I recall.
- MR. QUIGLEY: Did you hand him anything-MR.
- PAGE: Not at--
- MR. QUIGLEY: -- at any time?
- MR. PAGE: He may have at some point, because I've been to various -- some
- banks sometimes organize investor relations events. And, typically, at an investor
- relations events, similar to what I was just mentioning to you, Congressman Quigley, about
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 106
- UNCLASSIFIED
- public information, similar to what's qn their website of their investor presentation as a
- publicly traded company, like Chesapeake Energy or Pioneer in the United States, they
- have to disclose documents.
- The only document I might have received at some conference at some point -- I
- don't believe I received anything last year -- would have been something of that sort, like
- an investor relations presentation. Nothing more substantive than that or relevant than
- that.
- MR. QUIGLEY: Do you own any interest shares at all in Rosneft?
- MR. PAGE: Zero, and I never have.
- MR. QUIGLEY: Gazprom?
- MR. PAGE: Gazprom I did until, for some reason, then --
- MR. QUIGLEY: When did you acquire the interest in Gazprom?
- MR. PAGE: I wrote it in one of the letters, I believe, to you, the committee, but
- something around 2008. It was a smaIl--
- MR. QUIGLEY:' And when did you -- you said you divested yourself from that.
- When did'that take place?
- MR. PAGE: Around the time when Harry Reid sent this letter to Director Comey in
- August 2016 --
- MR. QUIGLEY: Okay.
- MR. PAGE: -- you know. Because there's all of a sudden this made-up
- controversy.
- MR. QUIGLEY: I get it.
- MR. PAGE: Yeah.
- MR. QUIGLEY: Any interest in any other Russian company-MR.
- PAGE: Zero. No.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. QUIGLEY: -- besides those two, ever?
- MR. PAGE: No. And, again --
- MR. QUIGLEY: Now?
- 107
- MR. PAGE: -- 11m cautious because I have mutual funds, and some of those mutual
- funds, you know, as part of a diversified portfolio, might have, you know, 5 percent of their
- shares or something along those -- or of their portfolio in Russian --
- MR. QUIGLEY: Okay. Putting that aside --
- MR. PAGE: Yeah. No direct assets.
- MR. QUIGLEY: -- current business interests at all in Russia, right now?
- MR. PAGE: Congressman Quigley, all of my business interests anywhere have
- been discontinued completely, given these falsehoods that were started from the dodgy
- dossier and news reports related to that. I have -- yeah, nothing.
- MR. QUIGLEY: Mr. Ranking Member, 11m prepared to yield back to you.
- MR. SCHIFF: I just want to go over a couple other things before I yield to my
- colleague from California.
- Do I understand correctly that in advance of your trip to Moscow in July of last year
- that you made arrangements to meet with Andrey Baranov?
- MR. PAGE: I donlt believe it was prior. I think it was sort of around that same
- time. And I believe it was kind of a reintroduction from some mutual friends we had who
- were in one of the banks.
- MR. SCHIFF: Can you explain that? Were you reintroduced to Mr. Baranov in
- advance of your visit or during your visit?
- MR. PAGE: I canlt recall.
- MR. SCHIFF: So you don It recall whether prior to leaving for Moscow you had
- communications with Mr. Baranov over at his office?
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 108
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. PAGE: No. No. And I never talked with his office, just with him. Yeah.
- MR. SCHIFF: You talked directly with him by phone?
- MR. PAGE: I can't recall, but 1-- we -- you know, he mentioned this -- there was an
- event, and that's where we ended up meeting. You know, it was a group event at a bar in
- Moscow to watch the, I believe it was, Europa Cup. It was Portugal, I believe, versus
- Wales. So--
- MR. SCHIFF: So you had a phone conversation with Mr. Baranov while you were in
- Moscow where you arranged to meet during the trip?
- MR. PAGE: To the best of my recollection, I believe so, yes.
- MR. SCHIFF: Did he call you, or did you call him?
- MR. PAGE: I can't recall specifics. I think -- again, we1re old friends, and so I
- don't recall exactly. Again, I believe it was one of our mutual friends from the banks that
- had mentioned it. And so they may have set that up or kind of --
- MR. SCHIFF: And who is your mutual friend from the banks? And what banks
- are you referring to?
- MR. PAGE: I can't recall. Again, it was Morgan Stanley that did this -- I believe it
- was Morgan Stanley that had this event in July.
- MR. SCHIFF: Had what event?
- MR. PAGE: There was an event to watch this Europa football, you know, or
- European soccer match. So I went along to that with a lot of other investors and a lot of
- other people, and he was there.
- MR. SCHIFF: But prior to your going there and the fact that he was there, you had
- a conversation with him on the phone?
- MR. PAGE: I believe so, to the best of my recollection.
- MR. SCHIFF: And do you have his phone number?
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. PAGE: I'm not sure if I still have it, but--
- MR. SCHIFF: Well, did you have it at the time you went on the trip?
- MR. PAGE: Yeah. Yes.
- MR. SCHIFF: And did you call him?
- MR. PAGE: We got in touch, and he told me about this event. I can't recall
- exactly the method of that communication.
- MR. SCHIFF: Well, Mr. Baranov works for Mr. Sechin, does he not?
- 109
- MR. PAGE: He's part of a -- he's a part of the team at Rosneft. So, you know,
- Rosneft is a big company, and there's a lot of people that work for Mr. Sechin, uh-huh.
- MR. SCHIFF: And he's the head of all investor relations for Rosneft?
- MR. PAGE: I recall that what he told me in -- we caught up again in my second trip
- in December, and he told me that he had -- he may have moved up. And I don't recall
- specifically, but he may have had a promotion internally in some format, one way or
- another.
- MR. SCHIFF: And you can't tell us whether you spoke with him before you left on
- the trip?
- MR. PAGE: I'm not sure.
- MR. SCHIFF: But you may have?
- MR. PAGE: Possibly.
- MR. SCHIFF: Can you tell--
- MR. PAGE: But, again, what I can tell you is any discussions I had was just about
- two old friends getting together to have a chat, you know -MR.
- SCHIFF: Well, this old friend --
- MR. PAGE: -- just kind of reconnecting. And I hadn't been in --
- MR. SCHIFF: This old friend who you were reconnecting with also works for
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- someone that Mr. Steele alleged that you had met with, Mr. Sechin, correct?
- MR. PAGE: That's correct.
- MR. SCHIFF: And Mr. Sechin is under sanctions, is he not?
- MR. PAGE: I believe so.
- 110
- MR. SCHIFF: And as someone working on investor relations for a CEO who is
- under sanctions, would it be advantageous for that head of investor relations to see those
- sanctions go away?
- MR. PAGE: It is outside of the scope of his responsibilities, and it would -- let me
- tell y.ou one thing. That type of question never --
- MR. SCHIFF: It doesn't affect investor relations for Rosneft that their CEO is being
- sanctioned?
- MR. PAGE: Perhaps. Perhaps on some level. But nothing that this gentleman
- said to me ever implied or asked for anything related to sanctions. Again, there may have
- been some general reference, just like there's general reference, as I was telling to
- Congressman Quigley, about tax policy, et cetera, but no kind of negotiations in any
- format.
- MR. SCHIFF: Did you have communication with Mr. Baranov after you left
- Moscow?
- MR. PAGE: I can't -- I don't believe so. I can't recall.
- MR. SCHIFF: Wouldn't you remember if you'd gotten a call from him or called him
- or emailed him?
- MR. PAGE: No, because nothing ever of substance -- we never talked about doing
- any business together. Again, he's someone I knew previously. And he's a very -- if you
- talk to investors in Gazprom, there's a lot of large U.S. institutional investors in
- Gazprom -- or, sorry, in -- previously -..: or he previously worked for Gazprom, and now he
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 111
- UNCLASSIFIED
- works for Rosneft.
- He is a smart person. He's someone that, similar to talking with several of you and
- having a discussion about substantive matters, he's someone that really knows the
- industry. And as an investor relations professional, he's able to talk through what's
- happening in the market.
- So·general discussions we had. In terms of anything sanctions-related, we never
- got into those types of specifics in any way, shape, or form. And what I can say beyond a
- shadow of a doubt, there was never any negotiations or any quid pro quo or any offer or
- any request, even, in any way related to sanctions.
- MR. SCHIFF: Well, Mr. Steele alleged in the dossier that you had a meeting with
- someone from the Presidential administration, correct?
- MR. PAGE: Yeah, which is even more ridiculous.
- MR. SCHIFF: And yet, in your emails to the campaign, you said you had discussions
- with people from Presidential administration, did you not?
- MR. PAGE: Again, in passing, but there were -- there was -- the person that was
- named in the dodgy dossier, not only had I never heard that person's name, the people I
- asked --
- MR. SCHIFF: And who were the individuals from the Presidential administration
- that you had discussions with while you were in Moscow? Who were you referring to?
- MR. PAGE: The main person was, you know, a brief, less-than-l0-second chat
- with Arkadiy Dvorkovich.
- MR. SCHIFF: Well--
- MR. PAGE: But, you know, nothing--
- MR. SCHIFF: And who were the members of the Russian Duma that you made
- reference to that you met with?
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 112
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. PAGE: Duma was, again, just in passing, a few people when we were shaking
- hands.
- MR. SCHIFF: And who were they?
- MR. PAGE: I can't recall.
- And let me tell you something. Nothing we discussed was ever related to any -- in
- a request for -- related to policy in any way. It was just a nice hello, brief -- per my
- discussion with Congressman Gowdy, it was a greeting. That's it, nothing more, nothing
- less.
- MR. SCHIFF: Mr. Swalwell.
- MR. SWALWELL: Thank you.
- Dr. Page, when was the last time that you spoke with Mr. Podobnyy?
- MR. PAGE: I believe it was -- to the best of my recollection, it was in that
- complaint, sometime in the first quarter of 2013. So over -- I have -- I've never been
- anywhere near him in the last 4-years-plus.
- MR. SWALWELL: How about over the telephone?
- MR. PAGE: No. I definitely have not had a phone call with him for sure, no.
- MR. SWALWELL: How about an electronic communication?
- MR. PAGE: No electronic communication over the last, you know -- again, I
- forget -- this one brief chat where we talked about things I talked about in my class but of
- less detail and of less depth, I can't recall exactly how that meeting was arranged.
- MR. SWALWELL: Was that in 2016?
- MR. PAGE: No, that was in 2013. 2013.
- MR. SWALWELL: So, in 2014, did you communicate at all with Mr. Podobnyy by
- phone call, in person, or electronically? Yes or no?
- MR. PAGE: No,'because--
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR.SWALWELL: Yes or no?
- MR. PAGE: No.
- 113
- MR.SWALWELL: How about in 2015? Phone call, in person, or electronically,
- yes or no.·
- MR. PAGE: No.
- MR.SWALWELL: 2016? Phone call, in person, or electronically. Did you
- communicate at all with Mr. Podobnyy?
- MR. PAGE: No.
- MR.SWALWELL: Since 2013, have you communicated in person, by phone call, or
- electronically with anybody who you know to be in communication with Mr. Podobnyy?
- MR. PAGE: Absolutely not. And that's why I'm cautious about-MR.
- SWALWELL: That was enough, Mr. Page. If that's the answer, we don't
- need more.
- So --
- 2013.
- in
- MR. PAGE: Well, the only thing is, just in terms of people you pass by in passing.
- MR.SWALWELL: I'm asking what you know.
- MR. PAGE: What I know is no communication whatsoever since the first half of
- MR.SWALWELL: Where do you currently live?
- MR. PAGE: I have -- due to the terrorist threats-MR.
- SWALWELL: No. Where do you live?
- MR. PAGE: I don't have any set address right now. I generally spend time mostly
- now due--
- MR.SWALWELL: Where do you stay when you're in ?
- MR. PAGE: I stay at various locations i~. And I don't disclose that due
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCL.ASSIFIED
- to the terrorist threats I've received and the death threats.
- MR. SWALWELL: WeU, how do you pay for staying at these locations?
- MR. PAGE: I -- I'm burning through savings right now. 11m burning through
- savings, yes.
- MR. SWALWELL: Are they hotels?
- MR. PAGE: Sometimes they are.
- MR. SWALWELL: Are they with friends?
- MR. PAGE: Sometimes they are.
- MR. SWALWELl: Okay. Who are these friends?
- MR. PAGE: I don't say that because since I've --I've had terrorist threats--
- 114
- MR. SWALWELL: Mr. Page, who are you staying with? And we'll redact what we
- have to redact to protect your privacy, but there are a lot of questions about where you've
- been, who you're talking to. You're not being very straight with us. So who are you
- staying with in
- MR. PAGE: On the understanding that this will be redacted, -. MR. SWALWELL: Okay. Anyone who is not
- MR. PAGE: Not right now, no.
- MR. SWALWELL: Okay.
- Is there anywhere outside
- with in the last year?
- MR. PAGE: I can't· recall.
- MR. SWALWELl: Do you have any source of -- in the past-MR.
- PAGE: Certainly no one related --
- MR. SWALWELl: Go ahead. What were you going to say?
- UNCLASSIFIED
- who you've stayed
- 115
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. PAGE: Certainly I haven't spent the night at any Russian's house or anyone
- related to the Russian Government's house.
- MR. SWALWELL: Well, have you spent the night at anyone's house who_
- MR. PAGE: I have no recollection of that, no.
- MR. SWALWELL: Well, you would remember if you didn't stay_
- , wouldn't you?
- MR. PAGE: If there is 700 nights, you know, over a couple of years, I would have
- to look through my records. And, again, Congressman Swalwell, 11m careful not to say
- something that I don't know, so I want to be careful there.
- MR. SWALWELL: What has your source of income been in 2017, if any?
- MR. PAGE: There are no sources of income right now. 11m living off savings.
- 11m burning through savings.
- MR. SWALWELL: What were your sources of income in 2016?
- MR. PAGE: Investments that I have, passive investments.
- MR. SWALWELL: Investments in what?
- MR. PAGE: Publicly traded companies.
- MR. SWALWELL: Which ones?
- MR. PAGE: Can we redact this?
- MR. SWALWELL: Sure.
- MR. PAGE: _
- MR. SWALWELL: Other than_, any other companies that have provided
- you income in 2016?
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 116
- 'UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. PAGE: Probably, yes. Yeah. I can't recall, but there's -- again, it's kind of
- general passive investment, publicly traded companies.
- MR. SWALWELL: Well, I guess I want to understand, Mr. Page, if you haven't had
- any clients in 2017 and 2016 and your only source of income were investments, it seems to
- me that you would be pretty aware of where your income was coming from in 2016. And
- you're telling us that you can't recall.
- MR. PAGE: I'm saying there was no other income beyond investments, yeah.
- MR. SWALWELL: And beyond the investment in_, were there any other
- investments that generated income for you in 2016?
- MR. PAGE: I have a diversified portfolio, so I'm -- I don't have my entire stock
- details in front of me. But, again --
- MR. SWALWELL: Who's the brokerage house that you use?
- MR. PAGE: Can we redact this as well?
- MR. SWALWELL: Yes.
- MR. PAGE:
- MR. SWALWELL: Sure. And_ lives in--
- MR. PAGE: And a lot of the just, you know, aggressive media likes to sort of
- portray me as being, you know, a -- having too close of a relationship
- - - - ~- - -- --- - - - - ---------------
- -- but I appreciate you, please,
- redacting that, because, again, it's just all spin and irrelevant. But -MR.
- SWALWELL: When was the last time you were in Russia?
- MR. PAGE: December 2016.
- MR. SWALWELL: Okay. Who paid for you to go to that trip?
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 117
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. PAGE: I did.
- MR. SWALWELL: Where did you stay?
- MR. PAGE: I stayed at a hotel, the same hotel complex where I stayed the last
- time.
- MR. SWALWELL: Which hotel complex was that?
- MR. PAGE: It was -- there's a -- I forget --there's a French company near
- Paveletskaya Square that has a complex there, and I -MR.
- SWALWELL: What's the name of the hotel?
- MR. PAGE: I can't recall the name.
- MR. SWALWELL: Why did you go in December 2016?
- MR. PAGE: I was interested in possibilities of -- from an intellectual and -- both in
- a business context but also in a general scholarly context. Again, I've spent most of my .
- life, over the last decade or so, involved in both academic endeavors but also business
- endeavors. And so I was --
- MR. SWALWELL: Well, Mr. Page, I guess I'm trying to understand, in 2016 you
- didn't have any sources of income other than passive investments, you were no longer
- affiliated with the campaign, and a month following the election you traveled over to
- Russia on your own dime. Is that correct?
- MR. PAGE: That's correct. And, also, please bear in mind -- yeah.
- MR. SWALWELL: Mr. Page--
- MR. PAGE: Yeah.
- MR. SWALWELL: -- Dr. Page, were you seeking business in Russia in
- December 2016?
- MR. PAGE: I was interested in business, yes, and also potentially--
- MR. SWALWELL: What business were you seeking in December of 2016?
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. PAGE: I canlt recall anything specific. Again, I had a feeling that
- eventually --
- 118
- MR. SWALWELL: Well, Dr. Page, surely you went over there with a plan, right?
- You didnlt just go over there to walk around and to find a IInow hiringll sign at the Red
- Square.
- MR. PAGE: lIve never -- 11m an entrepreneur, and so therels no IInow hiring.1I
- MR. SWALWELL: So who did you seek out in December 2016?
- MR. PAGE: Part of the issue is, when the death threats and security threats
- came in --
- MR. SWALWELL: No, Dr. Page, I understand the history.
- MR. PAGE: Part of the reason I went there, you know, itls one of the places I felt
- relatively safer.
- MR. SWALWELL: Who was protecting you there to make you feel safe?
- MR. PAGE: I havenlt received any death threats in Russia.
- MR. SWALWELL: Who was protecting you in Russia that made you feel safe?
- MR. PAGE: No one is protecting me. Therels just -- lIve never been threatened
- in Russia. lIve been threatened on multiple occasions in the United States following in the
- wake of the dodgydossier and the trolls that sort of spun up this false story about me.
- MR. SWALWELL: So, Dr. Page, let me back up. The dossier was released in
- January 2017. Is that right?
- MR. PAGE: Correct.
- MR. SWALWELL: And youlre telling us that in December 2016 you went to
- Moscow because you were afraid of a dossier that would be released a month later. Is
- that right?
- MR. PAGE: Thatls incorrect. As I alluded to in my opening statement, the first
- UNCLASSIFIED·
- 119
- UNCLASSIFIED
- time the information from the dodgy dossier was used was a personal attack against me in
- September 2016 in news articles, including one from the U.S. Government's propaganda
- agency funded by the Broadcasting Board of Governors, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty,
- and other--
- MR. SWALWELL: So, Dr. Page--
- MR. PAGE: -- some other private media organizations that did tremendous harm,
- including putting my life at risk for domestic terrorist threats.
- MR. SWALWELL: Dr. Page, which individuals -- who did you meet with in
- December 2016 in Russia?
- MR. PAGE: I met with some scholars from-MR.
- SWALWELL: Names.
- MR. PAGE: -- New Economic School. I can't remember the full list of names.
- did meet Shlomo Weber again. And I mentioned that Mr. Dvorkovich stopped by. And
- there was one old person I had previously worked with --
- MR. SWALWELL: Name?
- MR. PAGE: -- from Gazprom named
- MR. SWALWELL: Can you spell that?
- MR. PAGE: Yes. So
- MR. SWALWELL: Who else did you meet with?
- MR. PAGE: I didn't -- I had a brief lunch with Andrey Baranov as well.
- MR. SWALWELL: Who else?
- MR. PAGE: There was a bank analyst there as well.
- 'MR. SWALWELL: What was that person's name?
- MR. PAGE: I can't definitively recall his name right now.
- MR. SWALWELL: Which bank?
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. PAGE: Can we redact this?
- MR. SWALWELL: No.
- 120
- MR. PAGE: The problem is, again, I don't want to get people in -- it was a general
- discussion about not much, right? So I don'twant to get people in trouble.
- MR. SWALWELL: Dr. Page, you traveled from the United States to Russia a month
- after an election that the Russians interfered with, and you met with individuals from a
- bank. I would disagree that that is not much. So who did you meet with and which
- bank?
- MR. PAGE: He never asked for any -- there was never any offer -- he was an old
- friend who I had known for some time.
- MR. SWALWELL: Okay. What was the old friend's name?
- MR. PAGE: I would respectfully request that this information be redacted. I will
- tell you that information, but I know that they've said -- particularly given the controversies
- and based on the dodgy dossier about me, that to have their name out there is going to be,
- you know -- similar to the extraordinary career risk and career damage that I've had, this
- may --
- MR. SWALWELL: Chair, I would ask that you order the witne~s to answer the
- question and provide the name.
- MR. ROONEY: [Presiding.] The witness will provide the name.
- MR. PAGE: Can we keep it off the record?
- I'm sure, Mr. Chairman, when you hear the details, there's -- to destroy someone's
- career based on nothing, a conversation that was very generic amongst a couple of old
- . friends, I think is a very strong penalty on an individual. I can say that from firsthand
- experience, given the much worse experience that I've had.
- MR. SWALWELL: And, Mr. Chair, I would submit, the request for this hearing to be
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 121
- UNCLASSIFIED
- public was made at the request of the witness.
- MR. ROONEY: Right. And I don't think that anybody here is trying to destroy
- anybody's career. I think that --
- MR. PAGE: Well, you will do that, Mr. Chairman. Or there's a risk that that
- might happen, you know, particularly given the controversies right now.
- MR. SCHIFF: Are we talking about the name of a Russian national that Dr. Page
- met with?
- MR. SWALWELL: Yes.
- MR. SCHIFF: Then there's no basis to exclude that.
- MR. PAGE: He's someone from a U.S. bank, and so U.S. banks are -- I can assure
- you, are quite concerned about these controversies.
- MR. ROONEY: I think that if -- after we have this hearing, if we would meet with
- the minority and determine if, you know, that injury would, in fact, happen, you know,
- certainly, you know, we would weigh that. But I think that Mr. Swalwell's question is in
- order.
- And I think that, you know, barring any evidence that we find after the hearing that
- would provide to the contrary, with regard to injury or damage to his name or reputation,
- welre trying to, obviously, get to the bottom of -- and, Eric~ welre going to yield again, so
- 11m not filibustering your time.
- MR. SWALWELL: No. I gotcha.
- MR. ROONEY: Weill certainly take that under advisement, your concern, before
- it's released publicly.
- But I think that, you know, for the sake of us being able to move this investigation
- forward, that we should hear the person's name.
- MR. PAGE: Okay. I will give you that information. I will also just note that
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 122
- UNCLASSIFIED
- there has been -- I am now, like, a domestic and international pariah, given the false
- allegations from the dodgy dossier. So adding someone else's name related to that is -- I
- would respectfully request that you -- you know, again going back to the concept of my
- speech, which I've lived on throughout my life, if you respect other individuals, they will
- respect you.
- This individual's name, who I will tell you now, is a person who has always been a
- kind individual and someone who certainly has never asked anything which is -MR.
- 5WALWELL: What's the name, Dr. Page?
- MR. PAGE: So, He is a bank analyst at Bank of
- America/Merrill Lynch. And I had previously -- when I was in -- I knew him from Moscow
- when I was at the bank. 50--
- MR. ROONEY: We've gone over this 30 minutes. I was going to ask the witness if
- he needs a break--
- MR. PAGE: I want to help just--
- MR. ROONEY: -- or if we can keep going forward.
- MR. PAGE: I want to help you to the best I can.
- MR. ROONEY: I understand, but--
- MR. PAGE: And I know you have a meeting at 2 o'clock, so I don't need a break.
- MR. ROONEY: Okay.
- MR. PAGE: I'm a marathon runner. I have endurance. And I've -MR.
- ROONEY: Well, I'm not.
- MR. PAGE: Any pain I've been through in this committee is minuscule compared
- to the dodgy-dossier-inflicted destruction on my life. So I'm happy -- this is an absolute
- pleasure, and I'm happy to help out.
- MR. ROONEY: Hopefully this is not considered a painful experience, but --
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 123
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. PAGE: Itls not. And I respect -- your committee has been respectful to
- me -- and, again, I think -- relative to others. So I want -- again, the reason 11m here is to
- help you out in any way as possible.
- And I think the reality of this situation is just so outrageous, you know, what started
- in September 2016 and before that about me, based on this, you know, opposition
- research document, which was paid for by some of the richest people in America, against
- this, you know, as Congressman Swalwell correctly alluded to, pretty small fish whose life
- has been deeply disrupted and is now living on personal savings.
- MR. ROONEY: Understood.
- Without objection, the chair and the ranking member will be permitted to question
- the witness for an additional 30 minutes each and may yield to other members at their
- discretion.
- Mr.Swalwell.
- MR.SWALWELL: Thank you, Chairman.
- Dr. Page, where did you meet_ is it a male or female?
- MR. PAGE: Hels a man.
- MR.SWALWELL: Male. Where did you meet ?
- MR. PAGE: At a restaurant.
- MR.SWALWELL: Which restaurant?
- MR. PAGE: I canlt recall the name of it.
- MR.SWALWELL: Who else joined you?
- MR. PAGE: Mr. Baranov.
- MR.SWALWELL: What did you talk about?
- MR. PAGE: We talked about -- I was actually getting ready to -- again, it was two
- old friends. I had known --
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. SWALWELL: I understand who was there, Dr. Page.
- MR. PAGE: Yes.
- 124
- MR. SWALWELL: My direct question to you and the direct answer I want is, what
- did you discuss?
- MR. PAGE: Yeah. We talked about general markets and also -- you know, I was
- planning to give a speech, you know, for New Economic School and the media the following
- day, and s'o I asked them for some thoughts a'bout my speech.
- MR. SWALWELL: Did you talk about the 2016 election that had just happened a
- month earlier?
- MR. PAGE: They expressed general -- yeah, it came up, and they expressed
- general interest in it. And I told them my general perspectives as someone whose life had
- been disrupted 3 months earlier. So --
- MR. SWALWELL: So the election was discussed, yes.
- MR. PAGE: In general terms. But nothing that was discussed related to the
- election showed -- for those two individuals who were participating in that lunch, they had
- no ill intent or showed having -- they --
- MR. SWALWELL: Dr. Page, the question was, the election was discussed, yes,
- correct?
- MR. PAGE: Broadly, in passing, based on public information and nothing nefarious
- in any way.
- MR. SWALWELL: Did you receive any documents during this lunch?
- MR. PAGE: I don't believe -- no. I'm almost positive I did not.
- MR. SWALWELL: Did you present any documents to Mr. Baranov or
- ?
- MR. PAGE: No. 1--
- UNCLASSIFIED
- speech.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR.SWALWELL: Yes or no.
- MR. PAGE: I--
- MR.SWALWEll: Yes or no, Dr. Page?
- MR. PAGE: I showed them my speech, or showed them some slides from my
- MR.SWAlWEll: So you had a laptop with you?
- MR. PAGE: Yes.
- MR.SWAlWEll: Okay. And you showed them your laptop?
- MR. PAGE: Yeah.
- MR.SWAlWEll: You mentioned an. that you had met with?
- 125
- MR. PAGE: _, yes. For the same reason, I would ask, you know -- he's
- someone -- he's just a good -- someone who's never -- always been kind and professional
- with me, and I would prefer that his name not be dragged --
- MR.SWAlWEll: Where did you meet.?
- MR. PAGE: I believe we had a lunch as well.
- MR.SWAlWEll: Where was the lunch?
- MR. PAGE: It was at a -- there's a chain of steakhouses there. I believe it was at
- Goodman's Steakhouse.
- MR.SWAlWEll: Who paid for the lunch?
- MR. PAGE: I believe we split it.
- MR.SWAlWEll: Okay. Was anyone else with you?
- MR. PAGE: Which we -- again, we're old friends.
- MR.SWAlWEll: Dr. Page, that's enough.
- MR. PAGE: So we split it, yeah.
- MR.SWAlWEll: Was there anyone else with you with.?
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 126
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. PAGE: No, it was just the two of us.
- MR. SWALWELL: So you mentioned you met with., you met with
- Mr. Baranov, and on that trip. Anyone else?
- MR. PAGE: but --
- M{t SWALWELL:
- MR. PAGE: -- hopefully that's redacted anyway. "But, yeah.
- MR. SWALWELL: Anyone else that you met with on that trip, other than those
- three individuals?
- MR. PAGE: I mentioned the people from the university.
- MR. SWALWELL: Okay. Anyone other than those individuals?
- MR. PAGE: I gave a speech, and there were some people from the university and
- journalists there, so --
- MR. SWALWELL: Were you paid for the speech?
- MR. PAGE: Zero. I've never been paid for any speech in Moscow. Other
- people may be paid. I've never been.
- MR. SWALWELL: Dr. Page, that's fine. If the answer is no -MR.
- PAGE: It's a complete no. Never.
- MR. SWALWELL: How many nights did you stay in Russia?
- MR. PAGE: Approximately six or so.
- MR. SWALWELL: Was it direct transit back to the United States, or did you stay
- anywhere else before you came back?
- I'm --
- MR. PAGE: I can't recall. There may have been a connecting flight. Again,
- MR. SWALWELL: "Well, I mean, did you -- I expect that you might have connected.
- MR. PAGE: Oh, yeah, I did go to a conference in London, I believe, either before or
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- after. Yeah.
- MR. SWALWELL: And this was in December?
- MR. PAGE: Yes.
- MR. SWALWELL: Okay. When you were in London, did you meet with any
- Russian nationals?
- MR. PAGE: This is another example of-MR.
- SWALWELL: Yes or no, Dr. Page.
- MR. PAGE: I did and--
- MR. SWALWELL: Who?
- 127
- MR. PAGE: This is -- I met with a person who has been -- whose life has also been
- interrupted.
- MR. SWALWELL: Dr. Page, again, this is a month after the election. You went to
- Russia, then to London, and then back to the United States.
- MR. PAGE: 11m not sure. It may have been London, then --
- MR. SWALWELL: And at the stop in London, you met with a Russian national.
- Who did you meet with?
- MR. PAGE: An international advisory board member of my firm, Mr. Sergey
- Yatsenko.
- MR. SWALWELL: How do you spell his last name?
- MR. PAGE: Y-a-t-s-e-n-k-o.
- MR. SWALWELL: Where did you meet with Mr. Yatsenko?
- MR. PAGE: I canlt recall specifics.
- MR. SWALWELL: Why did you meet with Mr. Yatsenko?
- MR. PAGE: We were also looking at some opportunities in Kazakhstan.
- MR. SWALWELL: What kind of opportunities?
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. PAGE: They were in the process of-MR.
- SWALWELL: Who's they?
- MR. PAGE: The -- I believe it's called Samruk Kazyna.
- MR. SWALWELL: Can you spell that?
- MR. PAGE: I believe it's something along the lines of S-a-m-r-u-k K-a-z-y-n-a.
- I have worked on a number of private --
- MR. SWALWELL: Dr. Page, there's no question.
- So· what was the purpose of meeting with Mr. Yatsenko?
- MR. PAGE: He's an old friend. He's an old friend and a colleague.
- MR. SWALWELL: And it sounds like there was some business that was being
- discussed?
- 128
- MR. PAGE: Yes, yeah. Like I mentioned, the Kazakhstan privatization process.
- MR. SWALWELL: Where did you meet?
- MR. PAGE: We had a -- I can't recall exactly because I spend a fair amount of time
- in London, and so I can't recall that trip. But --
- MR. SWALWELL: How many nights did you stay in London?
- MR. PAGE: I can't recall exactly,·probably around --
- MR. SWALWELL: Was it more than one?
- MR. PAGE: -- three. Yeah, it was probably more than one.
- MR. SWALWELL: Was it more than five?
- MR. PAGE: No. Probably somewhere between one and five.
- MR. SWALWELL: Who paid for you to go to London?
- MR. PAGE: I paid for everything. Yes.
- MR. SWALWELL: Where did you stay?
- MR. PAGE: At some hotel. I can't recall exactly.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 129
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. SWALWELL: Is there a hotel that you always stay at when you're in London?
- MR. PAGE: No.
- MR. SWALWELL: You said that there was a hotel you always stay at when you're
- in Russia.
- MR. PAGE: And part of the reason -- I don't stay at -- particularly in the U,S'I
- particularly given the terrorist threats against me -MR.
- SWALWELL: Okay. Dr. Page--
- MR. PAGE: -- I move my location frequently.
- MH. SWALWELL: -- again, I'm going to ask you to just stick to the question.
- So who else was present when you met with Mr. Yatsenko in London?
- MR. PAGE: We met with a few people.
- MR. SWALWELL: How many people?
- MR. PAGE: I had a meeting with the Ambassador.
- MR. SWALWELL: Which ambassador?
- MR. PAGE: The Kazakh Ambassador to the U.K.
- MR. SWALWELL: Who else was there?
- MR. PAGE: I can't --
- MR. SWALWELL: Did the Ambassador have an aide?
- MR. PAGE: Yeah, I believe he had an aide.
- MR. SWALWELL: So I count so far you, Mr. Yatsenko, the Ambassador, and an
- aide. That's four people. Were there any additional persons?
- MR. PAGE: There may have been. I can't recall. They're the most, you
- know -- they were classmates in university.
- MR. SWALWELL: Classmates of who?
- MR. PAGE: Mr. Yatsenko and the Ambassador.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 130
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. SWALWELL: Was the election of 2016 in the United States discussed at all?
- MR. PAGE: Just general sentiment, general information that was in the news.
- Nothing beyond that.
- MR. SWALWELL: Did they know that you had been a foreign policy adviser for the
- Trump campaign?
- MR. PAGE: The main thing they knew-MR.
- SWALWELL: Yes or no.
- MR. PAGE: They knew it because it was in the news, in this false news and these
- defamatory reports. They knew that -- that was the main reason why they knew it, and
- that was the main focus in that context of the discussions.
- MR. SWALWELL: How long did the meeting last?
- MR. PAGE: I can't recall.
- MR. SWALWELL: Was it more than an hour?
- MR. PAGE: No.
- MR. SWALWELL: Was it more than 30 minutes?
- MR. PAGE: I don't think so.
- MR. SWALWELL: Was it breakfast, lunch, or dinner?
- MR. PAGE: Well, you know, with Sergey, we may have had multiple meetings.
- Again, he's an old friend. I can't -- like you couldn't remember, you know, how many
- hours you met with your old friends in last December as well.
- MR. SWALWELL: Was the meeting spoken in Russian or English?
- MR. PAGE: Mostly English, perhaps some Russian. I try to practice my Russian
- when I can.
- MR. SWALWELL: Did Mr. Yatsenko speak Russian?
- MR. PAGE: I can't recall.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. SWALWELL: How about the Kazakh Ambassador?
- MR. PAGE: English. English.
- MR. SWALWELL: What business was discussed in this meeting?
- 131
- MR. PAGE: Privatization process. There was a process of privatization now going
- on in Kazakhstan. And that's what I had worked on in my years in Russia, is the
- privatization process in Russia.
- longer.
- MR. SWALWELL: Where was Mr. Yatsenko living at the time?
- MR. PAGE: London. He has not been back to Russia for many years.
- MR. SWALWELL: Have you ever met Mr. Yatsenko in Russia?
- MR. PAGE: We -- he was originally--
- MR. SWALWELL: Yes or no.
- MR. PAGE: Yes. Many years ago. Not in the last 4 years at least, probably
- MR. SWALWELL: Was that the first time you had met the Kazakhstan
- Ambassador?
- MR. PAGE: I can't recall the exact first time, but no.
- MR. SWALWELL: How many times--
- MR. PAGE: It may have been, yeah.
- MR. SWALWELL: How many times prior to this meeting had you met with the
- Kazakhstan Ambassador?
- MR. PAGE: I can't recall.
- MR. SWALWELL: More than five?
- MR. PAGE: I probably, in total, metwith him about three or four times. I can't
- recall the exact distribution of those meetings.
- MR.SWALWELL: Have you ever met the Ambassador for Kazakhstan to
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- London -- try and follow this -- well, first, what's his name? That will be easier.
- MR. PAGE: See, my life has been so--
- MR. SWALWELL: Well, have you met this individual in Russia before?
- MR. PAGE: Never, no. The Kazakh? No, never.
- MR. SWALWELL: What followup--
- MR. PAGE: The only contact--
- MR. SWALWELL: Dr. Page, there's no question.
- What followup from this meeting has occurred?
- 132
- MR. PAGE: Nothing has occurred because all of -- because of this terrible situation
- I'm in. They don't want to do any -- you know, I was looking to do some help on a
- privatization process, similar to a privatization process I've worked in the past. Given this
- trolling by state-owned media from the U.S. and these false allegations from the dodgy
- dossier --
- MR. SWALWELL: Dr. Page, who--
- MR. PAGE: -- there is no business currently in consideration.
- MR. SWALWELL: Dr. Page, who else did you meet with in London?
- MR. PAGE: I can't recall who I met with.
- MR. SWALWELL: Is it accurate to say that the only meeting you took was this
- meeting with Mr. Yatsenko and the Kazakhstan Ambassador to the U.K.?
- MR. PAGE: No. As I previously mentioned to you, I was also attending a
- conference at the time.
- MR. SWALWELL: What other Russian nationals did you meet with in London in
- December 2016?
- MR. PAGE: I can't recall any Russian individuals.
- MR. SWALWELL: Were there more than just Mr. Yatsenko?
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. PAGE: There's a lot of Russians in London, and there may have been -MR.
- SWALWELL: That you met with?
- MR. PAGE: There may have been -- it was a large energy conference that I
- attended, and there may have been some Russians there.
- 133
- Similar to everything I've told you from the'very beginning, which is the absolute
- truth, nothing nefarious was ever discussed with any of them, eVer, not only in the last
- couple years, throughout any time in my life, which is really, unfortunately-MR.
- SWALWELL: So, Dr. Page, other than the meeting you had with Dr. Yatsenko
- and the Kazakhstan Ambassador --
- MR. PAGE: He's not a doctor. He's just a --
- MR.SWALWELL: Dr. Page, other than the meeting you had with Mr. Yatsenko and
- the Kazakhstan Ambassador, your testimony to our committee under oath is that you did
- not meet with or speak to another Russian national in London.
- MR. PAGE: My testimony was just that there may have been some Russians in the
- conference that I attended, but I have no recollection of specific --
- MR.SWALWELL: So outside of--
- MR. PAGE: Again, there were thousands of people, and in Russia
- probably ~- there's a pretty good percentage of people that are Russian. So -- and
- particularly in an energy context, a lot of Russians. So I would bet money that there were
- probably some Russians.
- MR.SWALWELL: So, Dr. Page, outside of the Russians who may have been at the
- conferenc.e, your testimony to this committee is that the only Russian nationals you met
- within London in December 2016 was Mr. Yatsenko in the meeting with Kazakhstan's
- Ambassador.
- MR. PAGE: To the best of my recollection, that's the case.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. SWALWELL: Did you go anywhere after London?
- Did you come back to the United States?
- MR. PAGE: Yes.
- 134
- MR. SWALWELL: Other than your trip to -- your two trips to Russia and your trip
- to London, did you have any other meetings in 2016 in a foreign land with Russian
- nationals?
- MR. PAGE: In 2016?
- MR. SWALWELL: Yes.
- So we talked about July 2016.
- MR. PAGE: Yeah.
- MR. SWALWELL: We talked about December 2016. Any other trips in 2016
- where you met with, not people who could have been, may have been, might have been at
- a conference, people who you spoke with eye-to-eye in a foreign land?
- MR. PAGE: I have no direct recollection of any of that. No. Nothing.
- MR. SWALWELL: When you told Senator Sessions that you were headed to Russia,
- this was July 2016. Is that right?
- MR. PAGE: No, I believe that was June.
- MR. SWALWELL: It was in June 2016?
- MR. PAGE: Well, no, it was, again, the week before, yeah.
- MR. SWALWELL: And, at this point, the first tranche of hacked emails had become
- public, is that right, in the 2016 election?
- .MR. PAGE: What was the date? I'm sorry.
- MR. SWALWELL: So when -- you went to the Capitol Hill Club at the end of
- June 2016, yes?
- MR. PAGE: Yes.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 135
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR.SWALWELL: At this point, it is now public that DNC emails have been hacked
- and that Russia is accused of doing the hacking.
- MR. PAGE: I canlt recall the exact timing. Again, it was just things in the news
- and things I had nothing to do with, so --
- MR.SWALWELL: But you knew enough that going to Russia might cause some
- problems because Russia andits connection to Donald Trump was of some controversy.
- Is that right?
- MR. PAGE: I didnlt foresee any problems, because I never could have imagined
- how extraordinarily false the allegations ended up being. So I did not foresee any
- problems.
- And I also was very careful to be as benign and as, you know -- not -- to go out of
- my way to not create problems, right, particularly because, you know -- because, again, 11m
- a private citizen and I donlt want to create any unnecessary controversy. And I could
- never have imagined this controversy, which was based on complete falsehoods.
- MR.SWALWELL: Dr. Page, did Senator Sessions advise you not to go to Russia
- when you told him?
- MR. PAGE: No. He advised nothing. It was a brief mention in passing about
- my -- you know, "Ilm glad I could stop by this dinner because 11m getting ready to head
- overseas."
- MR.SWALWELL: Were the hacked Clinton or Podesta emails ever discussed when
- you were in Russia ·in July 2016 by anyone you talked to?
- MR. PAGE: I have no recollection of that, no.
- MR.SWALWELL: How about in December 2016? Yes or no.
- MR. PAGE: I donlt believe so. Again, it was in the news. So, just like tax policy
- may have come up, you know, in conversations on Capitol Hill, there may be -- you know,
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 136
- UNCLASSIFIED
- someone may have mentioned something about it. But I have no recollection. And
- certainly no conversations related to any direct activity, because I obviously had no activity.
- MR. SWALWELL: There's been some talk in your testimony today about the
- dossier, and I just want to now go through it.
- MR. PAGE: Great.
- MR. SWALWELL: Did you ever speak in 2016, electronically or orally-MR.
- SCHIFF: Mr. Swalwell, would you yield for a moment--
- MR. SWALWELL: I would yield.
- MR. SCHIFF: -- before you go through that in greater detail, just before we leave
- the trips.
- Dr. Page, you mentioned meeting with an
- MR. PAGE: _?
- MR. SCHIFF: Well, you mentioned.. Maybe I have the wrong •.
- MR. PAGE: Nagovitsyn,
- MR. SCHIFF: And what is position?
- MR. PAGE: He is a -- he's had various roles within Gazprom.
- MR. SCHIFF: And did you meet with him in December alone or in July as well?
- MR. PAGE: I believe both times.
- MR. SCHIFF: And when you met with him in July, where did you meet with him?
- MR. PAGE: It may have been -- the only place that comes to mind in both
- instances is the Goodman's Steakhouse. So it may have been the same location. If not
- then, then -- I've probably had 50 dinners with him over the years. Again, even -- I
- worked with him -- he was a client of mine back at l\1errill when I was living there in 2004.
- So it's hard for me to say exactly where.
- MR. SCHIFF: And what does he do for Gazprom?
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 137
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. PAGE: He's had various posi,tions over time, but he used to be, similarly, in
- the investor relations team.
- MR. SCHIFF: So he's investor relations for Gazprom.
- MR. PAGE: Previously was, but not anymore. Uh-huh.
- MR. SCHIFF: Was he when you met with him in July?
- MR. PAGE: No.
- MR. SCHIFF: What was his position in July?
- MR. PAGE: There is a -- see, I can't say, because he's shifted around at various
- points, and he's in a new position again. But there was -- at times, he's -- at some point,
- he had been in an investment project group.
- MR. SCHIFF: Did he have any affiliation with Rosneft?
- MR. PAGE: Gazprom and Rosneft are like cross-town rivals. It's like the Mets
- and the Yankees. So they're two big companies, and often, as two of the -- just like two
- large companies, you know, ExxonMobil and Chevron, a lot of people in ExxonMobii and
- Chevron may know various people in the two respective organizations, but if you're
- cross-town rivals, you're not really--
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 138
- UNCLASSIFIED
- [1:55 p.m.]
- MR. SCHIFF: So he wasn't working at all with Rosneft then when you met him in
- July?
- MR. PAGE: To the best of my knowledge, no. But, again, it's the largest Russian
- oil company, so there may be some loose affiliation and 11m just, you know --
- MR. SCHIFF: And when you met with Mr. Baranov, you met with him in July and
- you had lunch with him in December. Is that correct?
- MR. PAGE: Yes.
- MR. SCHIFF: And at either meeting, did you discuss a potential sale of a
- percentage of Rosneft?
- MR. PAGE: There was -- again, it was in the news in each instance. And it goes
- back to the point I was telling you earlier about publicly a'vailable information. There was
- talks about -- and I can't remember when exactly, because I don't follow Rosneft. It's not'
- really a major focus of mine.
- But there was a deal that was in the works for some time, which I had nothing to do
- with ever and never pitched and he never pitched to me, but that may -- that definitely -- it
- definitely came up in the second meeting or in the second -- you know, at the lunch in
- December, because it was in the news. It was one of the big headlines, that this deal had
- just occurred, which I had nothing --
- MR. SCHIFF: And did you --
- MR. PAGE: -- nothing to do with whatsoever.
- And, again, it's an investor relations person. He talks about things that are in the
- market. You know, this is a major market --
- MR. SCHIFF: And in July, did you discuss with him the potential sale of a significant
- percentage of Rosneft?
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 139
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. PAGE: I don't believe so. He may have mentioned it in passing. I can't
- remember the exact timing of when that became public information. There were
- definitely rumors of it in the early part of the summer.
- MR. SCHIFF: So in --
- MR. PAGE: 'There was never any discussion of any -- my involvement in that deal
- in any way, shape, or form. ,And, again, the meeting in July--
- MR. SCHIFF: Dr. Page --
- MR. PAGE: -- was a -- we were at a soccer game, and so we were watching the
- soccer game.
- MR. SCHIFF: Dr. Page, this is my specific question: Did you or didyou not discuss
- with Mr. Baranov in July a potential sale of a significant percentage of Rosneft?
- MR. PAGE: I can't recall any discussion.
- MR. SCHIFF: So voumay have, but you don't recall.
- MR. PAGE: He may have briefly mentioned it when we were looking up from this
- Portugal -- Ronaldo, whoever the -- you know, the goals that are being scored. That may
- have come up. But I have no definitive recollection of that. And, certainly, what never
- came up, certainly, was my involvement in any -- that type of a transaction.
- MR. SCHIFF: And did you ever express -MR.
- PAGE: It's inconceivable.
- MR. SCHIFF: Did you ever express support for the idea of lifting U.S. sanctions on
- Russia with Mr. Baranov?
- MR. PAGE: Not -- not directly. Not directly.
- MR. SCHIFF: Did you discuss it indirectly with him?
- MR. PAGE: Again, my view is -- you know, live written about this previously, you
- know --
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. SCHIFF: 11m not asking about your writings.
- MR. PAGE: Yeah.
- 140
- MR. SCHIFF: You said that you may have discussed the sale of part of Rosneft with
- Mr. Baranov in July.
- MR. PAGE: He may have mentioned it to me. I had no discussions.
- MR. SCHIFF: He may have mentioned it to you.
- MR. PAGE: In passing, uh-huh.
- MR. SCHIFF: In passing. And you may have discussed or mentioned in passing
- your support for lifting sanctions on Russia.
- MR. PAGE: No, no direct support. Again, sanctions may have come up, which I
- thought was your -- did the topic of sanctions --
- MR. SCHIFF: Okay. So you may have discussed sanctions and you may have
- discussed the sale of a part of Rosneft with him.
- MR. PAGE: No, no. He may have mentioned the sale of Rosneft if it was in the
- market at the time. But wh~t he didnlt -- there was no definitive discussions about
- sanctions, and certainly no -- not even conceivable --
- MR. SCHIFF: 11m not asking if there were definitive, Dr. Page, but you seem to be
- indicating that you may have had some discussion of sanctions and you may have had
- some discussion of the sale of a part of Rosneft with the head of investor relations for
- Rosneft, Mr. Baranov. Is that right?
- MR. PAGE: I donlt -- if I look back 14 -months, if 11m looking back today 14 months
- from now, did someone I talked to in Washington, did we discuss tax policy? Perhaps.
- MR. SCHIFF: Dr. Page, that's a very--
- MR. PAGE: But at that level, at that level --
- MR. SCHIFF: -- evasive answer to a simple question.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 141
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. PAGE: Yeah. No serious discussions about anything--
- MR. SCHIFF: But you may have had discussions that you wouldn't characterize as
- . serious?
- MR. PAGE: The topic -- just like someone may have mentioned tax policy in
- November 2017 in Washington, there may have been an analogous brief mention in
- Moscow in July 2016. Briefly, yeah.
- MR. SCHIFF: Mr. Swalwell.
- MR. SWALWELL:' Thank you.
- In July 2016, when you were in Russia, may there have been a brief discussion,
- analogous to a discussion on tax policy, of hacked Hillary Clinton emails?
- MR. PAGE: No.
- MR. SWALWELL: SO you clearly remember that that was not discussed.
- MR; PAGE: I -- nothing -- again, the -- I can't recall when that really was in the
- major news, but I have no recollection of that. I have no recollection of that.
- MR. SWALWELL: And in December--
- MR. PAGE: What I know for certain is I never brought anything up and no one
- ever asked me anything in terms of proactive specific steps related to sanctions. Nothing
- even remotely related to the allegations in the January 6 DN I report. Nothing even
- remotely close to that.
- Again, there may have been something that came up, you know, in a news context.
- But in terms of any direct involvement by either myself or anyone I spoke with, zero. And
- I can say that definitively beyond a doubt.
- MR. SWALWELL: Thank you, Dr. Page.
- Do you know a Mr. Divyekin? D-i-v-y-e-k-i-n.
- MR. PAGE: I had never even heard the name until it was in the -- I got the
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- first -- the first time I heard his name --
- MR. SWALWELL: Do you know a person named Mr. Divyekin? Yes or no.
- MR. PAGE: No.
- 142
- MR. SWALWELL: And I just want to be clear. Do you know an individual named
- report.
- ? Yes or no.
- MR. PAGE: The name vaguely rings a bell but maybe because it was in some news
- MR. SWALWELL: I'm asking your personal knowledge.
- MR. PAGE: Personal knowledge, no.
- The first time I heard of Divyekin's name was on July 26, 2016, when a reporter
- from The Wall Street Journal, you know, asked me this question and said he had received
- information that -- he said, "We're told you met with Igor Sechin during your Moscow trip."
- And then he went on to say, "We are also told you recently met with a senior Kremlin
- official" --
- MR. SWALWELL: Dr. Page, it was a yes-or-no question. I appreciate you
- answering it.
- MR. PAGE: Yes. But that was the only time I heard his name.
- MR. SWALWEL1L: Dr. Page, aside from direct involvement with sanctions,
- regarding your conversation with Mr. Schiff, did you share your opinion as a scholar of U.S.
- policy of sanctions on Russia in July 2016?
- MR. PAGE: I have no recollection of that. And if I did, it would have been
- similarly in passing. But what I made clear is ! have no position on that.
- MR. SWALWELL: Dr. Page, how about in December 2016, did you, while in Russia,
- share your opinion as a scholar of U.S. policy on sanctions in Russia?
- MR. PAGE: I can't recall.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 143
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. SWALWELL: So you might have.
- MR. PAGE: Perhaps. Again, speaking as a private citizen, as I had all along, and
- never offering or never being asked anything in any way, shape, or form related to the
- Trump campaign in terms of that particular topic, or the Trump, you know--
- MR. SWALWELL: ,Did you sign a nondisclosure agreement when you joined the
- Trump team? '
- MR. PAGE: Yes, but I don't have a copy of that, as I mentioned.
- MR. SWALWELL: When did you sign that?
- MR. PAGE: Somewhere around in March, I believe.
- MR. ROONEY: We're going to take a 5-minute break.
- MR. SWALWELL: Okay.
- [Recess.]
- MR. ROONEY: All right. Let's go back in.
- Are you ready, Dr. Page?
- MR. PAGE: Yes, sir.
- MR. ROONEY: I just wanted to clarify. You had said something along the lines of
- 2 o'clock. We did have a 2 o'clock --
- MR. PAGE: I heard we're going to be delayed. I'm fine.
- MR. ROONEY: Yeah. Okay.
- MR. PAGE: However long -- I want to help you guys however I can.
- MR. ROON EY: Right.
- MR. PAGE: Go for it. I'm--
- MR. ROONEY: And hopefully it's not as long as, you know, conceivably possible.
- MR. PAGE: Sure.
- MR. ROONEY: But I just wanted you to be aware that that is--
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 144
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. PAGE: Thank you for that.
- MR. ROONEY: And then we have votes. And, you know, if youlre still needed,
- weill come back. But I appreciate you -MR.
- PAGE: 11m happy to help.
- MR. ROONEY: Yes.
- MR. PAGE: And I think it's important that we get to the bottom of this-MR.
- ROONEY: I agree.
- MR. PAGE: -- particularly the main points in my opening statement.
- MR. ROONEY: Okay.
- MR. PAGE: Because that is the big issue.
- MR. ROONEY: Gotcha.
- And I have to read this again, right?
- Without objection, the chair and the ranking member will be permitted to question
- the witness for an additional 30 minutes each and may yield to other members at their
- discretion.
- Mr. Swalwell.
- MR. SWALWELL: Thank you, Mr. Chair.
- Dr. Page, during the course of the campaign, did you ever meet Paul Manafort?
- MR. PAGE: Never.
- MR. SWALWELL: Have you ever spoken to Paul Manafort?
- MR. PAGE: I have never spoken to Paul Manafort.
- MR. SWALWELL: Have you ever electronically communicated with Mr. Manafort?
- MR. PAGE: There--
- MR. SWALWELL: Yes or no?
- MR. PAGE: Just once, to the best of my recollection.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 145
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR.SWALWELL: When was that?
- MR. PAGE: When the dodgy dossier articles started coming out, I can't remember
- exactly, sometime over the summer, one of The New York Times reporters sent an email to
- him and me. So -'- and he had -- I think what had happened, to the best of my
- recollection, is he was asking me some questions, you know, related to the campaign stuff
- and also, I believe, kind of -- eventually, the same reporter asked me about, sort of, the
- dodgy dossier accusations.
- But when he asked me ,anything campaign-related, I'm like, I'm an informal, you
- know, junior adviser; if you have questions, you know, you ought to ask someone senior in
- the campaign. So that's how --
- MR.SWALWELL: Going back to that NDA, I just want to understand, which
- campaign official asked you to sign it in March 2016?
- MR. PAGE: See, I'm not comfortable with saying that, because I don't know the
- terms of that agreement, and I don't want to create any problems for him. So -MR.
- SWALWELL: Mr. Chairman, can you order the witness to answer the
- question?
- MR. ROONEY: Can you repeat it?
- MR.SWALWELL: Which campaign official asked you to sign the nondisclosure
- agreement?
- MR. ROONEY: It's a routine question we've been asking every witness that has
- come through, so I don't see what the problem with that is.
- MR. PAGE: But the only problem is that I don't know the terms and conditions of
- my NDA, so I don't want to violate that, because I never got a copy--
- MR.SWALWELL: Congress trumps the NDA.
- MR. ROONEY: I don't know about that.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- You can answer the question. I was wrong.
- MR.SWALWELL: I didn't mean it--
- MR. ROONEY: No, that's fine. That's why I got this guy.
- MR. PAGE: I should answer the question, yes?
- MR. ROONEY: Yes.
- MR. PAGE: Sam Clovis.
- MR.SWALWELL: When did you first meet Sam Clovis?
- 146
- MR. PAGE: The day that I had that very brief interaction with Corey Lewandowski
- when he was doing a million things. He says, well, sorry, I'm busy -- you know, we had a
- brief conversation. He said, well, I'm busy, let me introduce you to Sam Clovis, who's
- sitting -- and he was sitting in the next room. So he introduced us, and then we had a
- chat.
- MR.SWALWELL: Was that at Trump Tower?
- MR. PAGE: Yes, it was.
- MR.SWALWELL: What did Mr. Clovis ask you to do?
- MR. PAGE: He didn't ask me to do anything, to the best of my recollection. He
- was -- we just were meeting for the first time and -MR.
- SWALWELL: He presented you with an NDA, though?
- MR. PAGE: No, not then. Again, that was, I believe, in March.
- MR.SWALWELL: What month was it that you first met Mr. Clovis?
- MR. PAGE: That was January, that first meeting with Mr. Lewandowski in early
- January.
- MR.SWALWELL: And when did you next see him?
- MR. PAGE: I can't remember the exact time, but we had meetings from time to
- time, or I got --
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. SWALWELL: How many meetings did you have'with Mr. Clovis before he
- asked you to sign an NDA?
- MR. PAGE: I can't recall specifically. There might not have been any.
- remember I had a phone call with him at some point, but --
- MR. SWALWELL: Where were you when he asked you to sign the NDA?
- MR. PAGE: We were having breakfast in northern Virginia.
- MR. SWALWELL: Where?
- MR. PAGE: . One of the hotels out, sort of-- I get -- sort of north. I'm not a
- northern Virginia person, but it's somewhere, kind of Falls Church area. I don't recall
- exactly.
- MR. SWALWELL: Who else was with you?
- MR. PAGE: Just the two of us.
- MR. SWALWELL: Was the meeting at his request or yours?
- MR. PAGE: I can't recall, but--
- MR. SWALWELL: How did the NDA come up?
- 147
- MR. PAGE: Well, he said that we're in the process of putting together this
- committee -- to the best of my recollection, we're in the process of putting this committee,
- and, you know, you can be a part of it, and this is an NDA which is part of that.
- I don't recall. Again, it was a year and a half ago, and the world has changed
- completely for me between now and then, so I don't -- I don't recall specifics, but words to
- that effect.
- MR. SWALWELL: Did Mr. Clovis tell you whether anyone else was involved in the
- drafting of the NDA?
- MR. PAGE: No, not that I recall.
- MR. SWALWELL: Did he tell you --
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. PAGE: And I've signed hundreds of NDAs. I-MR.
- SWALWELL:· Dr. Page, just to that question.
- MR. PAGE: It's a blur to me. I have no idea.
- 148
- MR. SWALWELL: Did Mr. Clovis tell you what he would do with the NDA once you
- signed it?
- MR. PAGE: He said that it would be countersigned and I'd get a copy back, but I
- never got a copy back.
- MR. SWALWELL: Countersigned by whom?
- MR. PAGE: I!m not sure. Whoever's name was on that, and I don't recall.
- MR. SWALWELL: Was it Michael Cohen's?
- MR. PAGE: I don't recall. I have no idea.
- I've signed hundreds of NDAs. They are all a blur to me. It's kind of standard.
- MR. SWALWELL: You've signed hundreds of NDAs?
- . MR. PAGE: Over the years, probably. Probably.
- MR. SWALWELL: Probably or yes?
- MR. PAGE: I can say definitively I've signed at least -- it feels like hundreds, but
- I've done, you know, signed at least -- I think it's safe to say at least 50. But, you know,
- it's sort of -- they're relatively procedural. It's like a "how many subpoenas have you
- issued" kind of thing.
- MR. SWALWELL: Did Mr. Clovis speak to you about anyone else he had met with
- and asked to sign an NDA?
- MR. PAGE: I believe the only context of the NDA is just my NDA. He may have
- mentioned some other people who he was also talking to at the time, but I can't recall.
- MR. SWALWELL: We've been with you since about 9:30. Has there been any
- part of your testimony today that you have withheld an answer or not been forthcoming in
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 149
- UNCLASSIFIED
- your.response to a question because you believed it may violate the NDA that you signed?
- MR. PAGE: To the best of my recollection, no. The only thing I may be cautious
- about is my recollection not being able to match the recollection of what IS been illicitly
- wiretapped and hacked off my computer systems based on the, you know, alleged FISA
- warrant. So thatls my only concern that's in the back of my head.
- MR.SWALWELL: As youlve testified to us today, though, or as youlve spoken with
- special counselor other congressional committees, have you had the NDA in your mind,
- that you may be in violation of it because of something you say?
- MR. PAGE: Yes, in the context of I know -- always in the back of my head, I bear in
- mind thatno one has had a worse impact on the Trump campaign than myself, bearing in
- mind the dodgy dossier started with this guy. And all of these controversies, they came
- after me first, for whatever reason. And it will come out in time, but -- so, in that context,
- 11m cautious, because live already done so much damage, unfortunately, through no fault
- of my own, based on things that I could never have even imagined. 11m just cautious that
- anything I might say might create more damage to people who are already damaged.
- MR.SWALWELL: Does that mean that truthful testimony that you might provide
- might create damage?
- MR. PAGE: No. No. I only tell the truth. And, again, every -- what I can tell
- you definitively, everything I have ever said and done with anyone even remotely involved
- in the Trump campaign or even the Trump movement has been completely benign and
- aboveboard. Again, 11m a policy guy; we had discussions along those lines. It IS more just
- personal impact. No -- therels no -- there has definitively been no illegal activity by myself
- or anyone that I ever saw.
- MR.SWALWELL: Dr. Page, when was the next time you saw Sam Clovis after you
- signed the N DA?
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 150
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. PAGE: . I can't recall th~ exact timing.
- MR. SWALWELL: Did you see him again before you went to Moscow?
- MR. PAGE: Probably at some point. I just can't place when was -- where -- the
- wheres and whens.
- MR. SWALWELL: Did Mr. Clovis know you were going to Moscow prior to your
- going to Moscow?
- MR. PAGE: I believe I probably mentioned it to him, yeah.
- MR. SWALWELL: How would you have mentioned it to him?
- MR. PAGE: You know, he -- I can't recall specifically, but I think he
- probably -- again, it was so benign, and it was understood that it's unrelated to the
- campaign, so, you know -- to be honest with you, no real interest, you know, no -- I mean,
- again, it was --
- MR. SWALWELL: But your testimony today, Dr. Page, is that you had told
- Mr. Clovis that you were going to Moscow prior to going to Moscow in July 2016.
- MR. PAGE: I might--
- MR. SWALWELL: Yes or no?
- MR. PAGE: I might have. I can't recall.
- MR. SWALWELL: Okay. Did you speak with Mr. Clovis about your trip to Moscow
- in July 2016 after you returned?
- MR. PAGE: I did, because I saw him at the Republican National Convention, and I
- was just shocked about how much -- these false stories and allegations had already begun
- at that point, so it definitely came up. I remember that, those kind of general exchanges,
- yeah.
- MR. SWALWELL: Did you see Ambassador Kislyak at the RepublicanConvention?
- MR. PAGE: We had a few brief interactions. I saw him, yes.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. SWALWELL: And by a brief interaction, you mean that you were in each
- other's presence. Is that right? Yes?
- 151
- MR. PAGE: We were in each other's presence in meetings where there were a
- hundred other people in our mutual presence, approximately, give or take. You know, I
- may be exaggerating, but at least, at least -- every meeting I was at with him in my entire
- life, there were many dozens of people in that same meeting. And, again, it goes back to
- my conversation with --
- MR. SWALWELL: Well, Dr. Page, let's just focus on this. You spoke with
- Ambassador Kislyak at the convention directly. Is that correct?
- or no.
- MR. PAGE: Briefly.
- MR. SWALWELL: And he spoke back to you. Is that correct?
- MR. PAGE: Yes.
- MR. SWALWELL: Okay. Did you speak about U.S. sanctions against Russia? Yes
- MR. PAGE: Not that I can recall. Again, something may have come up in passing.
- MR. SWALWELL: What do you mean, "in passing"? You were, by your definition,
- in passing already.
- MR. PAGE: I'm cautious because, the way tax policy might, you know--
- MR. SWALWELL: Dr. Page, yes or no, did you speak with Ambassador Kislyak at
- the Republican Convention about sanctions?
- MR. PAGE: I don't recall talking with him about sanctions, no.
- MR. SWALWELL: But you could have, in passing.
- MR. PAGE: In passing, it may have briefly come up in some context, but--
- MR. SWALWELL: Did the topic of Secretary Clinton's emailsorhackedDNCemai.ls
- come up in conversation or in passing in your chat with Ambassador Kislyak?
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 152
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. PAGE: I have no recollection of that. And I would say a definitive "no" if I
- wasnlt factoring in the point that it was in the news. 50, in some context, someone may
- have mentioned it somehow.
- MR.5WALWELL: 11m not asking about someone, Dr. Page. 11m saying, when you
- spoke with Ambassador Kislyak, did you or he, to each other, talk about hacked democratic
- emails?
- MR. PAGE: Not -- no. To the best of my recollection, no.
- MR.5WALWELL: Was that the first time you had'spoken directly with Ambassador
- Kislyak?
- MR. PAGE: The first time is at that convention, yes.
- MR.5WALWELL: When was the next time?
- MR. PAGE: That was -- actually, the only times I ever spoke with him was at that
- convention. Yeah.
- In fact, when I first met him, I flew in the first day, and I think, you know, there was
- that Global Partners for Diplomacy conference, and I -- there were -- when I first met him,
- there was a bunch of ambassadors from around the world, probably about five of us, and a
- couple of -~ or five of them -- and a couple speakers in this large conference center, dozens
- of people at least, probably closer to a hundred, if 11m guessing correctly. And welre all,
- sort of, handing out business cards. I handed around business cards to people; everyone
- else handed me business cards. Ambassador Kislyak did not hand me a business card.
- 50 it was kind of -- it shows, sort of, you know, lack of interest.
- MR.5WALWELL: Who else did you observe speak directly to Ambassador Kislyak
- at the Republican National Convention?
- MR. PAGE: I canlt recall anyone, except for the fact that in the news I saw J.D.
- Gordon had mentioned some conversation along those lines, which --
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 153
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. SWALWELL: Dr. Page, I'm asking about your personal knowledge and your
- personal observation.
- MR. PAGE: My personal knowledge, which I remembered and I probably wouldn't
- have remembered if I hadn't seen it in the news, that J.D. Gordon, he and I were standing
- around at a reception one night, you know, and sort of -- with a lot of other people around
- us. And, you know, I think J.D. may have said a few things.
- MR. SWALWELL: Did you talk to any other foreign ambassadors at the Republican
- National Convention -MR.
- PAGE: Yes.
- MR. SWALWELL: -- directly?
- MR. PAGE: There were dozens of--
- MR. SWALWELL: Which ones did you directly talk to?
- MR. PAGE: Lots. I mean, there were -- some of them were ambassadors, some
- were sub-ambassadors. So just, you know, let me run off names or countries I can
- remember.
- MR. SWALWELL: Well, can you give me a name -MR.
- PAGE: India -- yeah?
- MR. SWALWELL: -- a name of an ambassador at the Republican National
- Convention that you directly, as you did with Ambassador Kislyak, spoke to?
- Not in the presence of, not at the same meeting, but you spoke to that ambassador
- and that ambassador spoke back to you.
- MR. PAGE:' I cannot recall any specific names, partially because, typically, you
- know, particularly from people further around the world, that they're not, kind of, John
- Doe or Jane Doe-type names. They're, sort of, more complex. So --
- MR. SWALWELL: Did Ambassador--
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 154
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. PAGE: -- I canlt remember -- I canlt remember any specific names. If you '
- told me a name, lid be happy to --
- MR. SWALWELL: Did Ambassador Kislyak have an aide with him?
- MR. PAGE: I did not see an aide, no. I donlt think any of the ambassadors had
- aides.
- MR. SWALWELL: Did you have any followup conversations with Ambassador
- Kislyak after this meeting, by phone or electronically?
- MR. PAGE: Never. Never. I had no contact details from him. He had my
- contact details, and unless I missed something in the hundreds of emails I get a day, I donlt
- believe he ever contacted me.
- MR. SWALWELL: Were there any other Russian nationals at the Republican
- National Convention who you spoke to directly?
- MR. PAGE: I donlt believe so: I have no recollection of that, no.
- MR. SWALWELL: In a May 24th, 2016, email to J.D. Gordon, Bates stamped.
- , you wrote: "FYI: At the Newark Sky Club, Delta has a private room
- when you can have a confidential conversation, but, unfortunately, no such luck at
- Third-World LaGuardia. So IIII mostly be on receive mode, since there are a significant
- number of people in the lounge. Rather than saying too much, 1111 just refer to the seven
- points on my list which I sent last night. II
- Do you remember sending that correspondence to Mr. Gordon?
- MR.PAGE: Vaguely remember.
- MR. SWALWELL: Reading the email, does it refresh yo.ur recollection?
- MR. PAGE: Slightly. Yeah.
- MR. SWALWELL: Why did you feel it was necessary to withhold information
- during the call?
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 155
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. PAGE: No, I'm saying I'm in a big public place, right? I don't know what he
- wants to talk about. I think -- I don't -- oh, it ends here. I forget who initiated the call.
- I believe he might have.
- So all I'm saying, if there's anything that might be confidential, I can't talk publicly.
- Again, I'm· cautious just out of respect for people and respect for confidentiality. There
- was nothing specific I had in mind in terms of that conversation.
- MR. SWALWELL: Had you ever used the Delta Sky Club for a private room
- conversation before?
- MR. PAGE: In my life?
- MR. SWALWELL: Yes.
- MR. PAGE: I've been, you know--
- MR. SWALWELL: Well, you demonstrated knowledge of the club and its room.
- MR. PAGE: Yeah. So I might have. I have no recollection of that, but, you
- know, it's possible. Again, I'm respectful of people's private information, you know.
- MR. SWALWELL: Dr. Page, have you --
- MR. PAGE: There may have been some transaction I was working on that you
- wouldn't want to talk about, because, you know, again, we're talking about material
- nonpublic information. And so ~-
- MR. SWALWELL: Dr. Page--
- MR. PAGE: -- I might have used it in that context, but never anything
- beyond -- nothing in a political context such as that. So --
- MR. SWALWELL: Dr. 'Page, have you ever met with a foreign national at the
- Newark Sky Club in a private room?
- MR. PAGE: Not to my recollection. Nothing that was arranged. Again, there
- may be people that -- you're in the lounge and someone walks into it to also have a quiet
- UNCLASSIFIED
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- UNCLASSIFIED
- spot, because, again, the lounge is pretty busy. But no, sort of, arranged meeting, to the
- best of my recollection, yeah.
- MR.SWALWELL: Dr. Page, have you ever been in a Delta Newark Sky Club private
- room with another individual who you were directly speaking to? Yes or no.
- MR. PAGE: Not that I can recall. I remember, in that -- in the Delta at Newark, I
- remember therels -- vaguely remember, maybe a year or two ago, someone was getting
- ready to fly somewhere and we had a little chat. So thatls about it, though.
- MR.SWALWELL: Were they flying to Russia?
- MR. PAGE: Not that I can recall, no. No, I donlt remember any Russia
- conversation. 11m pretty sure they're American. Again, 11m just being careful.
- MR.SWALWELL: Dr. Page, in a campaign email the committee received from
- Donald Trump for President, Bates stamped , sent on May 5th, 2016, to
- Walid Phares and J.D. Gordon,. you wrote that, in addition to them contacting you via cell
- phone or iMessage, in quotations, "P.S. I forgot to mention that I also have the Middle
- East staple of_ as well. So thatls another global connectivity alternative if you
- want to get in touch there," end quote.
- MR. PAGE: Wait. You said this is to Donald Trump? There was no
- Donald Trump --
- MR.SWALWELL: . No, to Walid Phares and J.D. Gordon. It was received by the
- committee from Donald Trump for President.
- MR. PAGE: No, 11m saying I had --like I was alluding to for the_ -- that
- wasnlt a reference to the Middle East equivalent of. 11m just saying a lot of people in the
- Middle East use _ Thatls what I was -- are you insinuating that -MR.
- SWALWELL: Well, why was it relevant to include the Middle East?
- MR. PAGE: Because 11m just saying, you know, a lot of people use it there.
- UNCLASSIFIED
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- UNCLASSIFIED
- Again, it's just a nothing comment in passing, and people chat like that.
- And, again, the main advantage of_ is, instead of spending, you know, 50
- cents a text when youlre sending a dozen texts, it's all free other than the $l-a-year
- subscription rate.
- MR.SWALWELL: Dr. Page, will you commit to provide this committee any
- communications, including
- relevant to our investigation?
- , or any other communications you used,
- MR. PAGE: Relevant to your investigation, there are none, because live done
- literally --.1 mean, everything welre talking about is -- has no -- cannot even be deemed as
- close to having any even unethical, let alone illegal, activity. I mean, maybe -- please
- remind me of something if 11m missing it. But, literally, Iwas a junior, unpaid adviser, and
- there's nothing -- you know, the only thing relevant is these now-public court filings of
- what the real interference was in the 2016 election and the extraordinary impact that this
- has had on myself, my family, my friends, my colleagues. So --
- MR.SWALWELL: Chairman, 11m going to yield back to the ranking member.
- MR. SCHIFF: I thank the gentleman.
- Dr. Page, 11m going to go through a few items. And the shorter your answer, the
- better; we can move more quickly. And some of these may be "don't know them, never
- heard of them," "know them, never had a meeting with them." The shorter and more
- direct you can be, the quicker we can get through it.
- MR. PAGE: Can I just put a caveat, that some names I might not recall. Please
- add the caveat on each of these names, there may be people who I might have met in
- passing who I can't come up with.
- MR. SCHIFF: Well, you can clarify as you answer-MR.
- PAGE: Okay.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. SCHIFF: -- whether you recall or not.
- Have you had any interaction with Jared Kushner?
- MR. PAGE: Never.
- MR. SCHIFF: So you've never met him?
- MR. PAGE: Never met him.
- MR. SCHIFF: And never communicated via email or other platform with him?
- 158
- MR. PAGE: No. Again, I'm cautious as I may have been cc'd with something, but
- . not to my knowledge, no.
- MR. SCHIFF: And General Flynn, Mike Flynn?
- MR. PAGE: Never.
- MR. SCHIFF: No communications orally or in writing with him?
- MR. PAGE: No.'
- MR. SCHIFF: What about Rick Dearborn?
- MR. PAGE: No.
- MR. SCHIFF: And by "no," you mean no communications in writing or in person?
- MR. PAGE: There was -- if I'm not mistaken -- again, I don't have any relationship
- or don't really know him. But there was one of the people within the Manafort group
- who I briefly said hello to at the speech in North Dakota in May 2016. So I'm cautious.
- Anything Manafort-related, that was my most interaction, and it was a brief passing, you
- know --
- MR. SCHIFF: Do you have some reason to believe that's Rick Dearborn?
- MR. PAGE: No, but I believe it was someone in the Manafort, you know, world.
- MR. SCHIFF: Are you referring to Mr. Gates?
- MR. PAGE: It may have been Gates, yeah.
- MR. SCHIFF: So you may have met Gates?
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- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. PAGE: Very briefly. I had no serious interaction, you know. Any
- interaction I may have had with him was a brief hello before then-candidate Trump went
- on stage. You know, we were all filing in. I met one of those guys. I can't remember
- which one.
- MR. SCHIFF: Okay,but let's just stick, again, to the question.
- MR. PAGE: Please.
- MR. SCHIFF: Rick Dearborn, never met, no communication that youlre aware of.
- MR. PAGE: I don't believe so, no.
- MR. SCHIFF: Okay.
- And in terms of Jeff Sessions, only that one interaction in person as youlre leaving
- the Republican club and no other communication in person or in writing with Mr. Sessions?
- MR. PAGE: No. I tried to -- the big controversy about him -- he was in that same
- . convention at the Case Western Reserve in Cleveland. He gave a keynote speech there.
- I tried to say hello. There were tons of people around, and it was impossible. And that
- was actually -- it's become a national controversy because I saw him speaking briefly to
- Ambassador Kislyak. And so that's -- that was -- that was it, you know.
- MR. SCHIFF: And so, 11m sorry, I just want to make sure that welre talking about
- the same time and place. So you saw Attorney General Sessions speaking with
- Ambassador Kislyak during the Republican Convention?
- MR. PAGE: In passing, in a big group of people, as he was running out the door,
- late. He Hnished his speech late, he was late to another meeting, and he was saying hello
- to a lot of people. And I didn't want to add to the, you know, the delays he's already
- experiencing, so --
- MR. SCHIFF: And were you privy to anything that he said to the Ambassador?
- MR. PAGE: No. Although alii could see is that there were a lot of people
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 160
- UNCLASSIFIED
- standing around, and it was, again, another brief greeting, from what I could see.
- MR. SCHIFF: And that was the only interaction you saw between the Attorney
- General and the Russian Ambassador at -MR.
- PAGE: Yes.
- MR. SCHIFF: -- that event or any other?
- MR. PAGE: Exactly. Yes. And that was the only other time, to the best of my
- recollection, live ever been in the same room with him. The first dinner in June, and then
- he was the keynote speaker at one of the events.
- MR. SCHIFF: Now, you mentioned having lunch with Sam Clovis. Was this
- shortly after you were made a foreign policy adviser to the (:ampaign?
- MR. PAGE: Lunch? I may have had a dinner with him. I canlt recall. Did I say
- a lunch?
- MR. SCHIFF: Well, you mentioned -- I thought it was a lunch, but you tell me.
- You mentioned having a meal with Sam Clovis.
- MR. PAGE: Oh, we were talking about in the context of the NDA, right?
- MR. SCHIFF: Yes.
- MR. PAGE: I had a breakfast with him somewhere in northern Virginia, sort of
- Falls Church-ish area.
- MR. SCHIFF: So you had a breakfast with him in Falls Church.
- MR. PAGE: Yes, something like that.
- MR. SCHIFF: And that was around what timeframe?
- MR. PAGE: March-ish.
- MR. SCHIFF: And what did you discuss at the breakfast, apart from the NDA?
- MR. PAGE: General foreign policy topics. Kind of, he would update me on
- what IS happening at the campaign at the time, which is ancient history, so I have no
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 161
- UNCLASSIFIED
- recollection of specifics, but --
- MR. SCHIFF: Do you recall discussing with him your views on Russia?
- MR. PAGE: Not specifically, no.
- MR. SCHIFF: Do you remember discussing it generally?
- MR. PAGE: I have no direct recollection. Again, I have a background in Russia, so
- I wouldn't be surprised if it came up, but I have no recollection of specifics, no.
- MR. SCHIFF: And that would've been early in the campaign. What--
- MR. PAGE: Yeah, before we were announced, right? Because that was -- you
- know, the announcement --
- MR. SCHIFF: . What guidance did he give you as to what role you would play in the
- campaign?
- MR. PAGE: Just that they were putting together this committee and, you know,
- would be open -- you know, offering me the opportunity to participate in that. That
- was --
- MR. SCHIFF: And you were referred to Mr. Clovis by Mr. Lewandowski?
- MR. PAGE: Yeah, when we had that brief discussion, he's -- Mr. Lewandowski's
- handling a bunch of things. He says, you know, let me introduce you to Sam Clovis.
- well?
- yeah.
- MR. SCHIFF: And subsequent to that lunch, you had dinner with Mr. Clovis as
- MR. PAGE: I can't remember when that was, but at some point we eventually did,
- MR. SCHIFF: And would that have been before or after your trip to Russia?
- MR. PAGE: I can't recall.
- MR. SCHIFF: During the dinner, was it just the two of you for dinner?
- MR. PAGE: Yes.
- UNCLASSIFIED
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- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. SCHIFF: And you can't recall whether you had the dinner before or after you
- went to Russia?
- MR. PAGE: I don't recall, yeah. Again, any discussion I had regarding Russia was
- primarily the false allegations, you know, in terms of -- but I think that was mostly at the
- Republican National Convention.
- MR. ROONEY: Okay. That's the latest 30 minutes.
- I just want to read what our agreement was.
- The witness is reminded that he is appearing today pursuant to a subpoena and
- may refuse to answer questions only to preserve a testimonial privilege.
- As clearly stated in the instructions accompanying your subpoena, neither the U.S.
- House of Representatives nor the committee recognizes any purported nondisclosure
- privileges associated with the common law, including attorney-client privilege, attorney
- work product protections.
- As clearly stated in the instructions accompanying the subpoena, neither the U.S.
- House of Representatives nor the committee recognizes any purported contractual
- privileges, including those supposedly deriving from nondisclosure agreements.
- So I just wanted to read you that to be clear, because --
- MR. PAGE: Okay. I understand that. It was just out of common
- courtesy because --
- MR. ROONEY: I understand. I just wanted to make sure that we were all on the
- same page.
- MR. PAGE: Thank you.
- MR. ROONEY: We apparently will be called to vote in less than 10 minutes.
- We'll keep with the 3D-minute time, but just so that -- if I'm the only Republican here and
- we adjourn, I will claim the time and yield to you. And then if I have to claim it back to go
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 163
- UNCLASSIFIED
- on break -- or we can just go to 5 minutes and keep doing that. But I think keeping it at
- 30 minutes and my time that I'm yielding to you would be better. Because if I leave, you
- can't continue, I think, so -- right?
- MR. SCHIFF: Yeah, I think we should just keep up the 3D/3D, and you can yield if
- you don't have questions.
- MR. ROONEY: Okay. All right. It's my time, and we'll start the 3D-minute clock.
- And I will yield to Mr. Schiff.
- MR. SCHIFF: I thank the gentleman for yielding.
- So, just to get back to the dinner with Mr. Clovis, do you recall discussing your
- Russia trip with him? That might help set the timeframe.
- MR. PAGE: I really can't recall. The only conversations I recall is telling him
- about these crazy allegations that have come out. So I can't --
- MR. SCHIFF: And the crazy allegations came out after your Russia trip?
- MR. PAGE: There were some before as well, but -- you know, again, the first main
- allegation was from July 26, 2016, when The Wall Street Journal called me asking about
- Sechin and --
- trip?
- MR. SCHIFF: Okay. So that would have been after your trip.
- MR. PAGE: Yes.
- MR. SCHIFF: So your dinner, then, with Mr. Clovis would have been after your
- MR. PAGE: I'm saying, you know, if it came up. You're asking if Russia, those
- allegations came up. If it happened then, then it might have, but I have no recollection.
- MR. SCHIFF: Did you discuss with Mr. Clovis, either during that dinner or any
- subsequent time, the outreach and insights you obtained from the Presidential
- administration figures or Russian parliamentary figures?
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 164
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. PAGE: I don't believe so, other than the general positive sentiment in terms
- of general improvements of relationships. There was nothing beyond that in terms of
- core substance. All publicly available information that you could he'ar from, if you read
- Russian, opening any Russian newspaper. There's some hope along those lines.
- MR. SCHIFF: Well, Dr. Page, you were promising the campaign something quite
- different in writing. Did you ever, with either Mr. Clovis or anyone else affiliated with the
- Trump campaign, share the outreach and insights you referred to in your memoranda to
- the campaign?
- MR. PAGE: Not to my recollection, because it was right around that time that I
- started getting -- both myself and other members of the campaign started getting a ton of
- questions related to these false allegations about Igor Sechin and Divyekin meetings which
- never occurred.
- MR. SCHIFF: So the answer is no -MR.
- PAGE: No.
- MR. SCHIFF: -- then. You never shared the insights and outreach that you had
- referred to in your memo to the campaign.
- MR. PAGE: To the best of my recollection, no. And, again, if I had, the only thing
- I would have had to tell them was publicly available information that's quite w'ell-known.
- But -- yeah.
- MR. SCHIFF: Who else did you communicate with from the campaign after your
- Russia trip?
- MR. PAGE:' Our committee would get together from time totime or have phone
- calls from time to time. I can't recall specifics surrounding that.
- MR. SCHIFF: And in any of those get-togethers or phone calls, did
- Mr. Papadopoulos discuss his interactions with Russians or those affiliated with the Russian
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 165
- UNCLASSIFIED
- Government?
- MR. PAGE: To the best of my recollection, I believe the last time I saw him in
- person was that dinner in June 2016. I don't believe I have ever -- again, I'm cautious that
- he may have come through somewhere in passing or been on a phone call or stopped by
- one of the meetings. I'm almost positive that that never occurred and June 2016 is the
- last time I actually ever briefly spoke to him at all.
- MR. SCHIFF: Did you have any conversations regarding Russia or your interactions
- there with Walid Phares?
- MR. PAGE: Not that I can recall. I may have, but -- most of my -- I remember
- talking about Iraq a lot. The main conversation --
- MR. SCHIFF: Well, I'm not asking about Iraq.
- MR. PAGE: I don't -- the only conversations I can recall with Walid was his area of
- expertise of the Middle East. I don't recall any Russia conversations.
- MR. SCHIFF: Did you have--
- MR. PAGE: There may have been some interaction between Russia, you know,
- given, sort of, Russia's involvement in the Middle East. That may have come up, but I
- can't remember any specifics.
- MR. SCHIFF: Did you have any conversations about Russia with Lieutenant
- General Keith Kellogg?
- MR. PAGE: Yes.
- MR. SCHIFF: And what was the nature of those discussions?
- MR. PAGE: It was about the news that was -- and these false allegations that were
- already coming out against me.
- MR. SCHIFF: And did he playa similar role that you were on the campaign, as a
- foreign policy adviser?
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 166
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. PAGE: He was much more -- you know, our team -- he was a much more
- senior, experienced person, you know, a retired general. So that's the main distinction.
- MR. SCHIFF: How often did you interact with him?
- MR. PAGE: I can't recall the exact number of times, but-MR.
- SCHIFF: And did you discuss your Russia trip with him?
- MR. PAGE: I recall telling him about -- the only recollection I can recall is the false
- allegations when these reports came out. I don't recall any other specifics beyond that,
- no.
- MR. SCHIFF: And where would you have had this conversation?
- MR. PAGE.: He had a party at his house one night in northern Virginia.
- MR. SCHIFF: In what month?
- MR. PAGE: Sometime in the summer. I believe it was post-convention, if I'm not
- mistaken.'
- MR. SCHIFF: And did you tell General Kellogg that you had met with a
- representative from Rosneft?
- MR. PAGE: No, because he's an old friend. There would be nothing to tell,
- because it's like me telling someone that I met someone who I knew from 10 years ago.
- There was no substantive -- there would be nothing to tell him because there was nothing
- substantively discussed in July.
- MR. SCHIFF: Did you tell him about any interactions you had had with members of
- the Presidential administration or Russian Duma?
- MR. PAGE: No, I have no recollection of that. You know, again, the only thing I
- might have said is just generally positive, you know, feelings.
- MR. SCHIFF: Did you have interaction with Rear Admiral Chuck Kubic?
- MR. PAGE: Yes.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 167
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. SCHIFF: And when did you interact with him?
- MR. PAGE: He attended some of the meetings. Itls hard for me to say, when
- there are meetings, like, trying to remember who was at what committee meeting. Itls
- hard to -- sometimes you might not recall the exact roll call. But I donlt know exactly
- which ones he went to and which he didnlt, but he was there from time to time.
- MR. SCHIFF: And did you discuss with him your interactions during your trip to
- Moscow?
- MR. PAGE: Not that I have any recollection of.
- MR. SCHIFF: Did you discuss Russia at all with him?
- . MR. PAGE: I donlt recall ever talking with him about Russia.
- MR. SCHIFF: And what about Major General Bert Mizusawa? Did you interact
- with him at all?
- MR. PAGE: Yes.
- MR. SCHIFF: And the same question. Did you have any conversation with him
- about Russia?
- MR. PAGE: I canlt recall any specific conversations. We talked about foreign
- policy frequently. Russia is a country in the world, and so it probably came up. But I
- have no definitive conversations about anything, because --
- MR. SCHIFF: Did you have any discussions with him or the others live asked you
- about about lifting sanctions on Russia?
- MR. PAGE: Nothing definitive. Again, nothing beyond, sort of, general policy
- context. Nothing related to any quid pro quo or offer or request.
- MR. SCHIFF: And did you have any discussions with any of these members of the
- Trump foreign advisory team about whether the Russians possessed the hacked Hillary
- Clinton emails?
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 168
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. PAGE: No. No, I don't -- I don't -- the only thing that may have come up is
- things we read about in the newspaper. I had no inside information about any of that.
- So the only thing that may have been there is, something that possibly came up in the
- news, but that's -- that's alii know, that's alii ever knew. I can't imagine anything beyond
- that, no.
- MR. SCHIFF: Tera Dahl, I think, was one of the people that was on your email that
- included the document about your trip to Russia. Did you ever have any conversation
- with her about your trip?
- MR. PAGE: Not that I can recall. The most I saw her, she was around for some of
- those meetings and the convention. But she was, again, pretty, you know -- there's a
- hundred people in the room, give or take, so -- talking to a lot of different people.
- MR. SCHIFF: Did you have any interaction with Ambassador Richard Burt?
- MR. PAGE: I met him briefly once. I can't remember when that was. It may
- have been across town here at the Atlantic Council. I think that's the only time I ever met
- him. And if 11m not mistaken, I went to an event there December 2016, after the election.
- MR. SCHIFF: The first meeting youlve described with Ambassador Burt, was that
- during the campaign?
- MR. PAGE: No, 11m saying that was the only meeting I ever recall ever interacting
- with him. That was after the campaign, December of 2016, at a conference, similarly
- where there's dozens of people.
- MR. SCHIFF: Did you attend the President's speech at the Mayflower Hotel?
- MR. PAGE: No. I was in Dubai that night.
- MR. SCHIFF: Did you ever discuss with anyone on the campaign what has come to
- be referred to as the Trump Tower meeting between Donald Trump, Jared Kushner, Paul'
- Manafort, and several Russians or Russian Americans?
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. PAGE: The first time I ever heard about that was when it came out in the
- press, and, to the best of my recollection, that's been within the last couple of months.
- 169
- So I didn't know anything about it in 2016, let's put it that way. I think that was over the
- summer that that news came out.
- MR. SCHIFF: Have you ever had any interaction with Natalia Veselnitskaya?
- MR. PAGE: I don't believe so, no.
- MR. SCHIFF: What about Aras Agalarov?
- MR. PAGE: I don't think so, no.
- MR. SCHIFF: Emin Agalarov?
- MR. PAGE:. I don't think so.
- Again, the main distinction between "I don't think SOli and a very definitive "no" is
- who knows if at some point, again, in another big conference or something you may have
- briefly said hello to someone. So I'm almost positive no. I'm just adding that additional
- caveat on there to be completely comprehensive.
- MR. SCHIFF: Have you ever had any interaction with Rinat Akhmetshin?
- MR. PAGE: No. Not to my knowledge, no.
- MR. SCHIFF: Or Ike Kaveladze?
- MR. PAGE: I don't believe so, no.
- MR. SCHIFF: In a May 16th, 2016, email from you to Walid Phares and J.D.
- Gordon --
- MR. PAGE: Does someone have a copy?
- MR. SCHIFF: Yes. The Bates stamp is You state -- and we'll
- bring you this -- liAs discussed, my strategy in order to keep in sync with the media
- relations guidelines of the campaign has been to make my key messages as low-key and
- apolitical as possible. But after seeing the principal's tweet," meaning presumably Donald
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 170
- UNCLASSIFIED
- Trump, "a few hours ago in response to the cocky lin politics and in life, ignorance is not a
- virtuel quote by the same speaker at Rutgers yesterday, I got another idea. If held like to
- take my place and raise the temperature a little bit, of course lid be more than happy to
- yield this honor to him."
- Are you talking about the honor of going to Russia?
- MR. PAGE: Yeah. And the idea there was bearing in mind Barack Obamals
- speech as a candidate in Germany 2008. That was what I was envisioning.
- MR. SCHIFF: 11m just asking you -- so you were proposing that candidate Trump go
- to Russia instead of you. This was a proposal you were suggesting in May of last year.
- MR. PAGE: It was an idea.
- MR. SCHIFF: Were you aware that Mr. Papadopoulos was also encouraging the
- President to travel to Russia?
- MR. PAGE: No.
- MR. SCHIFF: So the --
- MR. PAGE: Other than -- the only thing, which I totally had forgotten about, was
- the email that Tom Hamburger from The Washington Post told me about in August 2017
- that he had sent -- that Papadopoulos had sent around in March of 2017 that was ignored
- and, you know, no one --
- MR. SCHIFF: This is --
- MR. PAGE: -- really took any interest, and I certainly didnlt take any interest.
- MR. SCHIFF: This is May 2016.
- MR. PAGE: Yeah. And that was not--
- MR. SCHIFF: So, in May 2016, you were unaware that George Papadopoulos was
- also suggesting the President go to Russia?
- MR. PAGE: The only -- yeah, I didnlt know anything about that. Again, I was on
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- an email chain a long time ago that was --
- MR. SCHIFF: So two of you foreign policy advisers to the President,
- independently, are recommending the President go to Russia.
- MR. PAGE: I had no coordination with him on that, no.
- 171
- MR. SCHIFF: And two of you, quite independently, are in communication with
- professors with connections to Russia.
- MR. PAGE: Totally independently. Again, the professors and the, sort
- of -- having been a scholar looking at political economy of the broader region of the former
- Soviet Union, I had had long relationships with various scholars there, spoken at many
- universities. So what he did is totally separate from what I, you know --
- MR. SCHIFF: Now, Dr. Page, you wouldn't be in a position, though, to know
- whether, on the Russian end, the same people that were aware of Mr. Papadopoulos'
- interest in Russia and the candidate going to Russia were also knowledgeable about your
- coming to Russia.
- MR. PAGE: That's correct, yes. But, again, everyone that I talked to had no ill
- intent and expressed no ill intent, particularly as it relates to any--
- MR. SCHIFF: Did you receive a reply from Walid Phares or J.D. Gordon as to your
- suggestion?
- MR. PAGE: I can't recall. Probably not.
- MR. SCHIFF: And if we could provide Dr. Page with Bates-stamped document
- It's a May 26th, 2016, email to Bernadette Kilroy, who I understand was a foreign
- policy adviser as well, ·and J.D. Gordon that states, "I'm planning to speak alongside the
- chairman and CEO of Sberbank as we'll both be giving commencement addresses at
- Moscow's. New Economic School on July 8."
- UNCLASSlFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- Did you get any reply that you recall to that email?
- MR. PAGE: Not that I can recall.
- MR. SCHIFF: ·And is Sberbank one of the largest Russian banks?
- MR. PAGE: Yeah. But, as I mentioned, he didn't actually show up at all, so -MR.
- SCHIFF: So you never met him during that trip.
- MR. PAGE: No. No. And I don't think I ever have met him. No.
- MR. SCHIFF: Were there other top officers of Sberbank present?
- MR. PAGE: Not that I can recall.
- 172
- I may have met some -- again, in investor relations, investor bank conferences,
- there -- again, as you alluded to, they're one of the topfive companies in Russia. So I
- probably met with some, you know, similar to Andrey Baranov, people who are investor
- relations people or, you know, mid-management finance people at some point, but no --
- MR. SCHIFF: And did you meet with anyone affiliated with VEB Bank?
- MR. PAGE: No, not in -- not in the last couple years, to the best of my recollection.
- Again, it's a big bank and there's a lot of people from VEB running around Moscow, but no
- substantive, serious conversations.
- And, again, now that I think about it, they may have been at some investor
- conference at some point, but I just can't recall. Nothing substantive and nothing
- material.
- MR. SCHIFF: Arkadiy Dvorkovich, did you ever discuss any proposal in terms of
- Russian funding for any jOint project with him?
- MR. PAGE: Not that I can recall. Again, there may have been something -- the
- only time I had a, you know, brief, sort of, more-than-10-second conversation with him was
- in December 2016, just talking in a New Economic School context. And there again, it was
- more something that was a concept discussed jointly and -- but I wasn't -- you know.
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- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. SCHIFF: Now, Dr. Page, you mentioned there were 10 people, and I think
- they were 10 non-journalists, that you maintained communication with after the July trip, " ,
- but you could only give us the name of, I think, one of them.
- MR. PAGE: No,"I'm saying less than 10, give or take, yeah.
- MR. SCHIFF: Can you tell us who the other eight or nine or seven individuals
- you've maintained contact with from that trip are?
- MR. PAGE: Well, again, mostly the people that I've known. You're saying
- Russian citizens or Russian people from Moscow?
- MR. SCHIFF: The people that you met with while you were in Moscow.
- MR. PAGE: Moscow, yeah. The main people are and a couple
- of scholars from there. And --
- MR. SCHIFF: And who are the couple scholars?
- MR. PAGE: I mentioned Shlomo Weber. There was another person -- you know,
- another person from New Economic School.
- MR. SCHIFF: And who is that?
- MR. PAGE: It was -- I can1t recall the gentleman's name .. He was an assistant.
- Yeah, I don't recall.
- MR. SCHIFF: And who introduced you to the assistant?
- MR. PAGE: Well, I was -- I think what happened -- I don't recall specifics.
- What happened is -- it's actually interesting. I went there, because I hadn't been
- out to Skolkovo, which is sort of the Silicon Valley of Russia, this new complex where New
- Economic School and a couple of other universities are. So I went out there one of the
- days I was there. And there was actually a board meeting of the New Economic School
- happening --
- MR. SCHIFF: Dr. Page, that's a lot more information than need. I'm just
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- 174
- UNCLASSIFIED
- interested in who you stayed in touch with since your trip to Moscow. I just want their
- names at this point.
- So, apart from the two you've mentioned, who else did you stay in communication
- with that you met with while you were in Moscow?
- MR. PAGE: I can't recall anyone I stayed in touch with.
- MJt SCHIFF: And are these a part of the emails that you still have possession of
- that you have not provided the committee?
- MR. PAGE: I'm not sure what I -- I can look that up. I don't have any recollection.
- Again, alii know is I haven't done anything substantive with these people. But I don't -MR.
- ROONEY: Reclaiming my time. We'll take a break for votes. Thanks.
- MR. PAGE: Okay.
- [Recess.]
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- UNCLASSIFIED
- [4:00 p.m.]
- MR. CONAWAY: [Presiding.] Back on the record.
- In the remaining time I have, Dr. Page, is there anything else you would like to get
- into the record that you may not have gotten in in your opening statement?
- MR. PAGE: Let me -- IIII just finish up on one of the points I was saying about my
- old boss, Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan.
- You know, at the end of the Cold War, he had some very different perspectives as
- to -- based on his analyses of whatls actually going on in Russia and Moscow. And I think
- there was sort of this groupthink in the Intelligence Community that really constrained
- things significantly. And I think some of the misunderstandings that came up last year, I
- think, toa large extent, was a repeat of these same phenomena, right?
- And so I think the more -- you know, again, itls a fairly broad scope of this
- investigation. I think the more we kind of look, you know, including within that, actually,
- as the oversight committee for the IC, the more that those elements might be looked at.
- And I think, you know, what I went through, again, with the dossier is pretty
- incredible. Sd I think the more an assessment on the Russia front and how some of these
- misunderstandings came about can really make a big difference.
- And welve seen a lot of -- you know, some of the subsequent intelligence mistakes,'
- whether it was misinterpretation of what was happening in Iraq with WMD, et cetera, I
- think there is a big overlap here.
- And I think some of the things live been through, particularly given on the public
- side, where this is mostly about information war -- and I think therels information-war
- elements on our side, as well, in terms of things that were -- if you look at U.S. propaganda
- networks, -the propaganda which was, put out there from -- if you look at all the broadcasts
- of RT and Sputnik, the things that were -- the accuracy of what was put out by Radio Free
- UNCLASSIFIED
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- UNCLASSIFIED
- Europe about myself, based on the dossier, before the election, the level of accuracy and
- the overall impact, the accuracy was much lower than RT and Sputnik, number one, and
- the impact, given this Russia story about myself -- there may be other things going on.
- can't speak to that. I was a junior guy, and so 11m just speaking to my own personal
- experience. All I know is the dossier came after me first. There's a lot of people in
- that that were discussed on March 20th. And, you know, of that long list of individuals, .
- which were fully disclosed with the 35 pages to the public on January 10th, they only come
- after one person, right?
- So I think -- and I think as -- I hope the main takeaway of this meeting is an
- understanding of -- it's inconceivable, I mean, I can't think of anything welve talked about
- where there should be any shadow of a doubt regarding my -- "innocence" is just -- I mean,
- it's not strong enough of a word. This whole story, speaking from my own personal
- perspective, is so off the wall that it's incredible.
- And I hope that the ability to seriously analyze what happens in Russia in terms of
- having a deeper understanding within the Intelligence Community -- again, because it's the
- foundation of what the initial focus was, you know, through the first 50-years-plus of the
- organization.
- So I think, hopefully -- and I would be happy to, you know, talk more about those
- things as opposed to my business partners or, you know, individuals who I was loosely
- affiliated with. My hope, after everything live been through and the domestic terrorist
- threats live faced, even based on some of the false allegations in this committee which
- came out on March 20th, I hope as a silver lining there might be some positive lessons
- learned, if you will, as to how better to understand Russia, et cetera.
- So that's -- I want to help in any way I can, but I think helping on a more strategic
- level would make this all worthwhile.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. CONAWAY: All right. Anything else before I yield back? Did you finish
- your opening statement?
- 177
- MR. PAGE: Well, I'll just kind of finish on that long -- on that side as well. I mean,
- you know, there's been a lot of other disasters in the Intelligence Community. Again, we
- talked about Middle East, but also Asia, Africa, Latin America with the Cuban Missile Crisis,
- and beyond throughout its history, tne history of the Ie. And, you know, the
- embarrassments related to the dodgy dossier and the problems that this helped create for
- our great country here at home carried extraordinary damage for average citizens like
- myself, including human rights violations, domestic terrorist threats; as I mentioned, and,
- really, efforts to undercut our democracy based on those falsehoods that were put out
- there. So I'd look forward to helping with that as time goes on.
- And, you know, as I had discussed with Robby Mook -- I went to a continuing legal
- education meeting with him a couple of months ago, and we were talking about lessons
- learned from the hack, the DNC and Podesta hack. And I asked him afterwards, well,
- that's -- you know, the Podesta emails and the DNC emails, they were all proved to be true.
- Whatwould be your key lessons learned in terms of -- or what would be your
- recommendations if, similarly, information is disclosed about yourself and your
- organization but it turns out to be all false? You know, essentially referring to the dodgy
- dossier with the allegations against me.
- An"d he made a really interesting point, which really illustrated a lot of things. He
- explained how, well, if you're under attack, you know, if your organization is having issues
- related to a hack, one of the best things you can do is distract attention. Come up with a
- new story line and put out some sometimes false information to really change the overall
- story. And he alluded to the election this year in France and how France used the exact
- same technique.
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- UNCLASSIFIED
- And, to me, sort of, the honesty, the fact that he's, I mean, essentially admitting to
- what happened -- and it's been subsequently proven, with these recent disclosures in The
- Washington Post, et cetera, with the law firm explaining that they were behind the dodgy
- dossier.
- So there's a great piece to that. And I think, you know, if, jointly, similar to the
- way your committee has done great in working together, I think if we can build upon some
- of these lessons learned and really look at ways this can become a positive for our country,
- I think -- if we, going back to the very core of the organization, U.S. Intelligence
- Community, if there's an improvement in terms of analysis preventing what happened to
- me from ever happening agai"n, I think there is a big silver lining.
- And similar to the end of the Cold War, for the lawyers that are still in the room,
- there is a -- I went to an international law conference in New York, and they talked about
- two major turning points in international law. First was at the end of the Cold War, and
- the other -- or, actually, previously, was 1942, where there was a new ability to bring
- people together and improve international law.
- And the common denominator between early '90s and the, sort of, end of World
- War II is there was positive relations between Russia and the United States. And, you
- know, if there's any incriminating element of what started all this with me, it's that
- somewhat rare position which I think the person I was supporting similarly supported in
- the past.
- So'l hope we can move to a better case in that case and improve law, both
- internationally and here domestically.
- MR. CONAWAY: All right. Thank you.
- Without objection, the chair and ranking member will be permitted to question the
- witness for an additional 30 minutes each and mayvield time to other members at their
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- discretion.
- And, with that, I recognize Mr. Schiff.
- MR. SCHIFF: Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
- 179
- Dr. Page, my colleague Mr. Swalwell asked you about your travel last year. Did
- you also go to Brussels after your Russia trip?
- MR. PAGE: I did.
- MR. SCHIFF: And how long were you in Brussels?
- MR. PAGE: Very short. It was the -- well, it's the holiday at the end -- Labor Day
- weekend in late August. Labor Day, is that in late August? I always get Labor Day and
- Memorial Day confused. But Labor Day. And I went for essentially a long weekend,
- maybe 4 nights or something.
- MR. SCHIFF: Around Labor Day?
- MR. PAGE: In the end of the summer, yes.
- MR. SCHIFF: Did you also go there as a stop after your Russia trip in July?
- MR. PAGE: No, I flew -- it was this -- because there -- I tried to -- I told you I had
- the two separate conferences I went -- or, first, I gave the speech in Moscow,
- commencement speech, and then the following week it was in Cambridge. I tried to fly
- directly from Moscow to Cambridge the second week -- or to Heathrow Airport in London.
- Unfortunately, because they were two separate tickets and two separate universities, they
- both sent me back and forth through JFK Airport in New York. So I just flew directly back.
- MR. SCHIFF: Just referring to an email from July 7th, 2016, Bates stamped
- you wrote an email to Walid Phares, J.D. Gordon, and Tera Dahl: "FYI, I'll
- land LHR" -- assuming that's Heathrow -- "this Sunday" --
- MR. PAGE: Yep.
- MR. SCHIFF: "-- and I'll be in the U.K. until Wednesday night, July 10 through 13.
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- 180
- UNCLASSIFIED
- Short Eurostar ride to Brussels."
- So· did you go to Brussels?
- MR. PAGE: No. So there was a -- somewhere in this email chain -~ is this the first
- Walid -- no.
- What happened is there was some question about -- oh, sorry, Brussels. 11m
- confusing Brussels and Budapest. Itls been a long day. No, they're referring to
- European Parliament. And I think I may have misunderstood, that therels this thing going
- on with the European Parliament, and I just offered -- you know, it sounded like an
- interesting event, and lid be happy to go there, I think is what I was referring to.
- Let me actually read the email. I vaguely recall this email. Let me just give it a
- quick read.
- Yeah, I was just offering to go. They never -- and I may have misinterpreted where
- there was something European Parliament, which I assumed was in Brussels, but it may
- have actually been in Washington, actually.
- MR. SCHIFF: So you did not travel to Brussels in July?
- MR. PAGE: I havenlt been to Brussels in at least 5 years. I may have done a
- transit 5 years ago, but --
- MR. SCHIFF: And when you offered that you would be happy to reroute if you
- guys need a helping hand, what were you referring to?
- MR. PAGE: Well, they just said therels some event going on, and 11m happy to sit
- in on it. It sounded interesting, European Parliament.
- MR. SCHIFF: "They" meaning Phares and Gordon, or Dahl? Whols--
- MR. PAGE: Yeah. Yeah. Again, my passion is international relations, and it
- sounded like quite an interesting event,so -- again, I was in the --
- MR. SCHIFF: So, Dr. Page, when you were referring to Brussels earlier, you meant
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- to refer to Budapest?
- MR. PAGE: 11m sorry. Yeah, that was--
- MR. SCHIFF: And when were you in Budapest?
- MR. PAGE: End of the summer.
- MR. SCHIFF: End of last summer?
- MR. PAGE: Yes.
- MR. SCHIFF: And roughly when was that?
- MR. PAGE: Sort of, the last weekend in the summer. Again, it was a
- long weekend.
- MR. SCHIFF: What month are we talking about?
- MR. PAGE: August.
- MR. SCHIFF: So in late August you were in Budapest.
- MR. PAGE: Yeah.
- MR. SCHIFF: And where were you in Budapest?
- MR. PAGE: I stayed at just an apartment hotel there.
- MR. SCHIFF: And do you remember the name of it?
- MR. PAGE: I canlt recall, no.
- MR. SCHIFF: And what was the purpose of your travel to Budapest?
- 181
- MR. PAGE: It was a long weekend, and I was one of the -- one of the people I met
- was the Hungarian Ambassador. So I happened to meet her in Cleveland. She was one
- of the dozens of ambassadors that was there. So I made that trip.
- MR. SCHIFF: So you met the Hungarian Ambassador at the Republican
- Convention.
- MR. PAGE: Uh-huh.
- MR. SCHIFF: Is that right?
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. PAGE: Yes.
- MR. SCHIFF: And you stayed in -- is it a man or woman, the Ambassador?
- MR. PAGE: Itls a woman.
- MR. SCHIFF: And you stayed in touch with her after the convention?
- MR. PAGE: Yes.
- 182
- MR. SCHIFF: And was the purpose of your trip to Budapest in the late summer to
- visit with the Ambassador?
- MR. PAGE: It was -- live actually been working on a renewable energy project.
- Or itls one of the projects welve been looking at. And so therels an energy
- entrepreneur -- therels geothermal springs and developments going on in Hungary, and
- theive been pitching that for quite some time to me. And so, when she mentioned she
- might be there that time and, you know, ied be interesting to -- just offered to meet up
- and maybe meet with a few people, I figured that might be a good opportunity to do
- something which I had been hoping to do for some time.
- ·MR. SCHIFF: So this conversation you had with the Hungarian Ambassador at the
- Republican Convention, you discussed a potential energy-related project with her?
- MR. PAGE: I canlt remember if I -- we were talking more just foreign policy things.
- MR. SCHIFF: But it must have been specific enough for you to make a trip out
- there to visit with her, right?
- MR. PAGE: Nothing too specific. Again, similar to what I was referring to in the
- Brussels --
- MR. SCHIFF: Did you make other plans to conduct any other business in Budapest
- or just whatever business you had with the Ambassador?
- MR. PAGE: The geothermal project I mentioned. I had a long meeting related to
- that.
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- 183 .
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. SCHIFF: And the geothermal meeting, was that set up prior to your travel?
- MR. PAGE: I can't remember exactly the sequencing, but it was somewhere
- around the same time.
- MR. SCHIFF: Well, Mr. Page, what I'm trying to understand here is: You plan a
- . trip to Budapest after meeting with the Hungarian Ambassador, but you can't recall any
- specifics about what you discussed or why you'd be traveling there to meet with her?
- MR. PAGE: Oh, I didn't say that. I said--
- . MR. SCHIFF: And you don't know whether the geothermal project was something
- you had even discussed with anyone in advance of your trip?
- MR. PAGE: No. I'm saying, again, we had a good conversation in Cleveland, and
- there was -- you know, she offered to set up a few meetings there, and so I had some
- discussions with them as well.
- MR. SCHIFF: Well, okay. That's somewhat different. What meetings did she
- offer to set up for you in Budapest?
- MR. PAGE: A few representatives from the Hungarian Government.
- MR. SCHIFF: And what representatives from the Hungarian Government?
- MR. PAGE: I don't have the list in front of me. I can't recall specifically.
- MR. SCHIFF: And what was their portfolio?
- MR. PAGE: Different -- different things. Again, all foreign policy -- or mostly
- foreign-policy-related.
- MR. SCHIFF: Well, that's extraordinarily vague, Dr. Page.
- MR. PAGE: Yeah. Yeah. Because I just can't recall.
- MR. SCHIFF: You don't remember the names of anyone you went to meet with or
- what their positions were in the Hungarian Government?
- MR. PAGE: Not right now, I can't recall, but --
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- MR. SCHIFF: And you went -- was this the only destination on your trip?
- MR. PAGE: Yeah. It was just back and forth.
- 184
- MR. SCHIFF: So you went all the way to Budapest, but you can't remember who
- you met with there or specifically what you -MR.
- PAGE: I don't want to--
- MR. SCHIFF: -- hoped to accomplish?
- MR. PAGE: There are -- again, it was general interest, and live also always had an
- interest in these potential projects in Hungary. So it seemed like a -- again, it's a long
- weekend, and there was -- it's a possibility to -- you decide what you want to do in any
- labor Day weekend. To me, that's the best opportunity of what to do.
- So there was a good chance to -- again, similar to what live explained. I have an
- interest in foreign policy, and I have an interest in energy markets, right? So this is a good
- opportunity to -- particularly given the fact that, within the past 30 days, all of my
- opportunities frqm a Russia context have started to have this major dark cloud, which only
- got darker and darker, right? So, having had a long-term interest in terms of Eastern
- Europe and possible energy investments and projects there -- and, again --
- MR. SCHIFF: And--
- MR. PAGE: -- this person had been pitching this idea to me for several years, and
- it just came up as a possibility to do both. And, again, it was a long weekend. 11m
- just -- had a chance to consider these --
- MR. SCHIFF: And what is the Ambassador's name?
- MR. PAGE: Reka -- I can't recall her last -- the spelling of her last name, but I can
- add that to the -- I believe she's still there. She hasn't been here that long.
- MR. SCHIFF: And you communicated with her in email after meeting with her at
- the convention?
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. PAGE: Yeah.
- MR. SCHIFF: And you have those emails?
- MR. PAGE: I might. 11m not sure.
- MR. SCHIFF: Have you destroyed or deleted any of your emails?
- MR. PAGE: Not inten- -- no. No. I have -- on ~y computer, I have emails.
- 185
- But -- therels a 1-gigabyte memory maximum on my server, but my computer, sort of,
- keeps collecting. Itls getting pretty heavy, so 11m looking forward to this process being
- over.
- MR. SCHIFF: But you havenlt deleted any of your emails from your time on the
- campaign.
- MR. PAGE:
- MR. SCHIFF:
- MR. PAGE:
- server itself.
- Not from my computer, no.
- Well, have you deleted them from the cloud or anywhere else?
- Well, again, I have a 1-gigabyte maximum on the -- in terms of the
- MR. SCHIFF: I understand that, Dr. Page, but my question is, have you deleted any
- of your emails from either last year or this year?
- MR. PAGE: I still have it on my computer.
- MR. SCHIFF: So the answer is no?
- MR. PAGE: I believe so, yes. I believe I have not -- I have everything that is still
- on my computer.
- MR. SCHIFF: And what was the nature of the project that you discussed while you
- were in Budapest?
- MR. PAGE: Itls a geothermal project. There were a couple of different -- I can
- provide that information. I donlt -- itls been -- again, the detailed specifics of that are a
- distant memory given everything that live been subjected to over the last --
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- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. SCHIFF: Well, can you remember anything about what you learned on your
- trip to Budapest?
- MR. PAGE: In terms of the geothermal?
- MR. SCHIFF: Well, that was ostensibly the purpose of your trip, right?
- MR. PAGE: Well, that was part of it, and also to meet with some of the people
- from the Hungarian Government, so --
- MR. SCHIFF: All right. let's focus, then, on the Hungarian Government. Do you
- remember either the names or positions of any of the Hungarian Government people that
- you met with?
- MR. PAGE: Again, similarly, it's -- the names are somewhat long and complicated,
- and it's been over a year since I had --
- MR. SCHIFF: So is the answer no?
- MR. PAGE: I can't recall right now, no.
- MR. SCHIFF: Did you retain their cards?
- MR. PAGE: I retained -- I have electronic records, yeah.
- MR. SCHIFF: And what did you discuss with the Hungarian Government officials
- while you were there?
- MR. PAGE: General perspectives on Europe and international relations and
- foreign policy.
- MR. SCHIFF: And did you discuss U.S.-Russia relations with the Hungarian
- Government?
- MR. PAGE: I think in general. That was not the focus of our discussions. But I
- think in general they are -- we may see a little bit more eye-to-eye on that, in terms of
- being less aggressive, if you will, in terms of starting new confrontations with --
- MR. SCHIFF: Well, the Hungarian Government has a very pro-Russian President
- UNCLASSIFIED
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- and policy, does it not?
- MR. PAGE: Pro-Russia is -- everything is relative. I mean, relative to other
- countries in Europe, I think that would be a fair characterization.
- 187
- MR. SCHIFF: And did you discuss with the Hungarian Government representatives
- your views on whether the sanctions on Russia should be lifted?
- MR. PAGE: Not that I recall. And if I did, it may have come up in passing again.
- MR. SCHIFF: So another passing reference·to the sanctions.
- MR. PAGE: At the most, yeah. Because it's not really relevant, right? I mean,
- Hungary is not going to be --
- MR. SCHIFF: Well, it depends what kind of transactions you're talking about.
- MR. PAGE: Well, the transactions were totally separate, right? There's -- I
- happened to be meeting with someone who I had been in touch with for some time, but -MR.
- SCHIFF: But you're saying that in a meeting with Hungary, during a time in
- which you are a foreign policy adviser of the campaign --
- MR. PAGE: Again, not much of a foreign policy -- given this point, right?
- Because, again, a month earlier --
- MR. SCHIFF: Well, at the time--
- MR. PAGE: -- a month earlier is when -MR.
- SCHIFF: Dr. Page --
- MR. PAGE: No, I'm answering your question.
- MR. SCHIFF: Go ahead.
- MR. PAGE: A month earlier is when I started getting these false calls. And my
- ability to assist or help out with the campaign as an informal, unpaid volunteer was
- already -- my position was already rapidly, you know, declining. So I wasn't -- not really
- offering anything, right? Again, so it was more general --
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- 188
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. SCHIFF: Well, at the time you met the Hungarian Ambassador at the
- Republican Convention, did you convey to her that you were a foreign policy adviser for the
- campaign?
- MR. PAGE: She knew I was a volunteer, yeah, so -- but nothing major.
- MR. SCHIFF: She knew you were a volunteer? . You know, people who knock on
- doors are volunteers.
- MR. PAGE: No, no.
- MR. SCHIFF: Did she know you were a foreign policy adviser?
- MR. PAGE: She knew that, yes. Well, that's the reason I was at that symposium.
- MR. SCHIFF: Right. And that's also part of the reason she invited you to
- Hungary, no?
- MR. PAGE: I think it was -- she never asked for anything, you know. And she
- mentioned --
- MR. SCHIFF: That's not my question, Dr. Page.
- MR. PAGE: I mentioned Madeleine Albright in one of the those emails you just
- referenced. You know --
- MR. SCHIFF: Dr. Page, that's not my question. She invited you to Hungary-MR.
- PAGE: Yes.
- MR. SCHIFF: -- because you were a foreign policy adviser to the campaign. Isn't
- that correct?
- MR. PAGE: I don't think that was -- she knows a lot of people, and, similarly, in
- foreign policy circles, there are a lot of individuals who are interested and, sort of, part of
- the foreign policy community of a country.
- So I don't think -- she never asked, you know, asked me for anything --
- MR. SCHIFF: 11m not asking if she asked you for anything, but I am asking you
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- 189
- UNCLASSIFIED
- whether the fact that you were a foreign policy adviser to the campaign played a role in
- why she invited you to Hungary. That would stand to reason, would it not?
- MR. PAGE: She may -- it may have factored in a little bit. But I wouldn't -- I
- wouldn't discount or rule out that this meeting would have happened anyway, which
- is -- you know, again, because going back throughout the years, whether it's in China,
- whether it's in South Africa, Ukraine, even, you know, in Brussels -- you know, I had been to
- Brussels in the past -- there are contacts you make. And, again, it was --
- MR. SCHIFF: But this contact you made at the Republican Convention at a time
- wheny'ou were a foreign policy adviser to the campaign, correct? .
- MR. PAGE: Uh-huh. Yes.
- MR. SCHIFF: Okay.
- There's nothing more you can recall about the nature of your meetings with the
- Hungarian Government officials, Dr. Page?
- MR. PAGE: General discussions about their development--
- MR. SCHIFF: And did you convey in those general discussions your desire for a
- stronger U.S.-Russia relationship?
- MR. PAGE: I don't recall anything. And that -MR.
- SCHIFF: And did you --
- MR. PAGE: -- certainly was not the focus. That was certainly not the focus of any
- meeting, orthe substance of my -- again, it was more general Eastern Europe. You know,
- they're the Visegrad countries, right? That's the center of that region.
- MR. SCHIFF: Were there any other Trump campaign personnel in Budapest at the
- time you were there?
- MR. PAGE: Not that I'm aware of.
- MR. SCHIFF: Did any of the government officials that you met with make
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- UNCLASSIFIED
- reference to any other Trump campaign personnel?
- MR. PAGE: I -- again, I mentioned the Ambassador. She may have mentioned
- that she knew somebody, but I can't recall anything.
- MR. SCHIFF: Who did the Russian -- I'm sorry, Russian Ambassador or Hungary?
- MR. PAGE: Sorry, sorry. I'm -- you got me thinking. Sorry, the Hungarian
- Ambassador.
- MR. SCHIFF: So the Hungarian Ambassador may have mentioned to you in
- Budapest knowing someone else from the Trump campaign?
- MR. PAGE: I mentioned that she knows everyone. She mentioned spending
- time with Madeleine Albright.
- MR. SCHIFF: But I'm not asking about Madeleine Albright. I--
- MR. PAGE: Well, just in that context. She was going down a long list of names,
- and someone's from the Trump campaign, their name may have come up. And, again,
- there were other people who -- she's in the foreign policy circles in Washington.
- MR. SCHIFF: Yes.
- MR. PAGE: So, actually, no, you reminded me, you reminded me. Now it came
- back to me. Joe Schmitz, who was also, you know, one of the members of our
- committee, he -MR.
- SCHIFF: So the only--
- MR. PAGE: That's the only--
- MR. SCHIFF: -- the only Trump campaign person that she mentioned to you that
- . she knew during your discussions in Budapest was Joe Schmitz
- MR. PAGE: To the best of my rec,ollection, yes.
- MR. SCHIFF,: Did she ever say Joe Schmitz had visited her in Ukraine?
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 191
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. PAGE: In Ukraine?
- MR. SCHIFF: I'm sorry. In Hungary?
- MR. PAGE: No. No, I don't think so. She might have, but I don't think so .
- . MR. SCHIFF: Did either the Hungarian Ambassador or any of the other Hungarian
- Government officials you met indicate to you that anyone else from the Trump campaign
- had been in Budapest that year?
- MR. PAGE: No. To the best of my recollection, no. Again, it's similar to
- her -- as I think about this more and as you ask me more questions, I remembered her
- mentioning Joe Schmitz She may have
- mentioned someone else passing through, but nothing that comes to mind.
- MR. SCHIFF: And did Michael Cohen's name ever come up?
- MR. PAGE: I don't think so.
- MR. SCHIFF: You don't think so or it didn't?
- MR. PAGE: I don't -- I probably hear thousands -- I've heard thousands of names
- between now and then.
- MR. SCHIFF: I'm sure you have, but not thousands of lawyers for the President.
- MR. PAGE: Not that I can recall. Yeah, not that I can recall. And certainly
- nothing along the lines of these crazy allegations from the same person that disrupted my
- life, no, in terms of the dodgy dossier. None of those allegations. Nothing along those
- lines for sure.
- MR. SCHIFF: And while you were in Budapest, did you meet with any Russian
- natives or representatives of the Russian Government?
- MR. PAGE: Not that I can recall. There may -- again, similar to -- we went to
- a -- you know, there was a hotel, and we had a coffee at a hotel, and there were a few
- people passing through. There may have been one Russian person passing through there.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 192
- UNCLASSIFIED
- But I have no recollection because it was totally immaterial and nothing serious was
- discussed~ So -- but I vaguely recall that, you know, there may have been someone that
- we, you know --
- MR. SCHIFF: That you may have met a Russiannational at one of the functions?
- MR. PAGE: They may -- you know, just in passing at a --
- MR. SCHIFF: Well, Dr. Page, you have a lot of conversations in passing.
- MR. PAGE: Well, and that's why I'm careful. When I say something, unlike John
- Podesta, who on "Meet the Press" just says definitively to Chuck Todd --
- MR. SCHIFF: Dr. Page, we're not talking about John Podesta.
- MR. PAGE: No, but he's very -- that I met with Divyekin, the head of Russian
- intelligence, said to Chuck Todd on "Meet the Press." When I say something, I want to be
- entirely sure. So I just add that caveat.
- Again, nothing serious was discussed, but I meet a lot of people, so I can't
- definitively say that there was -- that I never said hello to anyone. You know, I seem to
- vaguely recall briefly saying hello to someone in that context at a cafe.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. SCHIFF: And who, if anyone, did you stay in touch with that you had met
- while in Budapest after your trip?
- 193
- MR. PAGE: I believe it was just Reka, and there was one other person who was
- also a foreign policy person who I stayed in touch with. I cannot remember his name.
- could let you know that.
- MR. SCHIFF: Who was that?
- MR. PAGE: I don't recall his name.
- MR. SCHIFF: And what do they do?
- MR. PAGE: They are a foreign policy person related to -- in the government.
- can't remember their exact title. And, again, he is more -- similar to what I am explaining
- on the -- in terms of my contacts and the people I interact with in the U.K., in Canada, in
- China --
- MR. SCHIFF: Dr. Page, 11m not asking about China and Canada.
- MR. PAGE: It is scholars. He is a scholar and an expert in foreign policy.
- MR. SCHIFF: Is he a scholar, or does he work for the Hungarian Government?
- MR. PAGE: He was working for the Hungarian Government.
- MR. SCHIFF: And you don't know what his portfolio is?
- MR. PAGE: I can't recall.
- MR. SCHIFF: Do you know whether he was with the Hungarian intelligence?
- MR. PAGE: Look, similar to that phrase, and I think someone said it in your
- committee, one of the meetings, people don't wear badges. Right? Everyone
- has -- similar to me spending the day with you gentlemen and -- ladies and gentlemen -- is
- you have contacts, right? As far as I know, he is not.
- MR. SCHIFF: I am asking you about a Hungarian Government official with which
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 194
- UNCLASSIFIED
- you stayed in touch after you left the country, and you can't tell us his name. You can't
- tell us what government agency he might have been with. You can't tell us in particular
- what you discussed. You can't tell us much of anything.
- MR. PAGE: Because my life has been completely changed in the last 15 months,
- and it is a distant memory of a world I used to live in before the death threats and all the
- crazy attacks and the dozens of media requests I get a day asking questions of similar to
- what we discussed a couple of hours ago, about whether or not I ever met Papadopoulos,
- right? When you are getting -- when I have gotten a hundred Papadopoulos questions
- over the last 48 hours, it's hard to remember who I met 15 months ago, frankly.
- MR. SCHIFF: Dr. Page, let me turn your attention back to the Republican
- . Convention. Did you participate in any discussions with other people from the campaign
- about the Republican Party platform?
- MR. PAGE: No. I actually -- there has been so many false allegations about this.
- MR. SCHIFF: You said no.
- MR. PAGE: Okay.
- MR. SCHIFF: And I assume that's an accurate answer, right?
- MR. PAGE: Yes. Again, I may have been on email chains. I received an email
- from J.D. I can't remember the exact timing. But he alluded to some change in the
- Republican Party platform. But again, that was the week before. It's a
- 2-week -- everyone thinks of the RNC as 1 week. The week before is when they do all the
- platform changes, right?
- MR. SCHIFF: So you received an email from J.D. Gordon at some point?
- MR. PAGE: To the best of my recollection vaguely.
- MR. SCHIFF: During or after the convention?
- MR. PAGE: Well, it must have been before because -- I believe it was before.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 195
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. SCHIFF: . Was it before or after the debate over the Ukraine amendment?
- MR. PAGE: To the best of my recollection -- I mean, he alluded to some discussion
- about that. I can't remember what the outcome of -- was on that. Bud I had no input
- whatsoever to that topic of conversation.
- MR. SCHIFF: And did you provide your own opinion, either before, during, or after
- about how the issue was resolved?
- MR. PAGE: I can't recall. I can't recall. In general, if I had to guess, my position
- would be I am interested in peace, right? And I think arming more people --
- MR. SCHIFF: Now, Dr. Page, I am not asking about your policy view. I am asking
- you --
- MR. PAGE: I might have expressed words to that effect, where I am hoping, you
- know -- to me, if you ask my personal opinion --
- MR. SCHIFF: I am not. I am asking you what you have communicated to other
- Trump campaign people.
- MR. PAGE: I can't recall. If you are asking me now, and probably what I would
- have said then and what I would say any time in my life is sometimes the more people you
- arm and the more --
- MR. SCHIFF: Dr. Page, I am not asking you your policy views. I am interested in
- what you have communicated during the campaign, during the convention.
- MR. PAGE: I can't recall. I can't recall.
- MR. SCHIFF: Let me draw your attention to . That is a July 14,
- 2016, email to J.D. Gordon, Joseph Schmitz, Bert Mizusawa, Chuck Kubic, Walid Phares, and
- Tera Dahl, that says: "As for the Ukraine amendment, excellent work." Does this
- refresh your recollection of --
- MR. PAGE: Well, it's just expressing what I feel. Right? This is--
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 196'
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. SCHIFF: Does it refresh your recollection at all about what other interactions
- you may have had with the campaign about the amendment?
- MR. PAGE: No. This is the only thing I -- is my only interaction that I vaguely
- recall. And this expresses my personal opinion. And that's all that was. And all those
- people who are on that list are individuals who had -- again, they are informal advisers,
- members of a volunteer committee, and they are offering an opinion.
- MR. SCHIFF: Did you ever communicate with Paul Manafort about the Ukraine
- amendment?
- MR. PAGE: Definitely not. The only email I sent to him was late -- I believe
- later -- I forget the exact timing, but later in the summer when we got the call from The
- New York Times. So --
- MR. SCHIFF: And here these -- you can answer a quick yes or no. Did you ever
- meet Peter Smith, a GOP operative?
- MR. PAGE: That's a very common name, but I believe not. I have met a lot of
- Smiths over the years.
- MR. SCHIFF: Peter Smith claimed to have run an operation to find or authenticate
- the missing Hillary Clinton emails. So you never came across Peter Smith. Did you have
- any discussion about Peter Smith with anyone connected with the Trump campaign?
- MR. PAGE: No.
- MR. SCHIFF: Did you ever discuss--
- MR. PAGE: Onthose topics, I never had any discussions either, so -MR.
- SCHIFF: Okay.
- MR. PAGE: With anyone. So definitely not -- if that's what he's into, that's not
- someone I am in that world. I am in the policy world, so --
- MR. SCHIFF: And I think you said earlier you had no interactions with General
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 197
- UNCLASSIFIED
- Flynn, correct?
- MR. PAGE: No.
- MR. SCHIFF: How about Roger Stone?
- MR. PAGE: He was at a book signing for -- in May of 2016, and I went to a book
- signing at the Republican Club on the Upper East Side of Manhattan. And so I said a very
- brief hello to him then.
- MR. SCHIFF: And that was your only interaction?
- MR. PAGE: Yeah. .He asked me -- when I told him I was a volunteer for the
- campaign, he says: Are you a neocon?
- And I said: I am the furthest thing from a neocon you can imagine. And that
- was -- he laughed and then walked on. That was the end of our discussions.
- Prince?
- MR. SCHIFF: And these are probably very quick answers. Any contact with Erik
- MR. PAGE: No. I don't believe so.
- MR. SCHIFF: Any contact with Michael Cohen?
- MR. PAGE: No.
- MR. SCHIFF: Donald Trump Junior?
- MR. PAGE: No.
- MR. SCHIFF: Eric Trump.
- MR. PAGE: I -- when I sent in my letter of -- saying that I am taking a leave of
- absence from the campaign, I sent an email to him and a bunch of other individuals. So
- that was on -- late on Sunday night, after I had sent the letter to James Comey. I sent a
- copy of that to them.
- MR. SCHIFF: So you sent a letter to Eric Trump, but you have had no other
- interaction with him apart from that?
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. PAGE: No. No.
- MR. SCHIFF: And how about Ivanka Trump?
- MR. PAGE: No.
- 198
- 'MR. SCHIFF: Did you have any discussion with anyone affiliated with the campaign
- or the White House in preparation for your testimony today?
- MR. PAGE: No.
- MR. SCHIFF: Have you had any interaction with Michael Caputo?
- MR. PAGE: No. No.
- MR. SCHIFF: Have you had any interaction with Steve Bannon?
- MR. PAGE: We -- we had a brief conversation in January, and we shared some text
- messages. That's about it.
- MR. SCHIFF: January of this year?
- MR. PAGE: Yes.
- MR. SCHIFF: What was the nature of your text message exchange?
- MR. PAGE: It was -- he heard that I was going to be on I believe it was an MSNBC
- event. And he just said it's probably not a good idea. So-MR.
- SCHIFF: And he heard this from whom?
- MR. PAGE: I am not sure, but--
- MR. SCHIFF: So he was telling you not to go on MSNBC?
- MR. PAGE: Yes.
- MR. SCHIFF: And he texted this to you?
- MR. PAGE: He called me. It was right when I was -- it was in mid-January, so -MR.
- SCHIFF: And how did he have your number?
- MR. PAGE: Well, I mean, I think there is the campaign had my number. He
- probably got it from the campaign, if I had to guess. I don't know.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. SCHIFF: And did Mr. Bannon tell you why he didn't want you to go on
- MSNBC?
- 199
- MR. PAGE: No. But it turns out, I mean, I saw eventually the same day and in
- the same hour slot in the "Meet the Press" daily, it was Vice President Pence. And this is
- kind of a week after the dodgy dossier was fully released. And so I can understand, you
- know, given reality, why it might not be a good idea when he heard, probably from the
- producer -- somehow the word got back via the producers that I would be on there, so --
- MR. SCHIFF: I am not sure that I follow that, but in any event, apart from your
- speculating about it,what did he communicate as to why he thought you should not go on
- MSNBC?
- MR. PAGE: I can't recall the specifics.
- MR. SCHIFF: Did he tell you he thought it would be hurtful to the President?
- MR. PAGE: Not specifically, although there was a -- I had received -- we had
- some -- letter exchanges previously, kind of sharing -- between Jones Day and myself, just
- saying -- I forget the exact terminology, but -- you know, the overall message was: Don't
- give the wrong impression. Or my interpretation of the message wa's: Don't give the
- wrong impression that you're part of the administration or the Trump campaign.
- And my response to that was, of course, I'm not. The only reason I ever talked to
- the,media is to try to clear up this massive mess which has been created about my name.
- MR. SCHIFF: So you received, previous to your phone call from Mr. Bannon, you
- had received correspondence from Jones Day?
- MR. PAGE: Yes.
- MR. SCHIFF: And the' correspondence indicated that you should not be ~- you
- should not represent yourself as a representative of the campaign?
- MR. PAGE: Correct. Which I was not doing. Yeah. And which --
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. SCHIFF: Jones Day was representing whom?
- MR. PAGE: The campaign.
- MR. SCHIFF: Now, this is January of this year, correct?
- MR. PAGE: Pre-inauguration, yes.
- MR. SCHIFF: Pre-inauguration. And did the letter indicate who they were
- speaking on behalf of, apart from the campaign?
- 200
- MR. PAGE: The campaign. It says, you know, Donald J. Trump for President,
- whatever the full term is.
- MR. SCHIFF: And how long before the call you got from Mr. Bannon had you
- received the correspondence?
- MR. PAGE: I can't recall the exact timing.
- MR. SCHIFF: Now, you weren't going to go onto the MSNBC and say you were still
- representing the campaign, were you?
- MR. PAGE: No. No. But again, I am the biggest
- embarrassment -- unfortunately, I am the biggest embarrassment surrounding the
- campaign.
- MR. SCHIFF: Dr. Page --
- MR. PAGE: So that's my interpretation.
- MR. SCHIFF: So, when Mr. Bannon called you to ask you not to go on, did he make
- any reference to the correspondence from the campaign?
- Dhabi.
- MR. PAGE: I can't recall. Again, I had just gotten off a 14-hour flight from Abu
- MR. SCHIFF: He just made it clear he didn't want you to do the interview?
- MR. PAGE: That's alii recall, yeah.
- MR. SCHIFF: And what did you tell him?
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. PAGE: I told him: I won't do it. That's fine. No big deal.
- MR. SCHIFF: Did you have any further--
- 201
- MR. PAGE: I mean, to the best'of my recollection -- again, I may have used the
- opportunity -- this is the first time I ever talked to him in my life. I may have brought up
- the need to fix this disaster of a story that really was the biggest influence on the election,
- this false. narrative which had been put out with the world premiere of the dodgy dossier.
- Again, we learned more about it on January 10th, but I was the main person attacked.
- And at some point, this really needs to be fixed. And that's what my main focus is
- because --
- MR. SCHIFF: But Dr. Page, he didn't want you talking. Isn't that right?
- MR. PAGE: He didn't want -- he did~'t want me talking that day. That's alii can
- say. In terms of that one time block when there is a --
- MR. SCHIFF: Did you have any conversation or interqction with Kellyanne
- Conway?
- MR. PAGE: Never.
- MR. SCHIFF: I think I asked you earlier about General Kellogg. Tera Dahl. How
- about Bernadette Kilroy-Martin?
- MR. PAGE: You referenced some email. Did I get an email from her? Oh, yeah,
- Bernadette. I can't even remember the name until you told me -- you mentioned it to
- me.
- MR. SCHIFF: But apart from that one referenc.e, you don't recall any meetings or-MR.
- PAGE: To be honest with you, I can't even remember who she is. This is not
- clea r from the --
- MR. SCHIFF: There are two generals, Keith Kellogg and Joseph Kellogg -- unless I
- have it wrong. Which did you have interaction with?
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 202
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. PAGE: Keith .
- . MR. SCHIFF: Keith Kellogg. Did you have any interaction with Brad Parscale?
- MR. PAGE: The name is vaguely familiar, but I don't believe so.
- MR. SCHIFF: He was the head of the campaign's digital arm.
- MR. PAGE: No, no. I had nothing do with any of that.
- MR. SCHIFF: And I assume you had no interaction with anyone from Cambridge
- Analytica?
- MR. PAGE: No.
- MR. SCHIFF: Do you know Felix Sater?
- MR. PAGE: No.
- MR. SCHIFF: Have you had any interaction with Oleg Deripaska or any of his
- representatives?
- MR. PAGE: No. It's a big conglomerate, and so I may have years ago met some
- people. Again, I am being careful. But no direct interaction with him, no direct
- interaction with anyone senior in his organization. But if I am not mistaken, that's one of
- the biggest conglomerates in Russia, right? So it's like not quite a General Electric, but it's
- in that order of magnitude. So I would never say that I haven't met anyone from General
- Electric, but no material discussions and never did anything with any of them.
- MR. SCHIFF: Okay. Dr. Page, I am going to go through a list of names quickly.
- You probably have had no contact with most of these people. So,if we can go through
- them without any additional commentary, that would be great.
- MR. PAGE: But just with the caveat that if I -- to the best of my recollection.
- MR. CONAWAY: I call to the gentleman's attention that they have called votes.
- Do you think we can land this plane before we have to go vote?
- MR. SCHIFF: I am going to do my very best.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 203
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. CONAWAY: Okay. Notice he is 10 minutes past, and reset the 3D-minute
- clock .
- . MR. SCHIFF: Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
- I may have asked you -- well, I asked you about the bank, but Sergei Gorkov? Any
- interaction with him?
- MR. PAGE: No.
- MR. SCHIFF: When I ask you about any interaction, I mean conversations,
- emails --
- MR. PAGE: Gorkov is Vnesheconom, I believe, right?
- MR. SCHIFF: Yes.
- MR. PAGE: Yeah, no.
- MR. SCHIFF: So, with respect to all these questions I am asking -- when I say "any
- interaction," I mean in writing or in person.
- MR. PAGE: No.
- MR. SCHIFF: Same question about Dmitry Peskov.
- MR. PAGE: Is Peskbv the public relations?
- MR. SCHIFF: Yes.
- MR. PAGE: I went into an RT interview. I said -- I nodded at him as he was
- walking into another RT interview. I had no direct interaction with him.
- MR. SCHIFF: And that was when? During the July Moscow trip?
- MR. PAGE: December. December Moscow trip.
- MR. SCHIFF: December trip. Sergey Ivanov.
- MR. PAGE: He used to be a senior official, I believe?
- MR. SCHIFF: Yes.
- MR. PAGE: There was somebody at a Council on Foreign Relations I had asked a
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- question with 5, 6 years ago, but no relationship beyond that.
- MR. SCHIFF: Sergey Lavrov.
- MR. PAGE: No, never.
- MR. SCHIFF: Mikhail Fridman.
- 204
- MR. PAGE: I believe he was at the -- when, in 2008, the then -- Dmitry Medvedev
- spoke at the Council on Foreign Relations here in Washington. I said hello to him briefly.
- MR. SCHIFF: Peter Aven.
- MR. PAGE: Peter Aven. I believe they were standing next to each other because
- they are Alfa partners. But that was, again, 9 years ago, a hello.
- MR. SCHIFF: And I already asked you about the Agalarovs. Rob Goldstone?
- MR. PAGE: No.
- MR. SCHIFF: Victor Vekselberg?
- MR. PAGE: No.
- MR. SCHIFF: Konstantin Kilimnik?
- MR. PAGE: No.
- MR. SCHIFF: Nikolai Patrushev?
- MR. PAGE: No.
- MR. SCHIFF: Dmitry Rogozin?
- MR. PAGE: No.
- MR. SCHIFF: Evgeny Prigozhin?
- MR. PAGE: No.
- MR. SCHIFF: I already asked about Veselnitskaya and Akhmetshin and Ike
- Kaveladze.. You said no to Ike Kaveladze, correct?
- MR. PAGE: I can't even remember the name. Who is he again? I don't know
- anyone by that name.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- . MR. SCHIFF: Okay. Yuriy Chaika?
- MR. PAGE: No.
- MR. SCHIFF: Igor Diveykin?
- MR. PAGE: Never.
- MR. SCHIFF: leonard Blavatnik.
- MR. PAGE: No.
- MR. SCHIFF:. Konstantin Kosachev.
- MR. PAGE: No.
- MR. SCHIFF: Anyone from Rossotrudnichestvo?
- MR. PAGE: Doesn't ring a bell.
- 205
- MR. SCHIFF: That's the government agency under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
- MR. PAGE: No.
- MR. SCHIFF: Victor Yanukovych?
- MR. PAGE: The Ukrainian?
- MR. SCHIFF: Yes.
- MR. PAGE: No.
- MR. SCHIFF: Have you had any communication with Guccifer 2?
- MR. PAGE: No.
- MR. SCHIFF: Or DCleaks?
- MR. PAGE: Never.
- MR. SCHIFF: Wikileaks or Julian Assange?
- MR. PAGE: No.
- MR. SCHIFF: Did you ever raise any issues of future bilateral energy cooperation
- with Mr. Baranov?
- MR. PAGE: No. I may have expressed a general opinion in the 13 years I have
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- known him, but --
- MR. SCHIFF: And what about during July?
- MR. PAGE: I don't believe so, no.
- 206
- MR. SCHIFF: Were you aware, prior to December of last year, of a potential sale of
- a 19-percent interest in Rosneft?
- MR. PAGE: It was in the news. I can't remember when exactly that came out,
- but -- I knew about it from the news. Itls been in the market for quite some time, people
- that follow the energy sector. But, again, given everything live been through, I can't recall
- exactly when that started to be known. But it was definitely during the summer at some
- point. What date exactly I can't recail.
- MR. SCHIFF: Now, Dr. Page, do you have more than one passport?
- MR. PAGE: I have my U.S. passport,and I have -So
- I -- I have that, which I still maintain.
- MR. SCHIFF: Do you use the residence permit to travel?
- MR. PAGE: Well, it's expired, actually, but, you know,
- I present both passports. So it remains active.
- MR. SCHIFF: Now, when you travel you
- mentioned, does that permit you to travel through the Schengen zone without using a U.S.
- passport?
- MR. PAGE: I never travel anywhere -- I have never in my life traveled anywhere
- not using my U.S. passport. They are both U.S. passports.
- And sinCe I haven't had a chance to update it in terms of
- this residence permit, I just carry the two.
- MR. SCHIFF: And I take it, Dr. Page, you have never used an alias?
- MR. PAGE: Never.
- UNCLASSIFIED
- UNCLASSIFIED
- MR. SCHIFF: Were you in Russia during the Miss Universe Pageant in 2013?
- MR. PAGE: No. Although the aliases I do use now only relate to the death
- threats I have gotten to try, to keep a low profile.
- - MR. SCHIFF: But you have never traveled under an alias?
- MR. PAGE: No, no, never.
- 207
- MR. SCHIFF: The public reports of Felix Sater, Michael Cohen, and others, Andrey
- Artemenkd proposing a Ukraine settlement, do you know anything about that?
- MR. PAGE: I don't know anything about that?
- MR. SCHIFF: Do you know Andrey Artemenko?
- MR. PAGE: Doesn't ring a bell, no.
- MR. SCHIFF: Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
- I yield back.
- MR. CONAWAY: All right. So, Dr. Page, we have discussed several docu.ments
- today which you agreed to provide us, and we appreciate that. In addition to the specific
- documents we have discussed, I want to remind you that you remain under obligation to
- produce any documents in your possession responsive to the subpoena issued on
- October 4', 2017. Now that you have confirmed that you do in fact have such documents,
- you are directed to produce them no later than 2 weeks from today, November 16, 2017.
- In producing documents, please be sure to comply with the instructions accompanying the
- subpoena, including with respect to any privileges. If you do not comply, the committee
- will consider that additional steps may be appropriate to enforce it.
- I ask unanimous consent that committee staff be authorized to make any technical,
- grammatical, and conforming changes, including redactions of personally identifiable
- UNCLASSIFIED
- 208
- UNCLASSIFIED
- information, to the transcript before it is released.
- With that, Dr. Page, I need to apologize to you. I was confronted on my way back
- down here by a CNN reporter asking me to comment on Mr. Schiff's inartful
- comment -- question about were there any reasons why you could not answer our
- questions. I thought that was going to be out of the conversation, and apparently, it's
- not. Itls already being asked by CNN about the question that I think my colleague, wished
- he had phrased differently.
- MR. PAGE: I haven't left the SCIF since this morning.
- MR. CONAWAY: I know that. I am apologizing in advance.
- MR. SCHIFF: Your apology should come to me. I am not sure what you are
- , referring to.
- MR. CONAWAY: In a second.
- Without objection, so ordered.
- I also ask unanimous consent for the committee's security director to review the
- transcript of today's hearing to ensure appropriate classification and to make any
- n'ecessary redactions of classified information from the open session before the transcript
- is released.
- Without objection, so ordered.
- And this interview is adjourned.
- [Whereupon, at 4:58 p.m., the committee was adjourned.]
- UNCLASSIFIED
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