Help Jamie Mannina Fight Back Against Yellow Journalism

Remember the Maine! It was quite the catchphrase 127 years ago, and it propelled us into war. The problem was that it was not true. This type of exaggerated and false yellow journalism is unfortunately still with us today in 2025. And this case is just one example.

This fundraiser is to support pro bono legal representation for civil litigation to hold James O'Keefe and his conspirators accountable for what we believe is unlawful/unethical "yellow journalism". We need your help to protect individuals who have been targeted because they were perceived to be or are Democrats.

Mr. O’Keefe typically arranges to secretly tape and disseminate private conversations, particularly during fake “dates”. Many of you might know Mr. O'Keefe from his days with Project Veritas, an organization he helped create which also engages in this type of underhanded partisan targeting. In 2023, Mr. O’Keefe was expelled or mutually agreed to leave Project Veritas amidst alleged “financial malfeasance” related to his use of “an excessive amount of donor funds” on personal luxuries. Shortly after departing Project Veritas, Mr. O’Keefe began a new for-profit company, O’Keefe Media Group, to continue his practice of making inflammatory videos using secret recordings.

Our first lawsuit seeks to hold Mr. O’Keefe accountable for the harm he caused to Jamie Mannina, who over the past twenty years has truly had a distinguished career. He was previously a former staff member for Senator Hillary Clinton (D-NY), served as a Senior Foreign Affairs Advisor for the Department of State, worked at the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, and then became a Special Agent for the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Until recently, Jamie was a government contractor with Booz Allen Hamilton and assigned to the Department of Defense.

Unfortunately, on January 14, 2025, Booz Allen fired Jamie, without any legitimate meaningful opportunity to defend himself, in response to Mr. O’Keefe posting secret videos of Jamie on what he thought was a normal date. Instead, his “date” turned out to be an undercover operative for Mr. O’Keefe. During those dates Jamie openly discussed his personal concerns, which many of us no doubt share, about the second Trump Administration.

Please make a donation today to support our pro bono legal efforts for Jamie Mannina who was specifically targeted because of his legitimate and PRIVATELY expressed concerns about the current Trump Administration.

Mr. O'Keefe has been using an operative who calls herself "Heidi" on various dating apps to entrap men. Despite the dating app Bumble's clear terms and conditions of use that expressly prohibit deception, misrepresentation, or pursuit of a scam, that is exactly what "Heidi" did on behalf of Mr. O’Keefe. She described her political affiliation as a liberal supporting LGBTQ+ rights and feminism, and stated she was potentially seeking a long-term relationship. But the "date" was a total set-up to entrap Jamie into revealing his personal political views about this Administration while being secretly recorded. The videos were then posted online with defamatory and exaggerated commentary that implies nefarious intentions. The objective was to harm, if not destroy, individuals such as Jamie who are not viewed as Trump loyalists. As a result, Jamie has been unemployed since January 2025 due to Mr. O'Keefe's actions.

We must fight back to uphold the right to hold personal political views without fear they will be used against us simply because they are not supportive of the current administration.

On Wednesday, May 14, 2025, our law firm filed a civil lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia against Mr. O'Keefe, his company and their undercover operative. We are seeking damages for civil tort claims of false light, defamation, fraudulent misrepresentation, conspiracy to commit fraudulent Misrepresentation, and a violation of the Federal and District of Columbia (“D.C.”) Wire Tap Acts. This is not the first time O'Keefe has been sued. He has lost lawsuits before, as well as been criminally convicted for related acts. But no one has yet pursued him for these fake “dates” and it is time someone holds Mr. O’Keefe and his minions accountable.

We are representing Jamie pro bono (i.e., no legal fees are charged to him) to defend him against these underhanded, sleazy and unlawful actions. Our law firm, although non-partisan, has been continually and actively standing up to former President Donald J. Trump and his allies since 2017. The law firm of Mark S. Zaid, P.C. has represented, among others, the Intelligence Community whistleblower whose complaint led to President Trump’s first impeachment; several U.S. Capitol Police officials who helped defend the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, including the late Officer Brian Sicknick who died in the aftermath of the attempted insurrection; Olivia Troye in defending against a defamation lawsuit brought by President Trump’s former Ambassador to Germany (and currently a Special Envoy to the President) Rick Grenell, as well as Fred Wellman, a former Executive Director of the Lincoln Project, who was sued for defamation by retired General Michael Flynn. The firm has also represented several of President Trump’s former Cabinet Officers to ensure their books were published for the American people and the world to read. And the firm is currently engaged, also pro bono, to represent countless federal employees at various federal agencies, to include FBI, DOJ, CIA, DHS, USAID, FEMA and others, who are being terminated and targeted by the second Trump Administration.

Your support will enable us to go up against a regime and its allies that are threatening democracy, our nation’s security, and the First Amendment.

Litigation of any sort becomes expensive very quickly. This case will be no different. There will be countless legal hours and especially out-of-pocket costs for depositions. We would not be able to take on these pro bono cases without the assistance of the public.

Please help us fight back against these unlawful actions by contributing even a small donation. As we are dealing with the continuing retaliatory and vindictive behavior of President Trump and his allies during this second administration, help us use the judicial system to make a difference and preserve our Democracy. Should this specific effort be concluded before all donations have been expended, the funds will be utilized to support legal efforts similar to this one.

If you have any information concerning Mr. O’Keefe and/or “Heidi”, please reach out to Mark S. Zaid, Esq.