WikiLeaks deleted a tweet linking to the full text of the explosive book about the Trump White House
- The pro-transparency group WikiLeaks tweeted out, and later deleted, a link to the full text of "Fire & Fury: Inside the Trump White House."
- The book has drawn intense criticism from President Donald Trump and his allies in recent days.
- It's unclear why WikiLeaks tweeted the link out.
- Trump often praised WikiLeaks on the campaign trail, and though the organization says it is a standalone operation dedicated to transparency, the US intelligence community believes it collaborated with the Russian government to tilt the 2016 election in Trump's favor.
The radical pro-transparency group WikiLeaks posted, and then quickly deleted, a tweet linking to the full text of "Fire & Fury: Inside the Trump White House" by author Michael Wolff.
The book paints President Donald Trump and his administration in an unflattering light and features several explosive quotes from former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon.
Among other things, Bannon called Trump's daughter Ivanka "dumb as a brick," and he also said Donald Trump Jr.'s meeting with a Russian lawyer in June 2016 was "treasonous" and "unpatriotic."
After Trump and his allies went on a scorched earth offensive against Bannon, Wolff, and the book, Bannon issued a lengthy apology on Sunday, walking back many of his comments and reaffirming his "unwavering" support for Trump.
The book also suggests that Trump's closest advisers believe he is not fit for office, and Wolff said during an interview on the "Today" show on Friday that "100% of the people around him" question his intelligence and mental capacity.
It's unclear why WikiLeaks tweeted out a link to the full text of the book, which Trump has dismissed as "a work of fiction" and his aides have called "a pile of garbage." The organization did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
WikiLeaks was a key player in the 2016 presidential election and is also a subject of scrutiny in the FBI and congressional investigations into Russia's interference in the race.
Though WikiLeaks touts itself as a standalone operation, there has been widespread speculation that it was working with the Russian government when it published thousands of internal emails from the Democratic National Committee and Hillary Clinton's campaign manager, John Podesta, during the summer of 2016.
Trump frequently praised WikiLeaks on the campaign trail, saying it provided "incredible information" and telling crowds at his rallies that he "loved" the organization.
The CIA, FBI, and NSA also concluded in in January 2017 that WikiLeaks had "actively collaborated" with Russia's "principal international propaganda outlet RT" as it published the DNC emails. The intelligence report also said that the organization worked with the GRU, Russia's military intelligence arm.