Clinton team ‘funded’ dossier on president

THE Clinton campaign helped fund research that led to the infamous dossier on Donald Trump’s Russia links, it was claimed last night.

Christopher Steele, a former British spy, compiled the salacious 35-page dossier on Mr Trump’s alleged campaign ties to Russia.

Marc Elias, a lawyer for the Hillary Clinton campaign and the Democratic National Committee (DNC) used the private intelligence firm, Fusion GPS, to conduct the research, The Washington Post has reported, citing anonymous sources.

Fusion GPS is then said to have employed Mr Steele, a former MI6 officer. The report did not state how much Fusion GPS was paid.

The dossier includes unsubstantiated claims that Russians have videos involving prostitutes, filmed during a 2013 visit by Mr Trump to a luxury Moscow hotel for the Miss Universe contest.

It also alleges that Trump advisers were in regular contact with Russian officials and others linked to Russian intelligence during the election and that they had exchanged information for “at least” eight years.

Moscow’s role in the 2016 election is the subject of investigations by both a special counsel and Congress.

Mr Trump has always branded the dossier “fake news”. There was no comment from the Clinton campaign, the DNC, Mr Elias or Fusion GPS last night.