4/23/2019

ATTORNEY GENERAL/ELECTION/FBI/INVESTIGATIONS/LEGAL/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “Attorney General William Barr has received a waiver to participate in the investigation of 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), a Malaysian development company that has come under investigation by the FBI and DOJ for alleged money laundering. The waiver, dated April 16, allows Barr to participate in ‘the investigation and litigation of the 1MDB matter in which his former law firm represents an entity involved in the matter.’ Barr was previously a lawyer for the firm Kirkland & Ellis, whose senior partner Mark Filip now represents Goldman Sachs in the 1MDB investigation. The head of DOJ’s criminal division, Brian Benczkowski, is also a Kirkland & Ellis alum. But White House lawyer Emmet Flood issued an ethics waiver to Benczkowski in November that allowed him to participate in the 1MDB investigation. The waiver could also give Barr a window into an investigation in the Eastern District of New York that involves the Trump Victory committee, a political action committee dedicated to re-electing Trump in 2020.”

Natasha Bertrand, “Barr gets waiver on case linked to inquiry into Trump’s re-election effort,” Politico, April 23, 2019 1:06 pm