Trump lawyer: Denials of Russian contacts not ‘suspect at all’

An attorney for President Trump on Sunday said he doesn’t believe President Trump’s denials of contacts with individuals linked to the Russian government during the campaign are “suspect.”

During an interview on “Fox News Sunday,” Jay Sekulow was asked whether he acknowledges that all of the denials from Trump and his aides regarding contacts with Russians are “at the very least, suspect.”

Sekulow initially dodged the question, going after former FBI Director James Comey for leaking information.

{mosads}Wallace further pressed Sekulow, however.

“The president, his vice president, his son, repeatedly denied any contacts with the Russians,” Wallace said. “Given what we’ve learned this week about the contact between a number of top campaign officials, including the president’s son, are all those denials that it’s just fake news and a hoax, are those suspect?” 

Sekulow said the president’s statements have been clear.

“I do not think the denials are suspect,” Sekulow said. “I do not think the denial by the president of the United States is suspect at all.”

Sekulow also said he didn’t think the meeting between Donald Trump Jr., other campaign officials and a Russian lawyer violated the law in any way.

“Nothing in that meeting that would have taken place even if it was about the topic of an opposition research paper from the Russian lawyer is illegal or a violation of the law,” he said.

During an appearance on CNN’s “State of the Union,” Sekulow emphasized that President Trump did not attend the meeting, which he argued was not illegal.

“The president was not engaged in this. He was not aware of it,” Sekulow said.

Host Jake Tapper asked Sekulow whether or not it is important to address whether the meeting was wrong or ethical.

“You’re trying to put a moral, ethical aspect to it,” Sekulow said. “It’s easy to do it in 20/20 hindsight, but not in the campaign.”

“There were dozens of meetings every day. Hundreds of meetings every week,” Sekulow said. “It never went any further, so it was never discussed again.”

Sekulow said on ABC’s “This Week” that Trump would testify under oath “if it came to that, and I don’t think it will.”

Mallory Shelbourne contributed.