2 weeks Ago
U.S. Rep.
Don Bacon asserted Thursday he did nothing wrong in intervening to help former President Donald Trump’s media company obtain a hard-to-obtain foreign worker visa for a company executive. According to a report by the nonprofit news organization ProPublica , Bacon’s efforts helped the social media worker “jump the line” to get the visa in 2022. Bacon said his effort was no different than the services he would provide for any constituent, and that he handled the case no differently.
Bacon “I treated him like I treated every other constituent — I've done hundreds of these things,” Bacon told the Omaha World-Herald in an interview. “I did the standard thing, no more, no less.” The request for assistance came from Andrew Northwall, the chief operating officer of Trump Media who is also a longtime Nebraskan and Republican political consultant.
Bacon, a Republican who represents the Omaha-based 2nd District, said if the visa assistance request had come from Tony Vargas — the Democrat who is challenging him in November’s election — he “would have done the same thing.” Before Trump Media reached out to Bacon, the company had already helped get the tech worker Vladimir Novachki from North Macedonia approved for the visa, ProPublica reported. But a backlog at the American embassy in the Balkan nation was causing delays in finalizing the process.
Bacon’s office helped fix the problem for Trump’s company, ProPublica reported. Novachki is now Trump Media’s chief technology officer. At the time of the request, Bacon and Trump were not exactly political allies.
Trump had criticized Bacon in December 2021 for voting the previous month in favor of President Joe Biden’s infrastructure bill. Trump had called for “a Republican patriot” to challenge Bacon for his seat. Bacon had also criticized Trump's actions surrounding the Jan.
6 assault on the Capitol. Bacon ultimately faced no serious primary challenge and was reelected to the U.S.
House seat he has held since 2017. A former staffer for Bacon told ProPublica the congressman personally instructed her to help Trump Media, even though she thought it was inappropriate to mix politics with the office’s constituent services duties. Bacon said Thursday his response after the request was that “we all feel uncomfortable about it — I’ve got someone from the Trump team asking me to help out with a visa.
” So he said his office sat down to discuss how to handle the request. “I said, ‘Well, it's a constituent — we should handle it like we handle every constituent request,’ ” he said. “It would have been a story if I didn’t help.
It was a constituent. I said 'let’s make sure we follow procedures and we do it like we do everyone else.' So that was the basis.
” ProPublica said it’s common for companies to ask members of Congress to help speed along such applications. But they typically do so when the applicant or company is based in the lawmaker’s district. Trump Media is headquartered in Sarasota, Florida.
But Bacon said he considered the man making the request in this case a constituent. Bacon described Northwall as a long-term Nebraskan who still has a home here while also “living part-time” in Florida. “I know him,” Bacon said.
According to Northwall’s LinkedIn page, he had only gone to work as COO of Trump media just weeks before the assistance request, in December 2021. Before that, he worked as an Omaha-based political consultant, the owner and founder of several political strategy entities. Clients have included Republican candidate for governor Charles W.
Herbster. He also in 2021 served as an adviser and architect for Parler, the conservative social media site. The Ralston High graduate also earned a political science degree at the University of Nebraska at Omaha in 2009 and served as chairman of UNO’s campus Republican group.
The request for help also came just weeks after Trump had called for someone to challenge Bacon. Virginia Canter, a former government ethics lawyer, said the timing made the request from Trump’s organization more troubling, potentially increasing the pressure on Bacon to help. “Thank you so much for your help on making sure we push this forward,” Northwall wrote to a Bacon staffer in January 2022, according to an email reviewed by ProPublica.
“I will make sure to thank the congressman as well!” An aide to the congressman replied promptly. “We will follow up with the proper officials about your concerns,” an aide wrote. Records show Bacon’s office then went into motion, gathering the forms and rationales it would need to push the case forward with the State Department.
The ProPublica report suggested there was incongruity in Trump’s organization seeking to obtain a visa for a foreign worker. Trump's administration generally pushed U.S.
companies to hire Americans over foreign workers, and it instituted policies that made it harder to secure visas for skilled workers. Trump’s current platform pledges to “strengthen Buy American and Hire American Policies.” A Trump campaign spokesperson said in a statement that “when President Trump is back in the White House, he will enforce our immigration laws and deport illegal immigrants,” ProPublica said.
The spokesperson added that “Trump has always been in favor of allowing in thoroughly vetted highly skilled immigrants who do not undercut American wages.” Izzy Grzbielski, 9, of Lincoln (left), and Abby Wilson, 6, race down the slide at the Antelope Park playground on Monday. The city hopes to replace the playground equipment at Antelope Park during the summer of either 2026 and 2027 and replace it with play equipment that meets today’s new standards for inclusive play.
Flanked by state senators, Gov. Jim Pillen signs LB34 during a press conference addressing the outcome of the special legislative session at the Capitol on Tuesday, Aug. 20, 2024, in Lincoln.
Ayana Robbins, of Omaha (top), makes her bed with help from her mom, Arvela (right), as her uncle, Melvin Tyree, installs a curtain rod underneath during UNL move in day on Wednesday in the Knoll Residential Center. Nebraska's Nash Hutmacher (left) and Keona Davis walk into a patch of light during a team practice on Friday, Aug. 16, 2024, at Hawks Championship Center.
Eighth grade student Arrin Richardson works during study hall at Irving Middle School on Wednesday. Last year, LPS began using digital hall passes in high schools and in January started the program at Irving. This year, all 12 middle schools are using it.
Captured using a double exposure, state senators register their votes with red and green lights during a motion to end debate. Fierce opposition from a bipartisan group of lawmakers to Gov. Jim Pillen's tax plan kept the Legislature from ever voting directly on the proposal on Tuesday.
Tae'veon Coleman, 7, (left) waits to cast his line as the sun sets during a Community Lake day hosted by Big Gumdrop Outdoors at Oak Lake Park on Friday, Aug. 9, 2024, in Lincoln. Big Gumdrop Outdoors, is ,a nonprofit created by Elijah Riley, a Lincoln native and UNL student, to help kids connect with nature and play outside.
Scott Middle School sixth grade teacher Eric Nelson tries to catch cheeseballs on a shower cap covered in shaving cream during an end-of-the-day pep rally at Scott Middle School on Monday. The goal was to catch as many cheeseballs with your head while they were thrown by a student partner. Framed through the grate of a fire pit, Olivia Dagget-Keagle, 9, blows out the fire on her blackened marshmallow during a Community Lake day hosted by Big Gumdrop Outdoors at Oak Lake Park on Friday, Aug.
9, 2024, in Lincoln. Big Gumdrop Outdoors, is ,a nonprofit created by Elijah Riley, a Lincoln native and UNL student, to help kids connect with nature and play outside. Nebraska's Bergen Reilly hits a ball next to teammate Andi Jackson during a team practice, Monday, Aug.
5, 2024, at the Devaney Sports Center. A bicyclist rides along the Billy Wolff Trail near the Union Plaza Amphitheater on Wednesday. After 13 straight days of highs of 90 degrees or above, including 100 on Monday, a cool front brought relief to Lincoln, with a high of only 75 on Tuesday.
Wednesday's high, which reached into the upper 80s, will likely be the warmest for several days. The National Weather Service forecasts highs in the 70s to around 80 through the weekend, about 10 degrees below normal for this time of year. Jordan Jones, 6, and her brother Sincere, 7, (from left) react while riding the Super Drop ride at the Heart of America Carnival during the Lancaster County Super Fair at the Sandhills Global Event Center on Saturday, Aug.
3, 2024, in Lincoln. Todd Heiser of Lincoln makes one of five trips of the day to drop off tree debris at a collection site at Holmes Lake Park on Monday. J.
J. Yost, assistant director of Parks and Recreation, said the debris drop-off site at Holmes Lake has been one of the busiest — and it's also one of the smallest. The city has brought equipment to all the drop-off sites to consolidate tree debris.
At Holmes Lake, workers also used a grinder to further process debris. Yost said the city is encouraging residents to use other sites, which include Seng Park (south of the ballfields); Woods Park (south lot off of J Street); Oak Lake Park (main lot off of Charleston Street); and Hofeling Enterprises, 2200 South Folsom Court. City parks sites will accept debris until Aug.
19. Nowear BMX's Sam Bussell (top right) performs a trick on his bike during a performance at the Sandhills Global Event Center on Saturday. Wilber native David Rogers, 10 (first right) holds his cousin William Mays, 3, as they dance during the 63rd annual Wilber Czech Festival held in Downtown Wilber on Saturday, Aug.
3, 2024. A wild horse jumps onto its back as it tries to throw off a rope held by Troy Graybill (from front) Chris Hajek, and Scott Graves as they try to saddle it during the wild horse race a during the final day of Nebraska's Big Rodeo at the Garfield County Fairgrounds on Saturday, July 27, 2024, in Burwell. Nebraska Capitol groundskeepers Lexis Funk (left) and Heather Dinslage collect fallen tree branches Thursday in Lincoln.
JC Brager's Sawyer Bokowski (left) fields a ball as Papillion-La Vista South's Derek Geist runs to third base during the second inning of a National division Class A Legion baseball tournament game against on Saturday, July 27, 2024, at Den Hartog Field. Harry Tompkin, owner of Palace Glass Co., hands off a piece of stained glass to Kelly Mathes (from left) as they sort through inventory on Wednesday, July 31, 2024, in Lincoln.
After 43 years of creating stained glass, Harry Tompkin plans to close his shop by September. Most of the remaining pieces are rejuvenation projects or those that were planned before his decision to close. Burwell's Keelin Swett, 12, blows a bubble with her gum while waiting in the staging area behind the chutes during the final day of Nebraska's Big Rodeo at the Garfield County Fairgrounds on Saturday, July 27, 2024, in Burwell.
New teachers gather for the Lincoln Public Schools New Educator Kickoff on Monday at Southwest High School. Bob Swanson uses a chainsaw to clean up large fallen branches after a storm pummeled the city Wednesday in Lincoln. Quade Peterson of Litchfield is dragged underneath a wild horse while attempting to saddle it in the wild horse race competition during the final day of Nebraska's Big Rodeo at the Garfield County Fairgrounds on Saturday, July 27, 2024, in Burwell.
Akroyd Darkgrove, played by Shade Ingraham (left), has popcorn thrown at him by Jacob Parman, 7, of Fargo, North Dakota, during a performance of "Phantom of Darkgrove" at the Denman and Mary Mallory Kountze Memorial Theatre at Eugene T. Mahoney State Park in July. Audience interaction is a big part of what makes the melodramas at the park special, crew members said.
The crowd is encouraged to respond vocally to musical cues throughout the play and throw popcorn at the villain. Noah Wong, 7, unzips backpacks for the assembly line to place school supplies inside it during Spreetail's annual Back(Pack) to School Event on Friday. Nebraska Volleyball head coach John Cook poses for a photo in front of the chutes before the Grand Entry on the final day of Nebraska's Big Rodeo at the Garfield County Fairgrounds on Saturday, July 27, 2024, in Burwell.
Matt Rhule (center) leads a group of participants inside to cool off during his "She's Got Game" girls football camp on Saturday, July 27, 2024, at Memorial Stadium. Nazar Durzhynskyi, 9, focuses on keeping the ball off the ground using his racket while participating in a practice drill during a tennis camp held for Ukrainian children at Woods Tennis Center on Thursday. Stay up-to-date on the latest in local and national government and political topics with our newsletter.
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