“But there’s a whole amusement park of potential crimes out there given what we know about Donald Trump, and Weisselberg is the guy who knows where the entrance is and has the roadmap of it.”
– Joyce Vance, former U.S. Attorney
The Washington Post described him as “the man who could bring down Trump.” Politico reported his immunity deal “may be the biggest legal blow yet to President Donald Trump,” because federal prosecutors could use his cooperation “to investigate a broad array of potential financial crimes and irregularities, including any other payoffs and campaign finance violations, false statements to the government, corrupt business dealings overseas and tax evasion by Trump, his family members and their eponymous company and all of its related entities and offshore shell companies.” “(Y)ou should get to know him,” wrote the Post, “because you’re going to be hearing his name a lot in the near future.”
His name is Allen Weisselberg. Have you been hearing his name a lot lately?
Weisselberg is the chief financial officer of the Trump Organization whose only claim to fame was serving as a “judge” on Trump’s reality TV show, “The Apprentice.” Otherwise, Weisselberg has kept a low profile, toiling quietly in the Trump organization, rising through the ranks from the day he was hired by Trump’s father. If anybody knows the sensitive financial details of the Trump organization, it’s he.
“Weisselberg is the key to understanding Trump’s finances” stated CNN. “He may well be the only person who could possibly understand and explain the full scope of Trump’s financial life. And now, he has been granted immunity to talk about at least a small part of that world with prosecutors in New York.”
The Wall Street Journal reported on July 26, 2018, that “Allen Weisselberg, a longtime financial gatekeeper for President Donald Trump, has been subpoenaed to testify before a federal grand jury in the criminal probe of Mr. Trump’s former personal lawyer, Michael Cohen, according to people familiar with the investigation.” Cohen had pleaded guilty to felony charges, including two alleging that he and Trump conspired to violate campaign finance laws with hush-money payments to women with whom Trump reportedly had affairs. Cohen admitted one of the purposes of the payments was to avoid damage to Trump’s presidential campaign. Prosecutors said Trump masterminded the scheme, and Cohen had identified Weisselberg as a participant. Once news broke that Weisselberg had entered into an immunity agreement with federal prosecutors, the news media speculated that Weisselberg would be Trump’s ultimate undoing because he knew virtually everything about Trump and his family and organization’s finances. If Weisselberg opened up, he potentially had a lot to say, much of which could prove politically and criminally damaging. “That fact has to scare Trump,” added CNN. “But, if Weisselberg’s immunity deal extends beyond what he knew about the Cohen and Daniels payments, look out. That would be the biggest domino — by far — to fall in the broadening investigation led by special counsel Robert Mueller.” If, if, if.
There’s no question that, if there are financial improprieties within the Trump operation, Weisselberg would know about them. He’s the go-to witness not only for the hush money payments, but also the source of loans from Deutsche Bank and elsewhere, the improprieties of the Trump Foundation, and possible violations of the Emoluments Clauses of the Constitution. “And given what he knows,” wrote TPM, referring to Weisselberg, “the prospect of him testifying in federal probes and congressional investigations of Trump’s business empire could pose a new danger to the president from one of his longest-serving confidants.”
It’s no wonder that congressional Democrats are eager to hear from Weisselberg, as Politico reported on February 28th. So far, he has not been summoned, perhaps because of Trump’s blanket declaration against anybody associated with him cooperating with House Democrats’ investigations. Whatever the reason, Weisselberg has gone from potential destroyer of the Trump presidency to an afterthought. Where did he go?
“Trump and his aides aren’t worried,” Politico reported.” “They believe that Weisselberg’s testimony was limited to a narrow set of topics involving Cohen. That likely explains why Weisselberg still works as chief financial officer of The Trump Organization.”
Here is the Weisselberg arc: (1) he was named as a participant in the hush-money payments by Michael Cohen; (2) he was granted limited immunity by federal prosecutors regarding the investigation into the payments; (3) he testified before a grand jury in New York; (4) he never met with Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigators; (5) he has not testified nor provided documentation to any congressional inquiry; (6) he continues to work at the Trump organization; (7) he still knows everything.
Or does he? Perhaps he only writes checks and crunches numbers, with little knowledge of potential wrong-doing. Maybe he never looked up from his eye shade to see what was really going on. The immunity deal may only apply to the Cohen investigation and he’s refusing to cooperate with other investigations. Perhaps Weisselberg maintains his Trump organization position because he won’t cooperate with investigators, or maybe he’s been promised a pardon. Or maybe Weisselberg continues to work for Trump because, if he knows as much as people think he does, he could do serious damage to Trump. Is the quiet, bespectacled Weisselberg capable of that kind of leverage? He’s been in the Trump orbit for nearly four decades. He might have learned a thing or two.
There is no more obvious a witness into Trump’s business activities than Weisselberg, no one more likely to be called before multiple grand juries and congressional committees, no one who could do more damage. But, except for his brief cameo in the Cohen investigation, he has exited the stage.
Where have you gone, Allen Weisselberg?
Our nation turns its lonely eyes to you.
© 2019 by Mike Tully
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