Trump's Russia lawyer faces conflict-of-interest questions over $296m Kushner deal

[Eugene]

Source: The Guardian

Trump's Russia lawyer faces conflict-of-interest questions over $296m Kushner deal

• Revealed: Marc Kasowitz’s firm involved in real-estate sale to Trump son-in-law
• Loan relating to building’s purchase could fall under Mueller’s Russia inquiry
• Questions already raised about Kasowitz’s potential conflict of interest issues

Wendy Dent and Ed Pilkington in New York
Thursday 29 June 2017 13.03 BST

The lawyer privately advising Donald Trump on the investigation into Russia’s interference in the 2016 election is head of a law firm that was involved in the sale of a prestigious piece of New York real estate to Jared Kushner, the US president’s son-in-law, in a deal that could fall under the spotlight of the same inquiry.

Marc Kasowitz, a member of the New York bar who has represented Trump in his business dealings for 15 years, was brought on board by the president last month to provide personal legal advice relating to the Russian inquiry now being conducted by special counsel Robert Mueller. The appointment has placed Kasowitz at the center of the legal maelstrom over the investigation into potential collusion between Russia and elements of Trump’s presidential campaign.

An investigation by the Guardian has found that Kasowitz’s law firm, Kasowitz Benson Torres, legally represented the owners of the former New York Times building in Times Square, Manhattan, in a 2015 deal in which part of the property was sold to Kushner for $296m.

The Washington Post has reported that a subsequent loan of $285m from Deutsche Bank to Kushner Companies, relating to the purchase of the building, could fall under the remit of the Mueller investigation given Deutsche Bank’s scandal-riven reputation. The involvement of Kasowitz’s firm as a key legal player in the initial sale adds a further possible twist as the special counsel’s inquiry gathers momentum.

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Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/jun/29/donald-trump-russia-lawyer-marc-kasowitz-jared-kushner

[Gothmog]

1. Kassowitz is a horrible choice to be Trump's main lawyer

[dixiegrrrrl]

2. Obviously.

Really sounds like Trump has been involved with various Russians for a long time, and that his circle of "friends" all have the same one characteristic of lawbreaking.