Six months in, and Trump’s Russian mire just deepens

President denies further accusations of collusion with Moscow as key aides prepare to face Senate

PRESIDENT Donald Trump marks six months in office today mired in accusations of collusion with Russia, revelations about a “secret” meeting with Vladimir Putin, and having failed to achieve his cornerstone campaign promise of healthcare reform.

The US president’s eldest son, his son-in-law and a former campaign manager will testify before Congress next week, a Senate panel announced last night, in what could be a crucial step in the ongoing investigation.

Donald Trump Jr and Paul Manafort are scheduled to testify before the Senate judiciary committee on Wednesday at 10am. Jared Kushner, husband of Ivanka Trump, will meet the Senate intelligence committee on Monday, his lawyer said. That session is expected to be held in private.

All three are almost certain to be asked about a June 2016 meeting they attended with a Russian lawyer in the expectation of receiving incriminating information about Hillary Clinton.

Russian officials have repeatedly denied allegations that Moscow interfered in the presidential campaign to help Mr Trump.

In a bid to revive his domestic agenda, Mr Trump yesterday tried to rally Republicans to overhaul Affordable Care Act (aka Obamacare), President Barack Obama’s signature domestic legacy, after their efforts collapsed in the Senate this week.

The president said senators should not leave for their summer break until it was done. He said: “We are so close. We have to stay here. We shouldn’t leave town. Inaction is not an option.”

Mitch Mcconnell, Senate majority leader, has vowed to go ahead with a vote next week to repeal the Act, despite indications it will fail after defections by Republican senators.

Thirty-two million Americans would lose their health insurance by 2026 if Obamacare was repealed without a replacement, the US Congressional Budget Office reported.

Mr Trump has a lower approval rating at the six-month mark than any president since Gerald Ford in 1975.

However, he hit back yesterday at reports of a previously undisclosed conversation with Mr Putin at the G20 summit in Germany.

“Fake news story of secret dinner with Putin is ‘sick’,” Mr Trump wrote on Twitter. “All G20 leaders, and spouses, were invited by the Chancellor of Germany. Press knew!”

The White House confirmed the encounter took place at a dinner for world leaders and their spouses. Mr Putin was seated next to Melania Trump, the First Lady, while Mr Trump sat near Shinzo Abe, the Japanese prime minster. Over dessert, Mr Trump moved to talk to Mr Putin. His own translator only spoke English and Japanese, so the Kremlin translator was used. No notes were taken nor record made.

Yesterday, the top Democrat on the US House of Representatives intelligence committee, Adam Schiff, told CNN: “These two isolated leaders on the world stage making common cause in a way that is not been witnessed by any of our national security officials…that’s deeply troubling.”

Mr Trump has been trying to find ways to work with Russia, particularly on Syria.

Two US officials said yesterday that Mr Trump had decided to halt the CIA’S covert programme to equip and train certain rebel groups fighting the government of President Bashar al-assad, a move that has been sought by Russia.

“This is a momentous decision,” a current official told The Washington

Post. “Putin won in Syria.”

‘Fake news story of a secret dinner with Putin is ‘sick’. All G20 leaders and spouses were invited ... press knew!’