The Trump family carried out a “coordinated White House charm offensive” to persuade Anthony Kennedy, a swing vote on the supreme court, to retire and clear the way for Brett Kavanaugh, according to a forthcoming book.nytimes.com/2020/02/04/mag…
Until the 1990s, Deutsche Bank was a provincial German company with a limited presence outside Europe. Today it is a $1.5 trillion colossus, one of the world’s largest banks, with offices in 59 countries —
and, thanks to its well-documented pattern of violating laws, an international symbol of greed, recklessness and hubris.
Deutsche Bank’s envelope-pushing helped it become the global power player it is today, but it also left the company dangerously frail.
Kennedy became friendly with Trump, sometimes joining him in his luxury box at the U.S. Open tennis tournament or saying hello to him at Manhattan nightclubs, where Trump would park himself at a table in the corner, holding court.
For Deutsche Bank, the relationship offered both money and prestige. Trump owed interest on the loans and also had to pay millions of dollars in fees each time the bank arranged a new one.
Deutsche Bank also helped Trump find buyers for condos in his properties, according to people familiar with the arrangements. When he partnered in 2006 with a Los Angeles developer to build a Trump-branded resort in Hawaii,
Deutsche Bank organized get-togethers in London and elsewhere to connect Trump and his partners with wealthy clients — including some from Russia — who used anonymous shell companies to buy units in the Waikiki hotel complex.
Trump moved down the line until he got to Anthony Kennedy. As Trump pumped the justice’s hand, Kennedy congratulated him on a successful speech. “Very nice, thank you,” Trump replied. “Say hello to your boy,” he added, patting the justice’s arm. “Special guy.”
