Pay close heed to the Wall Street Journal’s reporting that Trump Organization chief financial officer, Allen Weisselberg has been given immunity in return for his testimony against President Trump’s former lawyer, Michael Cohen.
After all, President Trump has previously said that efforts by special counsel Robert Mueller to look into his personal finances would constitute a crossed “red line.” In addition, while the Cohen prosecution is being handled separately from Mueller’s investigation, Trump seems to view any investigation related to him as part of what he describes as the “witch hunt.”
The exigent issue here is that Weisselberg likely has knowledge of any financial improprieties involving Trump beyond the Cohen case. As financial head of the Trump Organization, which handles all the Trump family’s business affairs, Weisselberg’s job is to know where, why, and how Trump has earned his money and what he has done with that money.
Weisselberg’s deal here might actually be good for President Trump. If Weisselberg has told prosecutors that he has no knowledge of Trump being directly involved in a conspiracy to breach federal law alongside Cohen, then prosecutors would appear to have good reason to exculpate Trump from any allegations of wrong doing.
Yet I suspect that optimistic scenario is unlikely. The Trump Organization has long been viewed as a rather flexible entity in terms of its high-level dealings with wealthy interests around the world. And the nature of this deal would suggest that Weisselberg has given up something of significant substance in return for his immunity. That substance might simply be his provision of evidence against Cohen alone, but I doubt it.
And that’s where Trump comes back into the picture. His CFO is now cooperating with federal prosecutors in relation to a matter that directly affects Trump’s financial interests over many years. In context of the president’s evidently increasing ire towards the Department of Justice and of Attorney General Jeff Sessions’ open rebuke of Trump on Thursday, this latest news might push Trump to decide a red line has been crossed.
At least with respect to legal issues, we’re entering the most pivotal moment of Trump’s presidency.
