Democratic Donor Who Pivoted to Trump Draws Scrutiny in Inaugural Inquiry
Source: New York Times
WASHINGTON In the world of big-dollar political donors, Imaad Zuberi is notable less for the scale of his giving than for its baldly transactional nature. A supporter of President Barack Obama and then Hillary Clintons 2016 campaign who frequently posted pictures of himself alongside high-profile politicians, Mr. Zuberi, a California venture capitalist, abruptly pivoted after Donald J. Trumps victory.
Telling friends he needed to act quickly to balance out his political connections if he hoped to maintain access, he donated more than $1.1 million to committees associated with Mr. Trump and the Republican Party in the three months of Election Day in 2016.
It seemed to work. Mr. Zuberi scored coveted invitations to a pair of black-tie dinners celebrating Mr. Trumps inauguration. In the process, he posted photos of himself with the president, as well as Mr. Trumps first chief of staff, Reince Priebus, and Mr. Trumps picks for Treasury secretary, Steven Mnuchin; housing and urban development secretary, Ben Carson; and defense secretary, Jim Mattis.
But the biggest donation of his postelection flurry $900,000 paid by Mr. Zuberis California firm, Avenue Ventures, to Mr. Trumps inaugural committee is now being scrutinized by federal prosecutors in the Southern District of New York as part of what appears to be an escalating investigation into the inauguration and its financing.
Read more: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/05/us/politics/imaad-zuberi-trump-inauguration.html
HopeAgain
(4,407 posts)metalbot
(1,058 posts)...but this seems to be an indictment of both parties.
HopeAgain
(4,407 posts)An indictment of a Democrracy corrupted by cash.
rpannier
(24,329 posts)Cha
(297,154 posts)Power 2 the People
(2,437 posts)Apollyonus
(812 posts)Blue_Tires
(55,445 posts)no matter which party is in charge scare me most of all