In 2016, a Project Veritas operative infiltrated Democracy Partners using a fake name and fabricated rsum and made secret recordings of the staff. Mr. He recruited a British commando to help - this guy Gaz Thomas, who I guess had knew Seddon through his days at MI6. Amid his globe-trotting, however, Prince says he does most of his work from Wyoming and calls Park County home. Prince provided funding to hire a tech adviser to ascertain the authenticity of the emails. They need some spy training and covert military, paramilitary training at his ranch. He owns a home on a lot adjoining his familys Double E Ranch in Wapiti. Where we're not - what we hadn't really seen was an actual British spy, somebody trained in clandestine activities, launching a secret operation using undercovers with false - basically false cover stories to infiltrate political circles, gather information and collect it for whatever purpose, I guess, because ultimately, as our story says, this appeared to be a paper play. DAVIES: Do we know of connections between Project Veritas and James O'Keefe and Trump, Donald Trump or the Trump family? GOLDMAN: Well, they - you know, they - Beau is from Cody, Wyo., so he had some Wyoming roots. I think it was called "Deep State Exposed" or "Deep State Uncovered." However, in all of the 74 campaign donations hes made since 2002 including a $3,042.86 donation to the Wyoming Republican Party in 2016 Prince has been identified with a Virginia address. if (document.context) document.write ("&context=" + escape(document.context)); The Powell Tribune has expanded its online content. She was doing outreach to, you know, Democratic figures in Wyoming. A former British spy and Republican mega-donor Erik Prince, a founder of the private military contractor Blackwater (now rebranded as "Academi) and brother to former U.S. Education Secretary. But, you know, O'Keefe brags on the Instagram photo that they're going to be the world's best intelligence agency - I believe that's what it says - not the world's best journalists. If you're a print subscriber, but do not yet have an online account, click here to create one. Mr. Seddon directed an undercover operative to secretly tape the unions local leaders and try to gather information that could be made public to damage the organization, documents show. Is that what these interviews were about? Erik Prince, founder and CEO of Blackwater Worldwide, in 2008. Prince said he regularly host[s] customers, investors, employees and other business associates at my Wyoming ranch.. In 2010, Mr. O Keefe and three others pleaded guilty to a federal misdemeanor after admitting they entered a government building in New Orleans under false pretenses as part of a sting. GOLDMAN: The Georgetown house in D.C. was used as a base to, you know, essentially launch these undercover operations in the summer of '18, I guess, into the fall and maybe later. zoneId = 'Array'; But, yeah, this kind of actual infiltration and spying, I don't think I've run across that. You know, they were always - you know, always on the lookout for connections they could make. Between 1992 and 2001, Prince often listed Park County as his home, consistent with his voting records. 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. So they were looking to mine that, to exploit that territory. Mr. At the time, Prince was exploring the possibility of mounting a Republican primary challenge to incumbent U.S. Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo. Anyone can read what you share. You mentioned that he was recruited by Erik Prince. But then they got reversed stung by the Post, which was quite a moment. Erik Prince, founder of private security contractor Blackwater and brother of former Education Secretary Betsy DeVos, recruited a former British spy in 2016 to professionalize the undercover operatives at Project Veritas, the conservative sting video shop run by James O'Keefe, The New York Times reports, citing documents and people involved in the subsequent operations to discredit perceived "deep state" enemies of former President Donald Trump inside the U.S. government. And he comes from a wealthy, conservative family in Michigan, right? Oct. 21, 2020. I believe he was involved in an effort to battle pirates in Somalia. And his supporters have vilified us. DAVIES: When Richard Seddon and Erik Prince got connected with Veritas and cooperated on some of these operations, what was the effect on Veritas? He's a former British intelligence officer who served in Washington, D.C., and in Pakistan and eventually leaves the British Secret Intelligence Service and develops some relationship with Erik. While he has not been actively involved in Wyoming politics specifically, Prince comes from a political family he is the brother of U.S. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos and is an active political donor. Prince and former British spy Richard Seddon both did work for the organization. DAVIES: They targeted ACORN. Did it expand their operations? I'm not sure that just because he's a conservative, this is something he wanted to help. And we all sort of wracked our brains to try to figure out if, like, has this been done before? It is, instead, an entity dedicated to a specific political agenda.. (Photo: Gerry Broome/AP) MIDDLEBURG, Va. A cheery fire warmed the glass-walled conservatory of the Goodstone Inn in Virginia's. The teachers union is asking for more than $3 million in damages, accusing the group of being a vigilante organization which claims to be dedicated to exposing corruption. And they start trying to make inroads in the Wyoming Democratic Party. Erik Prince, founder of the private military firm Blackwater, helped raise money for a political-intelligence operation run by Richard Seddon, a former British spy. Prince submitted his own declaration to presiding U.S. District Judge Alan Johnson in September, disputing The Intercepts reporting and laying out some of his bona fides as a Wyomingite. "He's a very nice man," Prince said of Barrasso in the Breitbart interview. And I think the Intercept geolocated that photo and determined it was Erik Prince's ranch. And, you know, there were a whole range of people they went after. As a subscriber, you have 10 gift articles to give each month. Neither party wants to be, you know, exposed to this kind of spycraft - right? And in the end, you know, O'Keefe would release them and, you know, make a big deal out of them. One of the former spies, an ex-MI6 officer named Richard Seddon, helped run a 2017 operation to copy files and record conversations in a Michigan office of the American Federation of Teachers, one of the largest teachers unions in the nation. (SOUNDBITE OF BRUNO COULAIS' "SPINK AND FORCIBLE"). The documents give new details about efforts to manipulate the politics of Wyoming. And GOLDMAN: Involving Roy Moore - exactly. In a Jan. 15 order, U.S. District Court Judge Alan Johnson of Cheyenne tossed out Prince's defamation lawsuit against The Intercept. She and Mr. This is FRESH AIR. if( width > 480 ){ 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. DAVIES: Right. Erik Prince, founder of the private security firm Blackwater, filed a defamation lawsuit against The Intercept last month over an article published in 2020 that examined his efforts to sell. It also seems, to me, murky. In particular, you know, Sofia targeted a employee with the GAO. Part of it involved a rented, rather large house in Georgetown in Washington, D.C., right? 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. var m3_u = (location.protocol=='https:'? Using a different alias the next year, the same undercover operative infiltrated the congressional campaign of Abigail Spanberger, then a former C.I.A. They broke into the DNC. The Intercept, however, wants the complaint dismissed. That's a strawman campaign donation. And then Mark Mazzetti, you know, my colleague, who just is an extraordinary journalist, we - you know, we managed to suss out what was going - we think - to a great degree what was going on in Wyoming and these other states. For example, the co-authors of the piece in dispute, Cole and Alex Emmons, say theyre New York and Washington, D.C., residents whove never been to Wyoming. Prince declined to comment. James OKeefe, a conservative activist, founded Project Veritas. Mr. And then I talked to somebody else. His willingness to support Mr. Seddons operation is fresh evidence of his engagement in political espionage projects at home during a period when he was an informal adviser to Trump administration officials. We know that because Glenn put it up on his Instagram account. A man named Samuel Chamberlain who matched the description of the one employed by Mr. OKeefe denied he worked for Project Veritas. And as part of this effort, Richard Seddon was brought on to handle training and really professionalize Project Veritas' undercover operations. Funneling money surreptitiously to campaigns through other donors known as straw man donations would violate federal campaign finance laws. So I thought to myself, why are they giving money to these people, these Democratic politicians? Separately, Ms. Gore unsuccessfully tried to raise money for the project from Foster Friess, a billionaire Wyoming businessman, during a January 2019 meeting, three people said. GOLDMAN: Beau does. What are traditional political dirty tricks? 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. 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. Sofia is from Maryland. 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. Mr. Seddon launched his privately funded spying effort after leaving Project Veritas in 2018. ADAM GOLDMAN: They went there after making sizable donations to the DNC, the Democratic National Committee - $10,000 each - at the request of a Colorado businessman who was a - he's a fundraiser for the Democrats and basically said, if you make this donation, you can come and hang out in Las Vegas. We know that political operatives will gather opposition research as it's called - right? 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. You know, you say in one of these stories, this operation's use of spy craft to manipulate the politics of several states over the years greatly exceeds the tactics of traditional political tricks operations. And he ends up giving, you know, $6,000 to Wyoming Democratic Party and also money to other political figures. And his son - he brought his son, who was a former army officer, on board to help. And then on a parallel but different track, you know, Sofia is trying to make her way through the Young Democrats of Wyoming, the Wyoming Democratic Party, you know, building her bona fides as an eager, young Democrat. Last year, the group received a $1 million contribution made through the law firm Alston & Bird, a financial document obtained by The New York Times showed. According to its latest publicly available tax filing, Project Veritas received $8.6 million in contributions and grants in 2018. Set some context for us here. DAVIES: But Sofia was just - she was active. You know, this is something we haven't seen, right? GOLDMAN: The plan was to - it was basically - you know, in some ways, it was a classic sort of honey trap. But then January 6 happened, you know, the insurrection. GOLDMAN: Yeah. Neither party wants to be infiltrated like this. Did it expand the number of people that they had? We rely on our journalists to be independent observers. And, of course, that was an entree into a larger circle of prominent Democrats. And the operatives had to give a - you know, had to give a cover story under duress. Prince and Mr. Seddon met in August 2018 with Susan Gore, a Wyoming heiress to the Gore-Tex fortune, Ms. Gore became the projects main benefactor. Prince, the former head of Blackwater Worldwide and the brother of Education Secretary Betsy DeVos, has at times served as an informal adviser to Trump administration officials. He said that numerous sources were coming to the group providing confidential documents, insights into internal processes and wearing hidden cameras to expose corruption and misconduct.. And, I mean, they were both active, but she was literally, you know, infiltrating these Democratic groups. Their attorneys wrote that the story did not focus its efforts on or in Wyoming, nor would it have any reason to do so . So while Times staff members may vote, they are not allowed to endorse or campaign for candidates or political causes. DAVIES: This is FRESH AIR, and our guest is Adam Goldman. 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