American Citizen Busted Spying for China on U.S. Gets a Deuce

An American citizen has been sentenced to merely two years in prison for acting as an agent of a foreign government within the United States, a development that will surely come as a complete shock to anyone who assumed that was still frowned upon.

Thomas Weir Pauken II, 51, an American citizen who lived and worked in the People’s Republic of China, was sentenced earlier this week to two years in prison and 36 months of supervised release with no overseas travel for acting as an agent of a foreign government within the United States. The no-overseas-travel part is expected to be especially inconvenient for a man whose entire business model depended on flying back and forth like a patriotic courier service for Beijing.

Court documents say that from at least 2019 until February 2026, Pauken, a total scumcrumpet, worked at the direction and control of people he knew worked for the PRC, including a person he met in 2017 identified as “Cathy.” 

Cathy, in the grand tradition of international intrigue, was apparently not just a friendly networking contact who happened to work for Chinese intelligence. 

“Pauken exploited his U.S. citizenship and corresponding ability to travel to the U.S. without restriction in order to support Chinese Ministry of State Security (MSS) operations, recruiting, and gathering of sensitive information from potential assets,” said Assistant Attorney General for National Security John A. Eisenberg. “Pauken betrayed his country for money. The National Security Division is committed to holding accountable anyone who aids or abets Chinese espionage efforts.”

Cathy provided Pauken with taskings, including meeting with potential intelligence assets, providing them with devices such as a laptop and cellphone to communicate with Cathy, providing taskings for the assets on what information was required, and providing Cathy with reports from the assets. In other words, he was the guy who showed up with the complimentary hardware and a list of homework assignments from the Ministry of State Security.

“Thomas Pauken knowingly assisted a foreign adversary in actively subverting the government of the United States for his own financial gain,” said First Assistant U.S. Attorney Theophani K. Stamos for the Eastern District of Virginia. “This was not an isolated act; Pauken continued his course of conduct to aid China for seven years. It is unconscionable that an American citizen would not only undermine the interests of the United States, but also facilitate others in doing so.”

Pauken received at least $100,000 for his work with Cathy. Cathy also paid for Pauken to travel several times between 2019 and 2025 from China to meet with individuals in the United States who could provide Pauken, and ultimately Cathy and the MSS, with information. 

Seven years of service, multiple recruitment trips, and a six-figure payout: the going rate for selling out the country appears to have been roughly the cost of a nice suburban kitchen remodel. And all he got was two years and some hand-holding when he gets out.

“Thomas Pauken admitted to working at the direction of China’s Ministry of State Security to attempt to infiltrate U.S. political circles while also providing new recruitment targets for his Chinese handlers,” said Assistant Director Roman Rozhavsky of the FBI’s Counterintelligence and Espionage Division. “This case illustrates the lengths to which the Chinese Communist Party will go to undermine our democratic institutions, and it also demonstrates the FBI’s resolve to defend the homeland from threats to our national security. 

The sentencing provides a clear warning: anyone operating as an agent of a foreign government against the U.S. will be found by the FBI and held accountable.” At least for a little bit.

Pauken worked for two other people in China whom he met in 2017 and knew as “Richard” and “William.” They told Pauken that reports he wrote for them went to Japan, but Pauken believed they worked for the PRC government. 

Nothing says “plausible deniability” quite like two guys named Richard and William insisting the intel is definitely headed to Tokyo. 

Pauken also sold reports to a group of Chinese individuals from Wuhan who sought information about technology and the U.S. Department of Justice. The Wuhan clients wanted Pauken to find an expert to help them engage in cyber espionage. Because when you already have a guy with a U.S. passport and a side hustle, the natural next step is shopping around for a cyber specialist.

The FBI’s Philadelphia Field Office investigated the case with the assistance of the FBI Washington Field Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Gavin R. Tisdale of the Eastern District of Virginia and Trial Attorney Eli Ross of the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence & Export Control Section are prosecuting the case. 

Currently, Pauken was reportedly reviewing the supervised-release terms and wondering whether “no overseas travel” includes a strongly worded exception for one last debrief with Cathy, who I doubt is a blond.

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ICE Bags Visa Overstayer Milo Yiannopoulos, Prepares to Send Him Home

The law finally caught up with Milo Yiannopoulos. Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrested the 41-year-old British citizen Thursday at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport, and the Department of Homeland Security says he will stay in custody until he is removed from the country.

Yiannopoulos entered the United States legally through New York City on May 14, 2019. Then he stayed. 

An immigration judge issued a final order of removal on July 22 after he failed to show up for his hearing. That is not a paperwork mix-up. That is a man who decided the rules did not apply to him.

“On August 27, ICE arrested Milo Yiannopoulos, an illegal alien from the United Kingdom,” DHS said. “He chose to overstay his welcome in violation of our nation’s laws.” DHS added that he will remain in ICE custody pending removal and used the arrest to advertise the administration’s self-deportation program. 

In other words, the government is doing what voters asked it to do: enforce immigration law, even when the offender used to be a conservative media celebrity. 

TMZ first reported that officers grabbed him at the airport ahead of a Kanye West concert Friday night in New Orleans. Yiannopoulos once served as West’s chief of staff and political director. He also did an unpaid summer internship in 2022 for former Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene. None of that is a visa.

His public unraveling began in 2017, when video surfaced of him arguing that relationships between older men and younger boys could be a positive “coming-of-age” experience. He stated that such relationships could “help those young boys discover who they are and give them security and safety and provide them with love and a reliable sort of rock, where they can’t speak to their parents.”

That same year, footage emerged of Yiannopoulos in 2016 singing at a Dallas bar while people in the crowd threw Nazi salutes. The owner said staff started ejecting the group once the “Neo-Nazi type stuff” started and that the bar did not condone it. He also waved away statutory rape laws, saying people can “get quite hung up on this child abuse thing” and that sexual relationships between 13-year-olds and adults could be “perfectly consensual” and beneficial under certain circumstances. 

Conservatives who once treated him as a free-speech mascot had every reason to show him the door. In recent years, prominent right-wing voices have said Yiannopoulos was not building the coalition. He was picking it apart. They accuse him of working with the Left to slander MAGA figures, including the late Charlie Kirk.

“Milo is not ‘Far-Right.’ Milo was working for the Left to divide, slander and lie about Trump’s coalition to break it apart,” conservative podcaster Benny Johnson said on X. “Days after Charlie Kirk was murdered, he accused Charlie of being gay and cheating on Erika. Evil, sick lie. Zero remorse. Zero evidence. Pure sewage and slander. It happened systematically to nearly everyone of prominence in the America First movement.”

Laura Loomer, who has been waving the immigration-status flag for years, celebrated the arrest and repeated her claim that he arranged a “sham marriage” with a man to stay in the United States.

“When Milo called for me to be assassinated, I reported him to ICE and the FBI,” Loomer said, accusing him of overstaying his visa. “I told you all that Milo was an illegal alien. Milo is going to be deported back to the UK where he can live among the Muslims he has recently chosen to embrace.”

Last year, talking to Tucker Carlson, Yiannopoulos called “mainstreaming homosexuality in the Republican Party” one of his biggest regrets.

“It has given rise to horrors I never imagined,” he told Carlson. “Well, the gay horrors I’ve given birth to — Lady MAGA and Nick Fuentes — they keep me up at night.” 

The conservative movement does not owe a visa overstayer a farewell tour. ICE made an arrest. A judge already ordered him removed. The United Kingdom can have him back. America First starts with American law.

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CBC Orders Reporters to Stop Calling 9/11 Terrorism, Says “Some Very Unfortunate Aviation-Related Things Happened”

Canadian public broadcaster unveils new journalistic standard requiring typists to avoid words that might accidentally describe reality.

TORONTO, Canada — The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation has issued a stern warning to its typists: under no circumstances should they refer to the September 11, 2001 attacks as “terrorist attacks,” because that would risk introducing dangerous quantities of meaning, politics, emotion and, worst of all, facts into the story.

Instead, CBC typists have been instructed to describe 9/11 as “a situation where some folks did stuff in America as a prescient sign that one day Donald Trump would be President.”

The memo, authored by CBC News senior director of journalistic standards and public trust Basem Boshra, was considerably less colorful but no less bewildering.

“Do not refer to the Sept. 11 attacks as terrorist attacks,” the memo said.

The directive instead recommends describing the attacks as hijackings that led to passenger jets crashing in Washington, D.C., Pennsylvania and Manhattan.

The World Trade Center was also destroyed, apparently by forces that CBC typists are not at liberty to characterize.

CBC officials defended the policy by explaining that the word “terrorist” is simply too emotionally loaded.

“It is the practice of the CBC to exercise extreme caution before using the words ‘terrorist’ and ‘terrorism,’” CBC Public Affairs Director Kerry Kelly said.

This is understandable.

After all, imagine the emotional trauma a CBC reporter might experience by typing the words “19 al Qaeda terrorists hijacked four airplanes and deliberately murdered nearly 3,000 people.”

That is an awful lot of adjectives.

Much safer to write:

“Nineteen individuals participated in an aviation-related disagreement that unfortunately resulted in several buildings becoming unavailable for future occupancy.”

CBC editors reportedly rejected the phrase “mass murder” because it was considered “judgmental.”

“Death,” meanwhile, is apparently acceptable because it can happen naturally.

“Premeditated murder” remains under review.

“Islamist terrorism” has been referred to the CBC’s Department of Extremely Careful Feelings.
CBC: We Don’t Call Terrorists Terrorists Because That Would Be Taking Sides

CBC News general manager and editor-in-chief Brodie Fenlon previously explained that the organization prefers to “bear witness” rather than independently determine whether acts are terrorism.

“We bear witness. But CBC News does not itself designate specific groups as terrorists, or specific acts as terrorism, regardless of the region or the events, because these words are so loaded with meaning, politics and emotion that they can end up being impediments to our journalism,” Fenlon said.

Which is an impressive position for a news organization.

It is roughly equivalent to a weather forecaster saying:

“We don't independently designate rain as wet because ‘wet’ is such a loaded term.”

Or a hockey announcer saying:

“We cannot characterize the puck as having entered the net because the phrase ‘goal’ carries political and emotional implications.”

Or a coroner saying:

“We can confirm that the individual is no longer participating in the ongoing experiment known as life.”

The CBC is simply committed to maintaining neutrality.

Even when neutrality requires pretending everyone else hasn't already figured out what happened.
New CBC Style Guide Released

Sources say CBC editors are now considering a comprehensive update to their style guide.

Under the proposed rules:

Terrorist attack: “An event involving unexpected violence.”

Suicide bomber: “A person experiencing a severe disagreement with mortality.”

Hostage-taking: “An involuntary relocation experience.”

Murder: “An unauthorized termination of another person's biological processes.”

Massacre: “A gathering that ended with an unusually high number of people no longer gathering.”

Hamas: “A group whose designation as a terrorist organization should be attributed to Canada, Israel, the United States, Australia, the United Kingdom, Germany, France and approximately half the planet.”

9/11: “The Sept. 11 attacks.”

Actual terrorism: “Please consult Legal.”

The CBC is particularly sensitive about the word “terrorist” because it might imply that someone who deliberately murders civilians for political purposes is, in fact, a terrorist. And once journalists start making those kinds of obvious connections, there is simply no telling where it could lead.

Soon they might start saying that criminals commit crimes.

Or that people who intentionally kill innocent civilians are responsible for killing innocent civilians.

Then civilization itself could collapse.

There is, admittedly, one small problem with the CBC's position. The FBI describes 9/11 as the most lethal terrorist attack in history.

Nineteen al Qaeda terrorists hijacked four airplanes, killed nearly 3,000 people and triggered the largest investigation in FBI history.

Canada itself lists al Qaeda as a terrorist entity and states that the organization perpetrated the attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon. But CBC journalists remain bravely unwilling to reach the same conclusion without first consulting someone who has already reached it.

This creates the fascinating possibility that a CBC reporter could stand outside the wreckage of a terrorist attack and say:

“According to witnesses, the FBI, the Canadian government, the American government, the Israeli government, the British government and virtually everyone who has ever looked at this event, this may have been terrorism.”

“But I wouldn't want to speculate.”

New York City Councilwoman Vickie Paladino condemned the guidance, accusing the broadcaster of disregarding the victims and deliberately undermining the historical record.

“The CBC guidance is frankly outrageous and insulting, but it stands as a stark warning for what happens when you allow institutions of public trust to be taken over by leftists and foreign interests,” Paladino said.

“This is not merely a callous disregard for the memory of those who perished on 9/11, it is a deliberate effort to undermine the fundamental truth of what happened that day in direct service to Islamism, as Europe, Canada, and the United States become increasingly overwhelmed by Islamist politics. We must not tolerate it any longer and dedicate ourselves to fighting this poison with every tool we have available before it’s too late,” she continued.

Conservative Canadian MP Rachael Thomas called the guidance “absolutely shameful.”

“The CBC is choosing to redefine terrorism in a way that downplays the atrocity of 9/11. Refusing to call it an act of terrorism dishonors the victims, their families, the survivors, and the first responders who witnessed the horrors of that day. 9/11 was an act of terrorism. Full stop,” Thomas said.

The Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs likewise accused the CBC of “sanitizing” history and presiding over a “collapse of journalistic standards.”

CBC responded that it was merely following its longstanding policy.

Because apparently the collapse of a building is tragic, but the collapse of a journalistic standard is merely a longstanding practice.

The policy is not limited to 9/11. CBC faced similar criticism following Hamas' Oct. 7, 2023 attack on Israel, when journalists were instructed not to independently call militants or soldiers “terrorists” and instead treat the designation as an attributed opinion.

Which raises an obvious question:

If Hamas murders civilians, kidnaps children, takes hostages and deliberately attacks Israeli communities, when exactly does CBC believe the word “terrorist” becomes appropriate?

Apparently, after the reporter has obtained a notarized affidavit from someone willing to accept responsibility for the adjective.

Perhaps the CBC could establish a new editorial hotline.

CALL 1: “Was someone intentionally trying to terrorize civilians?”

CALL 2: “Did they kill people?”

CALL 3: “Does Canada officially designate the organization as terrorist?”

CALL 4: “Is the answer to all three yes?”

CALL 5: “Sorry, we can't make that determination. Please hold for 45 minutes while we locate a sufficiently neutral adjective.”
CBC's New Definition of Journalism

The CBC's position ultimately leaves Canadians with a remarkable picture of modern journalism.

The journalist sees the plane.

The journalist sees the building.

The journalist sees the fire.

The journalist sees the bodies.

The journalist sees the terrorist organization that planned the attack.

The journalist sees the government's official designation.

The journalist sees the FBI's determination.

And then the journalist looks directly into the camera and says:

“Some things happened.”

This is apparently what “bearing witness” means in Canada.

Not telling people what happened.

Not describing what happened.

Certainly not using words that might help people understand what happened.

Just standing there solemnly while history happens nearby.

And if anyone asks whether 9/11 was terrorism, the answer is simple:

According to the FBI, yes.

According to the Canadian government, yes.

According to the historical record, yes.

According to the victims, their families and the first responders, obviously yes.

According to the CBC?

“The Sept. 11 attacks.”

Because apparently after 25 years, nearly 3,000 deaths, four hijacked aircraft and the destruction of the World Trade Center, the most dangerous thing about 9/11 is still the possibility that a CBC reporter might accidentally call a terrorist a terrorist.

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FBI evidently confronted Eric "Boom Boom" Swalwell over the weekend and hoo boy

It has been a rough stretch for former Rep. Eric "Boom Boom" Swalwell. You know, the guy who's known for the fart heard round the world.

First, the sexual misconduct claims torpedoed his time in Congress and his dreams of running California.

Then came word that he allegedly scooped up illegal donations from a suspected Chinese spy. Now the FBI has decided to stop by for a chat. 

Sources report that federal agents met Swalwell at San Francisco Airport on Saturday armed with search warrants. They confiscated his electronics, including his cell phone, as part of an ongoing federal criminal probe into the sexual misconduct allegations. Agents later used additional warrants to search his Washington residence on Sunday and carted off more potential evidence.

Swalwell began Saturday in Washington, where he still keeps a home with his wife and three kids. He flew west to California later that day, only to find the feds waiting when he got off the plane. According to sources, he played nice and cooperated.

Authorities have not said exactly what they grabbed from the D.C. house, per news outlet The Daily Mail. 

But on the not so bright side, at least four women have accused Swalwell of sexual misconduct, including a former staffer. One woman claimed he drugged and raped her in 2018. Two others said he sent them unsolicited pictures of his private parts. Incredibly, his wife stands with him for some inexplicable reason.

Swalwell has stayed mostly out of sight since quitting the California governor's race and resigning from Congress. He continues to deny any wrongdoing tied to the sexual assault and misconduct claims.

In related news, the same guy who once lectured the nation about democracy and foreign influence is now watching agents dig through his devices over claims that range from creepy texts to far more serious allegations. The Chinese spy donation story just adds a nice layer of extra flavor to an already eventful week.
 

I wonder what Fang Fang thinks.

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Nancy "Hands-a-Flying" Pelosi kept Swalwell on Intel Committee after FBI warnings

There are bad ideas, there are terrible ideas, and then there is allowing a congressman who admitted having an intimate relationship with a suspected Chinese intelligence operative to remain on the House Intelligence Committee.

Apparently, Washington Democrats were determined to explore that third category.

When allegations involving Rep. Eric Swalwell and Fang Fang, a woman suspected of ties to Chinese intelligence, surfaced in 2020, then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was briefed on the FBI’s findings. We now know the bureau had evidence that Fang may have compromised Swalwell through sex, foreign interns and allegedly illicit campaign donations.

And yet somehow the Democratic leadership concluded that the appropriate response was not, “Perhaps we should move this guy away from the classified information.”

Instead, Swalwell stayed.

Because apparently “House Intelligence Committee” was being interpreted as more of a suggestion than a job description.

The FBI briefings were serious enough to alarm then-House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, who called for Swalwell to be removed from the committee. McCarthy was concerned that a congressman with access to highly sensitive intelligence might not be the ideal person to have around highly sensitive intelligence.

Crazy, right?

Sex, Interns and Campaign Cash

The newly released FBI files provide considerably more detail about the relationship between Swalwell and Fang.

According to the files, Swalwell admitted having sex with Fang, acknowledged that his staff had placed Fang’s interns in congressional offices, and admitted that his campaign finance operation was not sophisticated enough to detect the alleged straw donations she funneled through U.S. citizens.

So, to recap, the FBI was dealing with a suspected Chinese intelligence operative who allegedly cultivated American politicians through networking, campaign donations, internships and romantic relationships.

And one of those politicians was sitting on the House Intelligence Committee.

This sounds less like counterintelligence and more like the plot of a spy movie written by people who thought the protagonist should be named “Congressman Completely Unconcerned.”

The FBI also knew Fang had ties to China’s Ministry of State Security, Beijing’s intelligence service. Investigators identified her parents as MSS agents.

Fang’s activities had previously been reported by Axios, which described her efforts to cultivate politicians in California through fundraising, networking, charm and romantic or sexual relationships.

Swalwell was reportedly one of her most significant targets.

Swalwell has consistently maintained that he did nothing wrong, fully cooperated with the FBI investigation, and stopped communicating with Fang after receiving a defensive briefing about her activities.

Swalwell’s Lawyer Says This Is All Political

After the files were released, Swalwell’s attorney, Sara Azari, argued that there was nothing new to see.

“There is nothing new here. The government’s own memorandum confirms what Congressman Swalwell has said for more than a decade: he did nothing wrong, and there was no basis to charge him with any offense,” said Sara Azari, legal counsel for Swalwell, on Monday after the files were released. “What is new and deeply concerning is the apparent use of federal law enforcement information to punish or embarrass an outspoken critic of the current administration. An investigation that produced no charges and no finding of wrongdoing should not be resurrected years later as a vehicle for political retaliation.”

That is certainly one way to describe the situation.

Another would be: “The FBI investigated a congressman who admitted sleeping with a woman the bureau believed was connected to Chinese intelligence, and now everyone is upset that people are talking about it.”

Both descriptions are technically available.

After the original allegations surfaced, McCarthy said they “disqualified” Swalwell from serving on the Intelligence Committee.

“Swalwell is a national security liability,” the Republican leader said.

McCarthy then requested a full FBI briefing. After receiving it, he became even more convinced Swalwell should be removed.

“One thing I know for sure — I had questions about whether he should. That’s the one question that was answered, he should not be on Intel,” McCarthy told reporters.

That seems fairly definitive.

Pelosi: Nothing to See Here

Pelosi later confirmed that Democratic leadership had first been briefed about Swalwell’s relationship with Fang in the spring of 2015, shortly after Democrats nominated him to the Intelligence Committee.

Pelosi said congressional Democrats cut off communication with Fang once they learned about the situation.

“When that was made known to the members of Congress, it was over. That was the end of any communication with those people,” Pelosi said.

The Speaker also said Republicans had been briefed at the same time.

“We knew when they knew,” explained Pelosi.

And then came the part that has aged particularly well.

Summing up her assessment of Swalwell, Pelosi told reporters that she did not “have any concerns about Mr. Swalwell.”

Naturally.

Nothing inspires confidence in congressional counterintelligence quite like a suspected Chinese spy sleeping with a member of the Intelligence Committee while party leadership says there are “no concerns.”

McCarthy tried to remove Swalwell from the committee in early 2021 after Pelosi reappointed him.

The House voted largely along party lines to reject the measure, with 200 members voting for removal and 218 voting against it.

House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff also defended Swalwell, calling him a “trusted member of our committee” who had “acted fully in accordance with his responsibilities” after the 2015 briefing.

Apparently those responsibilities included continuing to sit on the committee.

McCarthy: Democrats “Jeopardized” Congress

When Republicans regained control of the House in 2023, McCarthy blocked Swalwell from serving on the Intelligence Committee.

“If you got the briefing I got from the FBI, you wouldn’t have Swalwell on any committee,” McCarthy said.

“One thing I know for sure – I had questions about whether he should. That’s the one question that was answered, he should not be on Intel.”

McCarthy said Democratic leadership had “jeopardized” Congress by allowing Swalwell to remain on a committee handling sensitive intelligence for years.

“The only way that they even knew it came forward is when they went to nominate him to the Intel Committee. And then the FBI came and told the leadership then, he’s got a problem,” McCarthy explained. “And they kept him on. That jeopardized all of us.”

That is the sort of sentence that tends to make people wonder why national security was apparently being handled with the same urgency as deciding where to hold the congressional Christmas party.

Then Came the New Details

The newly released files reveal even more about what the FBI knew.

According to the documents, the FBI initially considered investigating Swalwell for a bribery scheme involving campaign donations and internships. Investigators ultimately narrowed the criminal case to Fang and allegations that she made illegal donations through U.S.-citizen conduits.

Swalwell admitted that he had sex with Fang, that his staff placed her interns in congressional offices, and that his campaign finance system was not strong enough to detect the alleged straw donations.

The Justice Department ultimately declined to prosecute Fang after she fled the country as investigators began interviewing associates and raiding her home.

The FBI had also been trying to recruit Fang as a confidential informant.

Her code name?

“Rusty Thumbs.”

Yes, “Rusty Thumbs.”

Apparently the FBI's counterintelligence operation had a naming committee that was having a particularly creative afternoon.

The bureau was considering hiring Fang through a cutout company and was still evaluating her suitability as a confidential human source when investigators discovered her alleged criminal activity.

The FBI also knew early in the recruitment process that Fang had suspected ties to the MSS. One memo identified her parents as “known MSS intelligence officers.”

Agents also suspected Fang herself had ties to Chinese intelligence and knew she was raising money for California Democrats and allegedly willing to use sex to advance her political influence.

The investigation was opened on March 17, 2014, under the remarkably appropriate codename “Freshman Fifteen.”

The probe examined allegations that Swalwell awarded congressional internships in exchange for campaign contributions, with Fang allegedly serving as the facilitator.

According to an FBI summary of Swalwell’s 2015 interview, Swalwell admitted that he had “physical relations with Fang” on multiple occasions.

During another interview in 2016, Swalwell described an incident in which Fang showed up at his home. Swalwell said they “hooked up,” according to the FBI summary.

And all of this was known before Democrats repeatedly decided that Swalwell belonged on the House Intelligence Committee.

At some point, the question stops being whether Eric Swalwell had a questionable relationship with a suspected Chinese intelligence operative.

The more interesting question is why the people who had been briefed about it decided that the appropriate response was to give him access to some of the most sensitive intelligence in the United States government.

Then again, Washington has always had an interesting definition of “intelligence.” Sometimes it apparently means classified information.

Sometimes it means figuring out that the guy sleeping with a suspected Chinese spy probably shouldn't be sitting on the Intelligence Committee.

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Eric Swalwell and the Chinese Honeypot That Keeps Giving

This is getting almost too good to be true.

We already knew former Rep. Eric "Boom-Boom" Swalwell (D-CA) had a rather unusual relationship with a Chinese intelligence-linked honeypot named Christine Fang, aka Fang Fang. Now, thanks to documents released by the FBI, we apparently get to see what was happening behind the curtain, and it should scare normal Americans.

And suddenly, the California political scene looks even more entertaining.

According to newly released FBI memos, investigators believed 'the Fangster' may have compromised a Democratic congressman through sex, foreign interns and potentially illegal campaign donations. The FBI was even trying to recruit her as an informant because of her connections to Chinese intelligence.

The whole thing sounds less like congressional politics and more like the rejected plot of a low-budget spy movie.

Swalwell admitted to having a physical relationship with Fang., who he says he met in 2012, and diddled up until 2015.

The FBI eventually dropped Swalwell from the investigation and focused exclusively on Fang's alleged activities. So, at least according to the bureau, the congressman somehow managed to survive an investigation involving a Chinese intelligence-linked woman, while the woman herself remained the person of interest.

The FBI documents, obtained after President Donald Trump declassified them, describe a probe into Swalwell and Fang that was opened on March 17, 2014, under the wonderfully ominous name “Freshman Fifteen.”

The investigation centered on allegations that Swalwell provided congressional internships in exchange for campaign contributions. Investigators identified Fang as the alleged facilitator of the arrangement and accused her of using intermediaries to disguise the source of prohibited foreign donations.

“The FBI developed evidence that a Chinese woman with direct ties to that country’s intelligence service had potentially compromised a Democratic congressman from California with sex, foreign interns and illicit donations while she was being recruited to become a bureau informant a decade ago, according to bombshell memos that expose another threat to America’s political system from Beijing.”

That is quite a sentence.

Apparently, the FBI was not merely investigating a congressional intern who happened to have a funny accent. Investigators believed they were looking at a Chinese national with connections to Beijing's intelligence apparatus who had cultivated relationships with American politicians.

The documents say the FBI opened its investigation after allegations emerged that congressional internships were being exchanged for campaign contributions. Fang was allegedly the person making the arrangements.

“Investigation has revealed Fang ‘Christine’ Fang, a Chinese foreign national residing in the United States, is the facilitator of a scheme to trade access to Swalwell and internships in his congressional office in return for campaign contributions […]” the memo reads.

The FBI also alleged that Fang “used conduits to conceal herself as a prohibited Foreign National source,” for illegal campaign contributions “at least twice in 2013 and at least two more times in 2014.”

And then there is Jack Smith.

During the early stages of the investigation, the FBI regularly briefed the Justice Department's Public Integrity Section, which was then headed by Smith. Smith would later become famous for leading the Biden administration's investigations and prosecutions of Trump.

Washington really does have a remarkable talent for producing recurring characters.

Eventually, after interviewing Swalwell multiple times, the FBI determined that it had not found evidence that the congressman himself had violated federal statutes. On February 8, 2017, the bureau reclassified the investigation, dropped Swalwell as a subject and concentrated on Fang's alleged campaign finance violations.

So Swalwell survived.

Politically speaking, this was apparently the congressional equivalent of walking away from an exploding building without even getting dust on the suit.

But the FBI's interest in Fang went considerably further than her relationship with Swalwell.

Before investigating her alleged illegal activities, bureau agents spent months trying to recruit her as an informant. They used an undercover employee and even created a fictitious company in an effort to persuade Fang to cooperate.

The objective was to obtain information about Chinese influence operations targeting American public officials, several of whom Fang was reportedly close to.

The operation was given the appropriately subtle name “Rusty Thumbs.”

According to the memos, an undercover FBI employee met with Fang several times, learned about her background and offered her a consulting position with the fictional company. The proposed job would have involved using her Chinese connections to assist the business.

Fang apparently wasn't eager to provide a detailed biography of her life in China. The memos say she was vague about her past, declined to explain her parents' positions with the Chinese government and would not disclose where she attended undergraduate school.

She was apparently much more comfortable discussing her political activities in America.

Those activities reportedly included helping connect donors to Swalwell's congressional campaign.

Eventually, Fang agreed to work with the fictional company. On June 14, 2013, she signed a contractor agreement for the consulting position.

The FBI has the contract in its files.

So there you have it. A Democratic congressman, a Chinese national with alleged intelligence connections, congressional internships, campaign contributions, a physical relationship, an undercover FBI operation, a fake company and something called “Rusty Thumbs.”

At this point, all that seems to be missing is Tom Clancy receiving a royalty check.

The important distinction, of course, is that the FBI ultimately concluded it had not established federal criminal violations by Swalwell himself. But the newly released documents nonetheless provide a remarkable look at how seriously the bureau viewed Fang's activities and the possibility that Beijing was using relationships with American politicians to gain influence.

And somehow Eric Swalwell still gets to participate in American politics.

Apparently, surviving a Chinese honeypot scandal is now considered a qualification for higher office in California.

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Former Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao's home raided by FBI and woo hoo, it's interesting

Sheng Thao is the former mayor of Oakland, California (2023–2024), the first Hmong American to lead a major U.S. city. She was narrowly elected in 2022, recalled by voters in 2024 amid crime concerns and other issues, and faces an ongoing federal bribery and corruption case with a trial scheduled for October 2026.

Background and rise to office

Thao was born in 1985 in Stockton, California, the daughter of Hmong refugees who fled Laos. She grew up in poverty, experienced domestic violence, and was homeless for a time in her early 20s (including living in her car with her infant son). She later earned degrees from Merritt College and UC Berkeley.

She worked as a staffer for Oakland City Council member Rebecca Kaplan, then won election to the Oakland City Council (District 4) in 2018—the first Hmong American on the council. She served as president pro tem. In November 2022, she narrowly defeated fellow councilmember Loren Taylor in a ranked-choice mayoral race (by roughly 682 votes) and took office in January 2023 as Oakland’s 51st mayor. She emphasized addressing crime, homelessness, and affordable housing, with goals including building tens of thousands of new housing units.

Mayoral tenure and recall

Her time in office was turbulent. Early on, she fired Police Chief LeRonne Armstrong. The city faced ongoing challenges with crime, business closures, homelessness, and budget issues (including deficits). Crime later declined in some metrics, and she pointed to efforts on housing, violence prevention (including a ceasefire strategy), 911 improvements, and other initiatives.

A recall campaign gained traction, driven by frustration over public safety and questions about her leadership. The Oakland police union called for her resignation. On November 5, 2024, voters approved the recall with about 60.6% in favor—the first successful mayoral recall in Oakland history. She left office in mid-December 2024 after results were certified.

Federal investigation and charges

In June 2024 (shortly after the recall petition was certified), the FBI raided Thao’s home as part of a corruption probe. In January 2025, a federal grand jury indicted her, her longtime partner Andre Jones, and father-son businessmen David and Andy Duong (associated with California Waste Solutions, Oakland’s recycling contractor, and related housing ventures such as Evolutionary Homes).

Prosecutors describe an alleged “pay-to-play” scheme. They claim that around the 2022 election and afterward, the Duongs provided campaign support (including financing roughly $75,000 in negative mailers against Thao’s opponents) and payments to Jones for a “no-show” job (about $95,000 of a promised larger amount), in exchange for Thao using her influence to help their businesses—such as with recycling contracts, city purchases of modular/container housing, favorable appointments, and other favors. Additional allegations in court filings have included claims of sharing sensitive information, creating fake employment records, and other actions.

All four defendants pleaded not guilty. Related figures, including political operative Mario Juarez (a key alleged participant/informant) and former San Leandro Councilmember Bryan Azevedo, have pleaded guilty in connected matters and are expected to be witnesses. Prosecutors have listed dozens of potential witnesses (including city staff, officials, and others).

Recent developments (as of August 2026)

The case remains active with a jury trial set to begin around October 19, 2026 (jury selection earlier that month). On August 14, 2026, Thao appeared in federal court in Oakland for a pretrial motions hearing. New court records include allegations that she pressured the Duongs to pay about $10,000 to a reporter’s associate to suppress a potential story about alleged drug use and sexual conduct during a 2023 Vietnam trip funded by California Waste Solutions. Prosecutors also reference claims involving secret recordings or materials of politicians held by one of the businessmen. Defense teams have sought to exclude various evidence; the judge is reviewing those issues.

Thao has maintained her innocence through counsel. The case is being closely watched in the Bay Area as it involves local politics, city contracts, and allegations of influence-peddling.

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Fauci Takes Fifth 111 Times Because Answering Questions Would Force Him to Admit He's Not Actually a Deity

WASHINGTON, D.C. — In a shocking development that has left half the country clutching their “In Fauci We Trust” prayer cards, Dr. Anthony Fauci invoked the Fifth Amendment 111 times during his recent Senate grilling. 

Sources close to the hearing confirm the real reason wasn’t fear of perjury, it was sheer, unadulterated pride. The man simply could not bear watching his own golden statue melt under the harsh light of basic questions. 

Former Rolling Stone editor Matt Taibbi dug through the wreckage of Fauci’s July 29 appearance before the Senate Homeland Security Committee and discovered what many already suspected: America’s most celebrated public health rock star spent the pandemic treating the country like his personal arena tour. 

Diary entries paint a portrait of an egotistical asshat clown who demanded federal employees chase cash prizes for him between Zoom briefings, while casually noting that vaccinated people were still getting infected; details he somehow forgot to share with the flock still waiting for their next booster sacrament.

Taibbi observed that Fauci’s chaotic performance did precisely nothing to dent the religious devotion of the faithful Left. Science, the FBI, the CIA, and the entire intelligence community can whisper “lab leak” until they’re blue in the face; Fauci remains their false prophet, an invidious huckster-narcissist whose reckless experiments may have endangered the world. 

One does not simply question the high priest of “I Am Science.” 

Joe Biden’s blanket pardon, issued with the intellectual clarity of a man who once introduced his own shadow as a Cabinet member, somehow failed to cover this particular hearing. Perjury traps yawned open like the mouths of hungry interns. So Fauci took the Fifth. Legal strategy? Partially, but deeper analysis reveals the true motive: pure ego up his wazoo. 

Three hours of systematically dismantling his own temple was simply too much for a man who once believed the adoring media had permanently canonized him. The heart of the matter, as Taibbi noted, was the exquisite legal loophole left by the outgoing Obama administration in 2017. By redefining “potential pandemic pathogen” with the semantic precision of a leprechaun rewriting the rules of a drinking contest, officials created a glorious gray area. 

Suddenly, taking a bat virus that couldn’t infect bats, inserting twelve nucleotides to give it a furin cleavage site, and watching it become devastatingly transmissible to humans wasn’t “gain of function.” It was just creative virology. 

As former CDC Director Bob Redfield helpfully clarified, if you start with something that doesn’t hurt people and make it hurt people, congratulations, you’ve invented a brand-new category of research that definitely doesn’t count. 

Fauci’s diaries seethe with irritation at the “nonsense” in Congress over gain-of-function questions. In his mind, the funding never “likely” caused widespread human transmission, so everything was fine. Never mind the diary entry fretting that Dr. Zheng-Li Shi had been busily adapting spike proteins to human ACE2 receptors for years. Never mind that the virus that escaped Wuhan just happened to possess the exact engineered feature scientists had been discussing. Details, details. 

The important thing was that the paperwork looked clean. 

Taibbi concluded that half the country is still averting its eyes because one blue-state heartthrob sits at the center of the disaster. Investigating the greatest public health catastrophe in a century might require admitting their idol was fallible clusterfrack of a doctor, and that simply cannot be allowed. God help us when the next novel virus needs a little laboratory TLC. 

In the end, Fauci pleaded the Fifth not merely to avoid legal jeopardy, but to spare himself the humiliation of watching his carefully curated legacy go up in flames while he held the match. Sorry, Doc. The secret is out. The temple has fallen. And no amount of Fifth Amendment invocations can put the furin cleavage site back in the bottle.

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FBI nabs 4th most wanted in merely 5 weeks

A fugitive on the FBI’s Most Wanted Fraudsters List has been returned to the Southern District of Florida to face federal charges for allegedly stealing more than $32 million in federal COVID 19 relief funds.

Elaine Escoe, 41, was charged by indictment in 2025 with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering, and multiple substantive counts of wire fraud and money laundering. After a federal arrest warrant was issued in May 2025, Escoe failed to appear for her court appearance and fled to Jamaica.

Jamaican authorities captured Escoe after receiving a tip. “This Most Wanted Fraudster allegedly obtained tens of millions in COVID-19 relief, stealing critical resources from legitimate businesses during a national crisis,” Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said. “She fled the country believing she could escape justice but ultimately could not. Those who exploit taxpayer-funded programs will be held accountable by this Department of Justice, no matter how long it takes or where they attempt to hide.”

She was returned to South Florida today through the coordinated efforts of the FBI, the U.S. Marshals Service, the U.S. Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service Regional Security Office at the U.S. Embassy in Kingston, the Jamaican Constabulary Force (JCF), and the JCF Jamaica Fugitive Apprehension Team.

“Elaine Angene Escoe’s arrest and return to the United States demonstrates that no one is beyond the reach of American justice,” Assistant Attorney General Colin M. McDonald of the National Fraud Enforcement Division said. “This Most Wanted Fraudster faces charges stemming from a multimillion-dollar scheme to defraud taxpayer-funded COVID-19 relief programs. The Fraud Division will continue to vigorously prosecute those who steal from the American people.”

According to court records, Escoe and her co conspirators submitted or caused the submission of fraudulent applications seeking more than $32 million in Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), Restaurant Revitalization Fund (RRF), Shuttered Venue Operators Grant (SVOG), and Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) funds. The applications falsely represented the existence, payroll, revenue, and operations of purported businesses to qualify for and maximize federal relief funding. “The historic success of the ‘Most Wanted Fraudster’ list continues as the FBI and our partners just captured our fourth Most Wanted Fraudster in 5 weeks, and yet another high value target returned to the U.S. by this FBI,” FBI Director Kash Patel said.

“Elaine Angene Escoe, on the run since May of 2025, was captured in Jamaica while living under a fake identity of ‘Harley Newman,’ and returned to the United States today to face justice. She is charged for her alleged involvement in a conspiracy to commit wire fraud and money laundering, connected with a scheme to fraudulently obtain over $32 million in federal COVID-19 relief funds.

Escoe brings the number of high value targets returned by the FBI to over 30 just since June.To support the fraudulent applications, the conspirators created fake tax documents, fabricated bank records, and other false financial records that lenders and program administrators relied upon in approving loans and grants.

“Led by President Trump, Vice President Vance, and the White House Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, the FBI and our partners continue to see an unprecedented level of success taking down the worst of the worst alleged fraudsters,” Patel said. “In just weeks, we have captured four subjects on three different continents charged with a combined nearly $1.8 billion in fraud, collectively on the run for over 3,500 days, each hiding overseas, now returned and all in custody in 1.5 months. Under this administration, fraud is no longer tolerated, and those who steal from American taxpayers have nowhere to hide.”

Some applications were submitted on behalf of businesses controlled by the conspirators, while others were submitted for third parties in exchange for substantial kickbacks sometimes as much as 50 percent of the loan proceeds. The fraud proceeds were subsequently laundered among the conspirators.

“Elaine Escoe allegedly helped orchestrate a sprawling scheme that fraudulently obtained more than $32 million from programs created to keep American businesses and workers afloat during the pandemic,” U.S. Attorney Jason A. Reding Quiñones for the Southern District of Florida said. “After being charged, she failed to appear in court and fled to Jamaica. Defendants cannot escape accountability simply by leaving the country. Thanks to the determined work of our federal, state, and international partners, she is back in South Florida and will now face the charges against her. This coordinated effort demonstrates that we will pursue fugitives wherever they go and bring them back to face justice.”

Escoe is the last remaining defendant charged in the scheme. Following a December 2025 trial, Alfred Davis, Cher Davis, and Latoya Clark were convicted by a federal jury. James McGhow and Gino Jourdan previously pleaded guilty. Alfred Davis was sentenced to 235 months’ imprisonment, Cher Davis to 87 months, Clark to 70 months, Jourdan to 46 months, and McGhow to 42 months.FBI Miami’s West Palm Beach Resident Agency is investigating the case, with assistance from Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Miami and the Palm Beach County State Attorney’s Office.

On June 4, the FBI announced the creation of the Most Wanted Fraudsters List. The list included Herb Kimble, a fugitive in a $1.2 billion telemedicine and durable medical equipment scheme, who, on June 8 just four days later was apprehended in the Philippines and was soon after charged as part of the 2026 National Health Care Fraud Takedown.

On June 8, Escoe was added to the Most Wanted Fraudsters List, and she was apprehended less than two months later.

On April 7, the Department of Justice announced the creation of the National Fraud Enforcement Division (“Fraud Division”). The Fraud Division is laser focused on investigating and prosecuting those who commit fraud against the American people. The Department’s work to combat fraud supports President Trump’s Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, a whole of government effort chaired by Vice President J.D. Vance to eliminate fraud, waste, and abuse within Federal benefit programs.

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Violence Against Institutions Is Still Violence

There is a revealing tendency in modern politics to excuse intimidation when it is directed at the "right" targets. The latest incident outside New York City's ICE office is another reminder that political extremism rarely begins with grand acts of terror. It begins with the steady normalization of threats, harassment, and the belief that ideological opponents deserve fear rather than debate.

On Monday morning, a man believed by law enforcement sources to be an anti ICE activist allegedly deployed an incendiary device outside 26 Federal Plaza in lower Manhattan while armed with two airsoft rifles, triggering a federal terrorism investigation.

At least two people were injured after the suspect allegedly "menaced" bystanders with the airsoft rifles, according to MS NOW. Five law enforcement sources told the outlet the suspect appeared to be an anti ICE radical.

Video from the scene showed smoke billowing near the entrance of the federal building as ICE agents, FBI personnel, and other officers rushed outside with weapons drawn. Federal Protective Service officers quickly took the suspect into custody. Authorities shut down the surrounding sidewalk and evacuated the building while investigators secured the area.

According to the FBI, the incident unfolded at approximately 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time.

"This morning an individual deployed an incendiary device outside of 26 Federal Plaza. The individual has been taken into custody and the FBI New York Joint Terrorism Task Force is investigating the incident," the FBI said.

FBI Director Kash Patel later confirmed that there were "two minor injuries reported thus far."

Law enforcement sources told MS NOW that the incendiary device consisted of fireworks placed inside a shopping cart, soaked with an accelerant, and then set ablaze.

The New York Police Department also confirmed that a firearm was recovered in connection with the incident, although investigators have not yet established whether it belonged to the suspect or whether it was separate from the reported airsoft rifles.

The choice of location was hardly accidental. Twenty six Federal Plaza houses the New York City Field Office of Immigration and Customs Enforcement as well as a federal immigration court. It serves as the operational center for ICE enforcement activities across New York City's five boroughs and numerous surrounding counties.

The attack arrives against the backdrop of increasingly hostile rhetoric surrounding immigration enforcement. The Department of Homeland Security has previously warned of a dramatic rise in attacks targeting ICE officers, reporting a 3,300 percent increase in vehicle assaults during a recent period compared with the previous year.

Whether this case ultimately results in terrorism charges remains for investigators to determine. What is already beyond dispute is that attempts to intimidate public servants through violence represent an assault on the rule of law itself. A society that tolerates politically motivated intimidation because it is directed at unfashionable institutions soon discovers that violence rarely confines itself to one target. Once ideological fanaticism is excused, it has an unfortunate habit of expanding its ambitions.

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FBI Superhero Who Bravely Ran a Shadow Government to Protect America From Scary Facts About China Just Got a Job Protecting Microsoft From Insiders

In a stunning display of patriotic selflessness, longtime FBI intelligence official Nikki L. Floris has been revealed as the plucky bureaucrat who heroically buried an inconvenient 2020 intelligence report alleging that China was mass-producing fake driver’s licenses to stuff mail-in ballots for Joe Biden.

Floris, who joined the FBI in 2005 and climbed the ranks with the grim determination of someone who really, really didn’t want certain things to see the light of day, served in the Counterterrorism Division, rose to Deputy Assistant Director in Counterintelligence, and eventually led the Foreign Influence Task Force. In 2022 she was even named the first Intelligence Analyst in Charge of the Washington Field Office — a fancy title that basically meant she got to decide which intelligence the rest of the government was allowed to know about.

She has testified before Congress on election security and counterterrorism, which, in retrospect, was probably the equivalent of a drug offender giving a seminar on pharmaceutical security protocols.The Heroic Suppression of 2020

Everything came crashing into the open this week after President Trump declassified a stack of documents proving that, back in late September 2020, the Albany field office had the audacity to submit an Intelligence Information Report suggesting China was helping Biden win via fraudulent mail-in ballots.

Rather than investigate this wild conspiracy theory (that China might do election interference), Floris sprang into action like a true guardian of democracy. She immediately moved to retract the report, declaring that all such intelligence needed to route through her special headquarters team so it could be properly “managed.”

When a colleague asked about the report, Floris coolly replied, “It’s been retracted.” Then, in what historians will one day call one of the most humble admissions of bureaucratic power in American history, she added: “I am basically running a shadow government inside the FBI right now.”


That should make us all feel comfortable.

Upon successful suppression of the report, she reportedly exclaimed, “AAAAAAAH SNAPS!!!! Well done! THANK YOU for handling!!!” — the bureaucratic equivalent of a touchdown dance. Officials explained that the report had to be killed because parts of it sounded “conspiracy-like” and, more importantly, it might have contradicted FBI Director Christopher Wray’s sworn testimony that there was no evidence of widespread mail-in fraud. In other words: the facts were dangerously close to making the boss look wrong, so the facts had to go.


The report was recalled, reissued attempts were blocked, and a draft was quietly deleted just before the election. Mission accomplished. The Deep State’s Favorite Employee Lands at MicrosoftFast-forward to 2026. After years of dedicated service protecting the American people from information they didn’t need to know, Floris has moved on to a new and equally important role: Director of Insider Risk at Microsoft.

Yes, the woman who admitted to running a shadow government inside the FBI is now in charge of protecting Microsoft from insider threats. Conservatives immediately began flooding Microsoft with polite suggestions that perhaps the company should fire the person whose greatest professional achievement was being the ultimate insider threat.


The irony was apparently lost on no one except the people still pretending this was all perfectly normal.Bonus Points for ConsistencyIn a delightful bit of foreshadowing, Floris was also involved in briefing Republican senators that the Hunter Biden laptop story was likely Russian disinformation — right around the same time her team was busy making sure inconvenient Chinese election stories stayed buried.

Some might call this a pattern. Others would call it “protecting our democracy.”

President Trump highlighted the newly declassified documents in a recent speech, noting that “rogue bureaucrats” had buried intelligence about China attempting to manufacture illegal ballots for Biden. Floris, naturally, was the star of that particular rogue-bureaucrat highlight reel. At press time, Microsoft had not yet announced whether their new Director of Insider Risk would be required to sign a “no shadow governments” clause in her employment contract.

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