How Thomas Barrack's alleged illegal lobbying shaped Trump's policies in the Gulf
Source: Washington Post
How Thomas Barrack’s alleged illegal lobbying shaped Trump’s policies in the Gulf
By Karen DeYoung
Today at 7:52 p.m. EDT
Writing in Fortune magazine two weeks before the 2016 election, Donald Trump’s old friend and fundraiser, Thomas J. Barrack, outlined a new U.S. policy for the Middle East. The “best hope” for America and the Arab world, he said, was U.S. support for the new, “brilliant young leaders” in places such as the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia.
Barrack, who would soon become head of the president-elect’s inaugural committee, was already acting on behalf of one of those leaders, Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Mohamed bin Zayed, the de facto ruler of the United Arab Emirates, according to a federal indictment unsealed against him in California on Tuesday.
Charged with failing to register as a foreign agent and lying to the FBI, Barrack allegedly used his close relationship with Trump to push UAE-sought actions on both the campaign and during the first two years of the administration. The Fortune op-ed was the product of direct input from Emirati officials, the indictment alleges.
Barrack’s lawyer has said he will plead not guilty. The indictment includes references to dozens of emails and texts between him and his alleged co-conspirators — Matthew Grimes, an employee of Barrack’s investment firm, Colony Capital, and Rashid al-Malik, a UAE citizen with close connections to the Emirati royal family.
Others in Trump’s orbit may have influenced the president’s decisions on Middle East policy. But what is clear from the indictment is that Barrack and the other indictees claim credit for virtually every interchange between Trump and the UAE, whose government quickly became a Trump favorite.
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Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/trump-barrack-emirates-qatar/2021/07/21/f903a388-ea36-11eb-97a0-a09d10181e36_story.html
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Related: Former Advisor to Presidential Candidate Among Three Defendants Charged with Acting as Agents of a Foreign Government (U.S. Attorney's Office - Eastern District of New York)
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