Special counsel eyeing Trump overseas business: reports

Special counsel Jack Smith has issued a subpoena for records of business deals that former President Trump’s company made with seven countries since he took office in 2017, multiple outlets reported Monday. 

Smith requested information on real estate and development deals that the Trump Organization had with China, France, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates and Oman, two people familiar with the matter told The New York Times and one person familiar with the matter told The Washington Post. 

The Post reported that its source said the subpoena did not yield much new information that was not already publicly available. 

Trump is only known to have made one deal with a company from any of those seven countries since he took office — licensing its name for a golf resort in Oman with a Saudi developer. The deal was announced just as Trump announced his 2024 presidential campaign. 

The company declared it would not make any foreign business dealings while Trump was in the White House. 

Smith has been investigating the classified and sensitive documents that were taken out of the White House during Trump’s presidency and brought to his Mar-a-Lago property in Palm Beach, Fla. 

The Times reported that Smith’s inquiry into the business records was part of a subpoena to the Trump Organization seeking records on Trump’s dealings with the Saudi-backed LIV Golf tour, which has held some tournaments at clubs owned by the former president. 

The inquiries appear to indicate Smith’s investigation is taking on a wider scope; The Times and Post reported that the subpoena seems designed to uncover any potential financial motive for Trump to keep the documents at Mar-a-Lago. 

Smith is also investigating Trump’s role in the buildup to and during the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection on the Capitol.

The Hill has reached out to the Trump Organization for comment.

A spokesperson for Smith’s office declined to comment to the Post.