The more you learn about Tristan and Andrew Tate, the harder it gets to defend them. But a new report claims the White House actually stepped in to help them, which has shocked many people.
Andrew Tate has been a huge online figure for young men. He built a big following with his online “university” and his openly sexist views. His image took a major hit when he was accused of sex trafficking and rape and held in a Romanian jail while the case continued.
When Donald Trump won the presidency again, Andrew Tate posted on social media saying that he and his brother would be safe now that Trump was back in office. At first people thought he was just bragging. No one knew he might actually be telling the truth.
Not long after, the Tate brothers were released and flew to Florida on a private jet. Because they were still being looked at in sex trafficking investigations in multiple countries, US officials quickly took their phones, laptops and other devices. This seemed reasonable to many people. No one wants men accused of such serious crimes walking around freely without any checks.
But then something strange happened. A few days later, every device was given back to them, and there were no follow up questions. Reports say that this order came straight from the White House. It was passed down through a Homeland Security contact named Paul Ingrassia.
This detail made things even more troubling because Ingrassia used to work as the Tate brothers’ personal lawyer. He later joined the Trump administration. This fits into a growing pattern where Trump’s team has stepped into cases to shield supporters or punish critics. And in situations where the Justice Department cannot step in, Trump has sometimes simply granted pardons.
A retired Homeland Security official, John F. Tobon, told reporters that people inside the agency feel the White House is going too far. But many are scared to speak up because they worry about losing their jobs. Tobon said that in his thirty years of work, he has never seen anything like this. He said that when someone claims an order came directly from the White House, it feels like pressure meant to silence people.
This report raises serious questions about how much power the administration is using to protect certain individuals and how unsafe it might be for officials who try to push back.
