GOP fundraiser Elliott Broidy charged with illegal foreign lobbying

Elliott Broidy, the former national deputy finance chair of the Republican National Committee and one of President Trump's top fundraisers in 2016, has been charged with conspiring to violate the Foreign Agents Registration Act.

The charges were filed last week, with the federal court filing made public on Thursday. Broidy has been accused of accepting $6 million from an unnamed foreign client and trying to get Trump administration officials to drop an investigation into Malaysian government corruption. Broidy also allegedly attempted to get a Chinese citizen extradited from the United States. In both cases, Broidy was unsuccessful.

Broidy is expected to plead guilty, ABC News reports. A major GOP donor and fundraiser, he stepped down from his Republican National Committee position in April 2018 after it was reported he had an affair with a Playboy model and paid her $1.6 million to stay quiet.

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