Ben Freeman

Ben Freeman is the director of the Foreign Influence Transparency Initiative at the Center for International Policy (CIP).
Articles by this author
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Views Tuesday, November 12, 2019 The Perfectly Legal Ways Foreign Powers Subvert US Democracy Foreign influence in America is the topic du jour. From the impeachment inquiry into President Trump’s request that a foreign power investigate a political opponent to the indictment of associates of his personal attorney, Rudy Giuliani, for illegally funneling foreign money into U.S. elections,... Read more |
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Views Wednesday, October 02, 2019 Trump and Money Are Shielding Saudi Arabia From Accountability for Khashoggi's Killing Following the brutal killing of Saudi dissident and Washington Post contributor Jamal Khashoggi at Saudi Arabia’s consulate in Istanbul, Turkey, one year ago, the Saudi government became something of a toxic commodity in American politics. Several high-profile lobbying and public relations firms... Read more |
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Views Monday, August 05, 2019 More Money, Fewer Jobs: The Stubborn Truth About Employment and the Defense Industry A Marilyn has once again seduced a president. This time, though, it's not a movie star ; it's Marillyn Hewson, the head of Lockheed Martin, the nation's top defense contractor and the largest weapons producer in the world. In the last month, Donald Trump and Hewson have seemed inseparable. They "... Read more |
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Views Thursday, February 21, 2019 Following the Foreign-Policy Money Trail in Washington The 2016 elections awakened Americans to a startling reality: the country’s political system is ripe for foreign interference. The Russians took full advantage of social media with bot armies and through unregistered foreign agents. While their influence garnered considerable attention and has led... Read more |
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Views Friday, October 05, 2018 How Saudi Money Keeps Washington at War in Yemen It was May 2017. The Saudis were growing increasingly nervous. For more than two years they had been relying heavily on U.S. military support and bombs to defeat Houthi rebels in Yemen. Now, the Senate was considering a bipartisan resolution to cut off military aid and halt a big sale of American-... Read more |
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Views Thursday, May 10, 2018 Arms and Influence: How the Saudis Took Donald Trump for a Ride It’s another Trump affair -- this time without the allegations of sexual harassment (and worse), the charges and counter-charges, the lawsuits, and all the rest. So it hasn’t gotten the sort of headlines that Stormy Daniels has garnered, but when it comes to influence, American foreign policy, and... Read more |