Tag: corruption

FBI Made ‘Inappropriate Use’ of Foreign Surveillance Program To Spy on Americans

A White House advisory board has recommended that Congress place new restrictions on the FBI’s access to a foreign surveillance tool to prevent the bureau from using it to spy on Americans’ electronic communications.

That surveillance program—authorized by Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA)—was intended to track foreign spies and potential terrorists but has predictably morphed into a way for law enforcement agencies to get a warrantless peek at Americans’ phone records, emails, and other electronic communications. In the report published Monday, the White House’s Intelligence Advisory Board said the FBI’s use of the databases created by Section 702 should be limited to investigations dealing with foreign intelligence—the same standard that is used at the other intelligence agencies with access to that data.

“FBI’s use of Section 702 should be limited to foreign intelligence purposes only and FBI personnel should receive additional training on what foreign intelligence entails,” the report recommends. The report says the FBI has made “inappropriate use of Section 702 authorities, specifically U.S. person queries.”

While the full scope of Section 702 data collection remains unknown, there’s no doubt about the FBI’s aggressive use of the database. In 2021, for example, the FBI ran more than 3.3 million queries through the Section 702 database, according to a government transparency report. Separately, a 2021 report from the secret federal court responsible for adjudicating FISA-related matters documented 40 instances in which the FBI accessed surveillance data as part of investigations into a host of purely domestic crimes, including health care fraud and public corruption.

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Ukraine’s baby factories rake in record profits amid chaos of war

Ihor Pechonoha of the Swiss-based BioTexCom says the business model that has helped him build one of the most profitable surrogacy companies in the world is simple exploitation: “We are looking for women in the former Soviet republics because, logically, [the women] have to be from poorer places than our clients.”

It is no surprise then that BioTexCom has turned to Ukraine for an almost endless pool of young women willing to sell their wombs to ease their financial distress. Eight years of civil war followed by a proxy war between NATO nations and Russia has plunged Ukraine into economic disaster. As its citizens sank into poverty, the country swiftly emerged as the international epicenter for surrogacy, and now controls at least a quarter of the global market. With the rise of the burgeoning industry, a seedy medical underworld filled with patient abuse and corruption has taken root as well.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and his team have actively encouraged the Western plunder of their war-torn country, inking an investment partnership with the global asset management firm Blackrock, stripping workers of labor protections, and handing state owned companies over to private firms.

But less attention has been paid to Ukraine’s surrogacy industry, which brought over $1.5 billion into the country’s economy in 2018 alone. Since then, the global market for surrogate babies has more than doubled. The industry was valued at over $14 billion last year, and it’s projected to grow by around 25% every year going forward, according to an analysis by Global Market Insights.

As more countries slam the door on the surrogacy industry, Western officials appear to be turning a blind eye to the abuse-ridden business flourishing in a deregulated, politically unstable Ukraine.

Emma Lamberton is a Master of International Development candidate at the University of Pittsburgh who published a paper in Princeton’s Journal of Public and International Affairs on the risks posed to Ukrainian women by the country’s surrogacy industry. 

“The main concern of advocates on the ground in Ukraine is that legislators and even news organizations aren’t looking at this as a human rights violation,” Lamberton told The Grayzone.

“A government would never see human rights violations like child abuse as something to simply be regulated,” she explained. “They’d never say ‘you should only be able to beat your children on Wednesdays’ — that would be incredibly ridiculous. And so from the perspective of advocates on the ground in Ukraine, this is an abuse issue and therefore, it should not be regulated and instead it should be outlawed.”

Long before the escalation of hostilities in Ukraine in early 2022, the country was known as a fertile hunting ground for shady characters and agencies seeking to prey on desperate Ukrainian women.

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Biden Administration Refuses to Provide Robert Kennedy, Jr. with Secret Service Protection Despite His Standing in Race and Family History

Robert Kennedy, Jr. announced Friday on Twitter that the Biden Administration has still not provided his campaign with Secret Service protection. Robert says after several requests they have received no response after 88 days!

This is unconscionable.

Robert Kennedy, Jr.: Since the assassination of my father in 1968, candidates for president are provided Secret Service protection. But not me.

Typical turnaround time for pro forma protection requests from presidential candidates is 14-days. After 88-days of no response and after several follow-ups by our campaign, the Biden Administration just denied our request. Secretary Mayorkas: “I have determined that Secret Service protection for Robert F Kennedy Jr is not warranted at this time.”
Our campaign’s request included a 67-page report from the world’s leading protection firm, detailing unique and well established security and safety risks aside from commonplace death threats.

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Multiple Banks Filed Over 170 Suspicious Activity Reports on the Bidens

As the evidence for at least an impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden keeps pouring in, our friends at Twitchy highlighted another example: the suspicious activity reports (SARs) from six banks, to the tune of 170, in fact. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) and co-host Ben Ferguson discussed these reports on their podcast with House Oversight Chairman James Comer (R-KY) as their guest. Not only has Comer been looking into the Biden family as part of fulfilling promises to the American people, he already is familiar with SARs, since, as he told Cruz, he was the director of a bank. 

These SARs are submitted and sent to the Treasury Department when banks “have a strong suspicion” that a crime has been committed, so as to protect the bank. As Comer emphasized, these are submitted “very seldom.” If someone were to have two, the chairman explained, it would be hard for that person to open up a bank account. Submitting an SAR, Comer added, also is “inviting the regulators to come in and regulate,” which is the last thing banks want. The 170 reports are thus quite significant. 

To paint the scene here, Comer explained that what might trigger an SAR is “a large transaction that comes out of the blue.”

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“Bidenomics” Is A Fraud Based On Deliberately Misrepresented Stats

Economic issues are some of the most politically abused issues, often because the data politicians exploit is easy to present out of context. The vast majority of the public doesn’t spend their time immersed in the intricacies of monetary policy, unemployment stats and the processes of inflation vs deflation. They hear a soundbite on the news or social media once in a while, assume it must be true and then go on with their day.

This is how economic crisis events always seem to take the population by surprise – the establishment tells people all is well and no one questions the narrative in the face of numerous warning signs. Sometimes, the populace continues to believe that everything is fine despite the financial framework burning down around them, all because the “experts” continue to convince them that recovery is “right around the corner.”

There are numerous incentives for government officials and mainstream economists to mislead the citizenry with tales of imminent prosperity in the midst of instability. Primarily, the goal is to keep the middle-class population as docile as possible so that they don’t revolt until it’s too late (the middle class being predominantly conservative, and the greatest threat to any corrupt regime). Understand that economics is the root of power, and economic perception is the key to influencing the masses.

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NASA employee used COVID relief funds to grow weed, pay off debt

An employee of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) pled guilty to federal charges Monday alleging that he used COVID relief funds earmarked for the organization to finance an illegal marijuana cultivation operation and pay off personal real estate loans, the US Justice Department announced this week.

Armen Hovanesian, a 32-year-old resident of Glendale, Arizona, made false and fraudulent statements on three loan applications made out to business entities under his control between June and October of 2020. 

Hovanesian received a total of $151,900 for loans provided by the Economic Injury Disaster Loan Program (EIDL) – a program administered by the Small Business Administration (SBA) that provided financing to small businesses, renters, and homeowners in regions impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Hovanesian assured the EIDL he would use the loan proceeds “solely as working capital to alleviate economic injury caused by disaster,” as per the terms and limitations of the EIDL program.

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Prosecutor Told Hunter Biden He Loved Him During US Attorney’s Investigation Into First Son

The ongoing investigation into Hunter Biden’s tax affairs and overseas business dealings has come under increased scrutiny recently, revealing disturbing connections that raise serious questions about conflicts of interest.

According to a report from Fox News, a thorough examination of Chief Deputy Attorney General of Delaware Alexander Snyder-Mackler, his association with the Biden family, and the investigation into Hunter Biden brings to light a concerning web of relationships that demands closer scrutiny.

Mackler’s long-standing ties with the Bidens cannot be overlooked, having served as Joe Biden’s legal counsel during his vice presidency and as a press secretary during the former senator’s tenure between 2007 and 2008.

Perhaps even more significant is the fact, Mackler’s stint as an assistant United States attorney in the Delaware U.S. Attorney’s office coincided with the federal inquiry into Hunter Biden’s financial affairs.

While the specifics of Mackler’s involvement in the probe remain elusive, his prominent position in the office investigating the president’s son raises legitimate concerns about impartiality.

Intriguingly, emails retrieved from Hunter Biden’s laptop, verified by Fox News, depict a close relationship between Mackler and Hunter Biden, with Mackler signing off one email with “Love you brother.”

Although Mackler insisted he was unaware of the investigation during his tenure as a federal prosecutor, the timing and nature of their communication after the probe’s initiation could raise eyebrows.

Despite the uncertainty surrounding Mackler’s direct role in the investigation, his current position as the Deputy Attorney General of Delaware and his multiple visits to the White House during the Biden administration inevitably raise questions about potential conflicts of interest. Notably, one-on-one meetings with President Biden and other high-ranking officials further add to the complexity of the situation.

Recent developments in Hunter Biden’s case, such as his initial promise to plead guilty, followed by an unexpected plea of not guilty, fuel suspicions of corruption and political maneuvering.

This shift has not gone unnoticed by the public, who seek clarity and transparency in this high-profile investigation. The denials of claims made by IRS whistleblowers, alleging interference with the investigation into Hunter Biden, only deepen the skepticism surrounding the case.

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Hunter Biden’s bong-smoking lawyer Kevin Morris, who paid first son’s $2M tax bill, ALSO spent fortune on his art – along with California Dem donor Elizabeth Hirsch Naftali, who Joe appointed to prestigious heritage board

Hunter Biden’s paintings have been bought by a top Democratic donor and the lawyer who has caught smoking a bong during a visit from the First Son last week, a bombshell new report has revealed.

Despite a White House promise that all purchasers’ identities would be kept a secret, two names have been revealed: Los Angeles-based real estate investor and Democratic donor Elizabeth Hirsch Naftali and Hollywood attorney Kevin Morris. 

In July 2022, eight months after Hunter’s exhibition opened in New York City, Joe Biden appointed Naftali to the Commission for the Preservation of America’s Heritage Abroad. It’s not clear whether she had already purchased the art at that time.

Hunter’s Hollywood ‘fixer’ lawyer Morris was seen smoking on the balcony of his Malibu home last week and loaned the president’s son $2million to help him pay back taxes.

When Hunter Biden first announced he would make a high-dollar foray into the art world, the Biden team promised the identities of those who purchased Hunter’s art would remain anonymous. On the campaign trail, Joe Biden promised an ‘absolute wall’ between his duties as president and his family’s business dealings. 

In 2021, Hunter made his debut at a ritzy New York art gallery, where the sticker price clocked in on some of his amateur pieces at $500,000. 

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DoD IG: American Weapons in Ukraine Funneled to Arms Traffickers, Criminals

The Pentagon inspector general found the arms Washington sent to Kiev did not undergo the required inspections. A report from the inspector general found weapons the US sent to Ukraine in the hands of criminals and on the black market. 

The Arms Control Act requires the White House to establish an inspection system for weapons the US sells or gifts to third countries. The law mandates the monitoring continues to the end-use of the weapon. In Ukraine, the embassy in Kiev has been assigned responsibility for monitoring the weapons transfers. 

The Department of Defense inspector general report on American weapons transfers to Ukraine from February to September of last year found that legally required monitoring was not taking place. “The DoD is unable to conduct [End Use Monitoring] in Ukraine because completing [End Use Monitoring] in accordance with DoD policy requires in-person access to the defense equipment provided,” it said. “Intelligence methods provide some accountability for observable platforms, such as missiles and helicopters, but smaller items, such as night vision devices, have limited accountability.”

“The DoD OIG found deficiencies in the DoD’s transfer of military equipment to the Government of Ukraine requiring [End Use Monitoring], including Javelin missiles, Javelin Command Launch Units, and night vision devices; and in Ukraine’s security and accountability of US.-provided military equipment requiring [End Use Monitoring],” the report added. 

In a section of the report that is heavily redacted, the inspector general listed some cases of American weapons not making it to their intended recipient. The cases that remained unredacted in the report include: a Moscow-influenced criminal organization that procured grenade launchers and machine guns, a pro-Kev militia that tried to sell dozens of rifles on the black market, and a group of arms traffickers who were selling weapons and ammunition stolen from the front lines.

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Feds fight Nxivm sex cult leader Keith Raniere’s bid at new trial on claims FBI planted child porn on his computer

Federal prosecutors slammed convicted Nxivm sex cult leader Keith Raniere’s bid for a new trial — denouncing his claim that he has “newly discovered evidence” that proves the FBI planted evidence on his computer.

In a response filed Friday in Brooklyn federal court, prosecutors wrote that Raniere’s third attempt at securing a new trial — like his first two — was “entirely without merit,” adding that the motion should be denied as “untimely, unfounded, legally unsupported, and contrary to the evidence adduced at trial.”

When the 62-year-old sicko — who is serving a 120-year sex trafficking sentence — filed for a new trial in May 2022, he claimed he had unearthed evidence showing the government “manufactured child pornography and planted it on a computer hard drive to tie it to him,” according to court papers.

Raniere’s lawyers also said the feds “falsified, fabricated, and manipulated all the key evidence it used” to convict him of child exploitation and child porn.

Prosecutors, in the Friday filing, detailed the evidence the FBI found in Raniere’s Halfmoon, NY, residence — including nude photos of his first sex slave, Camila, who was around 15 years-old at the time.

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