It tuns out Mr. Alishtari, the GOP campaign contributor indicted for sending funds for terrorist training camps in Afghanistan, had a fairly lively life online. TPM Reader TDP points to what purports to be Alishtari’s blog. And in a rather rambling post there’s a reference to an alleged meeting with VP Dick Cheney. “When I went to DC in the Fall of 2003 and met with VP Cheney, I was first in a room full of advisors where I asked how to resolve this and they advised me to talk to counsels which led to this solution.”
Now, we can’t be certain that this is actually Alishtari’s blog, though I think the weight of evidence suggests that it is. And it’s certainly possible that was just a self-promoter blowing smoke. But the fall of 2003 was when he was an aspiring government contractor sending big checks to the Republican party. So would not be that strange if he’d been invited down for a meet-and-greet with the co-president.
The whole thing is a bit surreal and bizarre. As TDP quite accurately put it, “The thing reads like a Nigerian lottery scam. So Mr. Alishtari may be certifiable, or just setting up an insanity defense.” But given what happens the claims probably bear some looking into.
