And, of course, that was an entree into a larger circle of prominent Democrats. Months later, in June 2019, a report said we are expecting a big haul, including new lines of intelligence on the Republican side of the house.. And it's not clear to us if he was making any money off of this. It was unclear whether Mr. Seddon was involved in planning that operation. Prince, saying he lied about the circumstances of his meeting with a Russian banker in the Seychelles in January 2017. GOLDMAN: Well, as we started reporting on Erik Prince and Richard Seddon, I became deeply interested in learning who, in fact, was working for this organization. Prince took on the role of celebrity pitchman, according to interviews and documents, raising money for Mr. Seddons spying operation, which was aimed at gathering dirt that could discredit politicians and activists in several states. DAVIES: Right. Mark Gordon, who was viewed as a RINO in some Wyoming conservative circles. Wagner which The Intercept described as a semi-private military force that operates in countries or conflicts where the Russian government seeks plausible deniability for its activities reportedly turned down Princes offer. And they targeted a reporter, a Washington - a very good Washington Post reporter named Stephanie McCrummen, who - they picked up on it very, very, very quickly GOLDMAN: And figured out that this woman was not who she said she was. You know, there seemed to be - what it showed was, you know, Prince is well-traveled and is always looking for business opportunities. I also think that - I think recently, too, O'Keefe, did a photo op or made a video with Donald Trump. document.write ("<\/scr"+"ipt>"); I'm Dave Davies. They were certainly using attractive women to lure people out on dates. This espionage operation was aimed at perceived enemies of Trump and included a planned sting operation against former national security adviser H.R. DAVIES: Right. Adam Goldman is a Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter for The New York Times. Mr. Princes role in the effort, which has not been previously disclosed, sheds further light on how a group of ultraconservative Republicans employed spycraft to try to manipulate the American political landscape. So what exactly was the plan to (laughter) catch McMaster saying something he shouldn't? DAVIES: Right. DAVIES: Adam Goldman, thank you so much for speaking with us. And they would find people, and they would go out with them. Park County records show he also skipped Augusts primary election, but Prince said he had intended to vote in Wyoming this year. Prince said he learned he wasnt registered when I went to cast my early vote for the general election in late September. Im not ashamed of the methods that we use or the recordings that we use, he said. There was a massacre at a plaza in Iraq. That got a lot of attention, was investigated by Robert Mueller. You know, they were angry too, right? So O'Keefe's Instagram photo, you know, led people to realize that, you know, Prince had played a role, at least in letting Project Veritas use the ranch for training. The website for Mr. OKeefes coming wedding listed Donald Trump Jr. as an invited guest. He'll be back to talk more about his stories on undercover operations by conservatives to infiltrate democratic and progressive groups after this short break. And her picture wasn't her name GOLDMAN: It was a fake name, Maria. - 500, 1000. Prince a former C.I.A. The life of Erik Prince has been a complicated globe-trotting journey complete with extensive mercenary activities, spying on American citizens, brokering arms deals with despotic regimes and essentially taking advantage of any situation he can in order to line his personal pockets. var width = jQuery(window).width(); In particular, you know, Sofia targeted a employee with the GAO. The authoritative record of NPRs programming is the audio record. Ledeen said "someone she trusted" contacted her to help with the McMaster operation. Prince said he wanted the Project Veritas employees to learn skills like how to recruit sources and how to conduct clandestine recordings, among other surveillance techniques. GOLDMAN: Yes. So it was a fascinating moment in time last year when I realized what I suspected Beau and Sofia were doing. But what we know is there was an arrangement made, and Erik Prince allowed Project Veritas to use his farm to train its operatives. DAVIES: Right - Erik Prince, the security contractor who we'll talk more about. And there was, you know, another individual from the Emirates who was there. Sofia is from Maryland. The special counsels report said that Mr. It's a conservative organization. Mr. She went to meetings. And as we quoted an expert in our story, you know, if there's a sudden pattern of somebody giving money to the Democrats and they had never done that before, you know, that could also raise suspicions. She was involved in that. And then he stays on working for a Project Veritas till roughly June of '18. - were directed to make them or reimbursed for them, then that's a potential crime. GOLDMAN: I don't know if misrepresenting yourself to - and getting a job at a Democratic organization is a crime. And he ends up giving, you know, $6,000 to Wyoming Democratic Party and also money to other political figures. If you're a print subscriber, but do not yet have an online account, click here to create one. Prince declined to comment. To do so would potentially reveal the sources identity, in breach of a promise of confidentiality made to the source, and creating personal risk for the source, they wrote, adding Princes real motive in bringing this lawsuit obtaining the identity of [The Intercepts] confidential source is plain., Further, if Prince is allowed to take discovery of The Intercept, the lawyers say they should be allowed to probe Princes ties to Virginia versus Wyoming, since he already has been forced to admit [his sworn statements] contained certain falsehoods.. And they - the purpose for - they themselves will launch this undercover operation and then, you know, secretly record you - audio, video - and then make a video out of it and, you know, expose what they describe as wrongdoing. Their attorneys wrote that the story did not focus its efforts on or in Wyoming, nor would it have any reason to do so . For example, Rolling Stone published an investigative piece in October asserting Prince participated in a plan to dampen turnout among Black voters in the 2016 election. For example, Rolling Stone published an investigative piece in October, The New York Times broke the news of Princes potential run on Oct. 8, 2017, in another interview with Breitbart a few days later, identified the site as the Prince ranch in a 2019 article, asserting Prince participated in a plan to dampen turnout among Black voters, Powered by Creative Circle Media Solutions. For instance, Princes 2014 memoir said he splits his time between homes in Virginia and Abu Dhabi, where he pursues a variety of business ventures.. The woman was claiming she had been impregnated by the Senate candidate, thinking that The Washington Post would be so excited to get dirt about a conservative that they would publish a bogus story. GOLDMAN: Yes, the Government Accountability Office. There was a meeting at lunch which led to a resignation, I believe, of GOLDMAN: They targeted our editor, Dean Baquet. They - you know, there's a wide range of targets, and many of them have been exposed. Erik Prince decides that Project Veritas needs something new. But Trump would, from time to time, cite Project Veritas videos in his, you know, comments, public comments and speeches, right? So while Times staff members may vote, they are not allowed to endorse or campaign for candidates or political causes. So what I'm saying is from Richard Seddon's standpoint, the fact that she had a picture up on Project Veritas Exposed, that was a real risk they were taking, right? Prince declined to comment. Richard Seddon, in 2018, I guess, decided to stop working with Project Veritas. Erik Prince, founder and CEO of Blackwater Worldwide, in 2008. They also did the secret interviews at the airport in Cody in the - at the Prince hangar. WASHINGTON During the summer of 2018, as Richard Seddon, a former British spy, was trying to launch a new venture to use undercover agents to infiltrate progressive groups, Democratic campaigns and other opponents of President Donald J. Trump, he turned for help to a longtime friend and former colleague: Erik Prince, the private military contractor. (SOUNDBITE OF GOGOL BORDELLO'S "NOT A CRIME"). var m3_r = Math.floor(Math.random()*99999999999); I don't know. It was Maria (ph). They targeted NPR. So he had pitched this idea of a private security force to largely replace American troops in Afghanistan. So I thought to myself, why are they giving money to these people, these Democratic politicians? And they will attend their rival's news conferences, public events and gather information. Whether any Trump administration officials or advisers to the president were involved in the operations, even tacitly, is unclear. And ultimately, it did blow up in their face. One of the undercover operatives also got a job working for a consortium of wealthy liberal donors the Wyoming Investor Network which had made a strategic decision to support Republican moderate candidates over those more closely aligned with Mr. Trumps agenda, the documents say. I think it was called "Deep State Exposed" or "Deep State Uncovered." Two other employees, Gaz Thomas and Samuel Chamberlain, were also identified in emails and appeared to play important roles in the Michigan operation. Over two years, Mr. Seddons undercover operatives also developed networks in Colorado and Arizona, and made thousands of dollars in campaign donations posing as Democrats, both to the Democratic National Committee and individual campaigns. And then I talked to somebody else. Prince appears to have become interested in using former spies to train Project Veritas operatives in espionage tactics sometime during the 2016 presidential campaign. What's interesting about that Instagram post - and you can see it yourself, it's still out there - they like to describe themselves as journalists. Prince invited Project Veritas operatives including Mr. OKeefe to his familys Wyoming ranch for training in 2017, The Intercept reported last year. They make significant political contributions, right? But before the parties get to the lawsuits merits, The Intercept is contending, among other arguments, that Wyoming is not the right place for the case to be heard. - where you have people in your organization who aren't who they say they are, you know, collecting intelligence, if that's what you want to call it. DAVIES: Right. These two are conservatives, right? Erik Prince, Betsy DeVos's brother, is also deeply steeped in far-right militancy. So flesh out the picture a bit. The ex-undercover British spy, Richard Seddon, trained conservative operatives first at the Prince family ranch in Wyoming, then at a large, $10,000-a-month house near Georgetown University. And we actually - I, you know, I - Mark and I reached out to our - one of great political reporters, Jonathan Martin, and asked him, you know. According to its latest publicly available tax filing, Project Veritas received $8.6 million in contributions and grants in 2018. But, you know, over 18, they - it grew closer. In 2018, an operative working for Project Veritas infiltrated the campaign of Abigail Spanberger, who went on to win a congressional seat. Is he actually providing those kinds of services? The Powell Tribune has expanded its online content. Prince might have approached for money for Mr. Seddons venture besides Ms. Gore. But her picture was on this website. Adam Goldman reports on the FBI and national security for the Times and was part of a team that won a Pulitzer Prize in 2018 for national reporting on Russia's meddling in the presidential election. WASHINGTON A British former spy recruited by Erik Prince, the security contractor close to the Trump administration, played a central role in a secretive effort to hire dozens . As the founder of Blackwater USA, now Academi, a private military company, Prince headed the organization. Published October 16, 2017. McMaster. DAVIES: Let's talk about some of the people who are behind this. And, you know, I'm not sure when the relationship started. Erik Prince Helped Raise Money for Conservative Spy Venture, https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/08/us/politics/erik-prince-spy-operation-trump-democrats.html. Mr. That's a strawman campaign donation. James OKeefe, the head of Project Veritas, last year at a White House social media summit. GOLDMAN: It's my understanding that they met during a training at the Prince ranch in Wyoming in the spring of '17 and then grew closer over time. So they were interviewing people who wanted to become operatives. You know, a big question about the stories that you've described is, is this activity illegal, what the couple did in Wyoming, you know, presenting themselves as - dishonestly as active Democrats in order to get information? Ms. Jorge, 25, did not respond to email addresses associated with her Liberty University account. And then they married last week. And the operatives had to give a - you know, had to give a cover story under duress. There's a long backstory there. GOLDMAN: Erik Prince is the well-known founder of Blackwater, the security contractors who were involved in the massacre in Iraq. The document is dated December 2018 and said that Mr. Talbott was another of the names of corrupt individuals from Marti.. Erik Prince, the founder of Blackwater, a private security contractor firm used extensively by the administration of George W Bush, is said to be "seriously considering" challenging Wyoming. GOLDMAN: It's not clear they're actually being trained in firearms training. GOLDMAN: These were videos - you can find them on Project Veritas', you know, website or on YouTube now. I'm Dave Davies, in for Terry Gross, who's off this week. "He is not registered in Park County or [Wyoming] presently, unless he is not going by Erik Dean Prince and has changed his name," Park County Elections Deputy Pat Cole said in a Sept. 17 email; he said Prince hadn't voted in Wyoming since 2000. There was a year-long lease that was signed that allowed Project Veritas to put its operatives in that fancy house. But we were unaware of that. 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