Dems Sue Trump Allies, Russians, Over 2016 Election Meddling

DNC Chairman Tom Perez speaks at a protest against Trump’s new Muslim travel ban in Lafayette Square outside the White House, Monday, March 6, 2017, in Washington. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)
Democratic National Committee (DNC) Chairman Tom Perez speaks at a protest against President Donald Trump's new travel ban order in Lafayette Square outside the White House, Monday, March 6, 2017, in Washington. (AP ... Democratic National Committee (DNC) Chairman Tom Perez speaks at a protest against President Donald Trump's new travel ban order in Lafayette Square outside the White House, Monday, March 6, 2017, in Washington. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik) MORE LESS
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The Democratic National Committee filed a lawsuit in federal court in Manhattan Friday against President Trump’s campaign, some of his allies and associates, as well as Russians and Wikileaks. The suit alleges that the Russian effort to meddle in the 2016 election was a racketeering enterprise.

The complaint details the various alleged connections Trump associates had with Russians. It relies on information that has been released via Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation, as well as on media reports.

President Trump is not a named defendant in the lawsuit, but his son Donald Trump Jr., son-in-law Jared Kushner, longtime ally Roger Stone and former campaign chairman Paul Manafort are. Manafort deputy and ex-campaign aide Rick Gates is a defendant, as is former campaign advisor George Papadopoulos. Both pleaded guilty in Mueller’s probe and are currently cooperating with it.

Among the other defendants are the Russian Federation, its intelligence entity the GRU, the hacker Guccifer 2.0, Wikileaks and Julian Assange. Aras and Emin Agalarov — the father-son Russians who helped Trump bring his Miss Universe pageant to Moscow in 2013 —  are also defendants.

The complaint zeroes in on the hacking of the DNC during the 2016 campaign. It alleges that the hack involved violations of the Wiretap Act and the Stored Communications Act.

“No one is above the law and the perpetrators of this attack must be held accountable,” DNC Chair Tom Perez said in a statement. “They successfully hacked the Democratic Party in 2016 and they will be back. We must prevent future attacks on our democracy, and that’s exactly what we’re doing today.”

The Washington Post was first to report the lawsuit.

Read the full complaint below:

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