Plea Hearing Scheduled for Accused Russian Spy.
BLITZER: There's an unexpected twist tonight in the case of an accused Russian spy. Federal prosecutors say Maria Butina infiltrated conservative organizations like the NRA to try to interfere in U.S. politics. Our political correspondent, Sara Murray, is working this story for us. Sara, update our viewers with the very latest on this case.</s>SARA MURRAY, CNN POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, it appears that Maria Butina has reached a plea deal with the U.S. government. Now, we don't yet know what she is going to plead guilty to or whether she has information to offer investigators about other investigations. But we're sure to learn more about all of that in court on Wednesday.</s>MURRAY (voice-over): Prosecutors once accused Maria Butina of being a Russian spy who cozied up to the National Rifle Association. Now they appear ready to strike a plea deal. Today, Butina's attorneys and prosecutors requested a change of plea hearing in D.C. federal court, noting that the parties have resolved this matter. The filing indicates Butina is likely to plead guilty to at least one of the charges she's facing: conspiracy and acting as a foreign agent. It's unclear whether Butina will agree to cooperate with other federal investigations as part of a deal, including the South Dakota fraud investigation into her boyfriend, GOP political operative, Paul Erickson. Until now, 30-year-old Butina has maintained her innocence. Prosecutors accused Butina of ingratiating herself with American political entities who tried to advance Russian interests. But her lawyer insisted she was a bright American University graduate student who simply embraced her roots, even sporting a Vladimir Putin phone case.</s>ROBERT DRISCOLL, ATTORNEY FOR MARIA BUTINA: It's a picture of Vladimir Putin shirtless on the horse. So you can imagine, you know, she had it as a gag.</s>MURRAY: But Butina became a regular at exclusive NRA events, snapped picks with GOP presidential hopefuls as 2016 heated up, and posed a question to then candidate Donald Trump about Russian sanctions at a political event.</s>MARIA BUTINA, ACCUSED OF ESPIONAGE: I'm visiting from Russia --</s>TRUMP: Ah! Putin.</s>BUTINA: -- so my question --</s>MURRAY: She earned a telling response.</s>TRUMP: I believe I would get along very nicely with Putin. OK? And I mean, where we have the strength. I don't think you'd need the sanctions. I think that we would get along very, very well.</s>MURRAY: The Justice Department charged Butina back in July amid a flurry of U.S./Russia news. She was arrested days after the Justice Department indicted Russian military intelligence officers for hacking the Democratic Party, and her case became public the day President Trump met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Helsinki and declined to admit Russia interfered in the 2016 election.</s>TRUMP: I have President Putin. He just said it's not Russia. I will say this. I don't see any reason why it would be.</s>MURRAY: Butina's case created its own furor, in part because of prosecutors' salacious allegations that she tried to trade sex for access. Prosecutors later admitted that was an error, and they misunderstood text messages they were relying on as evidence of her sexual overture. But the honeypot stereotype inspired her attorney to release a video of Butina and her boyfriend, Erickson, performing a Disney love song.</s>BUTINA (singing): There is always time.</s>MURRAY: Now Maria Butina's father actually talked to some Russian media, and he insists that his daughter did nothing wrong but said she might admit in court that she should have registered as a foreign agent. As for her boyfriend, Paul Erickson, he's still not facing any charges and, in fact, he continues to visit her in jail. Wolf, though, if she does plead guilty, she's likely to be sent back to Russia.</s>BLITZER: We'll see what happens. Obviously, very significant development. Thanks very much, Sara, for that. Coming up, President Trump tweets about hush-money payments. Are they impeachable offenses? Plus, the growing list of Trump associates now known to have had contacts with Russians. How many are there?