On Thursday, the Manhattan District Attorney's office criminally charged the Trump Organization, and its Chief Financial Officer Allen Weisselberg, for a 15 year tax scheme designed to funnel money into the pockets of the company's executives under the radar of the IRS.
It's the first time former President Donald Trump's company has faced criminal charges, though neither the former President or any of his family members have been charged at this time.
And while Weisselberg is the only individual arrested in connection with the charges, the indictment mentions that other executives benefitted from the scheme as well—a sign that more indictments may be on the way.
The former President's son, Donald Trump Jr., predictably railed against the charges on Fox News, characterizing them as another witch hunt targeting his father and family, but he made a stunning comparison.
Watch below.
Trump Jr. said:
"This is the political persecution of a political enemy. This is what Vladimir Putin does. Just ask Navatny [sic]. He's been sitting in a cell, they're not sure why. But guess what? If no one's gonna challenge him and no one's gonna call him out, that's what's gonna happen."
Russian anti-corruption activist Alexei Navalny was poisoned with Novichok nerve gas by Russia's Federal Security Service. He is now expected to spend nearly three years in a brutal Russian labor colony.
Again, Trump himself hasn't even been charged.
People found the comparison ridiculous.
They weren't sympathetic.
Trump Jr. is an executive of the Trump Organization, and could face charges if he knew of the tax fraud occurring within the company.
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