News chronological

AMERICANALMANAC (Ken Jacobs) - Maryland woman who defrauded USAID-funded charity must pay $160,000 on top of earlier restitution Wed Aug 12 18:17:48 2026

A 59-year-old Maryland woman who avoided prison after pleading guilty to defrauding a federally funded nonprofit has now agreed to pay $160,000 in a separate civil settlement with the Justice Department, a case that illustrates the oversight failures DOGE and the Trump administration flagged across USAID. Carleena Graham, a former vice president of human resources […] The post Maryland woman who defrauded USAID-funded charity must pay $160,000 on top of earlier restitution appeared first on American Almanac .

A 59-year-old Maryland woman who avoided prison after pleading guilty to defrauding a federally funded nonprofit has now agreed to pay $160,000 in a separate civil settlement with the Justice Department, a case that illustrates the oversight failures DOGE and the Trump administration flagged across USAID. Carleena Graham, a former vice president of human resources at the nonprofit World Learning, entered the civil settlement last month to resolve DOJ allegations that she submitted fraudulent claims for payment to the U.S. government. The $160,000 comes on top of the $425,000 in restitution Graham already owed from her criminal case, in which she pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud. Just the News reported that the settlement closes…Open

JUSTTHENEWS (Ashe Short) - After guilty plea to defrauding a USAID-funded charity, she has to repay the government $160,000 Tue Aug 11 03:09:47 2026

A single mid-level HR executive drained $425,000 from a federally funded aid group over years using nothing more sophisticated than fake invoices and a company credit card — the precise blind spot the USAID inspector general warned about when he reported that the organizations spending taxpayer money were largely the ones deciding whether to report themselves.

AMERICANGREATNESS (AG Staff) - 19 Charged in $4 Million Philadelphia Medicare, Medicaid Fraud Scheme Wed Aug 5 09:32:39 2026

Federal and Pennsylvania prosecutors have charged 19 defendants in connection with a $4 million scheme to defraud Medicare and Medicaid, the latest sign of the […] Source

AMERICANALMANAC (Ken Jacobs) - Six UN agencies stonewalled a U.S. probe into Hamas ties for months — and American officials say it's time to dismantle UNRWA for good Sat Aug 1 19:35:06 2026

Multiple United Nations relief agencies have refused to hand over employee records demanded by a federal investigation into Hamas infiltration of humanitarian operations in Gaza, even as U.S. diplomats call UNRWA a "cancerous" institution that must be severed from the UN system. The USAID Office of Inspector General, a law-enforcement body independent of the now […] The post Six UN agencies stonewalled a U.S. probe into Hamas ties for months — and American officials say it's time to dismantle UNRWA for good appeared first on American Almanac .

Multiple United Nations relief agencies have refused to hand over employee records demanded by a federal investigation into Hamas infiltration of humanitarian operations in Gaza, even as U.S. diplomats call UNRWA a "cancerous" institution that must be severed from the UN system. The USAID Office of Inspector General, a law-enforcement body independent of the now largely defunct USAID, sent letters to six UN agencies in December 2025 requesting the names, contact information, dates and places of birth, and details on any Hamas interactions involving their personnel. More than seven months later, not one of the six has turned over the full set of documents. The Washington Free Beacon obtained unredacted copies of both the inspector general's…Open

STRIPES (Cpl. Rachel Mason) - U.S. Marines bring advanced manufacturing to the front lines during Valiant Shield 26 | Stars and Stripes Fri Jul 31 00:22:49 2026

U.S. Marine Corps Pfc. Kaden Hicks, an automotive maintenance technician with Intermediate Repair Company, 3rd Maintenance Battalion, sprays a stator housing during Valiant Shield 26 on Camp Kinser, Okinawa.

WAR (Matthew Olay) - Vice Chairman Presents Purple Heart to Operation Iraqi Freedom Vets Thu Jul 30 15:12:30 2026

Marine Corps Gen. Christopher J. Mahoney, vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, presented the Purple Heart to six service members — four retired, one on active duty and one receiving it posthumously — during a ceremony in the Pentagon's Hall of Heroes.

DAILYCALLER (Ann Rodgers) - USAID Was Apparently The Only Thing Standing Between Nepal’s Trans Activists And Prostitution Fri Jul 24 15:09:06 2026

‘Sex work or starve.”

AMERICANGREATNESS (Lipton Matthews) - Palantir and the New Instrument of American Influence Thu Jul 23 07:24:07 2026

Washington spent decades funding a soft-power apparatus that had quietly lost sight of its own purpose. USAID was conceived as an instrument for winning hearts […] Source

THEAMERICANCONSERVATIVE (Phillip Linderman) - The Fight Inside Trump’s State Department Is About Power—Not Expertise Wed Jul 22 04:17:26 2026

The president needs diplomats willing to advance his America First agenda. The post The Fight Inside Trump’s State Department Is About Power—Not Expertise appeared first on The American Conservative .

Politics The Fight Inside Trump’s State Department Is About Power—Not Expertise The president needs diplomats willing to advance his America First agenda. Photo by STR/NurPhoto via Getty Images At last count, President Donald Trump had named only nine career Foreign Service officers (FSOs) as ambassadors. Six had been confirmed, while three remained waiting for Senate confirmation. That strikingly small number has predictably put the Foreign Service establishment inside the State Department on the warpath. Under Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama, the breakdown was roughly 70 percent career diplomats to 30 percent political appointees. Under Joe Biden, it was about 60–40. Even during the first Trump administration, the split…Open

NEWSNATIONNOW (Nathaniel Weixel and The Hill) - Trump health staffing, funding cuts slow cyclospora response Tue Jul 21 12:08:11 2026

Fewer staff has meant all aspects of the outbreak investigation were likely slower.