National Security

Former Trump campaign aide: I’ve had no contact with Mueller

Michael Caputo, a former consultant to President Trump’s campaign, said Wednesday that he has not been in contact with the Justice Department or special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russia’s role in influencing the 2016 presidential election.

Caputo revealed in an interview with the Washington Examiner that he has not been swept into the special counsel probe — a marked difference from his inclusion in the House Intelligence Committee’s Russia investigation.

Caputo voluntarily spoke with lawmakers on the House Intelligence panel in a closed session last month. After his interview, he spoke critically of the committee’s investigation, saying it was “starting to feel like a rigged game.”

{mosads}He has also called on the panel to release the transcript of his interview, after Rep. Jackie Speier (D-Calif.) suggested that the former campaign consultant may have lied during his testimony.

Caputo has denied improper contacts between the Trump campaign and Russian officials. He left the campaign in June 2016.

Caputo worked in Russia during the 1990s and 2000s, first with the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and later with the media arm of Gazprom, the Russian state-owned energy company.

The special counsel and multiple congressional committees are examining Russia’s efforts to meddle in the 2016 presidential election, as well as possible collusion between the Trump campaign and Moscow.