June 7 and 8, 2017


News and Views


I HADN’T REALLY HEARD COMEY SPEAK MUCH IN THE PAST, SO I WAS SURPRISED BY HIS ELOQUENCE AND PERSONAL POISE AND APPEAL. I HAVE BEEN SUSPICIOUS OF HIS DROPPING THE LAST GROUP OF CLINTON EMAILS INTO THE LAPS OF THE PRESS A FEW DAYS BEFORE THE ELECTION, OF COURSE. I STILL DON’T THINK THAT WAS HONEST OR FAIR; HOWEVER, I WAS PLEASED THAT TRUMP’S PRETTY OBVIOUS POWER GRABS HAVE BEEN RESISTED AND HOPEFULLY WILL BE IN THE FUTURE. I HAVE HOPES FOR MUELLER’S COMMITTEE TO REALLY DIG DEEPLY AND BRING THE LIES AND POLITICAL AGGRESSIVENESS OUT INTO THE LIGHT OF DAY. I ONLY HOPE THAT HIS SUCCESSOR WILL ALSO BE “HIS OWN MAN,” TO A SUFFICIENT DEGREE TO PROTECT US AS A NATION AND CITIZENRY AGAINST WHAT I FEAR TRUMP MAY BRING.

http://www.latimes.com/politics/washington/la-na-essential-washington-updates-comey-color-1496874999-htmlstory.html
JUNE 8, 2017, 6:53 A.M.
REPORTING FROM WASHINGTON
Politicos line up for Comey testimony as Washington prepares for historic hearing
Lauren Rosenblatt

Grab the chips and dip, crack open a beer and settle in, it’s almost time for kickoff. On Capitol Hill this morning, former FBI Director James B. Comey and the Senate Intelligence Committee are preparing for their own kind of game.

And as they straighten their ties and gather their notes for Comey’s public testimony, residents of Washington are eagerly awaiting what many are calling the Capitol Hill equivalent of a Super Bowl.

Comey’s testimony regarding his interactions with President Trump in the weeks leading up to his dismissal was publicly released Wednesday afternoon, but that didn’t stop people from lining up outside the hearing room early Thursday morning to get a seat to hear his comments in person.

It's the most anticipated public hearings since Hillary Clinton testified in 2015 about the Benghazi attacks.

Inside the Hart Senate Office Building, where the hearing is scheduled to take place at 10 a.m. EDT, excitement for the event was apparent. A line of people snaked along the length of the second-floor balcony, turning the corner and stretching its way to the hallways of the Dirksen Senate Office Building.

With a sea of black blazers and dark shoes lining the wall, Capitol police made sure the crowd didn't overflow the walkway. People weaved in and out of the crowd, carrying bagels and muffins to those waiting in line.

Samantha Sharkoff, a Senate intern, roused herself from bed at 3 a.m., sending a text to fellow interns asking if anyone was having second thoughts about waiting in the line. Sharkoff, along with two other interns from her office, arrived at the Capitol at 4 a.m. wearing two pairs of pantyhose to ward off the cold.

Finally reaching the front of the line around 8:45 a.m., Sharkoff said the experience was one she couldn’t pass up because it was a “window” into what was going on with the administration. Ben Higgs, another intern, said he considered the event his generation’s “biggest political story.”

For Patrick Wells, who attended 35 Trump rallies throughout the campaign season, the hearing was another chance to show his support for the president.

Proudly wearing his “Make America Great Again” hat, Wells, 49, from Massachusetts, said this was a “call to arms” for supporters to stand by their president.

“This is a big witch hunt. ... All around there are so many different forces trying to take the president down any way they can,” Wells said.

Lamenting that he didn’t camp out overnight, Wells said he planned to watch from an overflow room, where large television screens were set up.

Around the city, bars and restaurants opened their doors early for customers hoping to watch on big-screen TVs. Shaw’s Tavern, which opened at 9:30 a.m., offered customers discounted Russian vodka flavors and “FBI” sandwiches while the Partisan boasted a “Comey themed happy hour guide.” Union Pub, on Capitol Hill, offered to buy a round of drinks each time Trump tweeted about the hearing.

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TOMORROW: We open at 9:30AM & buying a round of drinks for the house every time @realDonaldTrump Tweets about the #ComeyHearing! #ThisTown
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D.C. residents weren’t surprised by the extensive viewing options, tweeting about how they expected the capital to turn a historic political event into a social one.

Tony LaFalce, who watched the hearing from the Partisan, said the whole experience was “very Washington.”

“The group setting gave everyone an excuse to laugh at certain moments that you may have passed over in your living room,” LaFalce, 28, of Alexandria, said, referring to the cheering, applause and laughter that filled the room several times throughout the hearing.

Molly Hippolitus, communication director for Neighborhood Restaurant Group, which operates the Partisan, said she had never seen such a crowded bar remain so quiet. Hippolitus estimated about 100 people came to watch the hearing, and said some lined up outside before the restaurant opened at 8:30 a.m. While the large crowd was beyond her expectations, she knew D.C. residents would want to watch the proceedings because “it’s something that Washingtonians love to do.”

11:45 a.m.: This post was updated.



COMEY MENTIONED IN ONE OF TODAY’S ARTICLES THAT, ESSENTIALLY, HE DOESN’T HAVE ANOTHER JOB YET, BUT I HAVE A FEELING THAT IF HE WERE TO RUN FOR PRESIDENT ON THE DEMOCRATIC TICKET HE MIGHT BE ELECTED, AT LEAST TODAY. I’M SORRY THAT I’M SITTING DOWN HERE IN JACKSONVILLE UNABLE TO GO DOWN AND SEE THE EXCITEMENT THAT IS GOING ON. IT’S ALMOST LIKE A BERNIE SANDERS’ RALLY.

http://www.latimes.com/politics/washington/la-na-essential-washington-updates-comey-color-1496874999-htmlstory.html
JUNE 8, 2017, 3:55 P.M.
Stoli, FBI sandwiches and Twitter: Comey testimony on Trump and Russia turn America into one big watch party
Mark Z. Barabak, Laura King and Matt Pearce

Photo montage -- Americans were riveted Thursday by former FBI director James Comey's testimony. (Photos by Los Angeles Times, Associated Press and Getty Images)

For a few brief hours, America was united once more.

Red state, blue state. Rural, citified. Black, white. Deep-breathing in a yoga pose, or slowly sipping an eye-opening Bloody Mary at a corner tavern.

James B. Comey, the former FBI director-turned-Trump-tormenter, caused millions of Americans to halt whatever they were doing Thursday morning and turn eyes and ears to his stolid yet gripping testimony before a Senate committee plumbing the depth of Russian meddling in last year’s presidential campaign.

James Comey, the former FBI director-turned-Trump-tormenter, caused millions of Americans to halt whatever they were doing Thursday and turn eyes and ears to his stolid yet gripping testimony before a Senate committee plumbing Russian meddling in last year’s presidential campaign.

The line for a relatively few public seats in the hearing room at the Hart Senate Office Building began forming well before the sun peeked over the Capitol. For the rest of the country, the only way to watch was from afar: on TV — there was no end of channels carrying it live — on a smartphone or computer screen, or unfolding as a playlet, 140 characters at a time, on Twitter.

In Los Angeles, Kelly Perine uncorked the first bottle of champagne at 6:30 a.m. The yoga soon followed.

“Let go of whatever tensions we may have,” the 48-year-old actor and producer told five people doing poses in his living room, as they faced televisions scrupulously tuned to MSNBC and Fox News.

Bad news for President Trump: Republicans aren't rushing to your defense
A Pennsylvania native who described his views as left-leaning — but who wishes there were more political harmony — Perine threw the doors to his Los Feliz home open at 5 a.m.

One of the first guests was Krissy Harris, 47, a Democrat wearing a pink “pussy hat” that she knitted for the huge protest marches that came the day after President Trump’s inauguration. “It’s history,” Harris said of Comey’s marquee appearance. “How do you not watch it?”

Countless numbers agreed. The collective viewing from coast to coast recalled other political moments of drop-everything drama: the Watergate hearings, Oliver North’s Iran-Contra testimony, the Anita Hill-Clarence Thomas confrontation.

In New York City, at a bar that often features stand-up comedy, a dozen or so watched Comey on a big-screen TV, finding precious little to laugh about in the proceedings.

“I find it terrifying more than funny,’’ said John Conroy, 35, a stand-up comic who dropped by the Q.E.D. Club in Queens, which, as it happens, is in the same borough where Trump lived as a child.

“This is a difficult time for us,” Conroy said. “Before the election, Trump was great fodder. I was joking about him at clubs, but now I find a pall falls over the room when you mention him.’’

There were, of course, those who chose not to partake.

In Kingman, Ariz. — a deeply red part of an increasingly purple state — the TV at Ma and Pa’s Hot Rod Cafe was turned to ESPN, which suited Dave just fine. (He didn’t want his last name used, he said, because he figured the media was liable to mangle his words or selectively quote them just to stir up trouble.)

“It doesn’t interest me because I know [Comey’s] not going to say much,” Dave, a Trump supporter, said from a red checkerboard table.

Gary Sheler, a conservative radio voice of Kingman and Bullhead City, Ariz., said his listeners had little use for Comey or whatever he had to say.

"Part of that is, he's a showboat looking for attention,” Sheler said, echoing the words Trump used to denigrate the former FBI chief. "Expect a kangaroo court, and nothing to come of it.”

But many, it seemed, were determined to find some way to follow along. Less than three hours into his testimony, Comey was mentioned on Twitter nearly 1.6 million times.

Washington being Washington — which is to say the quintessential company town — it was hard to find anyone who wasn’t tuned into the hearings in some fashion. Doormen and baristas glanced at smartphones; taxi drivers plied the streets of the capital to the sound of news radio.

Even so, Eric Heidenberger was surprised by the crowds that descended on Shaw’s Tavern, the unassuming neighborhood bar he co-owns, which had advertised its Comey-watching party on social media.

Six key things we learned from the Comey hearing
By its 9:30 a.m. opening, a line had stretched a full city block. The main floor, upstairs and an outdoor patio all quickly filled to 150-person capacity, with 10 televisions tuned in to the hearing and many listening from the sidewalk.

About half a dozen Washington watering holes had early openings and jokey food-and-drink specials — Shaw’s was offering “FBI” sandwiches (fried chicken, bacon and iceberg lettuce) and serving earlier-in-the-day-than-usual shots of Stolichnaya — “because, you know, Russia,” Heidenberger said.

Another bar, the Partisan, was serving cocktails christened “The Last Word” and “Drop the Bomb,” while yet another establishment, the Union Pub, advertised a round of drinks on the house for every time Trump tweeted.

To the considerable surprise of many, and the dismay of some, the president held back and the free booze remained stoppered.

Although there was quiet absorption during much of Comey’s testimony, some comments drew a strong crowd reaction. A trio of young women at Shaw’s Tavern visibly shuddered when the fired FBI chief referred to being alone with the president-elect. “Eeew,” one said.

There was a round of cheers and applause when Comey referred to “lies, plain and simple” about the FBI being in disarray. And Comey’s declaration, with a catch in his voice, that he hadn’t had a chance to say goodbye to colleagues drew a chorus of “Aww!”

Watch the dramatic opening and other highlights from Comey's testimony
Complete coverage of former FBI Director James Comey's testimony on Essential Washington >>
Some were left wanting more.

“I keep waiting for something really honest and revealing,” Megan Cramer, 39, a high school theater teacher, said over a Diet Coke at Manuel’s Tavern, a traditional watering hole for Democrats in Atlanta. “I was hoping he would reveal something incredibly criminal, but he’s not really disclosing anything big.”

Back in Los Feliz, the group clapped when Comey’s testimony ended. As they lay sprawled on chairs, couches and the floor, the early-morning yoga crowd debated the significance of his testimony.

“I felt that he was being fair and honest,” said Marvin Glover, 48, a film producer and Democrat who sometimes votes across party lines.

Several said they appreciated the humility Comey seemed to show in admitting that he could have been more aggressive in confronting Trump in private when he said the president sought to thwart an investigation of his fired national security advisor, Michael Flynn. “He was a real person,” said Harris, a toymaker.

Perine agreed. “He in some ways now comes off as a balanced character that he will not necessarily throw either side under the bus ... regardless of what side people are on,” he said.

But for all its drama, and through-the-roof ratings, Comey’s testimony seemed likely to change few minds.

“If we were here last night and we watched the Golden State versus Cleveland game at the end of it, we would not debate who won,” Perine said of the NBA championship series. “In some ways, politics, basically, has unfortunately become an interpretive dance where the left and the right weren’t necessarily watching Comey to get the truth” but rather seek points to buttress their opinions.

In that way, Americans — whatever their views — continue to have much in common.


COMMENTS FROM REP. ADAM SCHIFF ON COMEY AND THE TESTIMONY

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/rep-schiff-theres-certainly-evidence-of-obstruction-of-justice-in-comey-opening-statement/
By BLAIR GUILD CBS NEWS June 8, 2017, 9:01 AM
Schiff: Comey's testimony on Trump "certainly evidence" of obstruction

Just hours before the testimony of fired FBI Director James Comey before the Senate Intelligence Committee, Rep. Adam Schiff, D-California, said former Comey's testimony on Donald Trump's conduct "is certainly evidence" of obstruction of justice.

Schiff is the top Democrat on the House intelligence committee, which released Comey's opening statement Wednesday on the eve of his hearing per his request.

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"There's not a judge in the land that would exclude it as not relevant to the question of obstruction," Schiff said of Comey's opening statement in an interview with "CBS This Morning."

"To say that doesn't constitute some evidence of obstruction, I think you'd have to be willfully looking the other direction," he later added.

Schiff went on to say that "the single best piece of evidence" surrounding the question of obstruction of justice was the fact that the president asked other individuals present in an Oval Office briefing to leave the room so he could speak to Comey privately.

"The president signaled the end of the briefing by thanking the group and telling them all that he wanted to speak to me alone," Comey's opening statement reads.

What to expect from James Comey's testimony
Play VIDEO
What to expect from James Comey's testimony

"Why do that unless you're conscious that what you're about to ask is not an appropriate request," Schiff said in response to the statement.

Schiff also discussed what to look for in Comey's testimony.

"Who would be able to corroborate this testimony?" Schiff asked. "Who did he share this information with? What can he tell us about the notes that he took and when he took them? What else can he tell us about some of the details around these conversations?"

Comey will testify before the Senate Intelligence Committee in an open testimony and a private session following at 1 p.m. ET.

"Jim Comey will be consistent in his testimony before the Senate," Schiff concluded.



SEE THE FOLLOWING STORIES ABOUT TRUMP’S NEWLY PROPOSED CANDIDATE FOR HEAD OF THE FBI, CHRISTOPHER WRAY. GUESS WHAT. HE HAS CONSIDERABLE FINANCIAL CONNECTION WITH RUSSIA ALSO.

RUSSIA AGAIN? ARE ALL THE POLITICIANS DEEPLY TIED WITH RUSSIAN BUSINESS, OR PERHAPS JUST THE REPUBLICANS? THIS REALLY IS BEGINNING TO MAKE ME MORE AND MORE UNCOMFORTABLE. IT’S NO LONGER A JOKE. WRAY WAS ALSO THE PERSONAL LAWYER OF NJ GOVERNOR CHRISTIE, AND THAT WAS A VERY DARK BIT OF DIRTY POLITICS. TO ME, THAT WAS LIKE THINGS THAT THE MAFIA HAS BEEN KNOWN TO DO WHEN A RECALCITRANT BUSINESS OWNER REFUSES TO PAY UP.

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/christopher-wray-what-do-we-know-about-trumps-pick-to-be-fbi-director/
CBS/AP June 7, 2017, 6:21 PM
Christopher Wray: What do we know about Trump's pick to be FBI director?

President Trump tweeted Wednesday that he will nominate Christopher Wray to become the FBI's new director, after firing James Comey last month.

The president said Wray is "a man of impeccable credentials." In Cincinnati, the president said Wray "is gonna be great," but has not further elaborated on him.

So what do we know about the soon-to-be-named director?

A graduate of Yale University and Yale Law School, Wray is a former Justice Department official who served as New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie's personal lawyer during the George Washington Bridge lane-closing investigation. Two former Christie aides were convicted of plotting to close bridge lanes to punish a Democratic mayor who wouldn't endorse the Republican governor.

Who is Christopher Wray, President Trump's nominee for FBI director?
Play VIDEO
Who is Christopher Wray, President Trump's nominee for FBI director?

Wray and Christie met when Christie was the top federal prosecutor in New Jersey during the Bush administration. The New Jersey governor praised Wray during a news conference last week, calling him an "outstanding lawyer" with "absolute integrity and honesty." And he said the president "certainly would not be making a mistake if he asked Chris Wray to be FBI director."

In private practice at the Atlanta office of King & Spalding LLC, Wray specializes in white collar and internal investigations. In 2015, the firm consulted with Russian energy giant Rosneft.

Under President George W. Bush, Wray served as Assistant Attorney General in charge of the Justice Department's criminal division, and oversaw the Enron Task Force, which was created to investigate the Enron scandal. He also helped reorient the criminal division toward counterterrorism missions after the 9/11 attacks.

While working in the Justice Department, Wray also crossed paths with ousted FBI director James Comey, and developed a close working relationship with newly appointed Special Counsel Robert Mueller. "[Mueller] has a strong moral compass and I think that the great thing about strong moral compasses is that they don't have to hand-wring," Wray has said of Mueller. "When they're uncomfortable, they know what they have to do."

Wray was at the Justice Department when Comey, Mueller and other top officials at the FBI and Justice Department were at a standoff with the White House, in particular, Vice President Cheney, over the renewal of an NSA surveillance program, according to Garrett Graff, writing for Wired. Comey believed the program was unconstitutional and would not approve it. Top officials at the FBI and DOJ were drafting resignation letters over the issue. Wray, according to Graff, told Comey, "Look, I don't know what's going on, but before you guys all pull the rip cords, please give me a heads-up so I can jump with you." The issue was resolved by President Bush, who allowed changes to be made to the program.

Wray has also been an active political donor, giving tens of thousands to political candidates and PACs over the years, according to data collected by OpenSecrets.org. He has mostly donated to Republicans such as then-GOP presidential candidates Mitt Romney in 2012, John McCain in 2008, as well as the late Fred Thompson in 2007, and Georgia Republicans like Sen. Saxby Chambliss, Sen. Jonny Isakson and then-Rep. Tom Price.

Comey has also given smaller amounts to then-Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama in 2000. However, he did not donate to Mr. Trump.

Still, Democrats, as well as Republicans, are praising Wray's selection. "Chris Wray is a great choice for FBI Director," Mary Jo White, who ran the Securities and Exchange Commission under President Obama, said in a statement. "He is smart, independent and has a very impressive track record of service and experience in the Department of Justice where he worked closely with the FBI and was widely regarded as a strong leader."

Wray is considered to be a traditional choice for FBI director, as opposed to some of the candidates Mr. Trump considered, including former Connecticut Sen. Joe Lieberman, who would have faced a challenging confirmation process.

FBI officials told CBS News on Wednesday that the Bureau was relieved Wray had been picked instead of an elected politician, although some worry, given the circumstances surrounding Comey's firing, that he may prove more loyal to the president than the Bureau.

Wray was not part of the original short list as potential FBI directors being considered by the White House. Mr. Trump recently interviewed Wray and his name began to emerge as strong possibility last week.



PLEASE, PLEASE DON’T CHOOSE WRAY, LEGISLATORS. RUSSIA THIS, RUSSIA THAT, DAY AFTER DAY -- THIS IS MORE THAN A MINOR SERIES OF LINKS. IT IS AN ALREADY ESTABLISHED POWER AND FINANCIAL STRUCTURE THAT IS BASED, APPARENTLY, ON LAUNDERING MONEY AS WELL AS MAKING MONEY. HOW CAN MEMBERS OF CONGRESS THINK THAT THIS IS NOT CRIMINALITY, AND GROUNDS FOR IMPEACHMENT, AT LEAST, IF NOT ALSO FOR A PRISON SENTENCE. SEE THE NEXT TWO ARTICLES FOR SOME ASTOUNDING INFORMATION ON THE RUSSIA ISSUE.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2017/06/08/trump-new-fbi-director-chris-wray-russian-ties-rosneft-gazprom-column/102603214/
Donald Trump's new FBI director pick has Russian ties of his own
Kenneth F. McCallion, Opinion contributor
Published 5:00 a.m. ET June 8, 2017 | Updated 8 hours ago

Video -- President Trump’s pick for the next FBI director has his own ties to Russia. Josh King has the story (@abridgetoland). Buzz60

Christopher Wray looks good on paper, but his law firm represents Russian-controlled oil companies.

Christopher Wray
(Photo: King & Spalding)

On paper, Christopher Wray appears to be an excellent choice to serve as the next FBI director. He has "impeccable" academic credentials (Yale law school) and has had a decades-long distinguished career as a federal prosecutor and high-level official in the Department of Justice. As the criminal defense lawyer for New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie during the “Bridgegate” investigation, he did raise some eyebrows when it was learned that one of Christie’s “missing” cellphones mysteriously ended up in Wray’s possession, but this is unlikely to derail Wray’s confirmation.

The most troubling issue that Wray may face is the fact that his law firm — King & Spalding — represents Rosneft and Gazprom, two of Russia’s largest state-controlled oil companies.

Rosneft was prominently mentioned in the now infamous 35-page dossier prepared by former British MI6 agent Christopher Steele. The dossier claims that the CEO of Rosneft, Igor Sechin, offered candidate Donald Trump, through Trump’s campaign manager Carter Page, a 19% stake in the company in exchange for lifting U.S. sanctions on Russia. The dossier claims that the offer was made in July while Page was in Moscow.

Rosneft is also the company that had a $500 billion oil drilling joint-venture with Exxon in 2012, when Secretary of State Rex Tillerson was Exxon’s CEO. However, the deal was nixed by President Obama in 2014, when he imposed the sanctions that crippled Russia’s ability to do business with U.S. companies. The lifting of sanctions by the Trump administration would enable Exxon to renew its joint venture agreement with Rosneft, and the law firm of King & Spalding could end up in the middle of the contract negotiations between those two companies.

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The law firm’s representation of Gazprom raises even more serious conflict issues for Wray. Gazprom was a partner in RosUkrEnergo AG (“RUE”), which is controlled by Ukrainian oligarch Dmitry Firtash. He is under federal indictment in Chicago for racketeering charges, has had numerous financial dealings with former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort, and is generally considered to be a member of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s inner circle.

Though there is no indication that Wray personally worked on any of the Rosneft or Gazprom legal matters handled by his law firm, he might well have an ethical and legal conflict of interest that would prevent him from any involvement of the FBI’s Russian probe. When a law firm such as King & Spalding represents clients, then all of the partners in that law firm have an actual or potential conflict of interest, preventing them from undertaking any representation of any other client that has interests clearly adverse to those of these two Russian companies. These conflict rules continue to apply even after a lawyer leaves the law firm, so Wray could be ethically barred from involving himself in a federal investigation that includes within its scope a probe of Rosneft, Gazprom and affiliated companies. The public appearance of conflict of interest and impropriety might require him to recuse himself from the investigation.

If Wray was confirmed as the FBI director, and then had to recuse himself with regard to some or all of the Russia-related aspects of the critical investigation being conducted by the FBI and special counsel Robert Mueller, the potential damage to the investigation could be significant. If Wray refused to recuse himself from the Russia-Trump investigation — or at least acknowledge the potential conflict issue, a serious cloud could be cast over the FBI’s level of commitment to the investigation.

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One of several reasons why former senator Joe Lieberman was generally considered to be unqualified for the FBI director’s job was that his law firm — Kasowitz Benson Torres — has represented Trump for many years, thus creating the appearance of possible favoritism to Trump.

Similarly, the nomination of Wray as FBI director raises serious questions as to whether Wray — given his law firm’s affiliation with Rosneft and Gazprom — would be perceived as an attempt by Trump to install a “Russia-friendly” director at the helm of the FBI.

The Senate must, therefore, proceed cautiously with Wray’s confirmation hearing, and demand that any potential conflicts be fully disclosed — and hopefully resolved — before he is allowed to assume the title of FBI director.

Kenneth F. McCallion is a former federal prosecutor with the Department of Justice and senior partner in the law firm of McCallion & Associates. He is also an adjunct professor at Cardozo Law School in New York, and the author of The Essential Guide to Donald Trump.

You can read diverse opinions from our Board of Contributors and other writers on the Opinion front page, on Twitter @USATOpinion and in our daily Opinion newsletter. To submit a letter, comment or column, check our submission guidelines.



TRUMP’S RUSSIAN TIES ARE PROBABLY MORE EXTENSIVE THAN MOST AMERICANS WOULD HAVE IMAGINED. THAT IS CERTAINLY TRUE OF ME. WE NEED A WAY TO VET PRESIDENTIAL AND ALSO LEGISLATIVE CANDIDATES MUCH MORE THOROUGHLY THAN WE DO NOW, EVEN BEFORE THEY ARE EVEN ALLOWED TO “THROW THEIR HATS INTO THE RING.” OF COURSE, THE AMERICAN PEOPLE SEEM TO BE MOSTLY UNINTERESTED IN INFORMATION OF THIS KIND, BUT RATHER ARE INTENSELY LOYAL TO THE PARTY, WHATEVER IT SAYS AND WHOMEVER IT PUTS FORWARD AS THE CANDIDATE. I WILL SAY AGAIN, AS I HAVE A NUMBER OF TIMES IN THESE BLOGS, THAT I STRONGLY BELIEVE WE DON’T HAVE ENOUGH MANDATORY CRITERIA STATED IN THE CONSTITUTION TO VALIDATE THE CAPABILITY AND HONESTY OF A CANDIDATE, NOR HIS INTELLECTUAL PREPARATION FOR THE TASK OF THE PRESIDENCY, SO WHEN SOMEONE AS UNACCEPTABLE AS TRUMP IS TO MANY PEOPLE IS ELECTED, WE SHOULD ACCEPT RESPONSIBILITY AS CITIZENS FOR FAILING TO DO OUR PART IN THE ELECTION.

VOTERS NEED TO KNOW MUCH MORE IN ORDER TO MAKE GOOD CHOICES. WE HAVE A PROBLEM WITH ALL OF THOSE ISSUES, IN PRESIDENT TRUMP. IN MY VIEW, WE ABSOLUTELY SHOULDN’T HAVE SUCH A HIGHLY COMPLEX INTERTWINING BETWEEN ANY AMERICAN PUBLIC SERVANT AND A RIVAL/ENEMY NATION AS WE ARE SEEING HERE. WHEN I WAS YOUNG, IN HIGH SCHOOL, I ENVISIONED WAR WITH RUSSIA AS BEING ALIEN SOLDIERS MARCHING DOWN OUR CITY STREETS, BUT HERE I FIND THAT IT IS MORE LIKE A SWARM OF TERMITES SLOWLY EATING UP A HOUSE UNTIL, QUITE BY SURPRISE, THE FLOOR FALLS IN. WE TEND TO THINK OF THE CLASSIC SPY VS SPY ISSUE, BUT THIS IS BUY VS SPY – HOW TO BECOME THE TOP OLIGARCH OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, OR PERHAPS OF THE WORLD. MCCALLION’S ARTICLE, HERE, IS THE MOST INFORMATIONAL PIECE OF NEWS WRITING THAT I HAVE SEEN IN MONTHS. I ENJOYED IT IMMENSELY.

http://www.nydailynews.com/opinion/kenneth-f-mccallion-trump-real-estate-built-corruption-article-1.2856797
Kenneth F. McCallion: Trump real estate built on corruption
BY KENNETH F. MCCALLION
NEW YORK DAILY NEWS Thursday, November 3, 2016, 12:30 PM

Photograph -- Unveiling Trump SoHo (NOONAN JEANNE FREELANCE NYDN)

Lost in all of the media hype over Donald Trump’s mistreatment of women and Hillary Clinton’s missing emails is the fact that Donald Trump’s real estate empire is largely dependent on Russian and other foreign money, untold quantities of it laundered through his various real estate projects.

This Russian money is a lifeblood of the Trump Organization, and if Russian billionaire oligarchs aligned with President Vladimir Putin were to suddenly pull their money out of the Trump Organization, it would exact a heavy financial toll on the enterprise.

As Donald Trump Jr. bragged to a group of largely Russian and other foreign investors at a conference in 2008, Russian money was “pouring in” to the Trump Organization, and constituted “a pretty disproportionate cross-section of a lot of our assets.” It is estimated that the figure amounted at the time to hundreds of millions of dollars.

In the event that Trump were to actually occupy the White House as our next President, how could he “get tough” with the Russians, or consider signing stronger money-laundering legislation focused on the real estate industry, knowing that to do so could deal a heavy blow to his real estate business empire, proudly built on debt and substantially beholden to foreign investors?

To do so would mean financial suicide. He would be forced to smile and follow Putin’s lead, no matter where it took this country.

How did it come about that Trump Organization projects came to be financed with dirty money originating with international financial criminals from Russian, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, the former Soviet Republic of Georgia and other Eastern European and Central Asian sources?

The answer is simple: It had no choice, if it wanted to survive. After four business bankruptcies, nearly all the legitimate U.S. banks realized that any further loans to Trump would be reckless. The Trump business empire was on the verge of collapse. Salvation was found in Russian money of questionable origin.

Trump SoHo in lower Manhattan is a case in point. In order to finance the project, the Trump Organization teamed up with two real estate development companies that had a direct pipeline to Russian, Eastern European and Central Asian money sources. Among investors was the FL Group, a conduit for wealthy Russians close to Putin to invest in Western European and U.S. projects; a “strategic partner” was Alexander Mashikevich, a Kazakhstan billionaire implicated in a corruption case involving a Belgian company doing business in Kazakhstan (settled with no admission of guilt).

While Trump’s partners handled sales of condo units within the hotel, Trump until 2014 held an 18% stake in the profits. Among the buyers whose funds thereby found their way to Trump was Viktor Khrapunov, a former Kazakh energy minister alleged in federal court to have been engaged in a money laundering scheme at the time.

Another Trump real estate development project that specifically targeted Russian and other offshore investors was the Trump Towers project at Sunny Isles Beach, Fla. Over 60% of the units in this 813-unit condo development are owned by corporations, many of which are offshore shell companies designed to hide the true identities of the real owners, which included a rogue’s gallery of crooked businessmen and corrupt foreign politicians who were anxious to find a safe harbor for their ill-gotten gains.

Investigative reporters with the Miami Herald were able to penetrate through the “corporate veil” of 13 Trump Towers ownership companies, and found that the beneficial owners of the condos included the subjects of various government criminal investigations, known members of Russian organized crime, members of a Russian-American organized crime group, a “Venezuelan oilman convicted in a bribery scheme” and “a Mexican banker accused of robbing investors of their life savings.”

Trump promises to deport Mexican criminals and other foreign undesirables back to where they came from, but says nothing of the wealthy foreign criminals who have invested millions into his real estate projects.

Photograph -- Piles of ill-gotten cash (EDWARD DALMULDER)

Thanks in large measure to its developer’s aggressive marketing strategy to the Russian elite, successful in reaching organized crime magnates, Sunny Isles is now known as “Little Moscow,” with Russian shops and restaurants in abundance, and even sporting Russian signs on the streets.

Foreign condo owners in Trump Towers include Peter Kiritchenko, a Ukrainian businessman arrested on fraud charges in San Francisco in 1999, who, with his partner — former Ukraine Prime Minister Pavlo Lazarenko — laundered hundreds of millions of dollars through the U.S. and elsewhere. Kiritchenko avoided jail time in the U.S. by agreeing to testify against Lazarenko, who was convicted of money laundering and spent three years as a client of the U.S. Bureau of Prisons.

Other proud owners of Trump condos at Sunny Isles include Anatoly Golubchik and Michael Sall, members of a Russian-American organized crime group who ran an illegal high-stakes sports betting ring catering almost exclusively to wealthy oligarchs from the former Soviet Union.

Trump is not the only real estate developer to take advantage of the lax money laundering laws relating to real estate, but he is probably the most aggressive developer to take advantage of the loopholes in the U.S. Patriot Act, which imposed strict disclosure requirements and stiff penalties relating to banks and other financial institutions. Lobbying efforts by the real estate industry led to exemptions for real estate development projects such as the ones that the Trump Organization specializes in.

Trump’s local partner recruited George Baronov, a Russian-born realtor, to work as the lead broker on Trump Towers, and aggressively marketed the units in Russia itself, with Trump Towers brokers flying to Moscow and St. Petersburg in a successful effort to induce Russian plutocrats to move some of their cash to Sunny Isles. They also marketed the units in Nice and Cannes on the French Riviera, where wealthy Russians are known to congregate.

As with Trump’s ability to avoid paying federal income taxes, his ability to channel huge sums of foreign cash into his projects is largely due to the structural weaknesses in the U.S. legal and enforcement system. The U.S. now has the dubious distinction of being one of the money laundering capitals of the world.

Traditional safe havens for criminals and the super-rich, such as Switzerland, have become far too willing to disclose the identities of account holders to the IRS and European tax authorities. So these individuals now turn to New York and South Florida luxury real estate, where few questions are asked about the source of money used to purchase condominiums worth $5 million or more, and the entire transaction can be shrouded in layers of offshore corporations.

Regardless of the outcome of the election, it is likely that legislation will be introduced in Congress to close the loopholes in the money laundering laws and to establish some sort of database system to keep track of the identities of the owners of luxury real estate and cross-check those names with known members of organized crime and international financial criminals. This kind of database has already proven to be a powerful tool for the European Union in preventing the use of luxury real estate to launder dirty money.

If such legislation were to be passed by Congress and presented to a President Trump for his signature, he would be confronted with a huge conflict of interest: If he signed the legislation, he could be jeopardizing income important to his business empire. If he didn’t sign the bill, the flood of dirty money would continue to flow unabated into U.S. real estate. This would give Russian organized crime and its Kremlin partners tremendous leverage over one of the largest sectors in the U.S. economy.

McCallion is a former federal prosecutor and New York attorney, specializing in human rights, money laundering and civil racketeering cases. His most recent book is “The Essential Guide to Donald Trump (And Why I Am Sailing to Nova Scotia If He Wins).”

WITH KENNETH F. MCCALLION


https://www.amazon.com/Essential-Guide-Donald-Sailing-Scotia/dp/0997929219

The Essential Guide to Donald Trump: And Why I am Sailing to Nova Scotia if He Wins, by Kenneth F. McCallion is an easy to follow summary of everything important that Americans need to know about Donald Trump and his stand on the issues. Learn about Trump's failed businesses. Read about his relationship with organized crime, his history of discriminatory practices and use of undocumented workers on his construction projects. Discover how his campaign has been dominated by pro-Russian advisors who have turned longstanding United States policy on its head. This is a quick yet informative read that will give the undecided voter all the information they need, and give the anti-Trump voter the resources necessary to conduct an intervention with their pro-Trump and family.


The Essential Guide To Donald Trump (And Why I am Sailing to Nova Scotia if He Wins) Paperback – September 12, 2016
by Kenneth F. McCallion (Author)
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