Papadopoulos Suggests British Conspiracy Targeted Trump Campaign

George Papadopoulos embarked on a bizarre Twitter tirade late Monday in which he called for an investigation into Australia’s former foreign minister over a supposed British conspiracy against him. Papadopoulos, the first former Trump campaign adviser to be charged in special counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia investigation, questioned the “incredibly suspicious circumstances” in which he met with Alexander Downer, Australia’s ambassador to the U.K. at the time, in a London bar in May 2016. It was during that encounter that Papadopoulos reportedly boasted of Russia having “political dirt” on Hillary Clinton, a claim Downer reported back to U.S. authorities. While disputing that he ever made such a statement to Downer, Papadopoulos questioned whether the meeting was proof that “British intelligence” had been “weaponized against an American citizen.” “The notion that Downer randomly reached out to me just to have a gin and tonic is laughable. For the sake of our republic and the integrity of this investigation, I think it’s time Downer is as exposed as Christoper Steele,” Papadopoulos wrote. Papadopoulos, who was sentenced to 14 days in jail last week for lying to the FBI, also mocked Downer for “wearing women’s fish nets.” Australia is part of the Five Eyes national-security information-sharing agreement along with the U.S., Britain, Canada, and New Zealand.