Assange, Manafort Threaten Legal Action Against The Guardian As It ‘Softens’ Report

On Tuesday, the Guardian dropped a “bombshell” report alleging that former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort had personally met with WikiLeaks’ founder Julian Assange at the Ecuadorian embassy in “secret talks,” at one point presumably about Clinton campaign-damaging emails. But with WikiLeaks emphatically declaring the story false and both Manafort and Assange making legal threats over the “libelous” claims, the Guardian has edited the article to soften the language.

“Donald Trump’s former campaign manager Paul Manafort held secret talks with Julian Assange inside the Ecuadorian embassy in London, and visited around the time he joined Trump’s campaign, the Guardian has been told,” the outlet reported Tuesday. “Sources have said Manafort went to see Assange in 2013, 2015 and in spring 2016 – during the period when he was made a key figure in Trump’s push for the White House. …. A well-placed source has told the Guardian that Manafort went to see Assange around March 2016. Months later WikiLeaks released a stash of Democratic emails stolen by Russian intelligence officers.”