Virginia Democrat Indicted In Alleged Marijuana Empire, Proving Public Service Can Be A Surprisingly Profitable Business

Virginia State Sen. Louise Lucas, one of the Commonwealth’s most powerful Democrats, has been indicted on federal racketeering, marijuana distribution, and money laundering conspiracy charges. Prosecutors allege that Lucas used her political influence to protect and enrich a cannabis business she co-owns, turning public office into a potentially lucrative side hustle.

Lucas, 82, surrendered to authorities Thursday, according to U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche. Six others, including family members and close associates, were also taken into custody in connection with the alleged scheme. Apparently, the family business may have had a few more departments than the average operation.

The eight-count indictment accuses Lucas of racketeering conspiracy, conspiracy to distribute marijuana, money laundering conspiracy, honest services fraud conspiracy, and maintaining drug-involved premises. Additional defendants face firearms and wire fraud charges.

Lucas responded with the sort of defiant statement politicians typically reserve for moments when they would prefer the public to discuss anything other than the indictment.

“I grew up under Jim Crow. I’ve seen what happens when people in power try to silence those who stand up to them,” she wrote. “I spent my life fighting back, and I’m not stopping now. I will not be intimidated. I will not be bullied. And I will not back down.”

The timing is politically awkward, to put it mildly. The charges were unsealed just 12 days before the midterm elections, although Lucas herself is not on the ballot this year. The investigation reportedly began before the Trump administration, but that has done little to discourage Democrats from portraying the case as a politically motivated assault.

Blanche, however, insisted that the indictment was the product of evidence rather than partisan theater.

“We’re here today because of facts and evidence, which led to this investigation to begin many years ago, and facts and evidence that led to the grand jury to indict Senator Lucas and her alleged co-conspirators,” he said.

According to prosecutors, Lucas allegedly directed an organization dubbed the “Lucas Enterprise,” arranging the acquisition and distribution of at least 100 kilograms of marijuana while overseeing the laundering of its proceeds.

FBI Director Kash Patel said investigators believe the operation generated nearly $5 million over almost five years. That is an impressive return for an enterprise whose alleged business model supposedly involved cannabis rather than government-approved fiscal responsibility.

“The purpose of her enterprise included trafficking large quantities of illegal marijuana, creating generational wealth for members and associates of her criminal enterprise,” Patel said.

Prosecutors further allege that Lucas used her position as chair of Virginia’s Senate Finance and Appropriations Committee to shield the operation from criminal scrutiny and influence legislation that would benefit its business interests.

The arrangement, if proven, would represent an unusually direct relationship between writing the rules and profiting from the business those rules govern.

Virginia permits recreational marijuana possession and use, but commercial sales remain illegal outside the state’s authorized framework. Lawmakers passed legislation earlier this year establishing a regulated recreational marketplace scheduled to launch next summer. Prosecutors allege that Lucas and her associates were pursuing profits through an operation that went well beyond simply waiting for the legal market to open.

Blanche accused the senator of putting her own interests ahead of those of the people who elected her.

“Her first duty should have been looking out for her constituents before herself,” he said. “But the charges listed in the indictment reflect the alleged behavior of a public servant who put her own financial interests before the people she was elected to serve.”
An Alleged Family Business With Political Connections

According to Blanche, the alleged operation involved Lucas’ daughters, Lisa Lucas-Burke and Theresa Lucas-Lamb, and her grandson, Ryan Eichelberger, along with Carlton Upton Jr., Prince Albert William Hudson III, and Tamika Johnson.

Lucas and Lucas-Burke opened The Cannabis Outlet in Portsmouth in 2021. Prosecutors allege that Lucas-Lamb and Eichelberger acquired marijuana, supervised distribution, and managed the store as part of the enterprise.

Upton was Lucas’ business partner in VA Freedom Life, a company that served as an umbrella for The CBD Shoppe and The Cannabis Outlet beginning in 2019. Prosecutors allege that Upton managed The CBD Shoppe and worked with Lucas to obtain a recreational marijuana license that would benefit the enterprise.

The indictment also alleges that Upton made materially false statements on an April 2020 application for an Economic Injury Disaster Loan for Virginia Freedom Life. The government ultimately provided the business with $11,800.

That is a comparatively modest sum in a case involving millions of dollars in alleged proceeds, but apparently even a small federal loan can become an unwelcome detail when investigators start examining the paperwork.

Another allegation involves a $750,000 payment Lucas allegedly made in August 2022 to acquire full ownership of a business serving as a shell holding company for a co-conspirator’s anticipated Virginia recreational marijuana license.

Prosecutors say Lucas failed to disclose that financial interest on required forms. They further allege that she met with the co-conspirator in her Capitol complex office to receive a partial repayment and discussed the individual’s eligibility for a marijuana license with officials, including legislators, in connection with an alleged bribery arrangement.

In a November text message to the unnamed co-conspirator, Lucas allegedly wrote:

“Yes, we can make a lot of money but, before we start down that road again; how about we begin with you sending at least a good faith payment of the money you owe me with arrangements for the balance. Then we can talk about future business plans,”

Lucas had identified herself as president and CEO of VA Freedom Life on a February 2022 Statement of Economic Interests, according to prosecutors.

Patel described the alleged operation as one involving “recycling drug proceeds to expand the operation that she launched and created, and steering marijuana licenses to entities in which members held financial interest.”

The indictment also quotes Lucas discussing the possibility of an unnamed co-conspirator obtaining a recreational marijuana license and sharing the proceeds with her during a February 9, 2026, phone call about pending legislation.

Prosecutors allege that she described the opportunity as “our last chance at generational wealth” and said, “I’ve got too old to not be greedy.”

If the allegations are substantiated, the comments could prove more damaging than the usual campaign-trail promises about economic opportunity. Generational wealth is a popular political talking point. Prosecutors allege that Lucas was attempting to secure a particularly personal version of it.
Federal Agents Search Offices And Cannabis Businesses

The case became public on May 6, when federal agents searched Lucas’ Portsmouth legislative office and cannabis businesses. The Justice Department said agents recovered marijuana and firearms at The Cannabis Outlet and The CBD Shoppe.

FBI spokeswoman Cassandra Temple offered little detail at the scene, telling the Mercury: “We are conducting court-authorized law enforcement activity today.”

Fox News, which first reported the operation, said staff members were ordered out of Lucas’ office while agents conducted the search. Witnesses saw agents carrying boxes from the building. The network also reported that armed SWAT officers ordered people out of the neighboring Cannabis Outlet and that at least three people were handcuffed.

Lucas arrived after the operation had begun and told a reporter she did not know what it concerned.

Following the searches, Lucas accused federal authorities of political intimidation, arguing that the investigation was “about far more than one state senator” and reflected “a clear pattern from this administration.”

She also linked the raid to a redistricting referendum approved by Virginia voters in April, claiming the investigation was connected to efforts to “stop Trump’s scheme to manipulate the 2026 midterm elections.” The Supreme Court of Virginia later overturned the referendum.

“I am not backing down, and I will keep fighting for the people of Portsmouth and the commonwealth of Virginia,” she said.

Lucas has served in the Virginia Senate since 1992 and has been president pro tempore since 2020. As chair of the Senate Finance and Appropriations Committee, she wields substantial influence over the state budget, taxes, and spending.

Earlier this year, she pushed to eliminate or reduce sales and use tax exemptions for data centers, arguing that the incentives had become too expensive and were straining Virginia’s electricity grid and infrastructure. Opposition from House Democrats and Gov. Abigail Spanberger contributed to a months-long budget impasse.

The senator has spent decades exercising influence over how Virginia spends its money. Prosecutors now allege that she also used that influence to advance her own business interests.
Democrats Cry Foul Over Timing

The indictment has placed Virginia Democrats in the familiar position of defending a colleague’s right to due process while questioning the motives of the authorities bringing the charges.

Senate Majority Leader Scott Surovell, a Democrat from Fairfax, urged restraint.

“The federal indictment unsealed this week contains serious allegations, and Senator Lucas is entitled to the same presumption of innocence that every American receives,” Surovell said.

“She is innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. I will not comment on the evidence in this case, and I urge others to show the same restraint.”

Spanberger also emphasized Lucas’ presumption of innocence but argued that the timing of the indictment was troubling.

“She and her family deserve the opportunity to present their defense and speak to the allegations presented,” Spanberger said Thursday.

“The timing of this indictment undermines the U.S. Department of Justice’s previously longstanding policy of not taking legal actions — to include indictments or significant investigative steps — close to an election and sadly, this timing further erodes the trust the American people deserve to have in the Department of Justice.”

Virginia House Speaker Don Scott, another Democrat, likewise criticized the Trump administration while acknowledging the seriousness of the allegations.

“The Trump administration’s weaponization of the justice system is deeply troubling — as are the allegations made in this indictment,” Scott said. “Today we have heard only from the Trump administration, and Senator Lucas will have her chance to respond to these charges in court.”

Republican House Minority Leader Terry Kilgore took a more straightforward approach, arguing that the courts should settle the matter.

“The charges against Senator Lucas are serious, and go beyond the world of politics. They will be resolved via our judicial system, as they should,” Kilgore said.

The federal investigation is not the first time Lucas’ cannabis business has attracted scrutiny.

Lucas co-sponsored legislation legalizing simple marijuana possession in 2021. That measure did not, however, establish a regulated recreational retail market.

A 2022 Mercury investigation found labeling discrepancies and quantities of delta-9 THC that made two tested products from The Cannabis Outlet illegal to sell under Virginia law at the time. One cereal bar contained substantially less total THC than its packaging advertised. The reporting raised broader questions about unregulated cannabis products following the legalization of possession.

The latest indictment goes considerably further, alleging that Lucas used her political position to protect a business operation, facilitate marijuana distribution, and pursue financial arrangements tied to anticipated state licenses.

The allegations remain unproven, and Lucas is entitled to defend herself in court. But the case presents Virginia Democrats with an inconvenient problem: a powerful member of their own party is accused of using public office to benefit a private enterprise in an industry that lawmakers themselves have been working to regulate.

As for Lucas’ future role in the Senate and the upcoming legislative session, those questions remained unresolved following Thursday’s indictment.

For now, the courts will determine whether prosecutors can substantiate their claims. If they do, Virginia may have a case study in the dangers of allowing politicians to regulate an industry in which they have substantial personal financial interests.

The phrase “conflict of interest” may soon require a much larger definition in Richmond.

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The DOJ sues NY for giving illegal aliens discounts on college tuition and the middle finger to US citizens

I asked Grok, the AI tool of X whether the above meme is factual as there are myriad false claims made on X, formerly Twitter. I was slightly surprised to discover the statement is true, except for the characterization that illegal aliens are living lavish lifestyles from the tax dollars.

The U.S. Department of Justice filed lawsuits on August 10th this year against New York, along with Connecticut and Vermont, regarding policies and laws that provide in-state tuition rates and related financial scholarships and aid to "illegal aliens" at public colleges.

As Grok explains: 

This is part of a broader Trump administration campaign that has now targeted around 17–21 states. The DOJ argues these policies violate federal law (8 U.S.C. § 1623(a)) and the Supremacy Clause because they confer residency-based postsecondary benefits on people not lawfully present while denying the same rates to U.S. citizens from other states.

nytimes.com

New York law (including provisions tied to the 2019 Senator José Peralta New York State DREAM Act) allows qualifying illegal immigrant students who attended a New York high school for a set period, graduated, and applied to college within a certain window to pay in-state rates at SUNY and CUNY campuses and access some state financial aid. 

Typical figures cited: roughly $7,070–$7,700 in-state versus $17,730 or more (sometimes much higher, e.g., over $30,000 at some campuses) for out-of-state students. Public colleges receive state taxpayer subsidies, so the discounted rate is a taxpayer-supported benefit.

As Grok explains, "Living lavish off our tax dollars" is rhetorical exaggeration. In-state tuition is a discount relative to out-of-state rates, not free luxury living; the students still pay tuition.

So the legal issue highlighted by the DOJ is the unequal treatment of out-of-state U.S. citizens versus in-state illegal alien residents. New York residents who actually are citizens get the same in-state tuition rate.

There is another caveat: eligibility isn't automatic for all illegal aliens; they must meet specific high school and residential criteria.

The meme shows New York City Mayor and comrade  Zohran Mamdani and Attorney General Todd Blanche. While Blanche is involved in this issue, Mamdani is not, but probably wishes he was. The photo is only being used to politically frame rather than being a literal scene from the lawsuit.

New York officials have said they are reviewing the suit and expect the state's policies to be upheld. Similar cases in other states have produced mixed court results so far. The meme's wording is partisan and hyperbolic, but the underlying news event it describes happened.

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Eleven Chinese Nationals Busted by Feds in Alleged Marriage Scheme

Eleven people in New York, mainly Chinese nationals, have been indicted in what authorities describe as a massive sham marriage network that allegedly turned the American immigration system into something resembling a decade-long dating service for people who were not actually looking for love.

The alleged operation ran for roughly 10 years and arranged more than 1,000 phony marriages, allegedly for the sole purpose of obtaining legal status in the United States. Some customers were reportedly willing to pay more than $100,000 for the privilege of participating in the scheme.

"Gaining American citizenship and legal status to reside in this great nation is a sacred privilege, and we will ensure it is always done in accordance with the law, protecting our communities and national security,” Attorney General Todd Blanche said Wednesday at a news conference.

"This scheme was not a quick fly-by-night operation, but rather a year's long multimillion dollar cottage industry to criminally assist people," he said.

The Wednesday indictments were filed entirely in New York City, but the Justice Department said the alleged sham marriages extended well beyond the Big Apple, with suspected activity in Massachusetts, Kentucky, Tennessee, several other states, China and Vanuatu, wherever that is.

Under the alleged arrangement, American citizens could receive as much as $30,000, paid in smaller installments throughout the process. Recruiters reportedly received about $5,000 for every American citizen they successfully brought into the operation.

U.S. Attorney Jamie McDonald for the Southern District of New York told conservative media outlet Townhall that Americans were recruited through social media, including advertisements that may have been deceptive on their face.

So much for "love at first sight." Apparently, the real matchmaking algorithm was Facebook, cash and an immigration attorney.

"As alleged, this decade-long scheme turned marriage fraud into an international business model arranging countless sham marriages and causing hundreds of fraudulent Green Card applications to be submitted to United States Citizenship and Immigration Services,” Acting Executive Associate Director John Condon of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) said in a statement. 

“Through the Homeland Security Task Force, HSI and our partners will continue to dismantle criminal networks that undermine the rule of law, exploit federal laws, and profit from fraud.”

The case is a reminder that America's immigration system is not supposed to operate on the principle that anyone with enough money and a sufficiently creative story gets to skip the line.

For millions of immigrants who followed the rules, waited their turn and pursued citizenship legally, these alleged schemes do more than commit fraud. They undermine the very system that lawful immigrants worked so hard to navigate.

The American Dream is still available. Apparently, the Justice Department would just prefer people obtain it legally.

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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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Seattle Judges Hold One Hour U.S. Attorney Yard Sale, Trump Returns Item for Full Refund

Apparently the federal bench in Seattle thought it had discovered one weird trick to become the executive branch.

Liberal judges in the heavily Democratic Western District of Washington decided they could install their own preferred U.S. attorney without bothering to coordinate with the president who, inconveniently, is actually in charge of the executive branch. The experiment lasted about as long as a microwave burrito.

The Trump administration fired Roger Rogoff less than an hour after he was sworn in as U.S. attorney for the district. 

That is a new record.

Rogoff had been elevated by all 17 active and senior federal judges after the administration declined to nominate him and instead kept its own preferred interim choice in place. Apparently the judges believed they had unlocked a constitutional cheat code where enough robes could outvote the Oval Office.

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche wasted no time reminding everyone how separation of powers actually works.

"District court judges can appoint a temporary U.S. Attorney, and POTUS can fire them," acting Attorney General Todd Blanche wrote Wednesday on X as he testified before the Senate during his confirmation hearing, calling out the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington panel for elevating Roger Rogoff to lead the federal prosecutor's office in Seattle.

Blanche added, "WDWA judges abandoned the time honored process of consultation with the administration so that the selected U.S. Attorney is qualified to serve in the administration. Roger Rogoff has been fired by the President."

That is about as close as government gets to "Thanks for your application. We have decided to move forward with another candidate."

Rogoff, a longtime prosecutor and former state judge, was sworn in before 8 a.m. local time. He then walked over to the U.S. Attorney's Office intending to meet the administration's preferred candidate. While waiting in the lobby, he received an email informing him that President Trump had already removed him from the job.

It may have been the shortest commute to unemployment in Justice Department history.

Rogoff later acknowledged he expected the administration might dismiss him immediately but accepted the position anyway because it is "the best job there is."

"I’m really proud of my career," Rogoff said. "The fact that the judges of this district most of whom I’ve spent my career appearing in front of, or trying cases against, or working with believed that I was the right person to do this work is just really humbling and amazing."

Democrats reacted exactly as one would expect whenever a Republican president insists on exercising powers that belong to the Republican president.

Sen. Patty Murray rushed to defend the judges' attempt to bypass the administration.

"Throughout his career, he has demonstrated an outstanding commitment to public service, and he was appointed legally by the federal judges in the Western District of Washington," Murray wrote. "This administration doesn’t want to deal with advice and consent. They just want to install cronies to carry out a corrupt political agenda."

Critics might note that choosing the administration's own prosecutor is generally how every administration has operated since the country began, but that detail apparently failed to make the press release.

Rogoff told The New York Times that he does not believe this is the proper way to run the Department of Justice and said he is consulting attorneys about challenging his extraordinarily brief tenure.

The episode follows similar clashes in Democrat dominated jurisdictions where courts have sought to expand their influence over executive branch decisions. With Senate Democrats slowing confirmations, the Trump administration has relied on acting officials and other lawful mechanisms to staff key positions.

Seattle's judges tried to play executive for a day.

The actual executive reminded them who the executive is.

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SPLC Official Secreted Money to Her Neo-Nazi Lover

The Southern Poverty Law Center’s legal case just got a lot juicier after it was revealed that one of the organization’s leaders had a sexual relationship with an individual who belonged to a neo-Nazi group. She is now under scrutiny for allegedly helping to pay her lover $1.2 million in donor money, according to The New York Post.

The Department of Justice filed a superseding indictment against the SPLC accusing it of funneling donor cash to hate groups they were then telling donors they were fighting. It's like a fireman setting fires so he'd have the chance to put out fires.

One figure, referred to as “Employee-2” in the indictment, is described as a “person who would become Director of the SPLC’s Intelligence Project.”

It also describes how “Employee-2” wrote an article based on material stolen from National Alliance headquarters in 2014 and then paid off an informant to take the blame for the robbery.

Based on the details in the June 2 superseding indictment, “Employee-2” is believed to be Heidi Beirich, a 58-year-old fascism expert who was the director of intelligence at the Alabama-based anti-extremism nonprofit between 2012 and 2019.The indictment alleges Beirich was very close to the informant known only as “F-9” who “infiltrated the neo-Nazi organization National Alliance.”

“[Beirich] was also in a romantic relationship with F-9. During this relationship, [Beirich] and F-9 shared a house and two bank accounts,” the indictment alleges.

“Between 2015 and 2021, approximately $140,000 in donors’ money flowed from the SPLC operating account … and was ultimately deposited into the joint bank accounts held by F-9 and [Beirich].”

The indictment alleges that while the SPLC was paying the informant, he was raising money for the National Alliance. Beirich and the informant allegedly used the money to pay for personal expenses as well.

One of the SPLC’s sources broke into the National Alliance’s buildings, stole a number of documents, and took them out of town to make copies. The individual later returned the originals. The indictment claims the SPLC tried to conceal their informant’s identity by paying another informant to confess to the robbery.

Beirich used the information to write a report about the organization.

The National Alliance chairman William White Williams told the Post that some of the informants wanted to leave the organization and went to the SPLC for this purpose. However, the organization persuaded them to remain with the alliance and “get paid.”

The SPLC’s funding for informants took on a variety of forms. It paid white nationalists and Ku Klux Klan members thousands to spend on cross burnings and other activities.

The Southern Poverty Law Center is facing a slew of charges for allegedly defrauding donors. Prosecutors say the organization covertly paid more than three million dollars to informants in hate groups between 2014 and 2023. The organization allegedly failed to inform donors that they were using the money for this purpose.

The payments were concealed through shell companies and fake bank accounts, the Justice Department noted. The indictment includes eleven counts of wire fraud, bank fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering. Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said the organization was “doing the exact opposite of what it told its donors it was doing, not dismantling extremism, but funding it.”

In a shocking twist that surprises exactly no one who has followed the SPLC's long career of smearing grandmas who pray at abortion clinics as "hate groups" while raking in millions, it turns out the fearless Nazi-hunters were actually running a cozy little dating service for domestic terrorists. Nothing says "fighting extremism" like using donor cash to keep your boyfriend's neo-Nazi group flush with cash for whatever wholesome activities they had planned.

Who could have guessed that the group that labels everyone to the right of Bernie Sanders a dangerous bigot would end up in bed, literally, with the very monsters they claim keep them up at night? The SPLC: still the gold standard for turning tolerance into a six-figure grift.

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Trump goes bigly to keep us safe

The Trump administration is overhauling the immigration court system and cranking up the deportation machine to levels that actually get results.

In its latest flex, the Department of Justice just hired 82 immigration judges, the most in a single year, the agency announced Thursday. The United States now has nearly 700 immigration judges on the bench.

“The Trump administration is committed to reestablishing an immigration judge corps that is dedicated to restoring the rule [of] law in our nation’s immigration system,” said Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche. “Today, we are onboarding the largest immigration judge class in agency history.”

“This could only happen thanks to President Trump’s decisive leadership and commitment to securing our borders. I also applaud EOIR’s [Executive Office of Immigration Review] leadership team for helping facilitate these hiring efforts and recruiting highly qualified and talented personnel in record time.”

The new class includes 77 permanent judges and 5 temporary ones.

When President Donald Trump came back to the White House and launched his mass deportation operation, officials started cleaning house by firing immigration judges who had been rubber-stamping asylum claims at suspiciously high rates.

Since then, more than 100 of those judges—who granted asylum in 46 percent of cases, according to The New York Times—have been shown the door.

Immigration judges have now knocked out more than one million cases since Trump’s second inauguration, slashing the backlog by more than 447,000 cases. The Justice Department reports roughly 3.53 million pending cases right now, down from about four million.

This is the sharpest drop in the court’s history.

The latest hiring surge is all part of fixing the absolute mess the Biden administration’s open-border disaster left behind, with those years-long backlogs that turned the system into a joke. Sirce Owen, then acting director of EOIR, dropped a memo back in April 2025 telling judges to start tossing out asylum claims faster and without the usual song and dance hearing. In June 2025, he followed up with another memo warning of “disciplinary action” for any judge showing “bias” toward illegal immigrants.

“Judges who would prefer to be policy advocates favoring either aliens or DHS should consider transitioning to alternate career paths,” Owen wrote in the memo.

In a recent chat with the Washington Examiner, White House border czar Tom Homan bragged on the Trump team’s deportation numbers.

“Total of 800,000 [have been removed] out of the country,” Homan said. “If you take 60% of that, criminals, hundreds of thousands of public safety threats, have been removed from this country. Name another president who’s done that.”

Homan admitted things have slowed a bit lately, but made it clear the pause is temporary.“There’s a lot of argument within the world that, ‘Are we keeping our promise?’” Homan said. “Numbers are slightly down, but there’s a plan. Get them back up and even higher.”

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Savanah Hernandez of TPUSA speaks out about her being assaulted

Turning Point USA reporter Savanah Hernandez was assaulted by three anti-ICE/anti-American communist-loving cowards, in Minneapolis. The trio has been indicted by a grand jury on Tuesday involved in the attack. They have been outed by Acting AG Todd Blanche as: Christopher Ostroushko, DeYanna Ostroushko and Paige Ostroushko.

"[Savanah] Hernandez was allegedly surrounded, physically assaulted, and shoved to the ground — simply because she was identified by the defendants as a conservative journalist. That is NOT 'peaceful protest.' These deplorable actions as charged in the indictment will not be tolerated in America, and this Department of Justice will always punish unhinged acts of political violence," Blanche wrote on X.

Ms. Hernandez told Fox News Digital on Wednesday that she was "grateful" to see indictments brought against her alleged attackers. 

"I feel so grateful that the federal government is actually paying attention to assaults on journalists," she said. "For years, both myself and my friends have been attacked for doing our jobs. So, to see the DOJ and the FBI take this seriously and utilize the full force of the government and the justice system to help Americans like myself is incredible."

Happy-Go-Lucky Commies

Hernandez expressed her gratitude to the grand jury, telling them, "I'm just grateful that a grand jury was able to watch the evidence that was brought forth and come to this conclusion. Again, this isn't a left versus right issue and this wasn't the Trump DOJ that was politically persecuting people, this was a grand jury that came to this decision based off of the evidence that was brought forward."

The Hennepin County Attorney’s Office finally crawled out of its progressive coma on Wednesday and announced it has charged 51-year-old Christopher Ostroushko with one count of fifth-degree assault. The news dropped right in the middle of Savanah Hernandez’s chat with Fox News Digital, prompting her to say she was "grateful that they were at least willing to bring charges forward against Chris."

Hernandez was minding her own business reporting on yet another anti-ICE temper tantrum on April 11 outside the Whipple Federal Building, an ICE field office that doubles as a detention facility, when the usual leftist circus escalated into a full-on assault. She’d already made it clear she wasn’t engaging with the protesters, just standing on the sidelines filming like any journalist with a pulse. Things went predictably pear-shaped the second the mob realized she works for TPUSA, the outfit founded by the late, great Charlie Kirk.

Video shows the predictable pack-mentality surround: a large crowd closing in, multiple moonbats screaming at her at once. Horns blasted in her face, obscenities flew, and then Christopher Ostroushko allegedly shoved her from behind while screaming in her ear as his daughter, Paige, helpfully blew a whistle right next to her head. Real classy family activity there. Frontlines TPUSA reporter Savanah Hernandez speaks with Fox News Digital after a grand jury indicted three people in connection with an assault on her during an anti-ICE protest. (Fox News Digital)

On video, you can hear Hernandez trying to de-escalate and leave, only to have the “peaceful” activists block her in. After four or five attacks, a deputy finally grew a spine and escorted her to safety. She walked away with a concussion, two sprains, and a collection of bruises—because nothing says “social justice” like piling on a woman with a camera.

"I was just brutally assaulted by multiple people outside of the Whipple ICE facility in Minneapolis," Hernandez wrote on X on April 11. "Multiple people swung on me and a grown man pushed me to the ground. My glasses are broken. ANTIFA still alive and well."Even liberal streamer Andrew Mercado couldn’t quite bring himself to run cover for this one, condemning the assault on X and noting that it "shouldn't have happened."

"Savannah [sic] was filming, not engaging with anyone, and it escalated into a physical confrontation that ultimately gave law enforcement a reason to step in and declare an unlawful assembly, shutting the entire protest down," Mercado wrote.

By April 15, Hernandez was forced to cancel interviews, admitting she felt "drained" and needed time to recover from the headaches, dizziness, and lightheadedness. A doctor confirmed the concussion. Shocking no one who’s watched these “mostly peaceful” lefty protests over the years.

Christopher Ostroushko, meanwhile, went on “Pushing The Limits” on April 15 to insist that he and his family are "absolutely not violent people" and that they "tend to shy away from it." He claimed he wasn’t even at the front, just hanging in the back “watching what was going on.” Sure, buddy.

Hernandez wasn’t having any of the revisionist history. "if I hit them first, it would be on camera." She pointed out there are "multiple angles of Paige walking up to me as I’m standing by myself." The reporter added that DeYanna Ostroushko, Christopher's wife, was the one who "came up and started harassing me."

"At no point was I walking up to these people," Hernandez told Fox News Digital in a previous interview. "All three of them walked up to me. The mother and father shoved me first and then instructed their daughter to come assault me."

When speaking to Fox News Digital on Wednesday, Hernandez recalled the attack, again saying that Christopher, Paige and DeYanna Ostroushko approached her first.TPUSA Frontlines reporter Savanah Hernandez was pushed to the ground by a protester. (Savanah Hernandez/Frontlines TPUSA)

What made it especially jarring, Hernandez noted earlier this month, is that it crossed a line that used to be pretty basic in civilized society.

"There is an aspect that or a threshold that has been passed now," she said at the time. "Typically in the United States, typically in the West... it's a basic common thing that men don't attack women that are unarmed and not touching them. So a threshold has been passed with that and that was why this was so jarring to me."

Welcome to 2026, folks. The tolerance mob’s idea of debate is still “punch first, lie about it later.” At least one of them is finally facing a charge—even if it’s only fifth-degree. Baby steps.

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Lordy, Lordy, Comey indicted for alleged threats against Trump

Former FBI Director James Comey has been indicted for a second time by the Justice Department. The charges stem from that unforgettable May 2025 Instagram masterpiece: a photo of seashells arranged in "86 47" formation on a beach, evidently during one of Comey's famous nature walks.

Comey is charged with "knowingly and willfully making a threat to take the life of, or inflict bodily harm upon, the President of the United States and knowingly and willfully transmitting a communication in interstate and foreign commerce that contained a threat to kill President Donald Trump," according to the indictment.

Both charges, released Tuesday by the DOJ, carry up to 10 years in prison. This follows a predictable wave of Republican criticism and Trump administration officials pointing out that a former FBI boss posting what sure looked like a coded hit on the president might be, you know, a problem.

"I think it's fair to say that threatening the life of anybody is dangerous and potentially a crime threatening the life of the president of the United States will never be tolerated by the Department of Justice," Acting U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche told reporters during a news conference without going into specifics of the case.

"While this case is unique and this indictment stands out because of the name of the defendant, his alleged conduct is the same kind of conduct that we will never tolerate and that we will always investigate and regularly prosecute," he added.

In the slang often used in the service industry, to "86" something means to eject, cancel or get rid of it, kind of the similar expression: to 'deep 6' something.  And Trump is the 47th president. A reasonable person familiar with the circumstances would interpret this image as a "serious expression of an intent to do harm" to the president, per the charges.

The indictment also includes a Forfeiture Notice. If convicted, Comey must forfeit any property or proceeds derived from his alleged unlawful activities to the government.

A grand jury issued an arrest warrant for Comey. Blanche said he expects communication with Comey's legal counsel.

U.S. District Judge Louise Wood Flanagan, a George W. Bush appointee, has been assigned to the case.

"Well, they're back. This time about a picture of seashells on a North Carolina beach a year ago," Comey said in the 39-second clip. "But nothing has changed with me. I'm still innocent. I am still not afraid and I still believe in the independent federal judiciary. So let's go."

Comey added that it was "really important that all of us remember this is not who we are as a country."

"This is not how the Department of Justice is supposed to be. And the good news is we get closer every day to restoring those values," he added.

In a statement to Fox News, Comey's lawyer, Patrick Fitzgerald, said, "Mr. Comey vigorously denies the charges contained in the Indictment filed in the Eastern District of North Carolina. We will contest these charges in the courtroom and look forward to vindicating Mr. Comey and the First Amendment."

Comey removed the social media post of the shells the same day it was uploaded, claiming he had misinterpreted the shells as a general political message.

"I posted earlier a picture of some shells I saw today on a beach walk, which I assumed were a political message," Comey wrote in a subsequent post. "I didn't realize some folks associate those numbers with violence. It never occurred to me, but I oppose violence of any kind, so I took the post down."

Following the post, Comey was questioned by the U.S. Secret Service in Washington D.C. At the time, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard said the former FBI chief should be "put behind bars" for allegedly "issuing a call to assassinate" Trump.

In an interview with Fox News’ Bret Baier, Trump rejected this explanation.

"He knew exactly what that meant. A child knows what that meant," Trump said. "If you're the FBI director, and you don't know what that meant, that meant ‘assassination,’ and it says it loud and clear."

House Judiciary Ranking Member Jamie Raskin criticized the move by the DOJ, while recalling Trump's own remarks about Democratic lawmakers who urged military service members to disobey unlawful orders and his statement about former Rep. Liz Cheney.

"Trump's DOJ just criminally indicted James Comey for a beach photo of seashells and no other evidence cited," he said. "If that’s a crime in America, then what is calling the free speech of six Democratic Members of Congress ‘seditious behavior, punishable by DEATH’? What is suggesting a former Republican Member of Congress should have to ‘face nine barrels shooting at her’ with ‘the guns trained on her face’?"

This second indictment against Comey comes just hours after a federal judge in New York allowed a separate lawsuit brought by his daughter, Maurene Comey, to move forward against the DOJ.

Maurene Comey, a former federal prosecutor, is suing the DOJ over what she describes as an unlawful dismissal. Her lawsuit alleges she was terminated "solely or substantially because her father is former FBI Director James B. Comey, or because of her perceived political affiliation and beliefs, or both."

Comey was fired by Trump in 2017 during his first term over the handling of the Russia investigation. Since then, Comey has been a vocal critic of the president.

In September 2025, Comey was charged with lying to Congress regarding press leaks. However, a federal judge dismissed that case after ruling that the prosecutor involved had been improperly appointed. Comey’s legal team has declined to comment on this latest indictment.Earlier this month, Blanche said Trump has a "right" and a "duty" to influence federal investigations, including those involving his political enemies who probed him in the past.

"We have thousands of ongoing investigations and prosecutions going on in this country right now. It is true that some of them involve men, women and entities that the president in the past has had issues with and believes should be investigated," Blanche said at a press conference.He previously dismissed the notion that the DOJ has improperly been going after Trump opponents.

On April 14, the DOJ's Weaponization Working Group published a report accusing the Biden administration of weaponizing federal law.

Poor Jim. The seashells were just innocent little shells, you guys. Nothing to see here except a guy who ran the FBI deciding to play amateur assassination semaphore on Instagram. The left is already melting down, because of course they are. This is going to be fun.

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Fauci's top advisor indicted as 'co-conspiritor' in huge COVID cover-up

The United States Department of Justice dropped a bombshell on Tuesday, announcing that Dr. Richard Morens, one of Dr. Anthony Fauci's most trusted lapdogs, has been indicted for his starring role in the great COVID origins cover-up.

According to the DOJ press release, Morens was "charged with conspiracy against the United States; destruction, alteration, or falsification of records in federal investigations; concealment, removal, or mutilation of records; and aiding and abetting." To his credit, he did not get indicted for pedophilia.

Morens spent 16 years as a top adviser in the NIAID's Office of the Director, from 2006 to 2022. That would be the same joint where Fauci ran the show from 1984 to 2022.

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche had this to say about the indictment: "These allegations represent a profound abuse of trust at a time when the American people needed it most during the height of a global pandemic. As alleged in the indictment, Dr. Morens and his co-conspirators deliberately concealed information and falsified records in an effort to suppress alternative theories regarding the origins of COVID-19. Government officials have a solemn duty to provide honest, well-grounded facts and advice in service of the public interest not to advance their own personal or ideological agendas."

Gee, ya think?

FBI Director Kash Patel piled on in a separate statement: "Circumventing records protocols with the intention of avoiding transparency is something that will not be tolerated by this FBI. Not only did Morens allegedly engage in the illegal obfuscation of his communications, but he received kickbacks for doing so. If you have engaged in activity conspiring against the United States, we will not stop until you face justice."

At NIAID, a ton of the information those so-called "experts" possessed flowed through channels that Morens either controlled or had serious pull with. The indictment claims he used that perch to rig the data that eventually got spoon-fed to the public about COVID and where it really came from. Part of the game plan allegedly involved steering grant money away from any research that dared challenge the approved narrative. He and his crew also supposedly huddled up in emails to plot how to bury their manipulation so some pesky Freedom of Information Act request wouldn't expose them later.

"[I] learned from our foia [sic] lady here how to make emails disappear after I am foia’d [sic] but before the search starts," Morens explained in a Feb. 24, 2021, email. "Plus I deleted most of those earlier emails after sending them to gmail [sic]."

And he's a doctor [sic].

"[T]here is no worry about FOIAs. I can either send stuff to Tony [Fauci] on his private gmail [sic], or hand it to him at work or at his house," Morens wrote in an April of 2021. "He is too smart to let colleagues send him stuff that could cause trouble."

In yet another email from that same year, he told the recipients to just shoot the sensitive stuff straight to his Gmail account to skip the whole forwarding-and-deleting dance from his official accounts.

Even back in June of 2020, Morens was already thinking ahead about potential problems. "We are all smart enough to know to never have smoking guns, and if we did we wouldn’t put them in emails and if we found them we’d delete them," he wrote. Not very smart to put it in writing then, is he?

The DOJ press release notes that Morens could be looking at up to five years in prison for the conspiracy charge against the United States, plus up to 20 years on each count of destruction, alteration, or falsification of records in federal investigations. He could also face up to three years for each count of concealment, removal, or mutilation of records. Any actual sentence if he's convicted will be up to a federal judge after checking the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines. 

The chances of this clown actually serving and amount of serious time is highly questionable. They rarely go to prison even though that's where they belong.

The case was investigated by the FBI along with the Office of the Inspector General for the Department of Health and Human Services. It will be prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Joseph R. Baldwin and Bijon A. Mostoufi for the District of Maryland.

Finally, some accountability theater for the pandemic grift machine. About time.

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Trump administration flexes their legal muscle and fire an attorney the same day he was appointed

The Trump administration just reminded everyone who's really in charge when it comes to picking top federal prosecutors, and it isn't a panel of judges.

In a move that's got the lefty outrage machine firing on all cylinders, the White House wasted zero time firing Donald T. Kinsella as U.S. attorney for the Northern District of New York. The poor guy was sworn in on Wednesday, courtesy of a board of judges from the U.S. District Court there, only to get the boot the very same day. Talk about a short-lived gig.

Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche didn't mince words about it on X, laying it out plain and simple for the judicial overreach crowd: "Judges don’t pick U.S. Attorneys,
@POTUS does. See Article II of our Constitution. You are fired, Donald Kinsella."

Boom. Message received.

The court tried to play it straight in their Thursday statement, explaining they stepped in under 28 U.S.C. § 546(d) to fill a vacancy temporarily until a proper appointment happens. They even cited the Constitution's Article II, Section 2, Clause 2, which lets Congress vest appointment power for folks like U.S. attorneys "in the Courts of Law." Nice try, but the executive branch wasn't having it.

By day's end, Deputy Director of Presidential Personnel Morgan DeWitt Snow had already emailed Kinsella the bad news: You're out, no explanation needed. The court statement added a polite thank-you note, praising Kinsella for stepping up with his decades of experience as a former prosecutor and for his "distinguished work" serving the Northern District. They thanked him for being willing to return to public service to plug the hole left after the previous acting U.S. attorney, John Sarcone III, got ruled out of line.

That whole mess started back in January when U.S. District Judge Lorna Schofield declared Sarcone was illegally hanging on past the 120-day limit for unconfirmed acting U.S. attorneys. Sarcone then stepped down to first assistant while appealing, per reports.

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But here's the bottom line, folks: The Constitution is crystal clear on this one. Article II gives the president, not some panel of judges, the authority to appoint these positions, with Senate advice and consent when required. The Trump team isn't about to let activist judges rewrite the rules.

This is just the latest reminder that when it comes to executive power, President Trump is playing hardball — and winning. The courts can appoint interim folks all they want under the statute, but the boss in the Oval Office gets the final say. You are fired, indeed.

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Migrant child saved from sex offender by feds: Trump cleans up Biden's mess

It is a crime to smuggle illegal aliens into this country, and particularly horrendous to expose a child to untold dangers.

Last month, a lone little girl popped out of the brush along the Rio Grande in Hidalgo, Texas, and basically turned herself in to the Border Patrol. 

She told the agents she was on her way to Chugaik, Alaska, to live with her sponsor, a guy named Douglas Price. 

Turns out Price is a 44-year-old registered sex offender, per the Department of Justice. He allegedly coughed up $5,000 from his business to pay smugglers to haul the child and her mother across the border. People like him need to be neutered. 

The girl got separated from Mom before the crossing and was wandering alone until our guys scooped her up. Dodged a nightmare bullet, thanks to the Trump administration finally getting serious about vetting sponsors for unaccompanied alien children. You know, basic adult supervision stuff the last crew apparently thought was optional.

"This man allegedly paid smugglers to bring an illegal alien child and mother to this country, and in doing so, the child ended up alone during the dangerous journey," Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said.

"Under POTUS, vetting of sponsors for unaccompanied alien children is as strong as ever, and federal partners found this 'sponsor' to be unfit. It is a crime to smuggle illegal aliens into this country, and particularly horrendous to expose a child to untold dangers. Working with our federal partners, we will continue to uphold the law and in doing so, keep children from potential harm, Blanche added.

The Trump team has been quietly fixing what the Biden folks turned into a revolving door of horror stories, beefing up sponsor checks while hunting down the roughly 320,000 kids that last administration somehow "lost track of." Lost track. Sure. Handed off to gang members, sex traffickers, and labor exploiters in some cases, but hey, intentions were pure or whatever.

Back then, HHS geniuses would make a "simple phone call" and glance at an email photo before shipping a kid off to whoever claimed them. Groundbreaking child welfare right there.

Now sponsors and household adults get real background checks. Proof of income required. If you're claiming to be a relative, bring the DNA test. Homeland Security meets you in person, HHS does home visits. Novel concepts like "not winging it."

So far, they've tracked down 145,000 of those missing kids, White House border czar Tom Homan said recently. Not bad for a group that actually cares.

Price got slapped with charges for conspiracy to bring aliens to the United States and encouraging aliens to come to, enter, or reside in the country. If convicted, he could do up to a decade in the gray-bar hotel and kiss a $250,000 fine goodbye. 

The girl and her mom left Honduras with a smuggler in tow. Mom told her that Price would sponsor her and help with "obtaining her U.S. citizenship," court documents say.

The kid told Homeland Security investigators that Price sent money to Mom to cover the smugglers.

He funneled roughly $5,000 from his outfit, Black Bear Construction, straight to a phone number the smugglers gave them. Real subtle and not very smart.

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He even sent selfies to the mother and kept asking about the daughter's "status." Somewhere along the trail, Mom and daughter got split up.

Mom crossed less than a week after the girl made it alone. She told agents she'd known Price for about four years from working together in hotel remodeling. She also did housekeeping for him and babysat his kids.

And promised to pay him back "by working for him."

Yeah, nothing sketchy about any of that. Glad someone's finally treating this like the felony pipeline it is instead of a feel-good open-door policy.

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