DOJ Ratchets up Pressure against GOP Startup George Santos

Headline USA Editor
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DOJ Ratchets up Pressure against GOP Startup George Santos

The ex-treasurer for the indicted Rep. George Santos, R-N.Y., has flipped on her former boss, pleading guilty Thursday to a fraud conspiracy charge and implicating Santos in a scheme to embellish his campaign finance reports with a fake loan and fake donors.

Speaking to the judge Thursday, Marks briefly outlined a scam she said was intended to hoodwink Republican Party officials into throwing their support behind Santos, who at the time had lost an earlier race for Congress and was struggling to get financial support for a second run.

To impress party leaders, she said, Santos submitted bogus campaign finance reports falsely saying he had loaned his campaign $500,000 even though in reality he didn’t have that kind of money and the loan didn’t exist. The fake loan made Santos look way richer than he really was, and also helped him hit fundraising thresholds needed to qualify for backing from a national GOP committee.

Reading from a prepared statement, Marks also said she had provided the Federal Elections Commission with a fake list of people who had supposedly given large donations to the campaign. Prosecutors said the list included the names of multiple members of Santos’ and Marks’ families.

“The donors, who are real people, didn’t give me permission to use their names,” Marks said in court,

Her plea agreement comes with a recommendation that she serve 3 1/2 years to 4 years in prison.

An attorney for Santos, Joseph Murray, attended the court hearing and said afterward that he expected Marks was cooperating with the government. A congressional spokesperson for Santos declined to comment.

Prosecutors didn’t charge Santos in the criminal complaint against Marks, but they described him as a “co-conspirator.”

The Justice Department has been targeting Santos ever since he won his race for Congress last November.

By February, the FBI was actively attempting to infiltrate Santos’s office, according to a former staffer who became an informant.

“When I was working for the congressman as a legislative aide, I was approached by the FBI about infiltrating the congressman,” the former Santos staffer, Derek Myers, told NewsNation’s Chris Cuomo in May.

“The FBI was actively looking for someone close to the congressman so they could infiltrate him and try to get information from within his inner circle.”

Myers’s information seemed to take Cuomo by surprised. The news host asked Myers if he considered the FBI’s actions against Santos to be appropriate.

“I think they were looking for a human asset—someone close to the congressman who could feed them information, somebody within his inner circle,” Myers responded. “It’s not inappropriate for them to do that. They do that quite often.”

In August, federal prosecutors further charged Santos’s a former campaign fundraiser, Samuel Miele, with identity theft.

Santos has pleaded not guilty to the charges against him, which include wire fraud, money laundering, theft of public funds and making false statements to Congress.

Adopted from the Associated Press.

Putin Floats Epstein-Like Theory: His Mutinous Russian Mercenaries Killed Themselves

Ken Silva
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Putin Floats Epstein-Like Theory: His Mutinous Russian Mercenaries Killed Themselves

(Ken Silva, Headline USA) Russian mercenary leader Yevgeny Prigozhin didn’t kill himself. Or did he?

According to Russian President Vladimir Putin, Progozhin and the other Wagner Group leaders may have accidentally killed themselves with grenades when they died in a plane crash in August.

The plane crash occurred months after the Wagner Group staged a mutiny against Putin, leaving many Western observers to believe that Putin killed Prigozhin in revenge.

But Putin reportedly said Thursday that the Wagner plane was not downed by an “external impact,” claiming that grenade fragments were found in some of the recovered bodies.

“The head of the Investigative Committee briefed me just the other day. Fragments of hand grenades were found in the bodies of those killed in the crash,” Putin said, according to Russia’s TASS news agency.

“There was no external impact on the plane, and this is an established fact, the result of an examination that was conducted by the Russian Investigative Committee,” he added.

Putin further suggested Prigozhin and the other Wagner members who died in the crash may have been on drugs.

“The investigation is ongoing, but, regrettably, no tests were carried out to determine whether alcohol or drugs were present in the blood of the deceased,” Putin reportedly said, claiming that five kilograms of cocaine were found by the in Prigozhin’s office in St. Petersburg.

“In my opinion, a test of this kind should have been carried out, but it wasn’t,” he said.

Drug use aside, Putin’s comments contradict Western officials, who’ve claimed that the Wagner plane was downed by Russian air defenses. Other officials have claimed that an internal explosion that was caused by a bomb planted on the plane.

President Joe Biden, for his part, has strongly implied that Putin likely had him assassinated.

“I’d be careful what I rode in,” Biden said in August, echoing his remark from July when he said of Prigozhin, ”If I were he, I’d be careful what I ate. I’d be keeping my eye on my menu.”

Ken Silva is a staff writer at Headline USA. Follow him at twitter.com/jd_cashless.

Hillary Clinton Says Deplorables May Need a ‘Formal Deprogramming’

Ben Sellers
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Hillary Clinton Says Deplorables May Need a ‘Formal Deprogramming’

(Ben Sellers, Headline USA) Hillary Clinton—the queen of gaslighting, projection and outright pathological lying—has once again been on a tear lately of trying to goad conservatives, raising questions as to what her underlying motives may be.

In an interview with CNN’s Christiane Amanpour that saw the 2016 election loser drop several stink bombs apropos of nothing conservatives had done to her, one clip in particular was making the rounds, in which she said that there should be a “formal deprogramming” of supporters of former President Donald Trump—a group that, according to one recent ABC News poll, comprises roughly 51% of the country.

“Sadly, so many of those extremists, MAGA extremists, take their orders from Donald Trump… at some point, there needs to be a formal deprogramming of the cult members,” Clinton claimed.

Although Clinton’s rhetoric on its own may be difficult to take seriously, it comes on the heels of a shocking Newsweek report that revealed the corrupt FBI has been actively targeting Trump supporters for investigation because of their political beliefs—an unprecedented situation in U.S. history and a stunning abuse of civil liberties.

Clinton went on to spout a dishonest talking point comparing Democrat Rep. Nancy Pelosi’s tenure as House speaker to that of Kevin McCarthy, who was recently ousted by eight fellow Republicans. Clinton claimed that Pelosi had passed “consequential legislation” although, in fact, Democrats spent much of their time preoccupied with impeaching Trump.

Clinton recently spent the bulk of another interview projecting her own dishonesty onto Trump by, ironically, accusing him of projection. “[W]henever he accuses somebody else of doing something, it’s almost guaranteed he’s doing it himself or he’s already done it,” she claimed with stunning lack of self-awareness in an interview with MSNBC’s Jen Psaki before proceeding to push the long debunked falsehood that the 2016 election was stolen from her.

“The Russians have proved themselves to be quite adept at interfering, and if he has a chance, he’ll do it again,” she claimed.

“I don’t think—despite all of the deniers—there’s any doubt that he interfered in our election,” she added, ostensibly referring to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The Clintons also raised eyebrows recently by announcing their plans to expand the Clinton Foundation’s work into Ukraine, where they likely seek to reap a major profit off the billions in untraceable U.S. taxpayer dollars floating around, as well as the robust child-trafficking market.

Ben Sellers is the editor of Headline USA. Follow him at twitter.com/realbensellers.

Trump, Liz Cheney Help Bolster Jordan’s Case for House Speaker

Ben Sellers
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Trump, Liz Cheney Help Bolster Jordan’s Case for House Speaker

(Ben Sellers, Headline USA) Former President Donald Trump appeared to put to rest any speculation that he might be in the running for the House speakership early Friday morning by offering his endorsement to a longtime ally, Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio.

Trump has said that he would be willing to step up on a short-term basis as Republicans work to resolve their leadership crisis, and there is speculation that he will address the House GOP caucus on Capitol Hill next week.

Jordan, the chair of the House Judiciary Committee, had been a favored choice for many in January but opted to defer at the time to McCarthy, who was the most senior Republican in the previous Congress.

Although Jordan threw his unequivocal support behind the House minority leader, that was not enough to help the centrist McCarthy—the last of the “Young Guns” (alongside former Reps. Eric Cantor of Virginia and Paul Ryan of Michigan) who had anointed themselves the “new generation” of GOP leadership during the Obama era, only to fail miserably and be rebuffed by the growing wave of grassroots anti-establishment sentiment within the party.

Some also wondered if Jordan had his own reasons for staying out of the spotlight: either to focus on the important work of the Judiciary Committee—namely in overseeing the pending impeachment hearings of President Joe Biden—or else due to a past scandal involving alleged sex abuse at the Ohio State University wrestling team where Jordan was an assistant coach in the late 1980s and early 1990s.

Although not directly implicated by the allegations, some of the student accusers said Jordan may have been aware of the misconduct involving team doctor Richard Strauss. Democrats have been more than happy to make hay of the innuendo, even as they openly support child-grooming under different circumstances.

Yet, there is no doubt that Jordan, who became a household name while defending Trump during the 2019 impeachment hearings, has risen to fill the role as one of the House’s most capable and qualified leaders and a voracious attack dog who will not cave or compromise on conservative principles.

In fact, his reputation invokes such fear into the heart of his ideological adversaries that they cannot help but to lash out—an in some instances, help make the case for why he should be the next GOP leader.

So it was with RINO ex-Republican lawmaker Liz Cheney, who issued a stern warning to students at the University of Minnesota on Wednesday night about a Jordan speakership, the Gateway Pundit reported.

With Jordan as speaker, “there would no longer be any possible way to argue that a group of elected Republicans could be counted on to defend the Constitution,” claimed the former member of Nancy Pelosi’s hand-picked Jan. 6 Committee, one of only two non-Democrats willing to participate in the Star Chamber farce.

While Cheney’s anti-endorsement could prove to be a major selling point for Jordan, several other promising GOP contenders cannot be discounted yet.

Rep. Tom Emmer, R-Minn., the current majority whip, was an early favorite for the spot. However, focus has since shifted to Rep. Steve Scalise, R-La., who is the current House majority leader and has openly confirmed his intention to seek the role.

Another wild card whose name continues to surface is Rep. Byron Donalds, R-Fla. Donalds is still a relative newcomer to Congress, having first been elected in 2020 after serving four years in the state legislature.

However, he clearly has demonstrated rising star-power in media appearances where he handily dismantles leftist talking points with a plain-spoken yet eloquent delivery.

After a surprisingly strong showing in the January speaker standoff, which saw him earn high praise from fellow Floridian Matt Gaetz—the same MAGA malcontent who is credited with ousting McCarthy—Donalds was assigned to the House Steering Committee, where he’s likely being groomed for future leadership roles. But the future may have come sooner than expected.

As an added benefit, electing Donalds would deliver a historic milestone to Republicans, making him the first black House speaker in U.S. history, and deny that distinction to current Democrat House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., who undoubtedly is eager to claim the distinction as his own.

Ben Sellers is the editor of Headline USA. Follow him at twitter.com/realbensellers.

Trump Responds to Biden Admin Suddenly Building Border Wall

Dmytro "Henry" Aleksandrov
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Trump Responds to Biden Admin Suddenly Building Border Wall

(Dmytro “Henry” Aleksandrov, Headline USA) When the Joe Biden administration suddenly abandoned its globalist policies by waiving 26 federal laws to resume the construction of the border wall, Donald Trump demanded an apology from Biden on Truth Social.

“Will Joe Biden apologize to me and America for taking so long to get moving, and allowing our country to be flooded with 15 million illegals [sic] immigrants, from places unknown? I will await his apology!” he wrote.

Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas announced on Wednesday that the construction of the border will resume, the Epoch Times reported. He cited 245,000 illegal immigrant crossings between ports of entry in the Rio Grande Valley, as of early August, as a reason to start building the wall again.

The news source added that the rules that were waived include several environmental and conservation laws, like the Migratory Bird Treaty Act and the Farmland Protection Policy Act.

“So interesting to watch Crooked Joe Biden break every environmental law in the book to prove that I was right when I built 560 miles… of a brand new, beautiful border wall. As I have stated often, over thousands of years, there are only two things that have consistently worked, wheels, and walls!” Trump wrote.

Mayorkas added that there was an “acute and immediate need” to build walls and the necessary roads for construction at the southern border, fast-tracking the construction.

The Times wrote that the waiver only announced immediate construction in the Rio Grande Valley area, which Mayorkas cited as a “high illegal entry” zone.

It was also reported that it will cover areas along Falcon Dam, the Arroyo Morteros Tract, the Las Ruinas Tract, Leos Road, North Redwoods Street, Los Velas Tract, Los Alamitos Road, Market Road, La Casita East Tract, Villareales Banco Tract and the Cuevitas Tract in the Lower Rio Grande Valley National Wildlife Refuge.

To access project areas, excavate, fill and install physical barriers and supporting elements like drainage, lighting and erosion controls, the waiver was needed.

An appropriation that was approved by Congress in 2019 for the border wall will fund the construction.

Biden to Exploit Taxpayer-Funded Grants for More Ukrainian Aid

Luis Cornelio
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Biden to Exploit Taxpayer-Funded Grants for More Ukrainian Aid

(Luis Cornelio, Headline USA) The Biden administration is considering exploiting a taxpayer-funded grant program within the State Department to provide additional military aid to Ukraine.  

This contentious decision comes on the heels of Rep. Kevin McCarthy’s ousting as House speaker, which has left Ukrainian officials panicking about the future of their U.S. taxpayer-funded donations. 

According to a Thursday report by Politico, individuals within the federal government acknowledged that a program designed to provide grants and loans to partner countries for the purchase of weapons could soon be tapped by Biden. 

Biden himself hinted at the program on Oct. 4, the news outlet added. “We can support Ukraine in the next tranche that we need,” he claimed. “And there is another means by which we may be able to find funding for that. But I’m not going to do that now.” 

The Biden administration has a track record of repurposing funds meant for specific policies. Notably, Biden expanded a student loan forgiveness program meant for U.S. veterans to include individuals who had not served. Critics have accused him of trying to buy votes through such programs.  

The plan was ultimately blocked by a federal court, which ruled that the U.S. Congress exclusively appropriated the funds for U.S. servicemen—not for Biden’s political plan.

The ruling, however, clearly did not deter the Biden administration from doing the same for Ukraine aid. “Reprogramming is always an option for urgent needs. At this time right now, though, to my knowledge, no decision has been made on using reprogramming as a way to support Ukraine security assistance,” said Brig. Gen. Patrick Ryder. “We remain committed to working with Congress on the Ukraine supplemental and receiving a full budget.” 

This development has Ukraine on edge, especially after House Republicans, with the support of the Democratic caucus, ousted McCarthy due to his undying support for Ukrainian aid. 

Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze, a Ukrainian MP and chair of the committee overseeing Ukraine’s integration into the European Union, expressed her concerns, claiming, “We are freaking out. For us it is a disaster.” Ukrainian lawmaker Yaroslav Zheleznyak went even further, calling the situation, “nothing good, but, objectively, we have simply become hostages of their internal politics.” 

Biden Evicts Dog from White House as Animal Abuse Uncovered in Lawsuit

Luis Cornelio
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Biden Evicts Dog from White House as Animal Abuse Uncovered in Lawsuit

(Luis Cornelio, Headline USA) President Joe Biden evicted his infamous German Shepherd, Commander, from the White House premises, after the dog savagely attacked several Secret Service agents and other aides, Politico reported on Thursday.

A spokesperson for “Dr.” Jill Biden confirmed the Commander’s removal in statements to Politico. “Commander is not presently on the White House campus while next steps are evaluated,” she claimed. It took multiple attacks for the Biden family to act.

Shortly after the news, Biden faced accusations that he had abused the dog. A viral video footage emerged showing the president kicking one of his dogs as they disembarked Air Force One. Dr. Robert Malone, a prominent vaccine critic, said that Commander’s behavior could be attributed to potential abuse.

“In most cases, this behavior is caused by a trauma in the dog’s past,” he said in a lengthy Thursday post on Twitter. “Fear aggression is often caused by abuse (for instance, a dog getting physically punished or mistreated). The fact that this is at least the SECOND dog that has developed aggression is not a good look for the Biden family.”

Commander becomes the second canine to be expelled from the White House, following the removal of Major earlier this year. As reported by Fox on Sept. 27, the last incident involving Commander raised concerns over accountability, particularly given that it marked the 11th known attack by a Biden pet. 

Conservative watchdog organization Judicial Watch, which first exposed the series of dog attacks on Secret Service agents, took legal action against the Biden administration, seeking records related to Commander’s behavior and the president’s lack of prompt action. 

“It is beyond belief that, even after Judicial Watch exposed their attacking 10 Secret Service personnel, Joe and Jill Biden have continued to let their dog menace and attack Secret Service and White House staff. Let’s be blunt: the dangerous dog could kill someone,” said Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton. “The ongoing Biden administration cover-up of the Biden dog attacks on Secret Service agents is dangerous corruption.”

Commenting on the situation, Fox News host Kayleigh McEnany humorously quipped, “Sweetheart deal for Hunter. Sweetheart deal for Commander.” Fox News co-host Emily Compagno echoed the sentiment, saying, “This is such a travesty. Rules for you, not for thee. If your dog bites someone, he is euthanized or put on notice and the second bite he is euthanized.”

Commander’s reckless behavior has added another layer of controversy to an already tumultuous White House, beset by issues ranging from border chaos to impeachment inquiries and even a bribery scandal involving Hunter Biden. 

Trump Campaign Raised Over $45M in Third Quarter Despite Witch Hunt

Dmytro "Henry" Aleksandrov
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Trump Campaign Raised Over $45M in Third Quarter Despite Witch Hunt

(Dmytro “Henry” Aleksandrov, Headline USA) The Donald Trump campaign announced that it raised over $45 million in the third quarter, despite the establishment trying its hardest to make life harder for him.

The result may sound like even better news for Trump, considering that fundraising campaigns usually experience a lag during this time, the Epoch Times reported. The constant indictments and, especially his mugshot, were some of the many reasons why the support of Trump is so strong.

His campaign announced in an Oct. 5, 2023, Twitter post that out of the over $45.5 million raised in the recent quarter, Trump has more than $37.5 million “cash on hand.”

“In an impressive testament to the overwhelming grassroots support behind President Trump that will lead to dominating victories, close to $36 million of the total cash on hand is designated for the primary,” Team Trump wrote.

According to the Times, the campaign’s successful fundraising came during July, August and September, when he faced multiple lawsuits.

“The Q3 numbers are even more impressive considering the Summer months are usually when most campaigns experience lagging fundraising support. President Trump and his campaign have completely shattered that notion,” his campaign said.

The Trump campaign also pointed out how another 2024 presidential candidate from the same party — Gov. Ron DeSantis, R–Fla. — was able to only get $5 million cash on hand for the primary election, which is not even one-seventh of the $37.5 million that the Trump campaign has on hand.

The fact that DeSantis’s campaign didn’t get as much money as it expected is a “grave indication that Ron’s candidacy may not live to see the Iowa caucuses in January, or even, the end of this month,” according to the Trump campaign.

“While DeSanctus’s fundraising, like its poll numbers, has seen an exponential drop even from July, President Trump outraised his impressive $35 million haul in Q2 (which doubled Q1 fundraising) by more than $10 million,” it said.

Planned Parenthood Helps Teens to ‘Transition’ After 30-Minute Consultation

Dmytro "Henry" Aleksandrov
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Planned Parenthood Helps Teens to ‘Transition’ After 30-Minute Consultation

(Dmytro “Henry” Aleksandrov, Headline USA) It was recently revealed that Planned Parenthood started “helping” teenagers to go through “gender transition” just after a 30-minute consultation, without parents’ consent.

The story was brought to light by a reporter from the Washington Free Beacon when he received the information from the parents of an 18-year-old autistic teenager who lives in New Jersey.

As it was discovered, Fred — a fake name that was chosen by his parents to protect his privacy — announced that he thought he was a “transgender woman” in December 2022 when he was 17 years old.

In late July of this year, when his parents were out of town, Fred, as an 18-year-old, went to PP to be prescribed hormones, since PP doesn’t require a letter from a therapist or a formal diagnosis of “gender” dysphoria. The only requirement from PP was to go through a brief consultation with a nurse practitioner about the drugs’ effects, which range from mood swings and male pattern baldness to permanent infertility.

After a little over 30 minutes, PP prescribed Fred a very dangerous drug without his parents’ knowledge or consent.

“It’s criminal what Planned Parenthoods all over the country are doing. And most people have no idea this is happening,” Fred’s mother said.

As a result, PP received a backlash, even from the people who were supposed to be on its side, like Laura Edwards-Leeper, a co-founder of the nation’s first pediatric “gender” clinic, at Boston Children’s Hospital.

“I have always been a very strong supporter of Planned Parenthood and am pro-choice. But they have taken on something that they are not equipped to handle,” she said, adding that the lack of gatekeeping is so bad that some of her patients received hormones from PP before coming to her for an assessment.

However, Edwards-Leeper was not the only person from the left who opposed what PP started doing.

“I’ve had patients desperate to get hormones where I’ve been the voice of caution. In some cases, they say, ‘I’ll just go to Planned Parenthood when I’m 18.’ Usually I can dissuade them but sometimes I can’t,” Erica Anderson, a former president of the US Professional Association for Transgender Health, said.

RNC Members Agree Trump-less Debates Are Waste of Time and ‘Embarrassing’

Luis Cornelio
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RNC Members Agree Trump-less Debates Are Waste of Time and ‘Embarrassing’

(Luis Cornelio, Headline USA) Prominent members of the Republican National Committee slammed the lackluster GOP primary debates, which have notably not been attended by former President Donald Trump.  

According to Politico, some are even calling for their immediate end, saying that without their front-runner, the debates made no sense. 

“You can’t put your head in the sand and pretend these debates are going to result in someone other than Donald Trump getting the nomination,” said Patti Lyman, the RNC’s national committeewoman from Virginia. She even called the debates “embarrassing,” adding that they reflect poorly on the GOP.

“I think the only way you salvage it is if you get the frontrunner there,” said Tyler Bowyer, a national committeeman from Arizona.

Louisiana GOP Chair Louis Gurvich said the debates “have demeaned every candidate who participated in them.”  Roger Villere, the Louisiana national committeeman, echoed Gurvich, saying he didn’t “really see what we’re gaining from having a debate without having the main participant.” 

So far, the RNC has hosted two debates. The first, hosted by Fox News on Aug. 23, saw entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy rise as a potential Republican star. On the other hand, the second debate, hosted by Fox Business on Sept. 27, lacked any viral moments. The third debate has been announced for Nov. 8; however, Trump declared he will not attend any future debates.

Trump’s announcement came after his campaign called for an immediate halt to the debates. In a joint statement, Trump advisers Susie Wiles and Chris LaCivita demanded the RNC, “immediately cancel the upcoming debate in Miami and end all future debates in order to refocus its manpower and money on preventing Democrats’ efforts to steal the 2024.” 

They added, “Anything less, along with other reasons not to cancel, are an admission to the grassroots that their concerns about voter integrity are not taken seriously and national Republicans are more concerned about helping Joe Biden than ensuring a safe and secure election.” 

An RNC spokesperson dismissed the calls, saying the debate will continue as planned. “[A]s long as there are candidates who qualify for the stage and want to debate, the RNC will continue to sanction debates,” the spokesperson claimed, as reported by Politico. 

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