Highlights:
2016: Trump Was Accused Of Soliciting Donations From Politicians In Iceland, Scotland, Britain, And Australia. According to the Christian Science Monitor, “Mr. Trump was accused in June of asking politicians in Iceland, Scotland, Britain, and Australia for donations, according to an FEC filing. The complaint was filed by two campaign finance watchdog organizations, Campaign Legal Center and Democracy 21, after foreign media reported members of the government in their countries had received emails from the Trump campaign asking for donations, as the Guardian reported.” [Christian Science Monitor, 7/17/16]
Christian Science Monitor Headline: Trump Campaign Solicits Foreign Donations, In Violation Of FEC Rules. [Christian Science Monitor, 7/17/16]
2016: Trump Continued To Solicit Donations From Foreign Politicians. According to the Christian Science Monitor, “The campaign of presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump is continuing to solicit donations from foreign politicians, despite highly publicized FEC complaints against him, The Hill reported. Accepting donations from foreign nationals is in violation of FEC rules.” [Christian Science Monitor, 7/17/16]
2016: Great America PAC Hired Jesse Benton As Its Chief Strategist To Buttress Trump. According to Politico, “A pro-Donald Trump super PAC has tapped Jesse Benton, a veteran Republican operative with ties to Rand Paul and Mitch McConnell, to serve as its chief strategist. The move is the latest indication that the super PAC, dubbed Great America PAC, is developing into a serious organization — one looking to buttress Trump in the final stretch of the Republican primary and, potentially, the general election. ‘There is a growing movement behind Donald Trump, bringing new voters to the GOP in an unprecedented way,’ Benton wrote in an email. ‘Great America PAC will help grow and harness that movement, unify Republicans and work to win not just the White House, but to also lengthen Mr. Trump’s coattails in races across the America.’” [Politico, 3/11/16]
November 2022: Republican Operative Jesse Benton Was Convicted Of Acting As A Straw Donor For Russian National To Contribute $25,000 To Trump Campaign In 2016. According to CNN, “A Republican operative was convicted on Thursday of facilitating an illegal campaign contribution from a Russian national to the Trump campaign in 2016. The Justice Department touted the jury conviction of Jesse Benton, known for his work on campaigns for GOP Sens. Mitch McConnell and Rand Paul, in a press release Thursday. The department said Benton ‘acted as a straw donor and contributed $25,000 of the Russian foreign national’s money to the campaign, falsely identified himself as the contributor and pocketed the remaining $75,000.’” [CNN, 11/18/22]
Republican Consultant Sam Patten Admitted, As Part Of A Guilty Plea, To Arranging A Straw Purchaser For A Ukrainian Oligarch To Donate $50,000 For Tickets To Trump’s Inauguration. According to Reuters, “A U.S. judge on Friday sentenced Republican political consultant Samuel Patten to 36 months of probation, 500 hours of community service and a $5,000 fine in a case spun out of U.S. Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia probe. Patten, 47, pleaded guilty in August to communicating with U.S. lawmakers and news media organizations on behalf of a Russia-aligned political party in Ukraine called the Opposition Bloc without disclosing that work to the Justice Department, in violation of the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA), among other offenses. Patten is a former business partner of Konstantin Kilimnik, a Russian national indicted by Mueller and accused of having ties to Russian intelligence. In Patten’s guilty plea he also admitted to arranging for a U.S. citizen to act as a straw purchaser to pay $50,000 for four tickets to the inauguration of Republican President Donald Trump on behalf of a Ukrainian oligarch, who reimbursed Patten through a Cypriot account.” [Reuters, 4/12/19]
Federal Investigators Examined Whether People From Qatar, Saudi Arabia, And The UAE Funneled Funds To The Trump Inaugural Committee And A Trump Super PAC, Rebuilding America Now. According to the New York Times, “Federal prosecutors are examining whether foreigners illegally funneled donations to President Trump’s inaugural committee and a pro-Trump super PAC in hopes of buying influence over American policy, according to people familiar with the inquiry. The inquiry focuses on whether people from Middle Eastern nations — including Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates — used straw donors to disguise their donations to the two funds. Federal law prohibits foreign contributions to federal campaigns, political action committees and inaugural funds. […] The super PAC, Rebuilding America Now, was formed in the summer of 2016 when Mr. Trump’s presidential campaign was short of cash and out of favor with many major Republican donors. While Mr. Trump insisted that he could finance his own campaign, he refused to dig too deeply into his own pockets.” [New York Times, 12/13/18]
Lev Parnas And Igor Fruman, Associates Of Rudy Giuliani, Were Convicted Of Acting As Straw Men For A Foreign Donor. According to the Dallas Morning News, “Two Soviet-born associates of Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani, Lev Parnas and Igor Fruman, were convicted of violating campaign finance law by acting as straw men for a foreign donor.” [Dallas Morning News, 3/14/22]
2020: Muraviev Was Charged In A Conspiracy To Funnel Foreign Money To Trump’s PAC. According to the Dallas Morning News, “A Russian tycoon who federal authorities say funneled illegal foreign donations to a Texas congressman and Donald Trump’s political action committee was secretly charged with conspiracy, the Justice Department revealed Monday. The September 2020 indictment of oligarch Andrey Muraviev had remained secret until now, though prosecutors had previously identified him as the true source of $5,400 donated to Rep. Pete Sessions, R-Waco, and other illegal donations.” [Dallas Morning News, 3/14/22]
Muraviev Allegedly Wired $1 Million To Parnas And Fruman. According to the Dallas Morning News, “Prosecutors told a judge in Manhattan federal court Monday that Muraviev is believed to be in Russia. The newly unsealed indictment alleges that he wired $1 million to Fruman and Parnas with the aim of boosting his chances to secure licenses for legal marijuana businesses. Muraviev ‘attempted to influence the 2018 elections by conspiring to push a million dollars of his foreign funds to candidates and campaigns. He attempted to corrupt our political system to advance his business interests,’ said U.S. Attorney Damian Williams announcing the indictment.” [Dallas Morning News, 3/14/22]
$325,000 Of Muraviev’s Money Was Donated To Trump’s PAC. According to the Dallas Morning News, “Michael Driscoll, head of New York’s FBI office, said Muraviev conspired with Parnas, Fruman and another man, Andrey Kukushkin, to make illegal contributions. ‘The money Muraviev injected into our political system, as alleged, was directed to politicians with views favorable to his business interests and those of his co-conspirators,’ Driscoll said. ‘As today’s action demonstrates, we will continue to aggressively pursue all those who seek to illegally effect our nation’s elections.’ Some $325,000 of the money went to Trump’s PAC.” [Dallas Morning News, 3/14/22]
Sherry Li And Lianbo Wang Were Charged With Illegally Using Chinese And Singaporean Investors To Donate $600,000 To The Trump Campaign In 2017. According to Reuters, “Two New York state residents were charged with illegally using funds from Chinese and Singaporean investors to donate $600,000 to then-President Donald Trump's re-election campaign in 2017, U.S. prosecutors said on Monday. The scheme was part of an effort by Sherry Li and Lianbo Wang to showcase political connections as they sought funds to build a China-themed park in upstate New York, prosecutors said, adding that they raised $27 million in investment, but never completed the project. […] Prosecutors said Li and Wang made contributions in their own names to a committee hosting a fundraiser for Trump on June 28, 2017, but that the funds came from 12 foreign donors the pair had charged $93,000 each to attend the event with them.” [Reuters, 7/18/22]
2019: Turkish Writer Rabia Kazan Donated $2,800 To The Trump Campaign For Access To A Mar-A-Lago Event. According to Salon, “The Trump campaign has not returned an illegal donation it received from a foreign national in 2019, records from the Federal Election Commission (FEC) show. It is the campaign's only known illegal foreign contribution. Rabia Kazan, a Turkish writer and author living in the U.S. on a student visa, made a $2,800 campaign donation in exchange for access to a March 2019 event at Mar-a-Lago featuring the president. The contribution was first reported this February in BuzzFeed News. But FEC records show that the campaign has not yet disgorged that money, as required by law.” [Salon, 5/4/20]
Despite The Illegality Reported In February 2020, The Trump Campaign Had Not Disgorged The Funds By May 2020. According to Salon, “The Trump campaign has not returned an illegal donation it received from a foreign national in 2019, records from the Federal Election Commission (FEC) show. It is the campaign's only known illegal foreign contribution. Rabia Kazan, a Turkish writer and author living in the U.S. on a student visa, made a $2,800 campaign donation in exchange for access to a March 2019 event at Mar-a-Lago featuring the president. The contribution was first reported this February in BuzzFeed News. But FEC records show that the campaign has not yet disgorged that money, as required by law.” [Salon, 5/4/20]
Complaints To The FEC Alleged That Li Juan “Cindy” Gong AKA Cindy Yang Used Foreign Nationals’ Funds To Make Contributions To The Trump Campaign. According to the FEC’s First General Counsel’s Report for MURs 7581 and 7614, “The Complaints in these matters allege that Li Juan ‘Cindy’ Gong, formerly known as Li Juan ‘Cindy’ Yang (‘Yang’), engaged in multiple schemes to funnel excessive contributions of her own funds and other individuals’ foreign national contributions to several committees in violation of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971, as amended (the ‘Act’), and Commission regulations. Specifically, the Complaints allege that Yang made contributions in the names of several family members and business associates and used foreign national funds to make contributions to Make America Great Again PAC f/k/a Donald J. Trump for President, Inc. and Bradley T. Crate in his official capacity as treasurer (the ‘Trump Committee‘) and to Trump Victory and Bradley T. Crate in his official capacity as treasurer (‘Trump Victory’), a joint fundraising committee. According to the MUR 7581 Complaint, the contributions were in excess of the limitations of the Act and primarily made in order to enable attendance and a photo opportunity with President Trump at a March 3, 2018 Trump Victory fundraising event held in Palm Beach, Florida.2 The MUR 7614 Complaint alleges that the contributions were primarily made in order to enable Yang’s and foreign nationals’ attendance at the March 3, 2018 event, as well as an earlier December 2, 2017 Trump Victory fundraising event in New York City.3 10 The MUR 7581 Complaint further alleges that Bingbing Peranio, Katrina Eggertsson, Gong Haizhen, and unknown respondents, Yang’s employees and associates, knowingly served as conduits for Yang’s contribution scheme.4 [FEC – MUR 7581, MUR 7614, First General Counsel’s Report, 6/28/22]
FEC General Counsel Found That “Yang Appears To Have Provided Substantial Assistance In The Making Of Prohibited Foreign National Contributions So That Foreign Nationals Could Attend Political Events Through Her Tourism Packages.” According to the FEC’s First General Counsel’s Report for MURs 7581 and 7614, “Based on the available information in the record, we recommend that the Commission find reason to believe that Yang made contributions in the names of her family members and work associates in violation of 52 U.S.C. § 30122, and in violation of 52 U.S.C. § 30116(a)(1) by making contributions in excess of the Act’s individual contribution limits. Additionally, Yang appears to have provided substantial assistance in the making of prohibited foreign national contributions so that foreign nationals could attend political events through her tourism packages. Accordingly, we recommend that the Commission find reason to believe that Yang violated 52 U.S.C. § 30121 and 11 C.F.R. § 110.20(h)(1). We also recommend that the Commission authorize pre-probable cause conciliation with Yang. 11 Finally, given the limited factual record and impending statute of limitations, we recommend that the Commission dismiss the allegations as to the remaining Respondents.” [FEC – MUR 7581, MUR 7614, First General Counsel’s Report, 6/28/22]
September 2022: The FEC Deadlocked On Whether To Further Pursue Investigation Into Cindy Li Donations. According to the Miami Herald, “Elections finance law complaints against an Asian day-spa operator from South Florida who allegedly funneled contributions from Chinese elites, likely including foreign nationals, to a campaign committee backing then-President Donald Trump have quietly been dismissed. The dismissal by the Federal Elections Commission came despite a staff finding that laws likely were broken and that the matter merited the FEC’s full attention. The six-member panel split 3-3, as is its usual practice, on whether to proceed, with Democrats voting yes and Republicans saying no. Four votes are needed for a full investigation to occur. The dismissals were first reported by the Florida Bulldog. Complaints against Li ‘Cindy’ Yang, who raised campaign cash and parlayed persistence to gain access to Republican circles in Florida and get pictures taken with the then-president, were filed by Common Cause, a Washington-based watchdog group, and the Campaign Legal Center. The dismissal of those complaints came three years after the Miami Herald first revealed Yang’s activities in a series of articles titled Trump Tourism.” [Miami Herald, 9/27/22]
April 2022: FEC Fined Canadian Billionaire Barry Zekelman’s Companies Nearly $1 Million For $1.75 Million In Contributions To Trump Super Pac America First Action In 2018. According to Politico, “The Federal Election Commission fined the companies of a Canadian billionaire nearly a million dollars for a contribution to a super PAC supporting then-President Donald Trump, after the agency found ‘reason to believe’ that the donations violated a federal law on foreign nationals contributing to American political committees or campaigns. Companies controlled by Barry Zekelman — a Canadian billionaire and the CEO, chair and owner of Zekelman Industries — agreed to pay $975,000 to close an investigation by the FEC into $1.75 million worth of donations made to America First Action, the pro-Trump super PAC, throughout 2018.” [Politico, 4/8/22]
The Fine Was Third-Largest In FEC History. According to Politico, “The fine is the third-largest in FEC history, according to the Campaign Legal Center, the nonprofit group that filed the original complaint about the donations in 2019.” [Politico, 4/8/22]
Politico: “Zekelman’s Lobbying Efforts Landed Him A Private Dining Room Dinner With Trump And His Son Donald Trump Jr. In Spring Of 2018.” According to Politico, “Several steel companies backed Trump with monetary contributions while he was in office, though Zekelman Industries was the biggest steel industry donor, according to the Times report. Zekelman’s lobbying efforts landed him a private dining room dinner with Trump and his son Donald Trump Jr. in spring of 2018, according to the report, where the group discussed incoming U.S. quotas on steel imports from competitors in South Korea.” [Politico, 4/8/22]