GOP Strategist Found Guilty of Moving Illegal Russian Funds to Trump Campaign

A Republican political operative was convicted of illegally funneling a Russian businessman’s contributions to Donald Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign. Jesse Benton, 44, a onetime aide to Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), former congressman Ron Paul (R-TX), and Paul’s son, Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY), worked with another consultant to shift money from the Russian national, who was seeking to meet and take a photo with Trump, according to The Washington Post. The Russian reportedly sent $100,000 to Benton, who was working for a pro-Trump political action committee in 2016. He used $25,000 to cover the cost of a ticket a Republican National Committee event, which got the Russian his picture with Trump. Benton claimed he’d earned the $100,000 acting as a guide to Washington, D.C. for the Russian, the Post reported. The 44-year-old was previously pardoned by Trump in 2020 for a separate campaign finance crime. Just months later, he was indicted on the charges that would lead to Thursday’s conviction, including conspiring to solicit and cause an illegal campaign contribution by a foreign national. “He knew the law,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Michelle Wasserman said. “He knew the rules.”