Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) called on Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ) to resign from the U.S. Senate on Monday after Menendez was charged with multiple federal felonies last week in connection with an alleged bribery scheme.
“Senator Menendez has broken the public trust and should resign from the U.S. Senate,” <a href="https://www.cleveland.com/news/2023/09/us-sen-sherrod-brown-calls-on-indicted-sen-bob-menendez-to-resign.html">said</a> Brown, who chairs the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs.
Brown is only the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/john-fetterman-calls-on-bob-menendez-to-resign-from-u-s-senate">second</a> U.S. Senator to call on Menendez to resign after Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) did so on Saturday.
New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy (D) said that the allegations in the indictment were “deeply disturbing” because they “implicate national security and the integrity of our criminal justice system.”
“The alleged facts are so serious that they compromise the ability of Senator Menendez to effectively represent the people of our state,” he <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/top-democrats-begin-pushing-menendez-to-resign-as-he-steps-down-from-chairmanship" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a>. “Therefore, I am calling for his immediate resignation.”
The federal indictment against Menendez and his wife was unsealed on Friday and accused the senator and his wife of accepting bribes from three business people in exchange for actions that he took as chairman of the powerful Senate Foreign Relations Committee. According to the DOJ, the bribes were intended to protect the businessmen and to benefit Egypt.
Menendez faces up to 45 years in prison if convicted of the charges, which include conspiracy to commit bribery, conspiracy to commit honest services fraud, and conspiracy to commit extortion under color of official right.
Menendez was forced to step down as chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee because of Senate Democrat bylaws but he has insisted that he is innocent and suggested that the charges stem from a vast conspiracy of people who are trying to take him down.
Menendez <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/bob-menendez-explains-why-he-had-480000-in-cash-at-his-home">offered</a> an explanation at a press conference on Monday for why he had $480,000 in cash at his home when investigators executed a search warrant.
“For 30 years, I have withdrawn thousands of dollars in cash from my personal savings account, which I have kept for emergencies, and because of the history of my family facing confiscation in Cuba,” he said. “Now, this may seem old-fashioned, but these were monies drawn from my personal savings account based on the income that I have lawfully derived over those 30 years. I look forward to addressing other issues at trial.”
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/aoc-calls-on-sen-menendez-to-resign-bucks-his-defense-that-hes-being-racially-targeted">AOC Calls On Sen. Menendez To Resign, Bucks His Defense That He’s Being Racially Targeted</a>

US Senator Menendez defiantly rejects calls to step down

Top Democrat Senator Calls On Menendez To Resign Over Bribery Scandal

Bob Menendez

Bribery

Democrat

Sherrod Brown

Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ) has hired the lawyer representing President Joe Biden&#8217;s son, Hunter Biden, after Menendez was indicted last week on federal corruption charges.
CNBC <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2023/09/24/menendez-hires-hunter-biden-lawyer-for-bribery-case.html">reported</a> that Menendez hired Abbe Lowell to represent him in the case — the same lawyer that he hired in 2015 to represent him in a similar corruption case, although legal experts have said that the evidence in the current case is much stronger.
Lowell was hired by Hunter Biden after his plea deal fell apart in federal court last month which eventually led to prosecutors charging Hunter Biden on firearm-related charges.
The federal indictment was unsealed against Menendez on Friday, and it accused the senator and his wife of accepting bribes from three business people in exchange for actions that he took as chairman of the powerful Senate Foreign Relations Committee. According to the DOJ, the bribes were intended to protect the businessmen and to benefit Egypt.
Menendez faces up to 45 years in prison if convicted of the charges, which include conspiracy to commit bribery, conspiracy to commit honest services fraud, and conspiracy to commit extortion under color of official right.
“Those bribes included cash, gold, payments toward a home mortgage, compensation for a low-or-no-show job, a luxury vehicle, and other things of value,” the indictment said. Federal authorities reportedly found gold bars and nearly $500,000 in cash stuffed throughout the senator’s home that they traced back to the businessmen Menendez allegedly worked with.
Several top Democrats, including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), have called on Menendez to resign over the scandal, while many others, especially in the U.S. Senate, have remained silent on the issue.
Menendez <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/democrat-sen-bob-menendez-suggests-vast-conspiracy-is-after-him-after-hes-hit-with-federal-charges">responded</a> to the indictment by suggesting that he was the victim of a vast conspiracy that was plotting against him, in-part because he was Latino.
“It is not lost on me how quickly some are rushing to judge a Latino and push him out of his seat,&#8221; he later <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/menendez-addresses-growing-calls-to-resign-after-corruption-charges">added</a>. &#8220;I am not going anywhere.”

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Bob Menendez Hires Hunter Biden’s Lawyer For Federal Corruption Case

Corruption

Hunter Biden

Politics

U.S.

Former President Donald Trump called on all Senate Democrats to resign following the federal indictment against Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ) last week, claiming that they all knew about the alleged bribes he took.
The indictment, unsealed on Friday, says that Menendez and his wife had a corrupt relationship with New Jersey businessmen Wael Hana, Jose Uribe, and Fred Daibes, who allegedly gave the senator bribes worth hundreds of thousands of dollars. According to the DOJ, the bribes were intended to protect the businessmen and to benefit Egypt.
Menendez faces up to 45 years in prison if convicted of the charges, which include conspiracy to commit bribery, conspiracy to commit honest services fraud, and conspiracy to commit extortion under color of official right.
&#8220;Senate Democrats should all resign based on Senator Bob Menendez!&#8221; Trump wrote on social media. &#8220;They all knew what was going on, and the way he lived.&#8221;
Trump then asked why the FBI did not raid Senate Democrats&#8217; homes, though agents did raid Menendez&#8217;s home.
During the raid, FBI agents recovered &#8220;cash, gold, [a] luxury vehicle, and home furnishings&#8221; that were part of the alleged bribery scheme, according to the indictment.
Trump then said that what President Joe Biden had in &#8220;some of his many homes&#8221; was likely worse than what Menendez had in his home. Biden and his son Hunter have been accused of accepting millions of dollars in bribes from a Ukrainian energy executive in exchange taking action as then-vice president in the Obama administration.
&#8220;I wonder how much they got paid for Rigging the Election? Menendez is one of many, a small timer at that,&#8221; Trump said. &#8220;EVERY DEMOCRAT SHOULD RESIGN FROM THE SENATE! Our Border’s are Broken, our Election’s are Rigged.&#8221;
Menendez was previously indicted by the DOJ under the Obama administration in a case that alleged that he took bribes from Dr. Salomon Melgen, a wealthy Florida doctor, in exchange for political favors. Menendez was never convicted due to a hung jury — while a judge acquitted him of some charges — and the DOJ under Trump dropped the case.
Melgen was <a href="https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdfl/pr/south-florida-doctor-sentenced-medicare-fraud-scheme">sentenced</a> to 17 years in prison for after being convicted on 67 counts of health care fraud that totaled $42 million.
Trump later commuted Melgen&#8217;s prison sentence after &#8220;Menendez urged him to grant clemency to his old friend,&#8221; the New York Post <a href="https://nypost.com/2023/09/22/sen-bob-menendez-beat-corruption-case-with-nude-brazilian/">reported</a>.

Donald Trump Speaks At Iowa Commit To Caucus Event

Trump Calls On All Senate Democrats To Resign Over Bob Menendez Scandal

Donald Trump

Senate Democrats

U.S. Senate

Sen. <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/chuck-grassley" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Chuck Grassley</a> (R-IA) said Tuesday that most media outlets were not asking crucial questions on whether the FBI and the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/department-of-justice" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Justice Department</a> followed normal procedures when investigating Biden family bribery allegations or brushed the information “under the rug.”
Grassley made the comments from the Senate floor when discussing the FBI-generated FD-1023 form he released last week. The form <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/fbi-biden-bribery-file-released-burisma-head-says-he-was-coerced-into-paying-bidens-10-million" target="_blank" rel="noopener">featured allegations</a> that President Joe Biden and his son Hunter pressured Burisma co-founder and CEO Mykola Zlochevsky into paying them millions of dollars each in exchange for pressuring the Ukrainian government to fire prosecutor Viktor Shokin.
&#8220;Much of the media&#8217;s reporting has missed the essential question,&#8221; Grassley <a href="https://justthenews.com/politics-policy/grassley-demands-answers-fbi-doj-response-biden-bribery-allegations?utm_source=daily&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_campaign=newsletter" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a>. &#8220;That essential question is this: Did the Justice Department and the FBI follow normal investigative process and procedures to run the information down or did they sweep this information under the rug?&#8221;
Grassley said that the government engaged in “obstructive conduct” by making key redactions from the FD-1023 when it provided a copy of the document to the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability, including “references to the alleged audio recordings between then-Vice President Biden, Hunter Biden, and the foreign national.&#8221;
&#8220;It also redacted references to text messages and financial records that allegedly existed to prove the criminal act was done. Those redactions are an obstructive conduct by the United States. Why? Because this was an unclassified document. It&#8217;s not even marked law enforcement sensitive,&#8221; Grassley added. 
The longtime senator said that his main goal was to hold the DOJ and the FBI accountable. 
According to the FD-1023, Zlochevsky allegedly <a href="https://www.grassley.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/fd_1023_obtained_by_senator_grassley_-_biden.pdf">told</a> the FBI’s confidential human source (CHS) that during a meeting in August 2016, it cost him “5 (million) to pay one Biden, and 5 (million) to another.”
Zlochevsky allegedly said that it was “too late to change his decision,” which CHS understood as meaning that Zlochevsky “already had paid the Bidens, presumably to ‘deal with Shokin.’”
An addendum to the report from June 2020 says that Zlochevsky told CHS that he had “17 recordings” involving his interactions, including two with Joe Biden. The other 15 were with Hunter Biden.
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In reaction to this and other pieces of evidence obtained by lawmakers, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy indicated that the House could be moving closer toward an impeachment inquiry against President Joe Biden over the bribery allegations.
McCarthy <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/speaker-mccarthy-indicates-republicans-are-moving-toward-impeachment-inquiry-of-biden" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said in a Monday interview</a> that other alleged bribes to the Biden family have come from countries like Ukraine, Russia, Romania, and China.

GOP Senate Judiciary Members Hold Press Conference On The Supreme Court

Grassley Asks The One Question ‘Missed’ By Media On Biden Family Bribery Allegations

Grassley Asks The One Question 'Missed' By Media On Biden Family Bribery Allegations

Chuck Grassley

Department of Justice

Joe Biden

Ukraine

Democratic presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. called for an investigation into President Joe Biden during an interview over the weekend inlight of an FBI form that was released this week that outlined allegations of corruption against Biden.
The <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/fbi-biden-bribery-file-released-burisma-head-says-he-was-coerced-into-paying-bidens-10-million">FBI-generated FD-1023 form</a>, released by Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA), alleges that Burisma co-founder and CEO Mykola Zlochevsky told a highly credible FBI confidential human source that he was &#8220;coerced&#8221; into paying Biden and his son Hunter each $5 million to get a Ukrainian investigation into his company shut down.
&#8220;I have avoided criticizing the President because I, you know, I&#8217;m trying to bring people together and and some of the vitriol, the poison that&#8217;s made politics so poisonous,&#8221; Kennedy told Fox News host Maria Bartiromo on &#8220;Sunday Morning Futures.&#8221;
&#8220;I think though the issues that are now coming up are worrying enough that we really need a real investigation of what happened,&#8221; he said. &#8220;I mean, these revelations about the, you know, where you have Burisma — which is a notoriously corrupt company that paid out apparently $10 million to Hunter and his dad — if that&#8217;s true, then it is really troubling.&#8221;
Kennedy said that in addition to the need for the allegation to be thoroughly investigated, Americans need to be worried about the politicization from federal law enforcement agencies.
&#8220;I think that that&#8217;s something that every American needs to worry about and our federal agencies, which used to be above politics, and now become weaponized as political instruments, and that, again, is another really damaging trend for our democracy,&#8221; he said.
WATCH:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
<a href="https://twitter.com/RobertKennedyJr?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@RobertKennedyJr</a> tells <a href="https://twitter.com/MariaBartiromo?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@MariaBartiromo</a> he believes allegations on Burisma should be investigated <a href="https://t.co/53xfU5IpYY">pic.twitter.com/53xfU5IpYY</a>
&mdash; SundayMorningFutures (@SundayFutures) <a href="https://twitter.com/SundayFutures/status/1683149657579433985?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 23, 2023</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Celebrity Sightings In New York City – July 21, 2023

RFK Jr. Calls For Investigation Into Biden Over Bribery Allegations

Maria Bartiromo

Media

Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

Damning new <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/hunter-biden-threatened-chinese-business-partner-for-payment-i-am-sitting-here-with-my-father" target="_blank" rel="noopener">revelations</a> about President Joe Biden and his son Hunter from IRS whistleblowers are “the worst emerging corruption scandals” <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/author/ben-shapiro" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Ben Shapiro</a> has ever seen, the Daily Wire editor emeritus said Friday.
Shapiro, a co-founder of The Daily Wire, made the comments on his daily <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/episode/ep-1753-submersible-imploded-and-the-navy-knew-all-along-member-exclusive-3" target="_blank" rel="noopener">podcast</a> while discussing new claims from a whistleblower who released texts that appear to show Hunter Biden threatening a Chinese businessman named Henry Zhao.
&#8220;The most significant allegation is that there is a WhatsApp message that&#8217;s actually included in the records here in which Hunter Biden is openly telling people at a Chinese company that they need to pay him money, and in this message, Hunter Biden literally says, &#8216;My dad is sitting next to me and he wants you to pay the money,'&#8221; Shapiro said. 
On Thursday, the House Ways and Means Committee released a text from Hunter to Zhao. The message, from July 30, 2017 on WhatsApp, appears to show Hunter throwing around his father’s influence to get some kind of deal done. 
“I am sitting here with my father and we would like to understand why the commitment made has not been fulfilled. Tell the director that I would like to resolve this now before it gets out of hand, and now means tonight. And, Z, if I get a call or text from anyone involved in this other than you, Zhang, or the chairman, I will make certain that between the man sitting next to me and every person he knows and my ability to forever hold a grudge that you will regret not following my direction. I am sitting here waiting for the call with my father,” a copy of the text provided by the committee reads. 
Shapiro said that the text was “insane” and showed that Biden had been dishonest the whole time. 
“That text from Hunter Biden saying, ‘I&#8217;m sitting next to daddy pay up or or my daddy is going to do something to you.’ That&#8217;s insane. And it means that Joe&#8217;s been lying this whole time,” Shapiro said. 
In response, The Daily Wire host said Republicans in Congress should lean even harder into their investigations of the Bidens. Aside from his dealings in China, the Bidens are also implicated in an alleged multi-million dollar bribery scheme involving Ukraine. 
“Well, if the congressional Republicans don&#8217;t now subpoena pretty much everyone in law enforcement. I don&#8217;t know what the hell they&#8217;re doing or what they think their role is in Congress,” Shapiro said.
Hours after the damning message was revealed, and following an announcement of a plea deal on tax crimes, Hunter Biden was a prominent figure hours later at the White House India State Dinner Thursday evening.

President Biden Hosts India Prime Minister Modi For State Visit

Ben Shapiro Breaks Down Most Significant Allegation Revealed By IRS Whistleblowers Against Bidens

Ben Shapiro

Communist China

Legacy media appears to have no interest in an alleged bribery scheme involving then-Vice President Joe Biden, his son Hunter Biden, and an as-yet unidentified foreign national.
When Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) and Rep. James Comer (R-KY) came forward with information about the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/whistleblower-alleges-fbi-has-evidence-of-biden-engaging-in-bribery-scheme-with-foreign-national">alleged scheme</a>, legacy media outlets should have been all over the story — but they were not.
Then more information began to trickle out: namely that the alleged bribery scheme likely was <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/mtg-says-bribery-allegations-against-biden-linked-to-burisma" target="_blank" rel="noopener">tied to Burisma</a>, and that Biden <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/comer-puts-dollar-amount-on-alleged-biden-bribery-scheme" target="_blank" rel="noopener">could have profited</a> by as much as $5 million for a certain policy outcome requested by the unnamed foreign national — the timing of which aligned with an alleged $5 million payment aimed at killing an investigation into Burisma Holdings&#8217; founder.
Still, legacy media coverage of the whole situation remained minimal — even as Comer threatened to hold FBI Director Christopher Wray in contempt over the bureau&#8217;s refusal to comply with a subpoena and provide Congress with an FD-1023 form related to the alleged scheme.
Grassley gave <a href="https://www.grassley.senate.gov/news/remarks/grassley-fbi-redacted-references-to-recordings-in-biden-allegation-shared-with-congress" target="_blank" rel="noopener">several updates</a> in recent days as well, noting that the FBI did allow some members of Congress to review the FD-1023 – but despite it already being unclassified, the bureau had insisted that they view the document in a classified facility and had reportedly made additional redactions to it prior to allowing those viewings.
Grassley, who has read the unredacted version of the FD-1023, announced on the Senate floor that one of the redactions included the claim that the unnamed foreign national had reportedly kept a number of recordings of conversations related to the bribery scheme — 15 conversations with Hunter Biden and two with then Vice President Joe Biden – as a sort of &#8220;insurance policy&#8221; if things should go wrong.
WATCH:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
GRASSLEY: &quot;The foreign national who allegedly bribed Joe and Hunter Biden allegedly has audio recording of his conversation with them. 17 such recordings&#8230;15 audio recordings of phone calls between him and Hunter Biden&#8230;two audio recordings of phone calls between him and… <a href="https://t.co/0QdUMEKhOR">pic.twitter.com/0QdUMEKhOR</a>
&mdash; Townhall.com (@townhallcom) <a href="https://twitter.com/townhallcom/status/1668375398164447233?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 12, 2023</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
And still, legacy media outlets appeared disinterested.
The Media Research Center&#8217;s <a href="https://newsbusters.org/blogs/nb/geoffrey-dickens/2023/06/13/nets-spend-291-minutes-trump-indictment-0-seconds-biden" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Newsbusters</a> laid out a stark comparison following the two major stories that broke on June 8 — one involving the alleged Biden bribery scheme and the other involving another indictment of former President Donald Trump.
&#8220;On June 8, former President Donald Trump was indicted by the Special Counsel in the classified documents case. That very same day it was reported that President Joe Biden had allegedly received $5 million dollars from an executive of the Ukrainian gas company Burisma, the same company in which his son Hunter was involved,&#8221; according to Geoffry Dickens of Newsbusters.
During the four days that followed, Newsbusters determined that the three major networks — ABC, CBS, and NBC — devoted nearly five hours (291 minutes) of coverage to Trump&#8217;s indictment. Those same networks opted not to cover the Biden story at all.

World Food Program USA’s 2016 McGovern-Dole Leadership Award Ceremony

Legacy Media Seemingly Has No Interest In Covering Alleged Biden Bribery Scheme

Media Has No Interest In Covering Alleged Biden Bribery Scheme

Burisma

Media Bias

Rick Johnson, who led Michigan House Republicans from 2001-2004, pleaded guilty Tuesday to accepting bribes from businesses seeking marijuana licenses in the Great Lakes State. 
From 2017-2019, Johnson chaired the Medical Marijuana Licensing Board, a state board that had the authority to decide which businesses could get into the marijuana business. During that time, Johnson received cash payments totaling at least $110,200 and other benefits from businesses and lobbyists seeking medical marijuana licenses, according to prosecutors, The Detroit News <a href="https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/politics/michigan/2023/04/25/rick-johnson-ex-michigan-house-speaker-to-plead-guilty-to-bribery/70136545007/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a>.   
Johnson faces up to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000. He is expected to be sentenced within three to four months, according to Magistrate Judge Phillip Green. The former Michigan lawmaker was released Tuesday on an unsecured bond of $25,000, which means he was allowed to leave without making a deposit. Johnson&#8217;s guilty plea comes as investigators continue to look into how money has influenced marijuana policymaking in Michigan. 
&#8220;This investigation is ongoing, which is to say we may or may not bring future charges in this case,&#8221; U.S. Attorney Mark Totten said. &#8220;But what I can say is that the investigation and prosecution of public corruption is a priority for our office. We will follow it wherever we find it.&#8221;
Last week, businessman John Dawood Dalaly <a href="https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/politics/michigan/2023/04/21/oakland-county-businessman-pleads-guilty-bribing-michigan-medical-marijuana-regulator-rick-johnson/70135402007/">pleaded guilty</a> to bribing Johnson. Dalaly said he <a href="https://wwmt.com/news/local/rick-johnson-speaker-house-federal-court-grand-rapids-bribery-scheme-michigan-marijuana-regulation-system" target="_blank" rel="noopener">gave</a> Johnson at least $68,200 and provided two flights for him to Canada. Dalaly also told a federal judge that he hired Johnson’s wife Janice as a consultant and paid her $4,000 a month. Janice Johnson helped Dalaly fill out paperwork that would go before the board that Johnson chaired. As part of Johnson’s plea deal, she <a href="https://wwmt.com/news/local/rick-johnson-speaker-house-federal-court-grand-rapids-bribery-scheme-michigan-marijuana-regulation-system" target="_blank" rel="noopener">cannot be charged</a>, the judge said Tuesday. 
Lobbyists Brian Pierce and Vincent Brown, who allegedly gave Johnson $42,000 in cash and benefits, have also agreed to plead guilty and cooperate with investigators. 
Medical marijuana became legal in Michigan in 2008 and recreational marijuana use was approved by voters in 2018. The Medical Marijuana Licensing Board was disbanded by Governor Gretchen Whitmer in 2019 after she took office. 
Michigan’s marijuana business raked in $2.3 billion in 2022, <a href="https://www.cannabisbusinesstimes.com/news/michigan-2022-cannabis-sales-record-price-flower/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according</a> to the state’s Cannabis Regulatory Agency, making Michigan the second-largest cannabis market in the U.S. behind California. 
<a class="c-link" href="https://onelink.to/dwapp" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-stringify-link="https://onelink.to/dwapp" data-sk="tooltip_parent" aria-describedby="sk-tooltip-9125">CLICK HERE TO GET THE DAILY WIRE APP</a>

Cannabis/Money

Former Michigan Republican House Speaker Pleads Guilty To Accepting Bribes From Marijuana Businesses

Crime

Marijuana

Michigan

A former <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/democrat" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Democratic</a> state representative in <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/hawaii" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Hawaii</a> has been sentenced to two years in prison after he admitted to taking bribes to influence legislation.
Ex-Hawaiian state Rep. Ty Cullen took cash and <a href="https://www.khon2.com/local-news/former-legislator-pleads-guilty-cooperates-with-federal-prosecutors/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">gambling chips</a> in return for lobbying against cesspools to the benefit of a Honolulu businessman. He received a $25,000 fine and the minimum federal prison sentence recommended by prosecutors because U.S. District Court Judge Susan Oki Mollway stated that he had aided officials looking into the case. 
“This was a grievous breach of public trust on your part. It appears to have been motivated by greed, and it stretched out over a number of years,” Mollway <a href="https://apnews.com/article/hawaii-cesspools-corruption-lawmaker-bribes-cullen-f5f3cf6817b4bb08dee736c974c91f78" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> when speaking to Cullen. “I am very concerned that this was not a momentary lapse of judgment.”
Cullen apologized for his role in the bribery scheme. “I want to say I’m sorry to my family who stayed by me, to my friends, to my constituents, my community, and the people of Hawaii,” he said. “I will continue to work to make my wrongs right. And ensure that this never happens again.”
During his time in the Hawaii state House, Cullen admitted to taking $30,000 from businessman Milton Choy, who works in water management and whose business, according to court documents, would have benefitted from the closure of cesspools — tanks where waste was stored at many homes when the sewage infrastructure had not been fully developed on the island. 
Assistant U.S. Attorney Kenneth Sorenson said that the disgraced lawmaker had helped with the investigation. “We did have substantial cooperation from Mr. Cullen which resulted in assisting an investigation that we’re doing,” Sorenson said. 
Fellow Democrat and former Hawaii Senate Majority Leader Jamie Kalani English <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/former-hawaii-state-senator-sentenced-to-40-months-for-taking-bribes" target="_blank" rel="noopener">was sentenced</a> to 40 months for a similar bribery-related crime. 
English, who represented east Maui and the islands of Molokai and Lanai, pleaded guilty to honest wire services fraud in February 2022, and admitted to taking bribes from a local business owner amounting to $18,000 in exchange for “shaping legislation” that would benefit a company involved in the publicly financed conversion of cesspools.
“[English] peddled the power and influence of his position as a Hawaii State Senator and Majority Leader to enrich himself and betray the trust bestowed upon him by those he was elected to serve,” U.S. prosecutors <a href="https://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/hawaii/articles/2022-07-05/ex-hawaii-senator-sentenced-to-40-months-for-taking-bribes?context=amp" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> in a memo.
Hawaii, which banned the construction of new cesspools in 2016, is still working to convert the over 80,000 existing ones and create a more streamlined sewage system.

A prisoner behind bars with hands cuffed

Former Democrat Lawmaker Gets Prison Time Over Cesspool Bribes

Hawaii

A federal judge denied Meta’s motion to dismiss a lawsuit from a trio of adult entertainers who allege that <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/heads-roll-at-meta-as-zuckerberg-announces-massive-layoffs/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Meta executives</a>, including former <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/filing-reveals-facebook-employees-that-allegedly-took-bribes-to-promote-onlyfans/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">U.K. Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg</a>, took bribes from the owner of the site OnlyFans to blacklist its competitors.
Adult entertainment performers Dawn Dangaard, Kelly Gilbert, and Jennifer Allbaugh filed the federal class-action suit — which represents roughly 100 of their peers. They contend that three Meta executives took bribes to ensure that the sites on which they performed were added to a global database that included terrorists and other dangerous organizations targeted for removal and demotion by Facebook and Instagram.
“The plaintiffs revealed in September that they obtained a leaked email from an anonymous tipster, which purports to show wire transfers from Fenix International Ltd., owner of OnlyFans, to three Meta executives,” <a href="https://news.bloomberglaw.com/tech-and-telecom-law/meta-fails-to-shake-performers-onlyfans-bribery-lawsuit">Bloomberg Law</a> reported. “They included Meta’s president of global affairs Nick Clegg, vice president of Meta’s global business group Nicola Mendelsohn, and another employee Cristian Perrella.”
U.S. District Judge William Alsup, who sits in the Northern District of California, rejected Meta&#8217;s claim that the complaint does not allege the executives took steps to blacklist the plaintiffs.
“Plaintiffs’ claims are plausible,&#8221; Alsup ruled. &#8220;To the extent defendants argue that plaintiffs’ factual allegations are unreliable, that will be tested in discovery.”
Meta is the parent company of Facebook and Instagram.
Fenix, which is a co-defendant in the case, is owned by Leonid Radvinsky. Its OnlyFans site allows web users to pay to subscribe to accounts of performers and then shares the revenue with them. OnlyFans content creators use Facebook and Instagram to drive viewers to their sites. By allegedly bribing the Meta executives to demote or delete the posts of competitors, Radvinsky was able to increase traffic and revenue to OnlyFans, according to the suit.
Alsup cited the email that purportedly showed several wire transfers from Fenix defendants to the Meta executives as well as a Facebook whistleblower report that allegedly corroborated the plaintiffs&#8217; claims.
“Certain employees are taking bribes to protect OnlyFans on [Facebook],” the report said. &#8220;They have taken down every OnlyFans competitor.”
Clegg, a former member of the U.K. parliament who served as leader of the Liberal Democrat Party from 2007-20015 and was deputy prime minister from 2010-2015, moved to the United States after losing his seat in a 2017 election. Meta founder Mark Zuckerberg named him Facebook&#8217;s vice president for global affairs and communications in 2018. In February of this year, Clegg was promoted to president of global affairs at Meta.

RUSSIA-US-INTERNET-META

Meta Loses Bid To Toss Suit Alleging Facebook Execs Took Bribes To Blacklist Adult Entertainers

Adult Entertainers

Facebook

Only Fans

Former <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/puerto-rico">Puerto Rico</a> Governor Wanda Vázquez was arrested on Thursday on <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/bribery">bribery</a> charges, according to a statement by the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/department-of-justice">Department of Justice</a> (DOJ).
The federal charges are connected to the financing of Vázquez’s 2020 gubernatorial campaign. Between December 2019 and June 2020, Vásquez allegedly received $300,000 from a banker and a former FBI agent to pay political consultants for her campaign. Authorities believe that in return for the donations, Vázquez would have appointed the donors’ desired candidate to the Office of the Commissioner of Financial Institutions (OCIF).
Vázquez and other accused participants in the scheme have been charged with conspiracy, federal programs bribery, and honest services wire fraud, and face up to 20 years in prison if convicted.
&#8220;The alleged bribery scheme rose to the highest levels of the Puerto Rican government, threatening public trust in our electoral processes and institutions of governance,&#8221; Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite Jr. <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2022/08/04/americas/puerto-rico-wanda-vazquez-governor-arrested/index.html">said</a> in a statement.
Vázquez had previously served as Puerto Rico’s secretary of justice and as a district attorney, and she became governor in 2019, after her predecessor, Ricardo Rosselló, was forced to step down by island-wide protests after a <a href="https://www.latinorebels.com/2019/07/15/telegramgatescandal/">scandal</a> of his own.
The DOJ also <a href="https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/former-governor-puerto-rico-arrested-bribery-scheme">named</a> Herrera Velutini, Frances Diaz, John Blakeman, and Mark Rossini as accused participants in the corruption scheme. Velutini, 50, is a dual Venezuelan-Italian citizen and the owner of an international bank, and Diaz, a 50-year-old resident of Puerto Rico, was the bank’s president. Rossini, 60, was a former FBI special agent and a consultant for Velutini, and Blakeman, 53, is a political consultant who worked on Vázquez’s 2020 campaign.
Velutini’s bank was reportedly audited in 2019 by the OCIF. Velutini and Rossini are accused of reaching out via third parties to various political candidates and offering bribes and campaign support in exchange for the replacement of the current commissioner of the OCIF with a former consultant of Velutini’s. After Vázquez lost her party primary in 2020, the group allegedly attempted to reach out to her successor; an FBI informant posing as his representative caught them.
Diaz and Blakeman have both pleaded guilty to charges connected to the bribery scheme, according to the indictment.
Peter John Porrata, a member of Vázquez’s legal team, told <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2022/08/04/americas/puerto-rico-wanda-vazquez-governor-arrested/index.html">CNN</a> on Thursday that Vázquez will plead not guilty to the charges.
Vázquez’s successor, Governor Pedro Pierluisi, said in response to the ruling that under his administration, there was “zero tolerance for corruption.”
&#8220;No one is above the law in Puerto Rico,&#8221; he <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/former-puerto-rico-governor-wanda-vazquez-arrested-on-bribery-charges/">said</a>. &#8220;Faced with this news that certainly affects and lacerates the confidence of our people, I reiterate that in my administration, we will continue to have a common front with federal authorities against anyone who commits an improper act, no matter where it comes from or who it may implicate.&#8221;

Walter Mercado Funeral

Ex-Governor Of Puerto Rico Arrested On Bribery Charges

Ex-Governor Of Puerto Rico Wanda Vázquez Arrested On Bribery Charges

Puerto Rico

Former Hawaii Senate Majority Leader Jamie Kalani English (D) was sentenced to 40 months in prison for taking bribes to influence legislation while in office.
English, who represented east Maui and the islands of Molokai and Lanai, pleaded guilty to honest wire services fraud in February, and admitted to taking bribes from a local business owner amounting to $18,000 in exchange for ‘shaping legislation’ that would benefit a company involved in the publicly financed conversion of cesspools.
“[English] peddled the power and influence of his position as a Hawaii State Senator and Majority Leader to enrich himself and betray the trust bestowed upon him by those he was elected to serve,” U.S. prosecutors <a href="https://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/hawaii/articles/2022-07-05/ex-hawaii-senator-sentenced-to-40-months-for-taking-bribes?context=amp">said</a> in a memo to the judge, recommending a sentence of 3 and a half years in prison.
Former Hawaii state Rep Ty Cullen pleaded guilty to the same charge in a similar case and will be sentenced in October.
Richard Sing, English’s attorney, argued that his client should be sentenced to only 2 and a half years in prison, claiming that he had cooperated fully with the prosecution after his arrest and been completely honest about his dealings with the business owner in question, identified in court simply as “Person A”.
Sing also wrote that English was “was a compassionate and dedicated advocate for the rural communities and individuals he represented.” Sing declined to comment on the final sentence.
In addition to the 40 months in prison, U.S. District Judge Susan Oki Mollway imposed a $100,000 fine on English and ordered that English be given three years of supervision after his eventual release.
“I hope this serves as a message to everyone in government that there can be no tolerance for unethical conduct,” House Speaker Scott Saiki <a href="https://apnews.com/article/hawaii-sentencing-government-and-politics-c6f2b03da17aad4fa3a746126871dfd8">said</a> in a statement after English was sentenced.
According to his attorney, English suffers from long COVID, with symptoms including memory loss, sleep apnea, lethargy and respiratory problems. English cited these reasons when he stepped down last year, without acknowledging his previous arrest during the corruption investigation. English will begin his sentence on the 16th of August.
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Jamie Kalani English

Former Hawaii State Senator Sentenced To 40 Months For Taking Bribes

Aloha Cheat: Former Hawaii State Senator Sentenced To 40 Months For Taking Bribes

Democratic Party

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