ABC News: “New details about the Justice Department investigation into a possible scheme to lobby the Trump administration for a presidential pardon indicate that a now-deceased California real estate mogul donated $6 million to support President Trump – and promised more. California billionaire Sanford Diller gave the seven-figure sum, and pledged the potential for an even larger donation, as he pursued a pardon for his friend, a Berkeley psychologist in prison for tax evasion, according to documents reviewed by ABC News.”

“Diller at one point suggested he had the potential to become a donor on the scale of Sheldon Adelson, a Las Vegas casino magnate who has given hundreds of millions of dollars to Republican political causes, sources told ABC News and documents confirmed. Donations from Diller do not appear on Trump’s federal campaign reports. Sources familiar with the matter told ABC News that the $6 million in contributions were made in 2016 to a pro-Trump nonprofit political committee, which – unlike a campaign – is not required by federal law to disclose its donors or donation amounts. It is routine for presidential candidates and other politicians to maintain political nonprofit entities to accept unlimited amounts of money from people who do not need to be identified, though there are some IRS restrictions on how the money can be used. Diller had arranged for his friend, Berkeley psychologist Hugh Baras, to retain help from Abbe Lowell, one of the most prominent and powerful D.C. attorneys. Documents reviewed by ABC News indicate that Lowell prepared a memo to argue the case. But no pardon was ever issued and Baras, who was 73 at the time, served out his sentence.”