‘The Translator Project’: 13 Russians charged in U.S. election conspiracy
WASHINGTON — A dramatic new chapter opened Friday in the Russian election-meddling scandal as special counsel Robert Mueller described in unprecedented detail a Russian scheme to influence the 2016 American election.
It allegedly involved identity theft, bank fraud, a series of election-law violations and an astonishingly organized operation in which salaried employees worked in separate departments to spread contempt for most major American politicians not named Donald Trump.
Thirteen Russians, and three organizations, have been charged.
The allegations laid out Friday brought immediate consequences. By the day’s end, the U.S. president, who has consistently avoided acknowledging Russian election involvement, appeared to state unequivocally that Russians had indeed meddled in American affairs.