In a Daily Caller op-ed calling the Russian meddling narrative a "false public manipulation," Russian billionaire Oleg Deripaska claims that Daniel Jones - a former FBI investigator, Feinstein staffer and now a Fusion GPS operative - told the Russian Oligarch's lawyer in March, 2017 that Fusion GPS was funded by "a group of Silicon Valley billionaires and George Soros."

Daniel J. Jones

Of note, Deripaska's lawyer, D.C. lobbyist Adam Waldman, recommended Jones to investigate and verify the claims from the Fusion GPS anti-Trump dossier assembled by former UK spy Christopher Steele. Waldman was also an intermediary between Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA) and Steele in trying to arrange a meeting - which suggests that Waldman, Jones, Steele and Fusion GPS are all connected.

Deripaska describes the ongoing "Russia narrative" as nothing more than a scandal manufactured by the deep state. "Wagging the dog costs money," writes Deripaska. "So, who is the “funding mechanism” of this “shadowy government?”" Why, none other than billionaire financier George Soros, according to Daniel Jones - as relayed to Congressional investigators by Deripaska's attorney Adam Waldman:

[O]n March 16, 2017, Daniel Jones — himself a team member of Fusion GPS, self-described former FBI agent and, as we now know from the media, an ex-Feinstein staffer — met with my lawyer, Adam Waldman, and described Fusion as a “shadow media organization helping the government,” funded by a “group of Silicon Valley billionaires and George Soros.” My lawyer testified these facts to the Senate Intelligence Committee on Nov. 3. Mr. Soros is, not coincidentally, also the funder of two “ethics watchdog” NGOs (Democracy 21 and CREW) attacking Rep. Nunes’ committee memo. -Oleg Deripaska

Jones currently runs the Penn Quarter Group, a "research and investigative advisory" firm whose website was registered in April of 2016, days before Steele delivered his first in a series of Trump-Russia memos. Jones began tweeting out articles suggesting illicit ties between the Trump campaign and Russia as early as 2017.

As The Federalist's Sean Davis reported last month, Congressional documents and leaked texts between Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA) and Deripaska's attorney Adam Waldman reveal that Jones is "intimately involved with ongoing efforts to retroactively validate" the Steele / Fusion GPS memos.

Jones comes up in leaked text messages between Sen. Warner and Waldman as a point of contact for Christopher Steele. The encrypted text messages, leaked to Fox News, discuss efforts by Warner to secure Steele's testimony.

“I spoke w Steele,” Waldman wrote on April 25, 2017. “He repeated the same position which is that he wants to be helpful but is fearful of the triumvirate of cost, time suck and reputation.” “He asked me what your concern was about a letter first and I explained it but he would still like as a first protective step from you and [Sen. Richard] Burr asking him and his partner to assist w the investigation by answering questions,” Waldman added. “He [Steele] said he will also speak w Dan Jones whom he says is talking to you.” “I pointed out there is no privilege in that discussion although Dan [Jones] is a good guy and very trustworthy guy. I encouraged him again to engage with you for the sake of the truth and of vindication of the dossier,” he wrote. -Adam Waldman to Mark warner

Jones' name was also mentioned in a list of individuals from a January 25 Congressional letter from Senators Grassley and Graham to various Democratic party leaders who were likely involved in Fusion GPS's 2016 efforts. The letter seeks all communications between the Democrats and a list of 40 individuals or entities, of which Jones is one.

Deripaska - Russia's richest man before the 2008 financial crisis, has recently come under fire for his association with short-lived Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort. Last week a prostitute from Belarus claimed to have a tape of Deripaska discussing "plans" for the 2016 election, which she says she'll release if someone gets her out of a Thai prison.

The "Deep State"

"Technology and the disintegration of evidence-based journalism permit a surprisingly small number of individuals to destroy bilateral or multilateral relations." Deripaska writes. "Their motivation in shifting from an inconvenient reality into their desired reality is power and military-industrial commercial interests."

What has been inelegantly termed the “Deep State” is really this: shadow power exercised by a small number of individuals from media, business, government and the intelligence community, foisting provocative and cynically false manipulations on the public. Out of these manipulations, an agenda of these architects’ own design is born.

"Unfortunately, I am personally familiar with this group," writes Deripaska. "Before they moved to their current, bigger ambitions of reversing the U.S. presidential election results, they scurrilously attacked me and others from the shadows for two decades. The various story lines and roles they have created for me don’t survive close scrutiny and are internally inconsistent, yet they simply follow the “Wag the Dog” playbook: We don’t need it to prove to be true. We need it to distract them."

While Deripaska may be a Putin-aligned Russian oligarch - he's not alone in the growing chorus of voices on both sides of the aisle pointing to the absurdity of the Russia narrative - with Democrat rep Jim Himes even saying it's a "running joke" between Democrats.

If the goal was to divide the nation after a Trump win, the "deep state" - with (allegedly) Soros-funded opposition research firm Fusion GPS at its side, has done a remarkable job.