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8 year oldWikiLeaks founder Julian Assange set the record straight on a couple of hot-button issues this morning during a press conference in Berlin. Appearing via Skype, Assange said that while his organization will release a raft of documents before the November 8 presidential election, suggestions that they would “destroy” Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton’s campaign were the result of misquotes. Further regarding both Clinton and her opponent, Donald Trump, Assange said he felt sorry for them: “They are two people that are tormented by their ambitions in different ways.”
The press conference was highly-anticipated, particularly by the Clinton opposition, after former Trump campaign adviser Roger Stone tweeted earlier this week:
Wednesday@HillaryClinton is done. #Wikileaks.
— Roger Stone (@RogerJStoneJr) October 2, 2016
There are about one million documents to be released by year’s end. Some will come this week and are “significant in relation to the upcoming U.S. election,” Assange said. Asked directly if the docs will “destroy Clinton.” He answered, “There’s been a lot of misquoting of me and WikiLeaks publications. In this particular case, the misquoting has to do with that we intend, or I intend, to harm Hillary Clinton or that I don’t like Hillary Clinton. All those are false. They come about as a result it seems of this campaign and those who are trying to personalize our publications.”
What is coming will be published every week for the next 10 weeks with all election-related docs to hit before November 8. “Do they show interesting features of U.S. power factions and how they operate?” Assange mused. “Yes, they do.” He added that overall there is “significant material on war, arms, oil, Google, the election and mass surveillance.”
Assange did not specify a time or day when new information will be released, although he noted, “If we are going to make a major publication in relation to the United States, we wouldn’t do it at 3 AM” which was roughly the time at which he was speaking during the press conference.
Finally, when asked if he felt an “affinity” with Donald Trump, he answered, “It’s an interesting question. I feel personal affinity with all human beings… I certainly feel sorry for Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump. They are two people that are tormented by their ambitions in different ways.”
WikiLeaks is celebrating its 10th anniversary today and Assange appeared from his home-in-asylum at London’s Ecuadorian Embassy (but not from the balcony, a plan which had earlier been kiboshed) sporting a black t-shirt emblazoned with the word “truth.”
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