The Tom Barrack case seen by the New York Times

Once upon a time, it would have been huge news if the chairman of the former president's inaugural committee had been indicted on charges of acting as an agent of a foreign power.

Donald Trump's presidency, however, has left us with an inflation of scandals. At this point, many of the prominent figures in his 2016 campaign were indicted or convicted, even if they were later pardoned. The chief financial officer of the Trump company was charged with tax fraud less than a month ago.

So when billionaire real estate investor Tom Barrack, one of Trump's biggest fundraisers, was arrested on Tuesday and charged with acting as an unregistered UAE agent alongside other offenses, it may have seemed like a dog story. bites the man. Barrack was once described by longtime Trump strategist Roger Stone – a criminal, of course – as the former president's best friend. If nothing more was known about Barrack than this, one could imagine that he would end up in handcuffs.

However, Barrack's arrest is important. Trump's relations with the Emirates and Saudi Arabia deserve to be investigated as thoroughly as his administration's relations with Russia. So far this has not happened – writes the NYT .

When Robert Mueller, the former special adviser, testified before Congress, Adam Schiff, chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, told him, “We didn't bother to ask if any Gulf nation's financial incentives were affecting politics. of the United States, since it is outside the boundaries of its relationship, and therefore we have to find out ”. But we didn't find out.

A Barrack trial, if the case goes this far, is unlikely to answer all the outstanding questions about how Gulf money shaped Trump's policy. But it might answer some.

Recall that Russia was not the only nation to send emissaries to Trump Tower during the presidential campaign by offering electoral aid. The bipartisan report from the Senate Intelligence Commission on Russian election interference discusses an August 2016 meeting at Trump Tower whose attendees included Donald Trump Jr, George Nader, then advisor to Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed, the de facto ruler of the Emirates, and Joel Zamel, owner of an Israeli private intelligence company, Psy-Group. (Nader is currently in prison for sexual exploitation and child pornography.

"Zamel asked Trump Jr. if Psy-Group's conduct of a social media campaign paid for by Nader would present a conflict for Trump's campaign," the Senate report said. "According to Zamel, Trump Jr. indicated that this would not present a conflict."

Zamel told the Senate committee that his company never actually performed such work. “Nonetheless, as described below, Zamel engaged in a job on behalf of Nader, for which he was paid more than $ 1 million,” the report said. Zamel said the payment was for a social media post-election analysis, of which all copies have apparently been deleted.

If the allegations in Barrack's indictment are true, it means that while an Emirati adviser offered electoral aid to Trump's campaign, an Emirati agent was also shaping Trump's foreign policy, even inserting the country's preferred language into one. of the candidate's speeches. Prosecutors say Barrack told a senior figure they call "Emirati Official 2" that he had been involved in Trump's campaign. (It was Barrack who recommended Paul Manafort, later convicted of multiple crimes, to Trump.) When an Emirati official asked Barrack if he had information on senior Trump officials, Barrack allegedly replied, "I do" and said they should have spoken by phone. He is said to have traveled to the Emirates to strategize with his leadership on what they wanted from the administration during his first 100 days, first six months, first year and first term.

In the early months of the Trump administration, prosecutors say another alleged Emirati agent named Rashid Sultan Rashid Al Malik Alshahhi – also indicted on Tuesday – sent a message to Barrack: “Our people want you to help. They hoped that you could officially manage the agendas ”. According to the indictment, Barrack replied: “I will! Barrack would later call Alshahhi "the secret weapon to get the Abu Dhabi plan started" by Trump.

At the time, several Arab countries, including the Emirates, were blocking Qatar. Even as the Pentagon and the State Department attempted to remain neutral in the crisis, Trump sent out tweets that appeared to support the blockade and even take credit for it.

During his presidency, Trump could not have been a more accommodating ally with the Emirates and Saudi Arabia, whose crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, was a protégé of Prince Mohammed bin Zayed. Trump's first overseas trip was to Saudi Arabia. He tore the deal with Iran, hated by the Arab leaders of the Gulf. Of Trump's 10 presidential vetoes, five concerned issues that worried the Emirates and Saudi Arabia. More significantly, it bypassed Congress's attempt to end American military involvement in Yemen, where Saudi Arabia and the Emirates were fighting on one side of a brutal civil war. According to Bob Woodward's book "Rage", Trump boasted that he "saved" the Saudi Crown Prince after the murder of Saudi dissident Jamal Khashoggi sparked widespread outrage.

There is no reason to attribute all of Trump's concern to Barrack. Trump loves and admires flashy dictators and has his financial interests in the Emirates. Barrack introduced Jared Kushner to some of his Gulf associates, but Kushner had his reasons for pursuing alliances with them, most notably his drive to get more Muslim countries to normalize relations with Israel. However, if a member of Trump's inner circle turns out to have been an Emirati agent, that's a big deal. It's a reminder of everything we still don't know about what has gone into the foreign policy of the most corrupt presidency in American history.

In June 2018, the Times reported that Barrack's company "has raised more than $ 7 billion in investments since Mr. Trump was nominated," about a quarter from the Emirates or Saudi Arabia. Barrack stepped down from his executive role at that company in March, but just last week he told Bloomberg Television that the Emiratis would be among his investors in a new venture involving "mega resorts" and "the entertainment industry." hospitality in relation to well-being, in relation to health. " Americans deserve to know whether Barrack essentially sold his US foreign policy influence to his investors. The Trump scandal market may be saturated, but when it comes to the role of foreign money in the latest administration, there is no shortage of mysteries.

(Extract from the press review of Eprcomunicazione)