Targets of U.S. Sanctions Hire Lobbyists With Trump Ties to Seek Relief

Thanks to the Times for reporting on Dan Gertler, the Israeli businessman who has looted (at least) hundreds of millions from one of the poorest nations on earth -- the Democratic Republic of Congo. Now maybe it's time for a longer article about him -- a man who even the Trump administration found so far outside the pale that they imposed targeted sanctions under the Magnitsky Act.

Trump's Biggest Lie? Maybe it was the one about cleaning the swamp?

Talk about a win-win situation in this administration's ever more creative plots to seek profit while maintaining a place in the spotlight all in one go -- it doesn't get much better than this. Especially for a president who thrives on lording it over anyone who comes calling on bent knee. And no doubt all these foreign envoys will be staying at the Trump International Hotel in D.C. in order to win favor... Are we ready for the Emoluments Clause yet?

Business as usual in DC. Who said any of them are honest? Who says the parties are different? Director Comey had the right idea: arrange things to expose them both... first HRC, et al, now DJT... et al. Lock them up? No. Ask America to wake up. Thanks, Mr. Comey. Hope we’re listening.

"Play to pay mind-set that defines politics in many parts of Africa, Asia, the Middle East and former Soviet States" seems to involve a lot of big donors to political process in the US, not to mention that the majority of members of Congress somehow become millionaires upon gaining entrance to the body. Open your eyes...perhaps you will see.

Is it circumstantial evidence of crimes and criminals that these people, like Giuliani and Dershowitz, kiss up to Trump in hopes of future pardons? Or hoping proximity and showering favors will reduce fear of Trump leaking he knows of old crimes?

Wonder how many millions of dollars The Con Don is getting in cash under the table with his "sanctions" blackmail? How in the WORLD did he get into OUR white house? Boggles the mind.

Partially because of “both sideism” the right have realized a simple hack that media won’t call a lie a lie. “Fabrication” “exaggerations” and on and on... They can do what the want then say the opposite. The press prints their version this putting blatant lies into the public discourse. And muddying the waters so they can cry “fake news” there’s a literal calculation. “What percentage will be confused/who will be angry/who will become an activist= keep on stealing” The other hack is that capitalism without boundaries is inherently for sale. When kleptocrats come knocking many in our government are just “looking out for #1” and following what they were taught as children by our culture, money is the boss.

Most have heard the phrase, money makes the world go round. Well, no one said it had to be clean. Sort of lends credence to the other phrase that politics is a dirty business. Looking forward to cleaning house in 2020 then maybe we can convince our heavily lobbied Congress members to craft some laws that protect the US from the slime known as lobbyist. If not, then those members of Congress should be the next to go. Thank you NYT for another article that exposes Don the Con and his dirty dealings with shady characters.

It is clearly recognized by everyone with a thinking brain that there are no depths too low that Trump won't go, including opportunists eager to exploit his corrupt mentality. Perhaps there exists a chance for a silver lining though, as all these individuals crawl out from under their rocks and expose themselves to the light of day, they might one day be held accountable for their despicable ways. While our GOP congress ignores their oaths and show a willingness to sell away our country's soul, America's investigative journalists are fighting to keep it alive. Of course Trump would try to frame them as the enemy of the people, that's exactly what one would expect an enormously corrupt person to do.

Washington Wise Guys. so, here's the deal: foist we slap some tariffs and sanctions on dese guys, you know, guys with serious money. den, we let 'em stew a while, ya know, make 'em sqoim a little. we get dem introduced to one of our guys, our inside guys, ya know? and we can see how much they're hurting by how much vig they're willing to cough up to get a listen. den, we let 'em off the hook on the QT as soon as we get the dough. it's a beauty deal. and, if they don't pay up, we got ways to convince them, like the Air Force. the Russians call this a roof - like, you need a roof over your head to protect yourself from the rain, ya know?

Another instance of trump double-dealing & giving lip service to the policy decisions of his own administration. He's plays with one hand behind his back, and it's always about the money. MAGA? Drain the Swamp? Indeed... And what has happened to Alan Dershowitz? He used to be an excellent attorney with a consience. I guess everything went downhill after O.J. Simpson. It's all about the money.

Drain the swamp? Really? This administration looks like a clogged toilet.

I see people staring at Fox News in stores, at the gym, in diners, at the auto repair, etc. Bright colors! Banners! Women with hairdos in tight dresses! Meanwhile, the president, and I use the term lightly, is stealing everything that isn't nailed down and that, too. The corruption is palpable and obvious. Why else are there 17 mob investigators, or angry Democrats in trump's imaginary world, following this administration? This is the mob, baby. And his fans are either too stupid or too corrupt to care. Badabing.

“This is not the (swamp) you are looking for” I guess. “Move on—nothing to see here” I suppose also applies.

This called pay to play and this gangster administration is enriching itself and its friends as fast as possible.

We the voters have no ‘lobbyists’, aren’t our members of Congress we elect, suppose to be our ‘lobbyists ‘, where are they? Our country is now run by lawyers, loot, lobbyists. The voters can take a hike!

I seem to remember Individual One making distinctly anti-lobbyist remarks during his campaign, so here we have yet another example of his perfidy. It has been clear from day one of this administration that his only aim is to junk the United States and sell it off for parts.

How does he drain the swamp while surrounding himself with gators and crocs? Trump only understands greed, in himself and others.

Corruption seems universal, and many times the only issue in need of resolution is the price we are willing to sell ourselves for. But what we are witnessing now is a new low, as 'money speaks' and nuys consciences, apparently cheaper by the dozen. Are we still living in a democracy, or Trump effectively converted it into a Klepto-plutocracy?

Never have so many been paid so much to skirt the laws of the United States.Trump and the Russian brought " pay to play" to prominence by allowing Russian oligarchs spread money liberally all over the Trump cohorts.They are all before Courts now trying to explain away their off shore accounts and money laundering.Trump and his cabinet are conspiring to make lobbyists insanely rich by imposing sanctions which can be lifted with LOTS of MONEY.

Dershowitz says he would never bring up one of the clients he lobbies for when he has meetings with Trump. But he has accepted large payments and signed contracts with his clients to use his influence with Trump on their behalf. I don’t approve of his clients but he has a duty to them and not bringing their cases forward is a dereliction if that duty. He is cheating his clients and undermining US foreign policy while enriching himself. How is this legal?

Lobbyist should be banned. Using "close personal contacts" within our government amounts to bribes and favors owed. This is how large corporations influence votes and create backdoor deals that benefit their employers, at the expense of the American taxpayer. If a company (or country) has a problem, they should have to do what the average American citizens has to do, to reach their representative, congressman or senator. Write a letter or place a call to the designated department for assistance. Third party lobbyist should not be allowed. Until we take back our government, it will continue to be owned by fortune 500 companies and outside interest who line the pockets of federal employees through kick backs, perks and under the table deals.

Anyone surprised? If so you have not been listening.

The Times should research a story into how many PR firms and web-focused 'consultants' including trolls and cutout are currently employed by the kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Today Time Magazine selected the image of Jamal Khashoggi to symbolize the Man of the Year - the besieged Press. The biggest story inside this story, one missed by the media, including Time Magazine executive staff itself, is that Saudi hackers and flackers tried to "vote in" their boss, Prince Mohammed bin Salman. As we entered the Month of December leading up to the executive editors decision, the "public online poll" for "Who should be TIME's Person of the Year?" showed MOHAMMED BIN SALMAN crown prince of Saudi Arabia, with 46% yes, and 56% no" votes tallied as of 11-30-2018 6:21PM. The effort to convey the impression that the Prince was "important," seems earnestly professionally flacked - that's why the negative votes were stacked to make it look like the Prince is the mover and shaker, and not "merely popular," which they know no one would buy. I've got my screen shot, and it's not photo-shopped or doctored. The KSA and MsB have been spending freely to defend their interest from being held accountable to international law. The other major feature of this story, grossly underplayed by most coverage is that Trump is guilty of collusion and compromising the security interests of the United States in the kidnapping, murder dismemberment of journalist and dissident, Jamal Khashoggi.

The hogs will feed indiscriminately at any trough. It's their character.

The thieves, crooks and miscreants swarm to Trump like flies to a dead piece of meat. The swamp is over flowing with garbage, the stench is overpowering. Welcome to Trump world.

The very definition of "swamp".

"Previous administrations had worked to wall off politics from those processes, which are supposed to be overseen primarily by career officials and governed by strict legal analyses." With an ever-increasing number of those career officials bailing from the trump cesspool of corruption, who's there to provide oversight? Governance by strict legal analyses is nowhere to be found in his crime syndicate.

D. How much was the gross at Trump Washington last night from the visit by the foreign minister of the Democratic Republic of Kleptomania? COS. 3 million. D. And the other Trump properties? COS. 2 million and a floor of 666. D. Includes the commissions on companions provided? COS. Of course. D. Let him stay 3 more days, buy another floor 0f 666 , and tell him to come in for the signing Friday at 4 pm.

Democracy and human rights for sale. As long as you have money in politics this is what you’ll get

Well, how about an "I told you so". In this case, the "I" being Mr. Krugman. Making Tariffs Corrupt Again by Paul Krugman

The amount of money is staggering reputable law firms, the powerful and connected, including the President with ZTE. Plenty who blow the horns in defense of Trump and/or own his ears. The nightmare we live in becomes worse with each revelation on how the government functions. Isnt this why Manafort faces prison time? Meanwhile the national debt balloons due to tax cuts for people who have no more morals than those from Somalia, Congo or Russia. Stagnant wages, benefits cut, unions dismantled, tax cuts for the wealthy, instituting a gas tax on those who can least afford it..... that's why Paris burns. The US lacks the violence but is faced wirh the same arrangement

Okay, let's dispense with the euphemism. Bribery is bribery by any other name. Softening semi-crony corruption with language can hold off the special prosecutors only so long.

When do American citizens, not corporations, get their lobbyist?

This sounds a lot like an old fashioned protection racket.

What do you know! Another way for Trump and his buddies to make a buck: lay down a sanction then it's pay to play to get an exception. Isn't America great!

I do not like spell check

When he threatens a country, I often wonder whether it is a ploy to get money for himself and his friends and this article supports that suspicion. It also shows that voters don’t matter at all. Only lobbyists and big money donors matter. Trump is the swamp master.

Pay to play politics, open corruption, and hypocrisy epitomize the Trump GOP. No political party is more bought and paid for by special interests — like the Congolese dictatorship— than today’s Trump GOP. The GOP needs to die.

Cue the "... but everybody does it" excuses in 3, 2, 1...

The corruption just never ends. Lobbying for foreign individuals, governments or businesses should be illegal regardless of the moral character of the entity represented. Or if not outlawed there should be strict rules on how much they are allowed to spend. And spending limits should include amounts spent on travel or entertainment.

We have an openly corrupt president who is using the power of our government to shake down whoever he wants.

So have these Patriotic Lobbyists organizes them businesses as Tax Free PACS yet. Not Corrupt PAC. Not Corrupt PAC.

Annals of prostitution, continued...and lawyers are now the prostitutes instead of their customers.

Emperor Caligula in America.

Donald Trump made a solemn sworn oath to preserve, protect and defend whatever he is hiding from the American people in his personal and family income tax returns and business records in order for the Trump Organization to profit from his barbarian corrupt criminal fraudulent pirate temporary occupation of the Oval Office of our White House. MAGA is the cry to pillage and plunder of a robber thief hoodlum gang. Russia if you are listening please disclose what Trump is hiding to us. Russia you can have Ivana and Melania and their spawn and spouses and paramours except the boy Barron in exchange. You can also have Ted Cruz, Marco Rubio, Sean Hannity, Rush Limbaugh, Rudy Giuliani, Sarah Palin, Laura Ingraham, Mitch McConnell, Chuck Schumer , Paul Ryan and Dick Cheney. Take Jeff Bezos and Jeff Zuckerberg too. Pretty please.

Fascinating. Thanks, NYT. This is the kind of stuff that gets choked out of the news by all of Trump and Co.'s daily, I mean hourly, shenanigans.

A well-designed criminal enterprise. What's new?

Now this is how one drains the swamp!

It figures Alan Dershowitz is frolicking in the swamp on this. A shame really because many moons ago Mr. Dershowitz had a smidge of integrity. Why is it the older you get for some people, the more greedily reckless you get?

Draining the Washington swamp is one of Trump's most profound lies.

To the bible toting factions, do you really think this represents the Christian faith? Would Jesus really condone dumping death into the life giving force that is water? You obviously ignore pleas of science, but please explain how you rationalize this destruction while bible pounding. Hypocrisy. A market of corporate polluters in the temple of mother earth.

Sanctioned parties seeking relief are charged for real or supposed influence as these cases wind through the swamp of our legal system. Putin bought a lot of influence when he helped Trump get elected.

Organized crime. The lobbyists collect the bribes from the businesses and then distribute the earnings to the mob bosses. Can we start enforcement of RICO laws yet?

Can we just call this administration for what it is? A dictatorship. Yet again, another perverse way the Trump administration is monetizing policy in the spirit of foreign affairs. I’m not saying this is the first administration to conduct policy abroad with cash in mind but I am saying that that swamp is certainly thicker than ever.

Pay to play has been around a long time. It's just that Trump has made it the only game in town, and there's only one coffer into which the money flows: his.