WASHINGTON D.C. – According to a report by The Intercept, George Nader, an American adviser to the government of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), has pleaded guilty for his role in helping UAE pump millions of dollars in illegal campaign contributions into the U.S. political system during the 2016 presidential election.
According to documents submitted in federal court in December 2021, federal prosecutors disclosed in a sentencing memo that Nader had agreed months earlier to plead guilty to a single count of felony conspiracy to defraud the U.S. government by funneling millions in donations to Hillary Clinton’s campaign and concealing the funds’ foreign origin.
Trump associate George Nader pleaded guilty to felony conspiracy to defraud the US government: report https://t.co/mFJigYRm35
— D. Hutchinson (@DJHutch63) January 18, 2022
Reportedly, Nader is a convicted pedophile and he was a central witness in former special counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia investigation.
According to the prosecutors’ sentencing memo, Nader conspired to hide the funds “out of a desire to lobby on behalf and advance the interests of his client, the government of the United Arab Emirates.”
The memo stated that Nader received the money for the illegal donations from the UAE government.
The filing marks the first time that the U.S. government has explicitly accused the UAE, a close ally, of illegally seeking to buy access to candidates during a presidential election.
The Intercept reported:
“Nader’s guilty plea opens a new window into the efforts of the United Arab Emirates and its de factor ruler, Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed, known as MBZ, to influence the outcome fo the 2016 election and shape subsequent U.S. policy in the Gulf.”
The government’s memo notes that Nader and Los Angeles businessperson Ahamd “Andy” Khawaja also sought to cultivate “key figures” in the Trump campaign and that Khawaja donated $1 million to Trump’s inaugural committee – it is unclear where that money came from.
Prosecutors allege that, in total, Nader transferred nearly $5 million from his UAE-based business to Khawaja, the CEO of a Los Angeles-based payment processing company.
The sentencing memo details Nader and Khawaja’s efforts to disguise the money as a mundane business contract between the two.
PLUS: George Nader sentenced to 10 years in prison for child sex charges https://t.co/C5jFSSnu6F
— dc (@dc65512824) January 18, 2022
According to the U.S. government, of that amount, more than $3.5 million came from the government of the UAE and was given to Democratic political committees working to elect Clinton.
The U.S. government has accused Nader, Khawaja, and six others of working together to conceal the origin of those funds.
Prosecutors have not publicly accounted for what happened to the remaining $1.4 million they say Nader transferred to Khawaja.
With Nader’s guilty plea, five of the eight men charged in the alleged conspiracy have pleaded guilty; two other defendants are scheduled to stand trial this year.
Khawaja fled the U.S. after the indictment and in 2020, the Associated Press (AP) reported that he was being held in Lithuania.
Prosecutors are seeking a five-year sentence for Nader, asking that it not begin until after he completes the 10-year sentence he is currently serving for possessing child pornography and bringing a minor to the U.S. “for the purpose of engaging in criminal sexual activity.”
Even as Nader poured donations into the effort to elect Clinton, he worked his way into the Trump campaign on behalf of his Gulf clients.
Nader would later tell the FBI that he met with Trump’s son, Donald Trump Jr. several times in 2016. Nader reportedly told Trump Jr. that both MBZ and Saudi Arabia’s crown prince were eager to help his father get elected.
Mueller witness, George Nader pleads guilty in illegal scheme to funnel millions UAE money to Hillary Clinton’s 2016 campaign https://t.co/bWfW9ZUdEY
— HelpSaveAmerica ✝🗽🇺🇸 (@GraceJoyPeace55) January 18, 2022
He told the FBI that he advised the Gulf monarchs to “be on good terms” with both Clinton and Trump in the run-up to the 2016 vote.
According to FBI interview notes, after Trump won the presidency, but before he was inaugurated, Nader unsuccessfully sought to arrange a meeting between Trump and MBZ.
Federal agents arrested Nader in June 2019 at JFK International Airport after he got off a flight from the UAE and charged him with possessing a dozen images or videos of child pornography.
Those charges were ultimately dismissed, but Nader was indicted on a separate child pornography possession charge and accused of flying a 14-year-old boy to the U.S. for sexual purposes.
Funding terrorists? Biden administration reportedly wants to release money to the Taliban
December 26th, 2021
WASHINGTON, DC – Recent news reports from Khaama Press, an Afghanistan News Agency, reported that the Biden Administration was considering unfreezing Afghanistan’s financial assets so that they could be accessed by the known terrorist group that overtook the country, the Taliban.
Report: Biden Might Release Funds To The Taliban – Joe Allegedly Will Un-Freeze Afghan Government Assets https://t.co/PFkd3nB5EC
— Deana (@Deana36038722) December 22, 2021
Afghanistan had its assets frozen by the United States when it became clear that the country would fall. The reason was to prevent the Taliban from ever getting access to those funds and potentially funding more terrorist activities.
However, that could all change if a report published by the Khaama Press is at all accurate.
On December 21st, the media group published a report that they had allegedly learned from the BBC that an unnamed United States official reported the Biden Administration is prepared to release at least a portion of the frozen assets.
According to the Khaama Press:
“The [BBC] source has said that the US administration has held a meeting in which easing sanctions on Afghanistan has been discussed in order to allow international aid organizations to deliver humanitarian aids to Afghanistan.”
"On Monday, more than 40 House Democrats penned a letter to Biden and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen to unfreeze the Afghan funds."
Biden Faces Pressure to Release Afghan Bank Reserves as Millions Face Starvation – https://t.co/hBAZgWfGs5
— Natylie Baldwin (@natyliesb) December 21, 2021
They note that the news of this supposed release of financial aid comes at the heels of an OIC session on Afghanistan that had ended in Islamabad where it was decided that humanitarian aids would be sent to the country immediately to “prevent the economic collapse of the country.”
They note that the news came as the US Special Representative to Afghanistan, Thomas West, allegedly met in private with the Taliban’s foreign minister, Amir Khan Motaq, a report that cannot be confirmed.
While this news cannot be independently verified in any manner, it is interesting to note that the State Department spokesman, Ned Price, spoke to reporters about the terrorist country on December 20th. Price said:
“When it comes to humanitarian assistance, the United States is the global leader…We have provided, since August, $208 million alone, we provided nearly $475 million over the course of this year.
We have taken other steps as a government to do what we can to facilitate the provision of additional humanitarian assistance to the Afghan people.
Oh, you've GOT to be kidding me… 😖https://t.co/wZ2cKd7ao5
— Patriot Journal (@OnlinePatriots) December 22, 2021
“We are working with various UN bodies, including the UNDP, to find creative ways that we can infuse not only humanitarian aid but also liquidity into the Afghan economy…Thomas West was recently in Pakistan, where he attended a meeting of the OIC.
And the OIC recently announced in the context of that meeting the establishment of a trust fund, which will provide another important tool to provide money to the people of Afghanistan.”
While providing humanitarian aid to the people of Afghanistan that are subjected to the violent and bloody rule of the terrorist organization, the Taliban, seems noble… how is it that the United States and other countries plan on ensuring the people, not the terrorists, receive the money?
An even better question would be how does any country that provides financial assistance to the terrorist organization ensure that those funds are not used to fund terrorist activities?
Of course, the questions are rhetorical in nature as they most likely will never be asked by political leaders of any country. However, that has not stopped progressives and Democrats from calling on the Biden Administration to release the funds.
Warning of Starvation and ‘Humanitarian Collapse,’ Dozens of House Dems Urge Biden to Release Frozen Afghan Funds https://t.co/GPnon2CwL7
— Blue Headline (@blue_headline) December 20, 2021
Democratic leaders, Pramila Jayapal, Jamaal Bowman, Ayanna Pressley, Rashida Tlaib, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ilhan Omar, and Cori Bush authored a letter to Democratic President Joe Biden urging for the release of funds to the terrorist organization.
The letter states in part:
“As you transition into a new phase of our relationship with the country and people of Afghanistan, we stand with American allies and humanitarian experts in urging the United States to avoid harsh economic measures that will directly harm Afghan families and children.
This means conscientiously but urgently modifying current U.S. policy regarding the freeze of Afghanistan’s foreign reserves and ongoing sanctions.”
Report: Afghan refugees under Biden get free food, housing, $2275, but questionable vetting
According to the Washington Post, as Afghan refugee families are moved from temporary housing and care on military bases to cities throughout the United States, resettlement agencies are struggling to keep up with the volume of families waiting for permanent housing and additional aid.
KTRH NewsRadio reports that the White House has provided a “loose” estimate of 95,000 Afghans total coming into the United States.
The Washington Post notes:
“Federal officials say they are working to spread the evacuees to different parts of the country as they begin to shut down the temporary housing camps at seven military bases that are still home to 34,000 Afghans.
“The process is expected to be completed by mid-February.”
In some areas of the country, Oklahoma for instance, resettled refugees are being offered “free housing” to relocate there.
The Post adds:
“The evacuees are each entitled to receive $2,275 in federal support that is meant to cover housing costs, job training and other expenses over a three-month period once they are matched with a resettlement agency.”
Funding for such expenses is covered nationally by massive dollar amounts earmarked for Afghan refugees.
As we previously reported, Congress has now authorized a total of $13.3 billion for the Biden administration to settle Afghans in the United States.
Other areas of the country are working on additional local funding for Afghan refugees.
For example, according to Breitbart, New York taxpayers will be covering at least $5 million in relocation expenses, after Governor Kathy Hochul (D) earmarked an additional $2 million for that purpose.
Also for example, in Oregon, Yahoo News reports that SB5561, passed on December 13, 2021, will “support Afghan individuals and families with housing, education, legal aid, job training and culturally-specific support as they settle in the state.”
The news outlet goes on to note:
“Of that $18 million, $5.25 million has been earmarked for short-term food and shelter, $2.9 million will support case management services, $5.9 million will be for rental assistance and $2.89 million is for immigration and legal services.
“An additional $807,600 will be available for culturally specific assistance and interpretation classes.”
These costly efforts are not without criticism, especially given the question of vetting, or possible lack thereof, of these Afghan refugees.
According to Breitbart, DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas testified during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing that “not all” of the thousands of Afghan refugees entering the country have been interviewed by federal law enforcement, even though that is “standard vetting protocol.”
Ira Mehlman, spokesperson for the Federation for American Immigration Reform, recently told KTRH NewsRadio:
“We need to be concerned about the fact we really don’t know who is has gotten out of Afghanistan. And at the same time, we need to be doubly concerned about the growing humanitarian crisis in that country.”
He added:
“We have no idea for the most part who those people are.”
Mehlman continued:
”Most of them no doubt are just decent people who understandably wanted to get out of there. But as we’ve learned at a very high cost, it only takes a few people to cause an awful lot of trouble.”
In an exclusive interview with Breitbart, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton echoed these sentiments.
Noting that the “federal government has not shared its vetting procedures with Texas,” Paxton told Alex Marlow:
“We don’t have any confidence in the Biden administration [to vet Afghan migrants].”
He continued:
“When you look at the border and how they’re just inviting people to come across … obviously the cartels are involved in every transaction, because you have to pay them to get across the border….
“We’ve got the Biden administration helping the cartels, helping them import drugs, helping them import COVID into our state, helping them import sex trafficking and other human trafficking…. and yet here we are with the Afghan refugees.”
Paxton went on to say:
“I don’t know that we’ll vet [Afghan refugees] at all. I think it’ll just be whatever the federal government says they’ve done. We won’t really know if it’s true.
“We won’t even know if they’ve done anything, and so, they’ll be dropped wherever the federal government wants to drop them, and they’ll disappear into our society.
“We’ll never know, until something bad happens, if we have a terrorist.”
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