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Report Names McCain In British Anti-Defamation Lawsuit

A published report names Arizona’s senior Sen. John McCain in a British anti-defamation lawsuit. It concerns leaks that led to the January publication of the dossier alleging the Trump campaign had connections to Russian operatives.

The notorious dossier was assembled by former British Spy Christopher Steele and contained unflattering information said to be compiled by Russian officials that could be used against Trump.

According to British court documents obtained by McClatchy News, the defendants, Steele and his London-based intel firm, repeatedly point to McCain as one of only a handful of people who had copies to the full report before it was circulated among journalists and released on the website BuzzFeed.

A spokesperson for the senator declined comment on the disclosure, pointing to a January statement by McCain that he had delivered the info to former FBI director James Comey.

The court documents also confirm that former State Department official David Kramer — who until recently was senior director at ASU’s McCain Institute — was also in possession of the dossier. 

The British anti-defamation suit is related to a similar action in the U.S. against BuzzFeed for publishing the uncorroborated information.

Phil Latzman is an award-winning digital journalist and broadcast professional with over 25 years of experience covering news and sports on a multitude of platforms.