One Day, Two More Scandals For The Democratic Party

July 26, 2017

Corruption is running rampant within the ranks of the Democratic Party.

Yesterday, former DNC Chair Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz’ staffer was arrested for bank fraud while attempting to flee the country.

This staffer is at the center of a criminal investigation and has worked for more than two dozen House Democrats.

In the same day, Rep. Robert Brady’s campaign was implicated in the guilty plea of their former 2012 primary challenger’s staff.

Per the testimony, the Brady campaign agreed to pay $90,000 in their challenger’s campaign expenses which ultimately led to the challenger dropping out of the race.

Via Politico:

Imran Awan, a House staffer at the center of a criminal investigation potentially impacting dozens of Democratic lawmakers, has been arrested on bank fraud and is prevented from leaving the country while the charges are pending.

A senior House Democratic aide confirmed Awan was still employed by Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.) as of Tuesday morning. But David Damron, a spokesman for Wasserman Schultz, later said that Awan was fired on Tuesday.

Awan is accused of attempting to defraud the Congressional Federal Credit Union by obtaining a $165,000 home equity loan for a rental property, which is against the credit union’s policies since it is not the owner’s primary residence. Those funds were then included as part of a wire transfer to two individuals in Faisalabad, Pakistan.

Awan was arrested at Dulles Airport on Monday evening before boarding a flight to Lahore, Pakistan. His wife, Hina Alvi, has already left the country for Pakistan along with their children. Federal agents do not believe Alvi has any intention of returning to the U.S., according to a court document.

Awan, a longtime IT staffer who worked for more than two dozen House Democrats, has been at the center of a criminal investigation on Capitol Hill for months related to procurement theft. Several of his family members, also IT staffers at the time, were implicated in the ongoing investigation.

Via Politico:

A Pennsylvania pastor pleaded guilty to a federal felony Tuesday for participating in a scheme that led a challenger to Rep. Robert Brady (D-Pa.) to bow out of a 2012 primary contest.

Appearing in U.S. District Court in Philadelphia, Rev. Carolyn Cavaness pleaded guilty to a single charge of making a false statement in a federal proceeding, court records show.

Cavaness was a campaign staffer for Jimmie Moore, a Philadelphia judge who entered the Democratic primary against Brady. Moore dropped out in February 2012, according to press accounts.

No charges have been announced against Moore or Brady. However, one court filing made public Tuesday indicates prosecutors believe Brady attempted to influence the testimony of at least one witness in the investigation.

Cavaness admitted to helping make create false Federal Election Commission reports disguising the fact that Brady’s campaign agreed to pay $90,000 in Moore’s campaign expenses, far in excess of the $2,500 candidates were allowed to transfer at the time. In addition, Cavaness and Moore used some of the funds for “personal expenses,” the formal charge says.