Democratic New York Rep. Jerry Nadler is leading House Democrats’ latest probe into Russia and President Donald Trump, but one of his campaign aides is now representing a man who was the head of a Russian propaganda arm, according to a report from The Daily Beast.
The report states the man’s name as Erza Fiedlander, who ran Nadler’s campaign outreach to the Orthodox Jewish community. Fiedlander is reportedly lobbying on behalf of the wife of Kirill Vyshinski, who is the director of RIA Novosti, a Russian propaganda outlet that was forced to register as a foreign agent in the United States last year.
Vyshinski was arrested in Ukraine last year, and is currently awaiting trial for alleged treason. The Ukranian government alleges that Vyshinski used his position to “illegally fomenting support for the Russian annexation of Crimea.” (RELATED: Jerry Nadler Accuses Jim Jordan Of Anti-Semitism Over Tweet Criticizing Tom Steyer, An Episcopalian)
Democratic U.S. Rep. Jerry Nadler of New York speaks to ABC News on March 3, 2019. (Screenshot/ABC News)
The report states:
“Ezra Friedlander is a lobbyist and political consultant who runs outreach to the Orthodox Jewish community of behalf of New York Rep. Jerry Nadler’s campaign. He’s also a public-relations executive, and his newest client is the wife of Kirill Vyshinsky, the head of Russian media outlet RIA Novosti’s Ukrainian arm.”
Nadler is the chair of the House Judiciary Committee, and recently opened a new investigation into Trump and the Trump organization, even as special counsel Robert Mueller appears poised to conclude in the near future, without evidence of collusion. Trump administration sources told The Daily Caller News Foundation on Wednesday that they believe the purpose of the investigation is to delegitimize Trump’s presidency.
“This was never about Russian collusion. This was never about Mueller. This was never about truth or justice. This was about taking down President Trump and nullifying the election. They still can’t get over the fact that Trump won the election and that the American people voted for him over Hillary,” a senior administration official told TheDCNF.
Nadler claimed Sunday that Trump was guilty of having “obstructed justice,” despite the Mueller investigation having not yet concluded.
“It’s very clear that the president obstructed justice,” Nadler said on ABC’s “This Week.” “1,100 times he referred to the Mueller investigation as a witch hunt. He tried to protect Michael Flynn from being investigated by the FBI. He fired Comey to stop the ‘Russia thing’ as he told NBC News. He’s dangled pardons. He’s intimidated witnesses in public.”