For now, it doesn’t look like that Republicans in either the House or Senate are serious about delving into Donald Trump’s myriad links to Russia. While the Republicans are content with letting the regular standing committees handle any review, the Democrats have demanded the appointment of a bipartisan select committee that would be solely devoted to unpacking the links between Trump and the Kremlin.
However, it looks like we may get a look at Trump’s Russian dealings that won’t be tainted by politics. Deutsche Bank, Trump’s primary lender, recently took a close peek at Trump’s banking activities for any sign of improper Russian involvement. Despite this, the bank is under growing pressure to let an outside auditor review its relationship with Trump.
Deutsche Bank is Trump’s biggest lender by far, and his biggest known creditor. It was the only major bank that was willing to deal with Trump after he declared bankruptcy four times in 1991 and 1992. Incredibly, it continued dealing with Trump after he welched on a $40 million payment of a $640 million real estate loan in 2008. Trump countersued for $3 billion, claiming that Deutsche’s role in the recession had knocked down property values. Both suits were settled out of court.
Trump now works with Deutsche’s private bank, and currently has about $300 billion in loans outstanding. Most of that money is tied up in four mortgages–one of which covers the swanky new hotel Trump recently opened in the Old Post Office Building, just a few blocks from the White House.
According to The Guardian, Deutsche Bank wanted to know if Russia secretly guaranteed any of the loans the bank made to Trump over the years. It initiated the review after determining that Trump’s election as president made him a “politically exposed person”–a regulatory term for a public figure who carries a high risk of being involved in bribery and corruption.
While the bank found no evidence of anything improper, at least one American lawmaker wants someone to take a second look. Congressman Bill Pascrell of New Jersey, a member of the House Ways and Means Committee, called for Deutsche to “shine a bright light” on its relationship with Trump to “eliminate any speculation of wrongdoing.”
The bank is already under fire for money laundering by its Moscow branch. Last year, it was forced to cough up $630 million to American and British regulators for failing to stop the illicit activity. Before then, it lied to buyers about the quality of its mortgage securities, and was involved in a multibank conspiracy to manipulate global interest rates. It now has six separate independent monitors overseeing its activities. According to Virginia law professor Brandon Garrett, no other company has ever been known to have that many monitors.
On paper, that would provide a lot of incentive for Deutsche to give us a fuller picture of Trump’s dealings. After all, Trump has almost certainly had to open his kimono fairly often when he comes to Deutsche for money. With Trump unwilling to release his tax returns, this may be the best chance yet to find out just how far the tentacles extend.
(featured imagecourtesy Brals CE, available under a Creative Commons-BY license)
