Donald Trump Jr. pal and another US businessman asked security council to lift Venezuela sanctions: report

Two businessmen with ties to the Trump family met with former national security adviser Michael Flynn and White House chief strategist Steve Bannon several times to discuss lifting sanctions on Venezuela.

Newly revealed documents show Texas financier Gentry Beach and international investor Wade Habboush met with Flynn five days before he resigned over his contacts with the Russian ambassador, reported Mic.

According to one source, Habboush presented a detailed plan Feb. 8 to improve political relations with Venezuela and lift U.S. sanctions in exchange for opening up potential business opportunities there.

Habboush returned the following day to present the plan directly to Bannon, two sources said.

One of the sources told Mic that Beach and Habboush set up the NSC meetings through deputy national security adviser K.T. McFarland, who first met Beach at the inauguration, according to the financier's attorney.

Beach is the godfather of Donald Trump Jr.'s son, and he helped raise money for the Trump campaign.

The U.S. Treasury Department announced new sanctions a few days after the meetings to punish Venezuela for allegedly aiding drug traffickers.

But the meetings raised ethics concerns in the White House Counsel's office, sources told Mic.

Beach and another Texas billionaire, Tommy Hicks Jr., raised millions of dollars for President Donald Trump's campaign and allegedly solicited donations through a nonprofit in exchange for access to the president at an inauguration event.

Habboush did not respond to requests for comment, but Beach's attorney told the website that he never made a presentation to the NSC and had no business relationship with the president's son.

The White House and NSC officials also declined to comment on the previously unreported meetings.