Click on the 'Listen' button above to hear this interview. 

Possible ties between the Kremlin and President Donald Trump have dominated headlines for months. But it looks like Trump and Russia had a number of connections well before the 2016 election.

Related: The Trump-Russian Investigation: An Interactive Timeline

A new piece out today from The New Republic alleges that, for decades, Trump's real estate holdings have been used by Russian mobsters and oligarchs to launder money.

Trump has denied having financial ties with Russia on many occasions. "I have no deals in Russia," he told reporters in January, days before his inauguration, and he repeated it again in May, speaking with NBC's Lester Holt.

Yet, Trump Tower and Trump Soho in New York City, and properties in Sunny Isles, Florida, have all been the sites of shadowy real estate purchases that come with connections to Russian gangsters. So far, there has been no evidence documenting that Donald Trump knew, at any point, that his businesses were connected to illegal or illicit deals. 

Eric Bates, the editor of The New Republic, says that Trump Tower and other luxury high-rises have been used to clean dirty money, run an international crime syndicate, and propel Donald Trump into the White House.

This segment is hosted by Todd Zwillich.