Thread by @DataRepublican

🧵THREAD, NO KINGS IN THE SENATE?: The Helsinki Commission, the almighty foreign democracy operations arm of Congress

The No Kings crowd marched today against the one branch of government where you can actually see who's in charge. They should try the Senate.

At 3 AM on Friday, Thune passed a funding bill by voice vote. Funded everything except immigration enforcement. Just completely gave into the Democratic demands.

Inside that Senate sits a body called the Helsinki Commission. No FOIA. No Inspector General. No records retention policy. It operates in permanent darkness, and what's hiding in there makes the 3 AM vote look transparent.

Look at the two images below.
Left: the booking photo.
Right: the knife Capitol Police seized.

A Helsinki Commission staffer drew this on a Capitol Police officer. March 8, 2019. He was arrested and booked. He was never fired. He was also photographed in Ukrainian military camo at a command post near Bakhmut. Investigators documented $87,400 in cash.

Both parties buried it. The Ryan Routh assassination attempt connection sits in plain sight. The same NGO network running today's color revolution marches connects to the same Helsinki Commission infrastructure.

Receipts below.

As always, patience as I pull together the post. 👇

This thread draws heavily from @shellenberger 's explosive Substack below: public.news/p/compromised-…

@shellenberger This photo shows Parker at a Ukrainian military command post near Bakhmut, wearing Ukrainian camo, studying operational maps. According to the investigation, he made 7+ trips to the war zone. I could find no evidence these trips were formally authorized by Congress.

@shellenberger He is shown with body armor, standing with Ukrainian brigade commander known as "Kupol." According to investigators, these were personal trips facilitated through contacts Parker developed through his Commission role.

In a published interview (Maine Campus, April 2023), Parker said a Ukrainian relative gave him $30,000 to buy "20 weather stations and 10 rangefinders for the Ukrainian sniper team." Investigators documented ~$87,400 total. Someone reviewed the article and wrote "FARA" in the margins.

@shellenberger July 2022, Helsinki Commission hosted this briefing on their YouTube channel. At 59:31 they ask how Congress should update weapons export law — describing it as "essentially crowdsourcing, crowdfunding the fight." On camera. Their channel.

@shellenberger The Chairman, Joe Wilson investigated (yes, @RepLuna 's complaint today). His letter requested Parker's termination, citing the cases of Jonathan Pollard and Charles McGonigal as precedent requiring investigation. November 1, 2023.

@shellenberger @RepLuna According to investigative records, a previous chief of staff warned about Parker in a 2020 memo and again in 2021. An FBI referral was approved. But Senators Cardin (D-MD, retired) and Wicker (R-MS) obstructed the investigation.

@shellenberger @RepLuna That same month the investigation ended, April 2024, Paul Massaro was appointed Staff Director of the Helsinki Commission. The staffer who co-hosted the foreign fighter briefing and was accused of glorifying Ukranian Nazis is now one of the Commission's top staff officials.

@shellenberger @RepLuna The ties between Helsinki Commission and volunteer fighting in Ukraine go deep. Ryan Wesley Routh told the New York Times in 2023 he met with the Helsinki Commission "for two hours."

A congressional aide told Semafor the panel had "no record" of the meeting - a non-denial.

@shellenberger @RepLuna Why is this important?

In 1975, the United States signed the Helsinki Accords, an agreement among nations pledging to respect human rights and the free movement of people and ideas across Cold War borders.

@shellenberger @RepLuna Congress wanted a mechanism to hold the Soviet Union's feet to the fire, so it created the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe, known as the Helsinki Commission.

@shellenberger @RepLuna The Commission's structure is unusual. 21 commissioners serve on it: 9 senators, 9 House members, and 3 officials appointed by the President. It holds hearings, issues reports, sends delegations abroad.

@shellenberger @RepLuna Parker, the policy advisor who drew a knife in the presence of Capitol officers and became ultimately shielded in Congress, was a key person in pushing the Magnitsky Act. He was pushed by a foreign backer, Bill Browder, via unethical gifts.

@shellenberger @RepLuna Per Parker, when the Ukranian war started, the Commission shifted its focus entirely to achieving a total victory for Ukraine.

@shellenberger @RepLuna Think carefully about what this means.

The Helsinki Commission is non-FOIA-able. It is not required to keep any records. What happens there, stays there.

They actively engaged in "crowdsourcing" the victory there and Parker flew there many times to assist Ukraine.

@shellenberger @RepLuna Is it, then, plausible that Ryan Routh, who was deeply involved in Ukrainian volunteer operations, was telling the truth... That one of the most powerful Senate committees gave him a full two hours of their time?

@shellenberger @RepLuna To fire Parker over his Ukranian activities would mean condemning the entire mission of the Helsinki Commission.

So it doesn't matter if Parker violated a bunch of laws. It doesn't matter if Massaro glorified Nazis. They got protected by the Helsinki Senators.

@shellenberger @RepLuna . @StevenPSchrage was asked to document what was happening inside the Helsinki Commission.

What you see are his findings. For this, he was pushed out and his legal protections as an investigator were stripped. His life was ruined over it.

This is how the Senate operates.

@shellenberger @RepLuna @StevenPSchrage The Helsinki Commission members have many crossovers with other committees. To be part of Helsinki is to be one of the most powerful members of Congress.

28% also serve on Appropriations committees, which means they also control purse strings.

@shellenberger @RepLuna @StevenPSchrage There are ties to protests and the domestic color revolution going on today - but this is a long thread already.

Thune is only the tip of the iceberg of the Senate's corruption. As Schrage puts it - Helsinki is the hand which controls the glove of NED.

Thread end for now.