The walls are closing in around Donald Trump, his kids and his company and he can't pardon his way out of this. These are state charges and they will stick. The New York Times is reporting that New York prosecutors subpoenaed his longtime bank, Deutsche Bank and that their investigation appears to be even more broad than initially thought based on the Supreme Court testimony from just a few months back.
The Manhattan D.A., Cy Vance, issued the subpoena last year, seeking financial records that Trump and his company gave to the bank, probably as part of applications for loans. It was intitally suspected that Vance's office was seeking documents related to the hush money payments to Trump's mistresses. Now it appears to be significantly broader. In a court filing earlier this week, Vance's office cited “public reports of possibly extensive and protracted criminal conduct at the Trump Organization”, which was a clear indication that they were also looking into crimes related to the bank and insurance fraud.
Although Deutsche Bank has been the subject of many investigations, this is the most direct one placing the target directly on Donald Trump's back. And this investigation is a criminal inquiry.
The real issue for Donald Trump is this:
Deutsche Bank complied with the subpoena. Over a period of months last year, it provided Mr. Vance’s office with detailed records, including financial statements and other materials that Mr. Trump had provided to the bank as he sought loans, according to two of the people familiar with the inquiry.
Deutsche Bank COMPLIED. They handed over documents and records. They did not go to court to stop it. Did Donald Trump know or is he just finding out today? It is very possible that only a limited amount of people at the bank were involved in providing documents. All it takes is a dropbox link and this could be handled in a matter of hours.
The fact that the bank responded without a fight is a serious problem for Donald Trump. This is a SERIOUS threat to Trump and his family. These would be state charges, not protected by a presidential pardon. It is not clear how far along they are in the investigation and it is possible that nothing may come out of it, but that is unlikely based on testimony given by Trump's former "personal fixer", Michael Cohen. He told Congress that Trump "exaggerated the value of his real estate assets as he sought loans and in dealings with his insurance company."
The public should not get overly excited, though, as these financial records would be subject to grand jury secrecy rules and will not be released publicly. The only time we would get more information is if charges are filed and if documents are introduced during a trial. Then, those would become public unless sealed by a judge.
Keep an eye on this. State charges are the only way Trump or his family will ever be convicted of anything.
