Trump Jr Russia Email Scandal: Attempt To Get Clinton Dirt Part Of Kremlin Effort To Help Father, Report Says

UPDATE: Tuesday, July 11, 2017 11:17 a.m. EDT

Donald Trump Jr. released the emails and an updated statement on Twitter:

Original Story:

Donald Trump Jr. met with a Russian lawyer last year in an attempt to get dirt on the Hillary Clinton campaign, the New York Times revealed on Sunday. The lawyer had connections to the Kremlin.

In a statement Sunday, Trump Jr. said: “I was not told her name prior to the meeting.”

In a new report Tuesday, the Times said Trump Jr. received an e-mail that stated that the Russian government was attempting to help the campaign of his father, now-President Donald Trump, through the meeting. Paul Manafort, Trump’s campaign manager at the time, and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, now an advisor to the president, were also both at the meeting.

Trump Jr. acknowledged in his statement that the meeting happened and that he was attempting to get dirt on Clinton, but that the attempt was in vain.

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“After pleasantries were exchanged, the woman stated that she had information that individuals connected to Russia were funding the Democratic National Committee and supporting Ms. Clinton. Her statements were vague, ambiguous and made no sense. No details or supporting information was provided or even offered. It quickly became clear that she had no meaningful information,” read the statement.

Trump Jr. was told in an email, however, “that the material was part of a Russian government effort to aid his father’s candidacy,” according to the Times Tuesday; the email coming from Rob Goldstone. Goldstone was a former tabloid writer in Britain and publicist who helped arrange the meeting.

The report pointed out the email doesn’t connect this meeting to wider attempts by Russia to meddle in the 2016 presidential election.

The White House fought back against the meeting being nefarious.

“The president’s campaign did not collude in any way. Don Jr. did not collude with anybody to influence the election. No one within the Trump campaign colluded in order to influence the election,” said White House spokesperson Sarah Huckabee Sanders in a Monday briefing.

The Russian lawyer named, Natalia Veselnitskaya, talked about Russian adoption and the Magnitsky Act. The act was a bill punishing Russian officials who were responsible for the death of a Russian auditor, Sergei Magnitsky, after he was imprisoned because of a fraud investigation. In return, Russia banned the U.S. adoption of Russian children.

On Twitter, Trump Jr. said he would be happy to speak with the Senate Intelligence Committee about the matter. Members of the body have called for an interview with the president’s son.

Trump Jr. defended himself. “Obviously I'm the first person on a campaign to ever take a meeting to hear info about an opponent... went nowhere but had to listen, said Trump Jr. in one tweet, Monday.

He also called the matter overblown.

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“Media & Dems are extremely invested in the Russia story. If this nonsense meeting is all they have after a yr, I understand the desperation!” he said in another tweet, Tuesday.

His father, a prolific Twitter user, has been silent on the matter.