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Los Angeles Times
16 minutes ago
- Los Angeles Times
New Orleans mayor indicted in corruption case related to alleged romantic relationship
NEW ORLEANS — New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell was indicted Friday in what prosecutors called a years-long scheme to hide a romantic relationship with her bodyguard, who is accused of being paid as if he was working even when they met alone in apartments and traveled to vineyards for wine tasting. Cantrell faces charges of conspiracy, fraud and obstruction, less than five months before she leaves office because of term limits. The first female mayor in New Orleans' 300-year history was elected twice but now becomes the city's first mayor to be charged while in office. 'Public corruption has crippled us for years and years,' acting U.S. Atty. Michael Simpson said, referring to Louisiana's notorious history. 'And this is extremely significant.' Cantrell's bodyguard, Jeffrey Vappie, was facing charges of wire fraud and making false statements. He has pleaded not guilty. A grand jury returned an 18-count indictment Friday that added Cantrell to the case. They are accused of exchanging encrypted messages through WhatsApp to avoid detection and then deleting the conversations. The mayor and Vappie have said their relationship was strictly professional, but the indictment portrayed it as 'personal and intimate.' The city of New Orleans said in a statement that it was aware of the indictment and that the mayor's attorney is reviewing it. 'Until his review is complete, the City will not comment further on this matter,' the statement said. Cantrell hasn't sent out a message on her official social media feed on X since July 15, when she said the city was experiencing historic declines in crime. In a WhatsApp exchange, the indictment says, Vappie reminisced about accompanying Cantrell to Scotland in October 2021, saying that was 'where it all started.' Cantrell and Vappie used WhatsApp for more than 15,000 messages, including efforts to harass a citizen, delete evidence, make false statements to FBI agents, 'and ultimately to commit perjury before a federal grand jury,' Simpson said. They met in an apartment while Vappie claimed to be on duty, and she arranged for him to attend 14 trips, Simpson said. The trips, he added, were described by her as times 'when they were truly alone.' New Orleans taxpayers paid more than $70,000 for Vappie's travel, the prosecutor said. Authorities cited a September 2022 rendezvous on Martha's Vineyard, a trip Cantrell took instead of attending a conference in Miami. Vappie's travel to the island was covered by the city to attend a separate conference, authorities said. 'The times when we are truly [traveling] is what spoils me the most,' the mayor wrote to him that month. Simpson said Cantrell lied in an affidavit that she activated a function on her phone that automatically deleted messages in 2021 though she didn't activate that feature until December 2022, a month after the media began speculating on the pair's conduct. When a private citizen took photos of them dining together and drinking wine, Cantrell filed a police report and sought a restraining order, Simpson said. Vappie retired from the Police Department in 2024. Cantrell and her remaining allies have said that she has been unfairly targeted as a Black woman and held to a different standard than male officials, her executive powers at City Hall sabotaged. Simpson denied claims that any of it played a role in the investigation. 'It's irrelevant that it's romance or that it's female,' he told reporters, adding that the allegations were 'an incredible betrayal of people's confidence in their own government.' Cantrell, a Democrat, has clashed with City Council members during a turbulent second term and survived a recall effort in 2022. 'This is a sad day for the people of New Orleans,' Monet Brignac, a spokesperson for City Council President JP Morrell, said as news of the indictment spread. In 2014, New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin was sentenced to 10 years in prison for bribery, money laundering, fraud and tax crimes. The charges stemmed from his two terms as mayor from 2002 to 2010. He was granted supervised release from prison in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic. As she heads into her final months in office, Cantrell has alienated former confidants and supporters, and her civic profile has receded. Her early achievements were eclipsed by self-inflicted wounds and bitter feuds with a hostile City Council, political observers say. The mayor's role has weakened since voters approved changes to the city's charter that were meant to curb mayoral authority. Earlier this year, Cantrell said she has faced 'very disrespectful, insulting, in some cases kind of unimaginable' treatment. Her husband, attorney Jason Cantrell, died in 2023. Mustian, Brook and Hollingsworth write for the Associated Press. Mustian and Brook reported from New Orleans, Hollingsworth from Mission, Kan. AP writer Ed White in Detroit contributed to this report.
Los Angeles Times
16 minutes ago
- Los Angeles Times
Trump tax law could cause Medicare cuts if Congress doesn't act, CBO says
WASHINGTON — The federal budget deficits caused by President Trump's tax and spending law could trigger automatic cuts to Medicare if Congress does not act, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office reported Friday. The CBO estimates that Medicare, the federal health insurance program for Americans over age 65, could potentially see as much as $491 billion in cuts from 2027 to 2034 if Congress does not act to mitigate a 2010 law that forces across-the-board cuts to many federal programs once legislation increases the federal deficit. The latest report from CBO showed how Trump's signature tax and spending law could put new pressure on federal programs that are bedrocks of the American social safety net. Trump and Republicans pledged not to cut Medicare as part of the legislation, but the estimated $3.4 trillion that the law adds to the federal deficit over the next decade means that many Medicare programs could see cuts. In the past, Congress has always acted to mitigate cuts to Medicare and other programs, but it would take some bipartisan cooperation to do so. Democrats, who requested the analysis from CBO, jumped on the potential cuts. 'Republicans knew their tax breaks for billionaires would force over half a trillion dollars in Medicare cuts — and they did it anyway,' Rep. Brendan Boyle of Pennsylvania, the top Democrat on the House Budget Committee, said in a statement. 'American families simply cannot afford Donald Trump's attacks on Medicare, Medicaid and Obamacare.' Hospitals in rural parts of the country are already grappling with cuts to Medicaid, which is available to people with low incomes, and cuts to Medicare could exacerbate their shortfalls. As Republicans muscled the bill through Congress and are now selling it to voters back home, they have been critical of how the CBO has analyzed the bill. They have also argued that the tax cuts will spur economic growth and pointed to $50 billion in funding for rural hospitals that was included in the package. Groves writes for the Associated Press.
The Hill
16 minutes ago
- The Hill
CEO of paid protest company says it works with both sides of the aisle
(NewsNation) — President Trump alleged Friday that Democrats are paying protesters to fight his Washington, D.C., crime policies. But how do paid protests actually work? NewsNation spoke with Adam Swart, the CEO of Crowds on Demand, about his company that provides services 'for impactful advocacy campaigns, demonstrations, PR stunts, crowds for hire and corporate events,' according to its website. 'All of our protesters are sincere advocates for the cause at hand. We've been in business 13 years, so we have a large roster of people we know and have networks of others we can call upon to be compensated for expressing their sincere points of view,' Swart said. Swart said compensation for protests is typically in the low hundreds of dollars, depending on the assignment. He said organizing a protest 'is like buying an ad.' He said his company receives requests for both conservative and liberal causes. 'We have been clear that we work with both liberals and conservatives on causes that align with common-sense values. Democrats are hiring our company, and so are Republicans,' he said. He did not disclose what protests his company has been asked to be a part of. Swart previously told NewsNation that he turned down $20 million to provide protesters for ' Good Trouble Lives On ' protests in July. 'I'm rejecting it not because I don't want to take the business, but because frankly, this is going to be ineffective; it's going to make us all look bad,' Swart said of the anti-Trump protests at the time.
