Since Republicans have been in charge of state government since 1998, and seem likely to continue their streak, campaign donations flow in substantial amounts. Over the past decade, Republican donors contributed at least 70% of the total money raised in Florida election campaigns.
National Report
How U.S. Cities and States Spent Billions in COVID-19 Assistance
President Biden’s signature American Rescue Plan Act gave local governments $350 billion to recover from COVID-19. They spent much of it on police, prisons and the courts.
Stubborn Effort to Bring U.S. Hostages Home Comes at a Price
President Biden's decision to swap two Venezuelan drug traffickers for seven Americans detained in Caracas has provoked criticism. It is not the first time that a White House tenant has acted in this way. The Iran-Contra case was a notable example.
Young People Fear Gun Violence, But Also Think Guns May Keep Them Safe
A new survey explores Gen Z's (refers to the generation that was born between 1997-2012) perception of gun violence and its effect on their daily lives.
Transnational
Behind the Resale of Cellebrite Technology That Can Hack Your Phone
While most of Cellebrite’s devices that are for resale are not new-gen, such practice demonstrates the vulnerabilities, insofar as repressive governments access the product and licensing upgrades through third parties for a few dollars, found an investigation by Itempnews. There are no limits for Venezuela, Cuba, or China to also buy this technology.
Russia Allies in Latin America Addopt the “Puttin’s Model” Against NGOs
Russian diplomats in Venezuela collected ample information about nongovernmental organizations that receive foreign funds and they also provided advice to the Venezuelan regime amidst a crusade to silence opposition groups, according to the findings of an investigation
How an Argentine businessman was key in the major embezzled PDVSA
Since 2015, businessman Luis Fernando Vuteff García has connected with one of the largest clans that plundered the state-owned Petróleos de Venezuela. The Argentine Prosecutor's Office keeps a file against him for tax crimes, which is added to the case that is followed in Spain for the same crime. That country granted him provisional liberty after arresting him in 2018.
Florida
Recycling in Obscurity on the Streets of Miami
Invisible but essential to the global recycling industry, the cardboard collectors of Miami-Dade earn a living by breaking down each piece of cardboard by hand, with no guaranteed income or labor protections.
While Venezuela’s Former Treasurer Was in Jail, His Ex-wife Bought Property in Florida
The compound of eight housing units located in Wellington, Palm Beach, is worth over $3 million, Itempnews found. Still another home was sold in October 2019 for $1.1 million, according to county property records. Former Venezuelan National Treasurer admitted that he received over US$1 billion in bribes.
U.S. Prosecutors on Trail of $700 Million in Bribes to Venezuela’s Former Treasurer
Justice Department records obtained by Itempnews show a broad look at the $300 million-plus haul that Hugo Chavez's former bodyguard began turning over the same day U.S. prosecutors charged him with $1 billion in money laundering.