In a timely and explosive episode of BrokenTruth.TV, host John Davidson and co-host attorney Warner Mendenhall—head of Mendenhall Law Group and founder of Freedom Counsel—sit down with whistleblower “Cindy” to unpack the rampant fraud plaguing the Small Business Administration’s (SBA) 8(a) program. This interview comes on the heels of U.S. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth’s groundbreaking announcement today, January 19, 2026, where he vowed to dismantle what he calls the federal government’s “oldest DEI program.”
Hegseth’s declaration, shared in a video message, pulls no punches: “We’re actually taking a sledgehammer to the oldest DEI program in the federal government, a program few people outside of Washington have ever heard of, that I hadn’t heard of. It’s called the 8A program.” He described 8(a) as having “morphed into swamp code words for DEI, race-based contracting,” where “in many, many instances, these socially disadvantaged businesses, they don’t even do work. They take a 10%, 20%, sometimes 50% fee off the top and then pass the contract off to a giant consulting firm, commonly known as Beltway Bandits.” Hegseth highlighted ongoing investigations, noting that “The Department of Justice under Attorney General Pam Bondi recently exposed half a billion dollars in 8A fraud. Treasury, led by Secretary Besant, found another quarter billion, and their investigation is just beginning.” He emphasized that in the Pentagon, “$100 million sole source contracts go out the door to these 8A firms almost every day” without competition. For more on Hegseth’s full statement, check out coverage from HSToday and Tribal Business News.
Cindy, an IT contractor and owner of a woman-owned small business, brings firsthand experience to the table. Having worked in federal contracting since 2002, she has uncovered billions in potential fraud through meticulous public data analysis. As Mendenhall puts it, “Cindy here from Ohio brought in $100 billion of fraud that needs to be recovered.” Cindy herself warns that “Over 50% of every federal dollar spent on IT that is supposedly going to an 8A is going to one of these Alaska Native corporations,” which she likens to “your kid’s youth basketball team with LeBron and Kobe and Shaq and Bird and Kareem are competing against your kids. And by the way, the refs who are the contract officers, SBA in Congress are told they’re not allowed to call a penalty on the other team.”
She details systemic issues, including joint ventures and category management that favor large corporations disguised as disadvantaged businesses. In one stark example, Cindy analyzed woman-owned business awards at a specific agency: “I believe it was 19 companies. When I did a deep dive into those... 15 were absolutely, without a doubt, positively owned and run by a man. Three more were suspect and only one had gotten very small awards and they were pretty clearly run by a woman.” Overall, “Over 90% of every federal dollar spent claiming it’s going to a woman owned small business is going to a company owned and or run by a man.”
Cindy also exposes insider corruption, such as former agency executives being hired to secure contracts: “If a large contractor especially... wants to get work with an agency, what they do is they hire one of those people who have left the agency and then they’re almost guaranteed to get the work.” She recounts personal battles with rigged bids, like underbidding incumbents only to lose suspiciously: “I underbid the incumbent by 32%... Supposedly, the contract officer came back and claimed that the incumbent underbid themselves by 33%.”
Mendenhall echoes the frustration: “My frustration level is through the roof... We have been after the 8 program now for quite a while.” He praises Cindy’s bravery, noting she risks retaliation as an active contractor. The discussion touches on broader implications, including H-1B visa abuses and COVID-era PPP fraud, where companies profited without need.
To empower viewers to investigate themselves, Cindy recommends key public resources:
USAspending.gov: Track federal awards by year, agency, set-aside type, and more. Filter for NAICS codes like 5415 for IT to spot discrepancies.
SAM.gov: Search for company registrations, unique entity identifiers (UEI), and certifications.
Dynamic Small Business Search (DSBS): Find certified small businesses and verify claims.
State business entity searches (e.g., Virginia’s SCC eFile): Review corporate documents for ownership details.
For deeper dives, cross-reference with professional networking sites and paid people-search tools to uncover hidden connections.
She also highlights the X account @StopWosbFraud, which exposes GSA corruption and FOIA abuses, including a case where honoring a request was claimed to require “36,000 man hours” but could be done in minutes.
This interview isn’t just talk—it’s a call to action. As Mendenhall urges, “Let’s get some crowdsourced investigators moving out there.” Cindy adds, “If anybody watches this who’s in government who wants to address fraud... please just give me the contract for this.” With Hegseth’s review underway and whistleblowers like Cindy stepping up, change may finally be on the horizon.
Don’t miss the full interview for more shocking details and strategies to combat this trillion-dollar scam. Watch now on BrokenTruth.TV and join the fight against government waste.
