The Honey Trap

New details of how a Russian hacker, a Republican operative and a cabal in the FBI worked to expose Anthony Weiner’s sexting scandal to hurt Hillary Clinton’s election chances.

The use of compromising sex secrets to ruin politicians’ careers is as old as the profession itself. Be it Alexander Hamilton’s affair, Thomas Jefferson’s love child with a slave, the Monica Lewinsky scandal or the careers of Gary Hart, Elliot Spitzer, or Anthony Weiner, U.S. history is littered with political ambitions ruined by sexual exploits.

Sex scandals are common in Russia, too. But under the supervision of Vladimir Putin, the dark art now has its own moniker, “kompromat.” Putin infamously climbed the ranks of the Kremlin by leaking secretly filmed tapes of a prosecutor cavorting with two prostitutes. The prosecutor was investigating corruption by then-President Boris Yeltsin. As a reward, Yeltsin elevated Putin to Prime Minister.

Russia’s “kompromat” arsenal is a new weapon in the digital age. Recently, th…