Qatar spent $5 mln to influence US public, politicians: Political warfare consultant

Qatar spent $5 million in the United States trying to influence the public and politicians, political warfare consultant David Reaboi told Al Arabiya, citing documents filed to FARA.

Under the Foreign Agent Registration Act (FARA), institutions in the US that take money from abroad must file a report showing where funds come from and how they are used.

The Qatar American Foundation was set up by the former US Ambassador to Qatar after he left office, and he set up the Qatar American Institute (QAI). Documents filed to FARA recently became public.

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“In this case, specifically, they targeted Republicans. So they targeted Republicans who hate [US President Donald] Trump and Republicans who love Trump. And they did that through various different ways,” Reaboi said.

Reaboi added that the QAI spent about $180,000 to buy advertising on a radio talk show hosted in Virginia, which is close to Washington DC.

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“He was just selling advertising. But obviously, the Qataris got a lot more than that in terms of their spent [money],” Reaboi said.

The QAI has also given money to Michael Steele, the former Republican party head, who has within the past few years grown distant from the GOP and has become one of the most visible critics of Trump.

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