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A Judge Took Hegseth Apart In 59 Pages
Plus a buried report on misappropriated Florida funds, a refused dismissal of a Jan 6 conviction, and a social media giant that folded
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As we jump into another week of Trump’s chaos, I’m glad to have some more great news for you today. Stories that uncover rampant corruption, a Trump judge ruling against one of his greatest allies, and Pete Hegseth and Mark Zuckerberg losing.
Before we get started, be sure to hit the like button and restack this edition. It’s only a few small clicks, but it makes a huge difference. You’d be helping spread the truth to those who need to see it.
And if you haven’t yet, join us as a paid subscriber today. We’re full speed ahead with our enormous campaigns to flip Congress, on top of our daily reporting—but we need all hands on deck to finish strong. Our goal is 12 new members today. I hope you’ll be one of them:
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They Said It Was Legal. A Grand
Jury Said Otherwise.
An insurance company called Centene overcharged the state of Florida for prescription drugs—medicine paid for by Medicaid. When they got caught, they offered to pay $67 million back.
$10 million of that never made it to the state.
The money was routed to a charity linked to Casey DeSantis, the governor’s wife. It sat there 25 days, before it was moved through two nonprofits and into a political fund run by GOP Gov. Ron DeSantis’ then chief of staff, James Uthmeier. He’s now the state’s attorney general.
An accountant working for a grand jury followed every dollar. He found $8.5 million had landed in Keep Florida Clean, the political fund Uthmeier chaired. From there, $7 million went to the state’s GOP, where it bought television ads to beat a ballot measure DeSantis wanted dead.
Money meant for sick children. Spent on a campaign. Seriously.
For around a year the state of Florida said it was fine, even the head of the state health agency told lawmakers it wasn’t taxpayer money. Uthmeier said everything had looked legal. They said it in hearings, letters, and on camera.
The grand jury didn’t agree, as their finding was that the money was “misappropriated,” and used for a purpose it was never meant for. It was part of what it called a scheme to fund political campaigns. It found the full settlement was money owed directly back to taxpayers. It also said it didn’t have enough evidence to charge anyone. That report was filed under seal in January and only became public days ago.
Money for families that need it—called a donation, sent through a charity with a famous name on it—spent on an election. A grand jury caught it in writing—and now every voter in that state gets to decide what happens to those who did it.
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A Trump Judge Wouldn’t Let Them Erase It
Following the Jan 6 attack on the Capitol, Congress subpoenaed Trump ally Steve Bannon. He refused to hand over any requested documents, and wouldn’t even show up to testify. So a jury convicted him of two counts of contempt of Congress, and he served four months in federal prison.
This February, the DOJ went to court to make that conviction disappear. They claimed the government “has determined in its prosecutorial discretion that dismissal of this criminal case is in the interests of justice.” That’s it. No explanation of why. Bannon’s lawyers didn’t object. Both sides wanted it gone.
The Supreme Court wiped out the appeals court ruling in April, the appeals court sent the case back down this month, and all they needed was a judge to sign.
That judge turned out to be Carl Nichols, who Trump put on the bench in 2019. Nichols ran Bannon’s trial, and on Wednesday he told the DOJ that one sentence is not a reason, and that the rules require one. Request denied.
Then, buried in a footnote, he left them something much worse. Higher courts have already ruled that the government can only drop a case while it’s still ongoing. Bannon’s case ended years ago, with a judgment Nichols himself signed. If the DOJ comes back, it has to explain why that doesn’t kill the whole request.
They can try again. But today Steve Bannon still has a criminal record for stonewalling the investigation into Jan 6. And the record of what happened that day is still standing, which is exactly what they were trying to erase.
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They Punished A Company For Talking Back
American-owned company Anthropic makes a computer program that the military wanted its hands on. The kind that reads heaps of information fast, then deciphers for you what’s in it. Anthropic said yes to almost everything—but they drew two lines. Don’t use it to spy on Americans. Don’t use it to kill people without a human making that decision.
The regime reacted furiously. On February 24, Pete Hegseth gave them three days to drop their objections. They didn’t. That Friday Trump attacked Anthropic on social media, calling its workers “leftwing nut jobs,” and ordered all federal agencies to stop using their products. An hour later, Hegseth labeled the company an official threat to national security.
Anthropic sued over the regime’s attacks and, on Thursday, Judge Rita Lin gutted the government’s case, ruling the blacklist illegal. When Lin asked what evidence the regime had that Anthropic was a threat, they produced a four-page memo dated March 2—after they had announced the punishment on February 27. They punished the company first, and wrote down the reason why three days later.
One day after calling Anthropic a national security threat, the same official who wrote that memo emailed the company about their contract negotiation: “I think we are very close here.” They were still trying to sign a deal with the enemy they had just called a threat.
Lin called it what it was: retaliation for protected speech. Permanent, effective immediately. Lin first blocked the regime back in March and gave them a week-long grace period before her order kicked in. They asked for another one—this time Lin refused.
They tried to destroy a company for criticizing them in public, and a federal judge just told them they can’t. That protection isn’t Anthropic’s. It’s everyone’s.
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Meta Just Turned Off The Like
Counts
Attorneys general across the country took Meta to court, saying the company built their social media platforms Instagram and Facebook with the goal of getting children hooked on them. Only eight days into the trial, Meta settled and quit. Co-founder Mark Zuckerberg avoided having to testify.
Meta will pay out around $12.7 billion over ten years. It also agreed to update its apps in 47 states and DC. Teenagers on Instagram and Facebook will stop seeing how many likes their posts get, some filters will get switched off, they’ll get two hours max on the apps per day, and feeds are dark 12am to 6am.
Meta admitted to no wrongdoing. The company bought full-page ads in five national newspapers pressuring TikTok and YouTube to match the same terms—which would cost Meta another $5 billion under the deal. Make of that what you will.
For years, parents were told there’s nothing that could be done to protect children from these apps. Turns out that was wrong. All it took was being thrown into a courtroom, and the threat of executives like Mark Zuckerberg having to testify under oath.
Thanks to you, I was able to write this edition—and spend the time needed to look at the original documents to get as much information as possible.
If you want to do more, gift a subscription to someone who needs this news. Or upgrade to a Founding Member—we have a goal of three new ones today. I’d be honored if you were one of them.
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Wisconsin Is Close
The read I’d give a candidate at a kitchen table with 64 days to go.
The governor’s race is one to watch. An RMG poll had Democratic nominee David Crowley up 46-43 in late July. A GBAO poll had him up 47-44 in early August. And a Platform poll had him up 48-44 in mid-August. Marquette had Crowley up 49-44 among likely voters that same stretch, but tied 44-44 among all registered voters, with 12% undecided.
A warning sign. Platform showed a +17 favorability for Crowley over GOP nominee Tom Tiffany’s -5. Marquette had Crowley at +4 and Tiffany at -3. It’s another sign that Wisconsin shouldn’t be taken for granted.
Crowley has ground to make up. Marquette had 55% of registered Republicans with high enthusiasm to vote, compared to 49% of Democrats. The gap is inside his own party—Democrats who like Francesca Hong are 52% enthusiastic, Democrats who like Crowley are 63%. They’re not switching sides. They’re just not fired up yet.
It was a squeaker. Crowley beat Hong 39.8% to 39.4% in a tight race. AP didn’t call it until 2:34am due to an upload issue in Milwaukee.
Tiffany has a lot of money. The Republican had $5 million by August. Crowley reportedly raked in more than a million dollars during the first 24 hours after his win. Both campaigns bought seven figure ad buys the next morning.
Tiffany abandoned the lake, but not Trump. When Trump ordered the renaming of Lake Ontario, Tiffany publicly broke ranks saying “The Great Lakes are Great Lakes, and we should leave them that way.” Don’t give him any credit, this is the same guy who voted against certifying the 2020 election results in two states. I think voters will see right through it.
The Bottom Line: Sabato moved this race from a toss-up to leans Democratic on August 12, but Cook Political Report kept it as a toss-up. The enthusiasm gap here is crucial—as long as Crowley catches up there, he’ll likely win.
Just nine weeks from tomorrow, the midterms will be here. Ballots start getting mailed out this week. It’s been a really long road for us to get here, which makes it easier for me to say that there is no way we are slowing down now.
We are full speed ahead to flip Congress and other seats across the country. Our goal is to turn Trump into a lame duck, and begin holding this regime and its accomplices accountable.
So here is our plan: We will keep fighting. We will keep investigating. We will keep the pressure on Congress. And we will never bend the knee. Never.
To stay truly independent, we have no corporate influence, which means all of our funding comes from our readers. So if you haven’t yet, join us as a paid subscriber today to help us sprint through November and beyond:
One more thing before you go. Hit the ❤️ like button and restack this. The regime’s entire strategy is convincing you that you are the only one who sees it. Every restack is proof to somebody else that they are not standing there alone.
Onward!
Scott
For the comments:
Do you have any kids or grandkids who use Facebook or Instagram? How would the Meta deal change things for your family?
Uthmeier has to face voters in 64 days. If you saw him at a local grocery store, what would you say to him?
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Reading is step one. Here's step two.
Five campaigns we're focused on today, and every one routes straight to your own representative with your zip code attached. That's the part that matters — staff sort constituent mail by district and by subject, and volume is the only signal they act on.
Mail voting. A judge in Boston rules Tuesday, and military ballots go out two days later. Congress can end the chaos instead of waiting on one courtroom.
The Epstein files. Blanche has read them. He isn't going to release them on his own. Somebody with subpoena power has to make him.
Investigate the whole case. Somebody flew those planes. Somebody kept that calendar. Not one of them has ever answered a question under oath.
45 million acres. 625,000 people filed comments against opening our national forests. The agency moved to do it anyway. Congress holds the money.
The Forest Service. Fire crews, trail workers, the people who catch illegal logging. Being cut quietly, with no vote and no hearing.
Pick one. Pick all five. It takes a minute each, and more than 829,000 letters have gone out from this list since November 2024.
Onward!
👍🏻
Scott….thank you for not letting Florida story die.
Thank you so much, Carol! We are going to keep shining a light on this until there is full accountability. We won't let it fade away!
Great you have to keep it in the limelight
If I saw Uthmeier I would say I smell a rat. The ballot measure ronny wanted to defeat was the legalization of marijuana. Casey DeSantis was supposedly going to run for Governor following in the footsteps of ronny. The reason IMO she disappeared is they found out what was going to be disclosed. I hope they are all prosecuted to the full extent of the law. Excellent reporting yet again Scott. You rock!
Carol is right. This "funding" has been talked about since Hope Fl. started.
End of the month is when people decide this doesn’t matter. It does. A judge still has Bannon’s conviction on the books. A grand jury still put the Florida dollars in writing. Don’t clock out.
If you’re tired, that’s allowed. Tired and still here is the whole job.
You hit the nail on the head, Sam. Exhaustion is real, but staying engaged and refusing to clock out is exactly how we win. Thank you for always being here and keeping the momentum going! Talk to you in five minutes LOL
In a normal world, Uthmeier and De Santis committed a $10 million fraud. and since it is Medicaid dollars and the perpetrators are constitutional officers of a state, A Federal Grand Jury would be investigating this, right? In our brave new world, they will get off.
Great question, Stephen. Since federal Medicaid funds are involved, federal oversight should absolutely be on the table. We’ll be watching very closely to see what happens next!
ANGIE NIXON IS USING THIS IN HER ADS:
It’s Rep. Angie Nixon.
My opponent, Ashley Moody stole $10 million from poor and sick kids.
That’s not my opinion. That’s what a state grand jury found.
The money came from a Medicaid settlement over a company overbilling a program that provides health insurance to poor children. Instead of going back to Florida taxpayers, $10 million was diverted to Hope Florida and ultimately millions flowed into political committees and the Republican Party of Florida.
And the grand jury found that Ashley Moody knew about the plan and authorized her deputy to sign the settlement.
I’m running to defeat Ashley Moody because Floridians deserve a Senator who fights for working families not another rubber stamp for Ron DeSantis and his corrupt political machine.
DeSantis appointed Moody to this Senate seat because he knows she’ll stand with him. I’m running to make sure this seat belongs to the people of Florida instead.
We can beat her, but we need the resources to expose this corruption across Florida and build the movement to flip this seat blue.
Angie Nixon
Democratic Nominee for US Senate, Florida
THIS IS ALEX VINDMAN'S AD:
See this guy? (TRUMP'S PHOTO)
He ripped healthcare away from 15 million Americans and made the largest cut to Medicaid in American history.
See her? (PHOTO OF ASHLEY MOODY & trump)
She was the deciding vote to pass the bill.
Ashley Moody was hand-picked by MAGA and their billionaires to be an automatic yes-vote for their radical agenda. That’s why Trump gave Ashley his “complete and total endorsement” just weeks after she voted for the bill.
She’s not Florida’s senator. She’s theirs. It’s time we elect a leader who actually gives a damn about our families.
Lieutenant Colonel (Ret.) Alex Vindman is running for the U.S. Senate in Florida. He’s risked everything because he refuses to bow down to a wannabe tyrant.
When Donald Trump tried to pressure a foreign country into investigating his political rival, Alex reported the call — leading to Trump’s first impeachment.
Ashley Moody is up for election this November. Alex is ready to take the fight straight to Donald Trump’s backyard and flip Florida blue, but he can’t do it without you.
Will you pitch in to Alex Vindman’s Senate campaign today? Every donation helps us check Trump’s power, and it adds up quickly when everyone is chipping in.
Thank you,
Team Alex Vindman
Tired but not clocking out in Florida. 🌴We must keep tying Republicans to Corruption!
Moody and Uthmeier to Hope Florida
Byron Donalds to Data Centers
All the spineless Republicans To Trump’s Corruption
Free downloads and great messaging from Factocracy.You can also order inexpensive,good-quality yard signs/protest signs.I bought a bunch and placing in high traffic areas. 🪧🪧🪧🪧🪧
https://factocracy.net/
Uthmeier and DeSantis should be indicted. And for that matter, why isn’t Rick Scott in prison for his Medicare fraud?!
Yeah, where is he?
In the Senate…
I have something more hurtful than words for Uthmeier, a vote against him in Florida!
That is the most powerful response of all, Brenda! Taking that energy straight to the ballot box is exactly what we need!
I’m thinking about the parents like me who were told nothing could be done about those apps. Then a trial date showed up and the like counts went off. Funny how that works.
Also thinking about whoever leaked that Florida report after seven months in a drawer. I hope they slept well last night.
It’s amazing how fast things change when real pressure and accountability are applied! And yes, whoever had the courage to leak that report did the public a massive service.