Mixed Message

The executive director of the George W. Bush Institute, who organized a letter from presidential libraries calling for national unity, previously leaked the now-debunked Steele dossier to reporters during height of the Trump-Russia collusion investigation.

David Kramer, who worked in the State Department under President George W. Bush and was an associate of the late Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), pushed for the foundations and centers of former presidents to sign a letter about unifying the country.

However, in 2016 Kramer provided the Steele dossier to BuzzFeed, which published it without corroborating its allegations that then-President-elect Donald Trump was a puppet of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
On Thursday, a letter was released by the George W. Bush Institute about unifying around democracy, saying that: “Debate and disagreement are central features in a healthy democracy. Civility and respect in political discourse, whether in an election year or otherwise, are essential.”
The letter was co-signed by 13 presidential centers, reflecting a wide diversity of viewpoints and policies, ranging from the Obama Foundation and The Carter Center to the George & Barbara Bush Foundation and The Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and Institute.

 

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