The Senate Intelligence Committee's report confirms the Mueller report's finding that Russia interfered in the 2016 election to aid Trump and harm Clinton. Putin personally ordered the hack and “Moscow’s intent was to harm the Clinton campaign, tarnish an expected Clinton presidential administration, help the Trump Campaign after Trump became the presumptive Republican nominee, and undermine the U.S. democratic process,” the report said. Neither report found evidence of direct coordination between the Trump campaign and Russia. Mueller and the Senate report found that Trump campaign officials "welcomed" any foreign assistance, even though it was illegal and against US election norms.
In the summer of 2016, the FBI opened its Crossfire Hurricane counterintelligence investigation based on a tip from an Australian diplomat who was concerned that George Papadopoulos had hinted that Russia had dirt on Clinton. After WikiLeaks released the Democratic National Committee emails, the Australian government sent a cable to the State Department summarizing what Papadopoulos had said, and the FBI quickly upgraded its probe into examining four Trump campaign advisers - Papadopoulos, energy consultant Carter Page, foreign policy expert Michael Flynn and then-campaign chairman Paul Manafort.
There were concerns that the FBI failed to follow investigative norms, the Durham report concluded. The report acknowledged four previous inquiries into Russian interference in 2016, but focused on the FBI’s handling of intelligence received from the Australia tip, claiming the investigation could have been opened more appropriately as an assessment or preliminary investigation.
Key Trump attorney says he’s departing legal team as Mar-a-Lago probe intensifies
The Toronto Star
23-05-17 13:56
Timothy Parlatore, a key lawyer for former US President Donald Trump, has left the legal team representing him in the special counsel investigation into the retention of classified documents, amid indications that the investigation is drawing to a close. Parlatore played a central role in responding to requests for documents by law enforcement investigators, as well as in supporting Trump's defence against charges of obstruction. A grand jury has recently heard evidence from witnesses close to the former president, and other lawyers, including former justice department prosecutor James Trusty, continue to represent him.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has criticised former President Donald Trump's recent comments about Florida's new six-week abortion ban. Trump had suggested the ban was "too harsh". DeSantis countered that it had widespread support among opponents of abortion and noted that Trump had not given his opinion on the matter. Anti-abortion measures have emerged as an early campaign issue in the race for the Republican nomination for the 2024 presidential candidate. Trump's three Supreme Court nominations laid the groundwork for the end of nationwide legalised abortion.
Former President Donald Trump's lawyer, Timothy Parlatore, is leaving his position as a grand jury goes through a special counsel investigation into classified documents at Trump's Mar-a-Lago house. His exit was reportedly not related to the investigation's progress or Trump's role in it. Parlatore has played a significant role in Trump's defence, including testifying in December over the recovery of classified documents. The Justice Department is investigating the retention of hundreds of classified documents at Mar-a-Lago, while examining possible efforts to obstruct the probe.
Democrats and the majority of voters believe that President Joe Biden, who will turn 81 in November, should not run for a second term. However, those questioning Biden's age must consider that the vice-president - Kamala Harris - could also attract scrutiny when she runs. Democrats and much of the “mainstream” media are working off an invisible memo that tells them to avoid talking about Biden's age, however this cannot last. Biden must now elevate Harris's role to become a bigger factor next year and focus on key issues that will appeal to voters.
Students of the New College of Florida are organising an alternative graduation ceremony in response to the “hostile takeover” of the institution by conservative trustees that were appointed by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. Called “[New] Commencement: On Our Terms”, the event is being organised by New College seniors, with an alumni-run group called the Novo Collegian Alliance. The event will feature attorney Maya Wiley as the keynote speaker. Wiley is the CEO of the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights. The students have organised the ceremony in opposition to the views of conservative trustees.
The Dutch government could limit cattle numbers to two cows per field the size of a football pitch as part of efforts to reduce polluting methane emissions and help the Netherlands meet EU climate targets. The limit, which the Dutch prime minister, Mark Rutte, has not yet approved, would toughen the existing average of 2.5 cows per hectare. Farmers have protested widely against environmental measures which they claim damage their livelihoods, with the farmer-backed Farmer-Citizen Movement (BBB) becoming the largest party in all 12 Dutch provinces in regional elections earlier this year.
Parents are refusing to send their children to school in New York City to protest plans to house migrants in school gyms. Gyms have been earmarked to shelter asylum seekers as officials struggle to find housing for an influx of migrants following the lifting of former president Donald Trump’s Covid-era immigration policy. Outside of schools, concerned parents have been protesting in Coney Island and Brooklyn about such plans, with some camping overnight amid fears refugees would arrive in the early hours of the morning.
CNN has announced that Kaitlan Collins will anchor a new hour-long show that will air in the 9 p.m. Eastern time slot. The slot has been vacant since the firing of Chris Cuomo, during which time the network's ratings have been in decline. Collins has been at CNN since 2017 as a White House correspondent, and CNN Chairman Chris Licht praised the journalist, saying: “She is a smart and gifted journalist who we've all seen hold lawmakers and newsmakers accountable. She pushes politicians off their talking points, gets real answers and breaks a lot of news.”
Frank Luntz, a veteran political pollster and GOP messaging expert, has blamed former president Donald Trump for health consequences that have left him needing medical care. Speaking with journalist Ben Terris for Terris’s forthcoming book, Luntz explained that he felt a tingle in his arm, shoulder and face in early 2020 and went to hospital, where doctors discovered his blood pressure was dangerously high and had caused a stroke. Luntz explained that he felt the lack of courage to stand up forcefully against Trump had driven him to a near-life-threatening condition. He claimed this caused his head to “explode” and revealed that he was still recovering. Luntz previously spoke about the impact of the Trump presidency and his decision to leave the US for the UK.
Timothy Parlatore, a top attorney for Donald Trump, has left the former president’s legal team, becoming the latest lawyer to depart as Trump faces multiple criminal investigations. According to reports, prosecutors have gathered evidence from dozens of witnesses in both cases, many of whom have now testified to grand juries in Washington. Parlatore told The Washington Post that he notified Trump directly of his departure on Tuesday and that his exit "had nothing to do with the underlying case.” The decision was first reported by CNN.
US President Joe Biden would enjoy a large lead over former President Donald Trump if Trump faced more federal and state criminal charges related to his conduct, according to a poll of 1,571 registered voters by Republican polling firm WPA Research. The poll found 47% of voters preferred Biden over Trump, who garnered 40%. The result was a 14-point lead for the sitting president among registered independents. If Trump faced charges in Georgia, where there is a grand jury investigation into his election-loss efforts, Biden's lead would extend to 49% to 39%, growing to 21 points on independents’ voting preferences.
Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley has demanded Daniel Penny, an ex-Marine charged with killing Jordan Neely on a New York City subway, be pardoned. Neely, who was homeless, had reportedly complained to passengers on the subway on 1 May about hunger and dehydration, and had not physically attacked anyone on the train or shown any kind of weapon before being choked by Penny. Many US conservatives see the killing as a result of the unaddressed issue of homelessness and mental health in American cities. Haley has called on New York Governor Kathy Hochul to pardon Mr Penny.
Leaders from the Group of 7 (G7) countries are to meet and discuss the global economy this week at the annual G7 summit in Japan. However, the US’ nearing debt default of two weeks may be cause for concern. President Joe Biden hopes to promote an optimistic tone after the White House sent two special aids to negotiate with Republicans to raise the debt. Upcoming discussions are also set to focus on Ukraine and China. European allies are pressing the US administration to give American-made F-16 jets to Ukraine after gaining territory around the city of Bakhmut. Nevertheless, the Biden administration is worried about escalating the situation and the potential costs and time issues that would arise. Discussions on China will focus on handling the threat of its economic, technological and military rise. The summit will also include talks on how to stabilise the global economy and limit devaluations of currencies.
Prosecutors' ethics experts have criticized the recently published report by special counsel John Durham into the investigation of President Donald Trump's campaign over Russian connections during the 2016 US election. They have identified several ways in which Durham's report runs counter to normal Justice Department practice, particularly in its focus on juries. Durham suggests that, because jurors may have strongly held views on politically-charged cases, this could aid in making it difficult to secure convictions. Durham instead resorted to what sounds like blaming jurors for his failure to secure more serious convictions. Others have suggested that the report may help to erode public faith in the legal process generally. Experts have also criticized Durham for restating his allegations against Michael Sussmann, a former White House Counsel lawyer, and Igor Danchenko, a Russian disinformation source. Despite both men being found not guilty on all counts, Durham has continued to suggest that the allegations against them remain true.
Penguin Random House and the writers' organization PEN America have filed a lawsuit against the Escambia County School Board for removing 10 books including those by Toni Morrison and Alice Sebold. The parents' rights legislation at the centre of the row, dubbed the "Don't Say Gay" law, was signed into state law by governor Ron DeSantis, a possible 2024 Republican presidential candidate. The bill prevents teachers from discussing sexual orientation and gender identity with primary school children. The lawsuit argues that the Parental Rights in Education Act only applies to "classroom instruction", not library materials. The suit states that the school violated parents' and students' First Amendment rights. "Books have the capacity to change lives for the better, and students in particular deserve equitable access to a wide range of perspectives. Censorship, in the form of book bans like those enacted by Escambia County, is a direct threat to democracy and our Constitutional rights," said Nihar Malaviya, CEO of Penguin Random House.
Chinese company Nanjing Pengyuhui Technologies has promised users in China access to US-based AI art platform Midjourney, but the social media post was removed within a day due to concerns over uncensored content, the South China Morning Post reports. The deletion underscored the difficulties faced by generative AI services trying to enter China, which require internet operators to censor content. Officials are wary of the use of apps that generate deep fakes, which manipulate people’s faces in a digital format to look like someone else. Midjourney has been criticised for generating fake images of famous figures.
Former ShopRite employee Daniel Gill is seeking $2m in damages from Rudy Giuliani over an incident in which Gill was arrested for patting the former New York City mayor on the back unexpectedly. Gill alleges that Giuliani conspired with police to cause him to lose his job and be falsely imprisoned. Giuliani claimed after the encounter that he was hit so hard it felt like being shot or hit in the back with a boulder. Gill was held in jail for more than a day after the incident, during which he touched Giuliani on the back with an open hand and said, “What’s up, scumbag?” according to surveillance footage.
Concerns over security and privacy have led to calls for the banning of the popular short-form video app TikTok. Critics have argued that its parent company, Chinese firm Bytedance, could potentially use the app, which is one of the most popular ever, as a tool to surveil people on behalf of Beijing. The US federal government and the European Commission have already banned their employees from installing the app, and the state of Montana has become the first state to ban it. Indian officials banned the app in 2020 after a dispute with China over disputed territory.
US Vice President Joe Biden has cancelled a scheduled trip to Australia following his attendance at the G7 summit in Japan. Biden has been required to return to Washington to deal with the debt-ceiling stand-off in Congress, an impediment caused by Republican opposition to aid Obama’s manoeuvrability within fiscal responsibility. This marks the latest casualty in the US’s frustrating attempts to refocus foreign policy towards Asia; Obama experienced a similar setback when his bid to turn US attention away from the Middle East towards the East was disrupted by the surge of ISIS and the civil war in Syria. It is believed that the breakdown in US foreign policy could lead to China becoming a dominant force in the Asia-Pacific region, and highlights the difficulty faced by President Biden in his ongoing attempts to build a counterweight to China’s economic dominance.
