[Report] Michael Sussman Billed Hillary Clinton's Campaign Same Day When He Met FBI Officials Over Trump-Russia Documents

On the day he spoke with an FBI official, the attorney who launched an inquiry into since-debunked claims of a hidden back channel between Donald Trump and a Russian bank billed Hillary Clinton's campaign.

The expense records of attorney Michael Sussman were entered into evidence in court Tuesday before the prosecution rested its case against the lawyer, who is on trial for lying to the FBI during the meeting.

Sussmann Billed Clinton Campaign For Work on 'Confidential Project'

Prosecutors presented Michael Sussmann's billing records to the jury on Wednesday, claiming they show he charged the Hillary Clinton campaign for a meeting with then-FBI General Counsel James Baker in which he shared allegations of a covert communications channel between the Trump Organization and Russia's Alfa Bank.

Kori Arsenault, a paralegal with Special Counsel John Durham's office, was the prosecution's final witness. Arsenault worked on several of the government's exhibits and assisted the jurors in understanding the documents. On Wednesday morning, the prosecution disclosed the Perkins Coie document, alleging it shows the law firm billed "Hillary for America" for the meeting Sussmann held with Baker at FBI headquarters on September 19, 2016.

The Clinton campaign is mentioned as the customer on the bill, which is likewise dated September 19, 2016, the duration is recorded as 3.3 hours, and the memo states: work and discussions related confidential project. Other evidence indicated Sussmann charged around $800 per hour, according to Fox News.

The defense looks to be close to deciding whether or not to summon Sussmann to testify in his defense. His counsel has not stated publicly if he intends to testify. Closing arguments in the case are expected before the end of the week.

Durham prosecutors wrapped up their case on Wednesday by reciting Sussmann's testimony to the House Intelligence Committee in December 2017, in which he stated that his meeting with the FBI in September 2016 and another meeting with the CIA in February 2017 were both for a client.

The FBI decided that the data Sussmann gave up did not truly demonstrate a hidden communications channel, but was most likely the result of "spam" marketing emails. Sussmann's defense questioned Tashina Gauhar and Mary McCord, two former Justice Department attorneys who attended a March 2017 conference when the Alfa-Bank charges were discussed after Durham's team rested their case. Both stated that they had no recall of the session.

Former FBI agent Tom Grasso testified before the jury, saying Joffe had done a good job assisting the government with a previous cyber probe and was unlikely to have knowingly provided the FBI false information.

Judge Christopher Cooper, an Obama Administration appointment, removed from evidence an exhibit provided by prosecutors on Tuesday in which Joffe texted fellow tech specialists asking if the Trump-related charges would be "plausible" to a non-expert.

An FBI agent testified on the stand that the email appeared to suggest an attempt to spread false allegations, but Cooper said the email was inadmissible because Joffe had asserted his Fifth Amendment right not to testify and, despite earlier plans, none of the email's recipients were called by the prosecution, as per Politico.

Sussmann Won't Take a Stand in Court

Before his attorneys rested their case, Hillary Clinton's longtime attorney declined to testify in his defense. Sussman said he was still debating whether to testify in his single-count trial in federal court in Washington, DC, which has lasted over two weeks.

Sussmann told James Baker in a text message the night before the meeting that he was going not on behalf of any client or firm, but as a concerned citizen looking to assist the Bureau.

Throughout the trial, prosecutors have called a flurry of witnesses in an attempt to establish that Sussmann was working on behalf of his clients at the meeting - and that it was part of a bigger scheme by the Clinton campaign to use the FBI to create an October surprise ahead of the 2016 election.

Baker, when called by prosecutors, said that Sussmann assured him towards the outset of their meeting that he was not there on behalf of any client. Sussmann's defense team has worked hard to emphasize memory gaps and other errors made by the prosecution's witnesses, notably Baker.

Attorney Michael Bosworth said in his opening remarks that Baker's recall of the Sept. 19, 2016, discussion with Sussmann was as clear as mud. In his cross-examination of Baker, defense attorney Sean Berkowitz emphasized inconsistencies in statements given to investigators about the encounter by the FBI's former top counsel in the years preceding up to the trial, New York Post reported.