Trump Ally’s UAE Lobbying Struck Heart of Democracy, U.S. Says
- Tom Barrack indicted for failing to register as foreign agent
- UAE used Barrack as backchannel to Trump officials, U.S. says
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Even before Donald Trump was elected president in November 2016, a foreign government turned to one of his close associates in an effort to gain influence -- and this time it wasn’t Russia.
Instead, according to an indictment of Trump’s former inaugural chairman Tom Barrack unveiled on Tuesday, the nation that sought such clout was the United Arab Emirates, a staunch U.S. ally in the Persian Gulf region. Prosecutors say the UAE relied on Barrack, a longtime Trump associate and real estate developer, to build a backchannel to senior U.S. officials.