On the ethics of Donald Trump Jr.’s Russia meeting

"The revelation that Donald Trump Jr. enthusiastically accepted an offer to meet with an individual described as a “Russian government attorney” bringing “official documents and information” to help the Trump campaign and injure the Clinton campaign is a bombshell.

It raises a host of potential criminal and other legal violations for Donald Jr. and others involved, including his brother-in-law Jared Kushner; Paul Manafort, the campaign chairman at the time; and perhaps the president himself. These new facts are a critical inflection point in the Trump-Russia matter. But they should not be exaggerated: The investigation has much further to go before Donald Jr.’s liability, or that of others, can be finally assessed.

The defense that this was a routine meeting to hear about opposition research is nonsense. As ethics lawyers, we have worked on political campaigns for decades and have never heard of an offer like this one. If we had, we would have insisted upon immediate notification of the F.B.I., and so would any normal campaign lawyer, official or even senior volunteer.

That is because of the enormous potential legal liability, both individually and for the campaign. The potential offenses committed by Donald Jr., his colleagues and brother-in-law who attended the meeting, and the campaign itself, include criminal or civil violations of campaign finance laws. These laws prohibit accepting anything of value from a foreign government or a foreign national. The promised Russian “documents and information” would have been an illegal campaign contribution from a foreign government — and a priceless one."

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/11/o...ls-russia.html

"Donald Trump Jr.'s controversial meeting with a Russian lawyer in June 2016 was attended by a California businessman born in the former Soviet republic of Georgia, according to two people familiar with the meeting.

Irakly "Ike" Kaveladze, a 52-year-old businessman from Huntington Beach, was the eighth individual at the controversial meeting, The Times has learned. His identity had not previously been revealed.

Kaveladze was asked to attend the meeting at Trump Tower by Aras Agalarov, the son of a billionaire Azerbaijani real estate developer who once planned to build a hotel in Moscow with Donald Trump, according to his Kaveladze’s lawyer, Scott Balber.

Neither the White House nor Trump Jr. previously had revealed Kaveladze’s presence at the meeting, despite repeated public statements about it.

A California businessman born in former Soviet Union also attended Trump Jr. meeting - LA Times

A lawyer, a spy, a mob boss, and a money launder walk into a bar. The bartender says: "you guys must be here to talk about adoption."

Originally Posted by Guest

A lawyer, a spy, a mob boss, and a money launder walk into a bar. The bartender says: "you guys must be here to talk about adoption."

Originally Posted by Guest

A lawyer, a spy, a mob boss, and a money launder walk into a bar. The bartender says: "you guys must be here to talk about adoption."

Priceless. Golden showers come to mind for me though.

Donald will be coming out with a follow up to his ghost written "Art of the Deal", Titled " Ethics and Morals, The Downside in Business and Government."