Russian ambassador told Moscow that Kushner sought secret communications channel with Kremlin: WaPo

In a Friday night news dump, The Washington Post revealed that one of the reasons for the increased scrutiny might be from Jared Kushner speaking to the Russian ambassador about setting up secret communications between President Donald Trump and the Kremlin. To make matters worse, retired Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn was in the room at the time.

Russian Ambassador Sergei Kislyak reported back to Moscow about the request made Dec. 1 or 2 during a meeting at Trump Tower, according to intercepts of Russian communications. The meeting was not disclosed to the public until March and the White House claimed it wasn't significant. Those familiar with the investigation said that the FBI considers it to be significant enough to increase its scrutiny into Kushner and his contacts.

Neither meeting was being surveilled, according to officials.

The Post notes that often Russia is known to promote false information to create intentional misinformation and confuse leaders and analysts. However, officials aren't clear what would have been gained by telling Moscow that Kushner sought the secret channel.

According to The Post, the White House, Flynn's lawyer and the Russian embassy all refused to comment. Lawmakers are asking that Kushner's top secret clearance be revoked given the latest findings.