Tierney’s Real News
I think this is the REAL REASON why the Trump administration has now escalated its legal battle over the deportation of Venezuelan illegal gang members to the U.S. Supreme Court. This isn’t just some immigration case – this is how they plan to tie together EVERYTHING from election fraud to national security to judicial blackmail. Why? Because it all started in Venezuela. Read on.
Former CIA officer Gary Berntsen, one of the most highly decorated intelligence veterans in recent U.S. history, has come forward to confirm that the Venezuelan criminal gang Tren de Aragua (TdA) has been deliberately deployed into the United States by the Venezuelan regime, with the express intent of destabilizing the country through sabotage and violence.
*Smartmatic, founded in 2000 by Venezuelan engineers and now based in London, acquired Sequoia Voting Systems in 2005. Sequoia was a U.S.-based provider of electronic voting machines. In 2007, due to scrutiny from the U.S. Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) over Smartmatic’s Venezuelan origins, Smartmatic sold Sequoia to a group of U.S. managers. In 2010, Dominion, a Canadian-founded company now headquartered in Denver, purchased Sequoia’s assets, including some intellectual property and contracts, after Sequoia faced financial difficulties.
This shared history with Sequoia is the primary factual link between the two companies. However, both Smartmatic and Dominion have consistently stated they are competitors, not collaborators. The only known business interaction occurred in 2009, when Smartmatic licensed optical scanning machines from Dominion for a Philippines election project—a one-off deal unrelated to U.S. operations. Allegedly, Smartmatic’s technology was used only in Los Angeles County, while Dominion’s systems operated in 28 states. Dominion is a U.S.-based company, majority-owned since 2018 by Staple Street Capital, a private equity firm.
Sequoia could be a potential cut-out: Smartmatic sells it in 2007 under CFIUS pressure, it flips to U.S. managers, then Dominion scoops it up in 2010. On paper, it’s a clean break—different owners, different times. But if you squint, it could look like a handoff to distance Smartmatic while keeping influence intact, especially since Dominion inherited some Sequoia tech. Staple Street Capital, Dominion’s majority owner, adds another layer—private equity firms are notorious for opaque funding sources. Who’s behind them? Public filings don’t say much, and offshore investors could easily be in the mix. Smartmatic’s London base and Venezuelan roots only deepen the vibe—plenty of places to bury a thread.
The cut-out theory thrives on what’s not visible. No one’s cracked open Staple Street’s investor list or traced every line of Dominion’s code to a Smartmatic origin.