May 16, 2018
By Karen DeYoung, Josh Dawsey and Rosalind Helderman
Michael Cohen, (click here) President Trump’s personal attorney, solicited a payment of at least $1 million from the government of Qatar in late 2016, in exchange for access to and advice about the then-incoming administration, according to several people with knowledge of the episode.
The offer, which Qatar declined, came on the margins of a Dec. 12 meeting that year at Trump Tower between the Persian Gulf state’s foreign minister and Michael Flynn, who became Trump’s first national security adviser. Stephen K. Bannon, who became chief White House strategist, also attended, the people said.
Cohen did not participate in the official meetings but spoke separately to a member of the Qatari delegation, Ahmed al-Rumaihi, who at the time was head of the investments division of the country’s sovereign wealth fund, the Qatar Investment Authority....
Yes, there are laws. It is very sad the country has to realize far too late they have a gangland President besides his pedophilia.
"Suspicious Activity Reporting" (click here)
Federal law (31 USC 5318(g)(3)) provides protection from civil liability for all reports of suspicious transactions made to appropriate authorities, including supporting documentation, regardless of whether such reports are filed pursuant to the SAR instructions. Specifically, the law provides that a bank and its directors, officers, employees, and agents that make a disclosure to the appropriate authorities of any possible violation of law or regulation, including a disclosure in connection with the preparation of SARs, "shall not be liable to any person under any law or regulation of the United States, any constitution, law, or regulation of any State or political subdivision of any State, or under any contract or other legally enforceable agreement (including any arbitration agreement), for such disclosure or for any failure to provide notice of such disclosure to the person who is the subject of such disclosure or any other person identified in the disclosure." The safe harbor applies to SARs filed within the required reporting thresholds as well as to SARs filed voluntarily on any activity below the threshold....
This is the kind of thing the FBI and CIA assess on a regular basis. It is not surprising to realize any articles under this authority was picked up by a federal agency.
If there are SARS missing, it most likely is a federal agency and/or USA attorney. I would be surprised and very disappointed if the US Treasury Secretary actually obstructed justice.
There is a reality I came to as a conservationist and environmentalist a long time ago; "The fines are simply a part of doing business." The petroleum industry has been so filthy rich it breaks the law all the time and simply pays the fines.
It is my estimation that is the case with Mr. Trump and all his associates.
There are prison terms for such lawbreakers, but, the government is more interested in getting the money than adding another person to the dependency rolls of any jail or prison. Most of the folks behind bars are poor. There are few wealthy folks there. I wish there were more old, white men behind bars for exactly these reasons.
When the government accepts fines rather than leverage jail or prison, the crimes will be committed over and over again.
This is very sad. Donald Trump and his associates are the kind of folks the FBI and CIA would normally be chasing down for breaking the law. There was absolutely no way for the American electorate to know this is what they were looking at. Trump would never reveal any records before the election.
Wow. I really want law enforcement to find the man that threatened Ms. Clifford and her daughter. He promised to make her daughter an orphan. It is time to close the loop and bring peace of mind to those brave enough to come forward. Any documents released to the public by a patriot is called a "Whistleblower" and there are laws to protect them. Most public employees have a union to represent them. I would seek out the union leadership to speak to their lawyer about such things. More than likely a federal employee cannot afford the price of DC lawyers.
I am grateful for Ms. Clifford. She is a good person. She is an adult entertainer, but, she is a good person. She values fidelity and especially the fidelity between the electorate and the people they elect. There is a certain understanding voters have about their candidates. When that understanding is violated it takes great people like Ms. Clifford to bravely come forward to set the record straight. I want her safe and her family safe. This is a huge contribution she made to the integrity of freedom in the USA. She is valuable to me.
Good night.
