Collusion by Luke Harding, A Book Report
Collusion by Luke Harding
Book Report by Bobby Everett Smith
Spoiler Alert
December 16, 2017
Setting
Moscow, London, Washington, D.C., 1980 to 2016 written by Luke Harding, foreign correspondent for The Guardian where he was Moscow bureau chief (2007 to 2011). How Russia helped Donald Trump win the presidency of the United States in 2016.
Characters
Luke Harding, author of this book, Collusion, foreign correspondent of The Guardian.
Christopher Steele, Intelligence operative for private firm in London focused on foreign affairs
Donald J. Trump, President of the United States, 2017 to present, billionaire in real estate, New York
Hillary Clinton, Loser of presidential race for president of the United States in 2016, former first lady and U.S. Senator, New York
Vladimir Putin, President of Russia
Alexander Litvinenko, Russian operative assassinated in London in 2003 by Russian agents.
KGB, Soviet Union Intelligence Agency
FSB, a Russian post-communist spy agency which took over most of KGB functions when Soviet Union fell.
Glenn Simpson, private intelligence agent, former journalist for Wall Street Journal.
Fusion GPS, a commercial research and political intelligence firm based in Washington, D.C.
Paul Manafort, Trump’s campaign manager, entrepreneur and operative in the Ukraine for over 10 years
Steele Dossier, a 35-page report owned by Chris Steele that described Trump’s relationship with Russia over a 15 or so year period.
Orbis, British private spy company run by Christopher Steele
GCHQ, British intelligence gathering Government Communications Headquarters.
NSA National Security Agency, U.S. communications gathering agency headquartered near D.C.
Wikileaks, website that released hacked emails of Hillary Clinton during 2016 election.
John McCain, U. S. Senator from Arizona. Made early evaluations of Steele Dossier
Carter Page, Founder of private equity firm, Global Energy Capital, sided with Russia in disputes with Obama. Foreign Policy Advisor for Trump.
Sergey Kislyak, oversaw an aggressive Russian intelligence operation. Ukrainian.
Ben Smith, editor in chief Buzz Feed, which published the Trump Dossier online first.
Julian Assange, owner and founder of Wikileaks
General Michael Flynn, U.S. Army, National Security Adviser to Trump for 24 days. Fired. Suspected conspirator with Russia from which he earned unreported money
Jared Kushner, senior adviser to Trump in White House, married to Ivanka Trump.
Roger Stone, Trump’s campaign adviser and partner with Manafort
Steve Bannon, Chairman of Brietbart, adviser to Trump, replaced Manafort when he left Trump’s staff
Aras Agalarov, Russian entrepreneur, hosted Trump in Moscow at Miss Universe contest. One of richest men in Russia.
General Valdimir Krychukov, KGB foreign intelligence chief, started recruitment of U.S. players that could and would help the Soviets.
Robert Mueller, Special Counsel assigned by the Justice Department to investigate Trump’s collusion with Russia on 2016 election.
James Comey, FBI Director fired by Trump for “not doing his job.”
Rosneft, Russia’s largest oil-producing company
John Podesta, Columnist, and former chairman of the 2016 Hillary Clinton presidential campaign. Chief of staff to President Bill Clinton and Counselor to President Barack Obama.
Sergei Lavrov, Russian foreign minister, met with Trump in White House the day after Comey was fired.
Lt. General H. R. McMasters (two stars), replaced Flynn as National Security Adviser to Trump after Flynn was fired. Remains on active duty in Army.
Rosenstein, number 2 in Justice Department behind Sessions. Appointed Mueller as Special Counsel.
Rex Tillerson, Trump’s Secretary of State, ex-CEO Exon.
Wilbur Ross, Trump’s Secretary of Commerce
George Papadopoulos, Trump foreign policy adviser in 2016 election.
Executive Summary
“The Steele Dossier” or a 35-page report detailing the relationship that Trump had with Russia over the last 15 or more years. In effect the dossier accuses Trump of collusion with a foreign power, a serious potentially career-ending charge for a new president of the United States.
The accusation, vehemently denied by Trump, was that Russia had helped Trump win the presidency in the 2016 election. The Steele Dossier claims that Trump was a puppet of Putin, the president of Russia, the enemy of the United States.
Trump frequently praised Putin during the campaign while criticizing Hillary and her allies vehemently. These two issues, the praise of Putin and the request of Russia to find the Clinton emails were remarkable, leading to the question: is Putin blackmailing Trump?
In 1998, Putin became the FSB chief. Steele’s conclusion about Putin was that he was domestically repressive but internationally reckless and revisionary. Putin is a professional spy. Everything he does has to be deniable.
At the request of Simpson, Steele started to investigate the relationship between Trump, a worldwide real-estate and hotel owner, and his potential relationship with Russia. “What are Trump’s business ties to Russia?”
Using sources that he had developed in Moscow and around the world, Steele soon discovered that Russia had been following Trump for at least five years. Their aim as endorsed by Putin was to encourage splits and divisions in the western alliance.
Steele created a total of 16 memos that were sent to Fusion. These would become known as the Trump-Russia Dossier or the Steele Dossier. Steele declared that the content of the memos was 70 to 90% accurate and that Trump had been colluding with the Russians for at least five years. It also concluded that Russia’s chief spy agency had spent considerable money and effort to get close to Trump.
The Dossier alleged that the Trump Team had coordinated with Russia on the hacking of Hillary Clinton’s emails and that the Americans had secretly paid for the hacking operation.
The Mueller investigation continues to this day. Comey is out of the picture, at least on the surface. Flynn has pled guilty and seems to be cooperating with the Mueller investigation and Paul Manafort is under house arrest.
The exact time that Donald Trump was put on the KGB target list is not known but it might be as early as 1977. In 1986 Trump made his first visit to Moscow, Trump was talking about building a new luxury hotel just across from the Kremlin in partnership with the Soviet government. The hotel deal did not work out, but the Soviets continued to cultivate Trump. They were looking for young, ambitious, upwardly mobile individuals who might have a future with them.
The KGB had a lavish trip to Moscow available for targets. Fancy hotels, girls, lavish meals and entertainment, sporting events, hunting trips, and other freebies were offered to Americans who might be willing to help the USSR and then the Russians after the collapse of the USSR.
After the presidential election, Putin told Trump that Russia had not interfered with the election. Trump accepted his statement as truth. Trump had believed Putin over his own intelligence.
Putin, it seems, was behind the old goals of the KGB: Aggravate disagreements between the United States and Western Europe, deepen division between the U.S. and NATO, and cleave the United States from its allies.
Trump’s real estate and resort operations became a huge investment target for Russian funds for over 20 years.
“It was almost as if Putin had played a role in naming Trump’s cabinet”. Was this a pattern of collusion emerging?
The Story
The Dossier
Christopher Steele and his partner Christopher Burrows are directors for Orbis, a London-based private intelligence agency. They’re both in their 50’s and have a long resume in intelligence. Steele had recently been given a contract to determine the relationship between Donald Trump and Russia.
Steele’s investigation resulted in the development of “The Steele Dossier” or a 35-page report detailing the relationship that Trump had with Russia over the last 15 or more years. In effect the dossier accuses Trump of collusion with a foreign power, a serious potentially career-ending charge for a new president of the United States.
The accusation, vehemently denied by Trump, was that Russia had helped Trump win the presidency in the 2016 election. The Steele Dossier claims that Trump was a puppet of Putin, the president of Russia, the enemy of the United States.
During the presidential election campaign, Trump was unduly friendly to Putin. He asked him on national TV to find 30,000 private emails of Hillary Clinton which could be used against her possibly for criminal prosecution. “Lock her up,” Trump demanded.
Trump frequently praised Putin during the campaign while criticizing Hillary and her allies vehemently. These two issues, the praise of Putin and the request of Russia to find the Clinton emails were remarkable, leading to the question: is Putin blackmailing Trump?
Russian bureaucrats and well-connected insiders had laundered $20billion it was alleged. Was Trump involved in contracts for hotel deals, golf courses, and land purchases with the help of Russian money? These are complex dealings that require lots of specific detail which makes for tedious reading. So, I am trying to filter the details down to make it easier to understand. To get the full set of information from Luke Harding, you need to read the whole book, and then some, Collusion.
Background to the Steele Dossier
In the summer of 1991 Mikhail Gorbachev was in power in the Soviet Union. The KGB was the Soviet’s intelligence organization and they assumed that all western embassy workers were “spooks.” The KGB had an assignment to keep track of all western intelligence agents. Christopher Steele, the author of the Dossier, arrived in Moscow in 1990 and was promptly targeted by the KGB.
The Soviet Union was crumbling. Steele watched as Boris Yeltsin staged a coup d’état and the USSR collapsed, resulting in a new Russia and the dissolution of all the satellite countries that had been acquired since the end of World War II. Intelligence agents in America thought they had won the Cold War but Steele knew better. The regime had changed but the system didn’t. Many of the KGB agents went directly from their current assignment to become agents with similar duties and responsibilities for the new FSB. One of these agents was Vladimir Putin, who mourned the loss of the USSR.
In 1998, Putin became the FSB chief. Steele’s conclusion about Putin was that he was domestically repressive but internationally reckless and revisionary. Putin is a professional spy. Everything he does has to be deniable.
Glenn Simpson formed a Washington, D.C. intelligence firm in 2009 named Fusion GPS. Simpson met Steele that year and they formed the London, Washington partnership which led to asset tracing of offshore companies. At the request of Simpson, Steele started to investigate the relationship between Trump, a worldwide real-estate and hotel owner, and his potential relationship with Russia. “What are Trump’s business ties to Russia?”
Using sources that he had developed in Moscow and around the world, Steele soon discovered that Russia had been following Trump for at least five years. Their aim as endorsed by Putin was to encourage splits and divisions in the western alliance.
So far, Trump had not started any large real estate deals in Russia, but he had accepted a regular flow of Russian intelligence. Trump was also accused of numerous perverted sexual acts while he was in Russia, acts which were arranged and paid for by the FSB.
Steele created a total of 16 memos that were sent to Fusion. These would become known as the Trump-Russia Dossier or the Steele Dossier. Steele declared that the content of the memos was 70 to 90% accurate and that Trump had been colluding with the Russians for at least five years. It also concluded that Russia’s chief spy agency had spent considerable money and effort to get close to Trump.
The Dossier alleged that the Trump Team had coordinated with Russia on the hacking of Hillary Clinton’s emails and that the Americans had secretly paid for the hacking operation.
In late 2015 the Dossier was shared with John McCain and the FBI who then shared its existence with Donald Trump who denied that its contents were truthful, “a piece of trash,” Trump said.
Carter Page
Covert Russian spies, working in the United States, were compiling information on American contacts. One of these was Carter Page. Page was an energy consultant in New York and he was eager to help the Russian spies—for money.
Page, a U.S. Naval Academy graduate, and USMC officer, spent a lot of time in Moscow. He founded Global Energy Capital LLC with offices right next to Trump tower in Manhattan. His partner was a Russian, Sergei Yatsenko. During Obama conflicts with Russia over sanctions, Page sided with Moscow.
When it became obvious that Trump would win the Republican nomination for president in 2015, Trump named five advisers to his foreign policy staff. One of these was Carter Page.
According to the Steele dossier, Page held two meetings in Russia in July 2016. The Russian purpose for these meetings was to get help in lifting the U.S. sanctions against Russia. Page denied any knowledge or actions in helping Russian operatives attain those goals.
The FBI presented evidence before the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISA) that there were strong grounds to believe that Page was acting as a Russian agent. The judge agreed, and the FBI was authorized to access Page’s electronic communications.
The Trump campaign disavowed any relationship with Page, casting him as someone who had exaggerated his links to Trump.
In January 2016, Buzzfeed under Editor in Chief, Ben Smith, published online the full Steele Dossier.
On January 11, 2016, Trump tweeted:
FAKE NEWS, A TOTAL POLITICAL WITCHHUNT
Putin and Russia also denied the truthfulness of the dossier.
Behind the scenes the FBI was working to verify the truth of the document.
Michael T. Flynn
Another Trump associate who came up in the dossier was Major General Michael T. Flynn (two stars). Flynn had also been head of the Defense Intelligence Agency, the senior military intelligence officer in the Department of Defense. Flynn was noted for an erratic style, a belief in conspiracy theories and a strong attachment to Russia. He even signed his emails as “General Misha” or “General Michael” at times.
He also had a reputation of being abusive with staff and a manager who did not listen. In 2014, he left the Army and the DIA which sent him a letter outlining his ethical requirements: “if you receive money from a foreign power, you must report it.”
In 2015, Flynn had not fallen off the Russian’s radar. They invited him to a gala opening of the new Russian TV Channel, RT. At the dinner, Flynn was seated next to Putin. It was obvious that Flynn had been escalated to such a lofty position because of his relationship with Trump. He was also paid $33,750 by RT for this trip. This was money from a foreign government which Flynn should have reported, but he didn’t.
By Spring 2016, Flynn was a vocal supporter of Trump and he was foreign policy adviser to Trump’s campaign. He was critical of Hillary, a “dishonest woman,” he said. He tweeted that fear of Muslims was rational. Rumors around Washington identified Flynn as a possible VP candidate.
Flynn spoke at the Republican nominating convention and called “Lock her up” towards Hillary.
By late summer Flynn was earning money from the Turkish government where he had a contract for $600,000. Once more Flynn failed to register as a foreign agent.
Flynn continued to interact with Sergey Kislyak the Russian ambassador to the United States. In December, he and Jared Kushner met with Kislyak in Trump Tower. It was reported that Flynn had spoken to Kislyak on December 29, the day after Obama had thrown out 35 Russian delegates to the United States as part of increased sanctions being applied to Russia. This was in potential violation of the Logan Act which prohibits American citizens with correspondence with foreign powers who are involved with disputes with the United States.
It is alleged that Flynn told the Russians that under president Trump, sanctions would be dropped or at the very least reduced. Later Flynn told Vice President-elect Mike Pence that he had not discussed sanctions with Kislyak. This was a lie which would come home later to haunt Flynn. At that time, president-elect Trump had appointed Flynn as the new National Security Adviser who would take office with Trump later in January.
On January 27, 2017, there was discussion amongst members of the White House staff for Trump that Flynn might face criminal charges. Sally Yates, the acting Attorney General, waiting for Trump’s new AG to be confirmed by the Senate, called White House Counsel to discuss the charges against Flynn. Yates thought that Trump would fire Flynn; instead, he fired her.
On February 13, Trump fired Flynn after 24 days in office. “I think he has been treated unfairly,” Trump said about Flynn. Flynn was blamed for lying to Vice President Pence about the discussion of sanctions. Flynn described it as an error.
“Trump’s attachment to Flynn was not one of loyalty to a friend, but an exercise in fear,” Charles Blow in the New York Times reported.
Paul Manafort
Manafort was a Republican political consultant from Connecticut who had worked for republican leaders such as Ronald Regan, Gerald Ford, George H.W. Bush, and Bob Dole. In 2004, Manafort began working in the Ukraine for a politician named Yanukovych who became prime minister of Ukraine in 2006.
Manafort signed a contract with Oleg Deripaska, an entrepreneur who had made billions of dollars in the Aluminum business in Ukraine. Manafort signed a contract with him for $10,000,000 to produce a political plan to undermine Putin’s enemies in Europe and the United States and in former USSR republics. Manafort’s proposal included politics, business dealings, and news coverage. Manafort would influence actors in his targets positively for Putin.
Manafort’s goal was to change the image of the Ukraine from that of mobsters to a legitimate political force.
Next was Yanukovych who was running for president of Ukraine in 2009. Manafort was his “K-Street” political adviser. In February Yanukovych was inaugurated as president with 45 million citizens under his control. Yanukovych was hell-bent on destroying Ukraine’s institutions: courts, parliaments, and prosecutor’s office. He was behaving as a classic bully and thug, as Manafort knew that he would.
In November 2013, Putin made a $15 billion loan to Yanukovych. The loan was a bribe and Yanukovych was Putin’s man in Ukraine.
By February 2014, a revolution was in progress in the Ukraine. Anti-government activists were disappearing. Some turned up dead others alive but showing signs of torture. Paid Yanukovych thugs roamed the streets beating and killing. Crowds of protesters built barricades. Riot police fired tear gas.
Yanukovych was in Kiev and he decided to leave for safety in Russia. He fled the palace in Kiev by helicopter, taking with him $32 Billion which he stole from the treasury.
Putin’s response was to seize Crimea and declare the revolution a “fascist coup”. He pledged to defend ethnic Russians. The Russian GRU played a key role in starting a war in Eastern Ukraine. Russian covert military and intelligence people took over Crimea and defeated activists in Eastern Ukraine. Yanukovych had sold out to a foreign power, the Russian government. He had committed treason.
How much of this was down to Manafort? To what extent was Yanukovych’s kleptomania a model for Donald Trump? Manafort had worked in the Ukraine for 10 years but in 2016, he signed on to become the campaign manager for candidate Trump.
In February 2016, Manafort approached the campaign proposing that he become the leader to guarantee a win for Trump in November. Manafort went through intermediaries like Kushner and Ivanka to get to the boss. He emphasized his successes in elections throughout the world. He had been away from Washington for over five years and thus had no Washington baggage. He had an apartment in Trump tower. When Manafort and Trump met, it went well for both. Trump liked that Manafort had managed presidential elections around the world, Ukraine, Philippines, Manafort, in his mid-sixties, had lots of hair and was good looking which was another favorable characteristic. Most of all, Trump liked that Manafort was a volunteer. He would work for nothing.
On March 29, Trump announced his new convention manager, Paul Manafort. By May, Manafort had become the campaign manager.
According to the Steele Dossier, Manafort was key to the conspiracy between Trump’s team and Moscow.
After six months on the job, Manafort’s job as campaign manager ended. The Times reported: “Secret Ledger in Ukraine Lists Cash for Donald Trump’s Campaign Chief.” Manafort had received $12.7 million in cash during his stay in the Ukraine.
Shortly after the Times report was published, Manafort resigned but he denied any wrong-doing. “The Black Ledger was a Fake.” Trump called the Times report, “Garbage paper.”
Manafort’s replacement was Steve Bannon, chairman of Brietbart.
By Spring 2017, Manafort was at the center of multiple investigations: FBI, House and Senate hearings, and U.S. Treasury investigations. Manafort had lobbied for Yanukovych in Washington, a no-no. This was an operation to look at C Yanukovych’s interests in the United States. Visas, top level meetings, and business deals. Manafort should have registered as a foreign agent.
It is alleged that Manafort used real estate transactions to launder money for Ukrainian and Russians friends.
James Comey
James Comey, Director of the FBI for three years, had his first meeting with Donald Trump on January 6, 2017 at Trump Tower. The purpose of that meeting was for Comey to brief the president on the investigation of Russia’s interference with the 2016 election. Comey was asked to stay behind and other members of the meeting were asked to leave. When Comey and Trump were alone, the FBI director briefed the president on the Steele Dossier.
After the meeting, Comey documented the meeting in a memo to himself. He did not trust the president and thought that he might be required at some future time to recall accurately what transpired at the meeting.
In this first meeting, Trump told Comey that he wanted and expected loyalty. Comey replied that he would always get honesty from him. Trump said that’s what he wanted, honest loyalty. Comey did not reply.
On April 11, Trump called Comey and urged him to put out the word that Trump was not under investigation for the Russian involvement in the presidential election. Comey refused.
During the week of May 8, 2017, Comey was on an FBI trip to speak to agents in Los Angeles. While he was speaking, it came across TV which was playing in an adjacent room, that trump had fired Comey. The letter firing him from Trump on May 9, said that Attorney General Jeff Sessions and Deputy Attorney Rod Rosenstein had recommended that Comey be terminated. Trump had accepted their recommendations.
Trump later disclosed in an interview with Lester Holt that he had made up his mind to fire Comey even before he got the recommendations from his attorney generals.
Trump told Comey in the letter that he did not think Comey was able to effectively lead the bureau.” It is essential that we find new leadership for the FBI that restores public trust and confidence in this vital law enforcement agency.”
The truth was that Comey had the complete support of the agents of the FBI as did the public. Also, attached letters to the termination letter from Sessions and Rosenstein said they recommended Comey be terminated because of his handling of the Clinton email affair.
Trump also mentioned that he appreciated the fact that on three occasions Comey had informed him that he was not under investigation.
This termination of Comey was legal, constitutional. He could fire him if he wanted to without having to give reasons. However, the move was viewed by the media and members of Congress as “reckless and impulsive.”
Later Comey testified that he thought the president was asking him to shut down a criminal investigation, that of Flynn and others potentially including Trump had colluded with the Russian government in the process of the 2016 presidential election. Comey said he thought that might rise to an “obstruction of justice” charge. Trump’s request, according to Comey, undermined the FBI’s status as an independent law enforcement body.
Subsequently, Sessions recused himself of further dealings with investigations related to the Russian inquiry. Rosenstein appointed a Special Counsel, Robert Mueller, as the Special Counsel. Mueller, a previous director of the FBI for 12 years, had a reputation for integrity and tenacity. His job was to investigate the collusion of the Trump team with Russia in the election.
The Mueller investigation continues to this day. Comey is out of the picture, at least on the surface. Flynn has pled guilty and seems to be cooperating with the Mueller investigation and Paul Manafort is under house arrest.
Collusion
In 1984, Vladimir Kryuchkov, oversaw Foreign Intelligence Gathering for the KGB. He felt that the KGB was not doing a good enough job of collecting intelligence about the USA especially since it was a time of the Cold War and Russia was dealing with a formidable adversary as president of the USA, Ronald Regan.
Kryuchkov developed a new strategy for gathering information about America. He sent out a memo to the KGB of how to recruit agents in the U.S. He urged his agents to be more creative. “Make bolder use of incentives” to recruit Americans who could be of help to the Soviets. Chief targets were American politicians, business leaders, and technical experts. These professionals were identified with the hope they could not only supply information but also provide influence amongst their peers.
The KGB was looking for illegal acts, sexual affairs, bribes, graft, and political intrigues. The KGB issued a secret personality questionnaire which they started to complete on individuals who fit the profile and who seemed willing to help the USSR.
The exact time that Donald Trump was put on the KGB target list is not known but it might be as early as 1977. In 1986 Trump made his first visit to Moscow, Trump was talking about building a new luxury hotel just across from the Kremlin in partnership with the Soviet government. The hotel deal did not work out, but the Soviets continued to cultivate Trump. They were looking for young, ambitious, upwardly mobile individuals who might have a future with them.
The KGB had a lavish trip to Moscow available for targets. Fancy hotels, girls, lavish meals and entertainment, sporting events, hunting trips, and other freebies were offered to Americans who might be willing to help the USSR and then the Russians after the collapse of the USSR.
In 2007 Aros Agalarov was one of 53 billionaires in Russia. He was planning to build a luxury housing estate on the outskirts of Moscow with homes costing in the $30 million range, some even more. The estate would include 250 homesites, a golf course, lake, and an artificial beach.
Agalarov was the Russian Trump. In 2013 Agalarov agreed to pay Trump $14 million for rights to the Miss Universe contest which Trump owned with the provision that the contest be moved from Paris to Moscow.
Trump offered plenty of possibilities to the Kremlin intelligence. Putin was invited to attend the contest and Trump looked forward to meeting him.
During the contest, Trump stayed at the Ritz Carlton in Moscow and during that time he had lunch with Agalarov.
Suddenly, Trump had bigger plans than a tower in Moscow. He was running for President of the United States. Agalarov was an enthusiastic supporter. Rob Goldstone, a British musical promoter, was placed in charge of the Miss Universe contest at the behest of the Agalarov family.
In June 2016 Goldstone wrote Donald Trump, Jr. “I’ve got some official Russian documents, incriminating information about Hillary and her dealings with Russia,” he said. “Can we meet in New York to discuss?”
In effect, the Russia government was offering Trump damaging material about Hillary as part of its effort to make Trump president. Goldstone was acting as an intermediary for the Russian intelligence agency in classic espionage fashion.
At this point Trump Jr. might have notified the FBI. Instead he confirmed a meeting with Goldstone the following week.
The meeting took place in Trump Tower on June 8, 2016.
Later, Donald Trump, Jr. denied that anything illegal had transpired at the meeting. Trump Jr eventually confirmed that the intent of the meeting was to get official Russian information about Hillary that could be harmful to her campaign, a “textbook definition” of collusion and information that would be useful to Mueller in his investigation.
Thralldom
thralldom. noun. A state of subjugation to an owner or master: bondage, enslavement, helotry, serfdom, servileness, servility, servitude, slavery, thrall, villeinage, yoke.
This is how the author describes Trump’s relationship to Putin (or at least that’s the way I interpret it.)
In 2013, Putin pinned a ribbon on Rex Tillerson who was later to become the next Secretary of State. It was the Russian Order of Friendship Medal. Putin and Tillerson go back a long way with Tillerson working as the CEO of Exon Mobile and exploring for oil in Russia.
Of all the CEO’s in America, Tillerson had the best relationship with Russia going back over 20 years. Tillerson had worked with Russia to develop oil fields in the Arctic and the Sakhalin Islands. Was it Tillerson’s relationship with Putin that got him the appointment as secretary of state?
After the presidential election, Putin told Trump that Russia had not interfered with the election. Trump accepted his statement as truth. Trump had believed Putin over his own intelligence.
Putin, it seems, was behind the old goals of the KGB: Aggravate disagreements between the United States and Western Europe, deepen division between the U.S. and NATO, and cleave the United States from its allies.
Cyber-attacks were a part of an overall Russian strategy against the U.S. these attacks were further spread to France, England, and Germany.
Trump and Putin attended the G20 summit. Trump did not sit next to Putin at dinner but during the after-dinner speeches, Trump left his seat and went over to talk with Putin—without his interpreter or anyone else, which was against security protocol.
Two weeks after the G20 conference, Congress passed another sanctions bill against Russia which passed the house 419 to 3 and the Senate 98 to 2. Trump reluctantly signed the bill. Putin, in retaliation, cut the U.S. staff in Russia by 775 people. Trump thanked him for helping to cut the state department payroll.
Towards summer of 2017, the legal net against Flynn, Manafort and Trump was tightening. Mueller was using a grand jury in Virginia and another in D.C. to obtain documents and information from individuals. Trump repeated his claim that he had no real estate, no deals, no loans in Russia. Mueller was discovering that there was plenty of Russian money going into Trump real estate and related entities going back over 20 years.
Money Laundering
Trump’s real estate and resort operations became a huge investment target for Russian funds for over 20 years. Dmitry Rybolovlev, one of Russia’s richest men bought a Palm Beach, Florida estate from Trump for a price of $95 million. Trump had purchased the property just five years before for $45 million, a profit of $50 million.
Rybolovlev never lived there. In fact, he eventually demolished it.
Cyprus was a haven for billions of dollars of Russian funds. One of the major owners of the Cyprus Bank was Wilbur Ross. Trump named his as Secretary of Commerce.
Russian mafia members were a core part of Trump’s clients. One of the primary investors in Trump’s New York SoHo project was Sater. Trump, when asked, denied knowing that Sater made all his money in shady activities.
“For four decades, trump’s property empire became a laundromat for Moscow money. Funds from Russia poured into Trump condominiums and apartments. They spent $98.4 million in seven Trump-branded properties in Florida. This money was respectable. It came from a bank. Or did it?
Deutsch Bank
In 2008 a global financial crash was upon us. Trump owed some $330 million to Deutsch for one of his Trump towers. The bank wanted at least $40 million as a payment—now. Trump said the crash was a force majeure event and he was not obligated to pay the $40 million. In fact, he wanted $3 billion in damages from Deutsch Bank.
Trump was good at using other people’s money. And once he got money from banks such as Deutsch Bank and even though he personally endorsed the loans, he told them that he would not pay them back as they asked. He had been through several bankruptcies already and he knew how to handle creditors.
A judge threw out Trump’s $3 Billion suit against Deutsch Bank. In 2010 Trump settled with Deutsch Bank and immediately borrowed more money from them. The gave him another $25 to $50 million in credit in the Personal Wealth Division.
During the same period, Deutsch Bank was laundering Russian money. Billions of dollars. According to the New York State Department of Financial Services (DFS), “more than $10 Billion was transferred from Russia to the West.” DFS fined Deutsch Bank $475 million. “While this was going on, Deutsch Bank in New York lent hundreds of millions of dollars to the future president.
House and Senate congressmen had some questions for Deutsch Bank which they were not getting answers for:
- Had Deutsch Bank sold any part of Trump’s debt to foreign investors?
- Was Deutsch Bank shielding the president because of on-going investigations into mirror trades?
- Had Trump and his family received preferential treatment?
- Had Russia or Russian entities underwritten any Trump loans?
The Deutsch Bank policy was to say nothing about the president; so, the answers to these questions remain elusive.
Senator Chris Van Hollen, expressed concerns about the bank’s lending to Jared Kushner, the president’s son-in-law. Kushner had a $25 million line of credit with Deutsch Bank. In October 2016, he received another $285 million real estate loan. Kushner was later to become the president’s senior adviser in the White House.
Trump named several people to his cabinet and White House staff who had previous dealings with Putin. Rex Tillerson, Wilbur Ross, and Michael Flynn, to name a few.
“It was almost as if Putin had played a role in naming Trump’s cabinet”. Was this a pattern of collusion emerging?
.
Rating—three stars out of four
Three stars out of four. This is a good true book, packed full of important content. Mostly because of Russian names, it is tedious reading. I recommend it for anyone who wants to improve his knowledge about pending investigations of Trump’s relationship with Russia and potential impeachment proceedings for the president of the United States.
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