Tag: corruption

Spook Story: Ex-US amb. to Venezuela monetizes coup-plotting alongside former CIA officials

Former US ambassador to Venezuela James “Jimmy” Story has gone from de facto manager of the putschist, Washington-backed opposition in Venezuela to one of the most prominent voices promoting the Trump-Rubio regime change policy inside legacy media.

On December 7, CNN’s Fareed Zakaria featured his calls for toppling Venezuela’s government during a panel with convicted Iran-Contra felon Elliot Abrams, while the New York Times provided Story with space to argue that “Washington should approach dismantling the Maduro regime as we would any criminal enterprise.” Story’s appearance on Piers Morgan did not work out quite as well because Grayzone editor Max Blumenthal was present to dismantle his neocolonial propaganda.

While he pushes a US war on Venezuela in the media, Story is also monetizing his coup-plotting experience by soliciting clients for a series of consulting firms, where he works alongside top former CIA officials who orchestrated destabilization operations inside Venezuela.

The first of these firms is Dinámica Americas, where Story serves as a senior advisor helping “companies, philanthropies, non-profits, and multilateral and other organizations successfully navigate evolving conditions in the Americas.” Among his colleagues at Dinámica is Juan Cruz, the former CIA director for Latin America, whom The Grayzone exposed for his role in managing opposition assets in the lead-up to the failed Operation Gideon mercenary invasion.

At Frontier Advisors, a risk management firm he co-founded, Story works alongside Zodiac Gold CEO David Kol, whose company exploits the mineral wealth of Liberia, which suffers from rampant smuggling and deforestation due to foreign domination of its gold mining zones. Story’s fellow managing partner at Frontier, former Lt. Gen. Dave Bellon also runs a private equity firm, Global Frontier Capital, that “create[s] carbon credits to sell to investors and polluters in need of offsets” in South Asia and South America. These are precisely the kind of figures yearning to feast on the carcass of the Venezuelan state in a fantasy post-Maduro scenario.

Finally, Story is listed as “strategic partner” at Tower Strategy LLC, a lobbying firm founded by the ex-CIA station chief for Venezuela, Enrique “Rick” de la Torre. As journalist Jack Poulson explains in the article we’ve republished from his All Source Intelligence, de la Torre previously worked at a lobbying firm founded by one of the closest confederates of Secretary of State Marco Rubio – the lead architect of Trump’s regime change strategy in Venezuela.

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INSANITY: Newsom’s California Delays Revoking 17,000 Commercial Driver’s Licenses Until March Following “Dangerous Foreign Drivers” Legal Challenge

California Governor Gavin Newsom has backed down on federal enforcement of commercial driver’s license revocations, announcing a delay in the cancellation of 17,000 commercial driver’s licenses (CDLs) issued to immigrant drivers — now postponed until March 6, 2026.

The move comes only after immigrant advocacy groups filed a federal lawsuit and secured a temporary reprieve against the state’s efforts to comply with federal safety and immigration rules.

The Gateway Pundit reported in November that California’s Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) had confessed to illegally handing out 17,000 non-domiciled Commercial Driver’s Licenses (CDLs) to dangerous foreign drivers who have no business operating massive semitrucks or school buses on American roads.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy blasted California for “illegally issuing 17,000 commercial driver’s licenses” to individuals whose credentials did not meet federal requirements, even threatening to withhold up to $160 million in federal highway funds if the state refused to act.

“After weeks of claiming they did nothing wrong, Gavin Newsom and California have been caught red-handed. Now that we’ve exposed their lies, 17,000 illegally issued trucking licenses are being revoked,” said U.S. Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy. “This is just the tip of the iceberg. My team will continue to force California to prove they have removed every illegal immigrant from behind the wheel of semitrucks and school buses.”

Each of the 17,000 non-domiciled CDL holders has been issued notice that their license will expire within 60 days, as it no longer meets federal requirements.

FMCSA is now requiring the California DMV to hand over a full audit of all non-domiciled CDLs to verify that every unlawfully issued license is revoked and that the state corrects the systemic failures that allowed this fraud to occur.

Federal auditors found that over one in four foreign driver records sampled in California failed to comply with federal law, including CDLs that extended beyond the expiration of a foreign worker’s visa, a blatant violation of federal safety regulations.

Now, the California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) confirmed that the previously scheduled cancellation, originally set to begin in early January, will now be deferred while legal challenges play out in court.

This stunning reversal follows a wave of legal filings by organizations such as the Asian Law Caucus and the Sikh Coalition, who rushed to court arguing that the state’s actions threatened the livelihoods of thousands of “hard-working” immigrant truck drivers and bus operators.

Their lawsuit claimed that the DMV’s enforcement actions were unlawful and violated due process, alleging that drivers were not financially or legally equipped to respond to abrupt cancellation notices.

Newsom’s announcement provides additional breathing room for the state, which had been under immense pressure from the Trump Administration — and the U.S. Department of Transportation — to clean up a disastrous licensing program that federal auditors found had issued CDLs beyond the lawful terms of the drivers’ immigration status.

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Here We Go Again: Walz’s New Paid Leave Law May Let People Collect Without Working

Some of us have been sounding the alarm bells on the following massive fraud scheme that’s about to hit Minnesota like a January blizzard. Tim Walz and the Democrats who run the state approved “family leave” legislation that would, ostensibly, give Minnesota workers up to 20 weeks of paid leave for the birth of a child or to care for a spouse, child, or other family member with a serious health condition.

But as this writer noted earlier this month, it’s fertile ground for another round of billions of dollars of fraud, courtesy the Minnesota taxpayer.

Going into effect on January 1, the Paid Family and Medical Leave Law means workers would get not only leave but also continued benefits from their employer. Unfortunately, there are no sound mechanisms in place to verify that the employee is actually caring for the designated individual while on leave. Troy Reding, a restaurant owner, said he was worried about how employers would handle multiple leave requests at the same time.

But now, according to Dustin Grage, who has done tremendous work exposing the fraud in Minnesota, the law has a glaring loophole that allows people applying for the benefit to have no job at all.

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Mamdani Names Lawyer Who Defended al-Qaeda Terrorist As City’s Top Attorney

On Tuesday, Socialist New York Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani announced the appointment of Ramzi Kassem as the city’s top attorney.

Kassem gained notoriety for defending al-Qaeda terrorist Ahmed al-Darbi when he served as lead counsel.

In 2014, al-Darbi pled guilty in connection with an al-Qaeda terrorist plot to bomb a French oil tanker near Yemen in 2002, leaving a civilian dead and several others injured. He was convicted in 2017 and ultimately transferred to Saudi Arabia in 2018.

Al-Darbi’s brother-in-law was Khalid al-Mihdhar, one of the five hijackers on American Airlines Flight 77, which crashed into the Pentagon during the September 11, 2001 attacks.

The New York Post reports that in 2009, “Kassem founded a legal clinic at CUNY, which offers free legal representation to Muslims and other communities in New York City.”

The nonprofit, Creating Law Enforcement Accountability and Responsibility (CLEAR) is largely funded by progressive philanthropist George Soros’ Open Society Foundations, which have given the clinic more than $3 million, public records show.

The Associated Press and The New York Times reported at the time that Kassem said, “While it may not make him whole, my hope is that repatriation at least marks the end of injustice for Ahmed… He had 16 long and painful years in captivity.”

Kassem is also part of the legal team representing radical Islamist Mahmoud Khalil.

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YouTuber Nick Shirley Says He’s Receiving Death Threats Saying He’ll Be ‘Kirked’ After Bombshell Video Exposes $110 Million Somali Daycare Fraud Scheme in Minnesota

YouTuber Nick Shirley has revealed he’s receiving death threats and warnings that he’ll be “Kirked,” a sinister reference to being assassinated, following his viral video that uncovered over $110 million in alleged taxpayer-funded fraud at Somali-run daycare centers in Minnesota

Shirley, 23, who documented empty daycares raking in millions while showing no signs of actual childcare, appeared on the “PBD Podcast” on Wednesday and detailed the harassment, including doxxing of his family and being stalked by Somalis during filming.

The independent journalist’s explosive 42-minute video, published last week, has garnered over 132 million views.

In the footage, Shirley and his team visit multiple daycare facilities in the Minneapolis area, home to one of the largest Somali populations in the U.S., only to find locked doors, no children in sight, and signs of abandonment despite these centers receiving massive government subsidies.

One center alone reportedly pocketed $4 million in taxpayer dollars, with Shirley estimating the total fraud uncovered in a single day at over $110 million.

On the PBD Podcast, hosted by Patrick Bet-David, Shirley described the intense fallout from his exposé.

“I’ve been getting death threats,” Shirley said. “People are telling me I’m going to get Kirked.”

“They’re saying, ‘You’re going to be Kirked … you’ll be the next Kirk.’ And it’s just like, are you kidding me? I hate what’s happening right now,” Shirley said. “I feel bad for my family, honestly, because we didn’t do anything wrong, and yet you guys are coming after me like I’m some sort of villain. My little sister is getting phone calls [from the news]. I’m like, why are you guys doing this?”

The term “Kirked” is a dark reference to the September assassination of Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk.

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Minn. Somali-run day care bizarrely reports their documents were stolen in mysterious break-in — but cops tell a different story

A Somali-run day care in Minneapolis is claiming somebody broke in and stole “important documents,” but cops say the facility didn’t report anything was actually taken. 

The alleged burglary comes as the national spotlight shines on the unfolding multibillion-dollar fraud scandal involving Minnesota human services, with particular scrutiny on day care facilities run by Somali immigrants after dozens of people from the community have been busted for pilfering state funds.

Nasrulah Mohamed, manager of Nakomis Day Care Center, told reporters that a suspect entered through the kitchen at the rear of the facility, damaging a wall and breaking into the building’s office, sometime on Tuesday.

He said the alleged prowler stole “important documentation” including children’s enrollment information, employee documentation and checkbooks.

However “no loss was reported to officers,” according to a preliminary report by the Minneapolis Police Department.

MPD noted that the center later reached out with additional information, but the updated police report was not immediately available.

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Misspelled Minnesota day care closed last week, state claims — on same day owners told The Post it’s up and running

The misspelled day care at the center of viral outrage over the Somali community’s multibillion-dollar fraud scandal shut down last week, the head of Minnesota’s child services department claimed Monday — at the same time that the owners of the facility put on a dog and pony show for The Post to demonstrate that it was really a working day care and not a front.

Tikki Brown, commissioner of Minnesota’s Department of Children, Youth and Families, told reporters that her staff found no evidence of fraud at any of the day cares highlighted by YouTuber Nick Shirley.

She stated that the Quality “Learing” Center had closed. 

Apparently the owners of the site — which has gotten up to $4 million in taxpayer funds and racked up dozens of inspection violations — didn’t get the memo.

At least 20 kids were seen entering the Quality “Learing” Center Monday afternoon after being bused in. One employee shouted down The Post’s attempt to ask questions: “Don’t f–king come to this area. Get the f–k out of here,” he said.

The day care says it is open Monday through Thursday from 2 to 10 p.m., and the owner’s son Ibrahim Ali showed up Monday to claim all the allegations were a big misunderstanding.

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RINO Ohio Governor Mike DeWine’s Office Dismisses Daycare Fraud Allegations as ‘Cost of Doing Business’

RINO Ohio Governor Mike DeWine’s office has brushed off growing concerns about potential massive fraud in taxpayer-funded daycare centers, particularly in Columbus, which boasts the second-largest Somali population in the United States, as simply “the cost of doing business.”

The governor’s office said that attempts to use daycare centers for fraud in Ohio have been “known to the state for decades,” and implied that those who did not think it was an issue are naive.

Speaking to the Columbus Dispatch, Dan Tierney, DeWine’s spokesperson, denied any recent “surge” in fraud but acknowledged that the governor’s office is aware of public interest in the matter.

“If people are out there who could not contemplate that people were trying to defraud the public through day care centers, I understand it’s new to them … but it’s been known to the state for decades,” Tierney said. “So therefore, we have robust anti-fraud measures to try and stop this, this is something that is unfortunately the cost of doing business.”

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Lawyer’s daughter who proudly identified as con artist gets sentenced for bank fraud after using taxpayer cash to rent Miami mega-mansion

A former social media influencer who once proudly called herself a ‘con artist’ after scamming the federal government out of $1.5 million in COVID-related disaster loans will now be locked up for even longer.

Danielle Miller, the daughter of lawyer and former New York State Bar Association president Michael Miller, was sentenced Monday to 16 years in Florida state prison, after pleading guilty to 38 counts of fraudulently using personal identification information.

Prosecutors have said Miller came to Florida during the COVID pandemic, traveling to Sarasota with her was Ciera Blas, whom she met while locked up at New York City‘s infamous Rikers Island for using stolen credit card information to book appointments at a luxurious spa in the Upper West Side.

Miller then used others’ identification information to defraud banks throughout the Sunshine State.

The scam finally unraveled when an alert manager notified the Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office, who arrested her.

But this was not the first time Miller faced jail for bank fraud in the state, even going as far as proudly characterizing herself as a ‘con artist’ in a 2022 New York Magazine article.

That year, she was sentenced to five years in a Florida prison, after she attempted to use a California woman’s passport to obtain more than $8,000 at a Chase bank drive-through window in 2020, according to the Bradenton Herald.

By 2023, federal authorities accused Miller of stealing the identities of more than 10 people to set up bank accounts and obtain loans – which she then used for travel and for lavish purchases, including $27,000-a-month rent at a waterside villa in Miami.

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Court orders Kentucky to release records in driver’s license fraud investigation

A court ruled the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet violated the state’s open records laws by withholding documents tied to an investigation into immigrants illegally obtaining Kentucky driver’s licenses in Louisville, ordering more than 2,300 records released to WDRB.

The ruling marks a major development in WDRB’s ongoing investigation into claims that non-citizens were able to buy Kentucky driver’s licenses under the table, often without proper documentation, Homeland Security screening or required driving tests.

For former licensing clerk Melissa Moorman, the court order brings both validation and frustration.

“I would just like this to be resolved and over so this dark cloud can be removed from my head,” Moorman said.

Moorman said she reported what she believed was widespread fraud at the Nia Center driver’s license branch in west Louisville, only to lose her job after sounding the alarm. She worked as a clerk at the branch through Quantum Solutions, a staffing service contracted by the commonwealth to supplement personnel at regional offices.

She said she was training for a supervisor position, which would have made her a state employee.

“It really did destroy my life,” she said.

Moorman told investigators and WDRB fraudulent documents were accepted, required screenings — including the drivers’ tests — were bypassed, and customers paid about $200 in cash per license under the table.

“There were documents that were being provided that weren’t legit,” Moorman said. “There were employees that were using my login as part of this scam.”

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