Latest news with #Grijalva
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Man pleads guilty to Pennsylvania COVID-19 fund scheme
HARRISBURG, Pa. (WHTM)– A California man pleaded guilty to his involvement in a scheme to launder millions in state unemployment compensation funds from numerous state treasuries, including Pennsylvania. The United States Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania said Carlos A. Grijalva, 59, of Simi Valley, California, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to launder monetary instruments in the amount of $46.4 million. Grijalva is the second person to plead guilty in connection with the case. The attorney's office said Grijalva admitted that he and multiple others agreed to launder state unemployment compensation funds they knew had been fraudulently obtained from 2021 to 2022. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now He also admitted to entering into agreements that made it seem like they were operating businesses selling masks and other COVID-19 protection equipment, knowing that funds laundered through their companies came from fraudulently obtained state unemployment compensation benefits, per the attorney's office. Grijalva told the court he knew individuals from China were conducting the fraudulent activities, resulting in millions of fraudulent unemployment compensation payments issued by the Pennsylvania Treasury Department, among other states. The attorney's office said Grijalva also claimed that he and Brian R. Cleland provided bank account information of identity theft victims to payment processing companies to generate ACH payments to accounts he controlled. This resulted in the two obtaining more than $46 million. According to the attorney's office, Grijalva and Cleland later used different bank accounts to transfer over $30 million to companies controlled by Bruce Jin. Jin would then transfer a portion of the funds to parties in China. Grijalva said he made an estimated $2.2 million in personal profit. The attorney's office said Jin has been detained since August 2023, and Cleland has pleaded not guilty to his charges and is awaiting trial. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Daily Mail
3 days ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
Meet the Arizona mom running for her father's seat in Congress after he died in office
The daughter of a long-serving Arizona Democrat who passed while in office told the Daily Mail exactly why she is running for her late father's seat: to advance his legacy and create her own. Adelita Grijalva, the daughter of Raúl Grijalva, a 22-year veteran of the House of Representatives who passed in March due to lung cancer while serving his 11th consecutive term, announced within weeks of the tragedy she will run for the recently vacated seat. Former Rep. Grijalva was diagnosed with cancer in April 2024, and despite his illness, he ran and won reelection in November. 'My Dad will never be replaced,' the younger Grijalva told the Daily Mail in a phone interview Thursday. 'He really was a champion for so many issues having to do with people that are marginalized and unheard so and feel like they don't have a voice.' One of the most consistently liberal members of the House, Grijalva had served as the chairman of the House Progressive Caucus and the House Natural Resources Committee. Representing a huge swatch of the U.S.-Mexico border, he advocated for migrants and loudly railed against Trump's immigration agenda; his daughter told the Daily Mail she will do much of the same. 'We'll continue that movement of standing up for those who don't feel like anyone else is standing up for them,' she said, adding she had nothing positive to say about the Trump administration's immigration agenda. Her father, Grijalva told the Daily Mail, was in public office for 50 years, and she is the first to admit she is 'literally' following in his 'exact' footsteps. The candidate for Arizona's 7th Congressional district, an area around Tucson, the state's second biggest city, has already held two jobs that were formerly occupied by her father. Like her dad, Grijalva served on the Tucson Unified School District and recently resigned her seat on the Pima County Board of Supervisors to run for his now-vacant congressional seat. If she wins the special election to fill her father's position in the House of Representatives, that would mark the third job she has taken that her Dad held at one point or another. The mother-of-three is seen as a frontrunner in the race to take her late father's now-vacant House seat. After witnessing her father lead her community for decades until his death while still serving in office, Grijalva told the Daily Mail that she is against term limits. 'It's not about age,' she said, adding 'I think that the people are the ones that should make that decision, not an arbitrary number about age.' The candidate also said that before her father's death, he was still active and able to meet constituents' needs. However, the late congressman missed nearly all of the House votes in 2025 before his death, amounting to about 96 percent of all votes, per the Clerk of the House of Representative's office. From 2023 to the beginning of 2025, late lawmaker missed roughly 40 percent of all votes, according to Govtrack. If elected, the Democrat vowed to pick up her father's mantle and stand up to President Donald Trump's agenda. 'The biggest issue right now is protecting our democracy and making sure that we keep to the established processes,' she said. 'Right now, Trump is just deciding wholesale to sign an executive order and waving away the rights of so many communities.' She also swore to be 'an unapologetic progressive voice in Congress,' saying she will fight to protect Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid from Republican reforms. Similar to the case of the Grijalva's, it is not entirely uncommon in Congress for members to run for seats held previously by a relative. Pennsylvania Republican Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick, for example, filled a seat previously held by his older brother for over a decade. The late Rep, Donald Payne Jr., D-N.J., who died while serving in office last year, similarly was elected to the seat held by his father. There have also been husband and wife combos like the late Rep. John Dingell Jr., D-Mich., and his spouse Rep. Debbie Dingell, D-Mich. After serving in office for a staggering 60 years from 1955 - 2015, the record for longest-serving member of Congress in history, John's wife Debbie took the reins and still serves the Michigan area represented by her late husband. The younger Grijalva says she would bring a new perspective to Congress. 'Two percent of women in Congress identify as Latina, and less are Mexican-American,' she told the Daily Mail. 'Of the women in Congress, seven percent have minor children, so I would be representing a huge contingency of our nation.' And like any proud mother, she touted to the Daily Mail how her daughter just recently graduated high school and will soon be attending college at the University of Arizona. The special election for Arizona 's 7th Congressional district will take place on September 23, 2025.
Yahoo
30-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Trans advocacy group endorses Grijalva as progressive frontrunner in special election
Adelita Grijalva on on Sept. 19, 2023. Photo by Michael MicKisson | Arizona Luminaria Adelita Grijalva has won the endorsement of the country's first organization dedicated to championing pro-trans candidates in her bid to win a special congressional election in southern Arizona, strengthening her ties to trans rights advocacy amid worsening hostility from the federal government — even as some in the Democratic Party move to the right on the issue. Grijalva is campaigning for a chance to represent Arizona's 7th congressional district, a seat held for over two decades by her father, progressive giant Raúl Grijalva, until his death last month at 77 following a long battle with lung cancer. The younger Grijalva, a veteran of Tucson-area politics who currently sits on the Pima County Board of Supervisors, faces a crowded field in July's Democratic primary. But she has quickly emerged as the frontrunner, gathering the required number of signatures to qualify for the ballot within hours of her announcement to run and nabbing endorsements from prominent political figures, including U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders and Arizona Sens. Mark Kelly and Ruben Gallego. The Christopher Street Project, a national trans electoral advocacy organization established to counter the GOP's anti-trans focus, announced Wednesday it was backing Grijalva. The group's support cements her progressive bonafides and signals to voters that she hasn't joined the faction of the Democratic Party that is willing to compromise trans rights for electoral appeal. During last year's election, as Republicans and President Donald Trump poured millions into campaign ads attacking trans people, Democratic congressional candidates in red states and battleground states adopted anti-trans talking points of their own. And in January, two Texas Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives sided with Republicans to vote for legislation that would have prohibited trans girls in public schools from joining sports teams that best align with their gender identity. In a written statement, Grijalva celebrated the endorsement from the Christopher Street Project and called the anti-trans attacks from Republicans 'hateful, dangerous and shameful.' She vowed to push back on legislation targeting trans people and to keep fellow party members on track. 'In Congress, I'll fight alongside (the Christopher Street Project) to defend our trans communities, hold Democrats accountable to their promises, and push back against every effort to strip away our rights,' Grijalva said. 'Our message is clear: trans people belong, and we won't back down.' Tyler Hack, the 19-year-old founder of the Christopher Street Project, which is named after the New York City street where the Stonewall Inn is located, said that Grijalva was the perfect choice for the organization's first ever political endorsement, given her history of consistent allyship. She has spent two decades on the Tucson Unified School District's governing board and has spent four years on the board of supervisors, where she was often involved with local LGBTQ and Pride month events. 'Adelita Grijalva is a proven champion for trans rights, and in the midst of this unprecedented, state-sponsored attack on trans people, we need her voice in Congress,' Hack said in a written statement. Trump has issued multiple executive orders intended to make it impossible for trans people to live as themselves, including by erasing the federal recognition of trans people's existence, prohibiting pronoun use in federal agencies, threatening to cut federal funding from health care organizations that offer gender affirming care, laying the groundwork to ban trans people from the military and reinterpreting federal protections in a way that excludes gender identity so as to bar trans girls from joining school sports teams that best reflect who they are. The Republican-controlled Congress is in lockstep with Trump's anti-trans vision, proposing bills that discriminate against trans people in athletics, public facilities, housing, school and government identification documents. Hack said the only way to ensure a bulwark against that tide of attacks is by electing Democrats that are serious about protecting trans people. 'The Democratic Party needs to hold up its responsibility to all marginalized peoples, and that includes trans people,' they said. 'Democratic voters aren't happy with the abdication to Trump and to MAGA Republicans. We need fighters who will step up and support trans people in every way that they can.' Along with pushing back on the anti-trans agenda at the federal level, Hack said a pro-trans candidate is needed to help ensure local resources for trans people, which are increasingly under attack from the Trump administration, remain available. That's because the threats from Trump and Republicans in Congress have resulted in state-based organizations complying in advance with discriminatory directives to avoid future consequences — even at the expense of trans people. Shortly after the Arizona branch of Planned Parenthood received a letter from the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services instructing it not to use Medicaid funding to pay for gender-affirming care, the organization voluntarily froze its trans health care services out of an 'abundance of caution.' Following public backlash, those services were restored. That, Hack said, is a clear example of a time when a trans-friendly advocate, like Grijalva, can be critical for trans Arizonans. 'Having someone who we can call and who can actually push an organization or a group to stand up for trans people and to not abdicate to Trump's attacks is crucial,' they said. The Christopher Street Project's vote of confidence is also a boost for Grijalva's status as an advocate for LGBTQ rights, helping level the playing field against her most high-profile opponent, former state Rep. Daniel Hernandez. He was one of Arizona's few openly gay state lawmakers, was a founding member of the legislature's LGBTQ Caucus and spent years supporting working to enshrine LGBTQ rights into state statute and speaking out against discriminatory legislation. Hack said the organization is working to mobilize volunteers in Arizona on behalf of Grijalva's bid and pointed out that the election for the congressional district's seat will be one of the first to take place since Trump took office in January. That, they said, gives the organization and trans advocates across the state an opportunity to flex their political muscles. 'This is the first special election in a safe blue or competitive district since Trump took office this year,' Hack said. 'There hasn't been an opportunity to demonstrate trans political power yet, and we're so excited to bring that to Arizona (CD) 7.' The district, which spans much of southern Arizona, leans Democratic, with the percentage of votes cast for Democratic candidates more than doubling those cast for Republicans. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
02-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Daughter of late Dem congressman launches campaign for father's seat: 'Building something powerful'
The daughter of the late Rep. Raul Grijalva, D-Ariz., will run for her father's seat in the upcoming special election for the solidly Democrat-leaning district. Pima County Supervisor Adelita Grijalva announced her campaign for Arizona's Seventh Congressional District on Monday, making good on the promise to make her decision clear after her father's funeral. She noted in her launch video posted to X that she is the daughter of "a man who spent his life fighting for justice, equity, and dignity for the most vulnerable communities." Democratic Rep. Raul Grijalva Dead At 77 "From working as a vaquero to serving the people in the halls of Congress in a single generation. That's the promise of this country, and that's the legacy that's helped shape me," she added. "This is the America that I want to raise my three beautiful children in. But today, that idea of America is under a serious threat," the Democrat added, saying that President Donald Trump, Elon Musk and a "gang of billionaires" are taking aim at the "most sacred rights" in the country. Grijalva quickly reached the signature threshold necessary to make the Democratic primary ballot within the day. The primary election is on July 15, and the general election is on Sept. 23. Read On The Fox News App Trump Nominates Former Arizona Attorney General For Us Ambassador To Serbia "In less than five hours since launching our campaign, we have collected enough signatures to be on the ballot," she said in a video shortly following her launch. For Democrats, a minimum of 798 verified signatures is required to make the ballot in the race and a maximum of 31,906 signatures, according to the Secretary of State's office. The Democratic congressman died last month after a battle with lung cancer. Grijalva will be facing off against former state Rep. Daniel Hernandez, who recently touted over $200,000 in campaign coffers. "WOW!!! We just hit $200,000 raised since we launched on Monday. I'm BLOWN AWAY by the support—and ready to get to work. We're building something powerful in Arizona. Let's keep it going!!!!!!!" Hernandez posted last week. Border Community Reveals What Trump Admin Still Needs To Accomplish As Crisis Calms Down: 'Undue Burdens' Secretary of State Adrian Fontes was mulling a bid for the seat, but decided against it and expressed plans to run for re-election instead. "I will continue to defend America as Arizona's Secretary of State," Fontes said in a statement on March 26. The district itself spans much of the southern border of the Grand Canyon State. Original article source: Daughter of late Dem congressman launches campaign for father's seat: 'Building something powerful'
Fox News
02-04-2025
- Politics
- Fox News
Daughter of late Dem congressman launches campaign for father's seat: 'Building something powerful'
The daughter of the late Rep. Raul Grijalva, D-Ariz., will run for her father's seat in the upcoming special election for the solidly Democrat-leaning district. Pima County Supervisor Adelita Grijalva announced her campaign for Arizona's Seventh Congressional District on Monday, making good on the promise to make her decision clear after her father's funeral. She noted in her launch video posted to X that she is the daughter of "a man who spent his life fighting for justice, equity, and dignity for the most vulnerable communities." "From working as a vaquero to serving the people in the halls of Congress in a single generation. That's the promise of this country, and that's the legacy that's helped shape me," she added. "This is the America that I want to raise my three beautiful children in. But today, that idea of America is under a serious threat," the Democrat added, saying that President Donald Trump, Elon Musk and a "gang of billionaires" are taking aim at the "most sacred rights" in the country. Grijalva quickly reached the signature threshold necessary to make the Democratic primary ballot within the day. The primary election is on July 15, and the general election is on Sept. 23. "In less than five hours since launching our campaign, we have collected enough signatures to be on the ballot," she said in a video shortly following her launch. For Democrats, a minimum of 798 verified signatures is required to make the ballot in the race and a maximum of 31,906 signatures, according to the Secretary of State's office. The Democratic congressman died last month after a battle with lung cancer. Grijalva will be facing off against former state Rep. Daniel Hernandez, who recently touted over $200,000 in campaign coffers. "WOW!!! We just hit $200,000 raised since we launched on Monday. I'm BLOWN AWAY by the support—and ready to get to work. We're building something powerful in Arizona. Let's keep it going!!!!!!!" Hernandez posted last week. Secretary of State Adrian Fontes was mulling a bid for the seat, but decided against it and expressed plans to run for re-election instead. "I will continue to defend America as Arizona's Secretary of State," Fontes said in a statement on March 26. The district itself spans much of the southern border of the Grand Canyon State.
