Guest post by Bob Cushman – Investigative Reporter
If I told you that 72 senior citizens that average 76 years old donated $10,357,000.00 in over 485,000 separate individual donations would you believe me?
Me neither!
According to the FEC, this group of senior citizens that average 76 years of age did just that!
Note: (The ages were determined with Google searches that included the addresses and names.)
These donations of almost half a million separate donations only average $21.32 each.
Why?
That way the “masters of political money laundering” had hoped to stay “under the radar”. It worked for almost two decades. In the last few years investigative reporters such as James O Keefe, Peter Bernegger and Bob Cushman have foiled this great conspiracy that is believed to have laundered somewhere over a billion dollars in the last two decades through ActBlue with the probable complicity of the FEC.
This is what we call “smurfing,” AKA money laundering.
This is illegal!
What is smurfing? “Smurfing” involves making many small financial transactions to avoid reporting thresholds (e.g., for money laundering). In political campaign law there are two important functions which are “bypassed”.
- It is generally required that the actual name of the donor be assigned to each donation.
- There are strict limits on how much an individual may contribute.
In “smurfing” (i.e. money laundering) these laws are ignored.
The 72 smurf table above was accomplished by combining previously discovered smurfs as follows:
- 20 smurfs attributed to Cory Booker (Corey Booker was the common denominator in terms of campaign committees that paid large sum of money to the business interests of Judge Mechan’s daughter. All 20 smurfs donated to Bookers campaign committee thru ActBlue.)I have reported my findings of laundered money to the Judge Merchan family in a letter to the judiciary Committee/ Jim Jordan. In my research utilizing the FEC database I identified 20 money mules AKA “Smurfs” whose identities that I believed were stolen to launder money to money to various democratic entities. Isn’t it remarkable that just 20 individuals are shown to have donated about 2.6 million dollars in about 188,000 donations! Note Loren Merchan is the daughter of Judge Juan Merchan.)
- 22 smurfs attributed to Mark Kelly (AZ Senator and The Seditious Six Leader)
In late 2025 and early 2026, U.S. Senator Mark Kelly (D-AZ), a retired Navy captain and astronaut, became the subject of intense scrutiny and administrative action by the Department of Defense (DoD) under Secretary Pete Hegseth, following accusations of “sedition” made by President Donald Trump.
The “Seditious” Allegation
The Video: In November 2025, Senator Kelly and five other Democratic lawmakers with military or intelligence backgrounds released a video message to U.S. service members, stating: “Our laws are clear: you can refuse illegal orders”.
The Reaction: President Trump accused the lawmakers of “seditious behavior,” initially suggesting in a social media post that it was “punishable by DEATH”.
Pentagon Action: Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth labelled the comments as “seditious in nature” and a violation of the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ). Hegseth claimed that by telling troops to refuse orders, Kelly was undermining the chain of command and engaging in “reckless misconduct”. - 10 smurfs attributed to Fani Willis (Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis and her office were removed from the Trump case after the Georgia Court of Appeals ruled there was an appearance of impropriety tied to Willis’ romantic relationship with the special prosecutor she appointed to lead the case. A replacement prosecutor dismissed the case in November.)
- 10 smurfs attributed to Tim Walz ( Governor Tim Walz faces intense criticism, primarily from Republicans, for massive fraud in Minnesota’s social programs (like child care and school meals) occurring under his watch, with allegations of “money laundering” through fraudulent claims. President Trump has vowed to get to the truth in this case.)
- 10 smurfs attributed to Congresswoman Ilhan Omar. (In January 2026, U.S. Representative Ilhan Omar (D-MN) is at the center of intense scrutiny and multiple investigations related to large-scale fraud within Minnesota’s Somali community and her own personal finances.)
72 Smurfs feeding the Democratic Party Money Laundering
The chart above shows some of the primary recipients of the 10.3 million dollars that pretty much describe the Democratic Party. There are more but this cross-section should serve as a clear indication of the purposeful management/direction of this Massive Money Laundering effort.
Who received this laundered money?
The names include but are not limited to:
- Gretchen Whitmer – Gov MI
- Fani Willis – DA – Ga
- Tim Walz – Gov – MN
- Ilhan Omar – Congress – MN
- DNC – Democratic National Committee
- DCCC – Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee
- DSCC – Democratic Senate Campaign Committee
- Progressive Takeover – Hybrid PAC
- Hillary Clinton
- Kamala Harris
- Joe Biden
- Cory Booker
- Mark Kelly
- Nancy Pelosi
- Chuck Schumer
- Adam Schiff
- Elissa Slotkin
- Raphael Warnock
- Jon Ossoff
- Elizabeth Warren
- Amy Klobuchar
- Gary Peters
- John Fetterman
- Hakeem Jeffries
- Maggie For NH
Why is this happening?
It seems clear to this reporter that the purpose of this smurfing (money laundering) is to provide “under the cover of darkness” large sums of money to Democratic candidates and committees and escape the limits of contributions and the revelations of the source of this money.
What is ActBlue?
ActBlue describes itself as:
“ActBlue is an American Democratic Party political action committee and fundraising platform founded in 2004. ActBlue is a major part of the Democratic Party’s fundraising infrastructure. As of 2025, ActBlue reports that it has raised $16 billion for Democratic candidates and causes since it was established.”
According to AI:
“Current Events and Investigations (2025–2026)
- DOJ Investigation: In April 2025, following a presidential memorandum, the Department of Justice began investigating allegations of “straw donor” schemes and foreign contributions through the platform.
- Congressional Subpoenas: As of mid-2025, several House committees issued subpoenas to ActBlue and its employees, alleging a lack of security protocols like CVV verification. ActBlue has maintained that these investigations are “politically motivated attacks” and noted that they began requiring CVV codes for all new donations in 2023.
- Internal Restructuring: In early 2025, the organization saw the resignation of seven senior staffers, leading to concerns from employee unions about organizational stability.”
According to Conservatives
“In 2026, conservative figures and Republican lawmakers characterize ActBlue not just as a fundraising tool, but as a primary target for investigations into campaign finance irregularities and potential foreign interference.
According to prominent conservative perspectives:
- A “Conduit” for Fraudulent Donations: Republican officials, including President Donald Trump and House Oversight chairs, have alleged that ActBlue’s platform facilitates “straw” or “dummy” donations. A 2025 House Republican report accused the platform of allowing “donation fraud” and “laundering” by failing to implement rigorous security protocols.
- A Vulnerability for Foreign Interference: Conservatives claim ActBlue’s past failure to require credit card CVV codes and its acceptance of prepaid gift cards created “potential vulnerabilities” that hostile foreign powers—such as China, Russia, or Iran—could exploit to illegally influence U.S. elections.
- Target of Presidential and State-Level Probes: In April 2025, President Trump signed a memorandum directing Attorney General Pam Bondi to investigate ActBlue for violating federal election laws. State Attorneys General, such as Ken Paxton (Texas) and Jason Miyares (Virginia), have launched their own investigations into “suspicious” donor activity on the platform.
- Exploitative Toward Retirees: Some conservative critics point to “anomalous” data showing elderly Americans making thousands of small donations annually, suggesting these individuals may be unaware their names are being used or are being targeted by predatory recurring-donation tactics.”
What is WinRed?
WinRed describes itself as:
- “WinRed is the #1 fundraising technology used by conservatives. Donors from across the country can easily connect with causes and candidates that they support.”
- Investigative Reporters Peter Bernegger and Bob Cushman have reported that WinRed also commits money laundering and uses smurfs. Although WinRed appears to “cheat” in a similar fashion as ActBlue, the degree and time duration is only a fraction of ActBlue’s “malignancy”.
- Although WinRed was established in 2014, it did not establish itself as a major player until 2020.
- WinRed has effectively only functioned for 25% as many years as ActBlue.
Who has reported this Massive Money Laundering?
- The Gateway Pundit
- Example President Trump Orders Investigation Into ActBlue (https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2025/04/president-trump-orders-investigation-actblues-)
- Example (TGP Was First to Report on Democrat Money Laundering Using ActBlue – President Trump Called for an Investigation – The Seditious Six Now Implicated – Joe Hoft)
- Example (Rep. James Comer and FBI to Bring CRIMINAL CHARGES Against ActBlue Operatives in Largest Money Laundering Scheme in U.S. History https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2025/03/rep-james-comer-fbi-bring-criminal-charges-against/)
- Investigative Reporter and activist Peter Reporter
- Example (https://t.co/VNrW3S7Cqj)
- Example (https://x.com/PeterBernegger/status/2013275355272888406?s=20)
- Example FEC Complaint Filed Against Senator Mark Kelly for “Smurfing” (https://x.com/PeterBernegger/status/2003220366588584262?s=20)
- Investigative Reporter Bob Cushman
- Example (Massive Democrat Money Laundering Discovered – Names include Gretchen Whitmer, Jon Ossoff and Cory Booker https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2025/12/massive-democrat-money-laundering-discovered-names-include-gretchen/)
- Example (Legal Challenges — Massive MONEY LAUNDERING Allegations Emerge – https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2025/12/seditious-six-face-new-legal-challenges-massive-money/ )
- Example Jocelyn Benson and Money Laundering -(https://drive.google.com/file/d/1p28g5OmZDF7h9yv-hqx-5rFkZ5nnIKDx/view?pli=1)
Why have the Republicans not championed against this fraud?
Sadly, the Republican Party has not championed the fight against this outrageous fraud. The obvious reason is that many Republicans have either chosen to follow suit in receiving laundered money or have discovered that it was happening when it was too late to return the illegal campaign donations.
What is the biggest problem with this money laundering?
Our beloved country is supposed to have been established as a “government of the people, by the people, for the people”.
That is not what we currently have.
We have a “government of special interests, by special interests, for special interests”.
As long as we allow massive amounts of money to pollute and corrupt our elected officials we will never obtain the representation that we long for, that we deserve. This is precisely why we are at or near an all time low of approval on Congress according to the recent Gallop poll.
Money is coming from outside of our country!
In a very informative news discussion between Pulitzer Prize Winning Journalist Charlie LeDuff in a “No BS Newshour Episode #395” and campaign strategist Jason Roe (Fraudette Smurf – YouTube) (https://www.youtube.com/live/X9DUL1BDGtg) it was stated that ActBlue has allegedly received over 16 billion dollars since 2004. It was also revealed that several senior members of ActBlue have abruptly resigned since allegations of fraud have come forward and several federal investigations have begun in 2025.
Jason Roe stated that people working within political campaigns for many years have been aware of the money laundering that was enabled by ActBlue and that Charlie LeDuff had, within the first few minutes of Episode 395, done a far better job of explaining how ActBlue had laundered money than any mainstream media ever had!
Jason Roe further states that:
- This activity is fraud
- This activity is money laundering
- This activity is funneling money from outside the US
- That Republicans are now outraising Democrats for the first time in a decade
A break down of each Smurf group
It is believed that presenting each of the 5 smurf groups individually will make it easier to actually see the big picture of this massive money laundering system by Democratic candidates, committees and other malignant entities.
The Corey Booker Smurfs
The Cory Booker Smurfs were first identified when investigative reporter Bob Cushman researched the money laundering that was flowing to Authentic Campaigns, a company run by Judge Mechan’s daughter.
FOLLOW THE MONEY!
The Freedom Press recently researched the FEC database concerning money that was flowing into Judge Merchan’s daughters company, Authentic Campaigns, and found over $73,000,000 , mostly from Democratic campaigns being paid to the judges daughter’s company.
The details of Authentic Campaigns Inc money influx can be seen here.
The Characteristics of the Cory Booker Smurfs are as follows:
Notice how the seniors involved have an average age of 80 years old and that the average donation is only $13.85. This usage of seniors and small donations was done to attempt to stay under the radar. It is believed that this was not actions by seniors but rather identity theft.
Some consider this senior abuse.
The spreadsheet below is provided to allow the reader to visualize how completely the money laundering was integrated into the Democratic Party. The following candidates, committees and party committees (and others) were the recipients of over 2.6 million dollars from these 20 smurfs.
- Gretchen Whitmer
- DNC
- DCCC
- DSCC
- Progressive Takeover
- Hillary Clinton
- Kamala Harris
- Joe Biden
- Cory Booker
- Mark Kelly
- Nancy Pelosi
- Chuck Schumer
- Adam Schiff
- Elissa Slotkin
- Raphael Warnock
- Jon Ossoff
- Elizabeth Warren
- Amy Klobuchar
- Gary Peters
- John Fetterman
- Hakeem Jeffries
- Maggie For NH
Mark Kelly Smurfs
The 22 Mark Kelly Smurfs are “alleged” to have donated about 4.8 million dollars in about 134,000 separate donations which only average $35.91 each. This malfeasance is clearly illegally manufactured fiction. We await the investigation that Trump ordered AG Pam Bondi to conduct!
The above chart visually demonstrates the amazing degree that the “manufactured, fraudulent donations from the Mark Kelly Smurfs support the Democratic Party!
More detail can be gleaned from the following report regarding the “Money Laundering by the Seditious Six.” Click HERE.
Fani Willis Smurfs
The Fani Willis Smurf Characteristics study above demonstrates the “alleged” 1.7 million dollars that were made in over 73,000 donations by these 10 seniors. The average age of these ten smurfs is 70 years of age. The average donation is only $24.24 which is well below the “radar threshold” that the criminals that performed this malfeasance hoped would keep them safe from justice.
It won’t!
The criminals that manufactured this money laundering did an excellent job of integrating the laundered money into the structure of the Democratic Party. The above chart that shows the recipients of the Fani Willis Smurfs.
More detailed can be obtained from this report concerning money laundering by Fani Willis. Click here.
Tim Walz Smurfs
The (10) Tim Walz smurfs above have “allegedly” donated over $650,000.00 in 38,928 separate donations that only average $16.80 each. The average age of this group of smurfs is 75 years old.
The state of Minnesota reports that Tim Walz has received over $13,446,000 in 49,432 donations. The average equates to $272.00.
Ilhan Omar Smurfs
The 10 Ilhan Omar Smurfs shown have “allegedly” donated over one half a million dollars in 51,381 donations that only average $9.86 each. The average age of this group of “smurfs” is 75 years old.
The state of Minnesota reports that Ilhan Omar has received over $20,000,000 in 176,921 donations, primarily over the past 9 years.
The good news!
The Massive Money Laundering is all unraveling thanks to the Gateway Pundit (https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/) and Patriots reporting the truth like Peter Bernegger (https://electionwatch.info/), James O Keefe (https://okeefemediagroup.com/), Charlie LeDuff (https://www.nobsnewshour.com/), Bob Cushman (https://michiganscorruption.com) and various citizen journalists!
mailto:bobcushman887@gmail.com
The Freedom Press (https://michganscorruption.com)
Reference Information
- Ilhan Omar FEC Inbound Donations
- Tim Walz MN Inbound Donations
- Minnesota Campaign Finance Research
- FEC Campaign Finance Research
- Georgia Campaign Finance Research
- A high-resolution copy of Characteristics of 72 Smurfs. Click here.
- A high-resolution copy of Money Laundering with 72 Smurfs. Click here.
The post A Tale of 72 Smurfs: Massive Fraud in the Democratic Party Showcasing Fani Willis, Tim Walz, and Ilhan Omar appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.