Trump downplays indicted adviser’s role, despite previous praise

WASHINGTON—President Donald Trump continued to distance himself from the indictments of his former associates Tuesday, referring to an ex-adviser as merely a volunteer. “Few people knew the young, low level volunteer named George, who has already proven to be a liar,” Trump tweeted Tuesday. George Papadopoulos, who worked as a foreign policy adviser to the Trump campaign, pleaded guilty Oct. 5 to lying to the FBI about his dealings with Russian officials. White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders also downplayed the news, telling reporters on Monday that Papadopoulos had an “extremely limited” role in the campaign. But the president praised Papadopoulos as an “excellent guy” in a spring 2016 interview with The Washington Post, contradicting current claims about his limited involvement. White House Chief of Staff John Kelly told Fox News on Monday night that Special Council Robert Mueller’s Russia investigation is very distracting to the president but noted the indictments released Monday don’t implicate the Trump campaign.