September 12, 2017: Trump Administration Will Redesign Statue of Liberty

 

9/12/17: The White House tells reporters the number of refugees allowed annually to enter the United States may be cut to 50,000. 

 

A giant, green, copper bank book. 

Then again, Najib Razak, Prime Minister of Malaysia, will be welcome if he wants to come. Did you realize that rich individuals and their rich children, up to age 21, can acquire green cards and permanent residency in the U.S.A. by investing $500,000? Well, now you do. The Statue of Liberty should ditch the torch and start waving a giant, green, copper bank book. 

In India, on average, three wealthy individuals are signing up for U.S. residency and sending checks every week. 

And guess who pushed to get Chinese oligarchs (who became rich by rigging a communist system) to invest $500,000 in his luxury apartment tower? 

Jared Kushner!

 

All kinds of superrich Chinese “communists,” oil-drenched Nigerians, and even Mexicans carting suitcases stuffed with drug money manage to enter the U.S. if they have sufficient piles of dough. You could say, metaphorically, that if Trump does build his wall a Mexican with connections and plenty of narco cash could stack up his or her gold ingots and come climbing into the U.S. of A. 

At any rate, Trump invites Razak to the White House. This seems ironic since Razak is under investigation by the Justice Department. When it was revealed Razak had a cool $681 million stashed in a secret bank account, his own Attorney General (way more loyal than Jeff Sessions) swore the Saud royal family had donated the money. 

Anyone who said bribery or other crimes were involved was part of a liberal Malaysian “witch hunt.” 

Okay. I made that last line up.

 

BLOGGERS NOTE (9/19/18): We won’t know this until months later, but Razak will start talking about shutting down the Malaysia purveyors of “fake news.” 

I didn’t make that up. 

If nothing else, we can say the Prime Minister knows how to spend the dough. So does his wife. She is the proud owner of a $27.3-million necklace with a 22-carat diamond pendant. She once bought 27 gold necklaces during a single L.A. shopping spree. Jho Low, an accomplice of the Prime Minister, gave Australian supermodel Miranda Kerr an $8 million necklace. Razak handed over $12 million in artwork to his pal, Leonardo DiCaprio.

 

BLOGGER’S NOTE #2 (December 2, 2019): Razak will finally stand trial. He and his accomplices are accused of looting Malaysia to the tune of $4.5 billion. When you need to launder money, you do what this crew did. You buy yachts, private jets, Picasso paintings, jewelry, and lots and lots of real estate.

October 21, 2020: Add another Felon to the Wall of Shame

10/21/20: Day #4 of Character Counts Week! Paul Krause, former president of Blue Bell Creameries, is definitely not going to be held up as an example to children by America’s schoolteachers.

 

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Bloated capitalism has a bad day.

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Rather, Krause proves a liberal maxim. Government regulations are often necessary to curb the excesses of bloated capitalism. Just weeks after his company agreed to pay a $17.5 million fine for price fixing – that is, cheating customers – Krause was indicted on charges of wire fraud and conspiracy.

 

Has “Law & Order” Trump ever talked about attacking white collar crime? Most of his family – but not Barron or Tiffany, and probably not the First Lady – and half his cabinet would go to jail.

 

* 

WE KNOW President Trump likes to lead cheers at almost every rally, where loyal fans chant about locking up Americans who have never been tried and convicted, let alone indicted.

Nader and Trump: buds!

Broidy: Add another felon to the Wall of Shame.

 

Has he ever laid out his feelings toward plea-deal accepting felons? If you missed it, Team Trump added another name to the “Wall of Dishonor.” But first, a little nuance and context. If you are a big fan of this president – and you love to chant, “Lock her up!” Or “Lock him up!” Or “Lock them all up!” you probably haven’t ever considered this point. Since it’s Character Counts Week, and our topic today is bloated capitalism, don’t forget that not so long ago the Chinese offered to bail out Jared Kushner and his family, who were carrying a massive debt on a property at 666 Fifth Avenue, in New York City.

 

If it had been Obama who owned that building, QAnon supporters would have said, “Of course: ‘666,’ the sign of the beast.” 

Anyway, bad publicity ensued – the president’s son-in-law and family getting bailed out by commies. The deal was torpedoed.

 

Jared is always trying to bring peace to the Middle East. So, one day, he met with some folks from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. They really wanted the U.S. to support a blockade of rival Qatar. Jared said he’d talk to his father-in-law and see what he could do. Meanwhile, Elliott Broidy, pal of the president, snagged a lucrative contract (worth at least $200 million) from the Emiratis.

 

The Qataris heard the news and got antsy. Would they be odd-country out, in terms of deals with Americans? Suddenly, a Qatari sovereign fund bought up most of the debt on 666 and bailed out the Kushner clan.

 

When the free press broke that story, Qatari fund managers claimed all they saw was a really good investment opportunity. What???? You don’t mean 666 Fifth Avenue is owned by the Kushner family!

 

Boy, were they surprised!

 

Later, George Nader, an ally of President Trump and Mr. Broidy, gets busted for child sex trafficking. He pleads guilty and gets sentenced to ten years in the slammer. (Definitely not a good example during Character Counts Week!) Nader, who helped Broidy snag that $200 million deal with the Emiratis, agrees to cooperate with investigators. Broidy gets investigated next. The feds get the goods. Today he pleads guilty to one act of conspiracy to violate the Foreign Agents Registration Act. Until he was caught, Broidy had been piling up the big bucks, selling access to the White House to sleazeball characters. Take for example, Najib Razak, former Prime Minister of Malaysia. Razak looted his country, got caught, and now finds himself sitting in jail. 

In exchange for leniency, Broidy has also agreed to cooperate with investigators and forfeit $6.6 million. 

Prosecutors are clear: Broidy had been a walking, talking, money-grubbing threat to U.S. security. 

“Elliott Broidy sought to lobby the highest levels of the U.S. government [emphasis added on this blog, unless otherwise noted] to drop one of the largest fraud and money laundering prosecutions ever brought and to deport a critic of the Chinese Communist Party, all the while concealing the foreign interests whose bidding he was doing,” Assistant Attorney General John C. Demers said in a statement.

 

“Such conduct poses a serious threat to our national security and undermines the integrity of our democracy,” added acting assistant attorney general Brian C. Rabbitt. (See: 10/16/20 for more detail on Broidy.)

 

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IN OTHER NEWS, Trump fans are bummed to learn that the “Deep State” has infiltrated the Trump campaign.

 

Members of the Satanic, pedophile, cannibal, liberal cabal convinced organizers of a Trump rally in North Carolina to ban anyone from wearing QAnon gear or waving patriotic, flag-themed “Q” signs. If followers of “Q,” who make up a sizeable lump of the Trump base, wanted to flash their secret sign at Trump rallies, they’d have to do it quick, and not get caught on TV.

 

Well, QAnon fans, take heart!  The “Deep State” can’t stop Marjorie Taylor Greene, GOP candidate for Congress.

 

Greene is a big believer in “Q” and his/her idiot theories and an equally big believer in owning all the guns you can afford. Because we all know, “Only a good guy with a gun can stop a cannibalistic liberal from gnawing off our legs.”

 

Behind the scenes, Trump lawyers have been helping her advance her campaign, which makes one wonder. Did Team Trump ban QAnon gear, because most Americans think the QAnon line is nuts, and they didn’t want to look bad with less than two weeks to go until the election?

 

Or was Team Trump tricking the cannibals?  Did Team Trump have a secret plan to defeat them once and for all?

September 21, 2021: Shake the Trump Tree and Crooks Rain Down

 

9/21/21: We learned yesterday that lawyers for the Trump Organization are predicting fresh indictments are coming. These will likely pile on top of the one that prosecutors have already filed against Allen Weisselberg, chief financial officer at the operation for many years. 

Where you find one crook hiding under a Trump rock, you often find five or ten or lose count, as they scurry away. (See below.)

Trump and Razak: Two crooks?

 

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“He that delights to walk and talk with them that have the plague, it is no marvell if he catch infection.” 

Richard Mather, c. 1639

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Law enforcement authorities recently uncovered a trove of evidence in the basement of a “co-conspirator,” and alerted the defense team, as required by the rules of discovery. It’s not clear yet who the “co-conspirator” might be, or whether the material might lead to charges against multiple individuals. Bryan Skarlatos, speaking for the defense did say, “We have strong reason to believe there could be other indictments coming.” 

Plural? 

Others who might be under the microscope include Allen Weisselberg’s son, Barry, and Matthew Calamari, who rose through the ranks, from Trump bodyguard to chief operating officer. We know prosecutors have said that there was a “sweeping and audacious illegal payments scheme” in place to evade taxes, which sounds as if multiple individuals might be involved. And even Michael Cohen – when testifying before Congress – said he thought several persons with the Trump Organization would be able to turn over the legal rocks and reveal a wide-ranging plan to cheat local, state, and federal tax collectors. (He mentioned Calamari, by name.)

 

Of course, all of these gentlemen might be innocent lambs, and this blogger is not prone to shouting, “Lock them up!” and drooling, as if at a Trump rally, before trials play out. Still, let’s be honest. Cohen went to the slammer for a scheme cooked up while he was employed at the Trump Organization. And his indictment mentioned an “Unindicted Co-Conspirator 1.” 

That was Donald John Trump, himself – who evaded indictment by virtue of the fact he was President of the United States at the time. 

In any case, this latest news is not a good look for an already battered Team Trump. 

Even worse, Allen Weisselberg’s trial is set for next summer, just in time to remind voters ahead of the midterms what it was like to have a pack of criminally-inclined individuals leading the nation.

 

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THE FORMER PRESIDENT reacted badly to the news – because – when does he not? In a statement he first blasted Gen. Mark Milley, who he referred to as a “lightweight,” even though he had picked him to be chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. He went on to complain about the “bullshit” he’d had to endure for years, as law enforcement officials continued to examine his business adventures. He went on to yowl that a bunch of “Never Trumpers” prosecutors were out to get him, insisting, 

they have NOTHING! Murder and all forms of crime are “through the roof” in New York, and their focus is on “Trump,” despite numerous other political investigations that went nowhere. They are spending tens of millions of dollars with a vast army of Trump Haters. This has been going on for years and the people of our Country are not going to take it anymore!

 

You almost had the feeling that Trump was finally worried about what investigators were going to find. 

Especially now – when he can no longer pardon himself.

 

* 

We’ve got “criminal bingo” in one story. 

WHAT OTHER legal developments might we have missed? In short order, we learn this week that the Department of Justice has filed charges against two men, including a former aide of both Sen. Rand Paul and Sen. Mitch McConnell. That aide, Jesse Benton, had already garnered a pardon from President Trump in an unrelated criminal scheme, but clearly failed to learn his lesson. 

(You know some of these crooks are really going to be hoping Donald J. Trump gets elected again in 2024.) 

Now, Benton has been charged, along with Doug Wead, with taking $100,000 from a Russian – that’s right a Russian – pocketing $75,000 as their fee, setting up a convoluted structure to disguise the source, and sending $25,000 on to – yes – we’ve got “criminal bingo” in one story – a Trump joint fundraising committee! 

What did the Russian want for his money? He wanted a photo op with the Orange President. 

Both Benton and Wead have been charged with six criminal counts, including conspiracy, and abetting illegal foreign political contributions (which we will see in a moment is a theme when we’re talking about Team Trump). Benton had practice playing hide and seek with campaign cash – and got convicted – and then pardoned in the waning days of Donald John’s first and only term in office.

 

* 

You are essentially putting U.S. foreign policy up for sale. 

IF YOU MISSED this larger story, as I did (until a few days ago), Igor Fruman as now plead guilty in federal court. (See: 10/25/21.) 

This is when the liberal blogger, who has profound respect for the way the U.S. courts are structured, shouts gleefully, “Lock him up!” 

A reminder, of course, who Fruman is. Along with Lev Parnas, he worked with Rudy Giuliani on a variety of what would seem to have been questionable deals in Ukraine. (See, for example, the seedy story of Dmitry Firtash, and his efforts to avoid extradition to the United States.) You may recall how, during President Trump’s first impeachment trial, his defense rested on the idea that all his efforts to get Hunter Biden and his dad investigated by the Ukrainians boiled down to his abiding interest in draining swamps both here and abroad. Yet, Parnas is now a suspect in an insurance fraud case; and together he and Fruman are accused of funneling stacks of foreign cash into U.S. political campaigns. (See: Benton and Wead, above.) Fruman has plead guilty to a charge of showering Republican committees with $500,000. 

Why might this smell – politically – like dead-skunk roadkill by the side of the street? It is well-established that foreign individuals may not legally donate to U.S. political campaigns, and don’t risk doing so illegally, unless they hope to get something extremely valuable in return. That means if you take foreign money, you are essentially putting U.S. foreign policy up for sale.

 

Here, in the annals of Team Trump, we have already turned over several rocks, and seen creepy individuals run from the light. We know Trump’s first National Security Advisor, General Michael T. Flynn, took a $45,000 speaker’s fee from the Russians in December 2015. Then he neglected to tell the U.S. Army about the payment, as regulations required. Later, he and his son took $530,000 from Turkish interests – at the same time dad was giving the newly-elected Mr. Trump foreign policy advice. As for Paul Manafort, and all his efforts to get a few million dollars to end up in his secret bank accounts, let’s just remind everyone he piled up at least ten felony counts. Then, oddly enough, he got a coveted Golden Pardon from President Trump. 

In the fall of 2020, we also learned that Elliott Broidy, another pal of President Trump, plead guilty to selling influence to foreign entities – during which schemes he raked in some truly impressive bucks. Broidy reaped what prosecutors described as “millions of dollars” for his efforts. Those efforts focused on convincing top officials in the Trump administration to drop an investigation into the looting of a Malaysian wealth fund. 

Then, inexplicably, on the morning of January 20, 2021, he too snagged a pardon from Trump on the soon-to-be ex-president’s way out the White House door. 

Flynn had snagged a pardon previously if you think there might be a trend.

 

There are a lot of crooks in stories about Team Trump, so you have to pay attention if you hope to follow along. The looted wealth fund that had Broidy’s attention was looted by none other than Najib Razak, the then-Prime Minister of Malaysia. Along with an assortment of sleazy accomplices, he got away with embezzling $4.5 billion, at least for a while. 

Eventually, Razak was convicted, despite Broidy’s efforts, in July 2020. But he and his lawyers have vowed to appeal. 

We already noted that there are a lot of crooks in this tale. So, let’s not forget Goldman Sachs. That’s the company you, the American taxpayer, helped rescue in October 2008, by virtue of a $10 billion government bailout. That bailout and others like it were necessary because the Lords of Wall Street had managed to bring the U.S. economy to its knees. This past July, the investment firm agreed to pay a $3.9 billion settlement to the Malaysian government for its role in helping Razak steal all that dough. In return, criminal charges against the bank were dropped. 

(George Floyd? Passed a counterfeit $20. You know the rest.) 

The list of convicted and alleged criminals grows longer, the more we look. We haven’t even mentioned Razak’s stepson, Hollywood producer Riza Aziz, yet. He got arrested and charged with laundering $248 million in stolen cash. (Ironically, one of his most successful films was “The Wolf of Wall Street.”)

 

Then there’s the fugitive Malaysian businessman, Jho Low, who agreed through his lawyers to forfeit $700 million in assets, including five luxury homes in New York, London and Beverly Hills, along with his Bombardier jet. He continues to claim innocence – while still hiding out. 

Are we done yet with criminals? This is a story about Team Trump. So, we’re not even close. Low got nailed again – ironically on ex-President Trump’s last birthday – and charged with a fresh basket of crimes. His alleged accomplice this time: Prakazrel “Pras” Michel, a member of the Fugees, a hugely popular 90s hip hop trio that included Lauryn Hill and Wyclef Jean. 

 

Suddenly, the story is even more fun. Low faces five to ten years on each of several counts with which he has been charged. Michel could get five to twenty on at least one of his charges – and their alleged crimes rise to double digits for each. Then – we have another Elliott Broidy sighting! 

As the Department of Justice explained in a press release in June: 

According to the superseding indictment, Low Taek Jho, 39, also known as Jho Low, and Prakazrel “Pras” Michel, 48, are alleged to have conspired with Elliott Broidy [emphasis added], Nickie Lum Davis, and others to engage in undisclosed lobbying campaigns at the direction of Low and the Vice Minister of Public Security for the People’s Republic of China respectively [that’s right, these guys were working with the Chinese!!], both to have the 1MDB embezzlement investigation [the Malaysian wealth fund case] and forfeiture proceedings involving Low and others dropped and to have a Chinese dissident sent back to China. Michel and Low are also charged with conspiring to commit money laundering related to the foreign influence campaigns. Michel is also charged with witness tampering and conspiracy to make false statements to banks.

 

If you didn’t catch that last detail, let’s be clear. These guys were going to take millions in illegal money to get a Chinese dissident sent back to his home country. Had their scheme been a success, that dissident would have been given a preemptory trial and carted off to jail. 

 

Millions of foreign dollars went into the presidential election. 

The DOJ further notes: 

In May 2019, Michel and Low were charged in the District of Columbia for allegedly orchestrating and concealing a foreign and conduit contribution scheme in which they funneled millions of dollars of Low’s money into the U.S. presidential election as purportedly legitimate campaign contributions, all while concealing the true source of the money. According to the indictment, to execute the scheme, Michel received Low’s money and contributed it both personally and through approximately 20 straw donors.

 

So, can we guess whose campaign got those millions of dollars in illegal foreign cash? 

I think we can.

 

* 

IN FACT, we have a whole other collection of alleged crooks – charged with similar crimes – including longtime Trump pal, billionaire Thomas Barrack. We highlighted his possible crimes in pervious posts (see: 1/21/21, 7/21/21). He, too, has been indicted for selling influence to foreign nations. 

And just to tease you a little: federal authorities decided Barrack might be a flight risk and set bail at $250 million. 

Anyway, you may have heard the right-wing folks make a huge deal about what a crook Hunter Biden is – and how his dad supposedly used his influence to keep him out of jail for supposed crookery in Ukraine. One problem is that we haven’t seen any evidence yet, although it seems clear the son is prone to engaging in questionable business deals, playing off the family name. 

The dilemma, if you’re a Trump fan, and you’re not blind to reality, is that when you shake the Trump administration tree, criminals rain down like wormy apples. You can go back to my earlier post (7/21/21) for a list if you’d like to check.

 

We started off today’s post with Parnas and Fruman, and mentioned Rudy Giuliani, who in April had his apartment raided by the feds. 

If this blogger had to bet, he’d bet that Rudy is going to be indicted at some point soon. (See also: 9/21/21.) 

 

FUN FACT WITH NUTS: Mike Lindell, MyPillow CEO and conspiracy nut, announced today that 100,000 votes, during the 2020 election, were “flipped” in Alabama and said the state’s voting machines were hacked. 

Lindell insisted he had the “data” to prove his claims. 

This was all part of some sinister plan, which would allow Joe Biden to lose the state by almost 600,000 votes. 

Indeed, this massive breach dramatically reduced Donald J. Trump’s vote from 62.1% in 2016 to – holy voter fraud – a mere 62.0% four years later. 

And this blogger has data to prove it. 

 

BLOGGER’S NOTE, 2/25/22: When I check the Heritage Foundation’s database, I see that the last person charged with voter fraud in Alabama was Elbert Melton in 2019. 

We should also note that Alabama Secretary of State John Merrill, a Republican, said there was no way Lindell was right, and that the actual number of votes “flipped” in the 2020 election was…um…zero.