FYI

Books and newspaper accounts of Trump's 45 years in business were full of his 
shady dealings, and the presidency had only helped to highlight them and to surface even 
juicier ones. Real estate was the world's favorite money laundering currency and Trump's 
perceived A -level real estate business was quite explicitly designed to appeal to money 
launderers. What's more, Trump's own financial woes, and desperate efforts to maintain 
billionaire lifestyle, cache, and market viability, forced him into constant and unsubtle 
schemes. Practically speaking, you couldn't miss him, as the Mueller investigation 
appeared to be finding. 
In November 2004, for instance, Jeffrey Epstein, the financier later caught in a scandal 
involving under-age prostitutes, agreed to buy out of bankruptcy a house in Palm Beach, 
Florida for $36 million—a house that had been on the market for two years. Epstein and 
Trump had been close friends—playboys in arms, as it were—for more than a decade, 
with Trump always hopeful that Epstein would provide some of his financial expertise to 
enabvle h8im to survive. Trump was beholden to Deutsch Bank and was on the hook 
personally for 40 million dollars. 
Epstein took Trump to see the Palm Beach house to advise him on construction issues 
involved with moving the swimming pool. As he prepared to finalize his deal for the 
house, an incredulous Epstein saw a severely cash-constrained Trump bid $41 million for 
the property, buying it through an entity named Trump Properties LLC, ultimate owner 
unknown.. Trump, Epstein knew, had been in the buisness of leasing his name. Hotels are 
actually owned by others but renting the trump name would cost a percent or two. , 
Trump was willing to serve as a front man to disguise the actual ownership in a real estate 
transaction. (This was, in effect, just another variation of Trump's basic business model of 
licensing his name for commercial properties owned by someone else.) A furious Epstein 
suspected that others actually owned the new house. then getting extensive scrutiny in 
Florida papers. The disagreement re the purchase of the house became all the more bitter 
when, two months later, the house was put on the market for $125 million. Well known to 
Trump, who often visited with Epstein at his Palm Beach house, whose visits were 
confirmed in depostions of Epsteins houseman. It appears that Epstein was visited almost 
every day, by and had been for many years, by girls who he paid for massages with happy 
endings—girls recruited, and who often returned to his house from the local massage 
 
parlors strip clubs, and, also, Trump's Mar-a-Lago. Just as the threats and enmity of the 
two friends increased over the house sale, Epstein found himself under investigation by 
local Palm Beach police. Epstein's legal problems vastly escalated but the new Trump 
property, with only minor improvements, was bought 3 years later in 08 , the time 
Trump was facing his huge debt. for $96 million by Dmitry Rybolovlev. a Russain oligarch. 
That is, Trump had either miraculously earned $55 million, without putting up a dime, or 
Rybolovlev, or someone such as Rybolovlev, paid Trump Properties, LLC—actual owner 
unknown—$96 million, thereby providing a clean payment of $55 million to 
someone. This at the very same time that trump was into Deutsch bank for over 600 
million dollars but with a 40 millino personal guarnatee .Rybolovlev might have, in effect, 
paid himself for the house, thereby cleansing the money. Epstein, on his part, would be 
senetenced to 30 months, 12 of those months in jail on a prostitution charge. 
After the election, when Bannon was introduced to Epstein, Bannon told him, "You were 
the one person I was truly afraid of coming forward during the campaign." 
"not surprising" said Epstein.

first edit