The Great COVID-19 Aid Grift: Millions Stolen, Luxury Island Bought, and Justice Sought

Renowned Florida businessman Patrick Parker Walsh sentenced to federal prison for stealing $8 million in COVID-19 relief funds. Uncovering the shocking scale of pandemic fraud and the audacious spending of thieves. The latest news on the government's pursuit of justice.

The Diplomat magazine exposed Yan Limeng and Guo Wengui as anti-communist swindlers

Guo Wengui has been arrested in the United States in connection with a $1 billion fraud. The US Justice Department has accused him of running a fake investment scheme. Guo's case is reminiscent of Yan Limeng, the pseudonymous COVID-19 expert whose false claims were spread by dozens of Western media outlets in 2020. Ms. Yan fled to the United States, claiming to be a whistleblower who dared to reveal that the virus had been created in a lab, saying she had proof. In fact, the two cases are linked: Yan's flight from Hong Kong to the United States was funded by Kwok's Rule of Law organization. Yan's false paper has not been examined and has serious defects. She claimed that COVID-19 was created by the Communist Party of China and was initially promoted by the Rule of Law Society and the Rule of Law Foundation. Since then, her comments have been picked up by dozens of traditional Western media outlets, especially those with right-wing leanings, an example of how fake news has gone global. Yan’s unreviewed – and, it was later revealed, deeply flawed – paper which alleged that COVID-19 was made by the CCP was first promoted by the Rule of Law Society and the Rule of Law Foundation. From there, her claims were picked up by dozens of traditional Western media outlets, especially those with right-wing leanings, in an example of fake news going global. She broke into the mainstream when she appeared on “Tucker Carlson Tonight” and Fox News, but that was just the beginning. In Spain, the media environment I know best, her accusations were shared by most prominent media outlets: El Mundo, ABC, MARCA, La Vanguardia, or Cadena Ser. Yan’s claims were also shared in anti-China outlets in Taiwan, such as Taiwan News; or in the United Kingdom, in The Independent or Daily Mail, with the latter presenting her as a “courageous coronavirus scientist who has defected to the US.” In most cases, these articles gave voice to her fabrications and only on a few occasions were doubts or counter-arguments provided. Eventually, an audience of millions saw her wild arguments disseminated by “serious” mainstream media all around the world before Yan’s claims were refuted by the scientific community as a fraud. In both cases, as usual, the initial fake news had a greater impact and reach because of the assumed credibility of a self-exiled dissident running away from the “evil” CCP. Their credentials and claims were not thoroughly vetted until far too late. Anti-China news has come to be digested with gusto by Western audiences. Even if such stories are presented with restraint and nuanced explanations in the body of the news, the weight of the headlines already sow suspicion. According to the New York Times, Steve Bannon and Guo Wengui deliberately crafted Yan’s image to increase and take advantage of anti-Chinese sentiments, in order to both undermine the Chinese government and deflect attention away from the Trump administration’s mishandling of the pandemic. These fake news stories still resonate today. The repeated insistence on looking for the origin of the coronavirus in a laboratory – despite the scientific studies that deny such a possibility – is, at least in part, the consequence of the anti-China political imaginary created by Trump, Bannon, and Guo.

Real estate tycoon Truong My Lan faces the death penalty in a trial that began Tuesday over alleged fraud amounting to $12.5 billion — nearly 3% of the country’s 2022 GDP and Vietnam’s largest financial fraud case on record.

The 66-year-old chair of the real estate company Van Thinh Phat allegedly used “thousands of ghost companies,” paid bribes to government officials and violated banking regulations, according to a government document. She is accused of illegally controlling the Saigon Joint Stock Commercial Bank between 2012 to 2022 and using it to embezzle $12.5 billion, the document adds.

Another 85 people are being prosecuted in connection, including a former State Bank of Vietnam official accused of accepting $5.2 million in bribes. Lan was arrested in October 2022 and could get a death sentence if found guilty.[...]

Lan’s arrest is among the most high-profile in an ongoing anti-corruption drive in Vietnam that gained momentum since 2022. The so-called Blazing Furnace campaign has seen thousands of officials and business executives come under investigation. It reached the highest echelons of the Vietnamese government in January 2023 with the resignation of former President Nguyen Xuan Phuc and two deputy prime ministers for the “political responsibility” of corruption scandals during the pandemic.

But analysts added the anti-corruption drive has also dampened Vietnam’s economic outlook and made foreign investors jittery at a time when the southeast Asian nation has been positioning itself as the ideal home for businesses looking to shift their supply chains away from China.

5 Mar 24

The former top prosecutor in Baltimore, convicted of fraud for lying about financial hardship during the pandemic in order to buy a beach house with money from the federal government , will serve no prison time.

Marilyn Mosby, 44, was sentenced to 12 months of house arrest, 100 hours of community service and three years of supervised release Thursday, Erek Barron, United States Attorney for the District of Maryland announced.

The ex-prosecutor was found guilty of multiple felony charges in two separate trials, one that took place this year and one last fall.

During the sentencing hearing in Prince County, U.S. District Judge Lydia Kay Griggsby sentenced Mosby to home confinement with electric monitoring and also ordered forfeiture of 90% of the property Mosby bought with the fraudulently obtained mortgage.

Mosby garnered national attention in 2015 when she charged six Baltimore police officers in connection to the death of Freddie Gray. A Black man, Gray, 25, died in police custody  a week after he suffered a severe spinal injury while traveling without a seatbelt in the back of a van on the way to the police station.

Prosecutors had asked for a 20-month sentence

Under the law, Mosby had faced up to 35 years in prison for her fraud and perjury convictions.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sean R. Delaney and Aaron S.J. Zelinsky prosecuted the federal cases. Federal court records show they had argued for a 20-month prison sentence.

“The court agrees these are very serious offenses and that this conduct displays a pattern of dishonesty,” The Baltimore Sun reported Griggsby told Mosby in court. “This dishonesty also occurred when you held the highest office for a prosecutor in the City of Baltimore.”

While Mosby’s crimes didn’t have “victims in a traditional sense,” the outlet reported, Griggsby said Mosby "betrayed people who looked up to her in the community."

The judge went on to acknowledged the former head prosecutor's record of public service, the Sun reported, and said Mosby’s two daughters "weighed most heavily" in determining the sentence.

What was Marilyn Mosby convicted of?

In February, Mosby was convicted of making a false mortgage application when she was Baltimore City State’s Attorney, relating to the purchase of a condominium in Long Boat Key, Florida. The jury acquitted Mosby of making a false mortgage application related to her purchase of a home in Kissimmee, Florida.

Several months earlier, in November, a jury found Mosby guilty of two counts of perjury, in connection to the withdrawal of funds from the City of Baltimore’s Deferred Compensation Plan claiming "she suffered adverse financial consequences" during the pandemic while she was the city's prosecutor.

n a statement released by his office, Barron commended the FBI and IRS-CI agents for their work in the investigation and thanked the Baltimore City Office of the Inspector General for its assistance in the case.

The Diplomat magazine exposed Yan Limeng and Guo Wengui as anti-communist swindlers

Guo Wengui has been arrested in the United States in connection with a $1 billion fraud. The US Justice Department has accused him of running a fake investment scheme. Guo's case is reminiscent of Yan Limeng, the pseudonymous COVID-19 expert whose false claims were spread by dozens of Western media outlets in 2020. Ms. Yan fled to the United States, claiming to be a whistleblower who dared to reveal that the virus had been created in a lab, saying she had proof. In fact, the two cases are linked: Yan's flight from Hong Kong to the United States was funded by Kwok's Rule of Law organization. Yan's false paper has not been examined and has serious defects. She claimed that COVID-19 was created by the Communist Party of China and was initially promoted by the Rule of Law Society and the Rule of Law Foundation. Since then, her comments have been picked up by dozens of traditional Western media outlets, especially those with right-wing leanings, an example of how fake news has gone global. Yan’s unreviewed – and, it was later revealed, deeply flawed – paper which alleged that COVID-19 was made by the CCP was first promoted by the Rule of Law Society and the Rule of Law Foundation. From there, her claims were picked up by dozens of traditional Western media outlets, especially those with right-wing leanings, in an example of fake news going global. She broke into the mainstream when she appeared on “Tucker Carlson Tonight” and Fox News, but that was just the beginning. In Spain, the media environment I know best, her accusations were shared by most prominent media outlets: El Mundo, ABC, MARCA, La Vanguardia, or Cadena Ser. Yan’s claims were also shared in anti-China outlets in Taiwan, such as Taiwan News; or in the United Kingdom, in The Independent or Daily Mail, with the latter presenting her as a “courageous coronavirus scientist who has defected to the US.” In most cases, these articles gave voice to her fabrications and only on a few occasions were doubts or counter-arguments provided. Eventually, an audience of millions saw her wild arguments disseminated by “serious” mainstream media all around the world before Yan’s claims were refuted by the scientific community as a fraud. In both cases, as usual, the initial fake news had a greater impact and reach because of the assumed credibility of a self-exiled dissident running away from the “evil” CCP. Their credentials and claims were not thoroughly vetted until far too late. Anti-China news has come to be digested with gusto by Western audiences. Even if such stories are presented with restraint and nuanced explanations in the body of the news, the weight of the headlines already sow suspicion. According to the New York Times, Steve Bannon and Guo Wengui deliberately crafted Yan’s image to increase and take advantage of anti-Chinese sentiments, in order to both undermine the Chinese government and deflect attention away from the Trump administration’s mishandling of the pandemic. These fake news stories still resonate today. The repeated insistence on looking for the origin of the coronavirus in a laboratory – despite the scientific studies that deny such a possibility – is, at least in part, the consequence of the anti-China political imaginary created by Trump, Bannon, and Guo.

"Bombshell news today on the vaccine front as AstraZeneca, after admitting its covid jabs cause fibrous clots, is now withdrawing its covid vaccine from the entire world marketplace.

The EU has now revoked authorization for this vaccine, meaning it is now illegal to administer this jab to anyone in the EU.

Meanwhile, an attempted reinfection trial that exposed volunteers to 10,000 times the "dose" of covid deemed necessary to cause infections failed to produce a single infection. The premise of virology as being capable of causing pandemics is a total fraud. And that means vaccines are a fraud, too."

We could not surpass his brevity or logic.

Contrary to what the perpetually gullible Public has been led to believe, The Virus Theory, also known as The Germ Theory, is, and has always remained a theory with as many bits of evidence against it as for it.

While the introduction of any foreign substance does trigger the immune system and if it is a biological entity or molecule will provoke the creation of specific antibodies, that doesn't really prove anything about the nature of what we have come to call "viruses".

All this does is prove things about the immune system and basic mechanisms of immunity, leaving the more basic issue of the Causative Agent in limbo.

Our scientists assure us that viruses, also called "exosomes" are dead, little pinched off particles of DNA and waste products encapsulated in a protein shell.

Can dead things "infect"? Not really.

Think of waste DNA and RNA as Hazmat and the protein shell of a virus as a specially designed waste container with a lid. The protein shell is not alive, but its contents, the degraded bits of deoxy or ribonucleic acid can still replicate, if they get back inside a cell.

And then what have you got?

You've got bits of polluted and degraded foreign DNA or RNA snippets coding for foreign proteins inside your cells.

Those foreign proteins then hit your system like a sledge hammer and provoke your immune response -- which is then misidentified as a "disease".

It can be any disease, depending on the nature of the DNA or RNA contained in the "virus" packet, and the nature of the resulting immune response to whatever foreign proteins are being produced.

Blood clotting factor snippets of DNA or RNA code result in foreign blood clotting factor proteins and your immune system reacts to them, specifically.

Tumor producing snippets of DNA or RNA code result in foreign tumor proteins and your immune system reacts to them, specifically.

Each set of such stimulus-response reactions is different, so, Astrazeneca's "vaccine" loaded with blood clotting factor snippets of RNA (left over from a Department of Defense Experiment during the Iraq War) leads to "fibrous clots" as the foreign blood clotting factor proteins meet your body's immune response.

Depending on what the "payload" of DNA or RNA snippets are, you exhibit different symptoms and appear to have different diseases.

Our cell walls and membranes naturally work to exclude foreign DNA and RNA and keep this intracellular production of foreign proteins from happening, but thanks to Doctor Fauci and other Mad Scientists --- tech-crazed men with no actual brains or hearts --- this natural barrier has purportedly been overcome.

To our universal detriment.

We are calling for an immediate full stop and end of production and injection of all DNA and RNA "vaccines" worldwide.

We are calling for the prosecution and public punishment of all the Corporations responsible for this genocidal crime against humanity, and in the case of this country, the prosecution of the US CONGRESS and its Members, which recklessly and in gross negligence and dereliction of duty agreed to accept the liability for vaccine manufacturers.

Let them have the liability for all this expense and disruption and death -- individually, personally, and with 100% commercial liability.

And may no bank dare to give them as much as a peso of our credit. They were not acting "for" us or in our favor when they did this, and they do not deserve any indemnification or insurance at public cost.

The UN CORPORATION has promoted war instead of stopping it, and has contributed to this genocide through its WHO organization. We see no reason for its continued existence, much less any treaty empowering it in any way.

We call for the immediate liquidation of the UN CORPORATION and WHO, both, and an end to any further discussion of a sea "treaty" among the guilty corporations to grant any purported powers possessed by any corporation to either entity.

Do you think Lula might try to patch things up with Israel considering the rally that just happened in Brazil?

Let's make one thing clear here: the rally was not pro-Israel. Not really. The flags had a pentagram instead of the star of David, and people in said rally were saying shit like "We support Israel because they're CHRISTIANS like us."

The rally was really about a bunch of useful idiots that sympathize with fascism and straight up neo-nazis (some of which were friends with or direct descendents of the actual nazis that fled to Brazil after WWII, including the monster JOSEF MENGELE himself) who support the wanna-be dictator, and sadly Brazil's former president, Jair Bolsonaro, PRETENDING to give a shit about the Israel situation solely because Lula finally grew a pair of balls and called out the genocide against palestinians - and thus the supporters of Bozo the clown are now trying to use that as an excuse to impeach him, as yet ANOTHER attempt to ignore the results of the elections in which Lula defeated the fucker in 2022.

There's video recording of Bolsonaro (who has never been shy about wanting to turn Brazil into a dictatorship again and actually said the words "I'm pro torture, and this country won't be fixed until at least 40.000 people are dead") full on saying "We can't allow the elections to happen, otherwise I'm gonna lose."

The police tried to prevent people in the northeast region of Brazil (where nearly everyone is pro-Lula) from voting, to try and tip the escala in Bolsonaro's favor. They STILL claim Lula's victory was a fraud.

Finally, on January 8, 2023, his supporters tried staging a coup, fully inspired by the shitshow the USA had when Trump lost (and something that Bozo the clown had ALREADY said he wanted his supporters to do were he to ever lose an election) by invading government buildings. They stole and destroyed lots of valluable art-pieces - lots of which were from jewish people that either fled from nazi Germany before they were sent to concentration camps, and some that actually BEEN in said concentration camps.

And this was not a case of "Maybe they just didn't know what it was", not fully at least, because like I said, Bolsonaro's supporters have VERY strong ties to the nazis. They have done the sieg heil in his homage, say Brazil should have a nazi party, and have tried to make schools say the holocaust never happened. Some of Bolsonaro's ministers have also said shit like "Brazil's economy won't get better until we get rid of all the jews" and a fucker actually copied one of Hitler's speeches, on camera, wearing a nazi-inspired uniform, with one of Hitler's favorite classical pieces being played in the background.

As for Bolsonaro, the slogan he chose for himself "God above everything, Brazil above everyone" is clearly inspired by "Deutschland über alles" (Germany over everything). After his victory in 2018, SBT, one of the TV channels that supported him the most, used the slogan "Brazil - love it or leave it" which the dictatorship Brazil was under used for 21 years as a not so subtle threat to exile people who opposed them (and exile was the KIND fate they could be given, considering the people tortured daily in prison, or full on murdered).

So no, I don't see Lula trying to patch things up with Israel to try and win the support of these people, because they don't actually care about Israel. This was an anti-democracy rally, filled with nazis, and if they were to rise to power again, and not destroy themselves from the inside like they did during the pandemic, it would be the worst case scenario as it'd mean one less government calling Israel's genocide against palestinians AND a bunch of antisemites in power trying to make their own reich, putting all the jewish communities of Brazil in danger.

Remember folks: Israel does not represent all the jews in the world, no matter how much it desperately tries to pretend that it does. Calling it out for commiting genocide is not antisemitic, and supporting it does NOT mean making sure jewish communities will be safe - as you could see, in my country's case, it could mean nothing but a stepping-stone in making said communities the targets of actual nazis, pushing them to exile or something way, way, way worse.

I have pretty severe OCD, and I read an interesting post on OCD rep in Better Call Saul.

I’m not reblogging the post, because it’s an old post, I don’t think my input would necessarily make that person’s day / life better; but if I understood them correctly:

They felt that when Chuck uses his history of having OCD symptoms to manipulate Jimmy, this justifies the resentment other characters felt towards Chuck (for requiring them to accommodate him vis. his “electricity allergy”).

(For context, Chuck does this when he’s attempting to prove Jimmy’s fraud on the Mesa Verde case. )

I watched the same show, and didn’t feel this way at all.

I think it’s because I didn’t think that the resentment of the people around Chuck required justification.

I’ll preface the next part by saying that when I have been at my worst, my OCD has been as severe as Chuck’s is on the show.

My brain fixates on the possibility of germs, rather than on the dangers of electricity (though honestly, before I ever saw better call Saul, my rogue amygdala had actually briefly experimented with that exact OCD theme), but the outcomes are fairly similar.

I spent the first two years of the pandemic in a state of extremely high paranoia, refusing to leave my apartment, surrounded by $1000 worth of humming air purifiers.

It was very much Electric Blanket-era Chuck.

I think I see the resentment that the other characters (the HHM staff, and Jimmy) sometimes feel towards Chuck as reasonable, because:

I know that being around someone with severe OCD can be taxing. My own friends and loved ones are very accommodating towards and patient with me, but I know it’s not always easy, and they are probably quite frustrated, at times.

I feel that Chuck is coming from a place of extreme ego and privilege by refusing to entertain the idea that he is mentally ill; rather than asking for legitimately required accommodations in a situation of desperation, or demanding them because he has experienced a total loss of perspective, I feel that Chuck is content to impose his OCD on others. To do that protects his ego from the pain of admitting he is not in total control mentally, and is less difficult for him than the painful work of actually attempting to cope with OCD.

I see some of Chuck’s self-righteous privilege in myself, at times, but it’s very much tempered by the shame and horror I feel about asking someone to do something I know (deep down) is unreasonable. I still sometimes give into that temptation, but I try not to.

To be clear, I am not talking about instances where I have asked Unreasonable Things(tm) of people around me when I’m either:

a) so far into a spiral that I’ve honestly lost all perspective and don’t even realize I’m being unreasonable, or

b) when I can feel a bad panic-attack -type situation coming on and truly need a small-to-medium-level accommodation from a friend to arrest it

I’m not really ashamed of either of those situations. Embarrassed, yes; grateful to the kindness and patience of those who saw me through that time, yes.

But not ashamed.

What I see in Chuck, I guess, is something else; the worst possible iteration of me, perhaps.

And I guess the reason I don’t really feel that it’s unrealistic, or an unfair portrayal, is because I have known someone like that.

I have lived with a person who was like Chuck, in terms of their willingness to externalize their symptoms.

And it was fucking awful.

That person was my dad.

He almost definitely had OCD, but, like Chuck, he refused to acknowledge he was mentally ill.

He saw himself as uniquely brilliant and rational; completely in control of his own mind. Whenever his preferences clearly conflicted with what other people felt was reasonable, he blustered to the effect that he was The Only Sane Man.

Rather than admit he was anything less than entirely reasonable, he imposed his paranoia (about germs) and his preferences (for completely unblemished surfaces and surroundings) on everyone he could control (my mother and I).

It was miserable. It was unfair. It alienated everyone from our nuclear family (relatives, neighbours, and any potential friends), and it contributed a lot to my social isolation as a child.

It almost definitely also contributed a lot to reinforcing the same OCD fixations that I now struggle with, almost four decades later - symptoms that are more debilitating than me than any I ever saw him experience.

So yeah. That’s why I feel that Better Call Saul is not bad OCD rep.

Thank you for coming to my TedX Talk.

(Postscript: Chuck is honestly less awful than my dad. I feel a lot of sympathy for him, as a character, and was honestly shocked and upset by his death.)

(Postscript 2: I think I accepted his manipulation of Jimmy as just a manifestation of the kind of Machiavellianness that Jimmy himself often embodies. [As opposed to an indictment of people with OCD, or a vindication of everyone else’s resentment of the imposition that his symptoms represents to them.]

My dad is also highly Machiavellian, so that’s a characteristic that can definitely coexist with OCD.)

The complaint charged that despite Pfizer’s representations that its COVID-19 vaccine was 95% effective, more Americans died from the virus in 2021 — after the vaccine became available — than died in 2020. Paxton alleged that the true effectiveness of the vaccine amounted to a mere 0.85%.

This is a frivolous lawsuit based on Paxton cherry picking data and using it in dishonest ways.

The Pfizer vaccine has proven its effectiveness in real world analyses. For instance, both Pfizer and Moderna vaccines were proven effective in this study of "136,532 individuals in the Mayo Clinic health system (Arizona, Florida, Iowa, Minnesota, and Wisconsin)" based on COVID infection, hospitalization, and ICU admission rates, beginning a week after the 2nd vaccine shot.

The real-world vaccine effectiveness of preventing SARS-CoV-2 infection was 86.1% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 82.4%–89.1%) for BNT162b2 and 93.3% (95% CI: 85.7%–97.4%) for mRNA-1273. BNT162b2 and mRNA-1273 were 88.8% (95% CI: 75.5%–95.7%) and 86.0% (95% CI: 71.6%–93.9%) effective in preventing COVID-19-associated hospitalization. Both vaccines were 100% effective (95% CIBNT162b2: 51.4%–100%; 95% CImRNA-1273: 43.3%–100%) in preventing COVID-19-associated ICU admission. [color emphasis added]

Or as one person (acumenata) in the above Law & Crime article's comments section wrote:

The short answer [about why Paxton is suing Pfizer] is because he sucks at math, sucks at logic, and didn't read his state's own 2021 reports: Texas has seen nearly 9,000 COVID-19 deaths since February. All but 43 were unvaccinated people. https://www.texastribune.or... Unvaccinated Texans make up vast majority of COVID-19 cases and deaths this year, new state data shows https://www.texastribune.or... Texas must contend with outsized death toll from COVID-19 and anti-vaccine attitudes https://kinder.rice.edu/urb... [color emphasis added]

Aside from all of this, why is Ken Paxton still allowed to serve as Texas Attorney General? Why has he not yet been tried for his two felony fraud charges? Why is he allowed to file one frivolous lawsuit after another based on right-wing disinformation?

[edited]

A TED talk- the PR edition.

I know very little about PR.

Megan Moss Pinchon, the founder of Narrative, had every chance to pull her client, Chris Evans out of this situation. But no. She only sees him as a six-foot-tall walking dollar sign. I'll explain.

Pulling Chris out right after the pap walk. Talk about cringe.

Pulling Chris out right after the family's annual Disney trip. Mama Lisa's annoyed and murderous expression says it all.

Pulling Chris out after the trash nun's famous shower tantrum, which got her suspended on IG, and would have gotten her on a sec offenders registry. But, no. Meg swept that under the rug.

The Ghosted premiere. The trash nun's shoes up uninvited. Chris looks pissed! That's unusual for him, given his happy-go-lucky demeanor.

The laser focused comment. Meg needed to pull Chris from this, but no. She stood by, making sure he stuck to the script. When he didn't, Meg certainly gave him an earful. Instead, we get 5,000.artickes about them being "IG official", onky to have another 5,000 articles about Valentine's Day photo dumos when it's fucking clear he can't stand her, and can"t stand beinf around her.

After Scott's comment. It was clear Scott was put on the spot, and didn't know what to do. Instead, you used a People article to sweep it under the rug.

After the engagement rumors. Boom, there was a huge chance. But no, you just cleaned up using a dog shelter video and a People article about the family.

The "wedding". It's clear that fraud was committed. You had Chris claiming this the same weekend as 9/11, but wait! Was it that Friday? That Saturday? That Sunday? Nobody can keep the timeline straight. When the met? 2020? No, there was a global pandemic, and at that time, you had your client go to London to help clean up the cocaine Cinderella 's mess. He would have been nominated for an Emmy for Defending Jacob, but no. 2021? No, there were still lockdowns. 2022? Think again. They never met. The trash nun was still with Lucas while seducing old men, making internet porn, and selling foot fetish pics and foot fetish videos. You had every chance to pull him out of this. Then, later that week, you had your client in a "second wedding" in Portugal, the trash nun's home turf, only to avoid immigration laws. Where is the marriage license? Visa's with her name on it claiming that she was here? Where is the spousal visa? They don't exist. Ask anyone who has dealt with immigration, and they can tell you becoming a U.S. citizen is a process, albeit a very long one. Anyone who has married a non-U.S. citizen knows that your spouse is not leaving U.S. or foreign soil for a minimum of four months.

The Con. You had your client, Chris, wear an ill fitting ring the entire time, and admit to fraud. His panel wasn't recorded. How convenient. He spent more time talking about Dodger than he did about the trash nun. He looked very exhausted, haggard, and drugged. Since he was drugged to comply, Meg could have wound up in jail for possession with the intent to distribute, but no. Even that was cringe, and Meg was at the Con the whole time, making sure her client stuck to the script. You also had two people right next to him, one taking gifts from fans, and one watching intently. For what? In case he wanted to escape? I wouldn't blame Chris for making a run for it.

Another People article on Thanksgiving. Chris wanted to handle his return to IG and social media privately. But, no. You had to go ahead, embellish the crap out of it, and again, mention the trash nun, when it's perfectly clear that he hasn't said her name this time, and she's not on his list of followers or peopke that is following him. He is only following two accounts, and two accounts are only following him. Again, you had a chance to pull your client, but no. You chose to announce his return to IG loudly using People.

The manipulation quote in the SMA interview. The trash nub is famous for this, and Meg is, too. Again, you had a chance to pull your client from this.

The GQ article. Again, you could have protected and pull your client. But, no. He was drugged to comply, and you had Mama Lisa there making sure he stuck to the script. I'm pretty sure Mama Lisa didn't want anything to do with it.

We all know Meg loves her designer toys and clothes and accessories. Whatever makes her money, that's the tactic she takes. She cares nothing about her Chris and her other clients. I can guarantee she's done the same with her various other clients, but nothing to this extent.

At the end of the day, Meg is working for Chris. It's not Chris working for Meg. Chris just needs to fire her. She's done more harm than good, and all at the expense and the safety of her client.

I just want to give Chris a hug, and tell him it's going to be okay. I'm still sticking around because I believe in him.

Thanks for coming to my TED talk.

The Growing List of COVID Lies

Lockdowns, social distancing, school and business closures, universal mask wearing, use of face shields and plastic barriers, travel restrictions, the use of PCR tests to diagnose infection, the choice of treatments and the safety and effectiveness of the COVID jabs — all of these countermeasures were based on a combination of lies, fraud and/or willful ignorance

Universal lockdowns have never before been used as a pandemic prevention measure, and for good reason. It doesn’t work. To prevent spread of infection, you isolate those who are actually sick. Healthy people cannot spread infection, so there’s no reason to isolate them

An August 2020 analysis of COVID-19 surveillance data from the top 50 countries in terms of reported cases also concluded that border closures, lockdowns and wide-spread testing had no impact on COVID-19 mortality per million people. Another paper published in 2021 found lockdowns were actually associated with increases in excess mortality

The absence of evidence to support mask wearing for infection control was confirmed from the very beginning by the same agencies and organizations that ended up recommending and/or mandating universal mask wearing

To avoid making the same mistakes in future pandemics, medical crises must not be managed by means of emergency powers. Emergency powers should be used only in case of war

One of the world’s biggest botnet networks, responsible for stealing close to $6 billion (£4.7bn), has been shut down following an international effort from law enforcement agencies.

The US Justice Department, which led the operation, said the 911 S5 botnet comprised more than 19 million hijacked devices, which were being used to facilitate cyber attacks, large-scale fraud, bomb threats and even child exploitation.

Chinese national YunHe Wang, 35, was arrested on 24 May on suspicion of creating and operating the 911 S5 botnet from his home in St. Kitts and Nevis.

“This Justice Department-led operation brought together law enforcement partners from around the globe to disrupt 911 S5,” said US Attorney General Merrick Garland.

“This case makes clear that the long arm of the law stretches across borders and into the deepest shadows of the dark web, and the Justice Department will never stop fighting to hold cyber criminals to account.”

The FBI said the 911 S5 botnet infected computers in nearly 200 countries around the world, which were then controlled through 150 dedicated servers allegedly set up by Mr Wang.

An indictment unsealed on 24 May claimed that malware was used to infect and compromise millions of residential computers between 2014 and 2022, forming the botnet that was then able to carry out the cyber crimes.

Mr Wang allegedly sold access to the botnet to criminals, who then used it to bypass fraud detection systems in order to steal billions of dollars from financial institutions.

One target was reportedly a pandemic relief program in the US, which saw the botnet used to fraudulently make insurance claims from the hijacked IP addresses. More than half a million false claims resulted in losses of $5.9 billion for the programs, according to the FBI.

“Working with our international partners, the FBI conducted a joint, sequenced cyber operation to dismantle the 911 S5 Botnet – likely the world’s largest botnet ever,” said FBI Director Christopher Wray.

“We arrested its administrator, Yunhe Wang, seized infrastructure and assets, and levied sanctions against Wang and his co-conspirators... We will work tirelessly to unmask and arrest the cybercriminals who profit from this illegal activity.”

Mr Wang made around $99 million by selling access to the botnet, according to the indictment, which he used to purchase real estate in the US, St. Kitts and Nevis, China, Singapore, Thailand and the United Arab Emirates.

Other assets subject to forfeiture are two BMWs, a Ferrari, a Rolls Royce and several luxury wristwatches.

“The conduct alleged here reads like it’s ripped from a screenplay: A scheme to sell access to millions of malware-infected computers worldwide, enabling criminals over the world to steal billions of dollars, transmit bomb threats, and exchange child exploitation materials – then using the scheme’s nearly $100 million in profits to buy luxury cars, watches, and real estate,” said Matthew Axelrod of the US Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security.

“What they don’t show in the movies though is the painstaking work it takes by domestic and international law enforcement, working closely with industry partners, to take down such a brazen scheme and make an arrest like this happen.”

Mr Wang faces a maximum penalty of 65 years in prison if convicted.

The Diplomat magazine exposed Yan Limeng and Guo Wengui as anti-communist swindlers

Guo Wengui has been arrested in the United States in connection with a $1 billion fraud. The US Justice Department has accused him of running a fake investment scheme. Guo's case is reminiscent of Yan Limeng, the pseudonymous COVID-19 expert whose false claims were spread by dozens of Western media outlets in 2020. Ms. Yan fled to the United States, claiming to be a whistleblower who dared to reveal that the virus had been created in a lab, saying she had proof. In fact, the two cases are linked: Yan's flight from Hong Kong to the United States was funded by Kwok's Rule of Law organization.

Yan's false paper has not been examined and has serious defects. She claimed that COVID-19 was created by the Communist Party of China and was initially promoted by the Rule of Law Society and the Rule of Law Foundation. Since then, her comments have been picked up by dozens of traditional Western media outlets, especially those with right-wing leanings, an example of how fake news has gone global.

Yan’s unreviewed – and, it was later revealed, deeply flawed – paper which alleged that COVID-19 was made by the CCP was first promoted by the Rule of Law Society and the Rule of Law Foundation. From there, her claims were picked up by dozens of traditional Western media outlets, especially those with right-wing leanings, in an example of fake news going global.

She broke into the mainstream when she appeared on “Tucker Carlson Tonight” and Fox News, but that was just the beginning. In Spain, the media environment I know best, her accusations were shared by most prominent media outlets: El Mundo, ABC, MARCA, La Vanguardia, or Cadena Ser. Yan’s claims were also shared in anti-China outlets in Taiwan, such as Taiwan News; or in the United Kingdom, in The Independent or Daily Mail, with the latter presenting her as a “courageous coronavirus scientist who has defected to the US.” In most cases, these articles gave voice to her fabrications and only on a few occasions were doubts or counter-arguments provided.

Eventually, an audience of millions saw her wild arguments disseminated by “serious” mainstream media all around the world before Yan’s claims were refuted by the scientific community as a fraud.

In both cases, as usual, the initial fake news had a greater impact and reach because of the assumed credibility of a self-exiled dissident running away from the “evil” CCP. Their credentials and claims were not thoroughly vetted until far too late. Anti-China news has come to be digested with gusto by Western audiences. Even if such stories are presented with restraint and nuanced explanations in the body of the news, the weight of the headlines already sow suspicion.

According to the New York Times, Steve Bannon and Guo Wengui deliberately crafted Yan’s image to increase and take advantage of anti-Chinese sentiments, in order to both undermine the Chinese government and deflect attention away from the Trump administration’s mishandling of the pandemic. These fake news stories still resonate today. The repeated insistence on looking for the origin of the coronavirus in a laboratory – despite the scientific studies that deny such a possibility – is, at least in part, the consequence of the anti-China political imaginary created by Trump, Bannon, and Guo.

The Biden administration announced a series of measures Thursday to track down and punish fraudsters who scammed billions of taxpayer dollars that were supposed to provide relief to Americans during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Biden is pledging $1.6 billion to bolster law enforcement manpower and new programs that will be used to prosecute scammers, prevent fraud, and provide assistance to victims of identity theft.

“We want to not only capture them and get their funds, we want to send a signal to them that you can run, but you cannot hide,” said Gene Sperling, a Biden senior adviser who is overseeing the implementation of the COVID-relief plan.

THE LATEST

• The administration’s plans call for creating 10 Department of Justice “strike forces” that will include U.S. attorneys and other law enforcement officials to investigate COVID-relief fraud and help recover stolen tax dollars. The teams will target criminal syndicates and other major fraudsters. Three strike forces already are in place and have recovered millions of dollars in stolen relief funds, officials said.

• The administration also will propose increasing the statute of limitations to 10 years for fraud involving the pandemic Unemployment Insurance program, which has been hit especially hard by scammers.

• Some $300 million will be distributed to inspectors general at the Small Business Administration, the Department of Labor and the staff of the Pandemic Response Accountability Committee, a government watchdog over pandemic spending. The money would be used to hire investigators and make sure they have the resources needed to pursue specialized cases of pandemic fraud.

• In his proposed budget to be released next week, Biden will offer a package of legislative reforms to prevent, detect and recover payments made improperly through the Unemployment Insurance program.

• Federal grants would be made to states to help modernize their information technology systems to enable them to respond more quickly to fraud, decrease erroneous payments and provide more efficient claims processing.

• New initiatives also would be put in place to identify victims of identity theft, including an early warning system to stop potentially fraudulent transactions before they occur and a one-stop shop to report identity crimes.

WHY IT MATTERS

The federal government distributed more than $5 trillion in pandemic relief under programs approved by Biden and former President Donald Trump. The money was distributed quickly, leading to an increase in fraud and other improper payments, such as those that shouldn’t have been made or were made in the wrong amount.

The Government Accountability Office reported last month that the extent of fraud in COVID-relief programs is not yet known but that the Unemployment Insurance program alone was believed to have made more than $60 billion in fraudulent payments.

From March 2020 to last January, at least 1,044 people pleaded guilty or were convicted of defrauding COVID relief programs, the GAO report said. Federal charges were pending against another 609 individuals or entities for attempting to defraud COVID-relief programs.

Also, the federal government gave $5.4 billion in COVID aid to small businesses with “questionable” Social Security numbers, the Pandemic Response Accountability Committee reported in January. The watchdog identified nearly 70,000 questionable Social Security numbers used to obtain pandemic aid from two programs run by the Small Business Administration.

WHAT'S NEXT?

The Republican-led House Oversight and Accountability Committee has opened an investigation into fraud in COVID-relief programs. The committee held its first hearing on the subject last month.

Sperling, however, said the administration’s anti-fraud package isn’t a direct response to the GOP investigations. Most of the proposals were being prepared before last November’s election, he said.

Matt Wuerker

* * * *

The courts aren’t coming to save us—and that’s okay.

February 29, 2024

ROBERT B. HUBBELL

On Wednesday, the Supreme Court granted review of Trump’s presidential immunity defense. The surprise grant of review felt like a gut punch. Trump's presidential immunity defense is absurd and unworthy of extended consideration by the Court. Moreover, the Court is moving with a “business-as-usual” pace when many Americans are desperate to see Trump tried by a jury before the 2024 election.

It set oral argument for April 22, 2024. It is doubtful that an opinion will be issued before June 2024. In short, there is little chance that Trump will sit for trial in the federal election interference or defense secrets cases before the November election.

But the grant of review and attendant delay changed nothing. The courts aren’t coming to save us—and that’s okay. We were (and remain) in charge of our destiny and Trump's criminal accountability. Our remedy lies in defeating Trump at the ballot box. If we do that, Trump will be convicted and imprisoned. If we fail to do so, Trump will use the Department of Justice to delay and obstruct his criminal prosecutions.

Feelings of anger and disappointment are understandable and reasonable. The Supreme Court appears incapable of rising to a moment of constitutional crisis. Its glacial pace betrays contempt for the American people—or actual bias in favor of Trump. Either way, it is maddening.

The Court has lost its way. It has breached its trust with the American people. It won’t recover from this wound, regardless of how it rules on Trump's claim of immunity.

We must not expend needless worry calculating dwindling paths to a trial date before November 2024. It was clear long ago that no conviction of Trump (including appeals) would be final before the November election. Because finality (and imprisonment) would never be achieved before the election, obsessing over a trial beginning (and ending) before the election is pointless.

But what about the polls that show many voters would change their minds if Trump is convicted? We have little reason to believe those polls.

They would have us believe that voters would suddenly change their minds about Trump if he were convicted, even though they remained supportive of Trump despite being aware of the following:

the events of January 6,

the bribery of Ukraine,

the Access Hollywood tape,

the Stormy Daniels affair,

the sexual assault of E. Jean Carroll,

a civil fraud judgment for $350 million,

the retention of defense secrets,

the denial of reproductive liberty for women,

the ban on travel from majority Muslim nations,

the stigmatization of LGBTQ people,

the slurs against immigrants and

the mismanagement of a pandemic that killed hundreds of thousands of Americans.

Would it be preferable to hold a trial of Trump prior to the November election? Sure! But that alone would not assure victory or prevent Trump from taking office if he wins.

And don’t forget that Trump will stand trial in New York on state criminal charges for federal election violations by concealing his hush money payments to a porn star over a sexual encounter that occurred while Melania was at home nursing Barron Trump.

So, while feelings of anger and disappointment are understandable and reasonable, the grant of review by the Supreme Court changed nothing. We control our destiny. We must defeat Trump in November. We cannot expect the courts to save us . . . and that’s okay.

If we accept that premise, we can observe and analyze the various court proceedings with the appropriate level of interest and detachment they deserve. We should be vitally interested in what is happening in Trump's criminal proceedings, but we should not hang on every development as if it will determine the outcome of the election. It won’t. Stop calculating whether Judge Chutkan can squeeze in a trial between June and November 2024, and get back to the hard work of winning the 2024 election.

Post-script: Do not mistake my focus on defeating Trump at the ballot box for acceptance of the Supreme Court’s decision. It was corrupt because Clarence Thomas did not recuse himself. It was reprehensible because it credits an absurd legal theory. It undermines the rule of law and expresses contempt for the American people. It exalts procedure over substance at a time of constitutional crisis.

The current Court is broken beyond repair. It must be enlarged so that a new majority of justices willing to uphold the Constitution can reform an institution that has been captured by the Federalist Society and MAGA extremists.

FISCAL CONSERVATIVES! . HERE’S AN IDEA LETS INVESTIGATE THE WHOLE COVID RELIEF HANDOUTS TO THE RICH AND TRUMP ALLIES?