BREAKING NEWS: New Federal Indictments for George Nader; Allegation He Illegally Funnelled Foreign Donations to An Unnamed 2016 Presidential Campaign Brings Us a Step Closer to Full Public Revelation of the Six-Nation Pre-Election "Grand Bargain" Described in PROOF OF CONSPIRACY
1/ "A statement released by the Justice Department did not name the committees or candidate....[but as] Nader arranged these payments, he allegedly reported to an official from a foreign government about his efforts to gain influence." There is no reason to think this wasn't MBZ.
2/ Nader worked for MBZ. What other foreign government—unless it was Russia, Israel, or Saudi Arabia, all "Red Sea co-conspirators"—could he have reported to? And WP notes that "[Nader co-conspirator] Khawaja’s donations earned him...a post-election Oval Office visit with Trump."
3/ In other words, yes—there's every reason to think that *some* of Khawaja's 2016 donations ended up in Democratic super-PACs. But those who believe this case does not involve illegal foreign donations to the Trump campaign or inauguration are reading the WP article incorrectly.
4/ The main thing is this: Nader was seeking foreign monies to assist Joel Zamel's pro-Trump disinformation campaign in mid-2016, and now he's charged with aiding in the movement of foreign monies to one (possibly two) 2016 presidential campaigns. So yes—we're getting closer now.
5/ On August 3, 2016, Nader told Trump Jr. that he—Nader—was trying to assist Saudi Arabia and the UAE in aiding Trump's election. Trump Jr. responded "approvingly," according to the NYT. And now Nader is charged with... assisting foreign nations in aiding a candidate's election.
6/ WP: "Nader was seen by Trump allies as a helpful operator for navigating Middle East politics. He attracted Mueller’s interest for helping arrange a Seychelles meeting in January 2017 between Erik Prince, a Trump supporter who founded the private security firm Blackwater...
7/ "..., and a Russian official close to President Vladimir Putin. Nader later visited the White House several times, meeting with senior advisers Stephen K. Bannon and Jared Kushner, who is also the president’s son-in-law, according to people familiar with his visits." (via WP)
8/ To be clear, no one's saying monies didn't flow to Democratic super-PACs. It's that a) it appears they also flowed to pro-Trump entities, b) whatever foreign national Nader was keeping apprised of his efforts, there's virtually *no* chance that *that* person wasn't pro-Trump.
9/ BTW, I'm 100% on-board with any Clinton donors who committed crimes getting indicted—this is about rule of law for me, not partisanship. But folks must understand that Nader's illegal work on Trump's behalf is already confirmed, and it includes reporting to foreign nationals.
10/ Once Trump was elected, Nader worked with RNC deputy finance chair Elliot Broidy to lobby the Trump administration—a course of conduct that the evidence suggests will eventually lead to criminal charges. But his pre-election and transition ties to Trump are also part of this.
11/ From a "grand bargain" standpoint, the importance of the case is it positions Nader as aiding foreign interests in funneling money into U.S. elections—and reporting to a foreign nation while doing so. *These* donations may involve Democratic super-PACs; the next ones *won't*.
12/ Those who think this is "bad for Clinton" have *no idea* what they're talking about. The case has nothing to do with *Clinton*—but it *has* put the *top federal witness against Trump* in *so* much more legal jeopardy than he was already in that him flipping is nearly certain.
13/ Moreover, it confirms publicly—for the first time—that the feds know *exactly* the *sort* of activity Nader was involved in pre- and post-election: aiding foreign nations in meddling in our elections, seeking to cover it up, and reporting to foreign nationals while doing so.
14/ The confusion of some folks about why this case matters stems from an assumption—which may be correct about others, but *certainly* isn't about me and many folks I respect—that progressives think it's "bad" whenever a Democratic donor goes down. No. It's called "rule of law."
15/ More importantly, one Democratic donor going down over activities Clinton knew nothing about—and no one's saying she did—*pales in comparison* to the importance of a man we *know* can bring Trump down now facing federal election charges *as well as* child pornography charges.
UPSHOT/ This case has *no* impact on Clinton or the Democratic Party; has great impact on a subset of foreigners trying to donate to the Democrats; and is *devastating* for the future legal prospects of Trump and all others involved in the six-nation pre-election "grand bargain."
