NYT investigation blows the lid off Trump associates' shady work on behalf of the United Arab Emirates

A new report from the New York Times has revealed fresh details about the work of two Trump associates to influence American policy for the benefit of the United Arab Emirates.

At the center of the report is Elliott Broidy, the top Republican fundraiser who was helped by former Trump "fixer" Michael Cohen to create a hush money agreement with former Playboy model Shera Bechard, whom he had allegedly impregnated during an affair and who eventually terminated her pregnancy.

In the fall of 2017, the Times writes, Broidy pitched a plan directly to President Trump about "a counterterrorism force backed by Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, which he said would be supported by his private security and intelligence company, Circinus, under the leadership of Stanley A. McChrystal, the retired Army general and former commander in Afghanistan."

What isn't clear, however, is whether Broidy received any money from UAE to make this pitch, which would mean that he violated laws on registering as a lobbyist for a foreign power.

Broidy's attorneys have denied that he received any money from UAE, but the Times report did find that the UAE paid fellow Trump associate George Nader "as he was working closely with Mr. Broidy on two fronts: to win security and intelligence contracts from the Emirate and Saudi governments, and to direct and fund the campaign in Washington against Qatar."

Additionally, writes the Times, "other banking records show that government of the United Arab Emirates continued to pay Mr. Broidy’s company tens of millions of dollars, including a payment of $24 million in late March, even as it became public that prosecutors were looking into his activities."

Read the entire report here.