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DOJ, Treasury investigate nonprofits and leaders allegedly coordinating with Cuba in influence campaign
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This article is Part I of a Fox News Digital investigative series examining allegations that the communist government of Cuba built an influence network inside the United States that federal authotiries are now investigating. Part I focuses on the network’s rapid response following the indictment of Cuban leader Raúl Castro.
Just nine minutes after U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche announced murder charges against Cuban leader Raúl Castro for the 1996 shootdown of two civilian aircraft flown by exile group Brothers to the Rescue, a coordinated rapid response network was already mobilizing across the U.S. to defend Castro and the Communist Party of Cuba.
At 1:54 p.m. on Wednesday, the Party for Socialism and Liberation, a Marxist political organization deeply embedded in a «Hands Off Cuba» campaign, published six pre-produced graphics denouncing the indictment as a «BASELESS INDICTMENT OF RAUL CASTRO» and «A PRETEXT FOR ANOTHER WAR.»
Hours later, at 3:18 a.m. early Thursday morning, Vijay Prashad, executive director at Tricontinental, a Marxist think tank, wrote on X, «Cuba is not a menace to the world. The United States is a menace to the world. The world stands with Raúl Castro, hero of the Cuban Revolution. The world turns its back on Donald Trump, clown of human destruction.» Manolo De Los Santos, executive director of the People’s Forum, a New York-based nonprofit, shared the message without a word, as did leaders from CodePink, another leftist organization.
Then, 24 hours after Blanche’s announcement, at 1:46 p.m. on Thursday, BreakThrough News, a media platform aligned with the same activist ecosystem, published a video featuring defiant Cubans, with one man declaring, «We won’t hand over Raúl.»
Fox News Digital has learned that Justice and Treasury Department officials are investigating U.S. nonprofits and activist groups for allegedly coordinating lobbying, messaging, fundraising, delegations and political organizing efforts with Cuban government officials as part of a possible foreign influence campaign operating inside the United States.
A Fox News Digital investigation has identified 145 nonprofits, labor groups, advocacy organizations and activist collectives across the U.S. that are mobilizing in support of the Cuban government and the Communist Party of Cuba. Together, the organizations report about $1 billion in combined annual revenue.
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CodePink, the People’s Forum and the Party for Socialism and Liberation are part of a network that is organizing protests, messaging, rallies and other symbols of support for the Communist Party of Cuba. (X/CodePink, X/People’s Forum, X/Party for Socialism and Liberation)
To U.S. national security officials examining the influence of foreign governments in the U.S., the rapid-response messaging campaign offers a striking example of how quickly the nationwide Cuba «solidarity» infrastructure synchronizes political messaging across nonprofits, media platforms, labor organizations and activist coalitions following major geopolitical developments involving the Cuban regime.
Making the alleged influence campaign even more complicated, the ANSWER Coalition, Party for Socialism and Liberation, BreakThrough News, CodePink, People’s Forum and Tricontinental are all part of a network funded by American expatriate tech tycoon Neville Roy Singham, who lives in Shanghai, supporting the Chinese Communist Party and its global agenda, including its defense of the communist regime in Cuba.
In a statement to Fox News Digital, a spokeswoman for the Embassy of Cuba in Washington denied any improper activity and said the country’s diplomats operate within the bounds of the Vienna Convention, where Article 41 states that diplomats «have a duty not to interfere in the internal affairs» of a state.
«Cuban diplomats strictly comply with the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations,» the embassy spokeswoman said, noting that «part of diplomatic work» is to «promote friendly relations» and «interact with organizations and institutions of civil society in the State to which one is accredited.»
The embassy added that «it is neither extraordinary, nor a violation of any international or U.S. law, for Cuban diplomats to engage with civil society,» and said it doesn’t encourage Americans «to overthrow or act against the constitutional order of the United States.»
Sources familiar with the probe said investigators are also examining the activities of several prominent activists and organizers connected to the Cuba solidarity movement, including Twitch streamer Hasan Piker, CodePink co-founder Medea Benjamin and CodePink D.C. coordinator Olivia DiNucci.
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Hasan Piker, a Democratic Socialists of America member, and CodePink co-founder Jodie Evans meet in Havana, Cuba, as part of a «United Front» supporting the communist regime. (NO ACCESS EDGE/NNS/FNS/OUTKICK/CodePink)
Federal investigators are also probing about 40 Americans who allegedly coordinated with Cuban government officials to bring goods and supplies to Cuba in «convoys» and «flotillas» earlier this year, sources told Fox News Digital.
The organizations under scrutiny span labor unions, activist nonprofits, solidarity campaigns, travel networks, socialist political groups and media operations.
The pro-communist Cuba ecosystem includes seven clear communities:
- Singham network: ANSWER Coalition; BreakThrough News; CodePink; International People’s Assembly and its affiliates; Liberation News and Party for Socialism and Liberation; People’s Forum and its fiscally-sponsored projects, Venceremos Brigade and Hatuey Project; Tricontinental Institute; IFCO and its Pastors for Peace project,
- Labor unions and labor activists: AFL-CIO-affiliated organizers, International Association of Machinists Local 1484, Labor/Community Strategy Center, Service Employees International Union, Teamsters tied to Amazon labor campaigns, United Union of Roofers, Waterproofers and Allied Workers Local 36
- Cuba travel brigades, convoys and delegations: Activist flotilla and humanitarian caravan organizers; Global Exchange; Hands Off Cuba Committees; National Network on Cuba; Nuestra América Convoy organizers
- Socialist, Marxist, Communist organizations: African People’s Socialist Party, Communist Party USA, Democratic Socialists of America, Peace and Freedom Party, Socialist Unity Party, Socialist Workers Party
- Media and propaganda ecosystem: activist social media amplification campaigns, anti-imperialist podcasts and livestream networks, BreakThrough News, BT News, Liberation News, Tricontinental
- Legal, academic and institutional networks: National Lawyers Guild; church and faith-based solidarity organizations, educational outreach organizers working in schools and campuses, , professors tied to Cuba delegations and anti-sanctions campaigns, university-based Cuba solidarity groups
- Humanitarian and aid infrastructure: agricultural solidarity campaigns, Global Health Partners, medical supply campaigns, «people-to-people» exchange organizers, solar panel fundraising drives
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Investigators are also scrutinizing travel and delegation infrastructure tied to the network, including organizations coordinating labor trips, educational exchanges, people-to-people tours, activist brigades and humanitarian convoys to Cuba.
Under the Foreign Agents Registration Act, Americans who engage in political activities in the United States at the direction or control of a foreign government may be required to register with the Justice Department. Advocacy itself is protected under the First Amendment, and registration under FARA doesn’t prohibit political activity. Investigators are examining whether any organizations crossed the line from independent activism into coordinated activity directed by Cuban government officials.
Investigators are examining whether some organizations and activists are coordinating lobbying, messaging, delegations, fundraising and political organizing efforts with Cuban government officials without registering under the Foreign Agents Registration Act, known as FARA, according to sources familiar with the inquiry.
The Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control, or OFAC, enforces the decades-old U.S. sanctions regime against Cuba, including restrictions on financial transactions, material support, shipping and the transfer of goods and services to the island.
While humanitarian exemptions and licensed travel categories exist, investigators are examining whether some activists and nonprofit groups coordinated shipments, fundraising, «convoys,» flotillas and aid campaigns in ways that may have violated sanctions regulations or evaded reporting requirements.
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Investigators are also scrutinizing whether organizations used intermediary nonprofits, fiscally sponsored projects or generic donation language in ways that obscured Cuba-related transactions that otherwise could have triggered additional compliance scrutiny under OFAC regulations.
One fundraising page soliciting solar panel donations for Cuba instructed donors: «Please do not write ‘Cuba’ in donation comments or on the memo line of checks. Simply write ‘Urgent Aid.’»
Sources familiar with the probe said investigators are also examining the activities of several prominent activists and organizers connected to the Cuba solidarity movement, including Twitch streamer Hasan Piker, CodePink cofounder Medea Benjamin and CodePink D.C. coordinator Olivia DiNucci.
«Cuba is 100% operating a foreign influence operation in the U.S.,» said Heritage Foundation senior fellow Mike Gonzalez, a Cuban-born author who has written extensively on communist influence operations in Latin America.
He described Cuba as «ground zero for anti-American revolutionary organizing in the Western Hemisphere.»
Gonzalez told Fox News Digital, «Cuba is a prep school for revolutionaries.»
«The Cuban regime has spent decades building influence networks inside universities, labor groups, activist nonprofits, churches and solidarity organizations in the U.S.,» Gonzalez said. «The key question for investigators is whether these organizations crossed the line from protected activism into coordinated political activity directed by a foreign government.»
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cuba, antifa, investigations, fox news investigates, sanctions
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Video: el impactante momento en que explotó el propulsor del cohete de SpaceX tras el exitoso lanzamiento
La empresa SpaceX volvió a sacudir el mundo aeroespacial este viernes con el lanzamiento de la última versión de su megacohete Starship, en un vuelo de prueba que mantuvo en vilo a empleados, especialistas y fanáticos de la exploración espacial.
El despegue, que se realizó desde Texas tras dos postergaciones por fallas técnicas, fue un éxito hasta que el amerizaje terminó en una explosión que sorprendió a todos.
El vuelo duró más de 65 minutos y fue seguido en vivo por miles de personas. El cohete despegó poco después de las 17.30 (hora de Texas) y, según confirmaron desde la empresa, las dos partes del aparato se separaron correctamente.
Sin embargo, el propulsor no completó la combustión prevista y cayó de manera rápida e incontrolada en el golfo de México.
Aunque la compañía no tenía planes de recuperarlo intacto, sí contaba con hacerlo amerizar en un punto concreto.
Asú fue el lanzamiento dell cohete Starship. (Foto: REUTERS/Steve Nesius).
“¡Amerizaje confirmado!”, escribió la empresa en X. En el video se puede escuchar cómo el control de misión celebró el amerizaje de la nave en el océano Índico, tal como estaba planeado.
Los aplausos dejaron lugar a algunos gritos de sorpresa cuando la nave explotó tras tocar el agua.
El vuelo de Starship: éxito, susto y un paso más cerca de la Luna
El portavoz de SpaceX, Dan Huot, explicó durante la transmisión que el cohete no se encontraba exactamente en la órbita correcta por un fallo en uno de sus motores.
Para compensar, los otros cinco motores funcionaron más tiempo de lo previsto. “Yo no lo llamaría una inserción orbital nominal”, reconoció Huot, aunque aclaró que la trayectoria estaba “dentro de los márgenes preestablecidos”.
Mientras tanto, los empleados de SpaceX estallaron en júbilo cuando la nave comenzó a desplegar un conjunto de satélites de prueba y dos satélites Starlink especialmente modificados, equipados con cámaras para analizar el escudo térmico del artefacto.
El propio Elon Musk celebró el logro en X y calificó el vuelo de “épico”. “Marcaron un gol para la humanidad”, escribió el magnate, que sigue apostando fuerte por el futuro de la exploración espacial.
Un lanzamiento clave para el futuro de SpaceX y la carrera lunar
El lanzamiento de este viernes fue el duodécimo vuelo de prueba de Starship, siete meses después del anterior. Con sus 124 metros de altura, el nuevo modelo es el más grande hasta ahora y representa una apuesta fuerte de la compañía, que acaba de presentar la documentación para salir a la Bolsa. La oferta pública inicial (OPI) se espera para junio y podría romper récords.
Pero hay mucho más en juego: SpaceX tiene un contrato con la NASA para desarrollar una versión modificada de Starship destinada a los programas lunares. La agencia espacial estadounidense planea enviar astronautas a la Luna en 2028 y busca adelantarse a China, que también quiere lograr una misión tripulada antes de 2030.
El lanzamiento de Starship fue exitoso (Foto:REUTERS/Steve Nesius).
El experto aeroespacial Clayton Swope, del Centro de Estudios Estratégicos e Internacionales, destacó que “la versión mejorada de Starship hizo la mayor parte de lo que SpaceX esperaba que hiciera durante el lanzamiento”, aunque advirtió que pasó bastante tiempo desde el último vuelo de prueba.
Tras la prueba, el director de la NASA, Jared Isaacman, publicó en X: “Un paso más cerca de la Luna… un paso más cerca de Marte”.
La competencia por conquistar la Luna y el futuro de la exploración espacial
Tanto SpaceX como su rival Blue Origin (la empresa de Jeff Bezos) están ajustando sus estrategias para priorizar los proyectos lunares. La NASA planea probar en 2027 un encuentro en órbita entre su nave y uno o dos módulos lunares, con el objetivo de concretar un alunizaje tripulado antes de que termine 2028.
El vuelo de Starship fue un paso clave en esa carrera, aunque el final explosivo dejó en claro que los desafíos técnicos siguen presentes. Para SpaceX, cada prueba es una apuesta fuerte: el futuro de la empresa, su salida a la Bolsa y la conquista de la Luna están en juego.
SpaceX, Espacio, Ciencia
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As pervasive fraud schemes continue to sweep across the U.S., a group that seeks to preserve economic freedoms at the state level says that former President Joe Biden’s policies were a main driver for the proliferation of the issue.
OJ Oleka, CEO of the State Financial Officers Foundation, said «relaxed controls» during the last administration opened the door to widespread fraud and misuse of taxpayer dollars. And state treasurers are now leading the fight to strengthen oversight and reclaim funds for the American people.
«This isn’t a partisan statement, but it is a true statement to say that this kind of exploded during the Biden administration,» Oleka told Fox News Digital. «A lot of the controls were turned off. A lot of states who have the philosophy that ‘more government is good’ just simply turned on the spigots and allowed anybody to get access to any benefit.»
Speaking from SFOF’s annual conference in Clearwater, Florida, Oleka said fraud has become so deeply embedded in government programs that it’s now «a feature in the system, not a bug.»
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Former President Joe Biden speaks to a crowd during a fundraising event with the South Carolina Democratic Party at the Columbia Museum of Art on Feb. 27, 2026 in Columbia, S.C. (Sean Rayford/Getty Images)
SFOF’s first-ever Oversight Report for 2025 found that affiliated state financial officers protected and returned $28 billion to taxpayers last year, uncovering $5.7 billion in waste, fraud and abuse. They, meanwhile, generated or returned another $22.3 billion through investment earnings and unclaimed property programs.
«We say that fraud actually has an industry in this country,» Oleka said. «What we’re trying to do is root out the fraud industrial complex that exists within our government programs. That’s the biggest challenge.»
He pointed to weak eligibility requirements during Biden’s time in office — and sometimes no requirements at all — exploding the instances of fraud.
«Then practically anybody can have access to the benefits — people who don’t need them, people who don’t deserve them, people who aren’t even eligible for them,» he lamented.
President Donald Trump this year tapped Vice President JD Vance to lead a nationwide «War on Fraud.» It stemmed from the highly scrutinized Minnesota «Feeding Our Future» scheme, which allegedly defrauded the government out of hundreds of millions of dollars.
Oleka praised the Trump administration’s anti-fraud efforts, and in a February letter to the White House told Vance that SFOF members are «allies already on the battlefield» ready to help protect taxpayer dollars.
«The beauty of what’s happening now is you’ve got the Vice President and the task force and our state financial officers rooting to get this stuff out,» he said. «That’s the goal: you get it out root and branch, you stop it from being in the system, and you make a benefit system that actually works again for the American people.»
But, he said, future administrations need to continue the crack-down if Americans want to see lasting change.
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Democratic Gov. Tim Walz speaks during a news conference in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on Jan. 6, 2026. (Alex Kormann/Star Tribune)
The SFOF is also working directly with members of Congress, including House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., and state officials to ensure fraud is addressed beyond the Trump administration, according to Oleka.
He also would like to see some of the changes cemented through executive order.
«You’ve got a system that is allowing you to do the things that you’re doing, but it’s clearly unethical, it’s clearly wrong, and you saw a lot of this actually take off during the Biden-era,» Oleka said.
Massive fraud was recently exposed in California, Maine and Ohio, where he said Democratic leaders failed to act because they «don’t have the political will to stop the fraud.»
A multi-million dollar hospice fraud scheme in California was uncovered, while a Maine health services company was accused by a whistleblower of misusing millions in Medicaid funds in December. In Columbus, Ohio, hundreds of home health companies that shared the same addresses and operated out of vacant or poorly maintained properties were found to have billed the federal government more than $250 million in Medicaid spending.
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(OJ Oleka for Fox News Digital)
«We’ve seen it in Minnesota, we’ve seen it in California, Maine and Ohio, all across the country,» Oleka said. «But what you also see are state financial officers who are standing up for the American people. What you also see is Chairman Comer standing up for the American people. You also see the Vice President and the task force and the President of the United States standing up for the American people.»
He insisted that taxpayers should not be on the hook to foot the bill for fraud.
«The American people do not benefit when there is a system that’s giving out their money to people who don’t deserve it and who don’t need it,» he said.
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Oleka argued that the push to end fraud goes hand-in-hand with lowering costs for Americans.
«Our folks not only talked about fraud, but also about how they can help lead the fight to make things more affordable for the American people,» he said. «As a result, the tone of the conference was hopeful.»
Fox News Digital reached out to Biden’s office for comment.
administration, corruption crime, congress, minnesota fraud exposed, state, politics, donald trump, jd vance
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