Christopher Steele looms large over John Durham’s trial against Michael Sussmann as the special counsel says the dossier author is at the “intersection” of Trump-Russia collusion efforts, while the Democratic lawyer calls the evidence about him an unfair “lightning rod.”

Sussmann was indicted in September for allegedly concealing his clients (Hillary Clinton’s 2016 campaign and “Tech Executive-1” Rodney Joffe) from FBI general counsel James Baker in September 2016 when he presented internet data that suggested a now-discredited back-channel link between the Trump Organization and Russia’s Alfa Bank. He has pleaded not guilty.