Before the world saw them, The New York Times had knowledge of the exchange of emails that led Donald Trump Jr. to meet with a Russian lawyer promising damaging information about Hillary Clinton during last year’s campaign.

The story — which the paper broke Sunday and reverberated Tuesday when Trump Jr. himself published the emails on Twitter — leaned on five unnamed sources confirming the existence of those emails. At least two of those came from inside the White House.

Related: Will Trump Jr.-Russian 'opposition research' defense hold?

Speculation about the sources, especially if they are inside President Donald Trump ’s close circle of advisers, added another element of drama to an already-frenzied political environment.

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The emails create a huge problem for the president, who has insisted that his campaign did not collude with Russians to influence the election.

Related: 3 key exchanges in Donald Trump Jr.'s emails over Russian meeting

This has led many to wonder who within or close to the White House would leak such a damning scoop to The Times. Here are some potential suspects:

Corey Lewandowski

One-time Trump campaign manager Corey Lewandowski emerged as a possible source. He was running the campaign in June 2016, when Trump Jr. met with the Russian lawyer, and was fired less than two weeks after the meeting.

Though Lewandowski is not now a White House adviser, his possible knowledge of the meeting led some to believe he had an axe to grind. Was he one of those sources?

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BuzzFeed News also quoted Trump adviser Roger Stone as saying on the record that he and Sam Numberg, another adviser, also suspected Lewandowski as one of the potential sources for The Times’ story.

“Donny was a vocal critic of Corey, he walked him towards the exits, and fits the broad definition of a White House adviser,” Stone told BuzzFeed News. “I’m not unbiased, but he’d be my choice.”

Jared Kushner

Trump adviser Jared Kushner also emerged as a possible source, according to BuzzFeed News and others reporting the search for those sources. After all, Kushner had knowledge of those emails and the meeting because he attended it along with one-time campaign manager Paul Manafort.

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But what motivations would Kushner have to disclose that meeting? Such a leak would seemingly complicate things for Kushner, who is already under scrutiny for not previously disclosing his contacts with Russians when he sought security clearance.

Stephen Bannon

Trump adviser Steve Bannon does not appear to fit in the picture, but given his history of speaking anonymously to the press, it’s possible the former Breitbart chief could be the source.

A few theorized that the emails and the meeting implicated another top White House official believed to be a foe of Bannon: Kushner.

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Again, there’s very little to suggest Bannon could have spoken to The Times, but he is known as an infighter.

The Russians

Were the Russians mad that the U.S. didn’t lift its sanctions after the G20 summit meeting between Trump and Vladimir Putin? Even if there was no suggestion of a Russian source at play in The Times story, the motive of retaliation would fit the action.

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And there is another possible Russian motive as well: the hope of bringing chaos to American politics with the leak.

Mike Pence

And one very big name has also emerged as a possible source: the vice president himself.

Conservative writer Allahpundit was willing to point to Pence. And that theory was promptly followed by a vote of confidence from political writer Josh Barro.

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Pence is not known to speak to the press anonymously, and on Tuesday, the vice president distanced himself from the story and the controversy surrounding it.

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But of course Pence has the ultimate motivation — to be the 46th president if the 45th president is forced out.

So who else might have leaked information about the emails and the meeting Trump Jr. had with a Russian contact promising damaging information about Clinton? Share your theories with us.

Have some thoughts to share?

Join me in a conversation: Shoot me a private email with your thoughts or ideas on a different approach to this story. As always, you can also send us a tweet.

Email: luis.gomez@sduniontribune.com

Twitter: @RunGomez

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