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Article snippet: WASHINGTON — President Trump and his representatives on Monday dismissed the charges leveled against three former campaign advisers, saying none of them proved that he had colluded with Russia last year to influence the presidential election. The White House said that the indictment of Paul J. Manafort, the president’s former campaign chairman, and Rick Gates, his deputy, as well as the guilty plea of George Papadopoulos, a former campaign adviser, had nothing to do with Mr. Trump or his election operation. Instead, it sought to refocus attention on Democrats and their actions during the campaign. “Today’s announcement has nothing to do with the president, has nothing to do with the president’s campaign or campaign activity,” said Sarah Huckabee Sanders, the White House press secretary. Responding to questions at her daily briefing, she said, “We’ve been saying from Day 1 there’s been no evidence of Trump-Russia collusion, and nothing in the indictment today changes that at all.” Jay Sekulow, a private attorney for Mr. Trump, said the president and his legal team were not worried about the indictments, which could be used by the special counsel, Robert S. Mueller III, to seek testimony that could implicate other targets. “No, not concerned,” Mr. Sekulow said on CNN. “I’m completely convinced, as I was from the outset, that not only was there no Russian collusion, there was no obstruction.” He added: “I’m not concerned about this at all and no one else is either.”... Link to the full article to read more