Earlier this week, I wrote an article that asked the rhetorical question about how the letter T and P in the original Donald Trump presidential logo might actually stand for Trump-Putin instead of Trump-Pence. In that article, I documented the cozy relationship between the New York liberal and the Russian tyrant, and how it might be behind Trump’s incredibly strong pro-Russia positions.

In that piece, I referenced how the Trump family fortune has been heavily subsidized by Russian money. A fact confirmed by Donald Trump, Jr. himself:

“Russians make up a pretty disproportionate cross-section of a lot of our assets. We see a lot of money pouring in from Russia.”

Following this revelation, I made what I thought at the time was a satirical statement about how this might explain why Trump refuses to release his tax returns. Well, it turns out that my comment is more truth than satirical fiction, as evidence of Russia’s influence in the 2016 election and Trump’s refusal to release his tax returns appear to be on a collision course.

Syndicated columnist and FOX News contributor, George Will, commented during a live broadcast of Special Report at the Democrat National Convention about how Trump’s refusal to release his returns could be due to his Russian connection:

“Perhaps one more reason why we’re not seeing his tax returns (is) because he is deeply involved with Russian oligarchs and others.”

In a press conference yesterday, Trump tried to squelch the growing controversy by saying he has “nothing to do with Russia.” From the “you can’t make this stuff up” category, Trump tried to prove this by defending a $100 million Florida real estate deal with a Russian oligarch by the name of Dmitri Rybolovlev.

Also yesterday, Trump’s campaign manager, Paul Manafort–who has been working in Ukraine for pro-Russian politicians for the past ten years–said in an interview with CBS News that Trump will not be releasing his tax returns. Besides the fact that this is a flip-flop on a campaign promise, it was the reason for this decision that raised eyebrows. According to Manafort, “it has nothing to do with Russia.”

To paraphrase a quote from William Shakespeare’s Hamlet, “The (Trump campaign) doth protest too much, methinks.”

Originally posted on The Strident Conservative

David Leach is the owner of The Strident Conservative, your source for opinion that’s politically-incorrect and always “right.” His articles can also be found on RedState.com.

His daily radio commentary is nationally syndicated with Salem Radio Network and can be heard on stations across America.