>>> SO THIS IS SOMETHING STARTING TO TAKE SHAPE IN
PUBLIC.
PUBLIC. DECEMBER 5th, 2017, WHICH WAS A
TUESDAY AND THAT WAS A MOMENT
THAT WAS A LITTLE FRAUGHT MOMENT
IN THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT
BECAUSE JUST A FEW DAYS EARLIER,
THE PREVIOUS FRIDAY, ROBERT
MUELLER GOT HIMSELF HIS FIRST
COOPERATING WITNESS WHEN TRUMP
NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISOR MIKE
FLYNN PLED GUILTY TO A FELONY
CHARGE AND SIGNED A PLEA DEAL
WHICH HE AGREED TO COOPERATE
WITH THE SPECIAL COUNSEL’S
OFFICE.
OFFICE. THAT HAPPENED.
THAT HAPPENED. THE FIRST WITNESS FOR MUELLER
HAPPENS ON FRIDAY AND THE
WEEKEND AND THEN TUESDAY MORNING
BEFORE DAWN, A GERMAN
PUBLICATION CALLED HANDELSBLATT,
I DON’T SPEAK GERMAN, I THINK
THAT’S HOW YOU SAY IT.
THE DEUTSCHE BANK HAS RECEIVED A
SUBPOENA FROM THE U.S. SPECIAL
COUNSEL INVESTIGATING POSSIBLE
COLLUSION BETWEEN PRESIDENT
DONALD TRUMP AND CAMPAIGN AND
RUSSIA ON DEALINGS LINKED TO THE
TRUMPS SAY SOURCES FAMILIAR WITH
THE MATTER.
THE MATTER. THE SUBPOENA IS PART OF A PROBE
BY ROBERT MUELLER AND HIS TEAM
TO DETERMINE WHETHER THE
PRESIDENT’S CAMPAIGN WAS
INVOLVED IN RUSSIAN EFFORTS TO
INFLUENCE THE U.S. ELECTION.
QUOTE, IT REMAINS UNCLEAR
WHETHER MUELLER REQUESTED
INFORMATION ON PRESIDENT TRUMP’S
OWN BUSINESS DEALINGS WITH
DEUTSCHE BANK OR THOSE WITH
PEOPLE CLOSE TO HIM.
THAT NEWS BROKE IN THE PREDAWN
HOURS ON TUESDAY, DECEMBER 5th,
2017.
2017. GERMAN PUBLICATION BREAKING THAT
NEWS.
NEWS. IN BOB WOODWARD’S BOOK "FEAR" HE
SAYS THE DAY THAT STORY RAN IN
THE GERMAN PUBLICATION, THE
PRESIDENT CALLED THE TOP RUSSIA
LAWYER AT 7:00 A.M. EASTERN
TIME.
TIME. QUOTE, HE WAS FURIOUS.
THE STORY THEN SPREAD AND PICKED
UP BY BLOOMBERG AND BY REUTERS
AND BY "THE GUARDIAN" AND BY THE
"WALL STREET JOURNAL."
AND THE DETAILS WERE A LITTLE
DIFFERENT IN EACH OF THE OUTLETS
AND STORIES BUT THE BASIC IDEA
WAS SIMPLE.
WAS SIMPLE. FEDERAL PROSECUTORS HAD
SUBPOENAED THE BANK THAT HELD
HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS OF DOLLARS
IN LOANS TO PRESIDENT TRUMP.
THE BANK THAT SOMEWHAT HAD DONE
HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS OF DOLLARS
OF BUSINESS WITH HIM YEARS AFTER
HE HAD BEEN BLACKBALLED AT EVERY
OTHER MAJOR FINANCIAL
INSTITUTION IN THE COUNTRY.
A BANK THAT PERHAPS COINCIDENTLY
WAS ALSO ADMIRED IN A HUGE ON
GOING SCANDAL OVER ITS ROLE IN A
MULTIBILLION-DOLLAR RUSSIAN
MULTIBILLION-DOLLAR RUSSIAN MONEY LAUNDERING SCHEME.
BACK IN JULY OF 2017, THAT
SUMMER, THE PRESIDENT HAD SAID
THAT ANY EFFORT BY PROSECUTORS
TO LOOK INTO HIS PERSONAL
FINANCES OR HIS BUSINESS
FINANCES WOULD BE A RED LINE, A
LINE THAT COULD NOT BE CROSSED.
WE LATER LEARNED MONTHS LATER IN
REPORTING FROM "THE NEW YORK
TIMES" THAT THAT DAY THAT THAT
GERMAN NEWSPAPER BROKE THE STORY
OF THAT SUBPOENA AND NEWS
OUTLETS THEN SUB KWENLTSEQUENTLY
THEIR OWN VERSION, DECEMBER 5th,
2017, THE PRESIDENT NOT ONLY
ANGRILY PHONED HIS RUSSIA LAWYER
AT 7:00 P.M. THAT DAY BUT ALSO
ACCORDING TO THE "NEW YORK
TIMES" THAT DAY TRIED TO MOUNT
AN EFFORT FOR THE FIRST TIME TO
FIRE ROBERT MUELLER, TO END HIS
RUSSIA INVESTIGATION.
RUSSIA INVESTIGATION. QUOTE IN EARLY DECEMBER
PRESIDENT TRUMP FURIOUS OVER
NEWS REPORTS FROM THE OFFICE OF
SPECIAL COUNSEL TOLD ADVISORS IN
NO UNCERTAIN TERMS MUELLER’S
INVESTIGATION HAD TO BE SHUT
DOWN.
DOWN. THE PRESIDENT’S ANGER WAS FUELED
BY REPORTS SAT PEA SS SUBPOENAS
FOR FUELING.
FOR FUELING. EIGHT DIFFERENT SOURCES FOR THE
STORY.
STORY. AND WE STILL DON’T KNOW WHY
EXACTLY THAT SUBPOENA, RIGHT,
THAT INVESTIGATIVE EFFORT ABOVE
ALL ELSE WOULD BE THE RED LINE.
THAT WOULD BE THE THING THAT
CAUSED THE PRESIDENT TO MOVE IN
AND TRY TO FIRE ROBERT MUELLER.
BUT BY THE END OF THE DAY ON
TUESDAY, DECEMBER 5th, 2017,
IT’S INTERESTING, MOST OF THOSE
STORIES ABOUT THAT SUBPOENA TO
DEUTSCHE BANK, MOST OF THOSE
STORIES HAD BEEN WALKED BACK OR
SOFTENED.
SOFTENED. MAYBE THERE WASN’T A SUBPOENA AT
ALL OR MAYBE THE SUBPOENA WAS
NOT ABOUT TRUMP HIMSELF, MAYBE
THE SUBPOENA WAS ABOUT PEOPLE
JUST AFFILIATED WITH TRUMP.
I MEAN, IF THERE IS A FINANCIAL
STORY TO TELL AT THE HEART OF
THIS SCANDAL FOR A NUMBER OF
REASONS, DEUTSCHE BANK SEEMS
LIKE THE PLACE TO START TO
FIGURE IT OUT.
WE NEVER HAD COMPLETE CLARITY
WHAT HAPPENED BACK IN DECEMBER
OF 2017 AND THE PRESIDENT’S
REPORTED FREAKOUT ABOUT THAT
STORY IN PARTICULAR AND WHY THAT
STORY ULTIMATELY GOT AT LEAST
PARTIALLY HERE AND THERE WALKED
BACK A BIT AT LEAST A LITTLE
SOFTENED.
SOFTENED. CERTAINLY EARNED VEHICLE USE VE
VIGOROUS DENIALS.
VIGOROUS DENIALS. WE’RE ENTERING A NEW FACE OF THE
TRUMP RUSSIA INVESTIGATION IN
WHICH THE PRESIDENT’S EFFORTS TO
CONTAIN THE PROBE ARE FAILING.
INFORMATION HE TRIED TO SUPPRESS
ABOUT HIS BUSINESS AND POLITICAL
DEALINGS IS EMERGING WITH MORE
TO COME A DEUTSCHE BANK SUBPOENA
WOULD BE ESPECIALLY SENSITIVE.
TRUMP WAS ENRAGED BY A DECEMBER
2017 REPORT THAT SPECIAL COUNSEL
ROBERT MUELLER SUBPOENAED THE
BANK RECORDS ABOUT THE DEALINGS
WITH TRUMP.
WITH TRUMP. QUOTE, THE RED LINE APPARENTLY
HELD THEN TRUMP LAWYER JAY SECAI
NO DEUTSCHE SUBPOENA HAD BEEN
ISSUED OR RECEIVED.
ACCORDING TO WRITING NOW, QUOTE,
ONE GOVERNMENT SOURCE SPECULATES
THAT ROD ROSENSTEIN, THE
DEPARTMENT ATTORNEY GENERAL
BLOCKED ANY ATTEMPT TO COMPEL
DISCLOSURE OF THE RECORDS TO
AVOID GETTING HIMSELF OR ROBERT
MUELLER FIRED.
MUELLER FIRED. THAT’S FROM ONE GOVERNMENT
SOURCE SPECULATING.
SOURCE SPECULATING. I MEAN, HONESTLY, WE DON’T KNOW
IF THAT SUBPOENA EVER WAS ISSUED
OR IF IT DID GET WALKED BACK
SOMEHOW AND IF SO, BY WHOM?
BUT THE NEW FACE OF THE
INVESTIGATE THAT DAVID IS
TALKING ABOUT HERE SAYING THE
PRESIDENT’S EFFORTS TO, WHAT DID
HE SAY?
HE SAY? TO CONTAIN THE PROBE ARE
FAILING, THIS NEW PHASE OF THE
TRUMP RUSSIA INVESTIGATION HE’S
TALKING ABOUT, IT’S NOT NOW, ONE
THAT’S HAPPENING THROUGH THE
JUSTICE DEPARTMENT AND THEREFORE
IT’S NOT ONE THAT COULD BE
STOPPED BY ANYONE IN THE JUSTICE
DEPARTMENT.
DEPARTMENT. IT’S NOT ONE THAT WOULD NEED TO
BE OVER SEEN BY THE BRAND-NEW
TRUMP APPOINTED ATTORNEY GENERAL
WILLIAM BARR.
WILLIAM BARR. THIS NEW PHASE OF THE TRUMP
INVESTIGATION THAT REFLECTS
THINGS THE PRESIDENT REALLY
DOESN’T WANT ANYBODY TO LOOK
INTO AREN’T HAPPENING THROUGH
THE JUSTICE DEPARTMENT.
THESE ARE HAPPENING THROUGH
CONGRESS.
CONGRESS. WHERE DEMOCRATS ARE IN CHARGE IN
THE HOUSE AND WHERE DEMOCRATS IN
THE FINANCIAL SERVICES COMMITTEE
STARTED DEMANDING DEUTSCHE BANK
RECORDS ABOUT TRUMP LAST YEAR,
ACTUALLY THE YEAR BEFORE THAT
THEY STARTED DEMANDING TRUMP
RECORDS FROM DEUTSCHE BANK
WITHOUT SUBPOENA POWER OF THEIR
OWN, THE DEMOCRATS WERE NEVER
ABLE TO GET MEANINGFUL RESPONSE
FROM DEUTSCHE BANK BUT NOW THEY
HAVE SUBPOENA POWER AND GOING
FOR IT.
FOR IT. THEY ARE FINALLY FOLLOWING THAT
MONEY TRAIL AND IT APPEARS THAT
THEY ARE THE FIRST ONES DOING
IT.
IT. WE KNOW THAT THE SENATE
INTELLIGENCE COMMITTEE DIDN’T DO
IT.
IT. THE SENATE INTELLIGENCE
COMMITTEE SAID THEY HOPE ROBERT
MUELLER IS DOING IT AND HOUSE
DEMOCRATS SAY THEY DON’T BELIEVE
ROBERT MUELLER IS DOING IT AND
SAW THE FIASCO THAT GOT WALKED
BACK AND EVERYBODY FREAKED OUT
FROM DECEMBER OF 2017.
IF THERE IS A MONEY TRAIL IN
THIS STORY, THE FIRST STEPPING
STONE DOWN THAT TRAIL IS
DEUTSCHE BANK TO AT LEAST ASK
QUESTIONS THERE.
QUESTIONS THERE. NOBODY HAS DONE THAT YET.
BUT NOW THEY ARE STARTING.
THE DEMOCRATS AND THE HOUSE ARE
STARTING AND APPARENTLY, THIS
MAY BE THE RED LINE FOR THE
PRESIDENT.
PRESIDENT. HONESTLY, IT FEELS MORE LIKE A
RED FLAG TO A BULL THAT’S
ALREADY LOOSE IN A CHINA SHOP
BUT THAT IS HAPPENING AND