Former FBI Assistant Director For Counterintelligence Frank Figliuzzi said that the DOJ seems to be heading toward indicting Trump for fraud.
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Figliuzzi said on MSNBC’s Deadline: White House:
Let’s not forget famously, Al Capone was not taken down for the murders and his racketeering career but simply on tax violations, and it does look like, as Carol said, DOJ may be headed to a straight-up fraud violation. You told people you were going to take their money for X, and you used it for Y.
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This gets complicated, unlike the Steve Bannon case, where he took money to build a wall, stuck it in his pocket, and converted it to personal use. DOJ is not there yet. You told people you were going to save America because of a fraud of the baseless allegation that the election was rigged and he actually won, and that’s fraudulent, yes, but people lined up to give you up to a million dollars a day at one point, Nicole, for this effort because they thought the election was terrible.
Now you moved that money, and you’re paying legal defense for other people. You’re even paying for defense on the documents at Mar-a-Lago. So it’s a little more complicated than straight-up you lined your pocket with it, but that’s where they seem to be going.
Trump may have made a critical mistake when he promoted the Save America PAC as being used to fight the results of the 2020 election. Trump did not use the PAC funds raised to litigate the 2020 election results. He appears to be lining his own pockets. The DOJ could also investigate whether the reason for the establishment of the PAC was fraudulent.
If a person fundraises for medical expenses for a condition they don’t have, that’s fraud.
Trump was fundraising to contest an election that he claims was stolen, but evidence reveals that he knew was legitimate. If Trump knew that the election was not stolen but raised money off the idea that it was, that could be a case for fraud prosecution.
The Justice Department would not be investigating Trump for potential fraud if they didn’t have evidence that fraud was committed.
Out of all of the potential crimes that Trump committed, the two that might get him convicted are stealing classified documents and fraud involving his super PAC.
Mr. Easley is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association