June 2-13, 2016: Donald Jr.'s controversial meeting came at a pivotal point for the Trump campaign
Allan Smith
Jul. 13, 2017, 9:01 AM The controversial meeting between Donald Trump Jr. and a Kremlin-connected lawyer occurred at a pivotal point in President Donald Trump's campaign.
The meeting took place just after the primary season concluded in June 2016, at a time when Trump and his campaign were wrangling with what could have been a massive floor battle for delegates at the Republican National
Convention in Cleveland the next month.
It also took place amid one of the biggest controversies of the Trump campaign: his persistent attacks on US District Judge Gonzalo Curiel, who was presiding over a case involving Trump University. Trump's line of attack, based on Curiel's Mexican heritage, earned him scorn from across the political spectrum.
Trump also teased a "major speech" on "all of the things that have taken place with the Clintons" on June 13 during his victory address after the June 7 primaries, just as Trump Jr. was arranging the meeting with the Russian lawyer for June 9. Trump's promised address was later replaced, however, with a speech that focused on national security, in the aftermath of the Orlando terror attack the day before.
Here's the full timeline of events that coincide with Trump Jr.'s emails and the June 9 meeting:
June 2 The day before the music publicist Rob Goldstone, who represented a Russian pop star with ties to Trump, sent his initial email to Trump Jr., Trump was celebrating the endorsement he received from House Speaker Paul Ryan. The speaker had been hesitant to endorse Trump in the weeks following Sen. Ted Cruz and Ohio Gov. John Kasich dropping out of the Republican primary race, which left Trump as the presumptive Republican nominee.
"So great to have the endorsement and support of Paul Ryan," Trump tweeted. "We will both be working very hard to Make America Great Again!"
Trump also stepped up his attacks on Curiel. In an interview with The Wall Street Journal, Trump said the judge had "an absolute conflict" in presiding over the Trump University case because he was "of Mexican heritage," as Trump put it, and belonged to a Latino lawyers association. Trump added that the Indiana-born judge's ethnic background was relevant because of Trump's campaign promises to build a wall on the Mexican border and deport immigrants who were in the country illegally.
"I'm building a wall," Trump said. "It's an inherent conflict of interest."
He zeroed in on Curiel on Twitter as well.
"Even though I have a very biased and unfair judge in the Trump U civil case in San Diego, I have thousands of great reviews & will win case!" Trump tweeted.
During a rally that night in San Jose, California, Trump issued a blistering response to a foreign-policy speech earlier in the day from Hillary Clinton, then the Democratic front-runner, that bashed Trump. Trump said the former secretary of state was "guilty as hell."
"Hillary Clinton has to go to jail," he said. "Alright, I said it. She has to go to jail. The fact that they even allow her to participate in this race is a disgrace to the United States, is a disgrace to our nation."
June 3<..snip..>
http://www.businessinsider.com/donald-trump-jr-email-timeline-2017-7
