We finally have an idea why John Bolton is in hot water — and the factor that could bring things to a boil



John Bolton, President Donald Trump's former national security adviser, is reportedly under investigation for allegedly mishandling classified information. If held to his own standard, then his days as a free man might be numbered.

Nearly a year after the FBI's 2022 raid of Trump's Palm Beach residence, Jack Smith — the special counsel illegally appointed by Biden Attorney General Merrick Garland — charged Trump with supposedly mishandling classified information.

'Bolton likely jeopardized national security by disclosing classified information in violation of his nondisclosure agreements.'

Bolton was among those who rushed to attack the president, happily touring liberal newsrooms with smears and speculation. He told Biden press secretary turned MSNBC talking head Jen Psaki, for instance, that he was "pretty confident" the allegations in the Trump indictment were true.

While admittedly oblivious to the contents of the documents that Trump supposedly retained, Bolton told CNN, "They did go to absolute, the most important secrets that the United States has, directly affecting national security, directly affecting the lives and safety of our service members and our civilian population. If he has anything like what … the indictment alleges, and of course the government will have to prove it, then he has committed very serious crimes."

"This really is a rifle shot," Bolton said in reference to the indictment, "and I think it should be the end of Donald Trump’s political career."

While Trump's case was ultimately dismissed, Bolton's troubles with the law are apparently beginning to snowball.

RELATED: Jack Smith tried to take Trump off the board. Now he's set for a reckoning.

FBI conducts authorized search of Bolton's house on Aug. 22. Photo by SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images

The FBI raided Bolton's home in Bethesda, Maryland, on the morning of Aug. 22 on FBI Director Kash Patel's orders. Later in the day, federal agents searched Bolton's Washington, D.C., office.

A top U.S. official told the New York Post that the raid was in connection with a resurrected probe involving Bolton's alleged use of a private email server to send classified national security documents to family members from his work desk prior to his September 2019 dismissal by Trump.

The official told the Post, "While Bolton was a national security adviser, he was literally stealing classified information, utilizing his family as a cutout."

'Washed up Creepster John Bolton is a lowlife who should be in jail.'

In Trump's first term, the Department of Justice opened a criminal investigation into whether Bolton disclosed classified information in his book, "The Room Where It Happened," after first proving unable to stop the publication of the book with a lawsuit.

The Trump administration failed to secure an injunction because Bolton's book had already made its way into the hands of booksellers.

"Bolton likely jeopardized national security by disclosing classified information in violation of his nondisclosure agreements," wrote U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth. "The government sufficiently alleges that Bolton disclosed information without confirming that the information was unclassified."

Lamberth noted further that while "Bolton may indeed have caused the country irreparable harm," "with hundreds of thousands of copies around the globe — many in newsrooms — the damage is done."

RELATED: Gabbard CLEANS HOUSE after warning Brennan, Clapper 'have a lot of their own people' squirreled away

Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Trump noted in June 2020, "Washed up Creepster John Bolton is a lowlife who should be in jail, money seized, for disseminating, for profit, highly Classified information."

The case was referred to the DOJ by then-Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe, but the resulting investigation was torpedoed by President Joe Biden's administration for "political reasons," according a top U.S. official.

The probe has been reopened — and it appears that the stakes are higher than previously acknowledged, as Bolton's alleged carelessness was exploited by a foreign regime.

Individuals said to be familiar with the investigation but speaking on the condition of anonymity recently told the New York Times that the U.S. gathered data from an adversarial country's spy service and found emails containing sensitive information that Bolton allegedly sent to individuals "close to him" on an unclassified system while still working for the Trump administration.

It is presently unclear which adversarial nation obtained the emails.

The individuals familiar with the probe indicated that the emails contained information apparently taken from classified documents Bolton had seen while serving as Trump's national security adviser.

Bolton is evidently taking the investigation seriously, having reportedly had discussions with Abbe Lowell, the high-profile criminal defense attorney who has represented pardoned felon Hunter Biden, New York state Attorney General Letitia James, and ex-Federal Reserve board member Lisa Cook.

The White House referred Blaze News to the DOJ for comment, which declined to comment when pressed by the Times. Bolton also reportedly declined to comment.

On his first day back in office, Trump revoked any security clearances Bolton might have held.

Trump noted that the publication of Bolton's memoir "created a grave risk that classified material was publicly exposed" and "undermined the ability of future presidents to request and obtain candid advice on matters of national security from their staff."

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Wisconsin Judge Will Stand Trial On Charges Of Helping Illegal Alien Flee From ICE

Even a far-left federal judge isn't buying Milwaukee County Judge Hannah Dugan's claim she’s immune from criminal prosecution.

'Stop talking and get to work': Trump blasts Democrat Gov. Wes Moore over Maryland crime



Maryland Gov. Wes Moore appears eager to paint a rosy picture of his state and to downplay the severity of its crime problem. President Donald Trump simply isn't buying what the Democrat is selling.

The president announced on Aug. 11 that he was federalizing the Washington Metropolitan Police Department and deploying the National Guard in order to "re-establish law, order, and public safety" to the national capital.

FBI statistics show that Baltimore has 'the fifth-most instances of violent crime on a per capita basis, [and the] fourth-highest murder rate.'

Despite complaints from Democrats and other leftists, the initiative has been tremendously successful. In the first week, D.C. saw a 19% drop in property crimes and a 17% drop in violent crimes when compared with the previous week. The city also enjoyed at least 10 days without a murder.

Trump indicated at the outset that he has a mind to similarly bring law and order to other crime-ridden cities, including Baltimore, a city of fewer than 570,000 people, which has a 1 rating on Neighborhood Scout's crime index where 100 is safest. Trump's threat of a life-saving federal intervention did not sit well with Moore.

Less than two weeks after offering a knee-jerk critique of the president's deployment of the National Guard, Moore suggested in an Aug. 21 letter to Trump that his state and the city of Baltimore are making progress where crime is concerned, citing a supposed 20% drop in homicides statewide since he took office two and a half years ago and a 22% year-over-year decrease in Baltimore homicides in the first six months of 2025.

Moore suggested that Baltimore was "on track to have the lowest number of homicides" since the city began officially keeping crime statistics, then invited Trump to attend a "public safety walk" in September.

RELATED: The numbers hold terrible news for the Democrats’ future

Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

The Democratic governor followed up his letter with an interview on Sunday with CBS News' "Face the Nation," where he vowed not to authorize the Maryland National Guard to be utilized for Trump's law and order initiative; characterized the deployment of the National Guard as "unconstitutional"; and claimed that Trump was both "living in this blissful ignorance" and engaging in "1980s scare tactics" on the crime issue.

Baltimore's Democrat mayor, Brandon Scott, has similarly suggested that Trump is pushing a false narrative about the crime problem in Maryland, stating, "When it comes to public safety in Baltimore, [Trump] should turn off the right-wing propaganda and look at the facts. Baltimore is the safest it's been in over 50 years."

'Stop talking and get to work, Wes.'

Despite signaling an aversion to federal troops in Baltimore and suggesting things have improved in his city, Mayor Scott has called for "additional resources for Baltimore's ATF, DEA, and FBI field offices."

Moore did not argue with talking head Margaret Brennan when she acknowledged that FBI statistics show that Baltimore has "the fifth-most instances of violent crime on a per capita basis, [and the] fourth-highest murder rate," but he rejected Trump's strategy in D.C. as a possible remedy, calling it "purely performative."

Trump punched back on Sunday, writing on Truth Social, "Governor Wes Moore of Maryland has asked, in a rather nasty and provocative tone, that I 'walk the streets of Maryland' with him. I assume he is talking about out of control, crime ridden, Baltimore? As President, I would much prefer that he clean up this Crime disaster before I go there for a 'walk.'"

"Wes Moore's record on Crime is a very bad one, unless he fudges his figures on crime like many of the other 'Blue States' are doing. But if Wes Moore needs help, like Gavin Newscum did in L.A., I will send in the 'troops,' which is being done in nearby DC, and quickly clean up the Crime," continued Trump. "After only one week, there is NO CRIME AND NO MURDER IN DC! When it is like that in Baltimore, I will proudly 'walk the streets' with the failing, because of Crime, Governor of Maryland. P.S. Baltimore is ranked the 4th WORST CITY IN THE NATION IN CRIME & MURDER."

"Stop talking and get to work, Wes. I’ll then see you on the streets!" added the president.

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'Caught red-handed': New York Gov. Hochul tries to quietly spare killer criminal noncitizen from deportation



New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) has long used her pardon powers to spare criminal noncitizens from deportation.

For instance, in December 2022, Hochul pardoned nine foreign nationals who engaged in criminal activity after migrating to the United States — crimes including drug dealing, theft, robbery witness tampering, and drug possession.

"Clemency is a powerful tool that can be exercised to advance the interests of justice and fairness and to recognize efforts made by individuals to improve not only their own lives but the lives of those around them," the Democratic governor said at the time.

Vatthanavong 'would be on a deportation flight to Laos' were it not for Hochul's intervention.

The Democrat governor has issued yet another slew of pardons, but this she time did so without any fanfare and announced them only after the New York Times reported on the decision — likely because she was helping a killer avoid deportation.

Sammy Vatthanavong, 52, reportedly entered the U.S. as a refugee from Laos with his family around the age of 7. He was convicted of first-degree manslaughter in 1990 after gunning down an unarmed man two years earlier during a confrontation in a Brooklyn pool hall.

According to AsAmNews, Vatthanavong — who claimed he acted in self-defense — was sentenced to 14 years in prison and stripped of his green card.

RELATED: Foreign-born population dropped by historic number during Trump's first 6 months in office, analysis finds

Photo by TheStewartofNY/Getty Images

Mekong NYC — a Southeast Asian-focused liberal organization in New York City that is committed to "creating a strong safety net rooted in community power" — and the Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund waged a months-long pressure campaign to get Hochul to pardon Vatthanavong.

Mekong NYC claimed the governor "has a moral responsibility to take every step possible to protect our immigrant communities" and accused the Trump administration of "heinous" attacks on immigrants.

Both groups stressed the urgency of the pardon, suggesting that without it, his deportation was all but guaranteed.

Hochul granted the killer an unconditional pardon on July 1, one day ahead of his mandatory immigration appointment, where Mekong NYC suggested he stood a risk of arrest.

Department of Homeland Security spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin confirmed to the New York Times that Vatthanavong "would be on a deportation flight to Laos" were it not for Hochul's intervention.

"If you are a convicted criminal alien, you should not have the privilege to be in this country," added McLaughlin.

'I’ll be damned if I let them be deported to a country where they don’t know a soul.'

Republican Rep. Elise Stefanik (N.Y.) noted that Hochul tried to get the pardon through without New Yorkers finding out.

"Kathy Hochul was caught red-handed for secretly pardoning a violent illegal felon," Stefanik said in a statement. "Her dangerous secret pardon of this violent criminal illegal who should have been deported 35 years ago after his conviction is just another example of her putting criminals and illegals first instead of law-abiding New Yorkers."

"What is most shameful is the Worst Governor in America Kathy Hochul issued this heinous pardon in secret, hoping New Yorkers wouldn’t find out," added Stefanik.

Hochul suggested that the criminal noncitizen who fatally wounded an unarmed man should remain in the country because he supposedly poses no threat.

RELATED: ‘Paperwork Americans’ are not your countrymen

Photographer: Christopher Dilts/Bloomberg via Getty Images

"Unless I believe someone poses a danger, I follow what the Bible tells us: 'Forgive one another as God in Christ forgave you,'" Hochul said in a statement to the New York Times. "They’ve paid their debt, and I’ll be damned if I let them be deported to a country where they don’t know a soul."

"Without the community that rallied behind me, I would have been on that deportation flight to Southeast Asia today with over 100 others," Vatthanavong said in a statement obtained by AsAmNews. "This pardon from Governor Hochul feels like being reborn. Everyone deserves a second chance, and my story is proof that when our communities fight together, we can protect each other."

Blaze News has reached out to the Department of Homeland Security about whether Vatthanavong can still be arrested and then deported.

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Exclusive: Oversight Project refers former FBI Director Wray to DOJ for criminal charges



FBI Director Kash Patel announced earlier this month that the bureau located an intelligence report from August 2020 that detailed "alarming allegations" regarding an apparent Chinese communist plot to interfere in the presidential election for the benefit of then-candidate Joe Biden.

Such allegations, if brought to light at the time, would have vindicated the concerns about voter fraud and foreign election interference then expressed by President Donald Trump and former Attorney General Bill Barr, which were written off by election officials, Democrats, and the liberal media as "unfounded" and "preposterous."

Instead, elements of the intelligence community apparently covered up the alleged foreign election interference campaign.

"Former FBI leadership withheld the facts and misled the public on China's 2020 election interference," Patel stated on Thursday. "And they did so for political gain."

Patel noted in a separate message, "We're restoring trust — through transparency, not politics."

Mike Howell, president of the Oversight Project, sent a criminal referral for former FBI Director Christopher Wray to the Department of Justice on Thursday, seeking accountability not only for Wray's alleged role in the apparent cover-up but for his alleged false or misleading statements to Congress regarding the infamous FBI memo targeting traditional Catholics.

Election interference cover-up

The referral obtained by Blaze News, which was also sent to Director Patel's office on Thursday, alleges that Wray violated federal law by giving false and misleading testimony to Congress on the topic of known voter fraud efforts.

On Sept. 24, 2020, Wray told the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee that the FBI had "not seen, historically, any kind of coordinated national voter fraud effort in a major election, whether it's by mail or otherwise."

On March 2, 2021, Wray suggested to the Senate Judiciary Committee that the FBI was "not aware of any widespread evidence of voter fraud, much less that would have affected the outcome of the presidential election."

RELATED: Vindicated? Patel's FBI uncovers apparent Chinese communist plot to rig 2020 mail-in vote for Biden

Photo by LEAH MILLIS/POOL/AFP via Getty Images

The trouble with both statements is that they fly in the face of what the FBI apparently knew about the alleged Chinese communist attempt to swing the election for Biden.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection announced on July 27, 2020, that between Jan. 1 and June 30 of that election year, CBP officers at the International Mail Facility at Chicago O'Hare International Airport had seized 1,513 shipments containing fraudulent documents, including 19,888 counterfeit U.S. driver's licenses.

"The majority of these shipments were arriving from China and Hong Kong, with other seized shipments arriving from Great Britain and South Korea," noted CBP.

Blaze News previously reported that the bulk of the licenses were intended for college-age students across numerous states and in many cases had functional barcodes.

The August 2020 FBI intelligence report helped make sense of this sudden glut of fake IDs, suggesting that the Chinese communist regime was mass-producing fake American driver's licenses in order to create voter identities for Chinese nationals so that they could vote with fake mail-in ballots.

'Accountability for the bad actors in government would be practically a case of first impression.'

Patel told Just the News that while substantiated, the allegations in the intelligence report "were abruptly recalled and never disclosed to the public."

The Oversight Project made abundantly clear in its referral that it was highly unlikely Wray was unaware of this report and the allegations therein when he testified before Congress in 2020 and 2021.

After all, Wray apparently received routine briefings about threats to the integrity of the 2020 election from Nikki Floris, the FBI deputy assistant director for counterterrorism at the time, who had raised the alarm in October 2019 about China "aggressively pursuing foreign influence operations."

RELATED: 1,004 days of betrayal for suspended FBI Special Agent Garret O’Boyle

Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images

Weaponization against Catholics

The House Judiciary Committee and its Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government indicated in a December 2023 report that the FBI:

  • "abused its counterterrorism tools to target Catholic Americans as potential domestic terrorists";
  • "relied on at least one undercover agent to develop its assessment";
  • "proposed developing sources among the Catholic clergy and church leadership"; and
  • would likely still be "violating the religious liberties of millions of Catholic Americans" were it not for former FBI special agent Kyle Seraphin's disclosure.

Congressional investigators began looking closely at the bureau's anti-Catholic animus after a memo from the bureau's Richmond field office was leaked earlier that year, tying adherents of the Catholic faith to violent extremist views.

RELATED: The FBI was completely correct to keep an eye on Catholics

Nes/Getty Images

While Wray previously testified to Congress that the Richmond field office produced only a "single product," Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) has demonstrated that not to have been the case.

Grassley revealed earlier this month both that the memo was distributed to over 1,000 FBI employees across the country and that the FBI produced "at least 13 additional documents and five attachments that used anti-Catholic terminology and relied on information from the radical far-left Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC)."

— (@)

The Oversight Project's criminal referral alleges that Wray repeatedly gave false testimony about the Richmond anti-Catholic memo, noting that his "testimony was inaccurate not only because it failed to reveal the scope of the memo’s production and dissemination, but also because it failed to reveal the existence of a second draft product on the same topic intended for external distribution to the whole FBI."

"Furthermore, a query of Sentinel (the FBI’s case management system) identified 13 documents and 5 attachments that included the term, 'radical traditionalist catholic' or 'Radical-Traditionalist Catholic' in the FBI systems," said the watchdog's criminal referral. "The Intelligence Memo itself states on page 24 of the PDF — '(U) Prepared by the Richmond Division and the Domestic Terrorism Operations Unit; coordinated with FBI Milwaukee and FBI Portland Divisions.'"

Between his statements to Congress about election interference and his statements about the FBI's anti-Catholic memorandum, the Oversight Project figures that Wray committed several criminal violations, including obstruction of proceedings before Congress; corrupt conduct; and making false statements.

When asked to comment on whether he expects Wray to be held accountable for his alleged violations, Howell told Blaze News, "I don't expect accountability, but we certainly deserve accountability."

"Accountability for the bad actors in government would be practically a case of first impression," continued Howell. "To expect it would be unrealistic optimism, but it should and could happen, and that's why the Oversight Project is making the case publicly and doing everything we can to make it more likely to happen."

Mike Howell is a contributor to Blaze News.

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Cuomo camp blasts DOJ's COVID cover-up investigation as election meddling



The Department of Justice has reportedly kicked off an investigation into disgraced former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D).

Sources familiar with the matter told the New York Times that the inquiry was initiated a month ago by the U.S. attorney's office in Washington, around the time that the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform Chairman James Comer (R-Ky.) referred Cuomo to the DOJ for criminal prosecution.

In his referral — a rehash of a previous criminal referral filed by former Ohio Rep. Brad Wenstrup (R) in October then ignored by former Attorney General Merrick Garland — Comer alleged that Cuomo provided false statements to Congress regarding his manipulation of a supposedly independent report concerning New York's COVID-19 nursing home tragedy.

"Andrew Cuomo is a man with a history of corruption and deceit, now caught red-handed lying to Congress during the Select Subcommittee's investigation into the COVID-19 nursing home tragedy in New York," Comer said at the time.

"This wasn't a slip-up," continued Comer. "It was a calculated cover-up by a man seeking to shield himself from responsibility for the devastating loss of life in New York’s nursing homes. Let's be clear: Lying to Congress is a federal crime."

Comer underscored Tuesday, "Cuomo must be prosecuted."

RELATED: Andrew Cuomo returns, hoping you forgot the body count

dam Gray/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Following news that the DOJ had opened an investigation, Cuomo's campaign and the liberal media rushed to insinuate election interference on the part of the Trump administration. After all, Cuomo is running as a Democrat in New York City's mayoral race and is likely to go head-to-head with Mayor Eric Adams, whose corruption case the Trump DOJ moved to dismiss earlier this year. A judge permanently dropped the case in April.

'I'm not going to do to him what others did to me.'

"We have never been informed of any such matter, so why would someone leak it now? The answer is obvious: This is lawfare and election interference plain and simple — something President Trump and his top Department of Justice officials say they are against," Rich Azzopardi, a spokesman for Cuomo, said in a statement obtained by multiple outlets.

"Governor Cuomo testified truthfully to the best of his recollection about events from four years earlier, and he offered to address any follow-up questions from the Subcommittee — but from the beginning this was all transparently political," added Azzopardi.

Melissa DeRosa, a former key aide for Cuomo and a Democratic strategist, tweeted, "Trump wants a mayor who will bend the knee. ... Andrew Cuomo is his nightmare come true ... enter law-fare ... and a galvanized democratic base."

The Times clearly ran with this framing, writing:

Mr. Trump routinely calls for criminal inquiries of political foes and people who have crossed him, often based on what legal experts say are flimsy claims of wrongdoing. His appointees at the Justice Department have increasingly signaled a willingness to use their investigative and prosecutorial powers to carry out Mr. Trump's wishes.

When pressed for comment, Adams' press secretary Kayla Mamelak Altus directed Blaze News to Adams' Wednesday address, where the mayor reiterated his disappointment with how the pandemic was handled and noted "the investigations must take their course."

"I'm not going to do to him what others did to me," said Adams. "I'm going to allow the investigation to take its course."

The Times noted that a spokesman for the DOJ and a spokeswoman for the FBI declined to comment, citing a policy of neither confirming nor denying ongoing investigations.

While Azzopardi, the Times, and others are keen to characterize the investigation as a political exercise in "lawfare," Comer and Wenstrup have provided what appears to be fairly damning evidence of Cuomo's false statements in his June 12, 2024, closed-door interview with congressional investigators.

In March 2020, the Cuomo administration issued a directive stating, "No resident shall be denied re-admission or admission to [a nursing home] solely based on a confirmed or suspected diagnosis of COVID-19. [Nursing homes] are prohibited from requiring a hospitalized resident who is determined medically stable to be tested for COVID-19 prior to admission or readmission."

This directive resulted in the admission of thousands of COVID-positive patients to nursing homes around the state. According to a February 2021 study undertaken by the Empire Center for Public Policy, this in turn led to a "statistically significant increase in resident deaths."

This was not the narrative Cuomo alternatively tried to advance.

Congressional investigators indicated that Cuomo "personally drafted and edited portions" of a New York State Department of Health report that blamed the resultant spike in nursing home deaths on nursing home staff rather than on his directive.

Wenstrup alleged in his original criminal referral that during his 2024 interview with congressional investigators, Cuomo lied about being involved in the drafting of the NYSDOH report in any capacity; engaging in any discussions regarding the report being peer reviewed; and about knowing whether people outside the state agency were involved in the drafting or editing of the report.

'The wheels of justice are finally beginning to turn.'

Cuomo also told congressional investigators that he was unaware of his devastating March 25, 2020, nursing home directive and suggested that nursing homes were not actually forced to admit COVID-positive patients.

Wenstrup told Garland last year that "Mr. Cuomo provided false statements to the Select Subcommittee in what appears to be a conscious, calculated effort to insulate himself from accountability."

RELATED: The end of the moderate Democrat

Spencer Platt/Getty Images

Voices for Seniors, an advocacy group founded by a pair of sisters whose mother was among those who succumbed to COVID-19 in a New York nursing home, expressed hope over the prospect that Cuomo might face accountability over the surge in nursing home deaths.

The group said of the investigation, "After years of silence, deflection, and political spin, the wheels of justice are finally beginning to turn."

"This investigation is not just justified; it's overdue," continued Voices for Seniors. "The evidence paints a damning picture of a leader more concerned with image than integrity. Grieving families have waited long enough. This isn't about partisan lines or media spin. It's about accountability. It's about justice for thousands of silenced seniors."

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Retired 4-star Navy admiral convicted after using his post to line his 'own pockets'



Retired four-star Navy Admiral Robert Burke, formerly the Navy's second-highest ranking officer, was convicted by a federal jury Monday on felony bribery charges.

U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro, who announced the verdict a day after instructing criminals to "run for the hills," said in a statement, "When you abuse your position and betray the public trust to line your own pockets, it undermines the confidence in the government you represent."

While overseeing U.S. naval operations in Europe, Russia, and most of Africa, and commanding thousands of military personnel, Burke awarded a government contract to a company that had been told not to communicate with him. Several months later, Burke ended up with a lucrative gig and hundreds of thousands of stock options at that same company.

The company — which the Department of Justice did not name but the New York Times indicated was the New York-based technology and work force training company Next Jump — provided a workforce training pilot program to a "small component of the Navy" from August 2018 through July 2019. The original indictment against Burke indicated that the company had subcontracts for this work from another company, similarly unnamed in federal court documents, via the U.S. Office of Personnel Management.

'Burke made several false and misleading statements to the Navy.'

According to the DOJ, the Navy scrapped its contract with the company in late 2019 and directed it not to contact Burke.

Despite this directive, the company's two co-chief executives, Yongchul Kim and Meghan Messenger — who were both arrested and charged last year in connection with the scheme — allegedly emailed Burke on May 10, 2021, to propose a $20 million contract for their company to provide workforce training, despite no indication of need on the part of U.S. naval forces in Europe and Africa, bids or otherwise.

The trio reportedly met in Washington, D.C., in July 2021.

During their meeting, Kim and Messenger agreed that Burke would use his official position in the Navy to secure a new contract for the company in exchange for a position there following his retirement, said the DOJ. The trio also apparently agreed that the second highest-ranking officer in the Navy would lean on other officers to award the company with an additional training contract, which one of Burke's co-defendants allegedly estimated to be valued at "triple digit millions."

Burke commanded his staff in December 2021 to dish out a $355,000 contract to the company to train personnel under his command in Italy and Spain. Burke then championed the company after the January 2022 training session in a failed effort to get another senior admiral to award it a government contract.

RELATED: Trump names Jeanine Pirro of Fox News as interim US attorney of DC after failed Ed Martin nomination

Photo (left): Terry Wyatt/Getty Images; Photo (right): Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

The Justice Department indicated that in order to conceal the scheme, "Burke made several false and misleading statements to the Navy, including by falsely implying that Company A's employment discussions with Burke only began months after the contract was awarded and omitting the truth on his required government ethics disclosure forms."

Several months later, Burke went to work for Next Jump at a yearly starting salary of $500,000 with the added bonus of a grant of 100,000 stock options.

At the time of Burke's arrest last May, then-FBI Special Agent in Charge David Scott stated, "As a four-star admiral, Burke not only cheated U.S. taxpayers but also did a disservice to military personnel under his command."

The original criminal indictment against Burke stressed that the admiral had a lawful duty not to accept any gift or other item of monetary value from any person or entity seeking official action from the Navy; not to engage in outside employment that conflicted with official government duties and responsibilities; not to participate personally and substantially in an "official capacity in any particular matter that had a direct and predictable effect on his financial interests"; and to disqualify himself from taking official action that affected financial interests of a potential employer of seeking employment.

Blaze News reached out to the Pentagon for comment, which deferred to the Navy. The Navy did not respond by publication time. Next Jump similarly did not respond when pressed for comment.

'The jury was prevented from hearing the whole truth.'

After a five-day trial, a federal jury found Burke guilty of conspiracy to commit bribery, bribery, performing acts affecting a personal financial interest, and concealing material facts from the United States.

Burke is due to be sentenced on Aug. 22 and could land up to 30 years in the slammer.

Pirro said Monday, "Our office, with our law enforcement partners, will root out corruption — be it bribes or illegal contracts — and hold accountable the perpetrators, no matter what title or rank they hold."

The admiral's lawyer, Timothy Parlatore, said in an interview Monday that Burke plans to appeal his conviction, reported the Times.

RELATED: Ex-Democratic Sen. Bob Menendez's wife convicted for her role in bribery scheme: 'Partners in crime'

"They presented a tiny, tiny sliver of evidence," said Parlatore. "We do think this is a case where a wrongful conviction was obtained because the jury was prevented from hearing the whole truth."

Reed Brodsky, a lawyer for Next Jump, told the Times that he expects a different outcome in the cases of Kim and Messenger, who are scheduled for trial in August.

"I expect the evidence will show that Burke and others at the Navy misled Charlie and Meghan in material ways, and they're not liable for bribing the guy who lied to them," wrote Brodsky. "I think it'll be a little embarrassing for the Navy."

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Donald Trump Just Made It Harder To Go To Federal Prison

The federal government doesn’t have common law jurisdiction, and so has spent 250 years building a growing list of statutory crimes.

Comer refers disgraced former NY Gov. Cuomo to DOJ for criminal prosecution: 'Caught red-handed'



Andrew Cuomo resigned as New York governor in August 2021 after a report by the state attorney general corroborated 11 women's sexual harassment claims against him. Investigators said that by groping employees and "making numerous offensive comments of a suggestive and sexual nature," the Democratic leader created a workplace "filled with fear and intimidation."

Cuomo, likely counting on New Yorkers to forgive or forget, now has his sights set on Gracie Mansion, the home of the mayor of New York City.

While currently fighting socialist Assembly Member Zohran Mamdani for dominance in the lead-up to the Democratic primary election in New York City's mayoral race, Cuomo may soon also have to fight federal criminal charges.

House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform Chairman James Comer (R-Ky.) referred Cuomo to the Department of Justice for criminal prosecution on Tuesday, evidently hoping Attorney General Pam Bondi will take the matter more seriously than her predecessor, who ignored the October referral of former Rep. Brad Wenstrup (R-Ohio).

'It was a calculated cover-up.'

In his October criminal referral to former Attorney General Merrick Garland, Wenstrup, chair of the now-disbanded Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic, noted, "Mr. Cuomo provided false statements to the Select Subcommittee in what appears to be a conscious, calculated effort to insulate himself from accountability. The Department of Justice should consider Mr. Cuomo's prior allegedly wrongful conduct when evaluating whether to charge him for the false statements."

Comer again seeks to hold the former governor accountable for allegedly making criminally false statements regarding his manipulation of a supposedly independent report concerning New York's COVID-19 nursing home tragedy.

"Andrew Cuomo is a man with a history of corruption and deceit, now caught red-handed lying to Congress during the Select Subcommittee's investigation into the COVID-19 nursing home tragedy in New York," Comer said in a statement.

"This wasn't a slip-up," continued Comer. "It was a calculated cover-up by a man seeking to shield himself from responsibility for the devastating loss of life in New York’s nursing homes. Let's be clear: Lying to Congress is a federal crime."

In March 2020, the Cuomo administration issued a directive stating, "No resident shall be denied re-admission or admission to [a nursing home] solely based on a confirmed or suspected diagnosis of COVID-19. [Nursing homes] are prohibited from requiring a hospitalized resident who is determined medically stable to be tested for COVID-19 prior to admission or readmission."

The House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic noted in a September report that as a result of this directive, over 9,000 COVID-19 patients were readmitted or admitted to nursing homes between March 25, 2020, and May 8, 2020, "causing predictable but disastrous consequences."

A February 2021 study undertaken by the Empire Center for Public Policy concluded that Cuomo's March 25 guidance "was associated with a statistically significant increase in resident deaths" — deaths Cuomo and his administration were later found to have undercounted.

"Statewide, the findings imply that COVID-positive new admissions between late March and early May, which numbered 6,327, were associated with several hundred and possibly more than 1,000 additional resident deaths," said the study.

'What difference does it make in any dimension to anyone about anything?'

Adding insult to injury, congressional investigators determined that Cuomo "personally drafted and edited portions" of a Feb. 11, 2021, New York State Department of Health report that blamed the spike in nursing home deaths on nursing home staff rather than on his directive.

"An analysis of the timing of admissions versus fatalities shows that it could not be the driver of nursing home infections or fatalities," said the report.

Last year, Cuomo testified before Congress in a seven-hour closed-door interview. The Democrat claimed he was unaware of his devastating March 25, 2020, nursing home directive and suggested that nursing homes were not actually forced to admit COVID-positive patients.

When asked about the real death count, Cuomo channeled another controversial Democrat's callousness, telling congressional investigators, "Let's say there's a 3,000 differential, 2,500. Who cares? What difference does it make in any dimension to anyone about anything? Do you know what I'm saying?"

While evidently prickled by this and other comments, House Republicans took issue with the former governor's claims that "(1) he was not involved in the review or drafting of this Report, (2) he did not have any discussions about a peer-review of the Report, and (3) he did not have any knowledge of individuals outside the NYSDOH reviewing the Report."

All three claims are, according to the Comer, "demonstrably false."

"Mr. Cuomo must be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law," Comer said in his Monday statement.

Cuomo spokesman Rich Azzopardi said in a statement obtained by NBC News, "This is nothing more than a meritless press release that was nonsense last year and is even more so now. As the DOJ constantly reminds people, this kind of transparent attempt at election interference and law-fare violates their own policies."

"Referrals like these — which have been also made against Planned Parenthood, Hillary Clinton, and Anthony Fauci — don't have to be resubmitted with a new administration, so the only point to doing this is politics," added Azzopardi.

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'We are not the same': Trump, Democratic senator make the difference between their priorities abundantly clear



Maryland Senator Chris Van Hollen (D) revealed this week that he and other Democrats intend to continue prioritizing illegal aliens in the U.S. over American citizens.

The Trump White House made clear that it will continue to champion and prioritize the American people — especially those suffering from the fallout of Democrats' extra-national sympathies.

This distinction was nowhere better illustrated than a pair of photos shared to social media on Thursday: one showing Van Hollen comforting an alleged gangbanger from El Salvador who stole into the United States, and the other showing President Donald Trump comforting an Angel Mom whose daughter was murdered by an illegal alien from El Salvador.

Numerous Democrats have decried the deportation of Salvadoran national Kilmar Abrego Garcia, an MS-13 associate found by more than one immigration court to be a "danger to the community." Van Hollen went the distance with his protest, departing for El Salvador on Wednesday in hopes of bringing the alleged domestic abuser and potential human trafficking gangster back to the United States or at the very least snapping a selfie memorializing his attempt.

'Kilmar Abrego Garcia, miraculously risen from the "death camps" & "torture", now sipping margaritas with Sen. Van Hollen.'

The junior Democratic senator was initially met with disappointment, learning that he would be unable to visit Abrego Garcia in the Terrorism Confinement Center or return him to the U.S., which Abrego Garcia unlawfully entered without inspection in 2011.

Van Hollen was, however, ultimately afforded an opportunity to speak with the Abrego Garcia Thursday afternoon.

Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele quipped on X, "Kilmar Abrego Garcia, miraculously risen from the 'death camps' & 'torture', now sipping margaritas with Sen. Van Hollen in the tropical paradise of El Salvador!"

— (@)

Evidently unfazed by recent reports indicating the MS-13 associate allegedly beat his wife on multiple occasions and may have been involved in human trafficking, Van Hollen shared a picture to social media Thursday evening showing him sharing an intimate moment with Abrego Garcia.

In the image, Van Hollen can be seen leaning into his conversation with the alleged gangbanger, who appeared altogether unharmed by his stay in the Salvadoran terrorist prison.

The caption that accompanied the photo on social media was, "I said my main goal of this trip was to meet with Kilmar. Tonight I had that chance."

Hours later, the White House shared a picture of President Donald Trump comforting Patty Morin, the Angel Mom whose daughter, a mother of five, was brutally raped and murdered by one of Abrego Garcia's countrymen.

'Perfect visual of why Donald Trump won.'

The White House also shared Van Hollen's photo. The caption accompanying the post juxtaposing the two images reads: "We are not the same."

— (@)

Victor Martinez-Hernandez, a 24-year-old illegal alien from El Salvador, was convicted Monday in the brutal murder of Rachel Morin.

Martinez-Hernandez ambushed Rachel Morin while she was exercising on a hiking trail northeast of Baltimore. He smashed her head against nearby rocks and dragged her 150 feet from the trail into a wooded area. After beating her further and raping her, the Salvadoran thug murdered the American mother and ditched her body in a drainage culvert.

Following the conviction, the White House afforded Patty Morin an opportunity to speak to the nation about her daughter. Patty Morin couldn't help but address Van Hollen's apparent interest in keeping illegal aliens in the country, as opposed to holding them accountable.

The Angel Mom expressed frustration about how Van Hollen, "who didn't even acknowledge or barely acknowledged [her] daughter and the brutal death that she endured," would waste "taxpayer money to fly to El Salvador to bring back someone that's not even an American citizen."

When Patty Morin met with Trump in the Oval Office, the president said, "She's been through hell."

"Your daughter's looking down, proud of you," Trump told Morin. "Just keep it going."

The White House noted, "While Sen. Chris Van Hollen tried to coddle an MS-13 alien in El Salvador, Angel Mom Patty Morin stood in the Oval Office with President Trump — fighting for her daughter, raped and murdered by an MS-13 alien from El Salvador."

— (@)

Responding to the contrasting photos shared by Van Hollen and the White House, All-American swim star Riley Gaines noted, "Perfect visual of why Donald Trump won on November 5th and why Democrats will continue to lose."

The Department of Homeland Security stated that Trump and DHS Secretary Kristi Noem "are fighting for the victims of illegal crime and putting the safety of Americans FIRST."

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