Posted originally on CTH on June 13, 2025 | Sundance
The Justice Department has announced that a USAID official named Roderick Watson, 57, of Woodstock, Maryland, and three corporate executives, Walter Barnes, 46, of Potomac, Maryland; Darryl Britt, 64, of Myakka City, Florida, and Paul Young, 62, of Columbia, Maryland, have pleaded guilty to a decade long scam involving bribery using USAID funds and awarded government contracts.
Roderick Watson took bribes and directed over $550 million to the three USAID contractors. [SEE DETAILS HERE]
DOJ – […] According to court documents, beginning in 2013, Watson, while a USAID contracting officer, agreed with Britt to receive bribes in exchange for using Watson’s influence to award contracts to Apprio. As a certified small business under the SBA 8(a) contracting program, which helps socially and economically disadvantaged businesses, Apprio could access lucrative federal contracting opportunities through set-asides and sole-source contracts exclusively available to eligible contractors without a competitive bid process.
Vistant was a subcontractor to Apprio on one of the contracts awarded through Watson’s influence. After Apprio graduated from the SBA 8(a) program and it was no longer eligible to be a prime contractor for new contracts with USAID under this program, the scheme shifted so that Vistant became the prime contractor and Apprio became the subcontractor on USAID contracts awarded through Watson’s influence between 2018 and 2022.
During the scheme, Britt and Barnes paid bribes to Watson that were often concealed by passing them through Young, who was the president of another subcontractor to Apprio and Vistant. Britt and Barnes also regularly funneled bribes to Watson, including cash, laptops, thousands of dollars in tickets to a suite at an NBA game, a country club wedding, downpayments on two residential mortgages, cellular phones, and jobs for relatives.
The bribes were also often concealed through electronic bank transfers falsely listing Watson on payroll, incorporated shell companies, and false invoices. Watson is alleged to have received bribes valued at more than approximately $1 million as part of the scheme. (read more)
Posted originally on Jun 9, 2025 by Martin Armstrong
Switzerland-based Credit Suisse Services AG pleaded guilty to conspiracy to defraud the United States by enabling ultra-wealthy Americans to hide assets in offshore accounts. The agency admitted to hiding over $4 billion from the IRS in at least 475 offshore accounts between 2010 and 2021.
As reported by the DOJ: “Credit Suisse Services AG entered into a non-prosecution agreement (NPA) with the Justice Department’s Tax Division and U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia in connection with U.S. Accounts booked at Credit Suisse AG Singapore. Under the NPA, Credit Suisse Services AG agreed to cooperate with the Justice Department in ongoing investigations and to pay significant monetary penalties for maintaining accounts in Singapore on behalf of U.S. taxpayers who were using offshore accounts to evade U.S. taxes and reporting requirements.”
Credit Suisse openly helped clients conceal assets from the IRS and took measures to ensure that the tax authority would not target their clients’ funds. The agency concealed income, falsified records, fabricated fake donations, and serviced over $1 billion in accounts out of compliance with US regulations.
The practice has become commonplace. The Singapore branch was found guilty of the precise crime in 2023 in a $2.6 billion scheme that ran between 2014 and 2023, but the agency received a mere slap on the wrist. The bank continued to serve undeclared accounts. The agency is receiving a slap on the wrist once more as it is required to pay $510.6 million in penalties, restitution, forfeiture, and fines. This is basically the cost of doing business, and potentially an advertisement for Credit Suisse.
This is the game. Big institutions are protected while smaller players are thrown in prison. If the average American failed to file their taxes, or misses a deadline for that matter, the government penalizes them by seizing up to 100% of the unpaid tax. If the amount unpaid exceeds $65,000, the US government will revoke your passport. If the US government deems that someone intentionally evaded taxes, as is the case with Credit Suisse, they send them to prison for up to five years, with the average sentence for knowingly evading taxes being 16 months. Credit Suisse may have paid the fine, but the bankers involved will face zero repercussions. The banks always claim ignorance, the regulators balance fines with cover-ups, and the press accepts the payout as punishment.
Postedoriginally on Jun 3, 2025 by Martin Armstrong |
QUESTION:
Mr. Armstrong,
No honest person, whether American or Palestinian believes terrorists should push the US government and its people around. But then why are you so disinterested that Israel and the US created Hamas expressly for the public to witness a TV drama via the fake news of US and Israel’s fake victimization? Trump and Harris are not about peace in the middle east, and Trump while safer for Americans is knowingly instituting the open air concentration camp to annihilate the original native people of that land who were dumped these foreign Israeli aliens in 1948.
The situation is not improved under Trump, and while I have deep respect for your work, you cannot be so heartless as to believe this people should be annihilated like rats all for a terrorist faction that arose when the alien people after 1948 acquired US missiles and began starvation campaigns and massacres of their people. Would it be fine if Americans were put in camps, rounded up into high rise buildings, and then had the buildings demolished with them inside because “a domestic terrorist was on the third floor”?
Palestinians today are living the 2025 Holodomor no different than the Ukrainians did. If you agree (or disagree) you will write a piece on this, because I know that sound-minded people around the world are of the same view on this issue. Shem Tov is a dual citizen by the way. Israeli dual citizens are not loyal to the US, I’m sorry to say, and his story and Trump’s is not a patriotic one.
Best regards
L
ANSWER: I’ve discussed the ongoing tragedies in Gaza at length in other blog posts. My only firm stance–I am against governments that force war and destruction upon their people. I receive backlash from those who are pro-Israel and pro-Palestine for explaining the geopolitical nature of what is occurring in that region. The Hamas terrorists feared a Trump victory, as I noted in the article you are questioning, which equates to increased protection for the United States. Few speak on how the US government uses regime change to maintain dominance throughout the world.
USAID had a budget that surpassed the budgets of the CIA and the State Department. America was directly funding its enemies because intelligence agencies and unelected bureaucrats manipulate global events for geopolitical purposes. USAID is often used as a front for CIA operations, particularly in regions where the US wants to destabilize governments that don’t align with Western interests. Funding is allegedly channeled through NGOs and civil society groups that support uprisings or color revolutions (e.g., Ukraine in 2014, the Arab Spring).
The regime change tactic is not limited to the Middle East. I penned a letter to Attorney General Pam Bondi in February 2025, explaining U.S. efforts to fund opposition movements in Russia dating back to 2000. “The Plot to Seize Russia” details the lengths that the neocons have gone through for decades on their quest to conquer Russia, which partially began by a regime change in Ukraine that permitted a comedian to rule over the nation.
Current Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa was installed by the CIA. I explain in the linked article that Syria’s abundance of oil reserves and geographic location make it prime real estate for Western influence. America captured Ahmed al-Sharaa while he was fighting for Al Qaeda in Iraq, and then simply released him, or so we are told. The truth of the matter is that he was almost certainly compromised and turned into a CIA asset during this time period. Equally as important, the US has a new battleground for its proxy war against Russia. Trump signed numerous trade deals in the Middle East with partners who are eager to rebuild Syria and usurp its currently non-existent infrastructure. Again, I explained at length the devastation that the Syrian people experienced after 14 years of war.
Israel is a vassal state. “If there were not an Israel, we’d have to invent one,” Joe Biden admitted back in 1986 when he was a Senator. Israel is a strategic military base for the West. It permitted America to keep an eye on not just oil but opium as well. America did not need to “create” an Israel since Britain basically did back in 1948. Israel is not a charity and the West does not fund it because of religion. Yes, Israel was zoned for those of Jewish faith after World War II, but the true reason it was created was to provide the Allies with power in the Middle East.
America alone, prior to the Hamas attack, provided Israel with $158 billion since 1948. This money was not a loan but rather an investment. Without Israel, Western forces would have no reason to patrol the seas or surround the region. Power and money are the only aspects that motivate governments. No one is funding this war out of concern for the people.
This is why the West immediately began building up Israel’s military. France provided Israel with the ability to build nuclear weapons near Dimona in the Negev Desert. When this became public knowledge in 1960, Eisenhower feigned shock, and the media began reporting that the factory was being used to create textiles rather than nuclear weapons.
Former French Foreign Minister Maurice Couve de Murville admitted in December 1960 that France assisted Israel in creating a “replica of [the] Marcoule plant.” France needed to protect its colonies in North Africa at the time and relied on Israeli intelligence. France provided the raw materials and arms, while the US aided with financing through tax-deductible charities. Egypt had nationalized the Suez Canal, and France and Britain considered invading to seize the area. Then the former Soviet Union threatened to intervene and the world was ready to use the Middle East as their battleground. Russia is funding a nuclear plant near that area on behalf of Egypt. And yet, Israel’s current policy is to neither confirm nor deny if they have a nuclear program. Look at history and you will see how everything has been unfolding in accordance with the war cycle.
I was criticized for questioning whether America should continue funding Israel. It is no secret that American politicians are beholden to AIPAC lobbyists who have found their way into every niche of the American government. After Hurricane Harvey devastated Texas, one town refused to provide US government aid to residents until they signed a “Verification not to Boycott Israel”clause. Donald Trump has approved of over $12 billion in aid to Israel since he took office. Two wings on the same bird—both sides would be obliged to continue funding and supporting Israel because America does not want to lose its stronghold in the Middle East.
When I visited Mar-a-Lago in March 2020, I admittedly was impressed by Donald Trump’s candor. He explained that he could no longer call mothers and tell them their sons have died fighting a war for the United States. This is why American troops are not yet in Russia. Trump does not support endless wars.
Trump, however, supports America-first policies and does not wish to act as the world’s police. The United States would have supported Israel regardless of who was at the helm because that aligns with US interests. Politics is not pretty. World peace is not attainable because the desires of man never change. Tragedy and destruction are inevitable. Regime change tactics are not limited to the United States, for that matter, as nations have employed this strategy throughout history.
I do not condone war. The computer model indicates that the War Cycle, in general, is expected to gain momentum and peak by 2032. Socrates shows rising risk of regional war involving Iran, Hezbollah, Syria, and potentially Turkey. There is a key turning point on the horizon for 2026. The new geopolitical world order is unraveling, and again, there will be no incentive for peace until 2032.
Posted originally on Jun 3, 2025 by Martin Armstrong
A doctor could not properly make a decision for his or her patient without undergoing medical training. A lawyer could not represent a client without studying the law. A priest could not lead in worship without a deep understanding of the Bible. Yet, we permit top government officials to make decisions without a thorough understanding of the Constitution.
Those who wish to join the ranks of the “deep state” must now undergo an 80-hour training session to ensure that they understand the basis of America’s foundation. The training will be composed of video sessions and two days of in-person training for the Senior Executive Service (SES). The goal: “Ensure that SES officials uphold the Constitution and the rule of law and effectively serve the American people.”
The SES was created under the Civil Service Reform Act of 1978 and implemented in 1979. President Jimmy Carter believed these bureaucrats could restore public trust in government after the Watergate scandal. The stated purpose was to “ensure that the executive management of the Government of the United States is responsive to the needs, policies, and goals of the nation and otherwise is of the highest quality.” Thereby, one personnel system managed the federal government.
These people are NOT elected. They are installed by the government to monitor the government. Top US bureaucrats under the Senior Executive Service (SES) grew to 8,000 under the Biden Administration. These men and women hold key leadership roles beneath the top presidential appointees and act as the middleman between those appointees and the federal workforce.
The Office of Personnel and Management, first obtained by RealClearPolitics, loosely outlines “new Executive Core Qualifications.” The new appointees will not be hired under the premise of DEI. Rather, they must show a commitment to “upholding the principles of the American Founding, including equality under the law and democratic self-government.” Every agency will be required to hire a majority of non-career politicians to their Executive Review Boards. “These requirements ensure that effective implementation of the President’s policies is at the forefront of agency executive management decisions,” the memo says.
Congress enacted a 120-day moratorium period on involuntary reassignments when a new president comes to power. The fact of the matter is that these positions are likely to be granted to a new group that supports whoever is in power. The Department of Justice Inspector General conducted a report in 2000 that found panels of peers judged SES employees of the FBI were less likely to face disciplinary action, serving as an example of how bureaucrats protect their own and have a different tier of justice.
Trump signed the “Restoring Accountability for Career Senior Executives” executive order back in January to increase accountability to SES staff. It is astonishing that these elite bureaucrats who wield tremendous power were not required to study the Constitution. There is no need for unelected bureaucrats in a democracy. Drain the swamp and leave it empty.
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