Bribe, Swindle or Steal

Tom Burgis, investigations correspondent at the Financial Times and author of "Kleptopia", discusses the increasingly disturbing influence that kleptocrats exert internationally, who enables them and the flaws in our efforts to contain them.

The golden passports and visas industry boomed during the pandemic and attracted the attention of policymakers. This week, we’re reposting our interview with Oliver Bullough, author of “Moneyland”, on this shady industry and how it operates.

John Heathershaw of the University of Exeter discusses the working paper he co-authored for the National Endowment for Democracy: “Paying for a World Class Affiliation: Reputation Laundering in the University Sector of Open Societies.” He shows how vulnerable universities are to abuse by kleptocrats seeking to shape the conversation, often quite subtly, about their governments and their legacies. Episode resources:  Paying for a World Class Affiliation: Reputation Laundering in the University Sector of Open Societies, a working paper by Alexander Cooley, Tena Prelec, John Heathershaw and Tom Mayne for the National Endowment for Democracy’s International Forum for Democratic Studies, 25 May 2021 For related work, visit the Global Integrity Anti-Corruption Evidence project.

Omar Alshogre, refugee, political activist with the Syrian Emergency Task Force, and first year Georgetown University student, shares the wrenching story of his three years as a political prisoner in the worst of Syria’s prisons. He discusses the role that extortion plays there, simultaneously delegitimizing the regime further and propping it up financially.   Episode resources:  Mentioned at (00:33): The Syrian Emergency Task Force Mentioned at (00:45): Omar's testimony before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, 11 March 2020

Josh Rudolph at the Alliance for Securing Democracy at the German Marshall Fund discusses how we should approach corruption and kleptocracy from a policy perspective and why Treasury needs to ‘get with the program.’ Episode resources: Mentioned at (00:41): The Fight Against Corruption Needs Economists, by Josh Rudolph, Foreign Affairs, 17 May 2021 Mentioned at (03:06): Investment Funds: Massive Transparency Loopholes with Josh Kirschenbaum, senior fellow at the German Marshall Fund’s Alliance for Securing Democracy, Bribe, Swindle or Steal, 21 April 2021 Mentioned at (04:46): Treasury’s War on Corruption: A U.S. Treasury Department Strategy to Fight Kleptocracy and Root Dirty Money Out of the U.S. Financial System, by Josh Rudolph, Alliance for Securing Democracy at the German Marshall Fund of the United States, 22 December 2020 Mentioned at (10:37): Letter from Sen. Whitehouse and Rep. Malinowski to Secretary Janet Yellen, 3 May 2021 Josh’s latest report: Coordinating the War on Corruption: An Administrative Plan for the White House to Combat Corruption and Kleptocracy, by Josh Rudolph, Alliance for Securing Democracy at the German Marshall Fund of the United States, 17 May 2021

Hayley Smith with the Los Angeles Times, discusses the story she broke about the sale of phony COVID-19 vaccination cards out of the Old Corner Saloon in California.

Amy McDougal of CLEAResources discusses the rapidly shifting cannabis landscape and how to prepare for the many employment and compliance issues it raises.

Renee Dudley of ProPublica discusses her fascinating research into the unsettling world of ransomware: how it works, the role that “recovery services” play and where the ransom money ends up.

Ike Sorkin, lawyer to both Madoff and Belfort, talks us through their criminal financial schemes and how regulatory safeguards failed.

Oliver Bullough, Tom Burgis and Sarah Chayes, authors of three of the best books on global corruption, gather for a panel at the Annapolis Book Festival for a fascinating discussion about how the corrupt operate, often with impunity, and what can be done to slow the pace of looting.