Jack - Two Billion Dollars (feat. Vicky Ward)

Episode Date: April 24, 2022

This week: some more information on Tom Barrack; an interview with Vicky Ward about Jared Kushner’s contact with MBS and the $2B Kushner just received from the Saudi Sovereign Wealth Fund against the advice of that fund’s board; news about Sergey Lavrov, Oleg Deripaska, and a sex worker; plus Sabotage and the Fantasy Indictment League.Vicky Wardhttps://twitter.com/VickyPJWardhttps://vickyward.substack.com/Michael Weiss’ Piecehttps://newlinesmag.com/writers/michael-weiss/The Mueller Report - Pt. 8Patreon - (unlocked)https://www.patreon.com/posts/mueller-report-8-28315428/editFollow AG on Twitter:Dr. Allison Gill https://twitter.com/allisongillhttps://twitter.com/MuellerSheWrotehttps://twitter.com/dailybeanspodWant to support the show and get it ad-free and early?https://dailybeans.supercast.tech/Orhttps://patreon.com/thedailybeansPromo Codes: Thanks, Feals. Feals.com/msw for 50% of your first order, plus free shipping Download Switch Craft FREE today on the Apple App Store or Google Play.

Season 4 of How We Win Is Here For the past four years, we've been making history in critical elections all over the country. And last year, we made history again by expanding our majority in the Senate, eating election denying Republicans and crucial state house races, and fighting back a non-existent red wave. But the Maga Republicans who plotted and pardoned the attempted overthrow of our government now control the house. Thanks to gerrymandered maps and repressive anti-voter laws. And the chaotic spectacle we've already seen shows us just how far they will go to seize

power, dismantle our government, and take away our freedoms. So, the official podcast of the persistence is back with season 4. There's so much more important work ahead of us to fight for equity, justice, and our very democracy itself. We'll take you behind the lines and inside the rooms where it happens with strategy and inspiration from progressive change makers all over the country. And we'll dig deep into the weekly news that matters most and what you can do about it, with messaging and communications expert,

co-founder of Way to Win, and our new co-host, Jennifer Fernandez-Ancona. So join Steve and I every Wednesday for your weekly dose of inspiration, action, and hope. I'm Steve Pearson. And I'm Jennifer Fernandez-Ancona. And this is How We Win. Thanks to Fields for supporting MollarshiRote, Fields is a better way to feel better.

For 50% off your first offer plus free shipping. Go to feels.com slash MSW, F-E-A-L-S dot com slash MSW. And thank you to Switchcraft for supporting the podcast. Switchcraft is a mobile game with a unique blend of TV-worthy writing, choose your own adventure style narratives and thousands of magical match three levels. Download Switchcraft for free and unlock the magical mystery. Hey all, this is Glenn Kirschner and you're listening to Muller She wrote. So to be clear, Mr. Trump has no financial relationships with any Russian oligarchs.

That's what he said. That's what I said. That's what I think that's obviously what our position is. I'm not aware of any of those activities. I have been called a surrogate at a time, a true, and that campaign, and I didn't have, not have communications with the Russians. What do I have to get involved with Putin for having nothing to do with Putin? I've never spoken to him.

I don't know anything about a mother than he will respect me. Russia, if you're listening, I hope you're able to find the 30,000 emails that are missing. So it is political. You're a communist. No, Mr. Green. Communism is just a red herring. Like all members of the oldest profession, I'm a capitalist. Hello and welcome to Muller Shee Road.

I'm your host, A.G. Allison Gill. And today we have information on Tom Barrick, possible superseding indictments and other co-conspirator indictments. And I have an interview with Vicki Ward and her new substack, Vicki Ward investigates. And we're going to talk about Jared Kushner's contact with Mohammed Bonesam, Mohammed Bin Salman, with regards to our reporting on MSW from 2017 and 2018 that he sold US intelligence

secrets. Kushner did two the Saudis in exchange for a recent $2 billion investment, he just received from the Saudi sovereign wealth fund against the advice of the that funds board, by the way, but despite the multiple issues, including bad optics. And when Muhammad Bonsa says, you know, when the wealth fund for them, you know, says, hey, hey guy who murdered Jamal Kishoggi, it's going to make you look bad to hang out with Jared Kushner. That's you're that's bad when you're the bad optics in the MBS world. And despite the multiple issues with giving Kushner $2 billion, MBS

overrode the board's concerns and sent his fledgling investment company $2 billion. Now, it's important to understand the backdrop of the lobbying by Tom Barrick for the UAE and the Middle East when we consider that payoff, along with Paul Manafort and Bannon's role, as you know this is all connected. It goes all the way back to episode, I think, six of Mueller she wrote on the kitchen table days when we talked about the mid east Marshall plan set up by Katie McFarland, Mike Flynn, Bud McFarland, and his friend Copson who he was texting on the day as as Donald Trump was being sworn in. That's Mike Flynn. So all of this is connected in this lobbying scheme. And as we know, Tom Baruch was indicted on 951 charges. That's a S.B. and I was light.

That's much worse than a regular 18 U.S. I think it's 18 U.S. code 611, a regular Ferrocharge, but 951 instead. And we'll see what else comes out of that. I also have another story about Sergei Lavrov, our good old friend Sergei Lavrov, Olegg Darapaska, and a sex worker, and a trip to Japan in 2018.

And then, of course, I will discuss sabotage and the fantasy indictment league. So without further ado, let's jump in with just the facts. All right, first up from Michael Weiss at New Lines, media. He says it might have been any collection of satisfied diners posing with a grateful chef and wait staff outside of Tokyo restaurant. But this one was marked by the presence of three influential Russians, Sergei Lavrov, Russia's longtime foreign minister, Olegg Darapaska, a controversial oligarch close

to Putin, we know all about Oleg, and Ganadi Ravner, a former oil executive and oil and gas industrialist. Posing with the three Russians is Angelo Kuh, chairman of the China Development Foundation of Taiwan, a country with which Russia has no formal relations. The photograph can be geolocated to March 20 or 21, 2018, based on travel records previously obtained by Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny and his anti-corruption foundation. During those dates Lavrov was on an official visit in Japan during which he famously implied that UK authorities were holding Sergei and Yulia Skrypall against their will. Russian military intelligence officers had poisoned the Skrypalls with Novichok weapons-grade nerve agents two weeks earlier.

Two weeks before this picture was taken, another photo includes Lavrov's long-time interpreter and aid speaking about the official nature of his visit. Also of interest are two of the retinues female consorts. Standing to Lavrov's right in the image is Svetlana Poliakova, a sometime actor, restaurant tour, and employee at Russia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs. And also his mistress. Sandwiched between Lavrov and Derapasca,

and evidently the latter's companion on the trip, Derepaska's is a woman in her early 20s named Akaturina Lobanovah. In collaboration with the insider, new lines Michael Weiss has identified Labanovah as a Russian model, erotic model. She would not be the first porn model or sex worker Derepaska has traveled the world with, although she is the first to be publicly seen with the US sanctioned Oleg Arkin, the company of Russia's top diplomat, sanctioned in February for being directly responsible for Russia's unprovoked and unlawful further invasion of Ukraine. And of course, we know about the multiple sex workers that Darapak, and you know we're

pro-sex workers, that Darapati has had on his boat, for example, Nostya Rybka. She made a tape of one of the Russian prime ministers getting a handoff from Oleg Darapati of the information that Kalimnik brought to him, that Kalimnik got at the Havana-Sagar bar in the 666 Fifth Avenue building from Paul Manafort in Kushner's building. But anyway, this is a different one. This is a different mistress. New lines reached out to Maria Jacarova, a spokesperson for the Russian Foreign Ministry, and they ignored the request.

Lobanova is a prolific erotic model with her explicit photos ornamenting porn sites with names such as naked.me and psex.com, in a particularly steamy shot she's presented reclining on an embroidered black sofa, completely naked, safe for stockings and shoes. Her talents are advertised in a word salad, broken English under the category of young curly blonde girl. And the attendant ID number is listed as well. Lobanova shows LUDE and LUST desires the ad reads, going on to describe her as feeling like a genuine whore who wants to be shagged caressingly.

Okay. Lobanova's identity was verified using facial recognition software. New lines was also able to confirm the date of the photograph, which has previously not appeared publicly by checking flight data for PolioCova and RafaNur. Both were in Japan on March 20 and 21. Record show. Okay, so we've established that. While Lavrov's official visit to Japan was a matter of public record, the fact that he

was now accompanied by Dara Paska was not known until now. So there's the bit of news here. It doesn't matter who he was with or what she does for a living. Oleg Dere Posca was there with Lavrov. Two weeks after the Skrapals were poisoned, the exact circumstances of the group's reunion in Tokyo remain unclear, but the photograph confirms previous reporting about Lavrov and Polio Kovas extracurricular activities that he has a mistress, as well as Dere Posca's penchant for going overseas with high-ranking Russian officials in the company of young women.

In 2017, Navalny released a video showing that in August 2016, Derapaska sailed to Norway, aboard his super yacht Elden, with the Belarusian sex worker, Anastasia Vashukavic, known as Nastya Rybka. In attendance, too, was Sergei Pirkodo, Russia's deputy prime minister, who had previously served in various government roles, beginning in Boris Yeltsin's administration the 90s. Like Lavrov, Priydoko's bailiwick is international affairs and eyebrow raising liaisons with Dara Paska. In the video that Nostya Riebka recorded and posted on her Instagram account, the oligarch has shown discussion, the deterioration of US-Russian relations,

primarily as a function of then-US assistance secretary for European and Eurasian affairs, Victoria Newland, who Darapaska said hates Russia. Navalny alleged that the oligarch's hosting pre-Codeau on his boat and also on his private jet constituted a bribe, one born out of pre-Codeco's lavish country palace in Moscow and Moscow apartment. So he's also got that going for him.

The cost are both far exceeding his modest state salary as most oligarchs. Navalny also linked to the recording captures offhandedly by Nastya Rybka and written up with thinly veiled references to the relevant parties in her book, Diary of the Seduction of a Billion billionaire to Russia's interference in the 2016 presidential election. As I said, according to Navalny Derepaska, who was sanctioned by the US in 2018, because of Russia's seizure of Crimea, works as an information gatherer for the Kremlin and its

security services. Such a plan of potentially role was most famously on display in his dealings with Paul Manifort, Donald Trump's former campaign chair and corrupt lobbyist on behalf of Ukraine's pro-Russian government headed by victory in a Kovetch. As we know, Manafort owed Dera Paska. It says $10 million here, but I believe it was $14. For a failed joint business venture, and likely repaid it in kind in the form of private briefings about the state of the Trump campaign, which Navalny others have said were intended

for more influential audiences at the heart of the Russian government. Once we know, Manafort was convicted in 2018 on multiple counts of tax evasion bank fraud, failure to disclose hidden foreign bank accounts and conspiracy. Sentence to seven and a half years in prison, he was pardoned by Donald Trump in 2020, December. His business partner, Constantine Kalimnik, Russian intelligence officer, according to US Senate Intelligence Committee, passed sensitive Trump campaign polling data to Dara Poska, presumably with the same intent.

The Ukraine-born Kalimnik is currently wanted by the FBI on charges of obstruction of justice and conspiracy to obstruct justice. Nasty Ribko was arrested in Pataya, Thailand, as we know, in February 2018 for being a sex coach. She offered more details about Russia's meddling in American democracy and exchange for asylum in the U.S. I'm ready to give you all the missing puzzle pieces, support them with videos and audio as regarding the connections of our respected lawmakers with Trump, Manafort, and the rest.

I know a lot. I'm waiting for your offers. I'm waiting for you in a Thai prison. She never received asylum. After being released and then arrested in Russia, probably at Derapasca's orchestration. She was released two days later, amid reports that Beloruzian president Alexander Lukashenko intervened on her behalf. Now,

Polia Kovac has been romantically linked to Lavrov going back to his mistress since the early 2000s. Her identity was disclosed in 2014 when she received a religious award from the Russian Orthodox Church in the presence of the long-serving foreign minister Lavrov. She traveled with Lavrov extensively over the years to about 60 countries. In addition to Japan, she went to Italy with him, Portugal, France, and Switzerland. Some trips have been an official Russian diplomatic business. Some not.

According to the organized crime and corruption reporting project, Polio Kova even appeared in cell phone address books under his last name. Lavrov 72 is still legally married to Maria Lavrovna, with whom he has a daughter. Although his relationships with Polio Kova have said to approach that of a common law second marriage. Fine. Fine. Don't care. Lavrov's unofficial wife is also rich. Far wealthier than one might expect of a Russian bureaucrat or the owner of a large

successful, un-successful restaurant. Real estate registrar, yes, to talk about a front, right? Let's Walter White's car wash right there. Real estate registered in her family's name is worth close to $14 million. These include an apartment in Moscow's elite Golden Mile neighborhood, and one in Sochi, where she and Lavrov have vacation together.

One property that is gained scrutiny in light of Russia's war in Ukraine is Kensington, in Kensington, London, and is registered to P.P.K. investments L.T.D., a company owned by Polio Kovas's daughter, PolinaCovA. In 2016, then just 21, CovA entered into a 999-year lease for that apartment in the Tony London Postcode for $6.2 million in cash.

Cash. Around that time, her mother was photographed with Lavrov, Dharapasca, and Lobanovna in Tokyo. Kovaleva was enrolled in a master's program at Britain's Imperial College in London. The Financial Times noted she has worked as an intern in junior roles at the Russian State-owned bank VTB. A commodity's trader, Glencore, and the Saudi State oil company, Saudi state oil company, Saudi Aramco. Glencore, Aramco, Glencore, by the way, is one of the commodities trader that got the commission for selling off Rossignath to piece by piece. There's still a couple million

dollars missing from that transaction. And we all know about VTB. On March 24, 2022, the UK government included Kovalova, whom it described as Lavrov's stepdaughter, in its sanctions list, freezing her assets in London, including her Kensington apartment, and banning her from traveling to and from the country. Kovalova revealed her own relationship with Dera Posca on social media once her since deleted Instagram, which she posted once on Instagram, but that's you know her whole Instagram has been deleted now. She was shown lounging in his villa in

Sardinia and a board one of his yachts. So just an interesting connection there. And now it's all sort of coming out with with with these brand new really super harsh Russian sanctions because of the invasion. And of course, we can't talk about Oleg Darapasca without talking about Manafort. As Marcy Wheeler reminds us, Paul Manafort was working with Tom Barrick on a Trump energy speech at issue in the Tom Barrick indictment. That suggests that one thing Manafort did for one of the guys that got him hired. The other was Roger Stone, but one of those things was to cater campaign policy

to him. The complaint originally charged against alleged a Barack co-conspirator Rashid Al-Malik on June 25, 2019, obtained just five days after the FBI interviewed Baruch, which, according to the new indictment, would have alerted them Baruch was trying to hide this relationship. It provides more detail on Maniforce role in the energy speech and others and other events that Manifor had a role in relating to Barack's ties to the United Arab Emirates. And we'll get more on that later. But let's take a look at some Wall Street Journal reporting out this week. Put a pin in that.

And let's take a look at some Wall Street Journal reporting out this week. Put a pin in that. And let's talk about this. Saudi Crown Prince, Mohammed bin Salman, wearing shorts at his seaside palace, sought a relaxed tone for his first meeting with President Biden's National Security Advisor, Jake Sullivan, last September. The 36-year-old Crown Prince ended up shouting at Mr. Sullivan after Mr. Sullivan brought up the killing of Jamal Kashoggi. The Prince told Sullivan he never wanted to discuss that matter again and the people familiar with the exchange, that's what they told the Washington Post and the Wall Street

Journal. And the US could forget about its request to boost oil production. That's what he told Mr. Sullivan. The relationship between US and Saudi Arabia has hit its lowest point in decades. With Biden saying in 2019, the kingdom should be treated like a pariah over human rights issues such as Kishokji's murder. Your political fissures have deepened since Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Senior Saudi and US officials agree.

Though White House wanted the Saudis to pump more crude, both to tame oil prices and to undercut Moscow's war finances, but they haven't budged. They keep it in line with Russian interests. Prince Mahabdin wants foremost to be recognized as the de facto Saudi ruler and future king, and I want you to remember that when we talk about MBN with Vicky Warden a little bit. MBS, the Crown Prince, runs the country's day-to-day affairs for his ailing father, King Salman bin Abdulaziz al-Saud. But Biden hasn't yet met or spoken directly with the Prince.

Last summer, the President told Americans to blame low Saudi oil output for rising gas prices. After the publication of this Wall Street Journal article, Adrian Watson, a White House National Security Council spokeswoman, reiterated Biden's stated commitment that the US would support the kingdom's territorial defense. She cited diplomatic achievements in recent weeks, such as condemnation by Persian Gulf states, including Saudi Arabia, of Russia's invasion of Ukraine. She said Mr. Sullivan didn't discuss oil production with Prince Mohammed at their September

meeting, and that there was no shouting to their denying that allegation. A Saudi official at the kingdom's Washington Embassy said publication of this are upon publication of this article online that the relationship between US and the Kingdom remains strong. He called the meeting between Mr. Sullivan and Prince Mohammed Cordril and respectful. That was a Saudi official at the Embassy in Washington, by the way. The risk, of course, for the US is that Riyadh will align more closely with China and Russia, or at least remain neutral on issues of vital interest to Washington as it has on Ukraine.

Now, the US Saudi partnership was built on the premise that the American military would defend the kingdom from hostile powers to ensure the uninterrupted flow of oil to world markets. In turn, successive Saudi kings maintain a steady supply of crude at reasonable prices, with only occasional disruptions. But the economic underpinnings of the relationship has changed. The Saudis no longer sell much oil to the US. They're the biggest supplier to China. That's where their interests are. Reorienting Riyadh's commercial and political interests, right? They don't need us anymore. And US officials, including White House Middle East coordinator, Brett McGurk, have visited the kingdom repeatedly to try to heal that

breach with an eye on addressing Saudi concerns about security threats from Iran and the Houthi rebels Iran backs in Yemen. Yet with Mr. Biden opposed to any broad concessions to the Saudis, the officials acknowledge making only really modest progress. And without in mind, and with the Tom Barich indictment for S. Banage Light in mind, and the looming superseding indictments, in that case, in mind, let's listen to this interview with Vicki Ward, author of Kushner Inc.

I talked to her earlier this week on the Beans, and it's really appropriate to play here if you haven't heard it. And we'll have that interview right after this quick break. Stay with us. Hey everybody, it's A.G. Thanks for supporting Mola Shirok. Today's episode is brought to you by Switchcraft. It's my new favorite mobile game. Most match three games are fun, but very similar, and there's really no storyline. Occasionally, there's changes in themes or characters, or you might get a new, you know, challenge on a level, but the format remains

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All right everybody. Welcome back. So as you know, on Sunday on Mueller, she wrote, I talked about this $2 billion investment by Muhammad bin Salman to Kushner's, I guess, investment firm of which he has no experience. Then we talked about it again on Monday on the daily beans, especially about a piece penned by Vicky Ward from Vicki Ward Investigates. That's vickiward.substac.com. And I said, you know what, I need to talk to Ms. Ward about this. So joining me today is Vicki Ward. Hi, Vicki. How are you? Very good. Thank you for having me. I'm really honored to speak to you. I mean, you wrote the book on Kushner. Literally, it's called Kushner Inc. Everybody can pick it up wherever books are sold. And in your piece, you talk about three well placed sources that have information on why

perhaps or why most definitely Kushner was granted this $2 billion. Against the advice of everyone at the Saudi well fund, at the board of directors saying, look, this is bad optics. He doesn't have any skills. This isn't a real fund, basically. And it was MBS who personally overrode that decision so that the $2 billion could find its way into the pocket of Jared Kushner.

Can you talk a little bit about, because we all kind of came, we're talking about this in early 2018, about things that had transpired in 2017, about a trip to Riyadh and traders to the crown. Can you talk a little bit about these sources, what you were able to find out and publish on your substacks? Yes. So, Alison, just, you know, there are two substacks. So, you know, I wrote the first piece on Friday and I updated it this morning with legal documents. What they show is that back in 2017

and the first days of the Trump administration, Mohammed bin Salman, MBS, was not the crown prince of Saudi Arabia yet. A man called Mohammed bin Nayef, his cousin known as MBN, was, bin Nayef, his cousin known as MBN, was Muhammad bin Nayef, was considered a great friend, ally and hero by US intelligence. The CIA even gave him a medal for all the American lives. He had saved since 9-11. He used to give us the flight numbers of bombs that Al Qaeda terrorists would be sending over to America. He was also considered a moderate. He was the man that the US intelligence agencies wanted to see eventually become the ruler of Saudi Arabia. Enter MBS. Comes to the White House if you remember in March 2020. I know from legal documents that I put up on Vicky Ward Investigates on Substack this morning that that MBS was plotting with Jared Kushner to basically depose him and MBS also knew,

and he and Jared Kushner had conversations about it. This is in legal documents that MBS did not have the support of the three top US intelligence agencies. That would be the CIA, the FBI and the NSA. MBN also, according to my sources, heard that Jared Kushner and MBS were coming up with a plan that would involve money. He told people he trusted that one day we would see the payment for Kushner's help to MBS to get MBN deposed. We know, again, there are documents showing this, that in May, MBN hired a lobbyist to try

to get to Trump to shore up support in the White House. That plan did not work. A month later, MBS overthrew MBN. MBN was put under house arrest, and in 2020 he has of played out back in 2017 and was kind of, it played out in Plane's site and yet so many other things, I think, in Saudi Arabia distracted us. But my sources tell me that the bulk of the $2 billion that Jared Kushner was given to by MBS recently to invest, as you say, given though that Jared Kushner has no track record as a money manager, was basically payback for getting rid of MBS. Now, how did the, I want to ask you about Jared's security clearance or black thereof or that center. But before we get to that, talk a little bit about the distraction you just mentioned.

Because during that whole time, we had somehow a falling out with cutter, even though we have sent Con there on one of our main military bases there. And then there was the cutter blockade put in place. And then it was mysteriously removed. And then there was a fund that mysteriously bailed out Kushner's six days, six days, six fifth avenue building backed by Katari funds. And the cutters are like, whoa,

we didn't even have any idea about that. And that was sort of all going on in the background. So some summed underneath this entire coup d'état that was happening in Saudi Arabia. How did that play a role? Well, so, you know, Kushner Inc. I focused very heavily on the blockade of Qatar because, you know, to me, it gave the appearance that Jared Kushner was running our foreign policy purely for the sake of his real estate family business with zero concern for American national security because as you point out Qatar is where our air base, the

Al-Udade air base, if that is our security in the region. So what is interesting is the the Cotari blockade happened about a few weeks after the state visit to Saudi Arabia in May of 2017. That state visit was supposed to be about, you know, collaboration and security in the Gulf. I mean, at weeks after, suddenly the Saudis and the Emirates do other countries are blockading Emirates, two other countries are blockading their neighbor and rival Qatar. As I reported in Kushner Inc, what was very strange about that was that neither Secretary of State Rex Tillerson nor the Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis knew anything about it and were horrified they were in Australia when they heard that Qatar was being blockaded. And they heard that someone from the White House had given a green light to this and they quickly discovered that that someone was not Donald Trump. So they

assumed that it was Jared Kushner. Now, you know, Jared Kushner, we know, had forged this very tight bond with MBS. He, several events then, you know, then go on in Saudi Arabia that are quite troubling while this blockade goes on, including MBS's roundup of other Saudi royals in the Ritz-Cultan. We know from reports and open sources that Jared Kushner spent a lot of time in Saudi Arabia with Mohammed bin Salman right before that round up. Happened, but fast forward to March. The next year, Mohammed bin Salman, again appears in Washington and he asks Donald Trump

for money for to support his war in Yemen. That meeting did not go well. Trump humiliated Mohammed bin Salman. The Qataris saw an opportunity and the Emir of Qatar appeared in Washington to see President Trump shortly afterwards and said, you know, I've got lots of money, you know, I'd love to help America,

but I've got this problem with this blockade. And very shortly after that meeting, two things happened, short succession. The blockade, the US support for the blockade of Qatar was lifted. And as you say, Jared Kushner's family business was bailed out with a deal that made no economic sense by a Canadian real estate business whose main outside best investor is Qatar. Now, you know, and around this time,

while this was going on, Mohammed bin Salman described Jared Kushner as, yes, being in my pocket, but he also described him as quote unquote, the double-dipper, because it seemed that Jared was willing to take Saudi funds and Qatar's funds. Yep. Yes.

But what I look at now to your point about distraction and going back to that time, I think, you know, I certainly, when I was reporting Kushner Inc, we're so focused on the importance of the blockade, because that really was a threat to American security and why Sarah Pashna could possibly have given a green light to the Saudis to do that, that, you know, I'm only recently learning, very recently learning, that that was in fact a deliberate distraction

to take away from the main headline, which was that, of course, Jarrick Kushner had helped Mohammed bin Salman depose his cousin, NBN. And NBN said, you know, two people he trusted, you're going to see that money will have changed hands if their plan works. And whilst you mentioned it, the security clearance, MBN was really valued by American intelligence.

And I am told that this is why our intelligence agencies went apoplectic when NBN was deposed and were adamant that Jared Kushner not be given a top secret security clearance. Yeah, and then rightfully so. I mean, he's got so many dealings with so many foreign agencies, legal or not, that makes you susceptible and compromisable. But talking a little bit about maybe some of the other players that were lobbying on behalf of the United Arab Emirates, UAE, Saudi Arabia at the time, I know like the number one go to was Tom Barrick to begin in the early days of the Trump administration even before the

transition. And then of course we had American media ink, right? Pecker, and putting out that glossy magazine photo about the new leadership in the Middle East and how wonderful it was. Then on the third hand, we had Flynn trying to work with some folks in the NDI, including Kate Teemick-Farlane, or McFarl including KT McFarlane, or McFarlane and Bud McFarlane trying to get the Middle East Marshall Plan going,

where we would give nuclear reactor secrets to Saudi Arabia to build reactors and then send our troops in, or maybe Eric Prince troops, I don't know, to guard them somehow, to colonize, quote unquote, the Middle East. So there was a lot going on with lobbying on behalf of this alternate, you know, set of leadership in the Middle East.

And I was wondering if that's connected at all or if these are just sort of running in parallel. I think it's all connected, right? You know, you mentioned the Emirates, UAE and Abu Dhabi, I mean, you have to remember, I think, that Muhammad bin Zayet, MbZ, Kramprinz of Abu Dhabi, was very much the mentor of MbZ. It was in MbZ's interest for MbZ to lead, to become the Krampr crown prince of Saudi Arabia over Muhammad bin Nayef and NBC, you will remember, arrived very early in the truncuring the transition to meet with Steve Bannon, Jarrah Kushner, Flynn.

And, you know, they saw in the Trump White House people that they could do business with, and I think there were all sorts of agendas, some of which you have accurately outlined. And it was only, I think, you know, and I think they were quite successful actually in their marketing campaign. I mean, they got that state visit, as you mentioned, Tom Barak, who's now, you know, basically has been charged with being an undeclared foreign agent, basically, for the United Emirates. So we'll see what happens there.

But I think their marketing campaign went very well until actually the roundup in the Ritz-Colton. But I think their marketing campaign went very well until, actually, the roundup in the Ritz-Colton, I think there were reports that that was so brutal, that that was problematic. And then, of course, the merger of Jamal Kashoggi was just the absolute bridge too far as far as the United States was concerned.

Yeah, and we didn't run any of the checks per the Magnitsky Act that we were supposed to do. I know Donald was supposed to respond within 120 days and he failed to do that. That is a result of a successful lobbying campaign. And then of course we have the $110 billion arm sale to Saudi Arabia that circumvented Congress with the help of Mike Pompeo, which I'm sure is another successful lobbying story that happened during this time. Absolutely. Absolutely. And in fact, you know, all the arms deals that were done in that time, it's now one of the reasons there's a, you know, it's reasons there's a big chill,

not just between Saudi Arabia and the Biden administration, but between the UAE and the Biden administration is because they were expecting all these F-35s that have not arrived. So, you know, and then the reason I wrote about this last week in my sub-stack, that another reason, part of the $2 billion from NBS to Jared Krishner

is a bet that Trump comes back. I mean, these folks in the Gulf, they are not happy with how things lie with Biden administration. Yeah, and for some of the folks I've spoken to, like Mary Trump, for example, who didn't think that Trump would be running again And still I don't think Trump would want to run again because he lost so

spectacularly this past time and he really hates that might be shoved into a race that he may or may not want to partake and participate in by some Some actors that are maybe no longer include Vladimir Putin and are more focused over in the MBS, MBC realm. We will find out soon enough that election is looming. I want to thank you today for coming on explaining this. I'm looking forward to just you just now told me about this update with the court documents. I'm going to go right now to Vicki Ward investigates dot sub stack dot com. Do I have that right?

Vicki Ward investigates. Yes. On sub stack dot com. Exactly. Check that out. Thank you so much for your time today. Everybody give a follow on Twitter. And if you want the latest with what's going on with the Middle East Kushner, Barric, all of that stuff that's tied up with Kushner and Ivanka right in the middle. Please, please follow Vicky Ward. Thank you so much for your time today. Thank you for having me. All right, everybody. It's time for sabotage. So remember, remember that Manafort was caught up in the Tom Barrick scheme, but the Statute

of Limitations may have lapsed on his role, but maybe not put a pin in that. But it hasn't, we know for sure that the Statute of Limitations has not run out for someone else. Because about the same time as Paul Manafort, who worked for free, by the way, but who was in on Tom Barrick's effort. About the same time he got pulled from a flight to Dubai, Tom Barrick figured out the Department of Justice might supersede him to add not yet charged co-conspirators as well. And Marcy Wheeler says, the most obvious not yet charged co-conspirator given in the indictment and given the indictment

is Steve Bannon. And here's from Empty Wheel. This is Marcy Wheeler's blog. Some of the people described in the indictment must notably Paul Manafort, who recently found himself unable to fly to Dubai because his passport had been revoked, did things on which a five-year statute of limitations has expired, though there is a baroque-related action Manafort took in 2017 that is not yet time-barred. It's coming up pretty soon though. But that is not true for the actions of Steve Bannon described in the indictment.

The indictment describes this meeting US Person 1 had with MbZ. Honor about September 13, 2017, defendant Matthew Grimes, that's the youngster who lives with Tom Barrick, who was indicted along with him. Defendant Matthew Grimes sent a text message to the defendant, Rashid Sultan Rashid Al-Malik Al-Shahi, stating, we're just going to call him Al-Malik from now on, heads up. Emirati official one is meeting with a former United States government official, U.S. person one, an individual whose identity is known to the grand jury on Friday. Please keep super confidential. Grimes further advised Al Al Malik, that the defendant, Tom Barich, and Grimes, quote, worked hard

to show US person one how strong of allies we are. Very hard, Barich spent lots of time. Al Malik then confirmed with Grimes that US person one was briefed by Barich a lot on Emirati official one and his vision. Grimes added that Barrack worked hard to show our friendship and alliance and that Barrack had met with US person one many times in the past several weeks about this meeting with Emirati official one in which Barrack was championing the UAE. That's US person one is banning.

Okay. all right, with all of that, it is time for the fantasy and diamond league. I'm gonna be a dinosaur! No, it is gonna be a dinosaur! I'm gonna be a dinosaur! I'm gonna be a dinosaur! Oh, that can't, it's gonna be okay. Just calm down. I can't calm down, I'm gonna be a dinosaur!

All right, so for me, for me, as Doriton would say, I'm gonna go with Bannon. Bannon in the Barat case and Superseating Barric indictments. And hell, I'll put Man of War back on the team since he's got one thing that the statute of limitations hasn't expired for yet. Then of course, Matt Gates, LAK and Engels in the middle district of Florida,

and I throw some Rando Russians on there, and then Rudy and Sidney Powell and a seditious conspiracy charge for the proud boys. That's coming up real soon. Check out the final chapter by the way of Go Back To Where You Came From. I'm Hiba Wajahat Ali on the MSW Book Club today. That's out today. Next week we'll be taking patron questions for the author for Wajahat.

So submit those in the next day or so to get them in on time. And I will be back tomorrow with Dana Goldberg for the beans. Until then, please take care of yourselves, take care of each other, take care of the planet, take care of your mental health, vote blue over Q. I've been A.G. and this is Muller She Wrote. Muller She Wrote is written and produced by Alice Allison Gill in partnership with MSW Media. Sound designed in engineering or by Molly Hockey, Jesse Egan is our copywriter and our art and web designer by Joe Elrider at Moxie Design Studios. Mueller She wrote as a proud member of MSW Media, a group of creator-owned podcasts focused on news, justice, and politics.

For more information, visit mswmedia.com. Hi, I'm Harry Lickman, host of Talking Feds. Around table, it brings together prominent figures from government law and journalism for dynamic discussion of the most important topics of the day. Each Monday, I'm joined by a slate of Feds favorites at new voices to break down the headlines and give the insider's view of what's going on in Washington and beyond. Plus, Sidebar is explaining important legal concepts read by your favorite celebrities. Find Talking Feds wherever you get your podcasts. M-S-O-W-Media.