The FBI and the Justice Department are investigating retired four-star Marine General John R. Allen, currently the head of the Brookings Institute, for illegally lobbying for Qatar, lying to federal agents about his lobbying efforts, and hiding evidence sought in a subpoena about the issue, the New York Times reports.
Allen, who retired from the military in 2013, allegedly took money to lobby the Trump Administration in 2017 as Qatar was in a feud with its Middle East neighbors Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, with Donald Trump voicing support for his sword-dancing partners in Saudi Arabia. (After Trump’s support for Saudi Arabia and his ambivalence toward the Saudis murdering an America-based journalist, the Saudi ruling family gave Trump’s son-in-law $2 billion.)
“John Allen voluntarily cooperated with the government’s investigation into this matter. John Allen’s efforts with regard to Qatar in 2017 were to protect the interests of the United States and the military personnel stationed in Qatar. John Allen received no fee for his efforts,” a spokesman for Allen said in a statement.