Biden Watches Republican Dysfunction From a Distance
Former George Santos aide pleads guilty to federal conspiracy charge, faces years in prison
A former longtime aide to embattled Rep. George Santos, R-N.Y., pled guilty to a federal conspiracy charge Thursday and faces up to four years in prison for submitting false campaign finance reports.
While accepting the plea deal at a Long Island federal courthouse, Nancy Marks, who served as campaign treasurer for Santos’ congressional bids in 2020 and 2022, said she and Santos falsely reported that he had loaned his campaign $500,000, despite not having the money to do so, and that the fake loan was to give the impression his campaign was well-funded in order to attract more donors.
Marks also admitted to giving the Federal Elections Commission a list of fake donors who had not actually given to the campaign, doing so without their permission.
According to the Associated Press, the court’s discussion surrounding the plea agreement, which comes with a recommendation Marks serve between 3 1/2 years to 4 years in prison, did not include a requirement for her to cooperate in the case against Santos.
The congressman was indicted in May on federal charges that he embezzled money from his campaign, lied in financial disclosures submitted to Congress and received unemployment funds when he wasn’t eligible.
Following her acceptance of the plea deal, Marks’ attorney told reporters outside the courthouse that Santos “mentally seduced” her.
“There’s a manipulation involved that had to do with her family and the death of her husband,” the attorney said. “There were lies told.” He later indicated Marks would be willing to testify against Santos if asked to do so.
Marks resigned from her position as Santos’ treasurer in January after revelations he had lied about his life story and experience. The congressman later became treasurer of his own campaign.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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Jordan gains support from top Republicans for speaker to ‘unite’ moderates, conservatives
Rep. Jim Jordan is gaining broad support from top Republicans to serve as speaker of the House of Representatives, with members telling Fox News Digital that he can “unite” moderates and conservatives across the GOP conference.
Jordan, R-Ohio, announced his bid for the speakership on Wednesday, after lawmakers voted to oust Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., from the post for the first time in the history of the House of Representatives.
House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., also announced his bid for House speaker.
Jordan, who serves as the chairman of the House Judiciary Committee and is co-leading the House impeachment inquiry against President Biden, has garnered support across the Republican conference — including from top House committee chairmen.
“Jordan’s efforts have shown that he can unite moderates and conservatives across the conference to get the 218 votes needed to become speaker,” a congressional source told Fox News Digital.
House Intelligence Committee Chairman Mike Turner, R-Ohio, a moderate Republican, told Fox News Digital that he would proudly support Jordan for the role of House speaker.
“I am proud to support Jim Jordan as our next Speaker of the House because of his leadership skills, professionalism, and the fact that he will be able to unite our conference,” Turner said.
House Homeland Security Chairman Mark Green also threw his support behind Jordan; along with others including Rep. Thomas Massie; Rep. Darrell Issa; Rep. Mike Carey, Rep. Mary Miller; Rep. Warren Davidson; Rep. Jeff Van Drew; Rep. Ralph Norman; Rep. Alex Mooney; Rep. Lauren Boebert; Rep. Byron Donalds; Rep. Scott Fitzgerald; Rep. Troy Balderson; Rep. Harriet Hagemen; and Rep. Max Miller.
FLASHBACK: MATT GAETZ VOTES FOR TRUMP AS HOUSE SPEAKER IN SLIGHT TO MCCARTHY
“We need a conservative fighter to stand up strong to the Biden White House and Democrats and I can’t think of anyone better than Jim Jordan,” Rep. Jim Banks told Fox News Digital.
Rep. Jeff Duncan also threw his support behind Jordan, calling him a “proven conservative fighter” who “can right the ship and return the House to a path toward conservative principles like promoting limited government, fighting reckless spending, and holding the Biden administration accountable.”
And on the other side of the aisle, even Democratic Rep. Ted Lieu, D-Calif., said that Democrats are “ready to work with any Republican speaker as long as they don’t break their word, that they want to help the American people,” and said that would include working with Jordan, if he was elected speaker of the House.
As for Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., he told Fox News Digital that both Jordan and Scalise “would represent a monumental step forward for the conference.”
“I’d be honored to vote for either of these men on the floor,” Gaetz said. “In conference, I’ll make a decision based on spending and whether they are willing to liberate us on these continuing resolutions.”
House Republicans are hosting a candidate forum on Tuesday, and former President Trump has said he plans to attend.
Trump, the current frontrunner of the 2024 Republican presidential primary, has not yet commented on who he would support for speaker. However, a source familiar told Fox News Digital that the former president is very close to Jordan and has always had a great relationship with him. The source said Trump also has a great relationship with Scalise.
HOUSE VOTES TO REMOVE KEVIN MCCARTHY AS SPEAKER IN HISTORIC FIRST
In an exclusive interview with Fox News Digital on Thursday afternoon, Trump said that if Republicans cannot rally enough support for Jordan or Scalise, he would accept the speakership himself for a “short period.”
“I have been asked to speak as a unifier because I have so many friends in Congress,” Trump told Fox News Digital. “If they don’t get the vote, they have asked me if I would consider taking the speakership until they get somebody longer-term, because I am running for president.”
“They have asked me if I would take it for a short period of time for the party, until they come to a conclusion — I’m not doing it because I want to — I will do it if necessary, should they not be able to make their decision,” Trump said.
Trump did not specify who had asked him, although a number of GOP lawmakers have said he is their preference for speaker.
Trump stressed that if Republicans cannot come to a consensus, he would take the speakership for a short “30, 60, or 90-day period.”
HOUSE REPUBLICANS MOVE ‘FULL STEAM AHEAD’ ON IMPEACHMENT INQUIRY EVEN AMID SPEAKER UNCERTAINTY
“I would only do it for the party,” he said, stressing that his focus is on his presidential campaign.
Back in January, as the House considered who should become the speaker after Republicans took the majority of the chamber, Gaetz opted not to vote for McCarthy or Rep. Byron Donalds, who was floated as an option, and instead, for Trump.
When Gaetz’s name was called during the seventh round of voting, he responded: “Donald John Trump.”
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Massachusetts lawmakers propose new gun crackdowns
A bill that would ban individuals from carrying a gun into a person’s home without their permission — and require key gun components be serialized and registered with the state — was unveiled by Massachusetts House lawmakers Thursday.
The bill would create new laws that bar firing guns at or near homes and outlaw carrying firearms while intoxicated. It would also prohibit carrying firearms in schools, polling places and government buildings.
The proposal includes an enhanced system to track firearms used in crimes to help curb the flow of illegal guns into the state. It would also modernize the existing firearm registration system while increasing the availability of firearm data for academic and policy use, lawmakers said.
MASSACHUSETTS GOV. MAURA HEALEY SIGNS $1 BILLION TAX RELIEF PACKAGE
The bill is in part a response to a 2022 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that Americans have a right to carry firearms in public for self-defense.
“While the Commonwealth annually ranks as one of the safest states in the entire country from gun violence, the Supreme Court’s Bruen decision nullified existing components of our gun laws that have made Massachusetts safer,” said House Speaker Ronald Mariano.
Gun rights advocates pushed back against the bill.
“It’s a train wreck,” said Jim Wallace, executive director of the Gun Owners’ Action League. “It’s a complete re-write of the gun laws. They claimed they were trying to make the gun laws compliant with Bruen but they went in the opposite direction.”
The bill will be the subject of a public hearing next week at the Massachusetts Statehouse.
The state Senate has yet to release their version of a gun bill. It will be up to both Democratic-led chambers to hammer out single bill to ship to Democratic Gov. Maura Healey’s desk for her signature before it can become law.
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Protesters hit Ramaswamy campaign vehicle outside Iowa event
Protesters rammed their car in the back of a campaign vehicle of Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy ahead of an event held in Grinnell, Iowa, Fox News Digital has learned.
A group of liberal protesters appeared outside Ramaswamy’s event at Saints Rest Coffee House on Thursday. Ramaswamy’s campaign told Fox News Digital a female driver of a blue Honda Civic and a passenger were yelling expletives at the GOP hopeful, giving him the middle finger and blaring the car horn.
The driver later hit the rear end of the campaign’s parked SUV and drove off, though the campaign could not definitively say whether it was intentional.
Grinnell Police Department confirmed with Fox News Digital that police were called to the scene over a property damage incident.
RAMASWAMY FIRES BACK AT MEXICAN PRESIDENT IN BORDER SPAT: ‘NEW DADDY IN TOWN’
Moments after the incident, protesters not involved in the hit-and-run were seen heckling Ramaswamy as he was entering the coffee house. One called him an “a–h—” while advocating for public schools. Another shouted “protect trans kids” and a third told him “climate change is real.”
“Anyone else have something to say?” Ramaswamy said to them.
“What’s it like being the punching bag of the RNC?” one protester asked.
“Well I think the RNC is corrupt. I think both political parties are pretty corrupt,” Ramaswamy responded.
RAMASWAMY UNVEILS PLAN TO ‘DECLARE ECONOMIC INDEPENDENCE FROM CHINA’ IN UPCOMING POLICY SPEECH
Another protester shouted, “My mom’s a public school worker and she deserves to be paid and respected!”
“I think every person deserves to be respected but we are failing to do right by our kids in this country,” Ramaswamy replied. “Our achievement gap versus other countries is bad and we’re all in that together.”
“But here is what I will say: The beauty of this country is that you all have the right to express your opinions and you’re doing it peacefully. And even though I disagree with you, I’m proud of you for expressing your views even if I disagree with you,” he continued.
The protester then accused Ramaswamy of wanting to “destroy her job and her livelihood,” something Ramaswamy quickly rejected.
“I do want to fix our public schools though. So thank her for her service for me. I really mean that,” Ramsawamy told the protester. “But we also have to focus on how we’re going to improve achievement of our kids. And I think with your mom, if she’s as earnest as you’re describing, I’m sure she cares about the same thing, we’re not getting there with the existing system we have. So we’re gonna have to find a better way to do it. And one of the ways we’re going to do it is through open debate. You guys are doing your part. I’m gonna do mind. Keep it up.”
The protesters seemed to disperse after police arrived to the scene, according to the campaign.
“Vivek will always stand for free speech and the right to peaceful protest, but when protesters cross the line and escalate to physical (intentional or otherwise) that is unAmerican and unacceptable,” Ramaswamy spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin told FOX News Digital.
Ramaswamy later posted on social media, “I believe in free speech, especially for those who disagree with me. Violence is never the answer. We will always hold ourselves to a higher standard than the other side.”
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DC prosecutors probe liberal dark money network after backlash for investigating conservative orgs
Washington, D.C.’s attorney general’s office is probing the nation’s largest liberal dark money network following accusations that its investigation of a conservative advocacy group was politically motivated.
Brian Schwalb, Washington, D.C.’s Democrat attorney general, launched an investigation into conservative judicial advocate Leonard Leo’s network this past summer, which Leo’s attorney previously told Fox News Digital was a “politically driven” attempt at silencing the Republican activist and his associates.
The Leo investigation appears to have stemmed from a complaint from the left-wing Campaign for Accountability, which alleged he had enriched himself with consulting fees through his network. Schwalb, however, had for some time seemed indifferent to a liberal network operated by the D.C.-based Arabella Advisors consulting firm, which has a fee format comparable to Leo’s for-profit and nonprofit network.
Schwalb previously worked for a law firm that has performed work for entities in Arabella’s nexus. His targeting of Leo’s network — while seemingly ignoring Arabella’s network — led to “political lawfare” accusations from the Wall Street Journal editorial board.
TOP DEM DARK MONEY NETWORK FACES IRS COMPLAINT OVER ALLEGED SELF-ENRICHMENT OF ITS FOUNDER
“Attorney General Schwalb opened his investigation into the Arabella network only after being repeatedly called out for using his office to target his political opponents,” said Caitlin Sutherland, executive director of Americans for Public Trust (APT). APT filed an IRS complaint against the Arabella network alleging its founder had illegally enriched himself from the setup.
“Now we learn that he has deep ties to the very network he claims to be investigating,” Sutherland added. “This revelation raises serious questions about potential conflicts of interest and Schwalb’s ability to conduct an impartial and thorough investigation.”
Months before Schwalb’s investigation into Leo became public, The Guardian reported on a Campaign for Accountability complaint alleging Leo “misused” his network’s nonprofit cash by diverting $73 million to his for-profit companies, BH Group and CRC Advisors, for consulting services between 2016 and 2021.
The complaint appears to be the foundation of Schwalb’s Leo probe, even though the Leo-linked groups are outside his jurisdiction. Campaign for Accountability executive director Michelle Kuppersmith also told The Guardian that her group sent the complaint to the IRS and Schwalb’s office, asking them to examine materials and revoke the tax-exempt status of the seven nonprofits connected to Leo.
Campaign for Accountability started as a project in the Arabella Advisors network. Several individuals on its leadership team, including Kuppersmith, previously worked for Accountable.US, which the Arabella-managed New Venture Fund had fiscally sponsored in the past.
Accountable.US, meanwhile, launched a campaign drawing attention to the Leo investigation. The group plastered signs near the D.C. headquarters of the Federalist Society, a conservative judicial group that Leo co-chairs. They also projected a graphic onto the building.
“Campaign for Accountability has no relationship with Arabella Advisors,” a spokesperson from the group previously told Fox News Digital. “The fact that we were briefly fiscally sponsored by Hopewell Fund nearly seven years ago is completely irrelevant to any of our work. Our mission is to call out wrongdoing wherever we see it, and we hope the IRS and the DC Attorney General thoroughly investigate our complaint against Leonard Leo.”
Tax documents show that the Arabella-managed New Venture Fund sent at least $2.2 million to Campaign for Accountability after it had broken away from the network. Between 2017 and 2020, the New Venture Fund’s cash to Campaign for Accountability accounted for between 15% and 89% of its total reported revenue each year.
In August, Americans for Public Trust filed an IRS complaint against entities affiliated with Arabella Advisors. The complaint alleged that its founder, Eric Kessler, illegally benefited financially from its structure. Over the years, his firm has garnered hundreds of millions of dollars for its management services of the funds that are also linked to him and serve as hubs for the network.
Arabella Advisors manages a handful of nonprofits that host dozens of shadowy liberal groups. The network’s web sits under the New Venture Fund, Sixteen Thirty Fund, Windward Fund, Hopewell Fund and North Fund, which act as fiscal sponsors to other nonprofits by supplying their tax and legal status to those housed beneath them. In recent years, the funds have collectively gathered around $1.5 billion annually to disburse to left-wing groups and causes nationwide.
This configuration allows the fiscally sponsored groups to bypass filing tax documents to the IRS, obscuring their financials and other information. The Arabella-managed nonprofits also do not disclose contributor information on their tax forms.
APT’s IRS complaint called for an examination into the tax-exempt status of the Arabella-managed funds, which have paid the for-profit firm hundreds of millions of dollars for administrative, operation and management services. Kessler, Arabella’s founder, has been closely entangled with the funds pushing consulting cash to the for-profit for its services.
APT further wrote that two nonprofits — the New Venture Fund and Sixteen Thirty Fund — informed the IRS their arrangement with Arabella would be temporary at the time of their formation, which has not been the case.
During the period that Campaign for Accountability said Leo benefited from the $73 million in consulting payments, Arabella Advisors raked in $190 million in fees from its linked funds for administrative, operational and management services, according to a review of tax forms from 2016 and 2021. The amount Arabella pulled in for its consulting services during that time was nearly $120 million more than was passed from the Leo-linked nonprofits to his for-profits.
“Arabella Advisors complies with the law and will cooperate with the District of Columbia Attorney General’s civil inquiry,” Arabella spokesperson Steve Sampson told Fox News Digital. “We’re confident in the systems we have in place to ensure our business conforms with legal and regulatory requirements, and Arabella Advisors is proud of the work we do. We remain committed to helping our clients use philanthropic resources more effectively, efficiently, and equitably to accomplish their impact goals.”
Leo’s attorney told Politico he would not cooperate with the probe because the organizations were organized outside of D.C. The Washington Free Beacon, likewise, has confirmed the existence of the Arabella investigation.
Schwalb and his deputy, Seth Rosenthal, also worked at a law firm with past links to the Arabella Advisors network. The pair previously worked at the Venable law firm, which has represented groups in the network on matters including the New Venture Fund and Sixteen Thirty Fund.
Rosenthal also served as legal director of the Alliance for Justice, a left-wing dark money judicial group devoted to “transforming courts” from 2005 to 2006. During Rosenthal’s time with the group, it attempted to derail Chief Justice Roberts’ confirmation over his ties to the Federalist Society, which Leo co-chairs.
When Rosenthal was also with the Alliance for Justice, he opposed Justice Samuel Alito’s confirmation on political grounds, saying he was a “movement conservative” who would march “to the conservative drumbeat on about every single issue” in a 2005 Democracy Now! interview.
The D.C. attorney general’s office previously told Fox News Digital that it could neither confirm nor deny the existence of any investigation, as a matter of policy. It maintained the position when questioned on whether backlash and allegations of politicization had led to the Arabella probe.
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Protesters scream obscenities, crash car into Ramaswamy campaign vehicle outside Iowa event
Protesters rammed their car in the back of a campaign vehicle of Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy ahead of an event held in Grinnell, Iowa, Fox News Digital has learned.
A group of liberal protesters appeared outside Ramaswamy’s event at Saints Rest Coffee House on Thursday. Ramaswamy’s campaign told Fox News Digital that the female driver of a blue Honda Civic and a passenger were yelling expletives at the GOP hopeful, giving him the middle finger and blaring the car horn.
The driver later hit the rear end of the campaign’s parked SUV and drove off, though the campaign could not definitively say whether it was intentional.
Grinnell Police Department confirmed with Fox News Digital that police were called to the scene over a property damage incident.
RAMASWAMY FIRES BACK AT MEXICAN PRESIDENT IN BORDER SPAT: ‘NEW DADDY IN TOWN’
Moments after the incident, protesters not involved in the hit-and-run were seen heckling Ramaswamy as he was entering the coffee house. One called him an “a–h—” while advocating for public schools. Another shouted “protect trans kids” and a third told him “climate change is real.”
“Anyone else have something to say?” Ramaswamy said to them.
“What’s it like being the punching bag of the RNC?” one protester asked.
“Well I think the RNC is corrupt. I think both political parties are pretty corrupt,” Ramaswamy responded.
RAMASWAMY UNVEILS PLAN TO ‘DECLARE ECONOMIC INDEPENDENCE FROM CHINA’ IN UPCOMING POLICY SPEECH
Another protester shouted, “My mom’s a public school worker and she deserves to be paid and respected!”
“I think every person deserves to be respected but we are failing to do right by our kids in this country,” Ramaswamy replied. “Our achievement gap versus other countries is bad and we’re all in that together.”
“But here is what I will say: The beauty of this country is that you all have the right to express your opinions and you’re doing it peacefully. And even though I disagree with you, I’m proud of you for expressing your views even if I disagree with you,” he continued.
The protester then accused Ramaswamy of wanting to “destroy her job and her livelihood,” something Ramaswamy quickly rejected.
“I do want to fix our public schools though. So thank her for her service for me. I really mean that,” Ramsawamy told the protester. “But we also have to focus on how we’re going to improve achievement of our kids. And I think with your mom, if she’s as earnest as you’re describing, I’m sure she cares about the same thing, we’re not getting there with the existing system we have. So we’re gonna have to find a better way to do it. And one of the ways we’re going to do it is through open debate. You guys are doing your part. I’m gonna do mind. Keep it up.”
The protesters seemed to disperse after police arrived to the scene, according to the campaign.
“Vivek will always stand for free speech and the right to peaceful protest, but when protesters cross the line and escalate to physical (intentional or otherwise) that is unAmerican and unacceptable,” Ramaswamy press secretary Tricia McLaughlin told FOX News Digital.
Ramaswamy later posted on social media, “I believe in free speech, especially for those who disagree with me. Violence is never the answer. We will always hold ourselves to a higher standard than the other side.”
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Dennis Prager: ‘Breaking Biden’ Is a ‘Very Important Book’ from ‘One of the Most Important People in the Country’
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Jean-Pierre claims Biden is helpless against own admin’s border wall; president believes it won’t work
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre clarified that President Biden does not actually want the border wall expedited by his administration.
Jean-Pierre, speaking to the press Thursday, said Biden is opposed to the border wall demanded by his Department of Homeland Security and immigration officials.
“This is a law that we are complying with. We have asked Congress multiple times to reappropriate [funding for the wall]. This is not the way that we believe is going to be effective here.
“We believe in modernizing the system, not actually building a wall. The president said himself he does not think this is effective.
BIDEN SAYS A WALL WON’T STEM TIDE OF MIGRANTS, BUT HIS ADMIN JUST ADMITTED THEY NEED ONE
“We think there are other ways to do that, whether it’s smarter, more effective border security measures — like border technology — we believe that works when you modernize that and also land ports of entry. We believe that’s what works to deal with border security.”
Through a series of conflicting internal statements, the Biden administration has been put in an awkward position of actively waiving federal laws to begin construction of barriers on the southern border at the same time its official stance is ostensibly opposed to the project on ethical grounds and questioning its effectiveness.
At the press conference Thursday, Jean-Pierre seemed to attribute the construction of the border wall to former President Donald Trump’s administration.
“[Biden] has been very clear about this. He doesn’t believe the border wall is effective. And that has not changed. That has not changed. We are complying by the law. DHS is complying by the law,” the press secretary said. “But that appropriation came from fiscal year 2019 under the last administration, Republican leadership. And that’s what you’re seeing now.”
Fox News Digital reported Wednesday that Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas is citing an “acute and immediate need” to waive dozens of federal laws to build a border wall in south Texas, where illegal migration has surged.
It’s a sharp contrast to dismissals of the use of such barriers in the early days of the administration, forcing Biden to characterize himself as effectively helpless in the face of his own administration and cabinet as they actively work against his stated values with his tacit permission.
BIDEN ADMINISTRATION ACCUSED OF HYPOCRISY FOR PROPOSING BORDER WALL AMID MIGRANT CRISIS
Biden, speaking after his administration announced border wall construction in Texas, said at the White House Thursday he tried to “redirect” the money for the project.
“I’ll answer one question on the border wall, the border wall where money was appropriated for the border wall. I tried to get them to reappropriate, to redirect that money,” Biden said. “They didn’t. They wouldn’t. And, in the meantime, there’s nothing under the law other than they have to use the money for what it was appropriated. I can’t stop that.”
When asked by a reporter if he believes a border wall works, Biden said “no.”
The administration had put a halt to new border wall construction in early 2021, after Biden had promised as a presidential candidate that there would “not be another foot of wall constructed on my administration.” The administration said wall construction under the Trump administration was “just one example of the prior administration’s misplaced priorities and failure to manage migration in a safe, orderly and humane way.”
However, the construction is funded by the fiscal year 2019 Department of Homeland Security appropriations bill, which specifically funded wall projects in the Rio Grande Valley Sector and which DHS is required to use for its appropriated purpose.
The announcement comes as the Biden administration is facing a fresh surge in illegal immigration, leading to record-high numbers at the southern border and intense political criticism from both Republicans and Democrats. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) sources told Fox News last week there were more than 260,000 encounters in September, which would be the highest monthly total on record.
Fox News Digital’s Greg Normand and Adam Shaw contributed to this report.
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