The aggressive questioning is aimed at shifting blame from Trump’s former campaign manager onto Rick Gates, who pleaded guilty and agreed to cooperate with investigators by testifying in the financial fraud trial.

He’s facing a strong challenge from Democrat Danny O’Connor, even in a heavily Republican district.

Rick Gates testified that he conspired with former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort to fake Manafort’s tax returns, failed to report foreign bank accounts and did not register Manafort as a foreign agent.

That contradicts his past statements and is his most explicit declaration yet that his eldest son agreed to see the Kremlin-linked figures.

Social media sites are targeting automated accounts, which authorities say were used to cloak efforts by foreign governments, but the screening continuously flags real people.