Jonathan Larsen
jonathanlarsen.bsky.social
Jonathan Larsen
@jonathanlarsen.bsky.social
Journalist.
jonathanlarsen.substack.com
Wild to see a CBS station not know that not reaching a verdict yet doesn’t mean deadlocked.

Who’s running things over there?!?
November 6, 2025 at 6:34 PM
Nice to see the Washington Post having a little fun with the GOP civil war.
November 6, 2025 at 4:17 PM
What if it’s coming from the Washington Post? (Via Semafor’s @maxtani.bsky.social
October 27, 2025 at 3:17 PM
NYTimes Spelling Bee SPOILER…

I see you the day before No Kings, NY Times…
October 17, 2025 at 2:08 PM
If Berntsen and Rodil seem like questionable intel sources...

…that’s why it’s important to know that this is where Trump got information that he's using to justify deporting and killing people.
September 29, 2025 at 6:09 PM
I asked Fox whether they paid off Dominion (the cartel) with money put up by, well, Dominion (the cartel).
September 29, 2025 at 5:52 PM
Of course, the voting-machine companies sued Fox and Newsmax.

Which settled, Berntsen implies…

…because the cartel put up the money to pay off their own lawsuit and squash the evidence he gave to Fox and Newsmax.
September 29, 2025 at 5:49 PM
According to Berntsen, the Maduro cartel runs the voting machine companies.

In fact, Berntsen claims he and Rodil stumbled on Venezuelan vote-rigging…

…and they’re the ones who first told Trump world the 2020 election was stolen.
September 29, 2025 at 5:41 PM
Berntsen was business partners with Scott Modell.

Also ex-CIA.

And found by a UK judge in a separate venture to have planned for ginning up scams to undermine one of the United Arab Emirates for a client…
September 29, 2025 at 5:30 PM
Berntsen was part of a company that pitched Kuwaiti regime change.

Including fake PR campaigns and paid protesters.
September 29, 2025 at 5:23 PM
Those associations include Roger Noriega, longtime Venezuelan hard-liner.

But I found more associates of Rodil and Berntsen who might not be part of their intel team…

…but have dabbled in regime change.
September 29, 2025 at 5:20 PM
Bloomberg concluded that some of Rodil’s claims about Venezuela were “groundless.”

And that some were skeptical because of his associations…
September 29, 2025 at 5:19 PM
And as Berntsen acknowledges, there’s a lot of money at stake here.
September 29, 2025 at 5:15 PM
But in 2022, Spanish prosecutors accused Rodil of extorting Venezuelan “clients” for millions to keep them out of U.S. jails.

No charges were filed, as the @icij.org reported, info about Rodil’s revenue came out:
September 29, 2025 at 4:48 PM
I can’t say whether ex-intel chief Hugo Carvajal -- sentenced this summer -- was a client…

…but Rodil has publicly vouched for Carvajal’s intel value.

And Berntsen publicly urged Trump to cut Carvajal a deal.
September 29, 2025 at 4:45 PM
In other words, the more the U.S. thinks Rodil’s clients have intel damaging to Maduro…

…the better shot he has at helping them avoid jail time.

And, potentially, the more money he makes.

Here’s Bloomberg in 2016:
September 29, 2025 at 4:42 PM
How do Rodil and Berntsen know all of this?

Their first info came from a single source, who just handed them documents on Tren de Aragua.

And told them about the plan.

A single source...
September 29, 2025 at 4:38 PM
Rodil is even outed -- in the press release for Berntsen’s co-author’s new book, “Stolen Elections” --

…as Berntsen’s partner investigating Venezuela.

But the press release leaves out the best stuff...
September 29, 2025 at 4:31 PM
So, who’s that anonymous source, part of Berntsen’s team?

Turns out, the Herald reporter previously quoted a guy named Martin Rodil about this stuff.

And this month, Berntsten’s co-author identified Rodil as Berntsen’s partner…
September 29, 2025 at 4:28 PM
Here’s what Berntsen’s group has been telling Trump about Tren de Aragua (TdA), according to the Herald:
September 29, 2025 at 4:26 PM
Just this month, Berntsen claimed he’s had meetings at the ODNI.

That’s Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, who earlier this year rejected her own intelligence community assessment of Venezuela to embrace Trump’s.
September 29, 2025 at 4:22 PM
The Herald reported that Berntsen’s team briefed the Trump transition team and was continuing to brief “high-ranking” people in the administration about Venezuela and Tren de Aragua.
September 29, 2025 at 4:20 PM
The AP has a really long autocorrect for “fascism”
September 28, 2025 at 11:08 AM
Don’t miss ABC’s new fall-in-lineup!

It’s must-air TV!

thefuckingnews.substack.com/p/first-colb...
September 19, 2025 at 2:37 PM
Weird flex.
September 15, 2025 at 5:34 PM