Free Republic

Instead of drawing out the big mystery over how much of your money Washington wastes on improper payments, I'll just tell you right up front: In the 20 years between 2003 and 2023, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) estimates the total money blown on payments made in error, or in the wrong amount, or with no documentation (!!!) is $2.7 TRILLION.That's a two followed by a seven followed by 11 zeroes. That's almost double what we spent last year on Medicare/Medicaid combined, or on Social Security. It's triple last year's defense budget. It's almost triple the unconscionable amount we spent...

WASHINGTON — They’re a shady bunch. A California family that swindled $18 million in COVID-19 relief cash to splurge on various trappings — including a Harley-Davidson, diamonds and luxury homes — inspired a Senate crackdown on so-called “fraudster families.” Two of the family members, Richard Ayvazyan and his wife, Marietta Terabelian, cut off their ankle bracelets and ditched their three children via a goodbye note to flee the US after being convicted on fraud charges, before being caught in Montenegro. Years later, the saga inspired Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), who has led the Senate DOGE Caucus, to push for legislation...

The University of Cambridge must uphold its academic integrity in the wake of Jason Arday’s death, its chancellor has said. Lord Smith of Finsbury called for the institution to be fearless in interrogating accusations of plagiarism and suggestions of academic misconduct. Writing in The Telegraph, the peer said: “We must uphold the importance of academic integrity. * * * Lord Smith, who served as secretary of state for culture, media and sport under Sir Tony Blair, had previously labelled the coverage of Mr Arday a “racist feeding frenzy” and said it was correct for the institution to defend him against...

A Black and reportedly autistic man touted as the youngest scholar of color to serve as a chair at the University of Cambridge was accused of plagiarism before authorities say he took his own life last week. If that were the only headline following professor Jason Arday’s death at age 41, then it would be tragic enough. However, the feeding frenzy that followed the plagiarism allegations, the way Arday was hounded relentlessly online and in print regarding his credentials and biography, and the way his story became an opportunity for the left and right alike to promote their own beliefs...

Right-wing independent journalist Nick Shirley got into a heated exchange when a California official crashed one of his street interviews to sassily accuse him of having a "small penis." The middle-aged man barged into one of Shirley's interviews with a state politician and held up a piece of computer paper reading, "Allegedly Nick Shirley Has a Small Penis. Prove Me Wrong." "Did you guys hear that Nick Shirley has a small penis allegedly?" the man said. Shirley didn't seem thrilled with the interruption. "Wow that's so adult of you," Shirley deadpanned. "You have never seen it. You would never see...

The Trump administration is moving to claw back tens of millions of dollars in pandemic relief that went to celebrities, music artists, and entertainment-industry elites. The Small Business Administration announced Tuesday that it has referred $34 million in outstanding Shuttered Venue Operators Grant(SVOG) debt to the Treasury Department, marking the first time the federal government has referred unresolved debt from the program to the Treasury for collection. The move is part of a broader effort by SBA Administrator Kelly Loeffler to recover pandemic-era funds that the agency says were improperly awarded or remain outstanding. “Under the Biden Administration, the SVOG...

Our new report on the size, scope and cost of illegal immigration in NJ is now out. We’ve found a state so hopelessly compromised that we’ve officially requested federal intervention from the DOJ, DHS and House Judiciary Committee. A staggering 8.2B is being spent every single year on 737,000 illegal invaders in New Jersey. And it’s costing each of you $1,700 a year! If you rent, you can add another $1,000 annually onto that figure from illegals driving up housing costs. What’s even crazier is this is all despite an overall drop in illegals due to deportations and self deportations!...

A man who was once honored as an "outstanding refugee" by the Minnesota Department of Human Services and has a startup with funding from a Shark Tank star is now facing Medicaid fraud charges in a case that has links to a sex trafficking case. Fraud charges filed What we know: Salman Ahmed Elmi was charged last week with three counts of aiding and abetting by swindle and five counts of aiding and abetting by false representation. He made his first court appearance on Monday. Authorities say some of Elmi's co-conspirators at Reva Health in Golden Valley have connections to...

Michigan activist Robert Davis joined investigative reporter Charlie LeBuff on his “No BS Newshour” podcast that was released on Wednesday. During their discussion, Davis argued that Jocelyn Benson is ineligible to run for public office in Michigan after she allegedly made false statements on her campaign forms for governor. Michigan election law can be very strict, preventing candidates who make minor errors in their paperwork from getting on the ballot. Robert Davis claims Jocelyn Benson was not truthful on her forms and should be removed from the ballots. Davis went further, saying Benson should also lose her current position as...

[Catholic Caucus] Vatican Held Secret Vote on Medjugorje Apparitions: Two-Thirds Rejected it For years, the Vatican’s investigation into Medjugorje remained shrouded in secrecy. Now, the verdict of the Ruini Commission has been disclosed: A two-thirds majority of the voters rejected the supernatural character of the apparitions, so why did the Church move toward pastoral acceptance rather than a definitive judgment? This is ultimately about discernment, obedience, Tradition... and the strange new logic of the Synodal Church.The Synodal Church and Međugorje: A History of an Eloquent RelationshipLast August 6, the Italian journalist David Murgia published an exclusive report concerning the secret...

Transcript of the YouTube Short “This Will UNITE America. ” by Benny Johnson: [Woman speaking] I don’t know if you’ve noticed as of late there is an influx of Madaguchi people in my comment section. And guess what? I’m not going to let off the neck of a Somalian because if I see a Somalian, nine times out of 10 you are connected to fraud. You’re in Canada, you’re in the UK, you’re predominantly in Minneapolis. And what’s happening in Minneapolis right now? A bunch of scamming. You guys come to this country try to demean black Americans like we...

newly approved flu vaccine based on mRNA technology will provide better protection than traditional flu vaccines, according to Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health’s Kizzmekia Corbett-Helaire. Corbett-Helaire, assistant professor of immunology and infectious diseases, was quoted about the benefits of the new vaccine in an August 7 GBH article. She said it trains people’s immune systems more effectively. “Think of it like a picture,” she said. “If I saw a picture of your face, it could be blurry or it could be high definition. So, typically mRNA presents proteins to the body in a very high-definition way, so the...

LAWRENCE, Mass. — Lawrence Mayor Brian DePeña has been arrested on wire fraud and money laundering charges. According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for Massachusetts, DePeña allegedly obtained more than $1.5 million in COVID small-business loans and used the money for personal and political expenses. DePeña, 61, is charged with one count of wire fraud and one count of money laundering. According to federal prosecutors, DePena used the money to pay personal tax debts, fund his mayoral campaign and pay off more than $880,000 in high-interest mortgages on properties he owned in Lawrence. The charges center on Economic Injury Disaster...

The David Horowitz Freedom Center is still standing. Heidi isn't.

WASHINGTON — The feds nabbed 11 suspects accused of operating a decade-long, multimillion-dollar marriage fraud scheme that resulted in around 1,000 sham weddings between primarily Chinese nationals and US citizens for the purpose of getting the Asians green cards. The “cottage industry” uncovered Wednesday charged foreign nationals up to $100,000 for each fake union, including submitting fraudulent applications to US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) on behalf of those seeking lawful permanent residency. The sham wedding ring used advertisements on social media platforms, held phony marraige ceremonies and even had both parties to the fake unions sign bizarre pre-nuptial agreements,...

The video “2026 Great Barrier Reef Statistics: They told us a fairy tale” (by Reef Rebels / Dr. Peter Ridd) argues that official data show the Great Barrier Reef is not in crisis, contrary to long-running media and institutional claims. Key points from the video: • Australian Institute of Marine Science (AIMS) monitoring data show six consecutive years of exceptionally high (or record/record-equaling) coral cover—higher than or matching levels seen over the previous ~35 years of systematic surveys. • Ridd frames the repeated “reef is dying / doomed” narrative as a “fairy tale.” He walks through the reef’s natural history:...

Paradise Residential Services CEO Jocelyne Ininahazwe and her family enjoyed luxury Mercedes brands while the disabled Mainers who relied on the Medicaid agency for 24/7 care were living in squalor, subject to abuse and neglect by non-English speaking staff, including some who were untrained and never subjected to background checks. That’s the chief takeaway from documents released Friday by the Maine Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), including a termination letter to Paradise that cited “violations [that] place the health and safety of MaineCare Members in immediate jeopardy.” “[Paradise Residential Services] failed to ensure individuals are protected from abuse,...

[Catholic Caucus] Doctrine of the Faith said Medjugorje was NOT Supernatural -- Francis waved it off anyway Italian journalist D. Murgia recently published results of the 2016 deliberations within the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF), that shed important new light on the Vatican’s handling of the alleged apparitions at Medjugorje.The International Commission on Medjugorje, chaired by Cardinal Camillo Ruini, had been established in 2010 at the request of Pope Benedict XVI. Crucially, it was not constituted as an independent body reporting directly to the Pope, but within and under the authority of the Congregation for the Doctrine...

(WJAR) — Rhode Island U.S. Attorney’s Office said a former Rhode Island Department of Human Services supervisor pleaded guilty in a scheme to defraud the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). According to federal prosecutors, 59-year-old Nadine Jean Baptiste used her position to improperly access and exploit the personal information and benefits of SNAP recipients. On Tuesday, officials said Jean Baptiste admitted to accessing SNAP EBT card information, conducting unauthorized telephone balance inquiries, and altering PINs associated with those cards. Those impacted by this scheme included juveniles, homeless individuals, or people that were incarcerated at the time their information was accessed,...

Cambridge University is England’s second-best university, but it’s now bottom of the class. As the case of Jason Arday confirms, no one does dumb like the smart people. In 2023, Cambridge made Arday a professor. He became the professorial chair of sociology and education. These fields produce politicized gibberish and call it scientific research.