Trump asked Ukraine's president about 'CrowdStrike' to pin 2016 election Russian interference findings on a Democratic 'deep state' conspiracy theory
In his now-infamous July phone call with Ukraine's president, President Donald Trump referred briefly to a long-discredited conspiracy theory that tries to cast doubt on Russia's role in the 2016 hacking of the Democratic National Committee.
Some Trump backers who circulate unsubstantiated rumors have latched onto some version of the theory to support claims he's being persecuted by 'the deep state,' also known as the federal bureaucracy, as the House of Representatives begins an impeachment inquiry.
The issue arose anew Thursday, when White House acting chief of staff Mick Mulvaney said he had 'absolutely' heard Trump mention 'the corruption that related to the DNC server.'
In broad outline, the theory contends - without evidence, of course - that the DNC hack was a setup based on fabricated computer records and designed to cast blame on Russia.
President Donald Trump gestures as he greets guests on the tarmac as he arrives at Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base in Fort Worth, Texas, Thursday, Oct. 17, 2019. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)
One key figure in this supposed conspiracy: CrowdStrike, a security firm hired by the DNC that detected, stopped and analyzed the hack five months before the 2016 election.
Here's how Trump's phone call brought this conspiracy back into currency.
THE CALL
trump asked ukraine president about crowdstrike bolster state conspiracy theory
