(April 20): Top Republican fund-raiser, Elliott Broidy, had used his White House connections to try to organise a golf game between US president Donald Trump and Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak, The New York Times (NYT) reported.

According to documents obtained by NYT, Broidy had wanted to curry favour with Najib to win a contract for his own defence company.

Broidy’s attempts to curry favour with Najib through the golf date were seen in direct and insistent communications with the White House, NYT reported.

“I have done work in Malaysia over many years and know Prime Minister Najib Razak well,” Broidy wrote in an email to the White House chief of staff, John F. Kelly, dated Aug 31, 2017, NYT reported.

Broidy had personally appealed to Trump in June for a one-on-one golf date with Najib during the Malaysian PM's coming visit to Washington, and “the president told me he would be happy to play golf with the PM,” Broidy wrote in the email. The president’s previous chief of staff, Reince Priebus, had confirmed the golf date to Broidy, but “unfortunately, the golf game is not appearing on the schedule that has been provided through protocol to the PM,” he wrote.

“I look forward to discussing this with you,” Broidy wrote to Kelly, thanking him for his assistance. A person close to Broidy said Kelly did not reply.

According to NYT, for Trump, a golf date with Najib could have fuelled criticism that the president is indifferent to the appearance of corruption, since the Malaysian investment fund 1MDB was being investigated by the Department of Justice for kleptocracy.

A person close to Broidy said the golf date never happened and his business discussions with Malaysia never passed the preliminary stage.

NYT also reported that White House aides were worried enough about Najib's visit last year that he was denied the customary photo in the Oval Office with President Trump.