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MelissaB

(16,420 posts)
Mon Feb 24, 2020, 03:23 PM Feb 2020

Whistleblower says Saudi Arabia & the Emirate of Abu Dhabi bought the 2016 election for Donald Trump



Andy Khawaja: ‘The whistleblower’

Andy Khawaja is charged with campaign finance violations. He says there’s a bigger story

Paul Wood

... snip

‘They fucked me, Paul, they fucked me. First, they destroyed my business. Now they’re coming after me.’ Andy Khawaja believes he’s being persecuted because of what he knows. And what he knows, he tells me, is that Saudi Arabia and the Emirate of Abu Dhabi bought the 2016 election for Donald Trump.

... snip

Khawaja claims the Saudis and the Emiratis illegally paid tens or even hundreds of millions of dollars to the Trump campaign in 2016. He says that to keep it secret, they disguised the money as small donations from Americans, using stolen identities and ‘virtual credit cards’ or gift cards — donations of less than $200 do not have to be reported to the Federal Election Commission and made public. He claims the Saudis and the Emiratis were able to make thousands of such small donations at a time using the latest payment processing technology. Khawaja knows this, he says, because he sold the know-how to their middleman, George Nader, who will be the central character in this story.

... snip

The Khawaja legend is that he grew up poor in Lebanon during the civil war, picking up bullet casings from the street to sell for scrap. He escaped at the age of 14, made his way alone to the United States and found his first job in a Wendy’s in New Jersey. Although his real first name is Ahmad, he’s been ‘Andy’ ever since he arrived. He worked as a cashier in a supermarket and eventually moved on to ‘selling jackets on Rodeo Drive’ in Los Angeles. Realizing that it was hard for shops to take payments from foreign credit cards, he then started a company, Allied Wallet, to make it easy. Payment processing is Khawaja’s business. He knows credit cards and he knows how to move money. He may also know how to move money secretly.

In early 2016, Khawaja wanted to create an online shopping mall for the Middle East, an Arab Amazon. He needed investors. Enter George Nader. Like Khawaja, Nader is Lebanese-American. His name might be familiar because he was a witness in the Mueller inquiry. In January 2017, Nader set up a meeting in the Seychelles that he apparently hoped would establish a back channel between the Trump administration and the Kremlin. He’s now awaiting sentence in the US, a convicted pedophile.

More: https://spectator.us/whistleblower-andy-khawaja-micropayments/



From Dec 2019




https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/california-ceo-and-seven-others-charged-multi-million-dollar-conduit-campaign-contribution



34 replies = new reply since forum marked as read
Highlight: NoneDon't highlight anything 5 newestHighlight 5 most recent replies
Whistleblower says Saudi Arabia & the Emirate of Abu Dhabi bought the 2016 election for Donald Trump (Original Post) MelissaB Feb 2020 OP
Another paragraph MelissaB Feb 2020 #1
They are still doing it along with Russia . . . Iliyah Feb 2020 #2
Remember the data dumps going to Alfa Bank servers via trump org servers?? Roland99 Feb 2020 #3
And your post from then too Roland99 Feb 2020 #5
Yes! MelissaB Feb 2020 #7
Ooh 👀 underpants Feb 2020 #12
Hope this is beneficial for us Cirque du So-What Feb 2020 #4
illegally paid tens or even hundreds of millions of dollars stopdiggin Feb 2020 #6
Be quick to through water on this. triron Feb 2020 #10
if there's any substance to be had here stopdiggin Feb 2020 #31
more... superpatriotman Feb 2020 #8
Barr will definitely look into this. gibraltar72 Feb 2020 #9
DOJ already indicted this guy and several others in Dec 2019 for illegal contribs and lying to FBI wishstar Feb 2020 #11
Zactly! Duppers Feb 2020 #20
But he and Nader were charged with making $3 billion in foreign donations to HILARY. hedda_foil Feb 2020 #24
Seth Abramson has been yelling about their involvement for a long time. Seems few listen; certainly triron Feb 2020 #13
He eventually gets proven right NewJeffCT Feb 2020 #15
Yes he does. liberalla Feb 2020 #18
Seth said it was a global web so big the media has been overwhelmed Hermit-The-Prog Feb 2020 #16
That's their excuse. triron Feb 2020 #29
Glenn Greenwald owes everyone an apology Blue_Tires Feb 2020 #14
KNR bookmarked for review...nt N_E_1 for Tennis Feb 2020 #17
Rachel Maddow covered this 2 yrs ago. Duppers Feb 2020 #19
wow...thanks for recalling that. nt iluvtennis Feb 2020 #23
I've been speculating similar for years NewJeffCT Feb 2020 #21
Now serving the du jour Drumpf corruption scandal. joost5 Feb 2020 #22
Wow, that is a story bucolic_frolic Feb 2020 #25
Could we please have a Congressional investigation?? Appears to warrant one. Evolve Dammit Feb 2020 #26
Just thinking of that. Where is Schiff or Nadler? Pelosi? triron Feb 2020 #30
They should at least be doing regular press conferences. Dems need messaging/ PR help. Evolve Dammit Feb 2020 #33
And who's to say it's not happening again this year? Wednesdays Feb 2020 #27
Plausible if I want it to be; maybe too fantastic; but definitely worth paying attention to. NBachers Feb 2020 #28
I've been saying this since 9/11: The Saudis are not our friends. Initech Feb 2020 #32
For damn sure. Evolve Dammit Feb 2020 #34

MelissaB

(16,420 posts)
1. Another paragraph
Mon Feb 24, 2020, 03:26 PM
Feb 2020
Khawaja says he asked: ‘But you really think he’s going to win? I mean, this is crazy.’ And he says that Nader replied: ‘His Highness is not stupid, he will never bet on a losing horse.’ The money would come from the Saudis. The Emiratis would run the operation, using data bought from the Chinese. Khawaja says that Nader told him: ‘We have all the data already, we have 10 million US consumers’ data. And we have endless money.’ The Russians were ‘on board’ too: ‘He said, “Yes, I have met with Putin already and we have a green light from him. Because Putin is on the same page with us. He wants Hillary to lose.”

Iliyah

(25,111 posts)
2. They are still doing it along with Russia . . .
Mon Feb 24, 2020, 03:29 PM
Feb 2020

Funny how many stories are now coming out, especially the ones that say Russia was not involved. BS.

MelissaB

(16,420 posts)
7. Yes!
Mon Feb 24, 2020, 03:48 PM
Feb 2020

We've been waiting on more from this to drop. Looks like this is it.

Edited to say: Thanks for searching for those and linking them to this thread.

Cirque du So-What

(25,931 posts)
4. Hope this is beneficial for us
Mon Feb 24, 2020, 03:33 PM
Feb 2020

I wonder about the source. I thought the Spectator was a RW rag, so I was surprised to find this story in that publication.

stopdiggin

(11,296 posts)
6. illegally paid tens or even hundreds of millions of dollars
Mon Feb 24, 2020, 03:42 PM
Feb 2020

so which is it? Because .. there's a slight difference.
And if you don't know that ... What exactly DO you know?

(If this guy wants to give us the money trail to actual payments ... Great! Otherwise .. just another grifter with a story.)

stopdiggin

(11,296 posts)
31. if there's any substance to be had here
Mon Feb 24, 2020, 10:21 PM
Feb 2020

I'll be happy to walk back a certain professed skepticism.
But in my case .. it'll take more than a headline with Trump's name on bold face.

Is this character cooperating with investigators .. or just shopping his story to the newspapers?

superpatriotman

(6,247 posts)
8. more...
Mon Feb 24, 2020, 03:49 PM
Feb 2020
Khawaja remembers Nader telling him that Trump’s first foreign trip would be to Riyadh, to ‘celebrate’ with MbS and MbZ: ‘They’re the ones that got him elected.’ There was more — Saudi Arabia and the UAE would announce a blockade of their rival, Qatar, and Trump would support it.

Trump did, in fact, make his first foreign trip to Riyadh, in May 2017. And he did support the blockade of Qatar, which began in June 2017.

wishstar

(5,268 posts)
11. DOJ already indicted this guy and several others in Dec 2019 for illegal contribs and lying to FBI
Mon Feb 24, 2020, 04:48 PM
Feb 2020
https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/california-ceo-and-seven-others-charged-multi-million-dollar-conduit-campaign-contribution

A federal grand jury in the District of Columbia indicted Ahmad “Andy” Khawaja, 48, of Los Angeles, California, on Nov. 7, 2019, along with George Nader, Roy Boulos, Rudy Dekermenjian, Mohammad “Moe” Diab, Rani El-Saadi, Stevan Hill and Thayne Whipple. The 53 count indictment charges Khawaja with two counts of conspiracy, three counts of making conduit contributions, three counts of causing excessive contributions, 13 counts of making false statements, 13 counts of causing false records to be filed, and one count of obstruction of a federal grand jury investigation. Nader is charged with conspiring with Khawaja to make conduit campaign contributions, and related offenses. Boulos, Dekermenjian, Diab, El-Saadi, Hill, and Whipple are charged with conspiring with Khawaja and each other to make conduit campaign contributions and conceal excessive contributions, and related offenses.

According to the indictment, from March 2016 through January 2017, Khawaja conspired with Nader to conceal the source of more than $3.5 million in campaign contributions, directed to political committees associated with a candidate for President of the United States in the 2016 election. By design, these contributions appeared to be in the names of Khawaja, his wife, and his company. In reality, they allegedly were funded by Nader. Khawaja and Nader allegedly made these contributions in an effort to gain influence with high-level political figures, including the candidate. As Khawaja and Nader arranged these payments, Nader allegedly reported to an official from a foreign government about his efforts to gain influence.

The indictment also alleges that, from March 2016 through 2018, Khawaja conspired with Boulos, Dekermenjian, Diab, El-Saadi, Hill, and Whipple to conceal Khawaja’s excessive contributions, which totaled more than $1.8 million, to various political committees. Among other things, these contributions allegedly allowed Khawaja to host a private fundraiser for a presidential candidate in 2016 and a private fundraising dinner for an elected official in 2018.

The indictment further alleges that, from June 2019 through July 2019, Khawaja obstructed a grand jury investigation of this matter in the District of Columbia. Knowing that a witness had been called to testify before the grand jury, Khawaja allegedly provided that witness with false information about Nader and his connection to Khawaja’s company. Boulos, Diab, Hill, and Whipple also are charged with obstructing the grand jury’s investigation by lying to the FBI

hedda_foil

(16,372 posts)
24. But he and Nader were charged with making $3 billion in foreign donations to HILARY.
Mon Feb 24, 2020, 06:10 PM
Feb 2020

George Nader and Hillary? At the end of last year? By Barr's justice department?????

triron

(21,999 posts)
13. Seth Abramson has been yelling about their involvement for a long time. Seems few listen; certainly
Mon Feb 24, 2020, 05:08 PM
Feb 2020

not the media.

Blue_Tires

(55,445 posts)
14. Glenn Greenwald owes everyone an apology
Mon Feb 24, 2020, 05:13 PM
Feb 2020

I seem to remember his tireless obsession to link Hillary Clinton's campaign to dirty Saudi lucre...

Duppers

(28,120 posts)
19. Rachel Maddow covered this 2 yrs ago.
Mon Feb 24, 2020, 05:57 PM
Feb 2020
Maddow reveals ways in which the Saudis and UAE may have worked to help Trump’s 2016 election

https://www.rawstory.com/2018/06/maddow-reveals-ways-saudis-uae-may-worked-help-trumps-2016-election/




Great to have Nader firmly nailed this!




NewJeffCT

(56,828 posts)
21. I've been speculating similar for years
Mon Feb 24, 2020, 06:04 PM
Feb 2020

that many of those small donations to Trump were from fake citizens and/or fake IDs making contributions via Russia (didn't think it was the Saudis at the time)

I had imagined it similar to how Saul Goodman in Breaking Bad shows Walter how to launder money through his kid's GoFundMe (or similar) account - mysterious computer generated small donations kept contributing to the "charity" collecting for Walter's cancer treatment.

joost5

(421 posts)
22. Now serving the du jour Drumpf corruption scandal.
Mon Feb 24, 2020, 06:09 PM
Feb 2020

The fire hose of tRump's daily corruption continues to etch the paint off our democratic institutions.

IMPEACH HIM 2.0!!

bucolic_frolic

(43,132 posts)
25. Wow, that is a story
Mon Feb 24, 2020, 06:16 PM
Feb 2020

Was that what all those invented credit card accounts were about? Was is a Well Fargo exec who axed? Any connection here to this story? Who's buying it this time? China?

NBachers

(17,107 posts)
28. Plausible if I want it to be; maybe too fantastic; but definitely worth paying attention to.
Mon Feb 24, 2020, 06:50 PM
Feb 2020

You know how turd's been saying "overturn the 2016 election" a lot? He has a habit of taking details of truth, and then trying to turn them around the opposite way. Whatever he's accusing people of, is really happening. But not the way he says it is.

This may be the information he knows will overturn the 2016 election, that he's trying to insert into the public lexicon, so when it is uncovered, it's already been poo-poo'd along a whole other phony storyline.

Initech

(100,063 posts)
32. I've been saying this since 9/11: The Saudis are not our friends.
Mon Feb 24, 2020, 10:30 PM
Feb 2020

And we should stop pretending that they are. Our future is worth way more than a few drums of oil.

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