The Tribune

By AVA TURNQUEST

Tribune Digital Editor

aturnquest@tribunemedia.net

THE Office of the Prime Minister has defended the government’s use of US-based public affairs advisers after it was revealed a close ally of President Trump and convicted felon is being paid $1.2 million-a-year to lobby the US on behalf of The Bahamas.

The OPM said retaining such advisers is “a standard, transparent way for governments of all sizes to ensure their perspectives are heard at the highest levels in US policy debates.”

Without addressing people named in the report, the OPM said its advisers’ role is to “represent Bahamian interests with policymakers, media, and key stakeholders inside the United States” and to advocate on issues including economic policy, border security, tourism and national security.

Nonetheless, questions have been raised over the decision to hire American Roger Stone, who in November 2019 was convicted on seven felony counts, including lying to Congress, witness tampering, and obstructing a House investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election.

The government is paying Stone, whose three-year prison sentence was commuted by Trump days before he was due to be jailed, $100,000-a-month, according to filings under the US Department of Justice’s Foreign Agents Registration Act, which requires disclosure of lobbying on behalf of foreign governments.

It is believed Stone is being paid to help the government with various long-standing issues, including matters concerning the US Federal Aviation Authority and the US Department of Transport, seemingly after a breakdown in relations with the US Transport Secretary Sean Duffy, and the US Embassy in Nassau, where new Ambassador Hershel Walker has been publicly critical of the government’s decision to use Chinese financing for New Providence’s new hospital. It is believed Stone started advising the government as far back at December 2025.

Joining him in lobbying efforts for The Bahamas is Doug Davenport, a former Trump attorney.

“Stone has been hired to help calm the waters,” one source told The Tribune. “To help with a number of matters on which the government needs assistance with regards to the Bahamas’ relationship with the US.”

Free National Movement leader Michael Pintard criticised the spending, accusing the government of using public funds to protect its political interests while communities across The Bahamas lack basic emergency resources.

”They're prepared to pay a firm that hired (Mr Stone) and some other, he's an American influencer,” Mr Pintard said during a weekend rally. “You've seen him on multiple stations, and we don't make him the issue. The bottom line is, it is reported that they're spending $250,000 a month using him and others as lobbyists. That's only the amount that you know.”

“And we are hearing this on the eve of an election in communities across The Bahamas that need fire engine, fire trucks that you don't have, ambulances that don't have.”

The original amount listed in the disclosure under the US Department of Justice Foreign Affairs Registration Act was $125,000-a-month, to be paid to Stone’s DCI Group AZ LLC. It states: DCI will… “assist the Commonwealth of The Bahamas in its communications efforts to build stronger relations with the United States.” It lists the branch or agency represented by the registrant as Office of the Prime Minister, engaging with Cresswell Sturrup, Permanent Secretary. On March 25, Stone amended the filing to say he is being paid $100,000.

Another lobbyist being paid $20,000-a-month by the government is a young MAGA influencer, Coreco “CJ” Pearson, who made a name for himself at the age of 12 by posting a viral video attacking then president Barack Obama for his ‘weak’ leadership. In his filing, revealed in a report by the Miami Herald, Mr Pearson said he will “assist the Commonwealth of The Bahamas in its communications efforts to build stronger relations with the United States.”

Mr Pearson’s role in assisting the Bahamian government is unclear.

The OPM said that more than 500 foreign advisers are registered under the FARA, representing countries globally, including in the Caribbean.

A Miami Herald report linked the lobbying efforts to broader geopolitical tensions, including US concerns about Chinese-backed projects in The Bahamas.

The OPM statement said: “The United States is our country’s closest and most consequential partner. Decisions made in Washington affect our economy, border security, migration, financial services, tourism, investment, and national security.

“Ensuring that Bahamian interests are represented by advocates positioned to make a difference is an important responsibility of government.

“The Government of The Bahamas will continue to take every reasonable step to ensure that Bahamian interests are represented wherever decisions affecting our country are made.”