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DOJ says Southern Poverty Law Center funneled $3M+ to white supremacist and extremist groups like the KKK
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FBI Director Kash Patel and Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche announced a sweeping indictment Tuesday against the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), accusing the far-left nonprofit of fraudulently paying members of extremist groups like the Ku Klux Klan.
A grand jury in the Middle District of Alabama returned an 11-count indictment charging the SPLC with six counts of wire fraud, four counts of bank fraud, and one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering, according to the Justice Department (DOJ). Between 2014 and 2023, according to the DOJ, the SPLC «secretly funneled» more than $3 million in donations to at least eight individuals associated with violent extremist groups, including the Ku Klux Klan, United Klans of America, the Nationalist Socialist Movement, Unite the Right, Aryan Nations affiliated Sadistic Souls Motorcycle Club, and more.
According to Blanche, the SPLC paid members of these extremist groups so it could create a «work product that reported on these activities.»
LEFT-WING GROUP CHASES PROOF OF KASH PATEL’S ALLEGED ‘EXCESSIVE DRINKING’ AS DEMS EYE FBI DIRECTOR’S OUSTER
«To that end, [SPLC] was doing the exact opposite of what it told its donors it was doing – not dismantling extremism but funding it,» Blanche said Tuesday during the press conference announcing the indictment.
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche was pointed in his remarks at his first news conference Tuesday at the Department of Justice about the Trump administration’s anti-fraud efforts. (Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call)
The SPLC is a longstanding left-wing nonprofit that claims to fight white supremacy and racial hatred by reporting on extremist groups and conducting research to inform law enforcement about them with the goal of dismantling the groups. SPLC’s CEO, Bryan Fair, addressed the probe in a video message posted online, arguing the Trump administration has «made no secret who they want to protect and who they want to destroy.»
«We are reviewing the charges,» a subsequent statement from Fair sent to Fox News Digital added. «However, after today’s Department of Justice press conference, we are outraged by the false allegations levied against SPLC – an organization that for 55 years has stood as a beacon of hope fighting white supremacy and various forms of injustice to create a multi-racial democracy where we can all live and thrive. Taking on violent hate and extremist groups is among the most dangerous work there is, and we believe it is also among the most important work we do. To be clear, this program saved lives.»
«The actions by the DOJ will not shake our resolve to fight for justice and ensure the promise of the Civil Rights movement becomes a reality for all,» Fair continued in his comment to Fox News Digital. «SPLC will vigorously defend ourselves, our staff and our work; we will continue to fight hate; and we will continue to envision and create a safer and more just world.»
DEMS’ ‘DELAY TACTIC’ TO ‘MALIGN’ PATEL AND STALL FBI CONFIRMATION DISMISSED AS ‘BASELESS’ BY TOP SENATE LEADER
The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) building seen in March 2020 in Montgomery, Alabama. (Barry Lewis/InPictures via Getty Images)
But Patel and Blanche on Tuesday accused the SPLC of conducting «widespread, decade-long, multimillion dollar fraud» funneling money to the very groups it claims to combat.
The complete list of these groups, according to a Justice Department press release, includes the Ku Klux Klan, United Klans of America, Unite the Right, National Alliance, the National Socialist Movement, Aryan Nations affiliated Sadistic Souls Motorcycle Club, National Socialist Party of America (American Nazi Party), and the American Front.
Blanche and Patel also argued Tuesday that the SPLC tried to hide its payments to groups the SPLC told its donors it was trying to combat, leading to several of the charges in the indictment.
«They set up shell companies and entities around America so that the financial institutions that we rely on as everyday Americans were deceived in believing that money was not coming from the Southern Poverty Law Center in the perpetration of this scheme and fraud, but rather fictitious entities,» Patel argued during the press conference. «They stood up to perpetuate this ongoing fraud. This is a serious and egregious violation of a group that purported to dismantle violent extremist groups, but in turn actually only fueled that hatred.»
For example, the SPLC was paying roughly $270,000 to a member of the leadership group that planned the Unite the Right protests in Charlottesville, Virginia, in 2017, that resulted in the death of one person and injured dozens more.
Neo Nazis, Alt-Right, and White Supremacists gather the night before the ‘Unite the Right’ rally in Charlottesville, VA. (Zach D Roberts/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
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Another individual, embedded in a neo-Nazi organization, was reportedly paid $1 million to steal more than two dozen boxes of the hate group’s documents.
«This is an important case brought by President Trump’s administration, and we’re thankful to the president for his leadership and funding of not just the FBI and DOJ, but his commitment to go out there and wipe out fraud, and conspiracy, and waste and abuse wherever it occurs, including the Southern Poverty Law Center,» Patel said Tuesday.
fbi, kash patel, politics, justice department, national security, homeland security
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La reacción de la prensa británica a la postura de Trump sobre las Malvinas: “La amenaza de las islas”
La posibilidad de que Estados Unidos revise su apoyo a la soberanía británica sobre las Malvinas tras declaraciones de Donald Trump generó una fuerte reacción en la prensa británica. Medios como The Sun, The Telegraph, Daily Mail, The Independent y The Guardian destacaron el impacto de esta advertencia, surgida a partir de un correo interno filtrado del Pentágono en el que se menciona la opción de castigar al Reino Unido por su postura sobre el conflicto con Irán.
El periódico The Sun informó que Trump podría examinar la postura estadounidense respecto a la soberanía británica sobre las “Falkland Islands” (nombre que dan los británicos a las Malvinas) como represalia por la negativa del Reino Unido a permitir el uso de sus bases en el contexto del reciente conflicto con Irán. La publicación resaltó que la información proviene de documentos internos del Pentágono, donde se exponen posibles medidas contra aliados que, a juicio del expresidente estadounidense, no respaldaron a Estados Unidos en acciones militares.
De acuerdo con The Telegraph, la filtración reveló que Washington considera “penalizar” a socios de la OTAN reticentes a apoyar la ofensiva en Oriente Medio. Entre las sanciones evaluadas figura “la revisión del respaldo a la reclamación británica” sobre las Malvinas, lo que supone un giro en la tradicional alianza entre ambos países y reaviva el debate sobre la soberanía del archipiélago en el Atlántico Sur, administrado por el Reino Unido y reclamado por Argentina.
Daily Mail amplió que el Pentágono valora alternativas para sancionar a los miembros de la OTAN que no colaboraron con Estados Unidos en la guerra contra Irán, citando como ejemplo la posible suspensión de España de la Alianza Atlántica y la reconsideración del apoyo diplomático a las “posesiones imperiales europeas”, entre ellas las Malvinas. El medio remarcó que la postura estadounidense se encuentra detallada en mensajes internos donde se expresa frustración por la negativa de algunos aliados a conceder permisos de sobrevuelo y uso de bases militares.
El análisis de The Independent subrayó la tensión entre la administración de Trump y el gobierno británico encabezado por Keir Starmer, a quien el expresidente norteamericano calificó de “cobarde” por no sumarse al operativo militar en Irán. El periódico recordó que la opción de revisar la posición estadounidense sobre las Malvinas fue propuesta como una forma de represalia por la falta de apoyo británico, según la información filtrada.
The Guardian abordó el tema al contextualizar la situación de España en la OTAN y recogió que el correo interno del Pentágono plantea la posibilidad de que Estados Unidos deje de respaldar la soberanía británica sobre las islas, como parte de un paquete de medidas de presión. El diario también mencionó la persistente disputa entre el Reino Unido y Argentina por el control del archipiélago, escenario de un conflicto armado en 1982 que causó la muerte de aproximadamente 650 soldados argentinos y 255 británicos.
En este contexto, The Sun citó al almirante Lord West, excomandante de la fragata HMS Ardent durante la guerra de 1982, quien afirmó que Donald Trump “no comprende la OTAN ni el liderazgo de alianzas”. La controversia se produce en un momento donde la relación diplomática entre Londres y Washington atraviesa una etapa marcada por la desconfianza y la incertidumbre sobre el futuro de los compromisos bilaterales.
Según los reportes, el Departamento de Estado de Estados Unidos mantiene en su web que las islas se encuentran bajo administración del Reino Unido, pero son reclamadas por Argentina, cuyo presidente, Javier Milei, mantiene una relación cercana con Trump. Este dato añade un matiz al escenario internacional, donde las declaraciones del exmandatario estadounidense se interpretan como un intento de presionar a sus aliados europeos.
Las publicaciones británicas coinciden en señalar la gravedad del mensaje emitido por el entorno de Trump, que pone en tela de juicio el tradicional respaldo estadounidense a la reivindicación británica sobre las Malvinas/Falkland Islands. La filtración de estos documentos internos del Pentágono, revelada inicialmente por Reuters y reproducida por la prensa británica, expone la fragilidad de ciertas alianzas históricas ante el nuevo escenario geopolítico.
Trump,Malvinas,Reino Unido,Estados Unidos,soberanía,política,conflicto,medios,prensa,internacional
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U.S. economic pressure on Iran has reached one of its most powerful points in decades, but inconsistent enforcement has prevented sanctions from achieving their full impact, according to a former Treasury sanctions expert.
Miad Maleki, who played a central role in Treasury Department sanctions campaigns against Iran and its network of proxy groups, said in an on-camera interview the current moment reflects a rare convergence of economic, political and diplomatic leverage against Tehran.
«We’ve never had the level of leverage that we have today with Iran in the history of our conflict … since 1979,» Maleki said.
His assessment comes as President Donald Trump signaled escalating pressure Thursday, writing on Truth Social that the United States has «total control over the Strait of Hormuz» and that it is effectively «sealed up tight» until Iran agrees to a deal.
IRAN PRESIDENT VOWS DEFIANCE AS PROTESTS BUILD AGAINST REGIME AMID US MILITARY BUILD UP
Maleki argues the current moment marks a turning point because multiple pressure tools — sanctions, a U.S. naval blockade, and tighter enforcement — are being applied simultaneously for the first time in years. Unlike previous cycles, he said, the strategy is now directly targeting Iran’s oil exports and the networks that help move them, raising the risk of a rapid economic squeeze.
He said Iran may run out of oil storage in as little as two to three weeks, forcing production cuts, while gasoline shortages could hit on a similar timeline due to heavy reliance on imports. Combined with an estimated $435 million in daily economic losses, the pressure could spill into the financial system, leaving the regime struggling to pay salaries and raising the risk of renewed unrest.
An oil tanker is seen near the terminal at Kharg Island, Iran, as U.S. officials and analysts consider whether seizing the island could significantly impact Iran’s oil exports. (Ali Mohammadi/Bloomberg)
Maleki said the real leverage lies in sustained economic pressure and enforcement.
At the core of that pressure is an Iranian economy he describes as «on the verge of collapse,» driven by years of sanctions and compounded by recent disruptions.
He pointed to triple-digit food inflation, a sharply devalued currency and a roughly 90% collapse in purchasing power, along with potential long-term oil revenue losses of up to $14 billion annually.
Maleki, who is currently a senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, estimated that current conditions are costing Iran «about $435 million a day in combined economic damage … with the blockade and closure of the Strait of Hormuz.»
A key driver of that pressure is the Strait of Hormuz, long viewed as one of Iran’s primary tools of leverage in global energy markets. Maleki said the dynamic has shifted.
IRAN IS ‘TRYING TO GIVE THE GLOBAL ECONOMY A HEART ATTACK’ BY CLOSING STRAIT OF HORMUZ, UAE MINISTER SAYS
Former President Donald Trump weighs a potential attack on Iran’s oil hub at Kharg Island amid expert predictions of market chaos. (Morteza Nikoubazl/NurPhoto)
«Iran’s economy relies on the Strait of Hormuz more than any other economy,» he said, calling its closure a form of «economic self-sabotage.»
While countries in Asia — including Japan, South Korea, India and China — are most exposed to disruptions, many have built up reserves. «Japan’s oil reserve is pretty significant. Same with China,» Maleki said.
Still, the region remains heavily dependent on the waterway, with roughly 75% of liquefied natural gas supplies for countries including India, China and South Korea flowing through the strait.
Inside Iran, however, vulnerabilities are more immediate. Despite vast oil reserves, the country imports between 30 million to 60 million liters of gasoline per day to cover a domestic shortfall of up to 35 million liters.
«If they run out of gasoline… they’re going to have a major crisis domestically,» Maleki said, noting that past shortages and price hikes have triggered widespread protests.
NUCLEAR EXPERTS WARN IRAN’S URANIUM ‘RIGHT’ IS A MYTH, SAY TRUMP IS RIGHT TO HOLD FIRM
The economic pressure is being reinforced by a U.S. naval blockade targeting Iran’s oil exports, the regime’s primary source of revenue.
A billboard showing a portrait of the late Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed in U.S.-Israeli strikes, looms over an empty square in Tehran, Iran, Thursday, March 5, 2026. (Vahid Salemi/AP Photo)
A senior administration official said the Treasury Department is intensifying enforcement under what it describes as an «Economic Fury» campaign, using financial and maritime tools in tandem to squeeze Iran’s revenue streams.
The official said the strategy focuses on «systematically degrading Iran’s ability to generate, move, and repatriate funds,» including by constraining maritime trade through the naval blockade, which targets Iran’s primary source of revenue from oil exports.
Financial pressure is also expanding globally. The official said Treasury has warned banks in China, Hong Kong, the United Arab Emirates and Oman that facilitating Iranian trade could expose them to secondary sanctions, signaling a more aggressive approach to enforcement beyond Iran’s borders.
Treasury has issued sanctions on more than 1,000 targets since 2025 under the current maximum pressure campaign, the official said, aimed at disrupting Iran’s oil trade and financial networks.
The official added that Iran is facing immediate logistical constraints, warning that storage capacity at Kharg Island — the country’s main oil export terminal — could be filled within days if exports remain blocked, potentially forcing production shut-ins.
«Treasury will continue to freeze the funds stolen by the corrupt leadership on behalf of the people of Iran,» the official warned.
A new analysis from United Against Nuclear Iran said the blockade is already deterring high-value shipments, even as some Iran-linked vessels continue to transit the region.
TRUMP CLAIMS IRAN ‘STARVING FOR CASH,’ ‘COLLAPSING FINANCIALLY’ AFTER EXTENDING CEASEFIRE
Iran seized two oil tankers Thursday while former Iranian minister Ezzatollah Zarghami threatened to make the Strait of Hormuz a «massacre and hell» for U.S. forces. (Giuseppe Cacace/AFP)
«Effectiveness should not be measured by the total number of Iran-linked vessels at sea,» the group said in an April 22 statement. «But by whether the U.S. is disrupting high-value Iranian oil exports… and deterring large-scale illicit shipments.»
At least 29 vessels have been turned around or forced back to port, including several very large crude carriers, according to the report.
The blockade, announced April 12 and enforced by U.S. Central Command, is designed to cut off Iranian crude exports, particularly shipments to China, while prioritizing high-impact targets.
While sanctions are clearly biting, Maleki said their impact has been limited by inconsistent enforcement across successive U.S. administrations.
U.S. sanctions on Iran have been in place in various forms for years, targeting the country’s oil exports, banking sector and access to global financial systems.
Under the Obama administration, sanctions pressure was partially lifted under the nuclear deal. The first Trump administration reimposed «maximum pressure,» but enforcement ramped up gradually and lasted only a limited period. The Biden administration later eased enforcement in pursuit of diplomacy.
He argued that cycles of tightening and relief — including sanctions rollback under the Iran nuclear deal and pauses in enforcement — have allowed Tehran to adapt.
«What’s different now,» Maleki said, is the combination of sustained sanctions with real-time enforcement measures that directly restrict Iran’s ability to export oil — a step that was largely absent in earlier phases.
To maximize pressure, Maleki said Washington must sustain enforcement, particularly through secondary sanctions targeting foreign banks and companies facilitating Iranian trade.
Crucially, he downplayed the likelihood that outside powers could offset the pressure.
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Anti-regime protests engulf the streets of Tehran, Iran, on Jan. 6, 2025. (Reuters)
«I can’t really point to any other nation… that is going to jump in and give the Iranian regime a lifeline,» he said.
«At some point in the next few weeks to a few months, they’re going to face not just gasoline shortages and oil production disruptions, but also a major banking problem to pay salaries of government employees and IRGC personnel,» he said. «Iranians run out of patience again, as they did before, and they’re back on the street. I’m not quite sure if you’re going to have unpaid IRGC forces willing to go back on the street and kill their fellow Iranians who have the same grievances that they have now, which is a collapsed economy.»
war with iran, inflation, economy, enforcement, iran, sanctions
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Social media erupts after Mamdani’s far-left supporters turn on him over homeless shelter: ‘Oops’
Mamdani, Hochul push unprecedented new tax
New York Governor Kathy Hochul, alongside Mayor Zohran Mamdani, proposes a new pied-à-terre tax on luxury second homes in NYC valued at $5 million or more. Former Miami mayor Francis Suarez criticizes the plan, arguing it’s ‘absolutely backwards’ and will lead to capital flight and budget holes, ultimately harming everyday New Yorkers.
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East Village residents who voted for New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani by a 40-point margin are now suing to stop a building in their neighborhood from becoming a temporary homeless shelter.
The lawsuit, filed with the New York City Supreme Court on Monday, shows hesitation even among Mamdani supporters about the cost of implementing some of his plans.
News of the lawsuit has prompted conservative mockery online, with figures like Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, noting the irony of Mamdani’s supporters turning on the fruits of his administration.
«Oops,» Sen. Ted Cruz said in a post to X.
MAMDANI PRESSED ON PLEDGE TO BE TRUMP’S ‘WORST NIGHTMARE’ AND LANDLORD PUSHBACK ON RENT FREEZE PLAN
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani speaks at a press conference at La Marqueta in East Harlem on April 14, 2026, outlining plans for city-run grocery stores aimed at lowering food prices. (New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani speaks during a press conference announcing a city-run grocery store plan in East Harlem.)
«No one is more ‘not in my backyard’ than white progressives. This community voted for Mamdani in a landslide but don’t want to live with the consequences,» Michael Henry, a former New York attorney general candidate, wrote on social media.
«Not shocked,» Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., said in a post of his own.
Election District 45, the area that includes East Village, voted for Mamdani in a 70.1% victory over independent candidate Andrew Cuomo, who garnered just 26.0% of the vote.
Even so, 10 residents joined the Village Organization for the Integrity of Community Engagement (VOICE) in their suit against the city after Mamdani announced plans earlier this year to turn a building at 8 East 3rd Street into a citywide intake shelter to house homeless adult men.
MAMDANI DISCOURAGES HAKEEM JEFFRIES PRIMARY CHALLENGER, TELLS CITY COUNCIL MEMBER TO ‘FOCUS’ ON NYC
Trains arrive and depart at the Queensboro Plaza subway station with the New York City skyline visible behind on Dec. 23, 2005. (Daniel Acker/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
The filing argues the city fast-tracked the process without proper environmental and legal safeguards.
«It challenges the city’s hastily made and legally invalid decision to locate a new citywide homeless adult male intake center at 8 East 3rd Street without following any of the legal requirements that must precede such a significant and consequential decision,» the filing reads.
To circumvent them, the complaint notes that Mamdani relied on an emergency declaration from 2022 — a power originally issued to handle an influx of asylum-seekers.
Mamdani announced the temporary housing project at 8 East 3rd Street as a way to accommodate the closure of Bellevue Shelter, a separate homeless intake site that the mayor’s office said had deteriorated too far for use.
«The Department of Social Services (DSS) and Department of Homeless Services (DHS) will immediately implement an operational plan to vacate 30th Street and relocate the critical functions to other sites. There are approximately 250 individuals in the shelter and the DSS is working to relocate these individuals by mid-March,» Mamdani’s office said in a press release.
NYC LANDLORDS FIRE BACK AT ‘RACIST’ MAMDANI AIDE’S CLAIM THAT TIES HOMEOWNERSHIP TO ‘WHITE SUPREMACY’
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani delivers remarks at the Service Employees International Union 32BJ SEIU rally on Park Avenue in Manhattan on April 15, 2026. (Selcuk Acar/Anadolu)
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The mayor’s office also detailed that a second accommodation site would be opened at 333 Bowery St., beginning on May 1, to house families without minor children.
The New York Supreme Court has not yet responded to requests for emergency relief that would pause the city’s plans.
new york city, housing, zohran mamdani, andrew cuomo, homeless crisis
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