The President Directs Communications Staff Not to Publicly Disclose Information About the June 9 Meeting

The President Directs Communications Staff Not to Publicly Disclose Information About the June 9 Meeting

¶Communications advisors Hope Hicks and Josh Raffel recalled discussing with Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump that the emails were damaging and would inevitably be leaked.⁶⁷⁵⁶⁷⁵ Raffel 2/8/18 302, at 2-3; Hicks 3/13/18 302, at 2. Hicks and Raffel advised that the best strategy was to proactively release the emails to the press.⁶⁷⁶⁶⁷⁶ Raffel 2/8/18 302, at 2-3, 5; Hicks 3/13/18 302, at 2; Hicks 12/7/17 302, at 8. On or about June 22, 2017, Hicks attended a meeting in the White House residence with the President, Kushner, and Ivanka Trump.⁶⁷⁷⁶⁷⁷ Hicks 12/7/17 302, at 6-7; Hicks 3/13/18 302, at 1. According to Hicks, Kushner said that he wanted to fill the President in on something that had been discovered in the documents he was to provide to the congressional committees involving a meeting with him, Manafort, and Trump Jr.⁶⁷⁸⁶⁷⁸ Hicks 12/7/17 302, at 7; Hicks 3/13/18 302, at 1. Kushner brought a folder of documents to the meeting and tried to show them to the President, but the President stopped Kushner and said he did not want to know about it, shutting the conversation down.⁶⁷⁹⁶⁷⁹ Hicks 12/7/17 302, at 7; Hicks 3/13/18 302, at 1. Counsel for Ivanka Trump provided an attorney proffer that is consistent with Hicks's account and with the other events involving Ivanka Trump set forth in this section of the report. Kushner said that he did not recall talking to the President at this time about the June 9 meeting or the underlying emails. Kushner 4/11/18 302, at 30.

¶On June 28, 2017, Hicks viewed the emails at Kushner's attorney's office.⁶⁸⁰⁶⁸⁰ Hicks 3/13/18 302, at 1-2. She recalled being shocked by the emails because they looked "really bad."⁶⁸¹⁶⁸¹ Hicks 3/13/18 302, at 2. The next day, Hicks spoke privately with the President to mention her concern about the emails, which she understood were soon going to be shared with Congress.⁶⁸²⁶⁸² Hicks 12/7/17 302, at 8. The President seemed upset because too many people knew about the emails and he told Hicks that just one lawyer should deal with the matter.⁶⁸³⁶⁸³ Hicks 3/13/18 302, at 2-3; Hicks 12/7/17 302, at 8. The President indicated that he did not think the emails would leak, but said they would leak if everyone had access to them.⁶⁸⁴⁶⁸⁴ Hicks 12/7/17 302, at 8.

¶Later that day, Hicks, Kushner, and Ivanka Trump went together to talk to the President.⁶⁸⁵⁶⁸⁵ Hicks 12/7/17 302, at 8; Hicks 3/13/18 302, at 2. Hicks recalled that Kushner told the President the June 9 meeting was not a big deal and was about Russian adoption, but that emails existed setting up the meeting.⁶⁸⁶⁶⁸⁶ Hicks 3/13/18 302, at 2; Hicks 12/7/17 302, at 9. Hicks said she wanted to get in front of the story and have Trump Jr. release the emails as part of an interview with "softball questions."⁶⁸⁷⁶⁸⁷ Hicks 3/13/18 302, at 2-3. The President said he did not want to know about it and they should not go to the press.⁶⁸⁸⁶⁸⁸ Hicks 3/13/18 302, at 2-3; Hicks 12/7/17 302, at 9. Hicks warned the President that the emails were "really bad" and the story would be "massive" when it broke, but the President was insistent that he did not want to talk about it and said he did not want details.⁶⁸⁹⁶⁸⁹ Hicks 3/13/18 302, at 3; Hicks 12/7/17 302, at 9. Hicks recalled that the President asked Kushner when his document production was due.⁶⁹⁰⁶⁹⁰ Hicks 3/13/18 302, at 3. Kushner responded that it would be a couple of weeks and the President said, "then leave it alone."⁶⁹¹⁶⁹¹ Hicks 3/13/18 302, at 3. Hicks also recalled that the President said Kushner's attorney should give the emails to whomever he needed to give them to, but the President did not think they would be leaked to the press.⁶⁹²⁶⁹² Hicks 12/7/17 302, at 9. Raffel later heard from Hicks that the President had directed the group not to be proactive in disclosing the emails because the President believed they would not leak.⁶⁹³⁶⁹³ Raffel 2/8/18 302, at 5.