Democrat Congresswoman Indicted For Using FEMA Funds To Bankroll Her Campaign
Voters so far have been undeterred by her alleged crimes; the House Ethics Committee began investigating her in 2023.Voters so far have been undeterred by her alleged crimes; the House Ethics Committee began investigating her in 2023.Do you want Caesar? Because this is how you get Caesar
Political solutions feel increasingly out of reach in the United States. Congress cannot pass a budget and has offloaded most of its legislative duties to lobbyists and the permanent bureaucracy. The judiciary spends more time blocking lawful presidential action than interpreting law. Executive agencies drag their feet under activist judges and rebellious career staff. Inflation continues to punish households, the health care system teeters, and American workers watch themselves replaced by imported labor.
In moments like these, people look for someone who can simply make the system function again. That is how you get a Caesar.
Caesar does not appear because the existing powers pushed too far, but because they refused to act decisively when action was needed.
Though “dictator” carries a purely negative meaning today, the term originally described a legitimate emergency office in the Roman Republic. Rome elected two consuls who shared executive authority, but when a true crisis struck — invasion, rebellion, famine — Roman law allowed the temporary selection of a dictator who ruled alone for six months. The point was efficiency during existential danger.
Rome famously revered figures like Cincinnatus, elected dictator twice, who relinquished power immediately when the crisis ended. His restraint, not his authority, made him a civic hero. Tradition demanded this behavior; violating it meant disgrace and, often enough, assassination. George Washington consciously modeled his own two-term limit on this Roman example.
The end of the Roman Republic is often associated with Julius Caesar being named dictator for life. The underlying crisis, however, predated him. Rome’s elites consolidated land, squeezed citizens out of ownership, imported a large slave class that drove down wages, and ignored the growing unrest. The Senate refused to act and violence broke out. Does any of this sound familiar?
Caesar marched on Rome, won a civil war, and took power. He reformed the calendar, overhauled the justice system, cut welfare, and enacted land reforms. He was popular with the public but enraged the ruling class by destroying their privileges. His assassination ended his rule, but not the transformation he initiated. The republic was finished.
Spengler’s forecast
In “The Decline of the West,” Oswald Spengler argued that civilizations follow a life-cycle: birth, growth, decline, and death. In the late stage, societies fall under the control of bureaucratic oligarchies powered by money. Rules remain on paper, but decisions always serve wealthy interests. Economic mobility collapses. The public is effectively locked out.
These eras are marked by deep cultural divides. A decadent, urban elite begins to live in ways utterly foreign to the people they rule. Wealth concentrates in cities. Cosmopolitan values take hold. Citizens no longer recognize their own country.
When legislative bodies fail, bureaucracies grow unchallengeable, and moneyed elites block ordinary people from their own society, Spengler argued that a Caesar figure reliably emerges — a leader who sweeps aside gridlock and imposes order. Not necessarily a tyrant in the cartoonish sense, but a figure who commands enough power to break the stalemate.
The danger is obvious: Once such a leader accumulates that power, nothing guarantees he gives it back. Caesar may save the nation, transform it, or accelerate its decline. What is certain is that once he arrives, the political order changes rapidly.
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America’s crossroads
It is hard not to look at today’s United States and see a similar pattern emerging. Donald Trump is not Caesar, but he has been forced to govern through executive orders because Congress refuses to act and the bureaucracy works to undermine him. Activists hold No Kings rallies while Steve Bannon urges Trump to return in 2028. Passionate positions create momentum, and what begins as rhetoric can become a real possibility.
Once an idea becomes a constant point of reference — even in opposition — it gains a form of inevitability. That is the nature of political hyperstition.
If Americans want to avoid a real Caesar, the only solution is to fix the problems that make one appealing. Caesar does not appear because the existing powers pushed too far, but because they refused to act decisively when action was needed.
The borders must close. Replacement labor through expanded visa programs must end. Inflation must be crushed. Foreign adventurism must stop. Policy must shift away from elite wealth extraction and toward enabling young Americans to buy homes and start families. The cultural divide must narrow, and shared values must be restored.
None of this is easy. All of it is essential. If these challenges remain unanswered, no one should be surprised when Caesar finally arrives.
Zelenskyy's hold on power uncertain as criminal charges reach his inner circle
Volodymyr Zelenskyy — the Ukrainian leader who suspended elections, dissolved rival parties, sanctioned a political opponent on suspicion of "high treason," consolidated Ukraine's media outlets, banned a Christian denomination, and remains president despite his term officially ending 18 months ago — rose to power on a pledge to give Ukrainians "a life without corruption, without bribes."
Zelenskyy's hold on power, however, now appears uncertain, as it is threatened by a historic corruption scandal that has swept up some of his closest allies.
Zelenskyy, allies prove unable to hinder probe
Earlier this year, the Ukrainian president and his closest aides attempted to neutralize the independent anti-corruption agencies that were scrutinizing Zelenskyy's inner circle.
In July, Zelenskyy's party pushed through legislation stripping Ukraine's National Anticorruption Bureau of its independence and giving the prosecutor general, a Zelenskyy appointee, oversight. This took place the day after the State Bureau of Investigation — which is helmed by a Zelenskyy loyalist — arrested NABU officials and conducted numerous raids of corruption fighters' homes.
'Zelensky faces a day of reckoning.'
The director of the anti-corruption bureau, Semen Kryvonos, indicated at the time that "this pressure campaign is a direct response to the effectiveness of our investigations, including those targeting high-ranking officials and members of Parliament."
The Financial Times indicated that in the face of mass protests and outrage from Ukraine's Western partners, Zelenskyy and his allies ultimately had to abandon their efforts to torpedo the 15-month investigation.
Zelenskyy desperately condemns his close allies
Despite the obstacles erected by the regime, the anti-corruption investigation conducted by NABU and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office exposed an alleged $100 million kickback scheme in which Zelenskyy officials and business figures allegedly conspired to force suppliers to Ukraine's nuclear power company, Energoatom, to pay kickbacks valued at 10%-15% of each contract's value.
In their searches of suspects' residences, law enforcement reportedly found duffel bags filled with cash and, in one case, a Kyiv apartment with a golden toilet.
Kryvonos indicated the funds allegedly pilfered as part of the scheme have largely been dispersed through a number of foreign nations and used to purchase property and other assets, reported the Wall Street Journal.
The Ukrainian president — who was "floored" by the scale of the charges made against members of his ruling clique, sources in the government told the Economist — has done his apparent best to distance himself from those named in the criminal corruption probe, which has been dubbed Operation Midas.
For instance, Zelenskyy, who was not named in the corruption probe, imposed sanctions last week on one of his closest associates and former business partner, Timur Mindich.
Mindich, who fled to Israel just prior to NABU's Nov. 10 raids, has been charged with allegedly managing a criminal organization that laundered millions of dollars.
Mindich is reportedly a close business associate of Israeli-Ukrainian oligarch Ihor Kolomoysky, a backer of Zelenskyy's presidential campaign who was arrested by the Security Service of Ukraine in 2023 on fraud and money-laundering charges, and a relative of Leonid Mindich, who was arrested by Ukrainian anti-corruption authorities earlier this year on charges of embezzling $16 million from an electric power company.
Zelenskyy also asked his ministers of justice and energy — German Halushchenko and Svitlana Grynchuk — to resign last week, stating, "This is also a matter of trust. If there are accusations, they must be addressed. The decision to dismiss them from office is prompt and necessary."
Grynchuk said in a Facebook post, "There have been no violations of the law in the course of my personal activities."
Halushchenko, who served as energy minister until his dismissal in July and was removed as justice minister on Nov. 12, has indicated that he will defend himself against the accusations.
According to Ukrainska Pravda, Timur Mindich allegedly built connections with Halushchenko through his relationship with Zelenskyy and then exerted influence over both the ex-justice minister and Rustem Umerov, secretary of the Ukrainian National Security and Defense Council and ex-defense minister.
Although Umerov is presently in the U.S., Ukraine's Center for Counter Disinformation indicated he is planning to return to Ukraine despite reports that he was hoping to stay abroad to avoid charges.
Other suspects tied to the alleged kickback scheme reportedly include:
- Ihor Myroniuk, an ex-adviser to Halushchenko and former deputy head of the State Property Fund whose lawyer claims he was not a member of a criminal organization;
- former Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Oleksii Chernyshov, a close Zelenskyy ally who was removed from his position in July after being charged with bribery and abuse of office, then arrested on Tuesday on charges of illicit enrichment in connection with the alleged kickback scheme;
- Serhiy Pushkar, a current member of the National Energy Commission;
- Oleksandr Tsukerman, a Ukrainian businessman accused of running the money laundering back office in the scheme, who reportedly left Ukraine for Israel and denies wrongdoing; and
- Dmytro Basov, former head of the Energoatom security department, who also denied any wrongdoing.
Daria Kaleniuk, executive director at the Anti-Corruption Action Center in Kyiv, told France 24 on Monday that the investigation is far from over and that Zelenskyy has to look very closely into his closest inner circle, starting with his chief of staff, Andriy Yermak, who Kaleniuk claimed is wielding unconstitutional powers in the country and is at the heart of the problem.
"If there will be more attempts from Zelenskyy to attack anti-corruption bodies like there was attempt[ed] in summer, there would be also for me the clear signal that Volodomyr Zelenskyy didn't learn his lesson," added Kaleniuk.
Sources close to the anti-corruption bodies made clear to the Economist that the investigation's next phase may focus on corruption in the defense sector, which may prompt greater demands for a full reset of the Ukrainian government.
"Zelenskyy faces a day of reckoning," a senior official told the Economist. "The choice isn’t great. Either he amputates a leg, or he gets an infection going through the whole body and dies."
"I think that right now, both society and the political class understand that a political crisis would be too dangerous," Volodymyr Fesenko, a political scientist based in Kyiv, told the Financial Times. "A lot depends on the next steps of the investigation, if new information comes out that involves Zelenskyy or the office of the president ... then of course, it'll be a new round."
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LeBron James' closest allies now in the spotlight for shocking NBA gambling probe
Two members of LeBron James' inner circle are being investigated as part of the NBA's ongoing inquiries into gambling and insider tipoffs.
It's been nearly a month since the FBI released the shocking indictments of an NBA coach and player, along with a former NBA player.
'That player was not named in the team's injury report at the time. James did not play in that game.'
Portland Trail Blazers coach Chauncey Billups, current Miami Heat player Terry Rozier, and former NBA player Damon Jones were indicted. Rozier was accused of sharing insider information to gamblers, while Billups was allegedly involved in illegal poker games hosted by Italian mob families; Jones was reportedly involved in both.
Now as the NBA continues its investigation, disaster could be around the corner for the league as Los Angeles Lakers personnel and those in close contact with James have reportedly surrendered their cell phones to an inquiring law firm hired by the NBA.
According to the Athletic, firm Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz has been contacting NBA teams to ask for cell phones, phone records, and other items. The firm has reportedly sought information from 10 Lakers employees, including assistant trainer Mike Mancias and executive administrator Randy Mims. Both have very close ties to James and reportedly gave up their cell phones voluntarily.
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Mancias, 48, has reportedly been training James for around 20 years, while 50-year-old Mims has been associated with James since he was in high school in Akron, Ohio. James was drafted out of high school at 18 years old in 2003. Mims was described as James' uncle in a 2003 Sports Illustrated article.
The player connection
The following information reported by the Athletic is circumstantial in nature, and it is important to note that neither James, Mancias, nor Mims have been charged with any crimes.
As part of his alleged betting scheme, former player Jones is accused by law enforcement of selling information about the injuries of two Lakers players to bettors on at least two occasions. In his indictment, Jones is labeled as a coach or teammate of a "prominent NBA player," described as "Player 3," whose relationship he abused to sell information to professional gamblers.
According to prosecutors, Jones found out on February 9, 2023, that "Player 3" would not play in a game between the Lakers and the Milwaukee Bucks and told someone to place a "big bet" on the Bucks based on Player 3's absence. That player was not named in the team's injury report at the time. James did not play in that game.
Furthermore, on January 15, 2024, Jones allegedly sold his knowledge on a "Player 4," who was allegedly injured. Jones was accused of passing on knowledge that Player 4's performance would be impacted by the injury in a game against the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Federal authorities reportedly said that Jones "claimed to have learned from the trainer for 'Player 3' and 'Player 4' that 'Player 4' was hurt."
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More connections, more charges
James' business manager and known business partner Maverick Carter reportedly told federal agents in 2021 that he bet on NBA games with an illegal bookmaker. In November 2021, Carter told federal agents he "could not remember placing any bets on the Lakers" and also denied placing bets for others, ESPN reported.
Carter revealed he put down about 20 bets on football and basketball games over the span of one year, ranging from $5,000 to $10,000. The bookie Carter used, Wayne Nix, pleaded guilty to participating in a large, offshore betting ring.
Carter was named in the aforementioned 2003 Sports Illustrated piece as one of those "closest to James on a daily basis," along with Mims. At the time, he was described as a former high school teammate who was three years older than James and employed by Nike to "take care of their $90 million man."
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