Free Thought Project – by Jay Syrmopoulos
Washington, D.C. – President-elect Donald Trump is set to nominate former Labor Secretary Elaine Chao – wife of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) – as Transportation Secretary.
‘President-Elect Donald J. Trump Nominates Elaine Chao as Secretary of the Department of Transportation’https://t.co/5FMGdhAZxB
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 29, 2016
Chao is a Washington insider, which runs contrary to Trump’s “drain the swamp” mantra of bringing in outsiders to form his new government – but that is just the tip of the iceberg.
One thing Trump may not have counted on was Chao’s familial connections with large-scale international drug trafficking.
Two years ago a cargo ship named the Ping May was stopped and searched before departing from Colombia. During the search, Colombian Coast Guard agents seized roughly 40 kilos — or 90 pounds of cocaine — worth millions of dollars.
The Ping May was operated by the Foremost Maritime Corporation — a company owned by the father of Elaine Chao.
According to The Nation:
The Republican Senate minority leader has the closest of ties to the owner of the Ping May, the vessel containing the illicit materials: the Foremost Maritime Corporation, a firm founded and owned by McConnell’s in-laws, the Chao family.
This connection is not only relevant because of the deep familial connections, but also because the Chao family has been the major benefactor of anti-drug crusader Senator Mitch McConnell’s election campaigns.
In fact, as we previously reported, the Chao family has been funding McConnell since the late 1980s. Years later, in 1993, McConnell married Elaine Chao and secured the Chao family as one of his primary sources for investments.
A gift worth somewhere between 5 and 25 million dollars (Senate ethics forms require personal finance disclosures in ranges of amounts, rather than specific figures) from the Chao Family made McConnell one of the richest Senators in the U.S. in 2008.
What makes this case even more interesting is that Chao’s husband, Senator Mitch McConnell, is known as a staunch prohibitionist. In 1996, McConnell sponsored “The Enhanced Marijuana Penalties Act”, a bill designed to increase the mandatory minimum sentencing for people caught with marijuana.
The Foremost Maritime Corporation currently operates 16 dry bulk cargo ships, most of which are currently still in active service, according to The Nation.
Colombian Coast Guard official, Luis Gonzales, told The Nation that the Ping May’s crew were questioned as part of the investigation, but that they have yet to file any charges in the case.
Additionally, Chao and her father have extensive personal ties with former Chinese President Jiang Zemin – contact described as “deep” and “regular,” according to WND.
With the appointment of Chao, Trump has selected an establishment globalist, whose family is seemingly connected to large-scale international cocaine trafficking.
Somehow, I don’t think this is what people thought Trump meant by “drain the swamp!”
“… Colombian Coast Guard agents seized roughly 40 kilos — or 90 pounds of cocaine — worth millions of dollars.”
“The Ping May was operated by the Foremost Maritime Corporation — a company owned by the father of Elaine Chao.”
What better choice, then, to ensure the safe transportation of drugs on a massive scale?
Transparency.