Mark McCloskey, the Missouri lawyer who briefly entered the national spotlight after pointing a rifle at Black Lives Matter protesters who trespassed near his home, filed formal campaign paperwork to run for the U.S. Senate in Missouri.

McCloskey launched a campaign website, which says that he “and his wife, Patty, held off a violent mob through the exercise of their 2nd Amendment rights.

“Since then, they addressed the Republican National Convention, and have been frequent guests on Fox, Newsmax, OAN, CNN and a variety of national and local news and talk TV and radio programs,” the website states. “They campaigned extensively in support of President Trump and continue to speak around the nation on their support of the Constitution, the traditional values that have made the USA the greatest nation on earth, and the current threats to its continued existence.”

McCloskey is the latest entrant into the primary for the seat of the retiring Sen. Roy Blunt (R-Mo.) Former Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens and Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt are also vying for the nomination.

McCloskey and his wife were indicted on gun and evidence tampering charges after the video of them brandishing firearms at protesters thrust them into the national news cycle. Republicans rallied behind the couple and the McCloskeys later spoke at the GOP convention.

“An angry mob marched to destroy my home and kill my family, I took a stand to defend them. I am a proven fighter against the mob. When the mob comes to destroy our home, our state, our nation— I’ll defend it. I will NEVER BACK DOWN,” McCloskey wrote on Twitter after announcing his candidacy.

McCloskey announced his campaign on the Tucker Carlson show on Fox News. During the appearance, he said that he was always a Republican and that he campaign for President Donald Trump.

“The people out there in this country are just sick and tired of cancel culture and the poison of critical race theory and the big lie of systemic racism, all backed up by the threat of mob violence. And people are just sick of it. They don’t want any more posers, and egotists, and career politicians going to DC,” McCloskey told Carlson.

The seat is considered a safe on for the GOP, so the primary winner will likely go on to win the general election. Greitens and Schmitt were virtually tied in a head-to-head poll conducted in March.

The Australian Treasurer Josh Frydenberg has said the federal government supports bringing international students back to Australian universities.

At a post-Budget business breakfast in South Australia on Monday, Frydenberg hinted that the Federal Government would give the green light to the state’s plan to bring international students back into the country if approved by the chief public health officer.

“When it comes to international students, we will look favourably upon state proposals, including from South Australia, where they have the support of their Chief Medical Officer, have their support of their universities, to bring in cohorts of international students over and above their existing cap,” Frydenberg said.

“In the Budget, there was an assumption that the borders would gradually re-open from the middle of next year. But I want to point out that that’s not a policy decision; it’s an assumption.”

“When it comes to international borders, we will continue to take the medical advice,” he said.

The Treasurer said the Prime Minister’s decision to close international borders last year to China, and later the world turned out to be the right decision.

A general view of the Flinders University Sturt campus was identified as a COVID-19 hotspot on November 30, 2020, in Adelaide, Australia. (Kelly Barnes/Getty Images)

“Now some people say that Australia got lucky because we are an island, so we didn’t have the virus like other countries.”

“It wasn’t luck that saw Australia successfully suppress the virus. Australians make their own luck. It was an early and substantial and important decision to close our borders,” Frydenberg said, citing that the United Kingdom, which is also an island, has been suffering from the virus because it didn’t close the borders like Australia.

When asked by Noel Lindsay, the Pro-Vice-Chancellor Professor at the University of Adelaide, about whether Chinese students will be able to return, Frydenberg said, “I hope we will be able to get Chinese international students to Australia and certainly our intention is to support the international student sector by enabling these cohorts to arrive.”

While admitting that the Australia-China relationship had been “challenging” after a series of diplomatic and trade conflicts, the Treasurer said China remained Australia’s biggest two-way trade relationship.

“From Australia’s perspective, we’ll continue to be clear and consistent with respect to our national interest, whether that’s in relation to issues on investment, human rights, international security.

“I feel like it is an important time for Australia, and we have to be wary of the changes in the global strategic environment, and we need to be clear and consistent on those issues, which is what we’re seeking to do,” he said.

Attorney General Merrick Garland on Tuesday announced that the Justice Department (DOJ) is working to revive an effort to support certain disadvantaged communities to combat barriers to accessing justice in America.

Garland said that the department will launch a review seeking to address disparities in the criminal justice system and barriers to access the immigration and civil legal systems. The department will work with federal and state partners to develop policy initiatives and measures.

Part of the review will consist of reviewing strategies to reinstate an office in the department, known as the Office for Access to Justice, that says it would assist low-income individuals to navigate the civil and criminal justice systems. The office was first established in 2010 under the Obama administration under allegations that low socio-economic individuals and communities receive substandard legal services.

Former Attorney General Jeff Sessions in 2018 transferred duties from the office to DOJ’s Office of Legal Policy and has since been effectively closed. House Democrats attempted to codify the office’s existence through legislation. Sessions rolled back on a number of Obama-era policies during his tenure as attorney general.

“Trust in the rule of law—the foundation of American democracy—depends upon the public’s faith that government seeks equal justice for all. That is the Justice Department’s core duty, and the mission upon which it was built. But without equal access to justice, the promise of equal justice under law rings hollow,” Garland wrote in a memo to leaders in the department.

The attorney general also argued that the announced efforts are necessary in order to address inequities exacerbated by the economic crisis that followed the outbreak of the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus pandemic.

“Many Americans have been pushed into poverty and lost their homes, their jobs, and even their lives. Deep and longstanding inequities in our justice system have been exposed and exacerbated,” he said in his memo.

The announcement comes on the same day President Joe Biden issued a memo that directed Garland to begin “planning, development, and coordination of access-to-justice policy initiatives.” The memo requires the DOJ to submit a plan to the White House in 120 days on the department’s role in expanding the access to justice work.

Biden’s memo also reestablishes the White House Legal Aid Interagency Roundtable. According to the DOJ, the Legal Aid Interagency Roundtable (LAIR) seeks to “raise federal agencies’ awareness of how civil legal aid can help advance a wide range of federal objectives including employment, family stability, housing, consumer protection, and public safety.”

The LAIR works with civil legal aid partners to strengthen federal programs by incorporating legal aid, develop policy recommendations for improving access to justice, and other outcomes.

The roundtable will be co-chaired by Garland and White House counsel Dana Remus and include a number of agency heads across the government.

President Biden and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen promoted the administration’s infrastructure and tax plans as vital for the U.S. to compete globally, as the White House and Republican lawmakers continued to pursue a deal to improve the nation’s bridges, roads and broadband internet.

Proclaiming himself a “car guy,” Mr. Biden visited Dearborn, Mich., on Tuesday to tour the Ford Motor Co. Rouge Electric Vehicle Center, using the facility to pitch his $2.3 trillion infrastructure plan, which includes funding for electric vehicles. He argued that his proposals would help create jobs and make the U.S. more competitive with countries such as China.

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Once it sheds its media business, AT&T Inc. T -5.80% will be a smaller, less-indebted company devoted to selling cellphone plans and broadband internet access.

In other words, customers and investors will see an AT&T much like the one that existed before its foray into streaming video and satellite TV. But its rivals haven’t been sitting still.

Copyright ©2020 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8

AbbVie Inc.’s ABBV 0.27% pricing practices for some of its top-selling medicines faced fresh scrutiny from federal lawmakers Tuesday, the latest effort by members of Congress probing the cost of prescription drugs.

Democratic members of the U.S. House Committee on Oversight and Reform have been investigating how AbbVie sets the prices of some of its products, including its top-selling immunology drug, Humira.

At the hearing, committee members questioned AbbVie Chief Executive Richard Gonzalez about price increases for Humira as well as AbbVie’s patents and other efforts to protect the drug from competition from lower-priced copies known as biosimilars.

Mr. Gonzalez said lowering drug prices alone wouldn’t increase access to prescription drugs for patients, including some Medicare patients. He said AbbVie provides medications to some patients who can’t afford them at no-cost or through co-pay assistance.

“Overall, most Americans have access to affordable medicines,” he said. “As we tackle the issues of drug pricing and access, it’s important that we focus on what’s working and what needs to change to make sure that patients get the medicines they need.”

The company “seeks to overwhelm potential competitors with the sheer number of patents on Humira regardless of whether individual patents were properly granted under U.S. law,” committee Democrats wrote in a report released before the hearing. “If one patent is invalidated, AbbVie has another patent waiting.”

Mr. Gonzalez defended AbbVie’s approach on patents, saying the company continued to study the drug after its initial approval, which led to its use for multiple diseases.

“We patent innovation that we believe is meaningful and that we invested in,” he said.

AbbVie declined to comment beyond Mr Gonzalez’s testimony, a spokesman said.

Republican members of the committee didn’t issue a report related to AbbVie’s pricing of its products.

Patents on Covid-19 vaccines have emerged as an issue in the coronavirus pandemic, as some governments push for intellectual property rights to be temporarily waived to spur additional production.

The Biden administration recently lent its support for temporarily waiving the vaccine patents.

Humira, which treats a range of immune conditions including rheumatoid arthritis and gut disorders, is the top-selling drug in the U.S. with more than $16.1 billion in sales last year.

AbbVie has raised Humira’s price 27 times since it launched in 2003, with a year’s supply now costing $77,586 before insurance and rebates, according to the report by committee Democrats. Humira’s current price is 470% higher than from when the drug launched in 2003, according to the report.

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Have you experienced price increases for arthritis drug Humira? Join the conversation below.

The initial U.S. patent for Humira expired in December 2016, but the company has been taking out additional patents covering its formulation and manufacturing, among other things.

AbbVie executives in 2014 forecast Humira biosimilars would arrive in the U.S. in 2017 and decrease sales by $1.5 billion that year, according to the report, citing company documents.

The first lower-priced Humira biosimilars aren’t scheduled to hit the U.S. market until 2023.

AbbVie, based in the suburbs of Chicago, has obtained or applied for at least 257 Humira patents, 90% of which were filed after the drug was launched, according to the report.

Mr. Gonzalez testified that the drugmaker has a high number of Humira patents partly because the federal government’s patent office sometimes asks patents not to be too broad. He also said that companies are able to challenge patents in court.

“Everyone gets somewhat hung up on the number of patents,” he said.

The company obtained eight patents under a law designed by Congress to encourage development of drugs for rare diseases affecting fewer than 200,000 people in the U.S., according to the report.

In one instance, AbbVie split the patient population of a rare skin condition into two, a general one and one for patients at least 12 years old. The maneuvers extended Humira’s patent protection beyond the seven years intended by the federal orphan-drug law, according to the report.

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AbbVie viewed the U.S. patent system as more permissive than other countries’ intellectual-property systems, the Democrats on the committee said, citing company documents.

Europe’s patent system precluded many patents obtained in the U.S., according to one of the company documents, an AbbVie white paper, that the committee Democrats cited. In Europe, several biosimilars to Humira have been available since 2018 at a reduced price.

AbbVie staved off biosimilar competition by reaching deals with companies that agreed to delay launches of their lower-priced copies, according to the report and the companies.

Some of these biosimilars have been approved for several years. A biosimilar from Amgen Inc., AMGN -0.60% which is scheduled to launch in 2023 under an agreement with AbbVie, was approved by regulators in 2016.

Rising Prescription Costs

Read more articles on Humira and drug pricing, selected by WSJ editors

The House committee’s chairwoman, Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D., N.Y.) and two other Democrats, David Cicilline (D., R.I.) and Jerry Nadler (D., N.Y.), asked the Federal Trade Commission on Tuesday to investigate whether AbbVie violated the law in trying to keep biosimilars to Humira from launching, according to a copy of the letter.

AbbVie didn’t respond to a request for comment about the letter. An FTC spokesman said the agency doesn’t publicly comment on investigation requests.

Write to Jared S. Hopkins at [email protected]

Copyright ©2020 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8

New York's attorney general is now investigating the Trump Organization for criminal offenses, it emerged on Tuesday night.

The office, led by Letitia James, had been investigating the company for civil tax offenses since 2018. The investigation has now escalated.

'We have informed the Trump Organization that our investigation into the Organization is no longer purely civil in nature,' said Fabien Levy, a spokesman for the office. 

'We are now actively investigating the Trump Organization in a criminal capacity, along with the Manhattan DA.'

Trump, seen Tuesday in NYC, has been told his organization is under criminal investigation

Letitia James, the attorney general of New York, has ramped up her investigation

Cyrus Vance Jr, the Manhattan district attorney, is investigating Trump for tax fraud

The district attorney's office, led by Cyrus Vance, has been investigating possible criminal tax fraud.  

A person familiar with the investigation told CNN that several investigators with the James's office, who are considered experts on the Trump Organization, have joined Vance's team.   

Trump has previously called the New York attorney general's investigation politically motivated. 

Trump was in New York City on Monday and Tuesday, having left Florida for the summer. It was unclear whether he had been summoned for meetings regarding the two investigations. 

Much of the attention at the moment from Vance appears focused on the chief financial officer for the Trump Organization, Allen Weisselberg, and attempts to encourage him to 'flip' on his longtime boss. 

Sources told the Wall Street Journal last week that Vance's office has issued a subpoena against Columbia Grammar & Preparatory School over $500,000 in fee payments made for Weisselberg's grandchildren. 

Those payments were made between 2012 and 2019 using checks signed by both Trump and Weisselberg, it is claimed. 

They are said to have been made as a form of financial assistance to Weisselberg's son Barry and his ex-wife Jessica so their two children could attend the school. 

Barry managed Trump's ice rink in New York's Central Park on a salary of $223,000, until the city officials axed their contract with the ex-president this year.

He claims not to have been able to afford for his children to pay to attend Columbia Grammar & Prep, located on New York's Upper West Side. 

Allen Weisselberg is pictured behind Donald Trump and Don Jr in 2017. Manhattan prosecutor Cyrus Vance is reportedly trying to 'flip' Weisselberg into turning on his boss and friend

His former spouse Jennifer has claimed they believed the school fees were part of Barry's payment package. 

Vance's investigation is said to center on whether the fee payments should have been flagged as gifts or loans, rather than as 'financial assistance.' 

If so, they should have incurred tax, meaning the Weisselbergs may have evaded their dues to the IRS with the payment arrangement.

The school has indicated it will comply with the prosecutor's request. 

Weisselberg has not been accused of or charged with any crime, and Trump has denied all allegations of wrongdoing. 

Another key figure in Vance's investigation is Trump's former lawyer Michael Cohen, who has met with Vance and his team at least nine times.  

Cohen, 54, began working for the Trump Organization in 2006, and in 2018 was sentenced to three years for his role assisting tax evasion and campaign finance fraud. Cohen was released in April 2020. 

In a recent interview with Cohen, investigators asked questions about Trump's Seven Springs estate as part of an inquiry into whether the value of the 213-acre Westchester County property was improperly inflated to reduce his taxes.

Michael Cohen, seen in March 2019, has spoken to New York prosecutors at least nine times

Cohen began working for the Trumps in 1996 and is now cooperating with prosecutors

The Associated Press reported that investigators asked Cohen about individuals involved in the appraisal of the estate and benefits derived from its valuation, including a $21 million income tax deduction.

Cohen was released to home confinement last year amid coronavirus fears, and his recent meetings have been conducted via video conference.

Vance recently hired former mafia prosecutor Mark Pomerantz - who, as a federal prosecutor, oversaw the prosecution of Gambino crime boss John Gotti - as a special assistant district attorney to assist in the wide-ranging probe of Trump's finances.

Pomerantz, a 'mob-busting' prosecutor, has been brought in by Vance to investigate Trump

Vance, 66, is stepping down at the end of this year but has vowed the investigation will continue

Trump bought the Seven Springs estate, in Mount Kisco, New York, in 1995 for $7.5 million

The inquiry, according to court filings, includes an examination of whether Trump or his businesses lied about the value of assets to gain favorable loan terms and tax benefits. 

The district attorney also is scrutinizing hush-money payments paid to women on Trump's behalf.

After a lengthy legal battle, his office is now in possession of eight years of Trump's tax records, including final and draft versions of tax returns, source documents containing raw financial data and other financial records held by his accounting firm.

The Supreme Court on February 22 ruled that Vance's team should have access to the documents. 

Vance's focus on Seven Springs involves an environmental conservation arrangement Trump made in return for a tax deduction at the end of 2015, following failed attempts to turn the property into a golf course and luxury homes.

Trump granted an easement to a conservation land trust to preserve 158 acres and received a $21 million income tax deduction, equal to the value of the conserved land, according to records. 

The amount was based on a professional appraisal that valued the full Seven Springs property at $56.5 million as of December 1, 2015.

That was a much higher amount than the evaluation by local government assessors, who said the entire estate was worth $20 million. 

Trump bought the property, including a palatial Georgian-style mansion that once belonged to the family of newspaper publisher Katharine Graham, for $7.5 million in 1995.

Vance announced in April that he would leave office at the end of the year and not seek reelection, but in a memo to staff, he stressed that the investigation would not stop.

'The work continues,' Vance wrote, echoing his short statement after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled last month that he could have Trump's tax records.

All the president's men indicted and convicted of crimes

ARRESTED AND INDICTED: STEVE BANNON 

Arrested and indicted on August 20, 2020, Steve Bannon and three others are accused of ripping off donors who wanted to self-fund President Donald Trump's proposed border wall. 

Bannon and his accomplices 'orchestrated a scheme to defraud hundreds of thousands of donors,' federal prosecutors alleged. 

Bannon, the former head of Breitbart News, joined Trump's 2016 campaign in August of that year alongside longtime Republican pollster Kellyanne Conway.

He became the campaign's CEO and pushed Trump to pursue scorched earth tactics like bringing Bill Cilnton's #MeToo accusers to the second presidential debate to help the campaign weather the fallout from the infamous 'Access Hollywood' tape. 

The political aide was named chief strategist and senior counselor when Trump moved into the White House. Bannon only lasted in that position until August 2017. 

GUILTY: ROGER STONE 

Convicted in November 2019 on seven counts including obstruction of justice, witness tampering, and lying to Congress about his communications with WikiLeaks. 

Stone's sentencing was controversial because the Department of Justice pushed for a lighter sentence than what the D.C. U.S. Attorney's office put forward. Trump was publicly complaining about the case. 

In February, Stone was sentenced to 40 months, though never served any jail time, as Trump commuted his sentence in July. Stone had publicly fretted about going to jail during the coronavirus crisis. Stone had been a person of interest in Special Counsel Robert Mueller's probe long before his January 2019 indictment, thanks in part due to his public pronouncements as well as internal emails about his contacts with WikiLeaks.

In campaign texts and emails, Stone communicated with associates about WikiLeaks following reports the organization had obtained a cache of Clinton-related emails. According to the federal indictment, Stone gave 'false and misleading' testimony about his requests for information from WikiLeaks. He then pressured a witness, comedian Randy Credico, to take the Fifth Amendment rather than testify, and pressured him in a series of emails. 

Following a prolonged dispute over testimony, he called him a 'rat' and threatened to 'take that dog away from you', in reference to Credico's therapy dog, Bianca. Stone warned him: 'Let's get it on. Prepare to die.' 

GUILTY: MICHAEL FLYNN

 In December 2017, Flynn pleaded guilty to making false statements to the FBI about his conversations with the Russian ambassador. The admission was part of a plea bargain etched out with Mueller investigators. 

Flynn's sentencing was then delayed several times. 

The Justice Department, under Attorney General Bill Barr, filed a motion to dismiss the Flynn case in May, but a U.S. district judge ordered a hold. The matter is still currently held up in court. 

Flynn was President Trump's former National Security Advisor . He previously served when he was a three star general as President Obama's director of the Defense Intelligence Agency but was fired. 

GUILTY: MICHAEL COHEN

Cohen pleaded guilty to eight counts including fraud and two campaign finance violations in August 2018. 

Pleaded guilty to further count of lying to Congress in November 2018. He was sentenced to three years in prison and $2 million in fines and forfeitures in December 2018. 

He was released from prison and into home confinement in July due to the coronavirus pandemic.Cohen was Trump's longtime personal attorney, starting working for him and the Trump Organization in 2007. 

Cohen professed unswerving devotion to Trump - and organized payments to silence two women who alleged they had sex with the-then candidate: porn star Stormy Daniels and Playboy model Karen McDougal. He admitted that payments to both women were felony campaign finance violations - and admitted that he acted at the 'direction' of 'Candidate-1': Donald Trump. 

He also admitted to tax fraud by lying about his income from loans he made, money from taxi medallions he owned, and other sources of income, at a cost to the Treasury of $1.3 million.And he admitted that he lied to Congress, in a rare use of that offense. 

The judge in his case let him report for prison on March 6 and recommended he serve it in a medium-security facility close to New York City. 

GUILTY: PAUL MANAFORT

Found guilty of eight charges of bank and tax fraud in August 2018. Sentenced to 47 months in March 2019. Pleaded guilty to two further charges - witness tampering and conspiracy against the United States.

Manafort was supposed to be jailed for seven and a half years, but, like Cohen, was released in May due to COVID-19 concerns. 

Manafort worked for Trump's 2016 bid for the White House starting in March 2016 and served as campaign chairman from June to August 2016, helping the now-president amass the needed delegates to win the nomination at the the Republican National Convention in Cleveland. 

Manafort was a well known D.C. lobbyist, but in 2015 he needed more funds and offered to work for Trump for free in order to bank new clients afterward. 

The Mueller team unwound his previous finances and discovered years of tax and bank fraud as he coined in cash from pro-Russia political parties and oligarchs in Ukraine.

Manafort pleaded not guilty to 18 charges of tax and bank fraud but was convicted of eight counts in August 2018. The jury was deadlocked on the other 10 charges. 

A second trial on charges of failing to register as a foreign agent due in September did not happen when he pleaded guilty to conspiracy against the United States and witness tampering in a plea bargain.

Minutes after his second sentencing hearing in March 2019, he was indicted on 16 counts of fraud and conspiracy by the Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr., using evidence which included documents previously presented at his first federal trial. The president has no pardon power over charges by district and state attorneys. 

GUILTY: RICK GATES

Pleaded guilty to conspiracy against the United States and making false statements in February 2018. 

Gates, a Trump campaign official, was Manafort's former deputy at political consulting firm DMP International. He admitted to conspiring to defraud the U.S. government on financial activity, and to lying to investigators about a meeting Manafort had with a member of Congress in 2013. As a result of his guilty plea and promise of cooperation, prosecutors vacated charges against Gates on bank fraud, bank fraud conspiracy, failure to disclose foreign bank accounts, filing false tax returns, helping prepare false tax filings, and falsely amending tax returns.

Gates was sentenced to three years of probation and 45 days in jail. In April, a judge ruled that he didn't have to report to jail during the coronavirus pandemic. 

GUILTY AND JAILED: GEORGE PAPADOPOLOUS

Pleaded guilty to making false statements in October 2017. Sentenced to 14 days in September 2018 and reported to prison in November. Papadopolous served 12 days and was released on December 7, 2018. 

Papadopoulos was a member of Trump's campaign foreign policy advisory committee. He admitted to lying to Mueller investigators about his contacts with London professor Josef Mifsud and Ivan Timofeev, the director of a Russian government-funded think tank. 

He agreed to cooperate with the special counsel investigation but has criticized it since. 

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This is the chilling moment four-year-old Cash Gernon was snatched from his bed early Saturday morning just two hours before he was found stabbed to death and dumped on the street in Dallas, Texas. 

Home surveillance footage obtained exclusively by DailyMail.com shows suspect Darriynn Brown, 18, allegedly breaking into the home just before 5am and making off with the toddler who had been asleep alongside his twin brother Carter. 

DailyMail.com can also reveal Brown was captured on camera a second time as he returned to the scene after sunrise in an apparent attempt to kidnap the other boy - when Cash would have already been dead. 

The two brothers had been staying at the home located on the 7500 block of Saddleridge Drive where they shared a bedroom located in the back of the house. 

In night vision footage, Cash is seen sleeping peacefully in the same toddler bed as his sibling when Brown creeps in dressed in a hoodie, backpack, sweatpants, and sneakers, and hovers menacingly over the two boys. 

SCROLL DOWN FOR VIDEO 

The chilling moment four-year-old Cash Gernon was snatched from his bed early Saturday morning has been revealed for the first time in home video footage obtained exclusively by DailyMail.com

The disturbing surveillance tape shows suspect Darriynn Brown creeping into the bedroom just before 5am, wearing a hoodie, sweatpants, a backpack and sneakers. He is seen hovering over Cash who is sleeping alongside his twin brother Carter in a toddler bed 

The 18-year-old, who is said to have gained entry through the unlocked garage door, appears to hesitate for a few seconds, staring at the brothers and looking around the room, before finally reaching down and carefully pulling back the boys' blanket

Brown appears to be at pains not to wake the two boys throughout the video. Then, in one swift motion, he quickly picks up Cash, who is immediately awoken, and bolts out of the room with the toddler in his arms

Darriynn Brown, 18 (pictured left in his booking photo) was already wearing an ankle monitor from a prior offense when he arrested charged with kidnapping and theft later on Saturday. He is expected to face additional charges pending the results of a forensic analysis. Brown is reportedly known to the family who was taking care of Cash, but it is unclear why he allegedly targeted the boy 

He appears to hesitate for a few seconds, staring at the brothers and looking around the room, before finally reaching toward the bed and carefully pulling back the boys' blanket. 

Brown stands motionless for another couple seconds while extending his arms over the Cash, carefully trying not to wake the pair.  

Then, in one swift motion, he quickly picks up Cash, who is immediately awoken, and bolts out of the room with the boy in his arms. 

Carter, meanwhile, can be seen stirring slightly on the right side of the bed seconds after his brother is taken. 

Roughly an hour and 45 minutes later, Cash was found lying dead in a pool of blood in a quiet residential Dallas street after being stabbed with what police described as an 'edged weapon.'  

A second and further disturbing clip also shows Brown returning to the bedroom after daybreak around 7am, this time apparently targeting Carter.   

Brown is seen hovering the boy who is still asleep, but leaves empty-handed after a few seconds after he appears to be scared off by someone or something.  

Monica Sherrod, 39, who lives in the home with her family, identified herself as the guardian of the two boys, who she says were left in her care after their father - her ex-boyfriend - vanished in March. 

Sherrod identified Brown to police after watching the security footage of the snatch early Saturday.

The boys' bedroom is located at the back of the house, near the rear entrance, and away from where other members of the family sleep.

A second clip reveals Brown returned to the scene after sunrise, around 7am, in an apparent attempt to abduct Cash's twin, Carter

Brown is seen hovering the boy who is still asleep, but leaves empty-handed after he was apparently scared off

Carter later wakes up to find his twin brother missing from his bed and can be seen searching for him

The little boy, who is visibly puzzled, briefly leaves the bedroom in search of his brother but later returns after failing to locate Cash  

Brown gained entry by coming through the unlocked garage door and forcing the back door into the house, Sherrod told Dailymail.com.  

Sherrod revealed Brown was known to the family as the brother of her older sons' friend, but said she does not know why he would've targeted the toddlers. 

'Other footage shows him returning at 7am. It seemed he was spooked by someone,' Sherrod told DailyMail.com on Tuesday. 

'It chills me to think that he could have been coming back for Carter.'   

Sherrod fought back tears as she replayed the disturbing video of the abduction once again. 

'It shows him [Brown] taking the blanket off Cash and shows him snatching him and running with him while he is still asleep,' she said. 

'He stares at him for a minute. I have watched it over and over again. I can't watch it anymore.'   

Cash, who had been staying in his father's ex-girlfriend home, was asleep next to his twin brother Carter (left) when he was snatched from bed and killed shortly after 

The young boys had been staying at the home of their biological father's ex-girlfriend Monica Sherrod (pictured) after he vanished in March and left them in her care, Sherrod said 

Monica Sherrod (pictured in blue) who identified herself as Cash's guardian, broke down in tears as she visited a makeshift memorial near where the toddler was found

Earlier, Sherrod broke down in uncontrollable sobs while visiting a makeshift memorial where Cash was found, for the first time. 

'We were all asleep when it happened. Cash usually wakes me up but he didn't wake me [that day]' she told DailyMail.com. 

'When I got up, I noticed he was gone. I called 911. I didn't even know somebody had taken him. 

'I thought he might have gone outside. That was until I watched my surveillance camera, which showed someone taking him out.'   

Antwainese Square, 39, had set out on a morning power walk in Dallas's Mountain Creek neighborhood Saturday when she discovered Cash Gernon's lifeless body on the street

Cash's lifeless body was discovered just before 7am Saturday by passerby Antwainese Square, 39, who had set off on an early morning power walk around the city's Mountain Creek neighborhood. 

Square told DailyMail.com she initially believed she had stumbled upon the body of a dog. 

'I turned into the street and thought I saw a dog lying there. We have a lot of loose dogs around here,' she said. 

'I called my mom, because the only thing I could see at first was the hair. I said, "Mom, it's weird, it's not moving. So I started to walk slow and the closer I got I started noticing things.

'I said, "Mom, I see a hand, I think I see a body. I think I actually see a body." And I got close, and I said, "Mom, it's a child. It is a child." And I just started screaming.'

Square hung up and called 911. Paramedics did their best to calm her down and asked her to check for any signs of life.  

'They asked me to walk right up to the body in case the little boy was still alive. And if he was, for me to try to save his life,' she said. 

'I saw ants crawling all over his bare feet and he had blood over his face. He had no shoes, no socks, no shirt, none of that. 

'He was only wearing a pair of bottoms, shorts. I just keep remembering those ants at the bottom of that baby's feet.

'He was on his back in the roadway. I remember one arm and one leg out. And the reason why I remember the arm and leg is because when I was walking up from afar, that was the determination of me knowing, OK this is a human. This is not a dog, this is a human being.

Kamron Moori (pictured) Sherrod's son who lived with Cash hit out at the 'evil' killer on Monday as he mourned the loss of the boy

'And when I noticed it was a kid I just freaked out. My initial thought was, one of these loose dogs has gotten to this baby because of the blood on his face. And then I thought, maybe somebody ran over him like a hit and run.'

Square, an educator, said she remembers setting off on her morning walk and activating the steps counter on her phone at exactly 6.40am. Five minutes later, she was confronted by the scene of horror.

She continued: 'I stayed with him until the police came, there was no way in the world I was going to leave that baby on his own.

'Whether he was dead or alive, I just wasn't going to leave him. My fear was somebody was going to accidentally run over him.'   

A loved one, Kamron Moori, hit out at the 'evil' killer on Monday as he mourned the loss of Cash - whom he described as a sweet little boy who loved superheroes. 

Surveillance camera footage from the home shows Cash was kidnapped around 5am Saturday

Moori told NBCDFW he lived with Cash and his twin brother, and that his mother, Monica Sherrod, dated Cash's father. The father - who has not been named - departed Sherrod's home suddenly in March, leaving the boys behind with her. 

Meanwhile, police said the boys' biological mother, Melinda Seagroves, has been searching for them 'for an extended amount of time'. The twin was reunited with Seagroves after Cash's death.  

Sherrod, Moori's mother, identified Cash as the slain toddler in an interview with WFAA. 

She said Brown had broken into her home through a back door early Saturday morning and snatched the 'happy-go-lucky' child while he slept. 

Police said Sherrod helped them identify Brown as the kidnapper in video from a baby monitor in Cash's room. 

At the time of the kidnapping Brown was wearing an ankle monitor stemming from a separate arrest last month. 

Brown's bond is set at $1.5million. His attorney, Robbie McClung, said Monday that she had not yet met with him so she could not comment.

Authorities have said additional charges are expected once forensic evidence has been reviewed.

Also, Dallas police said that Cash's mom did not know he and his twin brother were in the care of their father's girlfriend and that the mother had been searching for her sons. Police said Cash's twin is now with his mom.

Brown was arrested on April 27 on a misdemeanor charge of evading arrest in a case that´s still pending. 

According to court documents for that charge, he lives with his parents a half-mile from where the boy´s body was found. Neighbors have said Brown was known to walk in the area.

One of the puppies given to the Queen to keep her company while her late husband Prince Philip was in hospital has died.

Fergus, a Dorgi, was 'bought by Prince Andrew' to help his 94-year-old mother cope in Windsor while the Duke of Edinburgh was recovering from heart surgery. 

The puppy - who was only around five months old - died this weekend, leaving Her Majesty 'devastated', sources say.

It came less than two months after the Queen said goodbye to her 'strength and stay' and Britain's longest-serving consort Prince Philip in St George's Chapel. 

One of the puppies given to the Queen to keep her company while her late husband Prince Philip was in hospital has died. These two pooches were posted on the Pets4Home site and match the description and how much the Queen reportedly paid for one

Fergus, a Dorgi, was 'bought by Prince Andrew ' to help his 94-year-old mother cope in Windsor while the Duke of Edinburgh was recovering from heart surgery. Pictured: A Dorgi puppy

Prince Andrew gave his mother the two puppies. Pictured, the mother and son at the Duke of Edinburgh's funeral

It is not known how Fergus died. 

The day before Prince Philip's funeral, the Queen drove her two new puppies from Windsor Castle towards Frogmore Gardens for a walk.

The Queen named the dorgi - a Dachshund and a Welsh Corgi mix - Fergus, after her maternal uncle Fergus Bowes-Lyon, who died in France during World War I. 

He was given along with a second dog, a corgi, Muick - pronounced Mick - after Loch Muick, a lake on the Balmoral Estate in Scotland  

It has since emerged that the pups were 'bought by Prince Andrew' in a bid to cheer the Queen up. 

The puppy - who was only around five months old - died this weekend, leaving Her Majesty (pictured with some of her other dogs in 1980) 'devastated', sources say

A source told The Sun: 'The Queen is absolutely devastated.

'The puppies were brought in to cheer her up during a very difficult period.

'Everyone concerned is upset as this comes so soon after she lost her husband.'

It comes just months after the monarch was said to be mourning the loss of her loyal companion Vulcan, another dachshund-corgi cross.

He had been the Queen's pet since at least 2007 before he died a few weeks before Christmas. 

The Queen (pictured with one of her corgis last year) was given the two new puppies earlier this year

In 2015 Monty Roberts, an informal adviser to the Queen, said she would no longer be replacing her corgis as she did not want to leave any behind when she dies. 

He told Vanity Fair magazine: 'She didn't want any more young dogs. She didn't want to leave any young dog behind. She wanted to put an end to it.' 

But, reporting the news Her Majesty had been given more, a source told The Sun: 'The Queen is delighted. It's unthinkable that the Queen wouldn't have any corgis.

'It's like the Tower of London not having any ravens. They have only been there a couple of weeks but are said to be adorable and made the castle their home.

It comes after Her Majesty's loyal companion Vulcan, a dachshund-corgi cross, died a few weeks before Christmas last year

In 2012 her dog Monty appeared alongside James Bond's Daniel Craig in a clip for the opening ceremony of the London Olympics

'Both are said to be bringing in a lot of noise and energy into the castle while Philip is in hospital.'

The puppies were the first corgis Her Majesty owned that are not direct descendants of her very first corgi Susan - which she was given in 1944 by her parents for her 18th birthday.  

The Queen has always been synonymous with pets, particularly her Corgis, and has owned more than 30 during her reign. 

The Queen walking with two of her dogs in the grounds of Windsor Castle 

In 2018, her corgi Willow, who was the 14th generation descended from Susan, was put down after suffering from cancer. 

Meanwhile in 2012, the Queen's 13-year-old corgi Monty was seen in a segment for the opening ceremony of the London Olympic Games alongside James Bond star Daniel Craig. 

However later that year the palace confirmed that Monty - who was previously owned by the Queen Mother - had died.

Her Majesty's best friend: Corgi menus posted to the kitchen wall daily, food cooked from scratch and meeting James Bond - the faithful dogs that have stood beside the Queen for more than 70 years 

Smile for the camera: Her Majesty with one of her beloved corgis in 1952

By Amie Gordon and Jane Fryer for the Daily Mail  

From the moment her father gave her a dog as an 18th birthday present, corgis have provided loyal companionship to the Queen for more than 70 years. 

The dog-loving Monarch, who was given her first corgi, Susan, as an 18th birthday present in 1944, had vowed not to get any more dogs after Vulcan, her dorgi – a dachshund-corgi cross – passed away last year. It left her with just a single elderly dorgi called Candy.

But when Philip was hospitalised earlier this year, it emerged she had acquired two new four-legged friends, given names with a special meaning to the Queen.

Fergus, a dorgi, is named after her uncle Fergus Bowes-Lyon, who was killed in action during the First World War. 

The second dog, Muick, pronounced 'Mick', is a pure-bred corgi and named after Loch Muick on the Balmoral estate, a favourite picnic spot for the Royals during their summer holiday.

The Queen has owned more than 30 dogs over the years. Her latest are believed to have been gifts.

Accompanying her and Philip on their honeymoon, nipping the ankles of politicians, and causing the Duke to exclaim 'bloody dogs!', the corgis have become well-known fixtures in royal households. 

Life for a royal dog is like no other; they run to the Queen's room in the morning before joining her for toast and marmalade. A new corgi menu is typed and posted to the kitchen wall daily - all food cooked from scratch - and their supper will be served by Her Majesty. 

Her most famous dog was perhaps Monty, who appeared with his mistress and James Bond star Daniel Craig in a sketch for the Opening Ceremony of the 2012 London Olympics.  

Prince Philip would swear: 'Bloody dogs! Why do you have to have so many?', to which the Queen's stock response would be: 'Because they are so collectable, my dear'.  

When Monty passed away at Balmoral in 2012, the Queen went into mourning and the royal standard was lowered to just half-way.   

Monty was laid to rest in the special corgi cemetery at Balmoral, beneath a specially commissioned headstone. 

In 2009, devastated by the loss of two more of her beloved pets to cancer, the Queen HAD decided not to replace her remaining corgis by breeding — as she had done for more than 65 years — but to let her love affair come to a natural end. 

Life for a royal dog starts each day with a brisk early walk with a footman. When the Queen wakes, they dash to her room and accompany her to breakfast, where they yap and jump for slices of toast and marmalade — fed to them from the table.

There's a daily walk after lunch — the Queen in her headscarf, the dogs careering through flowerbeds and ripping up lawns — followed by dinner, dished up by the Queen, if she's free, in highly polished metal bowls. 

All food is cooked from scratch (there was uproar in Balmoral a few years ago when the Queen suspected some of the food in the gleaming dog bowls had previously been frozen) and a new corgi menu is typed and posted to the kitchen wall daily.

Former royal chef Darren McGrady, who worked for the Queen for 11 years, said: 'One day it would be chuck steak, which we boiled and served with finely chopped, boiled cabbage and white rice. The next they'd have poached chicken or liver. Or rabbits shot by William or Harry that we'd clean, cook, debone and chop for the dogs.'

Not forgetting their special gravy and hot scones, baked daily, served with lashings of butter and crumbled onto the floor by the Queen each afternoon. 

And woe betide anyone who pets them. At an informal Palace lunch, a well-meaning guest was rebuked with a sharp: 'Leave them alone please. They are my dogs, they don't like other people petting them.'

Brian Hoey, author of Not In Front Of The Corgis, a book about life with the royals, says: 'Nobody is allowed to raise a finger or a voice to any of the dogs. They cock their legs and do what corgis do wherever they want — on antique furniture, priceless carpets . . .'

Which is why the royal staff are armed with blotting paper (for mopping up little accidents) and soda siphons (for squirting to get yapping dogs off juicy ankles).

While she has a reputation for being rather firm and fierce in other matters, the Queen is soppy over her corgis and thinks of every detail that could make their lives even more luxurious — such as special rubber-soled booties (designed by the man who invented knife-proof vests for the police) to protect their paws from all that smart royal gravel, and their Christmas stockings (filled with crackers, cakes and a strictly non-squeaking toy).

Then there is their individual doggy palaces lined up in the corridor outside the Her Majesty's sitting room — smart wooden houses, raised off the floor to avoid drafts and filled with soft (and daily laundered) bedding.

When the Queen has a dress fitting in the Palace, she even carries a special magnet to pick up the pins to stop the corgis pricking their paws. 

The Queen with a polo-playing Duke of Edinburgh at Smith's Lawn, Windsor Great Park in 1976

She de-fleas them herself and dispenses cough mixture and homeopathic remedies, and is heavily involved in the breeding process.

She was once asked how, given the different heights, corgis and dachshunds were able to mate. 'It's very simple. We have a little brick,' was her crisp response. 

It all started with the Queen as a young girl playing in Hyde Park with her sister Margaret and a corgi belonging to Viscount Weymouth, who later became the Marquess of Bath. No one knew much about corgis then (other than they were once used to guard cattle and were sufficiently agile to see off wolves), but the princesses were smitten and started lobbying for their own.

Dookie duly arrived as the family pet at the Yorks' London home, 145 Piccadilly, with a stump of a tail and a delight in biting politicians (at least one left bleeding from the hand).

But only when Susan was given to Elizabeth on her 18th birthday by her father did she have her own dog. Susan became the matriarch of the royal corgi line and it was the beginning of a 68-year love affair.

She went everywhere the Queen (and Prince Philip) went — their honeymoon, their bed chamber — savaging people whenever she could.

Victims included royal clock winder Leonard Hubbard — she left an inch-long gash in his leg — and guardsman Alfred Edge, who ended up in hospital after his wound went septic.

Prince Philip (who prefers Labradors) has been fighting a losing battle against royal corgis ever since. Because when Susan went up to the great dog basket in the sky, her legacy (and appalling behaviour) lived on.

Her grandson Whisky tore the seat from a Guards officer's trousers. Corgis attacked Her Majesty's favourite German designer Karl-Ludwig Rehse. And, in 1989, Chipper, the Queen's favourite dorgi, was 'ripped to shreds' by one of the Queen Mother's corgis.

In 1991, the Queen needed three stitches in her hand when she tried to stop a corgi fight at Windsor Castle. In 2003, Pharos had to be put down after being savaged by an English bull terrier owned by Princess Anne.  

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President Biden will reportedly be waiving sanctions soon for the corporation behind Russia’s Nord Stream 2 pipeline into Germany. The pipeline is already 95% finished as of this report.

Axios confirmed this turn of events with two sources. According to their report, it is proof that the “Biden administration is not willing to compromise its relationship with Germany over this pipeline.”

But, Secretary of State Anthony Blinken swore that he would fight the completion of the pipeline during his confirmation hearing. “I am determined to do whatever we can to prevent that completion (of Nord Stream 2),” Blinken said at the time.

These sources told Axios that top officials’ opinion is that the only way to stop the pipeline is “to sanction the German end-users of the gas.”

Read the full article here.

You can follow Jenny Goldsberry on Twitter @jennyjournalism

During a bipartisan congressional hearing on Tuesday, Speaker of the House Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) asked her fellow members to boycott the Beijing Olympics in February.

“Here’s what I propose – and join those who are proposing – is a diplomatic boycott,” Pelosi said, asking that “lead countries of the world withhold their attendance at the Olympics.”

Those who have already called for a boycott include coalitions of Uyghurs, Tibetan and Hong Kongers. Among them are the World Uyghur Congress, Campaign for Uyghurs, Students for a Free Tibet, Tibet Action Institute, We The Hongkongers, Southern Mongolian Human Rights Information Center, China Against the Death Penalty, and Keep Taiwan Free.

“Let’s not honor the Chinese government by having heads of state go to China,” Pelosi said.

“For heads of state to go to China in light of a genocide that is ongoing – while you’re sitting there in your seat – really begs the question, what moral authority do you have to speak again about human rights any place in the world?” she said.

Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo recognized the acts against Uyghurs in the People’s Republic of China as a genocide back in January.

You can follow Jenny Goldsberry on Twitter @jennyjournalism

Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich appeared on “The Sara Carter Show” Podcast Monday to talk about and the lawsuits he’s filed surrounding the border crisis. Right now, these suits have just begun and his office is still in the midst of discovery.

As they’ve been searching emails to and from Immigration Customs Enforcement, Border Customs Protection and the White House, they’ve found troubling messages. Brnovich told Carter they’ve only been searching for a day since the interview, but they already found evidence of impropriety. “Activists emailed the White House and said, because it’s Black History Month, you have to stop deporting people,” Brnovich said. “And within days, there was a directive from ICE basically saying, we’re going to stop deporting people.”

Then, they also deposed an ICE officer who shared a troubling update from the last 100+ days. “He basically said that as a result of these Biden policies, there are people not being picked up,” Brnovich said.

RELATED: Rep. Garcia shares biggest fear about border crisis

This policy doesn’t just apply to people who attempt to immigrate from now on, but even those in custody now. “We have people right now in Arizona prisons in short term custody,” Brnovich said, “that have been convicted of crimes like arson, manslaughter, assault, sexual assault, and they are scheduled to be released from Arizona prison or from custody.”

Suddenly, Brnovich says an immigration problem becomes a “threat to national security [and] to public safety.” Yet at the same time, Vice President and border czar Harris is “not doing anything. She doesn’t care, and it’s it’s sad.”

RELATED: Sara Carter’s visit to Texas border reveals lack of accountability from Biden administration

Now, there are more than 20,000 migrant children in custody. It’s expected that 2 million people will cross the border illegally this year, according to Brnovich. Just in the last three months were over 450,000 people, roughly the city population of Minneapolis, that crossed the southern border.

With the rise of the border crisis coinciding with Biden’s election into office, Brnovich says voting is the solution. “Elections have consequences,” he said.

You can follow Jenny Goldsberry on Twitter @jennyjournalism

UPDATED

Deputy to Spain’s far-right Vox party Francisco José Contreras spent 12 hours suspended from his Twitter account for tweeting that a man cannot get pregnant last week.

Contreras told the story in a Facebook post. “The hateful tweet (which I was forced to delete) was one that said: ′A man cannot get pregnant. A man has no womb or eggs’,” Contreras wrote. “You can see this is already fascist biology. Next time I’ll try 2 + 2 = 4.”

The tweet came after Contreras read an article about a transgender male giving birth. He called the story “a lie.”

RELATED: Twitter suspends accounts reposting Trump’s statements

According to Twitter, Contreras apparently violated its policy against material that threatens, harasses, or fosters violence against other people on the basis of their race, ethnic origin, nationality, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, religion, age, disability or disease. 

In his post, Contreras said Twitter gave him a warning: “Keep in mind that repeated defaults may lead to permanent suspension of your account. Go to Twitter now to fix the problem with your account.” Twitter did not respond to a request for comment.

When asked by this reporter for a statement, Twitter declined to comment.

RELATED: Twitter suspends Rep. Stefanik’s comms director, later reinstates account claiming it was an ‘error’

Ever since, #AManCannotBePregnant has been trending among his supporters.

You can follow Jenny Goldsberry on Twitter @jennyjournalism

National Institute of Allergies and Infectious Diseases Director Dr. Fauci appeared on “Good Morning America” Tuesday, to say he only wore a mask after being vaccinated to maintain his image. This comes after the Center for Disease Control and Prevention announced that vaccinated persons are not required to continue wearing a mask.

Anchor George Stephanopoulos asked Fauci how he’s changed his personal mask policy. And the response was something many have thought all along: for theater. He said he had been wearing a mask despite being vaccinated because of his position.

“I didn’t want to look like I was giving mixed signals,” Fauci said. “But being a fully vaccinated person, the chances of my getting infected in an indoor setting is extremely low.”

“That’s why in indoor settings now, I feel comfortable about not wearing a mask,” he admitted.

Just in March, Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) accused Fauci of such during a hearing. “You parade around in a mask for show,” Paul said to Fauci.

RELATED: Rand Paul: ‘Dr. Fauci needs to put up or shut up’

“You have the vaccine and you’re wearing two masks, isn’t that theater?” Paul asked Fauci

“Here we go again with the theater,” Fauci replied, sounding frustrated. He ended the discussion by reiterating: “Let me just state for the record masks are not theater. Masks are protective.”

But now he’s changed his tune. Paul, for his part, contracted the virus last year. Ever since, he’s refused to get a vaccine, one of three U.S. senators that remain unvaccinated. He also reportedly walks around maskless in the Capitol.

You can follow Jenny Goldsberry on Twitter @jennyjournalism

Former Vice President Mike Pence penned a scathing op-ed in National Review on Tuesday, accusing President Biden of “weakness,” “confusion” and “betrayal” amidst the recent conflict between Israel and the Palestinians.

RELATED: Biden admin sending envoy to Israel who has a major anti-Israel problem

In the piece, Pence blamed the increasing conflict on the Biden administration. “Many Americans witnessing the recent bloodshed in Israel are perplexed by how quickly violence erupted after years of calm,” Pence wrote. “The answer is that President Biden and congressional Democrats have abandoned unambiguous support for our ally Israel, emboldened our enemies, and turned their back on the policy that yielded historic peace deals in the Middle East.”

First, Pence pointed out, the Trump administration publicly supported Israel and quite the “dangerous Iran nuclear deal.” It was under Trump that the American embassy moved to Jerusalem. All the while, they faced criticism.

“Every step of the way, Democrats and self-proclaimed foreign-policy ‘experts’ derided our administration’s approach and issued dire warnings that blood would soon flow in the streets of Israeli cities,” Pence wrote. “As usual, they were wrong.”

“But now, President Biden has sent the world a profoundly different message,” Pence went on. “Instead of seeking peace through strength, he has invited violence through weakness.” Pence blasted Psaki for refusing to answer the question of whether Israel was “an important ally” or not.

“Every tepid statement uttered by the Biden-Harris administration is built on a false equivalency between Israel and Hamas,” Pence wrote.

As far as solutions, Pence suggests all there’s left to do is pray. “Americans should pray for the peace of Jerusalem and stand without apology for our most cherished ally, Israel until the violence is quelled and Israel’s security is restored,” he wrote.

You can follow Jenny Goldsberry on Twitter @jennyjournalism

Space Force Lieutenet Colonel Matthew Lohmeier appeared on Fox News’ “Hannity” Monday to share the details of his recent ousting from a position of Commanding Officer. He revealed to host Sean Hannity that he retains his rank but was recently reassigned over speaking out against marxism on the “Information Operation” podcast.

The Department of Defense called on military commands to hold an extremism ‘stand-down’ day following the Capitol riots. Every base had from February to April to schedule a day to implement the guide provided by the DoD. During Lohmeier’s “down-day,” he claims his base watched a video that proclaimed “the country was evil, that it was founded in 1619 rather than 1776, and that White [people] are inherently evil”. 

According to Lohmeier, he doesn’t believe he broke any regulation that called for being relieved of his position.

“I don’t believe I was being partisan. It is not politically partisan to expose or attack critical race theory or marxism,” Lohmeier told Hannity.

“The reason I say that is because critical race theory and marxism are antithetical to American values. Critical race theory fuels narratives that attack America’s founding documents.”

As a result, Lohmeier says he’s received “thousands” of letters from fellow members of the military who also wish they could speak out as he has. They tell him they’ve “lost their voice.”

You can follow Jenny Goldsberry on Twitter @jennyjournalism

Andrew Giuliani is following in the footsteps of his father Rudy Giuliani as he announced his gubernatorial bid in New York Tuesday. He will be running against four other Republican candidates and incumbent Governor Cuomo.

Most recently, Giuliani served as special assistant to former President Trump in 2019. Before that, he was Associate Director of the Office of Public Liaison for the Trump administration.

While the other gubernatorial candidates are not free from scandal, Giuliani will likely have to answer to reported investigations into his father. Federal Bureau of Investigation agents recently seized father Rudy Giuliani’s computers in an alleged probe into Giuliani for reportedly illegally lobbying as a foreign agent.

“The search warrants involve only one indication of an alleged incident of failure to register as a foreign agent,” Robert Costello wrote in a statement. “The Biden department of justice has completely ignored clear evidence in texts and emails on Hunter Biden’s hard drive of failing to register numerous times as a foreign agent.”

You can follow Jenny Goldsberry on Twitter @jennyjournalism

The state of California will maintain its current mask mandate, requiring that all Californians, vaccinated or otherwise, wear masks indoors. This mandate will last until June 15, as planned. Vaccinated residents can remove their masks outdoors, unless at a sporting event or concert. This comes after the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention announced that vaccinated persons are no longer required to wear masks.

RELATED: Gov. DeSantis discontinues COVID restrictions

Human Services Secretary Dr. Mark Ghaly explained the reasoning in a phone call with local media. “The delay is “in no way saying the science or the direction by the CDC is wrong or there’s a challenge to it,” Ghaly said. “It’s really just giving ourselves across the state some additional time to have it implemented with a high degree of integrity with a continued focus on protecting the public’s health.”

Last week, the coronavirus death toll reached a 10-month low and continues to plummet.

Read the full article here.

You can follow Jenny Goldsberry on Twitter @jennyjournalism

A group of coalitions representing Uyghurs, Tibetans and Hongkongers issued a statement Monday, demanding that National Olympic Committees, Olympic athletes and sponsors boycott the upcoming Beijing Olympics. They’re calling for the boycott because “participating in the Beijing Olympic Games at this time would be tantamount to endorsing China’s genocide against the Uyghur people, and legitimizing the increasingly repressive policies of the totalitarian Chinese regime.”

Among the sponsors of the statement are World Uyghur Congress, Campaign for Uyghurs, Students for a Free Tibet, Tibet Action Institute, We The Hongkongers, Southern Mongolian Human Rights Information Center, China Against the Death Penalty, and Keep Taiwan Free.

In the statement, the coalitions pointed out that the U.S. State Department has already recognized the situation with Uyghurs in China as a genocide. Secretary Pompeo made the announcement in January.

Besides genocide, the statement also claimed the People’s Republic of China has “illegally occupied Tibet,” “implemented a draconian National Security Bill that effectively criminalizes protest” in Hong Kong, “put down with force” protests by Southern Mongolians and engaged in “geopolitical bullying of Taiwan.”

Previously, the International Olympic Committee claimed that by hosting the Olympics in 2008, the situation in China would get better. Senior IOC member Richard Pound claimed in 2004 the decision “was made in the hope of improvement in human rights and, indeed, the Chinese themselves said that having the games would accelerate progress in such matters.” But, over 15 years later, the U.S. still determined genocides were happening there.

AP News interviewed Tibetan Action Institute’s Lhadon Tethong, who was deported from China in 2007 for her activism. “The situation where we are now is demonstrably worse that it was then,” Tethong said in the interview. “If the games go ahead, then Beijing gets the international seal of approval for what they are doing.”

You can follow Jenny Goldsberry on Twitter @jennyjournalism

We’ve got another lovely double standard from the left unfolding, and it’s a doozy.

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During Biden’s recent outing to Michigan, where he was test-driving a new electric truck from Ford, the old fool made a comment to a reporter that would have gotten President Trump impeached.

But of course, now that Trump’s gone, the fake news suddenly has a sense of humor again and just laughed it off.

Here’s what happened:

When a reporter asked Biden if he could ask him a question about Israel, Biden actually told the reporter that he’d prefer to essentially “run him over.”

Gee, nice…

Was it a joke? Sure. Would Trump have been able to make that joke? Hell no. Seriously, they would have impeached him. That’s how biased and ridiculous our propaganda media and politicians truly are.

So, of course, everyone giggled at Joe’s lame joke, even though we had to hear non-stop how Trump was always “threatening” the press just by calling them the “enemy of the people,” which is exactly what they are.

MORE NEWS: Yet Another Powerful Person “Plunges” Off a High-Rise Balcony…This One’s Tied Directly to Biden

The Dems would have been writing up impeachment papers right after the joke was uttered.

Check it out:

REPORTER: Mr. President, can I ask you a quick question on Israel before you drive away since it’s so important?

BIDEN: No you can’t. Not unless you get in front of the car as I step on it. I’m only teasing.pic.twitter.com/A3jrsIi5mR

— JM Rieger (@RiegerReport) May 18, 2021

And of course, many conservatives were quick to call out this double-standard online:

“Can only imagine the outrage if President Trump said something like that. Impeach!”

“Imagine if Trump said that”

“If donald said this he it would of been on every front page in the world”

“Reporter: Mr. President there’s a rumor that you enjoy chocolate cake and strawberry ice cream, is this true. : Yes it is Reporters: *laugh and cheer”

“The hardest of journalisms.”

“We’re in the middle of a global crisis…”

“Could the press fallacio him more. Good god.”

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It really is sickening how the press treats Biden.

They serioulsy treat him like a 5 year-old child, asking which color is his favorite.

It’s pathetic.

Attn: Wayne Dupree is a free speech champion who works tirelessly to bring you news that the mainstream media ignores. But he needs your support in order to keep delivering quality, independent journalism. You can make a huge impact in the war against fake news by pledging as little as $5 per month. Please click here Patreon.com/WDShow to help Wayne battle the fake news media.

If you’re not familiar with Pastor Manning – he’s a hoot who tells it like it is.

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He grew really popular during the Obama regime, because of his dislike for good ol’ Barry.

Manning is the pastor at the ATLAH World Missionary Church in Red Springs, North Carolina.

MORE NEWS: Royal Expert Says “Damaged Harry” Being Exploited by Powerful Hollywood Elites

He’s definitely a “controversial character” and is known for sharing some pretty firey and dicey opinions.

This is one of his most famous clips that went viral back during the Obama days.

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Watch:

Well, Pastor Manning is back, and this time he’s chiming in on the Willie Brown and Kamala relationship…and yes, Pastor Manning is as colorful and controversial as ever.

As you likely know by now, Willie Brown was the former mayor of San Fran.

Pastor Manning provides some interesting “backstory” info we’ve never heard before about Kamala and Willie, and lets us know that back in the day, Kamala was known as the “playgirl of Sanfransico.”

Ouch.

Watch:

This guy said Willie Brown bought Kamala a Ferrari when they were dating ? Interesting … pic.twitter.com/k3tmYQNHP6

— Make L.A Great Again 🇺🇸 – RECALLGAVIN2020.COM (@lalovestrump) May 18, 2021

Well, there’s a reason that most of America don’t like Kamala…She definitely gives off a sleazy and conveying energy.

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Most people don’t like homewreckers and people who manipulate to get their way and move up in the world.

Attn: Wayne Dupree is a free speech champion who works tirelessly to bring you news that the mainstream media ignores. But he needs your support in order to keep delivering quality, independent journalism. You can make a huge impact in the war against fake news by pledging as little as $5 per month. Please click here Patreon.com/WDShow to help Wayne battle the fake news media.

A royal expert is speaking out this week to warn that she feels Prince Harry is being “exploited” in the United States for ratings.

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“Going over to America, the other side of the coin you could say is that there is a degree of exploitation going on,” said royal expert Camilla Tominey. “The Americans are rubbing their hands together with glee, they know this man is quite damaged, disenfranchised from his family. I know they have a living to earn and they are seeking financial independence in America, but let’s just handle all of this with care.”

MORE NEWS: Royal Expert Just Revealed What Prince William Really Thinks of Meghan Markle…Yikes!

The U.K. Express reported that Tominey added that both Harry and his wife Meghan Markle have struggled.

“They both had a difficult time, neither of them has a particularly good relationship with a large portion of their families, and then you got people hosting podcasts thinking, ‘Brilliant, this will get the ratings.'”

This comes after Harry spoke out to say that he has “unresolved trauma” as he prepares to launch a mental health series with Oprah Winfrey. The Sun reported that “The Me You Can’t See” will be premiering on Apple TV+ on May 21 after it was delayed due to a combination of Megxit and COVID-19 restrictions. After the show was announced, Harry expressed hopes that it will show that “there is power in vulnerability.”

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“We are born into different lives, brought up in different environments, and as a result are exposed to different experiences,” he said. “But our shared experience is that we are all human. The majority of us carry some form of unresolved trauma, loss, or grief, which feels – and is – very personal.”

“Yet the last year has shown us that we are all in this together and my hope is that this series will show there is power in vulnerability, connection in empathy, and strength in honesty,” Harry continued.

A statement released about the show stated that Harry and Oprah will “guide honest discussions about mental health and emotional well-being” while opening up about “their own mental health journeys and struggles” throughout the series. They have teamed up with fourteen experts and organizations to “shed light on different pathways to treatment.”

“Now more than ever, there is an immediate need to replace the shame surrounding mental health with wisdom, compassion, and honesty,” said Oprah. “Our series aims to spark that global conversation.”

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This piece originally appeared in UpliftingToday.com and is used by permission.

Read more at UpliftingToday.com:
Disturbing Details About Bill And Melinda Gates’ Divorce Come To Light – Marriage ‘Irretrievably Broken’
Prince Philip’s True Cause Of Death Is Revealed As His Death Certificate Comes Out One Month After His Passing At 99
Melinda Gates Warned Bill About Jeffrey Epstein – ‘Furious’ After They Met Him

Attn: Wayne Dupree is a free speech champion who works tirelessly to bring you news that the mainstream media ignores. But he needs your support in order to keep delivering quality, independent journalism. You can make a huge impact in the war against fake news by pledging as little as $5 per month. Please click here Patreon.com/WDShow to help Wayne battle the fake news media.

Well, what do we have here? Little Ms. Perfect Susan Collins, who’s always critical of President Trump, is now embroiled in an FBI investigation, complete with search warrants?

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Say it isn’t so…

Well, it is so – and it’s actually a really big deal – Sussan and her campaign could be in some really serious trouble if even some of these allegations are true and they can be linked to them.

MORE NEWS: PA Voting Machine “Glitch” Rejects “Many” Republican Ballots and “Some” Democrat During State-Wide Primaries

Firstly, all of this mess came to the public light thanks to a recently unsealed search warrant application surrounding the Collins re-election campaign.

And as it stands now, Collins and her team are in the thick of some mighty dirty deeds.

The FBI believes a Hawaii defense contractor illegally funneled $150,000 to a pro-Collins super PAC and reimbursed donations to Collins’ campaign.

But it’s even worse than just that.

According to a report from Axios, the “massive scheme” to illegally finance Sen. Susan Collins’ 2020 re-election bid also involves government contracts worth $8 million dollars to the donor who funneled the cash.

Sounds like a “pay to play” scheme, doesn’t it?

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The Axios piece explains that a recently unsealed search warrant application shows the FBI believes a Hawaii defense contractor illegally funneled $150,000 to a pro-Collins super PAC and reimbursed donations to Collins’ campaign. As of right now in the investigation, there is no indication that Collins or her team were aware of any of it.

But how could they not be, especially when you read this next part:

Collins helped the contractor at issue, then called Navatek and since renamed the Martin Defense Group, secure an $8 million Navy contract before most of the donations took place.
Former Navatek CEO Martin Kao was indicted last year for allegedly bilking the federal government of millions in coronavirus relief loans.

Of course, and not surprising at all, The Collins for Senator Campaign says they had absolutely no knowledge of anything alleged in the warrant,” Collins spokesperson Annie Clark told Axios in an emailed statement.

Uh-huh, sure bet.

Federal prosecutors say Kao used a shell company to funnel $150,000 in Navatek funds to a pro-Collins super PAC called 1820 PAC.

Gee, why was this Hawaiian rich businessman so incredibly interested in a dull establishment RINO senator out of Maine?

$8 Million dollar contracts will get people interested, I suppose – and that has Susan’s name all over it.

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According to the FBI, Kao and his wife set up a sham LLC called the Society for Young Women Scientists and Engineers. Navatek then wrote the LLC a $150,000 check, investigators say, which was passed on to the super PAC.

Looks like this investigation is just heating up, and while we expect Collins people to claim “stupidity” and “ignorance” on the issue, we’ll see how this shakes down as more is found out…but as it stands now on the surface, things don’t look very good for the RINO senator from Maine, especially since she reportedly helped the “bad guy” secure an $8 million dollar government contract.

Maybe instead of always criticizing Trump, Susan should have been giving herself “morality pep talks?”

Attn: Wayne Dupree is a free speech champion who works tirelessly to bring you news that the mainstream media ignores. But he needs your support in order to keep delivering quality, independent journalism. You can make a huge impact in the war against fake news by pledging as little as $5 per month. Please click here Patreon.com/WDShow to help Wayne battle the fake news media.

The mask debate is heating up again like crazy, so it’s a perfect time to remind you who is the OG of “red-pilled” anti-mask actors.

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It’s none other than Bruce Willis. He’s the guy who stood by himself in a pharmacy and held up a giant symbolic middle finger to liberal Hollywood and fake science.

In a big show of defiance, Willis was kicked out of a Rite Aid when he refused to wear a mask or “face covering.”

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Customers apparently became upset when the actor refused to cover his face with the bandana that hung just around his neck, and instead of complying, Willis walked out of the store without completing his purchase.

Check it out:

Bruce Willis asked to leave pharmacy for refusing to wear a mask https://t.co/V4kcyxUwy3 pic.twitter.com/SORhCJwfEU

— New York Post (@nypost) January 12, 2021

MORE NEWS: Eric Clapton is Latest Celebrity to Take the “Red-Pill”

From Page Six

He’d rather live free.

Bruce Willis was asked to leave a Los Angeles Rite Aid on Monday after he refused to wear a mask, a spy tells Page Six.

The spy says people inside the store became upset that Willis, 65, wasn’t wearing a mask — despite having a bandanna tied around his neck, which he could have easily pulled up.

We’re told the “Die Hard” star, who was photographed at the store without a mask on, walked away without making his purchase.

A rep for Willis didn’t return Page Six’s request for comment.

That happened back in January – and sadly, since that time things have only gotten worse.

As you know, Fauci has been all over the map on the mask issue – first, he told us not to wear them, that they were basically useless…then he said we should. wear them…then he said we should wear two masks…and now he says we should still wear them even though we’re vaccinated.

And people are growing. more and more frustrated with this nonsense.

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Why is it that people like me who live in tyrannical “mask/lockdown” Michigan, are suffering far worse than people in Florida, who don’t have any of these restrictions?

These are the questions that Americans are now asking…and rightfully so.

And we have brave people like Bruce Willis to thank for that.

He’s right…it’s better to live free.

Attn: Wayne Dupree is a free speech champion who works tirelessly to bring you news that the mainstream media ignores. But he needs your support in order to keep delivering quality, independent journalism. You can make a huge impact in the war against fake news by pledging as little as $5 per month. Please click here Patreon.com/WDShow to help Wayne battle the fake news media.

While appearing recently on Laura Ingraham’s Fox News show, Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) called on White House Chief Medical Adviser Dr. Anthony Fauci to visit the border, adding that if he’s “not compelled to shut down this illegal immigration program, I don’t want to hear anything you’ve got to say about baseball or restaurants.”

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“Well, President Biden said to the Texas Ranger[s] baseball team…you need to listen to Dr. Fauci about urging people to come to the baseball game, Opening Day,” Graham said. “Dr. Fauci, you need to go to the border. And here’s what you will see: You will see 900 people in a room built for 80. You will see people living on top of each other, a 10% positive rate, where the positive people are intermingled with everybody else, and all these illegal immigrants are dumped off in Texas and the rest of the country.”

MORE NEWS: Yet Another Powerful Person “Plunges” Off a High-Rise Balcony…This One’s Tied Directly to Biden

“So, Dr. Fauci, you need to go to the border, and if you’re not compelled to shut down this illegal immigration program, I don’t want to hear anything you’ve got to say about baseball or restaurants,” he added. “It is the biggest, in my view, COVID spreader in the world along the border, where thousands of illegal immigrants are coming to this country, positive, 10% positive rate, intermingled with each other, dropped out all over Texas and the rest of America. So, I’m not worried about the baseball game in Texas. I’m worried about illegal immigrants infecting the whole country given the policies that Biden has.”

Fauci will come out and speak at length about some backyard pool party with too many people…yet curiously, he has nothing to say about the massive “superspreaders” event on the border.

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If that’s not proof he’s a fraud, I don’t know what is.

This comes after Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) also made similar comments criticizing Fauci and calling him out for his “gain of function” research.

Paul even went so far as to suggest that the entire COVID pandemic could be Fauci’s fault.

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Since that outing, Fauci has been placed on the backburner by Dems.

Their little “media darling” has been sidelined, and Biden’s handlers quickly moved to essentially end the “pandemic.”

Very interesting timing, wouldn’t you say?

Attn: Wayne Dupree is a free speech champion who works tirelessly to bring you news that the mainstream media ignores. But he needs your support in order to keep delivering quality, independent journalism. You can make a huge impact in the war against fake news by pledging as little as $5 per month. Please click here Patreon.com/WDShow to help Wayne battle the fake news media.

A royal expert who was friends with the late Princess Diana is speaking out this week to reveal how she thinks Prince William views Meghan Markle, the wife of his younger brother Prince Harry.

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In a video posted to YouTube, Lady Colin Campbell dismissed a recent story that Meghan and Harry had quietly wished William and his wife Kate Middleton a happy tenth wedding anniversary. Campbell said that she believes this report was a “set up,” and that William does not think highly of his sister-in-law at all.

“My information is that this is a total setup,” Campbell said. “That nobody is pleased or fooled by this supposed good wishes. That in fact, Prince William cannot abide by his sister-in-law.”

“My understanding is that he regards her as lower than the lowest form of pond life,” she added. “And that he is absolutely spitting bricks. Not only about the treacherous way in which she invented all sorts of slurs, slanders and misrememberances to attack the Royal Family unfairly and untruthfully. But also to attack his wife.”

MORE NEWS: [VIDEO] Ashli Babbitt’s Husband Has a Chilling Message About Our Government…

Campbell went on to say that William is livid about claims that Meghan made to Oprah Winfrey in her tell-all interview back in March. At the time, Meghan claimed that it was Kate who made her cry during an argument over bridesmaids dresses before her wedding, not the other way around, as was reported by the press.

“I understand that he regards it as unforgivable that this pushy little scrubber, who has hustled her way up into his family, had the temerity to attack his wife,” Campbell said. “A) knowing that it wasn’t fair and B) that she couldn’t defend herself.”

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This comes weeks after Campbell predicted that Harry and Meghan “won’t last.”

“She and Harry won’t last. Once she became the royal Duchess of Sussex, it was off with everyone’s head,” Lady Colin Campbell told Page Six, referring to Meghan. “Disconnected from reality, she lost it. She froths at the mouth when my name is mentioned. But nothing she can do because I made no legal mistakes. With all I stated about her — her background, how she learned about him — I am legally OK.”

Campbell then discussed what she believes will happen if Harry ever wants to make a comeback to the U.K. in an official capacity.

“No matter how disagreeable, the Crown handles situations,” she explained. “they’ll wait until the situation crystallizes. For now, dignity and politesse rule the situation. She’s picked America and a communal property state and has two children. She’s got him. Difficult for him to get out. He’s entrapped.

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“Returning, London would act polite. Be received politely,” Campbell continued. “Treated with respect. The Establishment, however, will treat him as a pariah.”

Attn: Wayne Dupree is a free speech champion who works tirelessly to bring you news that the mainstream media ignores. But he needs your support in order to keep delivering quality, independent journalism. You can make a huge impact in the war against fake news by pledging as little as $5 per month. Please click here Patreon.com/WDShow to help Wayne battle the fake news media.

Questions are swirling over the mysterious death of a Swiss diplomat representing Biden in Iran.

Her name was Sylvie Brunner and she was in Tehran on a diplomatic mission.

For decades, Switzerland has represented the US and Iranian relations since the two countries have not had diplomatic relations since 1980.

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While she was in the city, she suddenly died.

She fell, jumped, or was pushed to her death off her apartment balcony, 17-stories up.

Very odd.

Iran Intl reported that Iranian authorities have yet to announce their conclusions on the death of Sylvie Brunner, a 51-year-old Swiss diplomat in Tehran, Hamshahri newspaper has offered an account of her death that may feed speculation. Brunner, first secretary of the Swiss embassy and deputy of the United States interest section, fell from her residence in a high-rise building Tuesday.

MORE NEWS: Female Tycoon Who “Rubbed Shoulders” With Hillary Just “Fell” to Her Death…

A cleaner discovered the body and immediately informed the building’s management. It quoted an expert from the coroner’s office confirming death occurred eight hours before the body was discovered.

Witnesses said they heard some kind of “explosion” just after midnight. The diplomat’s body was found approximately 8 hours later.

But here’s the kicker – according to the piece Brunner was wearing casual clothes, appropriate for the home, as well as a hat. The paper quoted criminal investigators that “there were no signs of disorder in the apartment and the balcony from where she fell had a guard-rail 110-cm high.” Moreover, investigators did not find blood or signs of a struggle on the balcony or the railing.

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In its most startling claim, Hamshahri said police had found a hand-written paper without a date or signature on a table at the guest room. “After my death take my body back to Switzerland and inform my son,” the note reportedly read. “Then, cremate my body and bury it next to my child who died. Moreover, give all my money and everything I have to my other son.” The house-aide is quoted as saying that Brunner had sometimes shown signs of depression but lately had seemed better.

Did she really commit suicide, or was this some kind of foul play made to look like a suicide?

Attn: Wayne Dupree is a free speech champion who works tirelessly to bring you news that the mainstream media ignores. But he needs your support in order to keep delivering quality, independent journalism. You can make a huge impact in the war against fake news by pledging as little as $5 per month. Please click here Patreon.com/WDShow to help Wayne battle the fake news media.

When you think of GOP traitors, names like John McCain, Mitt Romey, and George Bush come to mind.

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They are three of the biggest traitors ever, and it’s unbelievable that one of those jerks is still serving in Congress as we speak.

But there’s another name that needs to be added to the top of that list, and it’s Liz Cheney.

MORE NEWS: [VIDEO] Joe Biden Just Embarrassed The United States of America On The Golf Course Yesterday

And after we’ve all discovered what she’s done, she should be expelled from Congress.

As we all know, Liz lost all of her GOP leadership roles, but she needs more punishment than that.

Because according to a new report, Liz’s seething hatred has always been bubbling just beneath the surface – so much so, that back around last October, Liz put together a plan to try and make sure President Trump would not be re-elected…and she used her father and his connections to make it happen.

Liz Cheney secretly rounded up 10 living former defense secretaries and even Trump’s first defense secretary Jim “Mad Dog” Mattis and convinced them to write a WAPO op-ed, warning of Trump’s “plans” to politicize the military.

And Liz’s dirty little traitorous secret was outed in the New Yorker, of all places.

Cheney’s rupture with the House Republican Conference has become all but final in recent days, but it has been months in the making. Edelman revealed that Cheney herself secretly orchestrated an unprecedented op-ed in The Washington Post by all 10 living former defense secretaries, including her father, warning against Trump’s efforts to politicize the military. The congresswoman not only recruited her father but personally asked others, including Trump’s first Defense Secretary, Jim Mattis, to participate. … The Post op-ed appeared on Jan. 3, just three days before the insurrection at the Capitol.

In my opinion, this is grounds for her to be expelled from Congress and kicked out of the Republican Party. This is by far, one of the most traitorous moves a Republican has made against President Trump.

And she needs to go, in all sense of the word – banished, exiled, ousted…There is no room for a relic and a traitor like Liz Cheney in the new America First Republican Party.

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Furthermore, there’s also no room for Kevin McCarthy – that man is literally “bunking” with a liberal Google lobbyist who hates Trump and lies about his polls: Frank Luntz.

We MUST purge these traitors and frauds from the party if we ever hope to defeat the Dems because we can’t do it while these sneaky RINOs are crawling around.

Attn: Wayne Dupree is a free speech champion who works tirelessly to bring you news that the mainstream media ignores. But he needs your support in order to keep delivering quality, independent journalism. You can make a huge impact in the war against fake news by pledging as little as $5 per month. Please click here Patreon.com/WDShow to help Wayne battle the fake news media.

Rush Limbaugh is gone, but he is not forgotten – he never will be. I miss him so much, and I know you do too.

And thinking about him got me remembering one of his last “dire warnings” and “wakeup calls” that he issued to us.

Before he left this earth, Russh had some very somber news for anyone who was sitting around waiting for the 2022 midterms to save the day.

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Rush’s response to that line of thinking is: “wake the hell up.”

During one of his last shows, Limbaugh responded to a caller who believes there was voter fraud and who wanted to know where conservatives go from here.

Limbaugh kicked off his response with an anecdote about his friend and author Vince Flynn, and then he did his best to jar Trump supporters back into reality.

MORE NEWS: [VIDEO] Whoops! Jen Psaki Just Said The “Quiet Part” Really Loudly For Everyone to Hear

From Rush Limbaugh

RUSH: Here’s Neil in Matthews, North Carolina. Great to have you. You’re up next. Hello.

CALLER: Thanks for taking my call, Rush. Prayers for you and your family.

RUSH: Thank you.

CALLER: Rush, I’m gonna go out on a limb and speak for the millions of Trump supporters out there that believe this was a fraudulent election and see that things are being swept under the rug. And I’m also gonna say that these millions of people also trust your opinion. Rush, where do we go from here?

RUSH: Well, you know, I have a phrase. My good friend Vince Flynn, who passed away from prostate cancer at way too young an age had a — and it’s nothing unique to him, but he was famous for it because it was consistent, he was consistent, “keep the faith.” He just believed in keeping the faith.

Now, I hear a lot of people talking about — and I’ve got a problem with this — a lot of people talking about the upcoming midterms in 2022. I’m hearing people on our side, the traditional political junkies, “Well, let the Democrats do whatever they’re gonna do, ’cause they’re gonna be swamped, baby, we’re gonna wipe ’em out in the midterms. We’re gonna win the House back, we’re gonna win the Senate back, man, it’s gonna be beautiful.”

I said, “Wait a minute, do you people not get what’s going on here? The days of traditional American politics… the Democrats are setting it up so they’re never gonna lose elections again. What do you mean we’re gonna win it all back in 2022? Who in their right mind thinks that that’s in the cards?”

“Well, Rush, it’s gonna be so massive, they can’t stop it with cheating. They’re gonna be so rejected.” They’re gonna be so rejected? How the hell did they win? “They didn’t run, Rush, they cheated.” Folks, you’re making a big mistake if you think that all of this success that they’re enjoying is simply due to cheating. There are gazillions of Americans who’ve bought into this. There are lots of Americans who have gone over to the dark side.

This is not simply because the Democrats fraudulently stole an election. Even if they did, Plugs still got enough votes to enable them to go over the line by cheating. We have a serious problem here. But the idea that the American people didn’t know what they were doing and in two years are gonna be running to the ballot box to reverse their decision because they had no idea they were electing a bunch of communists, what do you think just happened in Georgia?

Rush goes on to explain that conservatives are blissfully blind and ignorant, not willing to truly face what is happening.

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Here’s what he said:

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The only thing — you ask me, what can the American people do — wake the hell up, those who haven’t.

Understand what we’re up against because I still think we have the ability to outnumber these people. I still think we do. But I think we’ve got way too much — I don’t know — blindness or ignorance, and perhaps it’s worse than that. Maybe people have gone over to the Democrat Party side knowingly and purposely ’cause they believe in it. Who the hell knows.

He’s right. We can’t keep playing the same old game when Dems have totally changed the rules.

We’ll never win again if we keep doing this.

We need to shake off that old mindset and get into a new and much more proactive warrior mode.

I think it’s important to remember these wise words from Rush as we get ready to head into 2022. We have to remember that the Dems won’t just rollover. As we’ve seen, they’ll literally do ANYTHING to hold power.

We must keep pushing our local state officials to enact voter integrity laws to protect us from Dem cheating. We must stay engaged and get out of the “wish” and “hope” line of thinking.

Get involved in your local state elections. It’s the biggest move you can make to save your country.

Attn: Wayne Dupree is a free speech champion who works tirelessly to bring you news that the mainstream media ignores. But he needs your support in order to keep delivering quality, independent journalism. You can make a huge impact in the war against fake news by pledging as little as $5 per month. Please click here Patreon.com/WDShow to help Wayne battle the fake news media.

Joe Biden has warned Americans who refuse to take the COVID-19 vaccination that they “will pay the price” for not falling into line.

“If the unvaccinated get vaccinated, they will protect themselves and other unvaccinated people around them. If they do not, states with low vaccination rates may see those rates go up – may see this progress reversed,” Biden warned.

“Those who are not vaccinated will end up paying the price,” he ominously added.

Thegatewaypundit.com reports: We know that Covid-19 convalescent individuals (people naturally infected with Covid) have the T cell immunity to the variants as well, but the Biden Admin is waging a war on people who choose not to get the Covid jab.

VIDEO:

Biden’s threat to the unvaccinated comes after he gave Americans two choices: “Get vaxxed or mask.”

The network was forced to fire contributor Adeel Raja after he responded to the escalating tensions between Israel and Palestine by tweeting, “The world today needs a Hitler.”

In a statement, CNN officials said Raja’s “reporting contributed to some newsgathering efforts from Islamabad.

“However, in light of these abhorrent statements, he will not be working with CNN again in any capacity.”

Raja’s now-deleted tweet appears to have been posted around 12:45 p.m. on Sunday.

Washingtonexaminer.com reports: Raja, who appears to be an ally of Palestine during the Israel-Hamas conflict in Gaza, has shared several opinions on the matter via Twitter in recent days. On Saturday, he tweeted, “What the Jews are doing in Palestine is similar to what Indian Hindus are doing in Occupied Kashmir. Same tactics.”

A few days prior, the journalist responded to a tweet from former Vice President Mike Pence that read “America Stands with Israel,” saying, “A history of creating terrorists and standing with them!”

SCOTUS has agreed to hear a challenge to a Mississippi law banning abortion at 15 weeks of pregnancy, which sets the stage for a decision that could potentially overturn Roe v. Wade.

An order list released Monday by the the Supreme Court reveals that it has agreed to take up Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which concerns Mississippi’s HB 1510 law banning abortions from being committed past 15 weeks for any reason barring physical medical emergencies or severe fetal abnormalities. 

Lifesitenews.com reports: After its enactment in 2019, U.S. District Judge Carlton Reeves quickly issued a temporary restraining order against enforcing the law, then declared it unconstitutional in a ruling filled with pro-abortion talking points rather than legal arguments. Nevertheless, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals sided with Reeves, prompting appeal to the nation’s highest court.

The Fifth Circuit claimed that an “unbroken line dating to Roe v. Wade” had firmly entrenched the “right” to pre-viability abortion, but that “unbroken line” is precisely what Mississippi and other pro-life states intend to challenge. Attorneys with the Life Legal Defense Foundation have noted that the Court has also acknowledged a “compelling interest in protecting the unborn child” as pregnancy progresses, particularly on criteria like fetal pain – which can be felt before viability.

The Supreme Court previously delayed its conferencing on the 15-week abortion ban several times. Now that the justices are finally taking up the case, it will be the biggest test yet of former President Donald Trump’s three additions to the court. 

While Trump campaigned on the promise of pro-life judges, during their confirmation hearings Justices Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh both expressed respect for Roe’s status as precedent, leaving uncertain whether stare decisis doctrine will outweigh Roe’s legal defects in their jurisprudence. Justice Amy Coney Barrett has a pro-life record and has criticized stare decisis in the past, but has not specifically said whether she will vote to overturn Roe.

Only Justice Clarence Thomas is explicitly on the record as anti-Roe, and only he and Justice Samuel Alito have established consistently conservative records over a significant period of time. Chief Justice John Roberts has sided with the Court’s leftist wing on numerous high-profile cases over the years, and Gorsuch disappointed conservatives last year by voting to redefine “sex” in federal civil rights law.

A decision to overturn Roe would supercharge pro-life enthusiasm almost overnight by instantly banning abortion in the handful of states with either pre-Roe bans or “trigger laws” still on the books, and by empowering state legislatures to directly end abortion. A decision upholding Roe would likely have the opposite effect on pro-life morale, while also forcing activists to reevaluate their current political and legal strategies. Another possible outcome would be a ruling that redefines Roe’s parameters to allow bans at earlier gestational lines while leaving the general “right” to abortion intact.

The Supreme Court unanimously slapped down Biden’s plans to allow police to enter homes without a warrant to seize handguns from law-abiding Americans.

The ruling in the case, Caniglia v. Strom, court file 20-157, came May 17.

Erich Pratt, Senior Vice President of Gun Owners of America and the affiliated Gun Owners Foundation, praised the ruling.

“The Supreme Court today smacked down the hopes of gun grabbers across the nation,” Pratt declared.

“The Michael Bloombergs of the world would have loved to see the Supreme Court grant police the authority to confiscate firearms without a warrant. But the Supreme Court unanimously ruled that the Fourth Amendment protections in the Bill of Rights protect gun owners from such invasions into their homes.”

Theepochtimes.com reports: Bloomberg, the billionaire former New York mayor, is an activist and major funder of gun-control groups.

The case came before the high court for oral argument two months ago as President Joe Biden and congressional Democrats began pressing for aggressive new restrictions on Second Amendment gun ownership rights, including controversial “red flag” laws, which allow gun seizures from law-abiding gun owners with limited due process, in the wake of highly publicized deadly mass shootings in March at a Boulder, Colorado, supermarket and at Atlanta-area spas.

Police generally cannot conduct searches of private property without consent or a warrant.

In Cady v. Dombrowski the Supreme Court held in 1973 that police may conduct warrantless searches related to “community caretaking functions,” but only for “vehicle accidents.” Since then, the principle has become “a catchall for a wide range of responsibilities that police officers must discharge aside from their criminal enforcement activities,” the 1st Circuit Court of Appeals stated in the Caniglia case.

The community caretaking doctrine holds that police don’t always operate as law enforcement officials investigating wrongdoing, but sometimes as caretakers to prevent harm in emergency situations.

Edward Caniglia has no criminal history and no record of violence. He had been married to his wife for 22 years when, on Aug. 20, 2015, they had a disagreement inside their Cranston, Rhode Island, home.

The argument escalated. He produced an unloaded gun and said, “Why don’t you just shoot me and get me out of my misery?”

Worried he might be suicidal, his wife asked police to conduct a welfare check. The husband went to a local hospital briefly after police assured him they wouldn’t take his two handguns.

After he left, they seized his guns without a warrant, telling the wife his life and others could be in danger if they left the guns in the home. The police refused to return the weapons and Caniglia sued, arguing the community caretaking exception should not apply inside “the home–the most protected of all private spaces.”

During telephonic oral arguments March 24, Department of Justice lawyer Morgan Ratner supported the city of Cranston’s position, arguing police have to be free to act in potential emergencies.

“Although there have been a lot of questions this morning about whether this is emergency aid or exigent circumstances or community caretaking or something else, the label you give it is not nearly as important as the principle. And the key principle is if someone is at risk of serious harm and it’s reasonable for officials to intervene now, that is enough,” Ratner said.

Writing the Supreme Court’s short, 4-page opinion in the case, Justice Clarence Thomas noted the Cady v. Dombrowski precedent, which he indicated applied to police “responding to disabled vehicles or investigating accidents.”

“The question today is whether Cady’s acknowledgment of these ‘caretaking’ duties creates a standalone doctrine that justifies warrantless searches and seizures in the home,” Thomas wrote.

“It does not,” he added.

Thomas wrote that the federal district court ruled in favor of the police and the 1st Circuit expanded on this, stating that police “often have noncriminal reasons to interact with motorists” on public highways. The appeals court “extrapolated” from the Cady ruling “a freestanding community-caretaking exception that applies to both cars and homes.”

The appeals court’s community caretaking rule “goes beyond anything this Court has recognized,” Thomas wrote.

The acknowledgement that “police officers perform many civic tasks in modern society was just that—a recognition that these tasks exist, and not an open-ended license to perform them anywhere.”

In a separate concurring opinion, Justice Samuel Alito wrote that the Supreme Court is “properly reject[ing] the broad ‘community caretaking’ theory.”

At the same time, he noted that the case implicates “another body of law that petitioner glossed over: the so-called ‘red flag’ laws that some States are now enacting.”

Such laws, he wrote, “enable the police to seize guns pursuant to a court order to prevent their use for suicide or the infliction of harm on innocent persons.”

Although this particular decision does not address those issues, “provisions of red flag laws may be challenged under the Fourth Amendment, and those cases may come before us.”

At press time, Acting U.S. Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar and Marc DeSisto, attorney for Cranston, had not responded to requests for comment from The Epoch Times.

MSNBC shamelessly informed viewers on Monday that pro-life Republicans plan to put rape victims in prison for taking the morning-after pill.

Yes, really.

Host Nicolle Wallace and her frenzied far-left feminist panel spent most of the show trying to scare Americans over SCOTUS eventually ruling on a Mississippi abortion law that passed in 2018. 

Newsbusters.org reports: The state law bans abortions after 15 weeks where the mother or baby was not in danger. Apparently, that is radical and extreme to the majority of Americans, at least according to MSNBC’s Wallace. She declared, “Just the decision to take up this case really strikes fear in the hearts of everyone who cares about this issue, which if you look at polls is 65% of Americans that support reproductive freedoms.”

Former Democrat Senator and MSNBC analyst Claire McCaskill then lectured women younger than her who don’t remember life before Roe while she savagely smeared pro-life advocates as callous to rape victims:

And you know I got to tell you Nicolle, I don’t think younger voters remember what it was like before Roe V. Wade.  I don’t think they realize these folks will not be happy until a rape victim is put in prison for taking the morning-after pill. That’s the road they are going down. That’s the road they’ve been trying do go down for a long time even though they are really pushing provisions that are widely rejected by the vast majority of Americans. 

An enthralled Wallace wanted to hear more about the terrifying future Republicans supposedly wanted for women. She wondered to McCaskill if “just the decision to take up this case is ominous enough?”

McCaskill predicted that if the court upheld the law, every state that voted for Donald Trump would “immediately” make abortion virtually illegal:

“They will immediately begin shutting down the ability of women to have the freedom to choose to terminate a pregnancy with all kinds of limitations and then eventually they’ll keep pushing the cases up until there are none left except the few states that might make it legal,” she feared.

Wallace couldn’t get enough of the panic porn. “It’s such a terrifying thought,” she gushed. McCaskill warned that it would be a “wake up call” to young women who were fortunate enough to never have had experienced the fear of an unplanned pregnancy, and she hoped they would drive the upcoming election: 

“This will all be a wake-up call. This will be a shock to their systems. And we have more young people voting this last time. If the court does this, I predict that young women will be a driving force in the midterm elections. Especially if those who support reproductive freedoms are doing their job,” she proclaimed.

After moaning again about how “chilling” this news was, Wallace invited McCaskill to whine with her over Fox News Channel host Tucker Carlson using the pro-abortion rhetoric of “my body, my choice” when it came to taking the COVID-19 vaccine. Wallace fumed at the Republican “hypocrisy” moving to the “front burner of the culture wars.” 

McCaskill AGAIN smeared pro-life conservatives as heartless to teenage sexual assault victims:

People don’t understand what happens with incest. The young girls who are the victims of incest don’t tell people. It is the most torturous, painful secret that they keep. And when those young girls get pregnant from a stepfather or a father or an uncle, they don’t immediately speak up or understand they’re pregnant. So what Mississippi is saying, if you come forward after 15 weeks you must have your father’s baby, you must have your uncle’s baby but on the other side of their mouth saying no problem if you don’t want to take a vaccine. These guys have a lot of nerve. 

As the segment wrapped up, Wallace hyped the “horrifying” reality before us that Donald Trump set in place with his picks for the Supreme Court. She asked SCOTUS blog writer and attorney Katie Barlow what “65% of Americans who support reproductive freedoms” could cling to as their “best-case scenario”?

Barlow affirmed her fears that it was unlikely the court would rule against the law but she hoped it would be a “very narrow ruling,” at least.

Read transcript portions below:

Deadline: White House

5/17/2021

NICOLLE WALLACE: Claire McCaskill, you and I co sort of talked the way through the confirmation of at least the last two Trump appointees. This was Trump’s goal. Just the decision to take up this case really strikes fear in the hearts of everyone that cares about this issue which if you look at polls is 65% of Americans that support reproductive freedoms.

CLAIRE MCCASKILL: This may be the situation that is often described as the dog catching the bus and what happens in America in terms of the political climate if in fact this court overturns decades of precedent and fails to protect women’s reproductive freedoms via this Mississippi case. And you know I got to tell you Nicolle, I don’t think younger voters remember what it was like before Roe V. Wade.  I don’t think they realize these folks will not be happy until a rape victim is put in prison for taking the morning-after pill. That’s the road they are going down. That’s the road they’ve been trying do go down for a long time even though they are really pushing provisions that are widely rejected by the vast majority of Americans. 

WALLACE: Claire, what do you make of the early reaction, just the decision to take up this case is ominous enough? 

MCCASKILL: Yeah. I think what will happen if this case is upheld and if you look at the tea leaves you have to believe it’s going to be upheld. Then look at all of the Republican dominated legislatures in all of the states that’s voted for Donald Trump. They will immediately begin shutting down the ability of women to have the freedom to choose to terminate a pregnancy with all kinds of limitations and then eventually they’ll keep pushing the cases up until there are none left except the few states that might make it legal. That’s the way it was before Roe V. Wade was passed by the court, what? 40, 50 years ago. 

WALLACE:  It’s such a terrifying thought and I think you are right on the generational point. I want to give you a chance to say more about what’s at stake. 

MCCASKILL: I don’t — for young women who went to planned parenthood in college and got birth control, for young woment have never known the fear of an unwanted pregnancy, have never known what that represents in their lives if there is not a safe and legal place to terminate a pregnancy, this will all be a wakeup call. This will be a shock to their systems. And we have more young people voting this last time. If the court does this, I predict that young women will be a driving force in the midterm elections. Especially if those who support reproductive freedoms are doing their job. 

WALLACE: You know Erin It was such a chilling — I will never forget covering the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and then the confirmation of Justice Amy Coney Barrett because everyone talked about all that was at stake and this came up. I wonder first your thoughts about the decision and same question to you about what’s at stake. 

(…)

WALLACE: Katie, let me just follow up on that, I mean I—guess the point being— it is indicative of how far to the right. I mean Roberts doesn’t even matter! So Roberts sides again with the liberal justices–It doesn’t matter how he rules — say he goes with them again. If you’re betting on Brett Kavanaugh as your swing vote that might actually be why people are so anxious.

Newly unearthed emails from Hunter Biden directly link President Joe Biden to his son’s dodgy foreign business dealings, according to reports.

The emails show Hunter and a business partner discussing plans to cut then-Vice President Joe Biden into their business deals.

Dailywire.com reports: JRB is the now-president’s initials, while Beau’s real name is the same as his father’s.

“I think we can pull this off,” Cooper wrote.

In a list of desired compensation, Hunter specified that Beau would require “500+” to work as a law partner, noting that he had medical bills. Beau died in 2015 of brain cancer.

Cooper is the founder of an investment firm called Eudora Global and CEO of an “international online gaming enterprise” called Ocho Global. He was also “founder of SimmonsCooper Andrew, a law firm that specializes in complex, high value litigation,” a professional biography says.

Before Beau became attorney general of Delaware, Beau’s law firm worked with Cooper’s on asbestos lawsuits. As Senate Judiciary Committee member, Biden blocked reform of asbestos lawsuits, the Madison Record reported.

In 2010, Cooper entered into an agreement with Hunter’s firm, Rosemont Seneca Partners. “Eudora agrees to partner with Seneca on various projects dealing with both domestic and international transactions.  On such projects, Seneca will receive 25% of Eudora’s share of equity in said projects. Seneca agrees to utilize it’s [sic] wide array of knowledge and relationships to aid the projects to the best of it’s [sic] ability,” the agreement said.

In 2011, President Barack Obama invited Cooper to the White House to dine with the Korean president.

Cooper was involved with Hunter and his much-scrutinized dealings in the Ukraine, where Hunter was reportedly paid some $50,000 a month to sit on the board of gas company Burisma, and other dark corners of the world.

In a March 2015 email with the subject line “Burisma,” Cooper asked Hunter: “Any idea what their Mx plans are going to be?”

Emails show Cooper and Hunter’s business partner Devon Archer attempting to broker a deal between Burisma and PEMEX, a state-owned Mexican petroleum company. Archer was later convicted of fraud related to a different deal.

Hunter wrote to Cooper in 2013, “I told Devon he should come next week to MC. I want to loop him into what we are working on and I would like you both to get to know each other better. I trust him 100% and would want him involved regardless. Is that OK?”

“Sure man. Whatever you want,” Cooper said.

“I want love peace and harmony and a jet,” Hunter replied.

Cooper served as an intermediary for Miguel Aleman Magnani, a Mexican billionaire whose father was once a Mexican governor. He wrote of Aleman in 2014:

He wants us to try to bring a Burisma exec with us on our trip (which he is still trying to figure out exact timing). He says the Pemex CEO was extremely excited about their potential involvement and has “a perfect project” for them. What are your thoughts on that?

Cooper was simultaneously intertwined with Joe Biden’s world. Also in 2014, Hunter wrote to a White House staffer: “Hey buddy. Do you have pictures from the lunch I had in dad’s office (I think on 2/26) with Miguel Alleman [sic] Sr. And Jr. And Jeff Cooper?”

In 2013, an associate connected Cooper and Hunter with a potential Latin American contact, writing: “I want to introduce Hunter Biden and Jeff Cooper to you, who are investing in several technology sectors, and more recently in the gaming/gambling one. They are interested in exploring the Chilean market.”

In 2014, Cooper and Hunter discussed holding parties with international billionaires to create what Cooper called “a global cooperation group that will assist each other in our respective regions in whatever manner possible.”

“We need a Canadian billionaire and a certified American billionaire to ad[d] to list. Also I think the Phillipines, Israel, Turkey and UAE (maybe Youssef Al’Otiaba). We could drop Colombia and or Argentina. Finally, an African preferably from Ghana or Tanzania,” Hunter wrote.

In February 2016, Joe Biden invited Hunter and Cooper to accompany him on a trip to Mexico, according to emails.

Hunter and Cooper did not return requests for comment from The Daily Wire.

“Wealth creation”

In April 2016, Hunter also exchanged emails with talent agent Craig Gering about other possible plans for Joe Biden post-vice presidency, which included a possible office for Hunter and “wealth creation.” Gering’s recap of a meeting said:

1. School of Public Policy at University of Delaware.
-Will be renamed with the VP. The Biden School of Public Policy (like G. Ford did). Concentration on domestic political science.
-Of course, the University gains an infusion of prestige, money, notoriety, and professors.
-University to raise all of the capital for the new center building on the quad.
-Within the building will be a Vice Presidential Center or Library. First of its kind about studying of the Office of the Vice President [not just Biden].

2. The Biden Foundation in Wilmington, Delaware.

3. The Biden Institute of Foreign Relations at the University of Pennsylvania.
-Focus on foreign policy.
-In addition to the institute at U of Penn, the school has an existing office in DC that will be expanded to house a DC office for VP Biden (and Mike, Hunter and Steve?). Operates like The Clinton Global Initiative without the money raise.

4. Wealth Creation.

Hunter replied: “Yes- in theory that’s the way I would like to see it shake out— BUT please keep this very confidential between us because nothing has been set in stone and there’s still a lot of sensitivity around all of this both internally and externally. He hasn’t made any decisions and this could all be changed overnight.”

In 2017, Joe Biden signed with Gering’s agency, CAA. In 2018, the University of Delaware’s School of Public Policy was renamed after Biden.

“Future earnings potential”

In 2010, when it was uncertain whether Barack Obama and Joe Biden would win a second term in the White House, Hunter’s business partner Eric Schwerin separately handled a “JRB Future Memo,” according to an email from Hunter’s laptop. Schwerin wrote:

Mike has a pretty good draft of this done. Does it make sense to see if your Dad has some time in the next couple of weeks while you are in DC to talk about it?  Your Dad just called me (about his mortgage) and mentioned he’d be out a lot soon and not really back until Labor Day so it dawned on me it might be a good time (also he could use some positive news about his future earnings potential!)

Hunter’s consultancy, Rosemont Seneca, earned money by playing a middleman role in various international ventures by virtue of having connections to the rich and powerful.

In 2017, James Gilliar, a business partner, infamously wrote to Hunter and other partners Rob Walker and Tony Bobulinski: “At the moment there s a provisional agreement that the equity will be distributed as follows:” 20% for Hunter, 10% for Jim Biden, and 10% “held by H for the big guy ?.”

Bobulinski publicly said “big guy” referred to Joe Biden, and that “Hunter Biden called his dad ‘the Big Guy’ or ‘my Chairman,’ and frequently referenced asking him for his sign-off or advice on various potential deals that we were discussing. I’ve seen Vice President Biden saying he never talked to Hunter about his business. I’ve seen firsthand that that’s not true.”

White House involvement

Hunter and his Rosemont Seneca partners appeared at times to be involved with Joe Biden’s vice presidential activities, according to the emails.

In 2010, Chuck Harple, who that year was a lobbyist for the Teamsters Union, wrote to Hunter that the union was not happy with the vice president.

“I don’t even want to get in what I have heard that they were told why the Vp couldn’t meet,” he wrote.

Hunter replied, “I’ll work on it- but is there any issue I should know about before I go around everyone and straight to him- if I ask he will do it- but if I am missing something legit then i will get killed by staff.”

Harper wrote, “They should be s***ting their pants thinking that – because of miscommunication, the Building Trades think they are being dissed by the Vice President.” He recommended that Hunter call Building Trades union Secretary Treasurer Sean McGarvey and say “you want to get all the facts before you talk to the big guy.”

Five days later, Hunter wrote that General President Mark Ayers “and JRB spoke live today and plan to meet in New Year.”

Harple responded, “Talked to Sean. He and Mark Ayers totally credit you for saving the day.”

In 2012, Michael Karloutsos wrote to Schwerin and indicated that Hunter was working channels involving Greece alongside his father.

“Secretary General Kaskarelis now understands that we have been working on this effort thru Hunter and the VP for quite some time and has relayed that message to Ambassador Panagopoulos. That said and per our conversation an official request will be submitted thru the proper protocols,” he wrote.

Schwerin indicated that he was in contact with Joe Biden’s office on Karloutsos’ behalf.

“Michael, I have a call in to find out more but haven’t heard back, but give me another day to see what I can find out. After the fiscal cliff negotiations a lot of the VP staff took some time off,” he wrote.

Authenticity

The Daily Wire confirmed the authenticity of 17,000 emails on the laptop Hunter Biden left at a Delaware repair shop.

After the New York Post broke the story of the laptop shortly before the 2020 election, media, Democrats and former intelligence operatives went into overdrive suggesting that the contents could be an elaborate ruse.

Days before the election, Al Jazeera reported, “Has anyone else verified the emails as definitively true or false? No, but dozens of retired US intelligence officials signed a letter stating that while they do not know if the emails purportedly belonging to Hunter Biden are genuine or not, they have ‘all the classic earmarks of a Russian information operation.’”

Promoting his book last month, Hunter told CBS he has “no idea whether or not” the laptop was his.

Also last month, CNN said a “law enforcement source” told the network that the FBI still did not know if it was really Hunter’s laptop. “A law enforcement source has told CNN that the assumption is that it is Hunter Biden’s laptop. But the FBI is still working through the content and the integrity of what is on it,” CNN reported.

Yet metadata known as DKIM enables researchers with far fewer resources than the FBI to quickly confirm that emails on the laptop are real. DKIM is an anti-spam measure that sends a “hash” of the email’s contents back to the purported sending server to confirm whether it really came it, and to confirm that the email was unaltered.

Of tens of thousands of emails reviewed by The Daily Wire, the largest group of emails were authenticated by DKIM. Others could not be confirmed for various reasons, typically because the sending server did not use the technology. Most of the emails that could not be confirmed through DKIM were anodyne, such as newsletters from Politico and the Washington Post.

Rudy Giuliani, the onetime lawyer for Donald Trump who received a copy of Hunter’s laptop hard drive from the repair store owner, said last month that when the FBI raided his apartment on a search warrant, agents took other hard drives, but refused to take the device he told them contained Hunter’s files.

Twitter has flagged ‘men cannot get pregnant’ as ‘hate speech’

The official account of a Spanish politician was suspended last week after he tweeted that men cannot get pregnan because “they have no uterus or eggs”.

Francisco Jose Contreras, a member of Spain’s right-wing Vox Party, was temporarily suspended from Twitter after the platform considered his comment that “a man cannot get pregnant” to be a violation of its hate speech policy.

RT reports: Contreras was locked out of his Twitter account for 12 hours for stating that men have “no uterus or eggs” and therefore cannot birth children, in response to an article he shared which discussed a transgender man announcing they were a father after giving birth to a child.

“You can see this is already fascist biology. Next time I’ll try 2 + 2 = 4,” Contreras wrote in an indignant post on Facebook.

Twitter accused Contreras of violating its policy against posting material which threatens or promotes violence against others based on their race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, or gender. In response, Contreras’ supporters have begun to share the hashtag #AManCannotBePregnant. 

“We will continue to speak the truth about human nature. Biological truth should not be regarded as ‘hate speech’. It’s biology, not bigotry,” Contreras said. 

Many expressed support for Contreras on Facebook, with some claiming that tech giant censorship was worse than the Spanish Inquisition, while one Facebook user suggested succinctly that “The truth offends.”

Others cited comments by 19th-century English writer, philosopher and critic Gilbert Keith Chesterton, who famously warned that “We shall soon be in a world in which a man may be howled down for saying that two and two make four…” and that one day people might “hang a man for maddening the mob with the news that grass is green.”

Yet more of Contreras’ supporters referenced George Orwell’s classic dystopian novel ‘1984’, asking whether it was now clear to see that 2+2=5, a tactic used by the oppressive government in the novel to break the protagonist’s will during an interrogation in the notorious Room 101.

Mario Noya, a Spanish journalist and author of a book called ‘Why I Stopped Being on the Left’, blasted the tech giant for censorship, providing a brief explanation of the suspension. 

“This is why they have suspended the account of representative @fjconpe. @Twitter STINKS”

Composer Andrew Lloyd Webber has warned ministers not to let ‘selfish’ people who ‘refuse’ to have covid vaccines derail plans for the final stages of easing England’s lockdown.

Lord Llyod Webber said those who won’t have a Covid jab ‘are as bad as drink drivers’, and accused them of affecting ‘an enormous number of people’s jobs and livelihoods’.  

The Mail Online reports: While restrictions on theatres were lifted this morning, Lord Lloyd Webber said he would not be opening shows in his venues until all measures are scrapped, as it was ‘too costly’ to play to reduced audiences.

But he warned that people who refused to take a vaccine when offered were jeopardising the June 21 date for the final stage of England’s road map, when remaining restrictions are meant to be eased.

Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s World At One he said: ‘Look at it this way. You could just say “I would like to go out and have a drink tonight and drive home and accidentally I kill somebody”. ‘Now it seems to be that nobody’s going to go out and deliberately infect anybody with Covid but it’s completely wrong if we know the science.

‘We know that the vaccines are very effective and we know that they are really broadly speaking unbelievably safe. ‘I think the Queen put it rather well when she said we had to think of other people in all of this.’

He added that the June 21 date for the final unlocking was ‘absolutely critical’, warning: ‘If that doesn’t happen, I really don’t even want to think about it.

It has been such a devastating time for everybody.

‘I just feel so strongly at the moment, particularly the people who are not getting vaccinated and everything, just how selfish it is, because so many people depend on this June 21 date, they really depend on it.

It was a view echoed by Tory MPs Conor Burns and Marcus Fysh, who said people who refuse vaccines should not hold up the easing of restrictions. 

Bournemouth West MP Conor Burns said: ‘As a nation we have tolerated with generally good humour the most profound curtailment of our freedoms in peacetime for the greater good.

‘It wouldn’t be right to do it again for those who have been offered a vaccine and have freely chosen not to take it – fully aware of the risks.’

Yeovil MP Mr Fysh said it would not be ‘reasonable’ to delay the ‘complete release from restrictions’ on June 21.

‘The vast majority are vaccinated, the vaccines work, and the rest now have a vanishingly small risk of harm,’ he said.

‘If people don’t want to be vaccinated it is not up to society to shield them.’

Their comments come after a senior minister told Politico that ‘the risk is a small number of idiots ruin it for everyone else’.

Jeffrey Epstein gave Bill Gates advice on how to end his ‘toxic’ marriage to Melinda during dozens of ‘men’s club’ styled meetings at the pedophile’s $77-million ‘house of horrors’ in New York according to a new report

Gates’ frequent visits to Epstein’s Manhattan townhouse were an escape from his unhappy marriage, a source told The Daily Beast. The source also claimed that the pair ‘were very close’.

Mail Online reports: The report alleges the pair’s friendship blurred personal and professional lines, and was much closer than Gates had previously admitted.

The Daily Beast revealed Gates sought marriage advice from Epstein during dozens of meetings between 2011 and 2014, far more than had previously been reported. 

Gates apparently told Epstein his marriage to Melinda was ‘toxic’, which both men found funny, according to the report. A spokeswoman for Gates said he had never talked in a disparaging way about Melinda.

Bill and Melinda Gates – one of the world’s richest couples with a fortune of $130billion – announced earlier this month that they were getting a divorce after 27 years of marriage. 

The news comes as another blow to Gates who – in two new bombshell reports – was revealed to have had an affair 20 years ago, and was accused of making advances on employees at both Microsoft and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

The affair came to light after the Microsoft employee wrote to the board in 2019 with details, and allegedly asked that Gates’ estranged wife read the letter. 

The Microsoft board decided that Gates – who left Microsoft unexpectedly last year – should step down after the relationship in 2000 was deemed to be ‘inappropriate’, the Wall Street Journal reported.

Gates’ spokeswoman confirmed he had a sexual relationship with a female staff member in 2000 and that he resigned as an investigation into the relationship was being conducted by an external law firm on behalf of the company board.

The New York Times also reported that Gates asked a Microsoft employee in 2006 after watching her make a presentation and, couple of years later, asked out an employee with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation – both while he was married.  

Gates reportedly told the Microsoft employee in an email: ‘If this makes you uncomfortable, pretend it never happened.’ She said she took his advice.

Gates later allegedly asked an employee with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to dinner, while the pair were in New York for a trip.

According to the The Daily Beast report, Gates suggested Epstein become involved with the couple’s philanthropic organization and ‘rehabilitate his image’ after his 2008 conviction for soliciting a minor for prostitution, according to a person who attended the meetings.

Melinda Gates was so incensed by the friendship that she started speaking to a divorce lawyer after the pair’s close ties were first reported by the New York Times in October 2019. 

The friendship between Gates and Epstein began in 2011, three years after Epstein had pleaded guilty to soliciting prostitution from a minor.

The Daily Beast reported on Sunday that the pair had met ‘dozens of times’ at Epstein’s palatial $77m townhouse on Manhattan’s Upper East Side between 2011 and 2014.

The pair would chat about science and philanthropy, as well as joking and gossiping in a ‘men’s club’ atmosphere, the Daily Beast claimed.

Melinda Gates warned her husband Bill against any further contact with Jeffrey Epstein after the couple had an uncomfortable meeting with the convicted sex offender in 2013.

Melinda was ‘furious’ at Bill’s relationship with Epstein after the couple visited the predator’s Upper East Side townhouse in September 2013.

The meeting proved a turning point in Bill’s relationship with Epstein, after Melinda expressed how uncomfortable she was with the sex offender and said she wanted nothing to do with him, the sources said.

Gates and Epstein became friendly in 2011 when Epstein pitched a fund to the Gates Foundation and JP Morgan.

When they met, Epstein had already spent a year in prison for soliciting child prostitution, but he was welcomed back into the upper echelons of New York society.

After their first meeting, Gates sent an email to colleagues saying of Epstein: ‘His lifestyle is very different and kind of intriguing although it would not work for me.’

When the friendship was first revealed in 2019, Gates told the Wall Street Journal: ‘I didn’t have any business relationship or friendship with him’. 

After further revelations came in the New York Times in October 2019, a spokeswoman said he ‘regrets ever meeting with Epstein and recognizes it was an error in judgment to do so.’

Gates said in a statement to the New York Times at the time: ‘I didn’t go to New Mexico or Florida or Palm Beach or any of that. There were people around [Epstein] who were saying, ‘Hey, if you want to raise money for global health and get more philanthropy, he knows a lot of rich people.’

‘Every meeting where I was with him were meetings with men. I was never at any parties or anything like that. He never donated any money to anything that I know about.’

After the latest claims were put to Gates, his spokeswoman said the ‘characterization of his meetings with Epstein and others about philanthropy is inaccurate’.

‘Similarly, any claim that Gates spoke of his marriage or Melinda in a disparaging manner is false.’

The same month the New York Times published details of Gates’ friendship with Epstein in 2019, Melinda began consulting with divorce lawyers, which culminated in the announcement this month that their 27 year marriage was over.

Gates suggested Epstein become involved with the couple’s philanthropic organization and ‘rehabilitate his image’ after his 2008 conviction for soliciting a minor for prostitution, according to a person who attended the meetings.

Gates’ visits to Epstein’s ‘lair’ was an escape from the marriage, according to the source, who claimed the pair ‘were very close’.

UK Government scientific advisors have admitted that they used “unethical” and “totalitarian” methods to brainwash the public in order to control their behavior during the pandemic, according to a report.

The London Telegraph reports the comments made by Members of the Scientific Pandemic Influenza Group on Behaviour (SPI-B), a sub-committee of the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage) – the UK government’s chief scientific advisory group.

Summit.news reports: The report quotes a briefing from March 2020, as the first lockdown was decreed, that stated the government should drastically increase “the perceived level of personal threat” that the virus poses because “a substantial number of people still do not feel sufficiently personally threatened”.

One scientist with the SPI-B admits that “In March [2020] the Government was very worried about compliance and they thought people wouldn’t want to be locked down. There were discussions about fear being needed to encourage compliance, and decisions were made about how to ramp up the fear.”

The unnamed scientist adds that “The way we have used fear is dystopian.”

The scientist further confessed that “The use of fear has definitely been ethically questionable. It’s been like a weird experiment. Ultimately, it backfired because people became too scared.”

Another separate scientist on the subcommittee professed “You could call psychology ‘mind control’. That’s what we do… clearly we try and go about it in a positive way, but it has been used nefariously in the past.”

Another scientist warned that “We have to be very careful about the authoritarianism that is creeping in,” adding “people use the pandemic to grab power and drive through things that wouldn’t happen otherwise.”

According to the report, another researcher with the group acknowledged that “Without a vaccine, psychology is your main weapon,” adding that “Psychology has had a really good epidemic, actually.”

Yet another scientist on the subcommittee stated that they have been “stunned by the weaponisation of behavioural psychology” over the past year, and warned that “psychologists didn’t seem to notice when it stopped being altruistic and became manipulative.”

“They have too much power and it intoxicates them”, the scientist further warned.

The comments were collected by author Laura Dodsworth, for her book A State of Fear, out today, that explores the government’s actions during the pandemic.

When the Telegraph asked the subcommittee for comment on the findings, SPI-B psychologist Gavin Morgan replied “Clearly, using fear as a means of control is not ethical. Using fear smacks of totalitarianism. It’s not an ethical stance for any modern government.”

Morgan added that “By nature I am an optimistic person, but all this has given me a more pessimistic view of people.”

Commenting on the revelations, Conservative Steve Baker, a member of a group of anti-lockdown MPs said “If it is true that the state took the decision to terrify the public to get compliance with rules, that raises extremely serious questions about the type of society we want to become.”

“Do I fear that Government policy today is playing into the roots of totalitarianism? Yes, of course it is,” Baker urged.

The government state of fear continues minute by minute as government ministers are now suggesting that so called ‘freedom day’ in the UK (a situation where the government permits people to have basic rights is not freedom) on June 21st is under threat because a sizeable portion of the population is refusing to take the vaccine:

“I don’t know about you, but when it comes to smuggling children, I’m an abolitionist. I want to abolish human smuggling on the border.” 

Biden’s border crisis “victimizes everyone involved,” including unaccompanied minors, Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton noted Friday. As Fitton further explained, the administration’s failure to enforce the security at our border hasn’t only hurt our national sovereignty, and by extension, the rights of millions of Americans; it has contributed to what might appear to be a true humanitarian crisis involving the lives of thousands of unaccompanied, often smuggled children. In response to three recent reports of child abuse and neglect at the Freeman Coliseum in Texas, Judicial Watch has sued the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) for records about the abuse of children at U.S. border facilities.

As Fitton stated:

“We are concerned that the surge of migrants seeking to take advantage of the Biden administration’s lax immigration policies has resulted in the foreseeable abuse of children, as overwhelmed federal authorities are ill-equipped to handle the huge number of children crossing the border. The unprecedented secrecy and censorship surrounding these sites compounds the problem and limits accountability. Our lawsuit aims to expose the full truth about this particularly troubling consequence of the Biden administration’s lawlessness on immigration.”

You may recall that the administration kept the media and Members of Congress from reporting on the state of the border crisis. Regardless of who the Biden administration wishes to allow at the border, Judicial Watch is acting to make sure our laws are upheld. As Fitton reminded his viewers, “those that want open borders … may not acknowledge this, but it results in human rights abuses. Lawlessness victimizes, in the area of immigration, those who are citizens and illegal aliens.” The only way to get answers is to keep pushing, Fitton concluded. “I want more lawsuits, I want more groups challenging government misconduct.”

If you want answers on the border crisis, support Judicial Watch today – your government watchdog in Washington, DC. 

With weeks to go to elections that will decide New York City’s next mayor and the powerful post of Manhattan district attorney, rising crime suddenly is at the center of the political action. The stakes are high—and not just for New York.

The proximate cause for the sudden focus on crime was a shooting in the heart of the city—a gunman let loose with a fusillade in Times Square, wounding a 4-year-old girl, a woman from New Jersey, and a tourist from Rhode Island. But that was just gas on the bonfire. Judicial Watch followers are familiar with the grim litany of rising crime statistics in New York and across urban America.

“As of May 2,” the New York Times reported, “132 people have been killed compared with 113 this same time last year, a 17 percent increase, according to Police Department statistics. There have been 416 shooting incidents compared with 227 this time last year, an 83 percent increase.” Violent subway crimes rattle the city. Hate crimes continue to rise.

Rising crime poses a big problem for the Left, which nationwide has pushed hard on criminal-justice issues with calls to defund the police and empty the jails. In New York, a draft platform from a coalition of radical left-wing groups, obtained by Judicial Watch, suggests the scope of the Left’s national agenda.

The crowded New York mayoral and DA races are Democratic Party primaries that will be decided June 22 in a city dominated by Democrats, effectively anointing the winners. Both races have tacked sharply to the left, with most of the DA candidates backing most of the radical platform, and the mayoral candidates echoing its themes.

The platform calls for defunding the Manhattan DA’s office, sharp reductions in charging and sentencing discretion, curtailing gang prosecutions and intelligence gathering, ending support for police-sponsored community programs, declining disorderly conduct prosecutions, and stopping pre-trial detention.

It’s class war on the criminal justice system. The platform calls for a fifty percent reduction in the district attorney’s budget because “for too long” the office “has worked to extract wealth from the targets of policing and incarceration.” It says that the DA “continues to pursue overzealous charges and excessive sentences” and that there must be a commitment to “reducing the power of the office.”

The attack on the office of district attorney is an attack on policing as well. The DA’s office, the draft platform says, “is heavily intertwined with and dependent on other law enforcement entities, including the NYPD.” Charging of violent offenders must be changed because “the label ‘violent’…is applied in arbitrary, biased, and harmful ways that do nothing to address the root causes of violence.” Gang prosecutions must be ended because the “cases have been built through close collaboration with the NYPD as it has expanded its racist and controversial gang database.”

Gang violence, by the way, is widely identified as a central cause of shootings and killings in New York. And recent state legislation already has sharply reduced jail populations.

But lately it seems that urban America is tiring of rising crime and disorder. The public mood appears to be shifting. In a recent New York poll, crime placed second in public concern, after Covid-19.

In recent years, the criminal-justice reform movement, backed by the George Soros network, has made powerful gains around the country. Left-wing district attorneys are now installed in Chicago, Boston, San Francisco, Philadelphia, and other cities. The New York races, while dominated by the city’s noisy progressive factions, feature a handful of relative moderates, such as mayoral candidate Eric Adams and DA contender Tali Farhadian Weinstein, who have pushed back against the Left’s excesses . Polling is sparse, but both seem to be gaining ground. Read more about the races here and here.

Victory for any moderate would signal that the public pushback against rising crime is gaining traction. Victory for any of the other candidates would signal something entirely different—that the leftward march in American cities continues.

***

Micah Morrison is chief investigative reporter for Judicial Watch. Follow him on Twitter @micah_morrison. Tips: [email protected]

Investigative Bulletin is published by Judicial Watch. Reprints and media inquiries: [email protected]

 (Washington, DC) – Judicial Watch announced today that it filed Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuits against the Department of the Interior and the Department of Defense for records regarding the deployment of armed forces around the Capitol complex in Washington, D.C., in January and February of 2021 (Judicial Watch v. U.S. Department of Department of the Interior (No. 1:21-cv-01302)) and (Judicial Watch v. U.S. Department of Department of Defense(No. 1:21-cv-01301)).

Judicial Watch filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia after the Department of Defense failed to reply to a February 19, 2021, FOIA request for: 

All emails regarding the deployment of U.S. troops around the Capitol complex in Washington, D.C. sent to and from Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, Deputy Secretary Kathleen H. Hicks, Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Mark A. Milley, and/or Vice Chairman Gen. John E. Hyten.

The timeframe for this request is January 6, 2021, to February 19, 2021.

Judicial Watch also filed a lawsuit against the Department of the Interior after the U.S. Park Police, one of its components, failed to reply to a March 18, 2021, FOIA request for: 

All records of communications, including emails and text messages, between officials of the U.S. Park Police and officials of the Washington, D.C. Metropolitan Police Department regarding the Jan. 6, 2021 pro-Trump rally and/or protest at the Capitol Building.

All records of communications, including emails and text messages, between officials of the U.S. Park Police and officials of the Federal Bureau of Investigation regarding the Jan. 6, 2021 pro-Trump rally and/or protest at the Capitol Building.

All records of communications, including emails and text messages, between officials of the U.S. Park Police and officials of the U.S. Capitol Police regarding the Jan. 6, 2021 pro-Trump rally and/or protest at the Capitol Building.

All records of communications, including emails and text messages, between officials of the U.S. Park Police and officials of the offices of the House and Senate Sergeants-at-Arms regarding the Jan. 6, 2021 pro-Trump rally and/or protest at the Capitol Building.

All intelligence reports, memoranda, updates, and warnings received by the U.S. Park Police regarding the Jan. 6, 2021 pro-Trump rally and/or protest at the Capitol Building.

The timeframe for this request is December 1, 2020, to January 31, 2021.

“Judicial Watch is deeply troubled that the U.S. Park Police and the Pentagon are suppressing the many unknown facts surrounding the January 6 incident at the U.S. Capitol,” stated Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton. “With those emotionally charged events shaping the political landscape, it is critical that the American people have a full account of the facts. It is disturbing that we must take the two government agencies to federal court for this basic information.”

Judicial Watch has several lawsuits regarding the January 6 incident. In March 2021, Judicial Watch filed suit against the U.S. Department of Defense for records about House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s January 8, 2021, telephone call with Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley.

Pressure from a March 2021 Judicial Watch lawsuit helped bring to light that Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick died of natural causes.

In February 2021, Judicial Watch announced its lawsuit against the Capitol Police for emails and video related to the January 6 riot.

###

Judicial Watch Sues for Pentagon Communications about Tucker Carlson, Fox News
Illegal Immigration Overwhelms Sheriffs; Families Exposed to Gang Violence
Maxine Waters and Congressional Special Security Demands Puts Americans at Risk

Judicial Watch Sues for Pentagon Communications about Tucker Carlson, Fox News

As Joe Biden and his handlers remake the federal government in their own image they are clumsily tripping over the U.S. Constitution. Consider the Pentagon and Tucker Carlson of Fox News.

In the March 9, 2021, broadcast of “Tucker Carlson Tonight,” Carlson said, in criticizing a “woke” public relations push by the military:

So we’ve got new hairstyles and maternity flight suits. Pregnant women are going to fight our wars. It’s a mockery of the U.S. military. Well, China’s military becomes more masculine as it’s assembled the world’s largest navy…. It’s a mockery of the U.S. military.

Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said that Defense Secretary Austin was “revulsed” by Carlson’s comments. Official military Twitter accounts were also used to attack Carlson’s views.

What was going on behind the scenes at the Pentagon? To find out we filed a FOIA suit against the Department of Defense seeking communications between Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and other top military officials regarding Fox News and Carlson, whose recent commentary on the U.S. military was attacked by top Pentagon officials (Judicial Watch v. U.S. Department of Department of Defense (No. 1:21-cv-01225)).

We sued here in federal court after the Department of Defense failed to reply to our March 16, 2021, request for:

All emails sent between Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and email accounts ending in .gov and/or .mil containing the terms “Tucker Carlson” and/or “Fox News.”

All emails sent between Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley and email accounts ending in .gov and/or .mil containing the terms “Tucker Carlson” and/or “Fox News.”

All emails sent between Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. John Hyten and email accounts ending in .gov and/or .mil containing the terms “Tucker Carlson” and/or “Fox News.”

We’re asking for emails sent between March 1, 2021, and March 16, 2021. 

On his March 11 show, Carlson accused the Pentagon of declaring “war on a domestic news operation:”

Since when does the Pentagon declare war on a domestic news operation? We can’t remember that ever happening. But we’re going to pass on that, because this is bigger than a feud with some flack at the Pentagon. This is genuinely worrisome.

Texas Republican Sen. Ted Cruz sent a letter to Defense Secretary Austin demanding a meeting with the Commandant of the Marine Corps to account for the attacks on Carlson and “a plan to prevent other military units from being similarly mobilized against the speech of American citizens.”

In the letter, Sen. Cruz wrote:

I am deeply troubled that the comments you made, and the military’s broader obligation to avoid political endorsements and controversy, are being systematically undermined for the sake of leftwing ideology and political expediency. The last week has witnessed the Pentagon mobilize systematic, public attacks against television host Tucker Carlson that in substance, tone, and political resonance are inexplicably inappropriate.

The Department of Defense has rules about how members of the U.S. military can participate in politics. Active military members may express a personal opinion on political candidates and issues, but they cannot express opinions on behalf of or as a representative of the U.S. military. 

We are deeply disturbed over the Pentagon’s illicit secrecy about its coordinated attacks on the First Amendment-protected speech of Tucker Carlson. 

To sum up, we asked the Pentagon to search two weeks’ worth of email, in three accounts, using two search terms. And they stonewalled. 

The fact that we must take the Pentagon to federal court for these documents suggests the agency has something to hide.  

Illegal Immigration Overwhelms Sheriffs; Families Exposed to Gang Violence

As the corrupt media is focused on promoting the anti-Trump politician Liz Cheney, the deadly dangerous Biden border crisis continues unabated. But sheriffs of many counties across the country are making a stand for the rule of law, our sovereignty, and the rule of law — as our Corruption Chronicles blog reports.

Local law enforcement agencies nationwide are overwhelmed with criminal activity linked to a huge increase in illegal immigration, and families are being exposed to violence associated with drug trafficking and transnational gangs, according to hundreds of sheriffs across the United States. In a letter to President Joe Biden, the law enforcement officials in more than two dozen states blast the administration’s “reckless and irresponsible” open border policies that are exposing innocent citizens to illegal alien violence. Titled, “Help America’s Sheriffs Keep Our Neighborhoods and Communities Safe by Halting Illegal Immigration,” the document asserts that the crisis began when Biden was vice president.

“In a myriad of ways, you and your administration are encouraging and sanctioning lawlessness and the victimization of the people of the United States of America, all in the name of mass illegal immigration,” the sheriffs write. “What is most troubling to America’s Sheriffs is that you and your administration were well aware that this crisis would happen when you ceased construction of the border wall and changed border security policies.” The law enforcement officials continue: “Sheriffs were talking with the Obama/Biden administration about these same concerns that we were experiencing at the time based on the lax policies then being implemented. In fact, America’s Sheriffs attended meetings in Washington with then-Undersecretary of Homeland Security (DHS) Alejandro Mayorkas, who is now your Secretary of Homeland Security. You and he are fully aware of what illegal immigration does to our citizens, legal residents and our communities.”

Among the letter’s signatories are sheriffs in Alabama, Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, Nebraska, Nevada, North Carolina, and Texas to name a few. Even sheriffs, who are typically elected to head county law enforcement agencies, in states that broadly offer illegal immigrants sanctuary signed the letter. They include several in California, Colorado, Massachusetts, Oregon, New Jersey, Illinois, Oregon, and Vermont. “You may imagine how violated America’s Sheriffs feel that you unleashed a predictable crisis upon our nation that puts those we promised to protect at risk of grave danger,” the cops write to the commander-in-chief. “America’s Sheriffs will not defy our oaths. We will not join with those who suggest that we ignore existing laws in collusion with those elected officials who arbitrarily feel that they should be excused from being accountable and required to follow our laws. To do so would violate the promise of America’s Sheriffs to those who bestowed upon us the honor and privilege to represent their safety and security concerns.”

The officials continue by writing that Americans expect them to uphold and enforce the rule of law and assure that they will uphold the oath to do so. “In the interests of ending the undermining of our laws and the increased risks to the safety and security of the people of the United States of America, we respectfully request that you immediately reverse course on your pro-illegal immigration policies, resume the border wall construction, and embrace the common-sense, public-safety-supporting border policies of the previous administration.” The Obama and Trump administrations “recognized the threats and dangers presented by illegal immigration,” the law enforcement officials write, adding that it is “critically important” that Biden see it as well.

The sheriff who wrote the letter, Thomas M. Hodgson in Bristol County, Massachusetts, sent it to his counterparts throughout the U.S. and 275 sheriffs in 39 states quickly signed it. Hodgson authored it after government figures revealed a record number of illegal immigrant minors entered the country from Mexico. Around the same time, the U.S. Border Patrol disclosed that it arrested more than twice as many criminal migrants in the first six months of fiscal year 2021 than it did in all of 2020. In the first half of this fiscal year, the Border Patrol apprehended 5,018 “criminal aliens” compared to 2,438 in all of fiscal year 2020. The agency defines criminal aliens as individuals who have been convicted of one or more crimes, whether in the U.S. or abroad, prior to interdiction by federal agents.

Maxine Waters and Congressional Special Security Demands Puts Americans at Risk

Reasonable security for congressmen and other public officials is necessary, but it shouldn’t come at the direct expense of the safety and protection of Americans. But that’s exactly what is happening. Here are the shocking details from our Corruption Chronicles blog.

Federal Air Marshals (FAM) were yanked from a high-risk flight so Congresswoman Maxine Waters could have extra security during a recent trip to Minnesota, though she was already covered by a four-man detail consisting of two Capitol Police officers and two Secret Service agents, according to multiple law enforcement sources interviewed by Judicial Watch. The veteran FAM sources say the California Democrat had two air marshals reassigned to a plane that would otherwise not qualify because it was not considered high-risk. The transfer forced the high-risk flight to complete its trip without the two air marshals originally assigned to it, said Sonya Hightower-LaBosco, a retired FAM who serves as executive director of the Air Marshal National Council. The union represents thousands of air marshals nationwide. “Two air marshals were pulled off a high-risk flight so Maxine Waters’ aircraft could have six armed agents,” Hightower-LaBosco said, adding that two additional armed agents met the congresswoman on the ground.

FAMs are federal law enforcement officers whose primary function is to protect commercial passenger flights by deterring and countering the risk of terrorist activity, aircraft piracy and other crimes to protect the nation’s transportation infrastructure. However, a special “VIP” program launched about a year ago allows members of Congress to get extra protection even though they often already travel with plenty of security on flights that do not meet the threat criteria, usually determined by the FBI, for air marshals. The program “has left a glaring hole in America’s aviation security,” according to a whistleblower complaint filed this year by the Air Marshal National Council with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Inspector General. “Recently, the Federal Air Marshal service has assigned a full-time position at the Capitol in Washington D.C. to take requests from Congressional members for Federal Air Marshal coverage of flights these Congressional members are on,” the document, which is also addressed to DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, states. “The FAMS are now taking agents off of regularly scheduled high risk flights to put them on flights with members of Congress, that in most cases have their own armed federal security details onboard already. It has become akin to a type of extremely expensive concierge service for Congressional members.” The document cites the recent Waters request as an example, confirming what other sources told Judicial Watch, that “FAMS were pulled off of a scheduled high-risk flight to cover” the congresswoman’s plane.

Waters received the extra security while traveling to Minnesota in mid-April to support protestors in Brooklyn Center, a Minneapolis suburb, after police shot and killed a black man with an open warrant related to an aggravated armed robbery. The Derek Chauvin trial was wrapping up around 10 miles away and the 82-year-old lawmaker incited the crowd, encouraging protestors to “get more confrontational” if the former Minneapolis cop was not convicted of murder for George Floyd’s death. “We gotta stay on the street, we’ve got to get more active, we’ve got to get more confrontational, we’ve got to make sure that they know that we mean business,” Waters said ahead of closing arguments in Chauvin’s trial. The former officer was convicted and the judge presiding over the trial called the congresswoman’s comments “abhorrent.”

Judicial Watch is investigating Waters’ special security arrangement and has filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request with DHS for documents associated with the April 17 Delta Airlines flight from Washington D.C.’s Dulles International Airport to Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport. In the public-record request Judicial Watch writes that Waters raised the potential for violence, directed lawlessness, and may have interfered with a co-equal branch of government. Furthermore, Judicial Watch points out that it is still not known what authorized official government business the congresswoman, who represents Los Angeles in the House, was attending in Minnesota and the appearance is her travel was for personal gain. “How do you go out and promote defunding the police then call for more police protection,” said Hightower-LaBosco, a former police officer who served 12 years as an air marshal. Hightower-Bosco says the estimated cost of Waters’ security detail is about $10,000 for each leg.

Until next week,

From Chris Farrell’s Op-Ed for The Daily Caller:

Wednesday’s White House summit with congressional leaders on the $2.3 trillion infrastructure bill, officially known as the American Jobs Plan, made little headway in forging bipartisan consensus. A large part of the problem is that President Biden and Congressional Democrats have decided that virtually any aspect of their big-government agenda can be redefined as infrastructure and tossed in the mix.

For example, fighting climate change is now part of infrastructure. The bill would fund a “Civilian Climate Corps,” a nod to the old Civilian Conservation Corps from the FDR era, which seeks to “put a new, diverse generation of Americans to work conserving our public lands and waters, bolstering community resilience, and advancing environmental justice.” In other words, it will spend billions to underwrite make-work jobs with full health benefits for environmental activists who can’t find gainful employment in the private sector. There are also $175 billion in subsidies for electric vehicles, which could very well be a replay of the Solyndra solar panels debacle. And throughout the bill are nods to promoting green best practices and “environmental justice,” whatever that is.

Education is now part of infrastructure. There is $100 billion devoted to public schools, on top of the $128 billion from the COVID-19 relief bill. A further $12 billion goes to community colleges, in addition to the planned $109 billion in the American Families Act to provide two years of tuition-free education. And other billions are devoted to reducing “racial and gender inequities” in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) fields.

Read More Here.

Federal Air Marshals (FAM) were yanked from a high-risk flight so Congresswoman Maxine Waters could have extra security during a recent trip to Minnesota, though she was already covered by a four-man detail consisting of two Capitol Police officers and two Secret Service agents, according to multiple law enforcement sources interviewed by Judicial Watch. The veteran FAM sources say the California Democrat had two air marshals reassigned to a plane that would otherwise not qualify because it was not considered high-risk. The transfer forced the high-risk flight to complete its trip without the two air marshals originally assigned to it, said Sonya Hightower-LaBosco, a retired FAM who serves as executive director of the Air Marshal National Council. The union represents thousands of air marshals nationwide. “Two air marshals were pulled off a high-risk flight so Maxine Waters’ aircraft could have six armed agents,” Hightower-LaBosco said, adding that two additional armed agents met the congresswoman on the ground.

FAMs are federal law enforcement officers whose primary function is to protect commercial passenger flights by deterring and countering the risk of terrorist activity, aircraft piracy and other crimes to protect the nation’s transportation infrastructure. However, a special “VIP” program launched about a year ago allows members of Congress to get extra protection even though they often already travel with plenty of security on flights that do not meet the threat criteria, usually determined by the FBI, for air marshals. The program “has left a glaring hole in America’s aviation security,” according to a whistleblower complaint filed this year by the Air Marshal National Council with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Inspector General. “Recently, the Federal Air Marshal service has assigned a full-time position at the Capitol in Washington D.C. to take requests from Congressional members for Federal Air Marshal coverage of flights these Congressional members are on,” the document, which is also addressed to DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, states. “The FAMS are now taking agents off of regularly scheduled high risk flights to put them on flights with members of Congress, that in most cases have their own armed federal security details onboard already. It has become akin to a type of extremely expensive concierge service for Congressional members.” The document cites the recent Waters request as an example, confirming what other sources told Judicial Watch, that “FAMS were pulled off of a scheduled high-risk flight to cover” the congresswoman’s plane.

Waters received the extra security while traveling to Minnesota in mid-April to support protestors in Brooklyn Center, a Minneapolis suburb, after police shot and killed a black man with an open warrant related to an aggravated armed robbery. The Derek Chauvin trial was wrapping up around 10 miles away and the 82-year-old lawmaker incited the crowd, encouraging protestors to “get more confrontational” if the former Minneapolis cop was not convicted of murder for George Floyd’s death. “We gotta stay on the street, we’ve got to get more active, we’ve got to get more confrontational, we’ve got to make sure that they know that we mean business,” Waters said ahead of closing arguments in Chauvin’s trial. The former officer was convicted and the judge presiding over the trial called the congresswoman’s comments “abhorrent.” Last month Judicial Watch filed a complaint with the chairman of the House Office of Congressional Ethics against Waters for violating House ethics rules by encouraging violence and attempting to intimidate the jury in the Chauvin trial.

Judicial Watch is investigating Waters’ special security arrangement and has filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request with DHS for documents associated with the April 17 Delta Airlines flight from Washington D.C.’s Dulles International Airport to Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport. In the public-record request Judicial Watch writes that Waters raised the potential for violence, directed lawlessness, and may have interfered with a co-equal branch of government. Furthermore, Judicial Watch points out that it is still not known what authorized official government business the congresswoman, who represents Los Angeles in the House, was attending in Minnesota and the appearance is her travel was for personal gain. “How do you go out and promote defunding the police then call for more police protection,” said Hightower-LaBosco, a former police officer who served 12 years as an air marshal. Hightower-Bosco says the estimated cost of Waters’ security detail is about $10,000 for each leg.

Five days after this story was published the U.S. Capitol Police contacted Judicial Watch denying that it had any officers on Waters’ plane. Judicial Watch stands by its reporting and multiple government sources, including federal law enforcement officials, confirm the story is accurate. 

Local law enforcement agencies nationwide are overwhelmed with criminal activity linked to a huge increase in illegal immigration and families are being exposed to violence associated with drug trafficking and transnational gangs, according to hundreds of sheriffs across the United States. In a letter to President Joe Biden, the law enforcement officials in more than two dozen states blast the administration’s “reckless and irresponsible” open border policies that are exposing innocent citizens to illegal alien violence. Titled, “Help America’s Sheriffs Keep Our Neighborhoods and Communities Safe by Halting Illegal Immigration,” the document asserts that the crisis began when Biden was vice president.

“In a myriad of ways, you and your administration are encouraging and sanctioning lawlessness and the victimization of the people of the United States of America, all in the name of mass illegal immigration,” the sheriffs write. “What is most troubling to America’s Sheriffs is that you and your administration were well aware that this crisis would happen when you ceased construction of the border wall and changed border security policies.” The law enforcement officials continue: “Sheriffs were talking with the Obama/Biden administration about these same concerns that we were experiencing at the time based on the lax policies then being implemented. In fact, America’s Sheriffs attended meetings in Washington with then-Undersecretary of Homeland Security (DHS) Alejandro Mayorkas, who is now your Secretary of Homeland Security. You and he are fully aware of what illegal immigration does to our citizens, legal residents and our communities.”

Among the letter’s signatories are sheriffs in Alabama, Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, Nebraska, Nevada, North Carolina, and Texas to name a few. Even sheriffs, who are typically elected to head county law enforcement agencies, in states that broadly offer illegal immigrants sanctuary signed the letter. They include several in California, Colorado, Massachusetts, Oregon, New Jersey, Illinois, Oregon, and Vermont. “You may imagine how violated America’s Sheriffs feel that you unleashed a predictable crisis upon our nation that puts those we promised to protect at risk of grave danger,” the cops write to the commander-in-chief. “America’s Sheriffs will not defy our oaths. We will not join with those who suggest that we ignore existing laws in collusion with those elected officials who arbitrarily feel that they should be excused from being accountable and required to follow our laws. To do so would violate the promise of America’s Sheriffs to those who bestowed upon us the honor and privilege to represent their safety and security concerns.”

The officials continue by writing that Americans expect them to uphold and enforce the rule of law and assure that they will uphold the oath to do so. “In the interests of ending the undermining of our laws and the increased risks to the safety and security of the people of the United States of America, we respectfully request that you immediately reverse course on your pro-illegal immigration policies, resume the border wall construction, and embrace the common-sense, public-safety-supporting border policies of the previous administration.” The Obama and Trump administrations “recognized the threats and dangers presented by illegal immigration,” the law enforcement officials write, adding that it is “critically important” that Biden see it as well.

The sheriff who wrote the letter, Thomas M. Hodgson in Bristol County, Massachusetts, sent it to his counterparts throughout the U.S. and 275 sheriffs in 39 states quickly signed it. Hodgson authored it after government figures revealed a record number of illegal immigrant minors entered the country from Mexico. Around the same time, the U.S. Border Patrol disclosed that it arrested more than twice as many criminal migrants in the first six months of fiscal year 2021 than it did in all of 2020. In the first half of this fiscal year, the Border Patrol apprehended 5,018 “criminal aliens” compared to 2,438 in all of fiscal year 2020. The agency defines criminal aliens as individuals who have been convicted of one or more crimes, whether in the U.S. or abroad, prior to interdiction by federal agents.

(Washington, DC) – Judicial Watch announced today that it filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit against the Department of Defense seeking records of communications between Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and other top military officials regarding Fox News and its host Tucker Carlson, whose recent commentary on the U.S. military was attacked by top Pentagon officials (Judicial Watch v. U.S. Department of Department of Defense (No. 1:21-cv-01225)).

Judicial Watch filed the lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia after the Department of Defense failed to reply to a March 16, 2021, FOIA for:

All emails sent between Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and email accounts ending in .gov and/or .mil containing the terms “Tucker Carlson” and/or “Fox News.”

All emails sent between Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley and email accounts ending in .gov and/or .mil containing the terms “Tucker Carlson” and/or “Fox News.”

All emails sent between Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. John Hyten and email accounts ending in .gov and/or .mil containing the terms “Tucker Carlson” and/or “Fox News.”

The time frame of the request was identified as March 1, 2021 to March 16, 2021.

In the March 9, 2021, broadcast of “Tucker Carlson Tonight,” Carlson said:

So we’ve got new hairstyles and maternity flight suits. Pregnant women are going to fight our wars. It’s a mockery of the U.S. military. Well, China’s military becomes more masculine as it’s assembled the world’s largest navy…. It’s a mockery of the U.S. military.

Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said that Defense Secretary Austin was “revulsed” by Carlson’s comments.

Official military Twitter accounts were also used to attack Carlson’s views.

On his March 11 show, Carlson accused the Pentagon of declaring “war on a domestic news operation:” 

Since when does the Pentagon declare war on a domestic news operation? We can’t remember that ever happening. But we’re going to pass on that, because this is bigger than a feud with some flack at the Pentagon. This is genuinely worrisome.

“Judicial Watch is disturbed about the Pentagon’s illicit secrecy about its coordinated attacks on the First Amendment-protected speech of Tucker Carlson,” stated Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton. “The fact that we must take the Pentagon to federal court for these documents suggests the agency has something to hide.”

Texas Republican Sen. Ted Cruz sent a letter to Defense Secretary Austin demanding a meeting with the Commandant of the Marine Corps to account for the attacks on Carlson and “a plan to prevent other military units from being similarly mobilized against the speech of American citizens.”

In the letter, Sen. Cruz wrote:

I am deeply troubled that the comments you made, and the military’s broader obligation to avoid political endorsements and controversy, are being systematically undermined for the sake of leftwing ideology and political expediency. The last week has witnessed the Pentagon mobilize systematic, public attacks against television host Tucker Carlson that in substance, tone, and political resonance are inexplicably inappropriate.

The Department of Defense has rules about how members of the U.S. military can participate in politics. Active military members may express a personal opinion on political candidates and issues, but they cannot express opinions on behalf of or as a representative of the U.S. military. As Miliary.com stated in 2016:

The DoD’s regulations are guided mostly by the Hatch Act, a federal law passed in 1939 restricting certain types of political activity among military members and other federal employees. The U.S. Office of Special Counsel provided updated “guidance” to the act regarding social media activity in 2012 and again in late 2015.

###

NEW: Iowa Gov’t Officials Coordinated with Big Tech to Censor Judicial Watch Election Posts
Judicial Watch Sues over Abuse of Children Tied to Biden Border Crisis
Facebook’s Brazen Ban of President Trump Should Concern Every American
Judicial Watch Reveals CENSORED History of 2020 Election
Judicial Watch Sues for Records of Biden Dogs after Biting Incidents

NEW: Iowa Gov’t Officials Coordinated with Big Tech to Censor Judicial Watch Election Posts

Last week we released records from the Secretary of State of California revealing how state officials pressured social media companies (Twitter, Facebook, Google (YouTube)) to censor election posts. Included were “misinformation briefing” emails compiled by communications firm SKDK, which lists Biden for President as its top client of 2020. 

The state agency successfully pressured YouTube to censor a Judicial Watch video concerning vote by mail and a Judicial Watch lawsuit settlement about California voter roll clean up.

It turns out that California wasn’t the only state acting in seeming violation of the First Amendment. The new information from Iowa revealed below exposes the dirty details of the expanding conspiracy against free expression.

We received 624 pages of records from the Secretary of State of Iowa showing how state officials pressured social media companies Twitter and Facebook to censor posts about the 2020 election. 

Included in these records were emails from Iowa state officials to representatives of Big Tech pressuring these companies to remove some of Judicial Watch’s posts. The emails show how the state agency successfully pressured Facebook to censor our post about Iowa’s management of its voter rolls.

We received the records as a result of a June 2020 Iowa Open Records lawsuit filed after the Iowa Secretary of State failed to comply with our February 2020 request for records and communications about a Judicial Watch report regarding the accuracy of the state’s voter registration rolls (Judicial Watch v. Iowa Secretary of State (No. 05771 EQCE085973)). We were represented by Iowa lawyer Alan R. Ostergren of Des Moines, Iowa.

The records show that officials in the Secretary of State’s office on multiple occasions contacted officials from Facebook and Twitter to try to have these companies remove Judicial Watch posts that raised concerns about Iowa’s failure to maintain accurate election rolls.

On February 3, 2020, at 5:19 p.m., Kevin Hall, the communications director for the Iowa Secretary of State, wrote in a February 3, 2020, email to Facebook official Rachel Holland:

Rachel,

We’ve been playing whack-a-mole with this false story all day. Is there anything you can do to help: [likely https://www.facebook.com/JudicialWatch/posts/10157583458431943]

We’ve told them is fake. They have it PINNED to the top of their page.

Here’s our rebuttal: https://sos.iowa.gov/news/2020_02_02.html

Holland responded at 6:11p.m., writing:

Hi Kevin,

Circling back with an update regarding the content posted by Judicial Watch. Our third-party fact checkers have rated this content false, and we have applied a filter over the content warning users before they click to see it that the content has been rated false by independent fact checkers.

Please continue to report violating content to us by emailing [email protected], and copying me ([email protected]), as I will be on an airplane for the next couple hours. Let me know if you have any questions or concerns regarding this or any other matters.

A couple of hours later, Hall followed up, “Thank you! They have new posts up, doubling down on the false claims.”

And Holland responded, “Thanks for flagging- we’ve got a full team with eyes on this now and are applying the false filter to similar articles as well. I’ll send you an additional update shortly!”

That same day, Hall and Maria Benson, the director of communications at the National Association of Secretaries of State, both tried to convince Twitter to censor Judicial Watch’s posts but were ultimately unsuccessful.

Hall filed a report with Twitter, and Benson escalated it by looping in Kevin Kane from Twitter. On February 3, 2020, Benson wrote, “Iowa Secretary of State has reported the below election misinformation, but Twitter has declined to take it down. As you can see from the facts the tweets are clearly wrong. I wanted to bring this to your attention to hopefully remedy the situation. I’ve cc’d Kevin Hall, their Communicators Director.”

Kane responded rejecting the request saying, “Thanks Maria – This was reviewed by our team and is not in violation of our election integrity policy as it does not suppress voter turnout or mislead people about when. where. or how to vote. I understand this is not the outcome you are seeking and appreciate you continuing to report Tweets to our team.”

In an email the next day, Hall wrote to Kane saying, “Facebook, thankfully, was helpful. I would suggest perhaps reviewing your policies at Twitter and putting them more in line with what Facebook is doing to counter election misinformation.”

After being rejected by Twitter, Benson emailed Brian Scully, an official at the Department of Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, writing on February 3, 2020:

Hey Brian,

Can you report this as well? Hannity is now retweeting and Twitter isn’t playing ball with us. I’ve cc’d Kevin Hall who you met Saturday. He’s IA SOS’s Communications Director. He’s been reporting and playing wack a mole by trying to reply to misleading tweets.

Scully responded promising to contact Twitter. “Sorry … been out of pocket a bit. Will reach out to Twitter. Let me know if you get something.”

These records are yet another example of state officials conspiring with Big Tech to deny Americans their First Amendment rights. These records further show that Big Tech censorship is a government scandal: Iowa government officials worked with Facebook to remove posts they did not like, and Facebook bowed to this political pressure immediately. It should be disturbing to all Americans that government officials are working to censor speech they disagree with and that these behemoth companies often seem willing to roll over and censor free speech.

Judicial Watch Sues over Abuse of Children Tied to Biden Border Crisis

Little children are in trouble on the border. Texas welfare officials received three reports of abuse and neglect at the Freeman Coliseum in San Antonio, where more than 1,300 migrant children reportedly had been held. The site is one of several set up to handle the recent surge. This came on the heels of claims that multiple facilities where children are being held are unsafe.

To dig into this, we filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) suit against the Department of Health and Human Services for records about assaults on and abuse of unaccompanied alien children (UAC) in HHS custody (Judicial Watch, Inc. v. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (No. 1:21-cv-01190)).

We sued after the HHS denied our February 26, 2021, FOIA request for:

1. All summaries from individual case files of reports of physical and/or sexual abuse or assault of Unaccompanied Alien Children under the care of HHS, its sub-agencies, and or volunteer agencies, contractors, grantees, and sub-grantees, to include all segregable, non-exempt information.
2. Records reflecting aggregated data of physical and/or sexual abuse and assault of UACs under the care of HHS, its sub-agencies, and or volunteer agencies, contractors, grantees, and sub-grantees.

We are concerned that the surge of migrants seeking to take advantage of the Biden administration’s lax immigration policies has resulted in the foreseeable abuse of children, as overwhelmed federal authorities are ill-equipped to handle the huge number of children crossing the border. The unprecedented secrecy and censorship surrounding these sites compounds the problem and limits accountability. Our lawsuit aims to expose the full truth about this particularly troubling consequence of the Biden administration’s lawlessness on immigration.

This is not a new problem. We uncovered HHS records in July 2018 revealing that in multiple cases, unaccompanied alien children (UACs) processed during the Obama administration were assaulted by government employees.

We began investigating this matter in 2014 when a wave of UACs swamped the southwest border. Since that time, we have been investigating incidents of violence, drug trafficking, human trafficking, and other criminal activities, as well as whether migrant children were being abused while in U.S. shelters.

Facebook’s Brazen Ban of President Trump Should Concern Every American

The Facebook Oversight Board’s decision upholding President Trump’s Facebook ban undermines the First Amendment and free speech. The brazen ban of President Trump is already chilling the speech of other Facebook users and Internet users generally, who fairly worry about Facebook and Big Tech censoring and deplatforming them.

I have been personally locked out of Twitter for four months over a tweet previously found not to be in violation of Twitter’s rules.

Judicial Watch previously argued that Facebook’s Oversight Board should have reversed the president’s ban because the ban is an affront to First Amendment protections of free speech, peaceable assembly, and the right to petition the government. There is no credible evidence that President Trump either morally or legally incited violence. He was resoundingly acquitted by the United States Senate after the impeachment “prosecutors” failed to produce credible evidence he incited violence. For Facebook and its Oversight Board to suggest President Trump incited violence and that complaints about the administration of an election could incite violence is a political position aligned with the Left and political opponents of President Trump and his supporters.

Judicial Watch Reveals CENSORED History of 2020 Election

We continue to investigate the serious questions concerning the 2020 election. Our chief investigative reporter, Micah Morrison, summarizes our efforts in his Investigative Bulletin:

Judicial Watch has uncovered critical new details in the secret history of the 2020 election: how state government officials—at times interfacing with the Biden presidential campaign—colluded with Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube to censor freedom of speech.

The new information raises enormous constitutional and legal questions. It challenges the conventional wisdom that the companies are operating solely as private actors and can remove or ban users of their services as they see fit, with no violation of First Amendment rights.

The new documents “suggest a conspiracy against the First Amendment rights of Americans,” said Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton. “These documents blow up the big lie that Big Tech censorship is ‘private’—as the documents show collusion between a whole group of government officials in multiple states to suppress speech about election controversies.”

In California, we obtained more than 500 pages of documents showing how a state agency, the Office of Election Cybersecurity, tracked social media commentary and pushed Big Tech to take down posts. Included in the documents were so-called

“Misinformation Daily Briefings” from the communications firm SKDK. The firm also was deeply involved in the Biden presidential campaign, developing its mail-in voting program for four key electoral states: Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Arizona.

For Big Tech and state officials, questioning the wisdom of mail-in voting was not allowed. On September 11, 2020, when JW’s Tom Fitton made the common-sense observation on Twitter that “mailing 51 million ballots to those who haven’t asked for increases risk of voter fraud and intimidation,” SKDK put him in its “misinformation brief” to California election security officials.

(In January, Twitter suspended Tom for tweeting another common-sense observation—“hydroxychloroquine is a safe drug”—a comment he had several times earlier made on Twitter and which the tech giant earlier had found not to be in violation of its rules. Read more on the incident here.)

California officials went after Tom again on September 24, falsely stating that he claimed in a YouTube video that Democrats would benefit from incorrect voter rolls and ballot collection. In the video, in fact, Tom was updating viewers about Judicial Watch’s highly successful, non-partisan lawsuit settlement with Los Angeles County to clean up voter rolls. Judicial Watch is a national leader in a non-partisan effort to clean up voter rolls.

California officials directly contacted YouTube complaining about the Judicial Watch video. Three days later, the video was deleted from YouTube.

In Iowa, Judicial Watch obtained 624 pages of records revealing how state officials pressured Twitter and Facebook to censor posts about the 2020 election. Included in the records were emails pressing the companies to remove Judicial Watch posts.

The emails show how the state agency successfully worked with Facebook to censor a Judicial Watch post about Iowa’s management of its voter rolls:

An Iowa state official emailed Facebook official Rachel Holland complaining that a Judicial Watch story on Iowa’s management of voter rolls was “false.” (It wasn’t.) The time stamp on the email is 5:19 p.m.

By 6:11 p.m., Facebook hit back. Facebook factcheckers “have rated this content false,” Holland wrote the Iowa official, “and we have applied a filter over this content warning users.”

Read more on Judicial Watch’s Iowa case here.

Read more on the California case here.

Of course it’s not just Judicial Watch in the crosshairs of companies like Twitter, YouTube, and Facebook. On Wednesday, Facebook moved to continue its ban on Donald Trump, now a private citizen. Judicial Watch has argued that the ban is an affront to First Amendment protections of free speech, peaceable assembly, and the right to petition the government.

It’s also an ominous sign that Big Tech censorship is growing—and growing bolder. “If they can ban President Trump,” warned House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, “all conservative voices could be next.”

Judicial Watch Sues for Records of Biden Dogs after Biting Incidents

On March 9, 2021, the White House confirmed that President Biden’s dog Major, an adopted German Shepherd, “did in fact bite someone at the White House, causing a “minor injury.” Press secretary Jen Psaki said the dogs, “are still getting acclimated and accustomed to their new surroundings and new people.”

On March 30, 2021, the White House reported that, “President Biden’s dog Major on Monday afternoon bit another employee, who then required medical attention.” The encounter reportedly took place on the White House South Lawn Monday, March 29.

Americans are understandably curious, and we filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) suit against the Department of Homeland Security for communication between Secret Service officials assigned to the White House regarding the Biden family dogs (Judicial Watch v. U.S. Department of Homeland Security (No. 1:21-cv-01194)).

We sued after the Secret Service failed to process records in a timely manner in response to a March 10, 2021, FOIA request seeking:

All records of communications between USSS officials responsible for protection at the White House regarding the Biden family dogs, named Champ and Major.

On April 12, 2021, the Secret Service replied to Judicial Watch’s FOIA request saying that they had identified responsive records which were being processed but have yet to produce them.

The public has a right to know the details about any incident in which Secret Service personnel were injured by President Biden’s dog. We have no doubt that Major and Champ are good dogs but politicians and bureaucrats can’t be trusted to tell us everything.

Until next week …

Judicial Watch has uncovered critical new details in the secret history of the 2020 election: how state government officials—at times interfacing with the Biden presidential campaign—colluded with Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube to censor freedom of speech.

The new information raises enormous constitutional and legal questions. It challenges the conventional wisdom that the companies are operating solely as private actors and can remove or ban users of their services as they see fit, with no violation of First Amendment rights.

The new documents “suggest a conspiracy against the First Amendment rights of Americans,” said Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton. “These documents blow up the big lie that Big Tech censorship is ‘private’—as the documents show collusion between a whole group of government officials in multiple states to suppress speech about election controversies.”

In California, we obtained more than 500 pages of documents showing how a state agency, the Office of Election Cybersecurity, tracked social media commentary and pushed Big Tech to take down posts. Included in the documents were so-called “Misinformation Daily Briefings” from the communications firm SKDK. The firm also was deeply involved in the Biden presidential campaign, developing its mail-in voting program for four key electoral states: Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Arizona.

For Big Tech and state officials, questioning the wisdom of mail-in voting was not allowed. On September 11, 2020, when JW’s Tom Fitton made the common-sense observation on Twitter that “mailing 51 million ballots to those who haven’t asked for increases risk of voter fraud and intimidation,” SKDK put him in its “misinformation brief” to California election security officials.

(In January, Twitter suspended Tom for tweeting another common-sense observation—“hydroxychloroquine is a safe drug”—a comment he had several times earlier made on Twitter and which the tech giant earlier had found not to be in violation of its rules. Read more on the incident here.)

California officials went after Tom again on September 24, falsely stating that he claimed in a YouTube video that Democrats would benefit from incorrect voter rolls and ballot collection. In the video, in fact, Tom was updating viewers about Judicial Watch’s highly successful, non-partisan lawsuit settlement with Los Angeles County to clean up voter rolls. Judicial Watch is a national leader in a non-partisan effort to clean up voter rolls.

California officials directly contacted YouTube complaining about the Judicial Watch video. Three days later, the video was deleted from YouTube.

In Iowa, Judicial Watch obtained 624 pages of records revealing how state officials pressured Twitter and Facebook to censor posts about the 2020 election. Included in the records were emails pressing the companies to remove Judicial Watch posts.

The emails show how the state agency successfully worked with Facebook to censor a Judicial Watch post about Iowa’s management of its voter rolls:

An Iowa state official emailed Facebook official Rachel Holland complaining that a Judicial Watch story on Iowa’s management of voter rolls was “false.” (It wasn’t.) The time stamp on the email is 5:19 p.m.

By 6:11 p.m., Facebook hit back. Facebook factcheckers “have rated this content false,” Holland wrote the Iowa official, “and we have applied a filter over this content warning users.”

Read more on Judicial Watch’s Iowa case here.

Read more on the California case here.

Of course it’s not just Judicial Watch in the crosshairs of companies like Twitter, YouTube, and Facebook. On Wednesday, Facebook moved to continue its ban on Donald Trump, now a private citizen. Judicial Watch has argued that the ban is an affront to First Amendment protections of free speech, peaceable assembly, and the right to petition the government.

It’s also an ominous sign that Big Tech censorship is growing—and growing bolder. “If they can ban President Trump,” warned House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, “all conservative voices could be next.”

***

Micah Morrison is chief investigative reporter for Judicial Watch. Follow him on Twitter @micah_morrison. Tips: [email protected]

Investigative Bulletin is published by Judicial Watch. Reprints and media inquiries: [email protected]

Cheering on House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy on Tuesday night for opposing a bipartisan deal struck to form a commission to investigate the Jan. 6 insurrection, Fox News host Tucker Carlson called the investigation a “farce” while once again downplaying the severity of the deadly Capitol riot.

McCarthy announced on Tuesday morning that he would not support the proposal even though Republican negotiators had reached an agreement just last week with Democrats on the details of the commission. Throwing his own negotiators under the bus, the Trump-boosting lawmaker offered up tepid excuses to justify his opposition.

Later that day, insisting that his primetime Fox News program is “not a partisan show,” Carlson noted that he recently criticized McCarthy on his show after he discovered the California congressman was renting a room from GOP pollster and strategist Frank Luntz.

“When politicians do something right, we want to say so,” Carlson said. “And Kevin McCarthy, the minority leader in the House, did something right.”

“He said he will not support a commission—a 9/11-style commission—to investigate the insurrection of Jan. 6,” he added, in a dramatic and mocking tone.

The Fox News host—who has repeatedly brushed off the seditious riots as nothing more than a “political protest that got out of hand”—then reminded his audience that the Capitol rioters were just “a bunch of middle-aged people deep in credit card debt” who teamed up with a “guy dressed like Chewbacca.”

Acknowledging that House Minority Whip Steve Scalise also doesn’t support the commission, Carlson said the reason they were opposing the investigation into the events of that day is “it’s a farce.”

“It’s a complete farce. It’s partisan as hell and it’s fake. Don’t play along with the fraud,” Carlson snarled.

After playing a short video clip of insurrectionists inside the Capitol telling people to be “peaceful,” Carlson said, “That’s one view of the insurrection,” before complaining that the proposed Jan. 6 commission doesn’t also center on Black Lives Matter and antifa.

“House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said this commission is about finding the truth, but she is the same person who supported BLM and the antifa riots over the summer,” the host declared. “We are not guessing about that. She defended antifa when they destroyed Portland!”

Notably, one of McCarthy’s excuses for opposing the commission is that it only focuses on the Capitol invasion and doesn’t also examine the riots associated with Black Lives Matter protests last year.

“In a civilized country, you punish people equally. That’s the opposite of now,” Carlson fumed.

The Fox News star then took aim at Rep. John Katko (R-NY), the lead Republican negotiator on the creation of the commission and a top lieutenant of McCarthy’s. Noting that Katko and dozens of other Republicans may buck GOP leadership and vote for the commission this week, Carlson seemingly called for Republican voters to punish them.

“They are voting to give Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer and Joe Biden more power, power they do not deserve. Power they did not win in November,” Carlson said. “Republican voters deserve to know the name of every Congressional Republican that votes for this farce.”

“They should know which representative is playing along with this poisonous hoax,” he concluded. “We hope they will learn soon.”

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The discourse around the most recent round of fighting between Israel and Hamas was already toxic. Then, while Gaza was burning, an IDF soldier posted a video last week on TikTok lip-syncing the quote, “Huh? What was that? I should kill everyone and escape?”

The soldier, who has been featured on the IDF’s Tiktok page, was sharing a quote from Harley Quinn, the unhinged supervillainess from the 2016 film Suicide Squad, based on the DC comic. “Sorry, it’s the voices,” the quote continues, “Ahaha, I'm kidding! Jeez. That's not what they really said.”

Yael Deri, the TikToker in question, has posted other videos that drew backlash on social media, including one in which she danced and smiled to a patriotic Palestinian song, plastered with emojis of the Israeli flag.

“Now I’m not going to get into the fact that this song is obviously not meant for you,” one TikTok user said in a post responding to the clip. “But the fact that you’re smiling and dancing to this song right now when your people are killing kids, innocent kids, innocent mothers, fathers, and you have a smile on your face?”

An IDF spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Daily Beast asking for confirmation about Deri’s position with the Israeli military. But a video on the IDF’s official TikTok account describes her in the caption as “a fighter from the crossing battalion ‘Ta’oz’ of the military police.”

Deri, who posted sporadically on Facebook in the years before she joined Tiktok, is seen in the video wearing patches from Israeli military police and the Ta’oz battalion, which carry out law enforcement functions among IDF troops and staff checkpoints. Deri is often seen in videos on her account filming at apparent checkpoints.

Since the start of the conflict, Israeli airstrikes have killed at least 212 Palestinians, including 61 children in Gaza, according to Palestinian officials. Ten Israelis have been killed from Hamas rockets launched from Gaza into Israel. Tensions are running understandably high. Shitposts and misinformation from all sides are making it worse.

Other clips posted before and during the ongoing hostilities appear to feature Deri dancing with IDF soldiers in a group, making finger-gun gestures to soundbites of gunshots, and lip-syncing to the song “Stand Up” from the movie Harriet, based on the life of the political activist Harriet Tubman, who escaped slavery and helped liberate dozens of slaves in the American Civil War.

But Deri isn’t the only one whose social media posts have helped inflame tensions in the current conflict. The Israeli government itself has used its official state Twitter account to spread misinformation, including a tweet aimed at Palestinian supermodel Bella Hadid, falsely claiming that she advocated for “throwing Jews into the sea” and “for the elimination of the Jewish State” after she had attended a protest against the Israeli offensive in Gaza.

“What we’re seeing is the use of disinformation targeting civilians to cause chaos and instill fear,” Lisa Kaplan, founder of the disinformation tracking firm Alethea Group, told The Daily Beast. “The abdication of norms underscores that our ecosystem relies on users to adhere to an ethical standard that continues to erode.”

Other, non-official social media accounts, including the “idftweets” Instagram page, have been churning out one inflammatory post after another, including a photoshopped image of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu posing as the “Salt Bae” meme, “sprinkling” airstrikes over an image of Gaza’s landscape engulfed in smoke and flames.

Social media pugilists on both sides of the conflict have, wittingly and not, recycled footage from previous wars between Hamas and Israel and recast those depicted in footage of different conflicts altogether as Israelis and Palestinians in order to rally support to their cause.

The most high-profile example came from Ofir Gendelman, an aide to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who tweeted footage purporting to show Hamas launching rockets at Israel. “1/3 of these 250+ rockets fell inside the Gaza Strip, killing Palestinians,” Gendelman said alongside the video. But the footage, as numerous observers pointed out, showed artillery rocket launches not from Gaza but from Syria’s civil war in 2018.

Another viral video tweeted by an Israeli government adviser purports to show Palestinians staging a fake funeral for propaganda purposes during the fighting in Gaza. BBC investigators traced the clip back to well before the recent conflict to young men in Jordan engaging in an apparent effort to skirt coronavirus lockdown restrictions.

Dozens of posts on Facebook and Twitter have also shown the image of a little girl, variously named Malak Al Tanani and Buthaina Ubaid, swaddled in a blanket and described as killed by Israeli bombs in Gaza. In a since-deleted tweet, Iran’s state-run English-language TV channel posted the picture on Tuesday with the caption, “The world is not the same place since this morning when this 3yo girl stopped breathing after Israeli missiles targeted her home.”

Dozens of children have been killed in Gaza over the past week, but the child depicted in the photo is not one of them. The picture of the girl was taken from a 2018 Instagram post of a Russian child model based in Moscow who is alive and not in Gaza. Some posts casting her as Buthaina Ubaid appear to be taken from reporting about a 7-year-old Palestinian girl by that name who was killed in the Israeli bombing of Gaza over the past week.

Other social media users used recycled footage taken in places far away from the recent Israeli-Palestinian conflict to push their own narratives. In one example, posters recast footage of Swedish police arresting a youth in 2015 into a video that falsely claimed to show how an Israeli policeman “strangles a Palestinian child to death” after a protest over Israel’s threats to evict Palestinian residents of Jerusalem’s Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood.

Just like the current explosion of violence taking place in Gaza, the toxic cycle of disinformation and incendiary posts sweeping social media shows no signs of slowing down.

“Actors have always used propaganda to confuse their enemy or build rapport with local populations, and norms have developed around use during wartime,” said Kaplan. “However, those norms are not translating to the disinformation landscape and continue to be ignored.”

Mark McCloskey could be headed to the Senate – if the voters of Missouri will have him.

He just made the announcement on Tucker Carlson tonight, and released his first campaign ad. McCloskey joins the race for retiring Senator Roy Blunt’s old seat as the only outsider in a field of politicians.

“Never Back Down. Our Nation is under attack – Big Tech, Big Business, the swamp in D.C., are all working together to destroy our God-given freedom, our culture, and our heritage” the ad begins. ” When was the last time a politician defended you? Defended America? Stood between you and the mob? We need defenders in America. But all we get are dividers. They want us to hate each other. Left vs. Right. Black vs. White. Rich vs. Poor. This is a tactic to destroy us. We are all AMERICANS. We are MISSOURIANS. Our nation, our state, our home is worth defending. Our freedoms are worth protecting. I can promise you one thing. When the mob comes to destroy our home, our state, our nation – I will defend it. I will Never Back Down.”

Watch the rest below:

McCloskey was born and raised in the St. Louis Missouri suburb of Webster Groves and is life-long Republican. He attended St. Louis Country Day School where he was Captain of the wresting team and President of the Student Council. He graduated magna cum laude from Southern Methodist University with degrees in Psychology, Sociology and Criminal Justice. He went on to receive his law degree from SMU and has spent the last 36 years representing the rights of his fellow citizens.

Mark and his wife Patricia, whom he has been married to for 36 years, were made famous overnight when photographs of them defending their home against Black Lives Matter rioters went viral. Soros-backed St. Louis prosecutor Kim Gardner then attempted to prosecute the two, but she was dismissed from part of the McCloskey case because she sent out campaign fundraising emails touting her prosecution of them. Missouri’s governor later said he’d pardon the McCloskeys if they were convicted of gun charges.

Meanwhile, Gardner is now on the verge of losing her law license over misconduct in the case of former Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens. Gardner will now have to defend her actions in front of a disciplinary hearing panel that is likely to take her law license if they decide she’s guilty.

Matt Palumbo is the author of Dumb and Dumber: How Cuomo and de Blasio Ruined New York, Debunk This: Shattering Liberal Lies, and Spygate

Don’t miss The Dan Bongino Show

More than four years before Maricopa County Sheriff Paul Penzone used his law enforcement credibility to resist subpoenas in the Arizona Senate audit of the county's general election, he was running for the office he now holds.

Crucial to the Democrat's victory over incumbent Republican Joe Arpaio: $2 million from progressive megadonor George Soros.

It was the largest single donation Soros made in a local race in the 2016 election cycle, according to a Politico report at the time. Apple co-founder Steve Jobs' widow, Laurene Powell Jobs, kicked in another $250,000 to the pro-Penzone effort.

The money went to a political action committee, Maricopa Strong, that spent heavily on mailers and TV ads promoting Penzone and knocking Arpaio, nationally known for his stringent immigration enforcement and prosecution by President Obama's Justice Department.

Legal experts have debated the effect of a February court ruling that upheld subpoenas for the county routers involved in the election without explaining how they would be enforced.

Penzone signed a Monday letter to Senate President Karen Fann, who is leading the audit, claiming that complying with the subpoena would compromise the county's network and threaten "the security of sensitive, protected and critical data," from federal law enforcement programs to health information of county residents.

Recently retired Arizona State University criminology professor Charles Loftus, who specialized in domestic terrorism and white-collar crime investigations, reviewed Penzone's letter upon request from Just the News.

The explanation for withholding routers from auditors is "correct in-part, but 'Trust But Verify' must work for both parties," he wrote in an email, referring to the letter's complaint that the auditors had failed President Reagan's famous dictum. 

"I would expect the County would be able to identify shortlists of qualified forensic examiners who are trusted inside sensitive systems to examine the networks," Loftus said. His "strong suspicion" is that so-called trusted subcontractors already have access to county systems.

"I would be totally surprised if the County said only bonafide county employees have access to maintain these systems," the former professor concluded: "It is either a stall or bargaining tactic."

At a press conference Monday, Penzone cast the audit as a waste of his time. "I don't like politics, I don't like partisanship, and I absolutely despise political theater," he said, adding that the county received a subpoena to hand over data to a "private uncertified hacking company based on a hunch."

He described the audit's process as "come up with a hunch, try to find a way to put up enough false information to make it valid, and then accuse others of being dishonest."

It's not clear from the letter whether Penzone and the county would resist any subpoena for routers involved in the election or simply object to the contractors hired for the audit. The letter repeatedly mocks lead contractor Cyber Ninjas as "auditors" in scare quotes, claiming that the firm locked out Fann's Senate liaison Ken Bennett from the audit's Twitter account.

The sheriff has not previously spoken on the issue of sharing routers with outside investigators because this situation hasn't happened before, a spokesperson told Just the News.

But Penzone "has made it abundantly clear that any information on technology that would jeopardize or threaten the infrastructure of the Office would never be available, unless ordered by a judge that would lawfully justify why we would release information specific to law enforcement operations." He had no involvement in the audit until the Senate "attempted to impose their will on his organization," the spokesperson wrote in an email.

Asked whether Penzone's official actions against the subpoena might be related to the $2 million from Soros that helped ensure his election in 2016, the spokesperson called the question "irresponsible and misinformed." The sheriff has "no relationship" with Soros or his organization, and received donations from "affluent Republicans who appreciate the Sheriff’s non-partisan non-political focus in running this Office."

County's board disputes allegations that it deleted data from an election machine

Officials in Arizona’s largest county on Monday urged the state Senate to bring to an end an audit that is reviewing ballots cast and machines used in the 2020 presidential election.

“It is time to end this. For the good of the Senate, for the good of the Country and for the good of the Democratic institutions that define us as Americans,” the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors and two other county officials wrote to Arizona GOP Senate President Karen Fann.

In the 14-page document, the board, which is mainly comprised of Republicans, attempted to counter accusations by auditors that the county handed over nearly 2.1 million ballots without chain-of-custody documentation and with discrepancies in some ballot batches.

Auditors had also said they found an entire database directory from an election machine had been deleted.

The board called the accusations “false, defamatory, and beneath the dignity of the Senate.” Members said they had provided proper chain-of-custody documentation to the state Senate’s liaison, former Republican Secretary of State Ken Bennett. They also said that each box was sealed with tamper-evident tape or “standard clear sturdy packing tape” and that the supposed batch discrepancies stemmed from a misunderstanding of how election tabulation works.

Board members challenged the claim of database deletion, asserting that no data was deleted on April 12.

In the letter, they reiterated that they could not produce passwords to access administrative functions of Dominion Voting Systems machines because Dominion does not give them such passwords. Dominion said last week it would not give auditors the passwords. Dominion did give the passwords to two firms that conducted an audit for the county earlier this year because both are accredited by the U.S. Elections Assistance Commission, the county said.

County Recorder Stephen Richer, a Republican, told members in a meeting on Monday that he witnessed the transference of all election databases to the Senate and that the Dominion passwords are not needed to run any operations, including elections.

“This is like how you can run Microsoft Windows on your computer without having access to Microsoft Windows source code,” he said.

The county’s position does not affect the audit, which is currently on hold as high school graduations take place in the Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum. Auditors will re-enter the facility next week, according to an agreement obtained by The Epoch Times.

The board also continued refusing to provide routers or router images to auditors.

Asked for a comment on the board’s new letter, Fann, the state Senate’s president, told The Epoch Times that the Senate will hold a hearing/meeting to receive an update on the audit from the vendor and to address questions submitted to them and the county’s recent communications.

Fann threatened to subpoena Maricopa County officials over their refusal to fully comply with the subpoenas but backed off that threat last week, instead laying out her concerns in a letter and asking officials to attend a May 18 meeting to answer questions.

County officials said they will not attend the meeting, which will take place at 1 p.m. Mountain Time.

Workers examine ballots cast in Maricopa County in the 2020 election during an audit at Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Phoenix, Ariz., on May 6, 2021. (Matt York/AP Photo)

Supervisor Bill Gates of the GOP said on Monday that the board respected the decision by the judge but added that it would not participate in “a political theater” by joining the meeting.

“The Arizona Senate is better than that. The Maricopa County Board of Supervisors is better than that,” he said.

Maricopa County has long resisted having its election materials audited, taking the matter to court after subpoenas were issued last year. But a county judge ruled in February that the subpoenas were valid and should be obeyed.

Routers were listed in the subpoenas, as was access to election machines.

Chairman Jack Sellers, a Republican, indicated that the county would no longer cooperate with the state Senate or its auditors.

“This board is done explaining anything to these people who are playing investigator with our constituents’ ballots and equipment paid for with real people’s tax dollars,” he said.

“I would hope that Senate President Fann steps up, show some political courage, pushes back, gets rid of these contractors that have no business at the Coliseum,” Supervisor Steve Gallardo, a Democrat, added.

The defiance from the board rankled some Republicans.

Kelli Ward, chair of the Arizona GOP, said in a video that the board members “view themselves as above the law, above review, above reproach.”

“Who gives these local officials the right to challenge the constitutional authority of the Arizona Senate and of the Arizona courts?” she wondered.

After dominating former Lightweight Champion Tony Ferguson over three rounds at UFC 262 on Saturday night, Beneil Dariush had a message for millions of watching fans.

Speaking to podcaster Joe Rogan after the fight, the Iranian-born American mixed martial artist dedicated his victory to victims of communism around the world.

“First things first, I want to thank my Lord and savior Jesus Christ, that’s number one,” Dariush told Rogan. “Number two, I want to dedicate this fight to all the people who’ve been hurt by Marxists ideologies. There are millions of you.”

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yDDcJi7sarc&w=560&h=315]

A Bloody History

Though many may not know it, the 20th century was the most violent century in history, primarily because of Communism. The precise death toll is unclear, in part because it’s so vast.

The best data we have comes from the late Rudolph Rummel, a political scientist at Yale University, Indiana University, and University of Hawaii, who pioneered the field of democide (death by government). He estimated the human toll of 20th century socialism to be roughly 200 million worldwide. About two-thirds of that total came from the two largest communist empires—the Soviet Union (61 million killed under Stalin and Lenin) and China (78 million killed under Mao Zedong).

In his book Mao’s Great Famine, historian Frank Dikötter explained how Mao became the greatest mass murderer in history.

“Mao thought that he could catapult his country past its competitors by herding villagers across the country into giant people’s communes. In pursuit of a utopian paradise, everything was collectivised,” Dikötter writes. “People had their work, homes, land, belongings and livelihoods taken from them. In collective canteens, food, distributed by the spoonful according to merit, became a weapon used to force people to follow the party’s every dictate.”

Productivity plummeted after Mao destroyed incentives to work. So Chairman Mao found new ways to motivate workers: coercion and violence.

“What comes out of this massive and detailed dossier is a tale of horror in which Mao emerges as one of the greatest mass murderers in history, responsible for the deaths of at least 45 million people between 1958 and 1962,” Dikötter writes.

Among the deaths was a boy in a Hunan village accused of stealing grain. A local Communist boss, Xiong Dechang, ordered the father of the child to bury his son alive.

“The father died of grief a few days later,” Dikötter writes.

A History … Forgotten?

Dariush was not born in the Soviet Union or China. He was born in Iran and raised on a farm before his family moved to the US when he was nine.

So one might wonder if he is needlessly dredging up a dark past. But this overlooks two noteworthy facts. First, it’s important to remember that roughly 20 percent of the world’s population today lives under single-party communist regimes.

Second, despite its brutal history, communism is actually making a comeback. While it’s no secret that a healthy majority of young people say they support socialism, fewer have noticed that more than a third of millennials say they approve of communism.

Bill Maher on the stupidity of defunding the police, among other things. Good watch: pic.twitter.com/Z8MXSrnUg6

— Clay Travis (@ClayTravis) April 25, 2021

This fact recently invited ridicule from HBO funnyman Bill Maher.

“Much of the world [tried communism]. Millennials think that doesn’t count because they weren’t alive when it happened, but it did happen,” Maher noted. “Pining for communism is like pining for Betamax or MySpace.”

Maher reaches the conclusion that millennials are the problem because “your ideas are stupid.”

The line brought a burst of applause and laughter from the audience, but it should be noted that millennials are not entirely to blame. The sad and astonishing reality is that most of them are simply unaware of the atrocities committed under the banner of socialism.

Marion Smith, the former executive director of Victims of Communism, has pointed out that entire generations have come of age in cultural and educational systems hostile to free markets. Sadly, these institutions were more than willing to whitewash the crimes of Marxism.

As a result, many people are simply clueless of communism’s crimes. For example, according to a 2018 Victims of Communism survey:

• Roughly half of millennials have never heard of Mao Zedong, the biggest mass murderer in history.
• About one-third of millennials think George W. Bush killed more people than Joseph Stalin.
• 25 percent of millennials view Vladimir Lenin favorably.

How Americans allowed this to happen is a story for another day. What matters is that we’ve deprived countless Americans of an important historical reality: communism kills.

It’s a dangerous lesson to forget, and that’s what makes Beneil Dariush’s fight dedication so important.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-tZ79ep4S3o&w=560&h=315]

Former President Barack Obama has laughed off rumors that the US government has a secret stash of aliens and their spacecraft — while conceding that there really are UFO sightings that the government can’t explain.

“When it comes to aliens, there are some things I just can’t tell you on air,” the 44th commander-in-chief teased James Corden in a video chat on “The Late Late Show” aired early Tuesday.

“Look, the truth is that when I came into office I asked,” Obama told the British comedian with a laugh.

“I was like, ‘All right, is there the lab somewhere where we’re keeping the alien specimens and spaceships?’

“They did a little bit of research …. and the answer was ‘No,'” he deadpanned to laughter.

“But what is true — and I’m actually being serious here — is that there’s footage and records of objects in the skies that we don’t know exactly what they are,” he said of growing reports of unidentified flying objects.

“We can’t explain how they moved, their trajectory … they did not have an easily explainable pattern,” he said of growing reports of sights, many recorded by the Navy.

“So I think that people still take seriously trying to investigate and figure out what that is. But I have nothing to report to you today,” he said, without elaborating on his own views on what the mysterious objects likely were.

Obama then joked that the show’s bandleader, Reggie Watts — who had first asked him about “them aliens” — might “secretly be an alien.”

“When he asks all these questions, he’s deflecting,” he joked, asking, “Do we know what he looks like behind those glasses?”

The former president also said life was “pretty darn good” now he has “less stress, less burden” of not being blamed for “every single story” in the news.

“I get a lot more time with Michelle,” he said of his wife, saying that they also had the “blessing” of spending lockdown with their college-age daughters.

“Michelle thinks I’m a little cuter now, a little sexier,” he said with a smile.

The communications system used by shippers on the Colonial Pipeline, which transports more than 100 million gallons of fuel per day, nearly half of the East Coast’s supply, was knocked offline for a few hours before being restored mid-afternoon Tuesday. 

"Our internal server that runs our nomination system experienced intermittent disruptions this morning due to some of the hardening efforts that are ongoing and part of our restoration process. These issues were not related to the ransomware or any type of reinfection," read a statement to FOX Business from a company spokesperson. 

It continued: "We are working diligently to bring our nomination system back online and will continue to keep our shippers updated. The Colonial Pipeline system continues to deliver refined products as nominated by our shippers." 

The problems with the Colonial Pipeline’s communications system come just over a week after hackers knocked down the service, demanding ransom. Service was restored nearly a week later, after the company paid nearly $5 million in untraceable cryptocurrency. 

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Its outage has caused gas stations up and down the Eastern seaboard to experience fuel shortages, which still haven’t been completely resolved.

North Carolina District Attorney Andrew Womble said at a press conference on Tuesday that the deputy-involved shooting of Andrew Brown Jr. "while tragic, was justified" – and no law enforcement officers will be criminally charged in the case. 

Womble, the elected district attorney for Judicial District 1, which covers seven counties of the northeastern part of the state, said that Brown was shot at by three Pasquotank deputies, whose actions were "justified because Brown’s actions caused deputies to reasonably believe it necessary to use force to protect themselves and others." 

Womble began playing four body camera videos during the press conference, which was broadcast by several news outlets.  

DA ARGUES THAT ANDREW BROWN JR.'S CAR STRUCK DEPUTIES TWICE, FAMILY LAWYER GAVE ‘PATENTLY FALSE’ BODYCAM REMARKS

Brown ignored deputies' commands to stop and began to drive his car directly at one of the officers, Womble said. He said the first shot fired at Brown’s car went through the front windshield, not the back as was previously reported.

Womble said that Brown used his vehicle to commit assault with a deadly weapon. 

Deputies attempting to serve drug-related search and arrest warrants shot and killed Brown outside his Elizabeth City home on April 21.

During his press conference, Womble said a deputy who tried to open Brown's car door wound up partly on the hood as Brown backed up, and the deputy found himself directly in the car's path moments later when Brown drove forward. Womble said the deputy had to push off the car with his hand to narrowly avoid being run over, and Brown's vehicle made contact with a second law enforcement officer. 

"I find that the facts of this case clearly illustrate the officers who used deadly force on Andrew Brown Jr. did so reasonably and only when a violent felon used a deadly weapon to put their lives in danger," Womble said, referring to Brown's car. He added that he found that "Brown's actions and conduct were indeed dangerous by the time of the shooting… Brown posed an immediate threat to the safety of the officers and others."

The first shot entered the front windshield of Brown’s car, which continued forward past deputies and several shots are heard, Womble said. One shot entered the passenger window, striking Brown in shoulder, and several more entered the rear passenger side door and window. 

As Brown’s vehicle accelerated across a vacant lot across from his house at 421 Perry Street, five shots entered the rear windshield and trunk. At that time, Brown was driving directly at an investigator sitting in an unmarked van. The investigator accelerated, narrowly avoiding being struck by Brown, whose vehicle then hit a tree. Brown was removed from the driver’s seat and deputies began life saving efforts, Womble said.

Law enforcement involvement with Brown began in the weeks prior to the shooting. Detective R.D. Johnson, of the Dare County Sheriff’s Office, received information from a reliable confidential source that Brown, from Elizabeth City, was selling drugs in Dare County. Johnson contacted Pasquotank County and confirmed Brown’s identity and that he is a known drug dealer, Womble said. 

The informant made two undercover buys from Brown on March 17 and March 29 of cocaine and heroin. Lab analysis determined the heroin was laced fentanyl, Womble said. Det. Daniel Meads, of the Pasquotank County Sheriff’s Office, applied for and obtained a search warrant for Brown’s residence and vehicle in Elizabeth City. Two additional arrest warrants were obtained for the sale of controlled substances in Dare County. 

On the morning of April 21, sheriff’s deputies were briefed on Brown and his past involvement with law enforcement, including multiple resisting arrest charges and convictions dating back to 1995, Womble said. Brown also had assault, assault with a deadly weapon and assault conflicting serious injury convictions dating back to 1995. Brown had also barricaded doorways during previous home search warrants, Womble said. 

No children were believed to be at the location and the mother of Brown’s minor children was seldom at his residence, the district attorney added. 

Pasquotank County District Attorney Andrew Womble answers questions from reporters after announcing he will not charge deputies in the April 21 fatal shooting of Andrew Brown Jr. during a news conference Tuesday, May 18, 2021 at the Pasquotank County Public Safety building in Elizabeth City, N.C.  (Travis Long/The News &amp;amp; Observer via AP) (AP)

An independent autopsy released by the family found that Brown was hit by bullets five times, including once in the back of the head. Lawyers for Brown's family who watched body camera footage say that it shows Brown was not armed and that he didn't drive toward deputies or pose a threat to them. Womble has previously disagreed in court, saying that Brown struck deputies twice with his car before any shots were fired.

The three deputies involved in the shooting — Investigator Daniel Meads, Deputy Robert Morgan and Cpl. Aaron Lewellyn — have been on leave since it happened. The sheriff’s office said Morgan is Black, while Meads and Lewellyn are White. Four other deputies who were at the scene were reinstated after the sheriff said they didn't fire their weapons.

The shooting sparked protests over multiple weeks by demonstrators calling for the public release of body camera footage. While authorities have shown footage to Brown's family, a judge delayed the public release of the video to allow for the probe by North Carolina's State Bureau of Investigation to move forward.  Separately, the FBI has launched a civil rights probe of the shooting.

In response to Womble’s decision not to charge the officers, North Carolina’s State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) said in a statement Tuesday that, as an impartial fact-finder, it is not in a place to agree or disagree with any prosecutor’s decision regarding an investigation. 

Its role is to investigate the facts surrounding the incident and to then provide those facts to the prosecutor – not to make any determinations as to whether criminal charges should be filed or determine if a person’s actions are justified or not, the statement said. 

During the course if its investigation, the SBI "interviewed numerous witnesses, conducted crime scene analysis, collected and reviewed video footage, and engaged in other investigative activities in an attempt to conduct as thorough and complete an investigation as possible in a timely manner." 

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Even now that the district attorney made a decision not to charge the officers, the SBI file "is still not considered a public record under NCGS 132-1.4 and may only be released pursuant to a court order." SBI will not be releasing any written reports regarding the investigation and any decisions regarding the release of video footage will continue to be made by the court in accordance with NCGS 132-1.4A. 

"As stated earlier, the NC SBI supports transparency to the greatest extent possible allowed by the law, as we think this serves the interests of the citizens of North Carolina," the statement said.

Attorneys for the Brown family accused Womble of trying to "whitewash this unjustified killing."  

"To say this shooting was justified, despite the known facts, is both an insult and a slap in the face to Andrew’s family, the Elizabeth City community, and to rational people everywhere," said attorneys Ben Crump, Bakari Sellers, Harry Daniels, and Chantel Cherry-Lassiter. 

The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

Bloomberg

The World Economy Is Suddenly Running Low on Everything

(Bloomberg) -- A year ago, as the pandemic ravaged country after country and economies shuddered, consumers were the ones panic-buying. Today, on the rebound, it’s companies furiously trying to stock up. Mattress producers to car manufacturers to aluminum foil makers are buying more material than they need to survive the breakneck speed at which demand for goods is recovering and assuage that primal fear of running out. The frenzy is pushing supply chains to the brink of seizing up. Shortages, transportation bottlenecks and price spikes are nearing the highest levels in recent memory, raising concern that a supercharged global economy will stoke inflation.Copper, iron ore and steel. Corn, coffee, wheat and soybeans. Lumber, semiconductors, plastic and cardboard for packaging. The world is seemingly low on all of it. “You name it, and we have a shortage on it,” Tom Linebarger, chairman and chief executive of engine and generator manufacturer Cummins Inc., said on a call this month. Clients are “trying to get everything they can because they see high demand,” Jennifer Rumsey, the Columbus, Indiana-based company’s president, said. “They think it’s going to extend into next year.”The difference between the big crunch of 2021 and past supply disruptions is the sheer magnitude of it, and the fact that there is — as far as anyone can tell — no clear end in sight. Big or small, few businesses are spared. Europe’s largest fleet of trucks, Girteka Logistics, says there’s been a struggle to find enough capacity. Monster Beverage Corp. of Corona, California, is dealing with an aluminum can scarcity. Hong Kong’s MOMAX Technology Ltd. is delaying production of a new product because of a dearth of semiconductors. Read More: How the World’s Companies Wound Up in a Deepening Supply Chain NightmareFurther exacerbating the situation is an unusually long and growing list of calamities that have rocked commodities in recent months. A freak accident in the Suez Canal backed up global shipping in March. Drought has wreaked havoc upon agricultural crops. A deep freeze and mass blackout wiped out energy and petrochemicals operations across the central U.S. in February. Less than two weeks ago, hackers brought down the largest fuel pipeline in the U.S., driving gasoline prices above $3 a gallon for the first time since 2014. Now India’s massive Covid-19 outbreak is threatening its biggest ports. For anyone who thinks it’s all going to end in a few months, consider the somewhat obscure U.S. economic indicator known as the Logistics Managers’ Index. The gauge is built on a monthly survey of corporate supply chiefs that asks where they see inventory, transportation and warehouse expenses — the three key components of managing supply chains — now and in 12 months. The current index is at its second-highest level in records dating back to 2016, and the future gauge shows little respite a year from now. The index has proven unnervingly accurate in the past, matching up with actual costs about 90% of the time.To Zac Rogers, who helps compile the index as an assistant professor at Colorado State University’s College of Business, it’s a paradigm shift. In the past, those three areas were optimized for low costs and reliability. Today, with e-commerce demand soaring, warehouses have moved from the cheap outskirts of urban areas to prime parking garages downtown or vacant department-store space where deliveries can be made quickly, albeit with pricier real estate, labor and utilities. Once viewed as liabilities before the pandemic, fatter inventories are in vogue. Transport costs, more volatile than the other two, won’t lighten up until demand does.“Essentially what people are telling us to expect is that it’s going to be hard to get supply up to a place where it matches demand,” Rogers said, “and because of that, we’re going to continue to see some price increases over the next 12 months.”More well-known barometers are starting to reflect the higher costs for households and companies. An index of U.S. consumer prices that excludes food and fuel jumped in April from a month earlier by the most since 1982. At the factory gate, the increase in prices charged by American producers was twice as large as economists expected. Unless companies pass that cost along to consumers and boost productivity, it'll eat into their profit margins.A growing chorus of observers are warning that inflation is bound to quicken. The threat has been enough to send tremors through world capitals, central banks, factories and supermarkets. The U.S. Federal Reserve is facing new questions about when it will hike rates to stave off inflation — and the perceived political risk already threatens to upset President Joe Biden's spending plans. “You bring all of these factors in, and it’s an environment that’s ripe for significant inflation, with limited levers” for monetary authorities to pull, said David Landau, chief product officer at BluJay Solutions, a U.K.-based logistics software and services provider.Policy makers, however, have laid out a number of reasons why they don’t expect inflationary pressures to get out of hand. Fed Governor Lael Brainard said recently that officials should be “patient through the transitory surge.” Among the reasons for calm: The big surges lately are partly blamed on skewed comparisons to the steep drops of a year ago, and many companies that have held the line on price hikes for years remain reticent about them now. What's more, U.S. retail sales stalled in April after a sharp rise in the month earlier, and commodities prices have recently retreated from multi-year highs. Read More: Fed Officials Have Six Reasons to Bet Inflation Spike Will PassCaught in the crosscurrents is Dennis Wolkin, whose family has run a business making crib mattresses for three generations. Economic expansions are usually good for baby bed sales. But the extra demand means little without the key ingredient: foam padding. There has been a run on the kind of polyurethane foam Wolkin uses — in part because of the deep freeze across the U.S. South in February, and because of “companies over-ordering and trying to hoard what they can.”“It’s gotten out of control, especially in the past month,” said Wolkin, vice president of operations at Atlanta-based Colgate Mattress, a 35-employee company that sells products at Target stores and independent retailers. “We’ve never seen anything like this.”Though polyurethane foam is 50% more expensive than it was before the Covid-19 pandemic, Wolkin would buy twice the amount he needs and look for warehouse space rather than reject orders from new customers. “Every company like us is going to overbuy,” he said.Even multinational companies with digital supply-management systems and teams of people monitoring them are just trying to cope. Whirlpool Corp. CEO Marc Bitzer told Bloomberg Television this month its supply chain is “pretty much upside down” and the appliance maker is phasing in price increases. Usually Whirlpool and other large manufacturers produce goods based on incoming orders and forecasts for those sales. Now it’s producing based on what parts are available.“It is anything but efficient or normal, but that is how you have to run it right now,” Bitzer said. “I know there’s talk of a temporary blip, but we do see this elevated for a sustained period.”The strains stretch all the way back to global output of raw materials and may persist because the capacity to produce more of what’s scarce — with either additional capital or labor — is slow and expensive to ramp up. The price of lumber, copper, iron ore and steel have all surged in recent months as supplies constrict in the face of stronger demand from the U.S. and China, the world’s two largest economies.Crude oil is also on the rise, as are the prices of industrial materials from plastics to rubber and chemicals. Some of the increases are already making their ways to the store shelf. Reynolds Consumer Products Inc., the maker of the namesake aluminum foil and Hefty trash bags, is planning another round of price increases — its third in 2021 alone.Food costs are climbing, too. The world’s most consumed edible oil, processed from the fruit of oil palm trees, has jumped by more than 135% in the past year to a record. Soybeans topped $16 a bushel for the first time since 2012. Corn futures hit an eight-year high while wheat futures rose to the highest since 2013.A United Nations gauge of world food costs climbed for an 11th month in April, extending its gain to the highest in seven years. Prices are in their longest advance in more than a decade amid weather worries and a crop-buying spree in China that’s tightening supplies, threatening faster inflation.Earlier this month, the Bloomberg Commodity Spot Index touched the highest level since 2011. A big reason for the rally is a U.S. economy that’s recovering faster than most. The evidence of that is floating off the coast of California, where dozens of container ships are waiting to offload at ports from Oakland to Los Angeles. Most goods are flooding in from China, where government figures last week showed producer prices climbed by the most since 2017 in April, adding to evidence that cost pressures for that nation’s factories pose another risk if those are passed on to retailers and other customers abroad. Across the world’s manufacturing hub of East Asia, the blockages are especially acute. The dearth of semiconductors has already spread from the automotive sector to Asia’s highly complex supply chains for smartphones.Read More: World Is Short of Computer Chips. Here’s Why: QuickTakeJohn Cheng runs a consumer electronics manufacturer that makes everything from wireless magnetic smartphone chargers to smart home air purifiers. The supply choke has complicated his efforts to develop new products and enter new markets, according to Cheng, the CEO of Hong Kong-based MOMAX, which has about two-thirds of its 300 employees working in a Shenzhen factory. One example: Production of a new power bank for Apple products such as the iPhone, Airpods, iPad and Apple watch has been delayed because of the chip shortage.Instead of proving to be a short-lived disruption, the semiconductor crunch is threatening the broader electronics sector and may start to squeeze Asia’s high-performing export economies, according to Vincent Tsui of Gavekal Research. It’s “not simply the result of a few temporary glitches,” Tsui wrote in a note. “They are more structural in nature, and they affect a whole range of industries, not just automobile production.”In an indication of just how serious the chips crunch is, South Korea plans to spend roughly $450 billion to build the world’s biggest chipmaking base over the next decade.Meanwhile, running full tilt between factories and consumers are the ships, trucks and trains that move parts along a global production process and finished goods to market. Container vessels are running at capacity, pushing ocean cargo rates to record highs and clogging up ports. So much so that Columbia Sportswear Co.’s merchandise shipments were delayed for three weeks and the retailer expects its fall product lineup will arrive late as well. Executives at A.P. Moller-Maersk A/S, the world’s No. 1 container carrier, say they see only a gradual decline in seaborne freight rates for the rest of the year. And even then, they don’t expect a return to the ultra-cheap ocean cargo service of the past decade. More capacity is coming in the form of new ships on order, but they take two or three years to build.HSBC trade economist Shanella Rajanayagam estimates that the surge in container rates over the past year could raise producer prices in the euro zone by as much as 2 percent.Rail and trucking rates are elevated, too. The Cass Freight Index measure of expenditures reached a record in April — its fourth in five months. Spot prices for truckload service are on track to rise 70% in the second quarter from a year earlier, and are set to be up about 30% this year compared with 2020, Todd Fowler, a KeyBanc Capital Markets analyst, said in a May 10 note.“We expect pricing to remain elevated given lean inventories, seasonal demand and improving economic activity, all of which is underpinned by capacity constraints from truck production limitations and driver availability challenges,” Fowler said.What Bloomberg Intelligence Says:“Most modes of freight transportation have pricing power. Supply-demand imbalances should help keep rates high, albeit they should moderate for current unsustainable levels as supply chains improve. This is stressing networks, creating bottlenecks in the supply chains and capacity constraints.”--Lee Klaskow, senior analystFor London-based packaging company DS Smith Plc, challenges are coming from multiple sides. During the pandemic, customers rushed to online purchases, raising demand for its ePack boxes and other shipping materials by 700%. Then came the doubling of its supply costs to 200 euros ($243) a ton for the recycled fiber it uses to make its products.“That’s a significant cost” for a company that buys 4 to 5 million tons of used fiber annually, said Miles Roberts, DS Smith’s group chief executive, who doesn’t see the lockdown-inspired web purchasing as a temporary trend. “The e-commerce that has increased is here to stay.”At Colgate Mattress, Wolkin used to be able to order foam on Mondays and have it delivered on Thursdays. Now, his suppliers can’t promise anything. What’s clear is he can’t sustain the higher input costs forever and still maintain quality. “This is kind of a long-term issue,” Wolkin said. “Inflation is coming — at some point, you’ve got to pass this along.”For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2021 Bloomberg L.P.

We’ve got another lovely double standard from the left unfolding, and it’s a doozy.

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During Biden’s recent outing to Michigan, where he was test-driving a new electric truck from Ford, the old fool made a comment to a reporter that would have gotten President Trump impeached.

But of course, now that Trump’s gone, the fake news suddenly has a sense of humor again and just laughed it off.

Here’s what happened:

When a reporter asked Biden if he could ask him a question about Israel, Biden actually told the reporter that he’d prefer to essentially “run him over.”

Gee, nice…

Was it a joke? Sure. Would Trump have been able to make that joke? Hell no. Seriously, they would have impeached him. That’s how biased and ridiculous our propaganda media and politicians truly are.

So, of course, everyone giggled at Joe’s lame joke, even though we had to hear non-stop how Trump was always “threatening” the press just by calling them the “enemy of the people,” which is exactly what they are.

MORE NEWS: Yet Another Powerful Person “Plunges” Off a High-Rise Balcony…This One’s Tied Directly to Biden

The Dems would have been writing up impeachment papers right after the joke was uttered.

Check it out:

REPORTER: Mr. President, can I ask you a quick question on Israel before you drive away since it’s so important?

BIDEN: No you can’t. Not unless you get in front of the car as I step on it. I’m only teasing.pic.twitter.com/A3jrsIi5mR

— JM Rieger (@RiegerReport) May 18, 2021

And of course, many conservatives were quick to call out this double-standard online:

“Can only imagine the outrage if President Trump said something like that. Impeach!”

“Imagine if Trump said that”

“If donald said this he it would of been on every front page in the world”

“Reporter: Mr. President there’s a rumor that you enjoy chocolate cake and strawberry ice cream, is this true. : Yes it is Reporters: *laugh and cheer”

“The hardest of journalisms.”

“We’re in the middle of a global crisis…”

“Could the press fallacio him more. Good god.”

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It really is sickening how the press treats Biden.

They serioulsy treat him like a 5 year-old child, asking which color is his favorite.

It’s pathetic.

Attn: Wayne Dupree is a free speech champion who works tirelessly to bring you news that the mainstream media ignores. But he needs your support in order to keep delivering quality, independent journalism. You can make a huge impact in the war against fake news by pledging as little as $5 per month. Please click here Patreon.com/WDShow to help Wayne battle the fake news media.

If you’re not familiar with Pastor Manning – he’s a hoot who tells it like it is.

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He grew really popular during the Obama regime, because of his dislike for good ol’ Barry.

Manning is the pastor at the ATLAH World Missionary Church in Red Springs, North Carolina.

MORE NEWS: Royal Expert Says “Damaged Harry” Being Exploited by Powerful Hollywood Elites

He’s definitely a “controversial character” and is known for sharing some pretty firey and dicey opinions.

This is one of his most famous clips that went viral back during the Obama days.

>>>FOLLOW US ON GAB<<<

Watch:

Well, Pastor Manning is back, and this time he’s chiming in on the Willie Brown and Kamala relationship…and yes, Pastor Manning is as colorful and controversial as ever.

As you likely know by now, Willie Brown was the former mayor of San Fran.

Pastor Manning provides some interesting “backstory” info we’ve never heard before about Kamala and Willie, and lets us know that back in the day, Kamala was known as the “playgirl of Sanfransico.”

Ouch.

Watch:

This guy said Willie Brown bought Kamala a Ferrari when they were dating ? Interesting … pic.twitter.com/k3tmYQNHP6

— Make L.A Great Again 🇺🇸 – RECALLGAVIN2020.COM (@lalovestrump) May 18, 2021

Well, there’s a reason that most of America don’t like Kamala…She definitely gives off a sleazy and conveying energy.

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Most people don’t like homewreckers and people who manipulate to get their way and move up in the world.

Attn: Wayne Dupree is a free speech champion who works tirelessly to bring you news that the mainstream media ignores. But he needs your support in order to keep delivering quality, independent journalism. You can make a huge impact in the war against fake news by pledging as little as $5 per month. Please click here Patreon.com/WDShow to help Wayne battle the fake news media.

A royal expert is speaking out this week to warn that she feels Prince Harry is being “exploited” in the United States for ratings.

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“Going over to America, the other side of the coin you could say is that there is a degree of exploitation going on,” said royal expert Camilla Tominey. “The Americans are rubbing their hands together with glee, they know this man is quite damaged, disenfranchised from his family. I know they have a living to earn and they are seeking financial independence in America, but let’s just handle all of this with care.”

MORE NEWS: Royal Expert Just Revealed What Prince William Really Thinks of Meghan Markle…Yikes!

The U.K. Express reported that Tominey added that both Harry and his wife Meghan Markle have struggled.

“They both had a difficult time, neither of them has a particularly good relationship with a large portion of their families, and then you got people hosting podcasts thinking, ‘Brilliant, this will get the ratings.'”

This comes after Harry spoke out to say that he has “unresolved trauma” as he prepares to launch a mental health series with Oprah Winfrey. The Sun reported that “The Me You Can’t See” will be premiering on Apple TV+ on May 21 after it was delayed due to a combination of Megxit and COVID-19 restrictions. After the show was announced, Harry expressed hopes that it will show that “there is power in vulnerability.”

>>>FOLLOW US ON GAB<<<

“We are born into different lives, brought up in different environments, and as a result are exposed to different experiences,” he said. “But our shared experience is that we are all human. The majority of us carry some form of unresolved trauma, loss, or grief, which feels – and is – very personal.”

“Yet the last year has shown us that we are all in this together and my hope is that this series will show there is power in vulnerability, connection in empathy, and strength in honesty,” Harry continued.

A statement released about the show stated that Harry and Oprah will “guide honest discussions about mental health and emotional well-being” while opening up about “their own mental health journeys and struggles” throughout the series. They have teamed up with fourteen experts and organizations to “shed light on different pathways to treatment.”

“Now more than ever, there is an immediate need to replace the shame surrounding mental health with wisdom, compassion, and honesty,” said Oprah. “Our series aims to spark that global conversation.”

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This piece originally appeared in UpliftingToday.com and is used by permission.

Read more at UpliftingToday.com:
Disturbing Details About Bill And Melinda Gates’ Divorce Come To Light – Marriage ‘Irretrievably Broken’
Prince Philip’s True Cause Of Death Is Revealed As His Death Certificate Comes Out One Month After His Passing At 99
Melinda Gates Warned Bill About Jeffrey Epstein – ‘Furious’ After They Met Him

Attn: Wayne Dupree is a free speech champion who works tirelessly to bring you news that the mainstream media ignores. But he needs your support in order to keep delivering quality, independent journalism. You can make a huge impact in the war against fake news by pledging as little as $5 per month. Please click here Patreon.com/WDShow to help Wayne battle the fake news media.

Well, what do we have here? Little Ms. Perfect Susan Collins, who’s always critical of President Trump, is now embroiled in an FBI investigation, complete with search warrants?

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Say it isn’t so…

Well, it is so – and it’s actually a really big deal – Sussan and her campaign could be in some really serious trouble if even some of these allegations are true and they can be linked to them.

MORE NEWS: PA Voting Machine “Glitch” Rejects “Many” Republican Ballots and “Some” Democrat During State-Wide Primaries

Firstly, all of this mess came to the public light thanks to a recently unsealed search warrant application surrounding the Collins re-election campaign.

And as it stands now, Collins and her team are in the thick of some mighty dirty deeds.

The FBI believes a Hawaii defense contractor illegally funneled $150,000 to a pro-Collins super PAC and reimbursed donations to Collins’ campaign.

But it’s even worse than just that.

According to a report from Axios, the “massive scheme” to illegally finance Sen. Susan Collins’ 2020 re-election bid also involves government contracts worth $8 million dollars to the donor who funneled the cash.

Sounds like a “pay to play” scheme, doesn’t it?

>>>FOLLOW US ON GAB<<<

The Axios piece explains that a recently unsealed search warrant application shows the FBI believes a Hawaii defense contractor illegally funneled $150,000 to a pro-Collins super PAC and reimbursed donations to Collins’ campaign. As of right now in the investigation, there is no indication that Collins or her team were aware of any of it.

But how could they not be, especially when you read this next part:

Collins helped the contractor at issue, then called Navatek and since renamed the Martin Defense Group, secure an $8 million Navy contract before most of the donations took place.
Former Navatek CEO Martin Kao was indicted last year for allegedly bilking the federal government of millions in coronavirus relief loans.

Of course, and not surprising at all, The Collins for Senator Campaign says they had absolutely no knowledge of anything alleged in the warrant,” Collins spokesperson Annie Clark told Axios in an emailed statement.

Uh-huh, sure bet.

Federal prosecutors say Kao used a shell company to funnel $150,000 in Navatek funds to a pro-Collins super PAC called 1820 PAC.

Gee, why was this Hawaiian rich businessman so incredibly interested in a dull establishment RINO senator out of Maine?

$8 Million dollar contracts will get people interested, I suppose – and that has Susan’s name all over it.

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According to the FBI, Kao and his wife set up a sham LLC called the Society for Young Women Scientists and Engineers. Navatek then wrote the LLC a $150,000 check, investigators say, which was passed on to the super PAC.

Looks like this investigation is just heating up, and while we expect Collins people to claim “stupidity” and “ignorance” on the issue, we’ll see how this shakes down as more is found out…but as it stands now on the surface, things don’t look very good for the RINO senator from Maine, especially since she reportedly helped the “bad guy” secure an $8 million dollar government contract.

Maybe instead of always criticizing Trump, Susan should have been giving herself “morality pep talks?”

Attn: Wayne Dupree is a free speech champion who works tirelessly to bring you news that the mainstream media ignores. But he needs your support in order to keep delivering quality, independent journalism. You can make a huge impact in the war against fake news by pledging as little as $5 per month. Please click here Patreon.com/WDShow to help Wayne battle the fake news media.

The mask debate is heating up again like crazy, so it’s a perfect time to remind you who is the OG of “red-pilled” anti-mask actors.

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It’s none other than Bruce Willis. He’s the guy who stood by himself in a pharmacy and held up a giant symbolic middle finger to liberal Hollywood and fake science.

In a big show of defiance, Willis was kicked out of a Rite Aid when he refused to wear a mask or “face covering.”

>>>FOLLOW US ON GAB<<<

Customers apparently became upset when the actor refused to cover his face with the bandana that hung just around his neck, and instead of complying, Willis walked out of the store without completing his purchase.

Check it out:

Bruce Willis asked to leave pharmacy for refusing to wear a mask https://t.co/V4kcyxUwy3 pic.twitter.com/SORhCJwfEU

— New York Post (@nypost) January 12, 2021

MORE NEWS: Eric Clapton is Latest Celebrity to Take the “Red-Pill”

From Page Six

He’d rather live free.

Bruce Willis was asked to leave a Los Angeles Rite Aid on Monday after he refused to wear a mask, a spy tells Page Six.

The spy says people inside the store became upset that Willis, 65, wasn’t wearing a mask — despite having a bandanna tied around his neck, which he could have easily pulled up.

We’re told the “Die Hard” star, who was photographed at the store without a mask on, walked away without making his purchase.

A rep for Willis didn’t return Page Six’s request for comment.

That happened back in January – and sadly, since that time things have only gotten worse.

As you know, Fauci has been all over the map on the mask issue – first, he told us not to wear them, that they were basically useless…then he said we should. wear them…then he said we should wear two masks…and now he says we should still wear them even though we’re vaccinated.

And people are growing. more and more frustrated with this nonsense.

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Why is it that people like me who live in tyrannical “mask/lockdown” Michigan, are suffering far worse than people in Florida, who don’t have any of these restrictions?

These are the questions that Americans are now asking…and rightfully so.

And we have brave people like Bruce Willis to thank for that.

He’s right…it’s better to live free.

Attn: Wayne Dupree is a free speech champion who works tirelessly to bring you news that the mainstream media ignores. But he needs your support in order to keep delivering quality, independent journalism. You can make a huge impact in the war against fake news by pledging as little as $5 per month. Please click here Patreon.com/WDShow to help Wayne battle the fake news media.

While appearing recently on Laura Ingraham’s Fox News show, Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) called on White House Chief Medical Adviser Dr. Anthony Fauci to visit the border, adding that if he’s “not compelled to shut down this illegal immigration program, I don’t want to hear anything you’ve got to say about baseball or restaurants.”

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“Well, President Biden said to the Texas Ranger[s] baseball team…you need to listen to Dr. Fauci about urging people to come to the baseball game, Opening Day,” Graham said. “Dr. Fauci, you need to go to the border. And here’s what you will see: You will see 900 people in a room built for 80. You will see people living on top of each other, a 10% positive rate, where the positive people are intermingled with everybody else, and all these illegal immigrants are dumped off in Texas and the rest of the country.”

MORE NEWS: Yet Another Powerful Person “Plunges” Off a High-Rise Balcony…This One’s Tied Directly to Biden

“So, Dr. Fauci, you need to go to the border, and if you’re not compelled to shut down this illegal immigration program, I don’t want to hear anything you’ve got to say about baseball or restaurants,” he added. “It is the biggest, in my view, COVID spreader in the world along the border, where thousands of illegal immigrants are coming to this country, positive, 10% positive rate, intermingled with each other, dropped out all over Texas and the rest of America. So, I’m not worried about the baseball game in Texas. I’m worried about illegal immigrants infecting the whole country given the policies that Biden has.”

Fauci will come out and speak at length about some backyard pool party with too many people…yet curiously, he has nothing to say about the massive “superspreaders” event on the border.

>>>FOLLOW US ON GAB<<<

If that’s not proof he’s a fraud, I don’t know what is.

This comes after Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) also made similar comments criticizing Fauci and calling him out for his “gain of function” research.

Paul even went so far as to suggest that the entire COVID pandemic could be Fauci’s fault.

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Since that outing, Fauci has been placed on the backburner by Dems.

Their little “media darling” has been sidelined, and Biden’s handlers quickly moved to essentially end the “pandemic.”

Very interesting timing, wouldn’t you say?

Attn: Wayne Dupree is a free speech champion who works tirelessly to bring you news that the mainstream media ignores. But he needs your support in order to keep delivering quality, independent journalism. You can make a huge impact in the war against fake news by pledging as little as $5 per month. Please click here Patreon.com/WDShow to help Wayne battle the fake news media.

President Biden will reportedly be waiving sanctions soon for the corporation behind Russia’s Nord Stream 2 pipeline into Germany. The pipeline is already 95% finished as of this report.

Axios confirmed this turn of events with two sources. According to their report, it is proof that the “Biden administration is not willing to compromise its relationship with Germany over this pipeline.”

But, Secretary of State Anthony Blinken swore that he would fight the completion of the pipeline during his confirmation hearing. “I am determined to do whatever we can to prevent that completion (of Nord Stream 2),” Blinken said at the time.

These sources told Axios that top officials’ opinion is that the only way to stop the pipeline is “to sanction the German end-users of the gas.”

Read the full article here.

You can follow Jenny Goldsberry on Twitter @jennyjournalism

During a bipartisan congressional hearing on Tuesday, Speaker of the House Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) asked her fellow members to boycott the Beijing Olympics in February.

“Here’s what I propose – and join those who are proposing – is a diplomatic boycott,” Pelosi said, asking that “lead countries of the world withhold their attendance at the Olympics.”

Those who have already called for a boycott include coalitions of Uyghurs, Tibetan and Hong Kongers. Among them are the World Uyghur Congress, Campaign for Uyghurs, Students for a Free Tibet, Tibet Action Institute, We The Hongkongers, Southern Mongolian Human Rights Information Center, China Against the Death Penalty, and Keep Taiwan Free.

“Let’s not honor the Chinese government by having heads of state go to China,” Pelosi said.

“For heads of state to go to China in light of a genocide that is ongoing – while you’re sitting there in your seat – really begs the question, what moral authority do you have to speak again about human rights any place in the world?” she said.

Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo recognized the acts against Uyghurs in the People’s Republic of China as a genocide back in January.

You can follow Jenny Goldsberry on Twitter @jennyjournalism

Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich appeared on “The Sara Carter Show” Podcast Monday to talk about and the lawsuits he’s filed surrounding the border crisis. Right now, these suits have just begun and his office is still in the midst of discovery.

As they’ve been searching emails to and from Immigration Customs Enforcement, Border Customs Protection and the White House, they’ve found troubling messages. Brnovich told Carter they’ve only been searching for a day since the interview, but they already found evidence of impropriety. “Activists emailed the White House and said, because it’s Black History Month, you have to stop deporting people,” Brnovich said. “And within days, there was a directive from ICE basically saying, we’re going to stop deporting people.”

Then, they also deposed an ICE officer who shared a troubling update from the last 100+ days. “He basically said that as a result of these Biden policies, there are people not being picked up,” Brnovich said.

RELATED: Rep. Garcia shares biggest fear about border crisis

This policy doesn’t just apply to people who attempt to immigrate from now on, but even those in custody now. “We have people right now in Arizona prisons in short term custody,” Brnovich said, “that have been convicted of crimes like arson, manslaughter, assault, sexual assault, and they are scheduled to be released from Arizona prison or from custody.”

Suddenly, Brnovich says an immigration problem becomes a “threat to national security [and] to public safety.” Yet at the same time, Vice President and border czar Harris is “not doing anything. She doesn’t care, and it’s it’s sad.”

RELATED: Sara Carter’s visit to Texas border reveals lack of accountability from Biden administration

Now, there are more than 20,000 migrant children in custody. It’s expected that 2 million people will cross the border illegally this year, according to Brnovich. Just in the last three months were over 450,000 people, roughly the city population of Minneapolis, that crossed the southern border.

With the rise of the border crisis coinciding with Biden’s election into office, Brnovich says voting is the solution. “Elections have consequences,” he said.

You can follow Jenny Goldsberry on Twitter @jennyjournalism

UPDATED

Deputy to Spain’s far-right Vox party Francisco José Contreras spent 12 hours suspended from his Twitter account for tweeting that a man cannot get pregnant last week.

Contreras told the story in a Facebook post. “The hateful tweet (which I was forced to delete) was one that said: ′A man cannot get pregnant. A man has no womb or eggs’,” Contreras wrote. “You can see this is already fascist biology. Next time I’ll try 2 + 2 = 4.”

The tweet came after Contreras read an article about a transgender male giving birth. He called the story “a lie.”

RELATED: Twitter suspends accounts reposting Trump’s statements

According to Twitter, Contreras apparently violated its policy against material that threatens, harasses, or fosters violence against other people on the basis of their race, ethnic origin, nationality, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, religion, age, disability or disease. 

In his post, Contreras said Twitter gave him a warning: “Keep in mind that repeated defaults may lead to permanent suspension of your account. Go to Twitter now to fix the problem with your account.” Twitter did not respond to a request for comment.

When asked by this reporter for a statement, Twitter declined to comment.

RELATED: Twitter suspends Rep. Stefanik’s comms director, later reinstates account claiming it was an ‘error’

Ever since, #AManCannotBePregnant has been trending among his supporters.

You can follow Jenny Goldsberry on Twitter @jennyjournalism

National Institute of Allergies and Infectious Diseases Director Dr. Fauci appeared on “Good Morning America” Tuesday, to say he only wore a mask after being vaccinated to maintain his image. This comes after the Center for Disease Control and Prevention announced that vaccinated persons are not required to continue wearing a mask.

Anchor George Stephanopoulos asked Fauci how he’s changed his personal mask policy. And the response was something many have thought all along: for theater. He said he had been wearing a mask despite being vaccinated because of his position.

“I didn’t want to look like I was giving mixed signals,” Fauci said. “But being a fully vaccinated person, the chances of my getting infected in an indoor setting is extremely low.”

“That’s why in indoor settings now, I feel comfortable about not wearing a mask,” he admitted.

Just in March, Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) accused Fauci of such during a hearing. “You parade around in a mask for show,” Paul said to Fauci.

RELATED: Rand Paul: ‘Dr. Fauci needs to put up or shut up’

“You have the vaccine and you’re wearing two masks, isn’t that theater?” Paul asked Fauci

“Here we go again with the theater,” Fauci replied, sounding frustrated. He ended the discussion by reiterating: “Let me just state for the record masks are not theater. Masks are protective.”

But now he’s changed his tune. Paul, for his part, contracted the virus last year. Ever since, he’s refused to get a vaccine, one of three U.S. senators that remain unvaccinated. He also reportedly walks around maskless in the Capitol.

You can follow Jenny Goldsberry on Twitter @jennyjournalism

Former Vice President Mike Pence penned a scathing op-ed in National Review on Tuesday, accusing President Biden of “weakness,” “confusion” and “betrayal” amidst the recent conflict between Israel and the Palestinians.

RELATED: Biden admin sending envoy to Israel who has a major anti-Israel problem

In the piece, Pence blamed the increasing conflict on the Biden administration. “Many Americans witnessing the recent bloodshed in Israel are perplexed by how quickly violence erupted after years of calm,” Pence wrote. “The answer is that President Biden and congressional Democrats have abandoned unambiguous support for our ally Israel, emboldened our enemies, and turned their back on the policy that yielded historic peace deals in the Middle East.”

First, Pence pointed out, the Trump administration publicly supported Israel and quite the “dangerous Iran nuclear deal.” It was under Trump that the American embassy moved to Jerusalem. All the while, they faced criticism.

“Every step of the way, Democrats and self-proclaimed foreign-policy ‘experts’ derided our administration’s approach and issued dire warnings that blood would soon flow in the streets of Israeli cities,” Pence wrote. “As usual, they were wrong.”

“But now, President Biden has sent the world a profoundly different message,” Pence went on. “Instead of seeking peace through strength, he has invited violence through weakness.” Pence blasted Psaki for refusing to answer the question of whether Israel was “an important ally” or not.

“Every tepid statement uttered by the Biden-Harris administration is built on a false equivalency between Israel and Hamas,” Pence wrote.

As far as solutions, Pence suggests all there’s left to do is pray. “Americans should pray for the peace of Jerusalem and stand without apology for our most cherished ally, Israel until the violence is quelled and Israel’s security is restored,” he wrote.

You can follow Jenny Goldsberry on Twitter @jennyjournalism

Space Force Lieutenet Colonel Matthew Lohmeier appeared on Fox News’ “Hannity” Monday to share the details of his recent ousting from a position of Commanding Officer. He revealed to host Sean Hannity that he retains his rank but was recently reassigned over speaking out against marxism on the “Information Operation” podcast.

The Department of Defense called on military commands to hold an extremism ‘stand-down’ day following the Capitol riots. Every base had from February to April to schedule a day to implement the guide provided by the DoD. During Lohmeier’s “down-day,” he claims his base watched a video that proclaimed “the country was evil, that it was founded in 1619 rather than 1776, and that White [people] are inherently evil”. 

According to Lohmeier, he doesn’t believe he broke any regulation that called for being relieved of his position.

“I don’t believe I was being partisan. It is not politically partisan to expose or attack critical race theory or marxism,” Lohmeier told Hannity.

“The reason I say that is because critical race theory and marxism are antithetical to American values. Critical race theory fuels narratives that attack America’s founding documents.”

As a result, Lohmeier says he’s received “thousands” of letters from fellow members of the military who also wish they could speak out as he has. They tell him they’ve “lost their voice.”

You can follow Jenny Goldsberry on Twitter @jennyjournalism

Andrew Giuliani is following in the footsteps of his father Rudy Giuliani as he announced his gubernatorial bid in New York Tuesday. He will be running against four other Republican candidates and incumbent Governor Cuomo.

Most recently, Giuliani served as special assistant to former President Trump in 2019. Before that, he was Associate Director of the Office of Public Liaison for the Trump administration.

While the other gubernatorial candidates are not free from scandal, Giuliani will likely have to answer to reported investigations into his father. Federal Bureau of Investigation agents recently seized father Rudy Giuliani’s computers in an alleged probe into Giuliani for reportedly illegally lobbying as a foreign agent.

“The search warrants involve only one indication of an alleged incident of failure to register as a foreign agent,” Robert Costello wrote in a statement. “The Biden department of justice has completely ignored clear evidence in texts and emails on Hunter Biden’s hard drive of failing to register numerous times as a foreign agent.”

You can follow Jenny Goldsberry on Twitter @jennyjournalism

The state of California will maintain its current mask mandate, requiring that all Californians, vaccinated or otherwise, wear masks indoors. This mandate will last until June 15, as planned. Vaccinated residents can remove their masks outdoors, unless at a sporting event or concert. This comes after the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention announced that vaccinated persons are no longer required to wear masks.

RELATED: Gov. DeSantis discontinues COVID restrictions

Human Services Secretary Dr. Mark Ghaly explained the reasoning in a phone call with local media. “The delay is “in no way saying the science or the direction by the CDC is wrong or there’s a challenge to it,” Ghaly said. “It’s really just giving ourselves across the state some additional time to have it implemented with a high degree of integrity with a continued focus on protecting the public’s health.”

Last week, the coronavirus death toll reached a 10-month low and continues to plummet.

Read the full article here.

You can follow Jenny Goldsberry on Twitter @jennyjournalism

A group of coalitions representing Uyghurs, Tibetans and Hongkongers issued a statement Monday, demanding that National Olympic Committees, Olympic athletes and sponsors boycott the upcoming Beijing Olympics. They’re calling for the boycott because “participating in the Beijing Olympic Games at this time would be tantamount to endorsing China’s genocide against the Uyghur people, and legitimizing the increasingly repressive policies of the totalitarian Chinese regime.”

Among the sponsors of the statement are World Uyghur Congress, Campaign for Uyghurs, Students for a Free Tibet, Tibet Action Institute, We The Hongkongers, Southern Mongolian Human Rights Information Center, China Against the Death Penalty, and Keep Taiwan Free.

In the statement, the coalitions pointed out that the U.S. State Department has already recognized the situation with Uyghurs in China as a genocide. Secretary Pompeo made the announcement in January.

Besides genocide, the statement also claimed the People’s Republic of China has “illegally occupied Tibet,” “implemented a draconian National Security Bill that effectively criminalizes protest” in Hong Kong, “put down with force” protests by Southern Mongolians and engaged in “geopolitical bullying of Taiwan.”

Previously, the International Olympic Committee claimed that by hosting the Olympics in 2008, the situation in China would get better. Senior IOC member Richard Pound claimed in 2004 the decision “was made in the hope of improvement in human rights and, indeed, the Chinese themselves said that having the games would accelerate progress in such matters.” But, over 15 years later, the U.S. still determined genocides were happening there.

AP News interviewed Tibetan Action Institute’s Lhadon Tethong, who was deported from China in 2007 for her activism. “The situation where we are now is demonstrably worse that it was then,” Tethong said in the interview. “If the games go ahead, then Beijing gets the international seal of approval for what they are doing.”

You can follow Jenny Goldsberry on Twitter @jennyjournalism

Students were streaming out of the Sayed ul-Shuhada secondary school in Kabul on Saturday 8 May, when explosions shook the neighbourhood.

At least 85 people were killed in the bomb attack - the majority of them schoolgirls.

It follows a series of attacks in recent years, which have hit schools, training centres, hospitals, wedding halls and mosques all in same part of the Afghan capital.

The Dasht-e Barchi area of is largely populated by ethnic Hazaras and Shia Muslims in Afghanistan, and the attacks have raised fears for their communities.

The families of some of the girls who died told the BBC of the grief and fear they are now living with.

Video by Zuhal Ahad and Kawoon Khamoosh

Republican Gov. Greg Abbott of Texas on Tuesday issued an executive order banning government-issued mask mandates.

“No governmental entity, including a county, city, school district, and public health authority, and no governmental official may require any person to wear a face covering,” the order said.

Abbott’s order stated that as of May 21, any entity requiring masks could face a fine of up to $1,000.

Although schools are included in the order, Abbott said that schools can continue with their current mask policies through June 4.

After that, “no student, teacher, parent, or other staff member or visitor may be required to wear a face covering,” the order said.

“The Lone Star State continues to defeat COVID-19 through the use of widely-available vaccines, antibody therapeutic drugs, and safe practices utilized by Texans in our communities,” Abbott said in a news release.

“Texans, not government, should decide their best health practices, which is why masks will not be mandated by public school districts or government entities. We can continue to mitigate COVID-19 while defending Texans’ liberty to choose whether or not they mask up.”

Government-owned or operated hospitals, state-supported living centers, Texas Juvenile Justice Department facilities and Texas Department of Criminal Justice facilities, as well as county and municipal jails, are exempt from the order.

Abbott clarified that voluntary mask-wearing is fine.

“Anybody can wear a mask if they want to. It’s just that it’s a decision to be made by Texans, not to be forced by government,” the governor said, according to CNBC.

Abbott made it clear that his goal is to jump-start Texas back to normal life.

“The COVID situation in Texas is such that we can and should be open 100%,” he told CNBC.

“We can eliminate government-required masks, but we always encourage people to make their own choice for themselves and for their own safety.”

The Texas State Teachers Association objected to the order, according to The Texas Tribune.

Union leader Ovidia Molina said Abbott should have waited until the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued its guidance for the next school year.

She also said action by some schools to revoke mask mandates was “ill-advised.”

“The health and safety of our students, educators and communities must remain our first priority as we attempt to emerge from this pandemic,” Molina said.

The school year in Texas is almost over, with the last day of classes for the state’s biggest school district, Houston ISD, falling on June 11. May 27 is the last day for some students in the state’s second-biggest district, Dallas ISD.

Texas A&M University, responding to the order, announced the end of its mask requirement “effective immediately and therefore applies to remaining commencement ceremonies, as well as indoor and outdoor facilities and venues.”

Democratic Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner called Abbott’s order “a clear overreach.”

“His power is not absolute,” the mayor said, according to CNN.

“If you are a city of Houston employee or entering a city facility and you have not been fully vaccinated, you should wear your mask,” Turner said. “We are not mandating it, but I strongly encourage everyone to get vaccinated to protect themselves, their family, and their co-workers.”

We are committed to truth and accuracy in all of our journalism. Read our editorial standards.

Contributor, News

Gasoline prices are now at levels unseen since the last Democratic president.

Although on Tuesday prices slipped two-tenths of a penny, according to data from the American Automobile Association reviewed by ABC News, the average price of $3.043 per gallon of regular gas was 62 percent higher than a year ago, when the average was $1.879 per gallon.

ABC reported that gas prices have not been this high since 2014, when former President Barack Obama was in the White House.

A 63% increase in gasoline prices in the past year while Joe Biden suspends drilling and cancels pipelines.

Yep, Joe’s really helping the little guy.

— Jim (@Jep4577) May 18, 2021

Data provided by the AAA revealed that the national average price jumped eight cents.

Price hikes in southeastern states such as Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina went as high as 21 cents amid the shutdown of the Colonial Pipeline.

Although the pipeline operator reportedly paid nearly $5 million in a ransomware attack and the line was turned back on last week, many stations still have no fuel.

For example, 47 percent of North Carolina stations are dry, according to WTVD-TV, citing a GasBuddy report.

“The Southeast will continue to experience tight supply this week as terminals and gas stations are refueled,” AAA spokeswoman Jeanette McGee said, ABC reported. “Over the weekend, gas prices started to stabilize, but are expected to fluctuate in the lead up to Memorial Day weekend.”

With lockdown rules falling by the wayside, the AAA predicts a 52 percent increase in the number of Americans taking road trips this summer.

“This is going to be an expensive summer for motorists,” McGee added, according to Convenience Store News. “However, we do not expect it to deter travelers from hitting the road. AAA finds that despite the higher pump prices, Americans still take their road trips but just may not travel as far as originally planned, or go to their planned destination and spend a little less.”

Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, said a dose of panic helped boost prices.

“A rough guess would be 90% of the damage was inflicted by panic-buying and hoarding,” De Haan said, according to CBS News. “You’re talking about a vast response that absolutely prolonged the outages and made price increases worse.”

He noted that although outages remain, they are declining.

Difference just since Friday 12am, then vs. now in % outages in areas >5%
AL 9%/6.4%
DC 83.2% 68.1%
FL 30.5%/15.1%
GA 50.2%/37.5%
MD 42.3%/21.5%
MS 7.1%/5.7%
NC 71.6%/43.7%
SC 52.0%/40.3%
TN 32.7%/22.5%
VA 52.8%/25.2%
WV 6.6%/5.4%

— Patrick De Haan ⛽️📊 (@GasBuddyGuy) May 18, 2021

GasBuddy is predicting that prices will drop to an average of $2.98 per gallon by Memorial Day.

“As the pipeline situation improves, those price increases in the Southeast of over 15 cents a gallon — those will be coming down and pressure the national average down,” De Haan said.

He noted that although prices skyrocketed seemingly overnight, the decline will not be as quick.

“Prices went up 12 to 20 cents a gallon, and they should start coming down for the next week. Maybe two weeks,” he said, according to WBRC-TV. “They may not go all the way down because the overall trend for gas prices has been higher.”

We are committed to truth and accuracy in all of our journalism. Read our editorial standards.

Contributor, News

A 10-year-old Floridian gave an impassioned rebuke of school mask requirements when addressing his school board last week in a speech that every single adult in this country needs to hear right now.

Addressing the Martin County School District in Florida last week, the boy, named John according to Fox News, gave an account of his surprise at finding that rules imposed at the beginning of the school year which continued longer than he expected “didn’t make sense.”

“I just turned 10 years old and I am a fourth-grader at Felix A. Williams,” the young man began.

“I expected school to be a little bit different in the beginning, but I didn’t think it would stay this way all year long. And I was surprised by the rules. A lot of them didn’t make any sense to me like the fact that we were not allowed to play on the playground or have student council or turn to face each other at lunch. And we also have to wear masks outside at P.E. and on track,” John explained.

“I love my school and all, but my teachers seem really stressed and that makes me feel bad.”

It’s easy to imagine teachers are stressed with the task of enforcing COVID-19 restrictions among their young charges, but this observant student went on to explain that what is most frustrating for him to witness is exactly how these restrictions are being enforced.

“One teacher walks around with a clipboard full of referrals for any student whose mask isn’t on properly. It makes me feel scared,” John said.

“That same teacher yells at us having our masks down to drink water while we are outside in the car line. She told us that we have to wait until we were in our parent’s cars to have a drink of water. She had her mask down the entire time while she was yelling at us. Which makes me and all of my friends very mad. This happens a lot.”

During his comments, John also noted he’d seen a teacher outside of school whom he was able to recognize because she sat at her desk with her mask off. Because students are not allowed the same privilege, however, his teacher did not recognize him.

“I have allergies and I feel really anxious with my face covering. But I’m not allowed a mask break like her,” he said.

John noted it seemed “unfair” to him that teachers could pull their masks down while children were strictly required to keep theirs up.

“I asked my mom if there’s a word for this and she said there is — hypocrisy,” the boy said to audible cheers in the room.

Heart-wrenchingly, however, John also described the negative consequences of wearing a mask all day that many concerned parents have reported among their children subject to mask requirements.

“Wearing a mask all day makes me feel really tired and gives me really bad headaches,” he said.

The young man also said his mask sticks to his face in hot weather, making it difficult to breathe.

“I feel like I can’t catch my breath and that makes me feel claustrophobic and anxious. It’s really stressful,” he said.

“I miss seeing people’s faces. I miss the way things used to be. I’m scared they’ll never go back to normal. Breathing freely doesn’t seem like something we should have to ask any other people for permission for.”

John finished by imploring the school board, “Please make masks optional today. It would be so awesome to end the school year on a really happy note like that.”

This 10 year-old boy just obliterated his school board’s mask mandate and calls out its unfairness and hypocrisy.

You’re going to want to watch this one… pic.twitter.com/8y7SwNOLot

— Benny (@bennyjohnson) May 18, 2021

Following the boy’s remarks, Fox News reported the school board voted 4-1 for masks to remain mandatory for the last 12 days of the school year, and optional starting June 1 for summer school students.

As a mother, I am both applauding John and raging at the people who have subjected his generation to the senseless COVID-19 restrictions that have made an already fraught period of American history that much more psychologically difficult for children.

We have known almost the entire time that children virtually don’t spread COVID-19 — not to their parents, nor their teachers, as per CDC data, in fact.

School boards have been imposing unrealistic, unnecessary and downright unsafe mandates all in the name of “health” — as children are actually experiencing adverse health effects, both physically and mentally, from wearing these things on their faces all day.

If you have children, you’ll know they can figure out pretty quickly that a whole lot of adults don’t practice what they preach and that the world does not make sense.

That’s why parents ought to take it upon themselves to ensure their children have a healthy sense of right and wrong, just like this young man, and understand the fundamentally American concept of holding authority figures accountable.

It is incredibly overwhelming to think of the millions of children just like this boy all across America who have been subjected to these extreme, scientifically baseless protocols to stop the spread of a virus that children don’t spread.

Out of the mouths of babes — good for John’s parents for teaching him to think critically about authority structures from a young age.

With the degree of hypocrisy our nation’s schoolchildren have witnessed first-hand since March 2020, let’s hope there’s a lot of these conversations going on around family dinner tables. We can only pray the next generation will know better than to let those in power use fear to manipulate the masses into doing something that has nothing to do with science and everything to do with compliance.

We are committed to truth and accuracy in all of our journalism. Read our editorial standards.

Contributor, Commentary

A cyber expert working on the Arizona election audit team testified Tuesday that he was able to recover an allegedly deleted directory from the Maricopa County election server.

Ben Cotton — the founder of CyFir, a digital forensics and cyber risk solutions company — told Arizona Senate President Karen Fann and Senate Judiciary Chairman Warren Petersen that he discovered the missing file directory while reviewing the Master File Table.

The MFT, he explained during a special meeting of the state Senate, is a “record of all of the directories and the files that are contained in that partition and a pointing — and a pointer to where that data resides on the hard drive.”

The database directory from the D drive of the machine “EMSPrimary” [Election Management System] had been deleted, he confirmed.

“In the course of performing that MFT discovery, I discovered a MFT that clearly indicated that the database directory was deleted from that server,” Cotton said.

Breaking Update: Maricopa County deleted a directory full of election databases from the 2020 election cycle days before the election equipment was delivered to the audit. This is spoliation of evidence! pic.twitter.com/mY0fmmFXAm

— Maricopa Arizona Audit (@ArizonaAudit) May 13, 2021

He then told Fann and Petersen he was able to successfully recover the files.

“All of this, however, may be a moot point because subsequently, I’ve been able to recover all of those deleted files. And I have access to that data,” Cotton said.

In a letter to the Maricopa Board of Supervisors last week, Fann raised the issue of the deleted files.

No chain of custody for ballots, ballot batch counts don’t match with actual ballots, deleted databases, cut security seals, ongoing non-compliance with subpoenas and more…

Read the letter to the Maricopa Board of Supervisors here: https://t.co/QAXtFdQ8lf

— Maricopa Arizona Audit (@ArizonaAudit) May 13, 2021

The board responded with its own letter to Fann on Monday.

The board offered up that the reason the files showed up as deleted is that “the Elections Department shut down the server to be packed up and made ready for delivery to the Senate.”

“At no point was any data deleted when shutting down the server and packing up the equipment.”

The officials reiterated, “Maricopa County provided you the actual Dominion server as commanded by your subpoena and we did not transfer or delete from that server any data from the 2020 General Election that was subject to your subpoena.”

“You have now returned that server to us. Evidently, your ‘auditors’ made a copy of that server and are conducting their analysis on the copy,” the letter continued.

Additionally, the board refused to turn over county routers that auditors have requested to ensure voting tabulators were not connected to the internet during the election.

The letter cited security concerns about sensitive information contained in the routers getting into the wrong hands.

The board members closed their letter — also signed by Republican Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer and Democratic Maricopa County Sheriff Paul Penzone — calling for the audit to cease.

“You, Senate President Fann, are the only one with the power to immediately end it. We implore you to recognize the obvious truth: your ‘auditors’ are in way over their heads,” they wrote.

Cotton directly addressed the board’s explanation for the apparently deleted directory being due to the system being shut down before it was delivered to the Senate.

“We follow a very strict forensics acquisition process in which we don’t turn on a system if it’s delivered to us in a powered off state” before making a copy of the drive, he said.

Cotton added, “We produced a bit for bit forensics copy of that particular drive.”

We are committed to truth and accuracy in all of our journalism. Read our editorial standards.

Senior Staff Writer

SummaryMore Biographical InformationRecent PostsContact

Randy DeSoto has written more than 1,000 articles for The Western Journal since he joined the company in 2015. He is a graduate of West Point and Regent University School of Law. He is the author of the book "We Hold These Truths" and screenwriter of the political documentary "I Want Your Money."

Birthplace

Harrisburg, Pennsylvania

Nationality

American

Honors/Awards

Graduated dean's list from West Point

Education

United States Military Academy at West Point, Regent University School of Law

Books Written

We Hold These Truths

Professional Memberships

Virginia and Pennsylvania state bars

Location

Phoenix, Arizona

Languages Spoken

English

Topics of Expertise

Politics, Entertainment, Faith

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DETROIT, Mich., May 18, 2021 (SEND2PRESS NEWSWIRE) — UBX Cloud, a U.S. based cloud provider headquartered in Madison Heights, Mich., has been awarded “10 Most Promising Cloud Solution Providers 2021” by CIOReviewIndia. UBX leverages proven, off-the-shelf technologies in its private cloud operations arena, globally. The technologies offer clients enhanced performance, while leveraging the power of automation with unmatched uptime.

“UBX provides its services in affordable and simple right-sized packages,” said Steve Panovski, UBX Cloud President.

“If you can order a mobile data plan, you can order the cloud service that provides the core building blocks of your business.”

Services include Platform as a Service (PaaS) – helping clients migrate server infrastructure to a cloud-based solution – and Cybersecurity as a Service (CaaS)- protecting business data with the latest AI-based threat detection, mitigation and alerting. These services are offered as add-ons to its cloud services at no additional cost.

Business continuity with managed backups and Disaster Recovery as a Service (DRaaS) – backing up or replicating data and virtual servers to its private clouds across India – are also included in UBX Cloud’s array of services.

UBX Cloud offers an excellent proposition for the India market with value additions, such as the built-in state-of-the-art cybersecurity solutions powered by Syntervision Oasis and CybrHawk.

“We are expanding our cloud points of presence and capacity to deliver thousands of cloud workspaces and infrastructure services to the entire PAN India region,” Panovski said.

About UBX Cloud

UBX Cloud is a Michigan-based cloud service provider with data centers in the United States and India. Our services include Managed IT-as-a-Service, Private/Hybrid Cloud, Disaster Recovery, Cloud Workspaces, Veeam Cloud Backup, and a variety of custom IT consulting services. Our team of IT Engineers helps organizations of all kinds maintain uptime and ensure business continuity.

For more information, please visit us at https://www.ubxcloud.com or call 1-888-509-2568.

News Source: UBX Cloud

MCLEAN, Va., April 27, 2021 (SEND2PRESS NEWSWIRE) — By Light Professional IT Services LLC (By Light) announced today that it has achieved Trusted Integrator status within the National Security Agency’s (NSA) Commercial Solutions for Classified (CSfC) program. In addition to our ISO9001, 20000-1 and 27001 registrations and CMMI Level 3 Dev and Services ratings, we demonstrated the staff and processes necessary to architect, design, integrate, test, document, field, and support systems that meet the requirements of the CSfC program.

Trusted Integrator status enables NSA, Authorizing Officials (AOs)/Designated Approving Authorities (DAAs) to utilize By Light’s System Integration Development and Support Services for lifecycle CSfC solution support.

“CSfC’s use of conforming commercial products in layered solutions to protect National Security Systems (NSS) data improves design, integration, and deployment timelines,” says Jeff Adelman, By Light Vice President of Integration Services. “But the solution does not end with deployment; sustainment actions including continuous testing and security incident response are critical to the lifecycle success of any CSfC Capability Package implementation.”

Trusted Integrator status complements By Light’s capabilities in tactical and strategic networking, cloud architecture, cyber security, and synthetic training environments.

About By Light

By Light Professional IT Services LLC, headquartered in McLean, Virginia, is an ISO 9001, 20000-1, and 27001 registered and CMMI Level 3 rated systems integrator that provides secure, turn-key systems by incorporating exceptional engineering, project management, telecommunications, and cyber capabilities to safeguard mission success. Founded by industry professionals with extensive knowledge in the DoD, DISA, and other US Government agencies, By Light successfully implements technical solutions that integrate commercial best practices to meet the needs of government. For more information, visit http://www.bylight.com/.

News Source: By Light Professional IT Services

HALF MOON BAY, Calif., April 6, 2021 (SEND2PRESS NEWSWIRE) — Treadstone 71 announced today the release of the much-awaited and industry-leading Strategic Intelligence Analysis training certification. The in-depth, on-demand course breaks down intelligence collection and analysis complexities over 12-weeks of lectures, exercises, quizzes, and hands-on case studies.

The certification includes all aspects of the pioneering Cyber Intelligence Tradecraft, Certified Cyber Intelligence Analyst course combined with comprehensive instruction on all strategic intelligence elements. The course also includes extended lectures and exercises for analytic writing and structured analytic techniques.

“The Strategic Intelligence Analysis Certification covers all aspects of building cyber intelligence programs, interacting with stakeholders, building intelligence requirements, establishing adversary threat matrices, planning for intelligence collection through execution of analytic methods,” said Jeff Bardin, Chief Intelligence Officer for Treadstone 71.

He adds, “Students and corporate teams completing this program of study are ready to analyze, write, and forecast adversary activities that can prevent cyber-attacks. We believe this course is a game-changer that shifts the paradigm away from after-the-fact indicators of compromise analysis to what Intelligence is intended to be.”

The course provides instruction in a crawl-walk-run method that gives students the confidence to execute tasks throughout the cyber intelligence lifecycle. Templates and examples show students effective practices that are both descriptive and prescriptive while at the same time allowing for adapting the practices to corporate culture.

Organizations looking to build or mature their cyber intelligence program find this course of study a natural next step in establishing resilient and sustainable intelligence capabilities that assist leadership in decision-making.

“We deliver several hands-on exercises complete with templates and examples,” continued Bardin. “We intend to send each student back to their corporate environments armed with the knowledge necessary to immediately enhance their existing programs or start new programs with a foundation rooted in excellence. Teams taking the course learn how to think independently, establishing strong unit bonds crossing technical, tactical, and strategic boundaries.”

About Treadstone 71 LLC:

Treadstone 71 ( https://www.treadstone71.com/ ), founded in 2002, is a woman and veteran-owned small business delivering cyber Intelligence, counterintelligence, strategic analysis, clandestine cyber HUMINT, OSINT training and analysis, cyber psychological and target acquisition operations.

For more information, call (331) 999-0071 or email [email protected].

MULTIMEDIA:

VIDEO (YouTube): https://youtu.be/syBv4k0pJXQ

LOGO link for media: https://www.send2press.com/300dpi/19-0610s2p-treadstone71-300dpi.jpg

News Source: Treadstone 71

DALLAS, Texas, April 5, 2021 (SEND2PRESS NEWSWIRE) — Baxter Clewis Consulting, an international consultancy on cyber security, announced today that it has joined the PCI Security Standards Council (PCI SSC) as a new Participating Organization. Baxter Clewis will work with the PCI SSC to help secure payment data worldwide through the ongoing development and adoption of the PCI Security Standards.

The PCI SSC leads a global, cross-industry effort to increase payment security by providing flexible, industry-driven and effective data security standards and programs. The keystone is the PCI Data Security Standard (PCI DSS), which provides an actionable framework for developing a robust payment card data security process and preventing, detecting and mitigating criminal attacks and breaches.

As a Participating Organization, Baxter Clewis adds its voice to the standards development process and will collaborate with a growing community of more than 800 Participating Organizations to improve payment security worldwide. Baxter Clewis will also have the opportunity to recommend new initiatives for consideration to the PCI Security Standards Council and share cross-sector experiences and best practices at the annual PCI Community Meetings.

“In an era of increasingly sophisticated attacks on systems, PCI Security Standards and resources help organizations secure payment data and prevent, detect and mitigate attacks that can lead to costly data breaches,” said Lance Johnson, Executive Director of the PCI Security Standards Council. “By joining as a Participating Organization, Baxter Clewis demonstrates they are playing an active part in improving payment security globally by helping drive awareness and adoption of PCI Security Standards.”

“Using third-party service providers is an organizational risk from a supply chain, security, and compliance standpoint. Companies should have the assurance that their systems and PCI data is appropriately managed and secured by third-party service providers,” said Boyd Clewis, VP of Baxter Clewis Consulting. Baxter Clewis enables service-providers to enhance security and compliance programs while reducing risk with systems, processes, and automation. We are proud to partner with PCI Standards Council, and we look forward to helping address risk related to third-party service providers.

About the PCI Security Standards Council

The PCI Security Standards Council is a global forum that is responsible for the development, management, education, and awareness of the PCI Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) and other standards that increase payment data security. Connect with the PCI Council on LinkedIn. Join the conversation on Twitter @PCISSC. Subscribe to the PCI Perspectives Blog.

About Baxter Clewis Consulting

Baxter Clewis Consulting is an international cybersecurity firm specializing in helping service providers meet security and compliance requirements to secure vital company data, enhance efficiency, and protect profitability. Learn more about Baxter Clewis Consulting by connecting on LinkedIn and visiting the Baxter Clewis website at https://www.baxterclewis.com/.

MEDIA CONTACTS:

Baxter Clewis Consulting
Boyd Clewis
469-547-5652
[email protected]

PCI Security Standards Council
Lindsay Goodspeed
781-258-5843
[email protected]

*LOGO LINK for media: https://www.Send2Press.com/300dpi/21-0405s2p-baxter-clewis-logo-300dpi.jpg

News Source: Baxter Clewis Consulting

HERNDON, Va., March 26, 2021 (SEND2PRESS NEWSWIRE) — Aristi Technologies, Inc. announced that it is among the first firms to become an accredited Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) Third-Party Assessor Organization (C3PAO) and Registered Provider Organization (RPO) by the CMMC Accreditation Body (CMMC-AB). C3PAOs are the only organizations authorized to conduct CMMC assessments.

The U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) created the CMMC program to enhance the protection of sensitive data, namely, controlled unclassified information (CUI) and federal contract information (FCI), within the Defense Department’s multi-tiered supply chain of more than 300,000 companies. CMMC is specifically designed for small and mid-sized suppliers as they are more vulnerable to cyber threats in the supply chain.

These small and mid-sized contractors are increasingly being targeted by nation-state attackers; they have limited internal resources and cybersecurity expertise to adequately secure their systems and safeguard sensitive customer data.

“Aristi is honored to achieve C3PAO and RPO credentials, demonstrating our commitment to the CMMC program in supporting the DoD’s mission to secure the defense supply chain,” said Neel Gopalani, Aristi’s vice president, and a CMMC-AB Registered Practitioner (RP). “Our CMMC practice is a natural extension of our cybersecurity compliance and assessment services that we’ve provided for more than a decade.”

Over the last year, Aristi has helped small and mid-sized government contractors prepare for complying with CMMC security requirements. Aristi’s CMMC consulting services include: boundary scoping, gap assessments, remediation support, security documentation and readiness assessments. As a C3PAO and RPO, Aristi will continue to help federal contractors effectively navigate the DoD’s new cybersecurity certification process.

About Aristi Technologies

Aristi Technologies is a cybersecurity consulting firm based in the Washington DC metro area. For more than a decade, it’s provided cybersecurity risk and compliance services to organizations, nationwide, including federal agencies, government contractors, and cloud-service providers.

Aristi delivers tailored and affordable solutions to achieve compliance with federal cyber compliance standards including National Institute of Standards & Technology (NIST) 800-53, NIST 800-171 (the core of the CMMC framework), Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA) and Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program (FedRAMP).

MEDIA CONTACT:
Neel Gopalani
of Aristi
+1-703-459-6268
[email protected]

News Source: Aristi Technologies Inc.

DETROIT, Mich., March 18, 2021 (SEND2PRESS NEWSWIRE) — UBX Cloud is the first U.S. based cloud services provider to offer Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) cloud enclaves.

The CMMC represents the Department of Defense’s continued effort to protect Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI) in the defense supply chain. Building on the 110 controls set forth in NIST SP 800-171, the CMMC specifies 173 security practices across five maturity processes. Starting in fiscal year 2021, the department will pilot the implementation of CMMC requirements for Level 3 and below.

UBX Cloud now includes CMMC-compliant Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) cloud enclaves in their service offerings, as a way for suppliers and contractors to fast-track themselves into CMMC compliance. UBX Cloud promises full service at a flat rate and per user basis for an easy comprehensive package.

“Our company and our team is always focused on the simplest approach and solution to things, and in this case with our CMMC enclaves there is no difference,” said Steve Panovski, UBX Cloud president. “UBX Cloud brings a tremendous amount of value to simplify the path to compliance while providing modern cloud solutions and simplifying IT complexity, or as just a bonus.”

UBX Cloud caters specifically to the IT MSPs and MSSPs market, as well as corporate IT and Chief Technology Officers, taking the complexity out of the CMMC process with flat rate assessment services and fast deployment. The all-in white label packages include Cybersecurity services, CMMC consultancy, and VMWare-powered cloud infrastructure to provide deeper discounts, and eliminates the need for any heavy upfront investment.

About UBX Cloud

UBX Cloud is a Michigan-based cloud service provider with data centers in the United States, South America and India. Our services include Managed IT-as-a-Service, Private/Hybrid Cloud, Disaster Recovery, Cloud Workspaces, Veeam Cloud Backup, and a variety of custom IT consulting services. Our team of IT Engineers helps organizations of all kinds maintain uptime and ensure business continuity.

For more information, please visit us at https://www.ubxcloud.com or call 1-888-509-2568.

MEDIA ONLY CONTACT:
Sora Maria Childress
UBX Cloud
[email protected]

IMAGE LINK for media: https://www.Send2Press.com/300dpi/21-0318-UBX-Cloud-300dpi.jpg

News Source: UBX Cloud

PITTSBURGH, Pa., March 5, 2021 (SEND2PRESS NEWSWIRE) — Valentis today announced that Martha Hunter will become the company’s first-ever Vice President of Strategy, effective March 2021. She fills a new position helping the company meet growing demand for expansion. Valentis is committed to an aggressive plan that focuses on messaging and education to advance its security solution, supply chain, and risk management consulting services worldwide.

Martha Hunter comes from the marketing industry where she was a Business Development Executive for six years. Hunter’s new position will be responsible for developing and implementing the strategic growth initiatives for Valentis using her experience and resolve to meet objectives to Valentis.

“Valentis already has a reputation for breaking the mold in the security and investigations industry. I have spent my career challenging people and companies to think differently and ask the question ‘Why not us? Valentis’s culture, values and leadership style embodies that spirit,” says V.P. of Strategy Hunter.

She adds, “Strategy development is not a once-a-year thing anymore, it’s ongoing and needs to come with recommendations and actions and the company needs to be willing to act. I’m honored to have the opportunity to play a role in the execution piece of strategy, and I’m thrilled to join a women-owned, purpose driven company and look forward to driving new possibilities for our people, our customers and our stakeholders.”

Marnie Sutch, CEO, of Valentis welcomed Martha to her new position, stating, “The addition of Martha to our team is about her ability to bring innovation and change to Valentis. The ability to deliver a professional service that delivers a driven result for our clients is a team effort and having Martha strengthens our team.”

About Valentis:

Valentis is a fully operational security logistics and risk management solution for a variety of clients and security concerns. We are growing domestically, and envision global ventures, with services and products under development to create a network of global affiliates, lead through branding, and expand our clients; financial institutions, governments, religious facilities, maritime, cybersecurity, combined with specially developed training, software and telecommunication consultancy, and more. We are mindful and committed and care about our clients, team, and shareholders.

More information:

https://www.valentissecurity.com/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/marthahunter/

CONTACT: Shannon Wright, [email protected]

News Source: Valentis International

ALAMO, Calif., March 2, 2021 (SEND2PRESS NEWSWIRE) — Essential to managing today’s and the future electric grid is data—its movement and security. GRIDEON developed by GridBright (gridbright.com) under an award from the US Department of Energy (DOE) Advanced Research Project Agency (ARPA-E) addresses this need.

It was created in collaboration with a team of cybersecurity and utility industry experts from BetterGrids Foundation (Bettergrids.org), Midcontinent Independent System Operator (misoenergy.org), and Mid-Carolina Electric Cooperative (mcecoop.com). Over 40 organizations across the grid value chain have contributed to defining the requirements for GRIDEON.

“MCEC needed to share critical data with a strategic partner. Internet and email were not sufficiently secure. For years the method was walking a USB key to the partner for exchange. GRIDEON is a better way,” says Keith Sturkie, VP of IT at MCEC. “GRIDEON improved our security posture and lowered our costs.”

GRIDEON is an open-source-based suite of easy-to-use cloud-based Software as a Service (SaaS) applications, technologies, enablement and support services, and standards that provide the full set of capabilities required to instantiate any type of secure grid data exchange.

GRIDEON efficiently ensures secure and compliant grid data exchange among all-electric ecosystem participants encompassing the entire electric value chain from generation to consumers (prosumers) spanning business and real-time operations.

It accommodates the creation of multiple types of exchanges necessitated by the utility industry’s grid data sharing applications such as collaboration, real-time system integration, publication-subscriber, one-to-many, among just a few.

Secure Grid Collaboration is the second service established on GRIDEON. The first is the BetterGrids Grid Model Repository that is presently used in 45 countries. BetterGrids.org is a free library of curated, non-sensitive grid models shared voluntarily by grid researchers. It includes synthetic and anonymized grid models and uses a rigorous curation process to ensure data quality. AI tools for semantic and natural language searching allow researchers to find their desired test data easily.

Secure Grid Collaboration extends the GRIDEON service reach. It establishes core grid data exchange standards that drive cost efficiency and management efficacy for foundational exchange artifacts such as nondisclosure agreements (NDA) between counterparties. It provides the foundation for future process management and real time services in emergency management and DER integration and beyond.

It also implements the enabling processes for secure grid data exchanges such as participant registration and advanced encryption key services that support exchange operations, security, and compliance.

Girding these key elements is a support organization providing 24 x 7 help, operations, and technical support functions required by the operational nature of many of the exchanges a typical utility will implement.

Learn more at http://www.grideon.com/.

ABOUT GRIDBRIGHT

GridBright Inc. – https://www.gridbright.com/ – specializes in secure grid integration. Its services and solutions span the full electric value chain, safely interconnecting renewable and distributed energy resources to the grid, implementing and integrating modern computer applications for grid operations and planning, and providing solutions for the secure exchange of grid data among grid value chain participants.

MEDIA ONLY CONTACT
Stephen J Callahan
CMO, GridBright
+1-415-846-6018 (media only)
[email protected]

News Source: GridBright Inc.

PHOENIX, Ariz., Feb. 23, 2021 (SEND2PRESS NEWSWIRE) –- TAG CXO, a provider of fractional IT executives, appointed Dan Streufert to lead its new IT Infrastructure practice area located in Phoenix, Arizona. In this role, Streufert is responsible to lead and develop the delivery teams helping TAG CXO clients build the robust and durable IT operating environments needed for growth and efficiency.

By optimizing critical IT infrastructures, clients benefit from much greater simplicity, overall security, and scalability. As practice lead, Streufert will serve existing clients, develop new clients and build the delivery bench, leading TAG CXOs infrastructure services across its national network of fractional executives.

Mr. Streufert comes to TAG CXO with broad experience designing, engineering, and implementing optimized IT infrastructures across large multi-national, multi-site businesses in the manufacturing and real estate industries. Most recently, Streufert was Principal Systems Architect for co-working giant WeWork, and formerly directed global IT operations for medical device manufacturers, Viant Medical and The Tech Group, as Head of IT. His clients have also included companies in the construction industry such as Buesing Corporation, Centuri Construction and NPL Construction. He holds a Bachelor of Business and Information Systems from the University of Phoenix.

“Dan Streufert is easily one of the best hiring decisions I made during my corporate career, and it’s a joy to be working together again,” said Paul Theisen, enthusiastically. “Dan is always professional, technically current, insatiably curious, humble yet driven, and has a very astute business mind,” Theisen described. “Now, 25 years into his career and seasoned with a depth of global-enterprise experience, Dan’s unique qualifications are available to the benefit of TAG CXO clients.” “To sum it all up,” Theisen concluded, “Dan has a certain techno-functional-engineering-business-leadership genius he brings into every interaction; and he really exemplifies the TAG CXO promise – to provide our clients with the best enterprise-level, industry-trained, battle-tested IT leaders…not career consultants.”

To learn more visit: https://tagcxo.com/about/dan-streufert/ and https://tagcxo.com/services

About TAG CXO:

Based in Phoenix, Arizona, TAG CXO is a privately held company, providing Interim and Fractional IT leadership executives, founded in 2019. The company maintains a bench of industry-trained, enterprise-level executives, available on-demand to mid-market CEOs. TAG CXO executives help to round-out a firm’s leadership team and close the IT talent gap with fully qualified expertise, offering a more affordable, lower-risk option than hiring full-time staff. Learn more at: https://tagcxo.com/.

VIDEO (Vimeo): https://vimeo.com/492583832

TAG CXO, 7000 N 16th Street, Suite 120-167, Phoenix, AZ 85020.

MEDIA ONLY CONTACT
Paul Theisen, CEO
+1-602-962-6200
[email protected]

Tags: #ITOps #Cybersecurity #ITInfrastructure #TAGCXO #fractionalCIO #interimexecutives

News Source: TAG CXO

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., Feb. 2, 2021 (SEND2PRESS NEWSWIRE) — EPIC Insurance Brokers & Consultants is pleased to welcome John Prentis and Larry Bowlus to its Executive Risk and Cyber practice. Joining from a global broker, Prentis and Bowlus will focus on large public, technology, and financial institution executive liability coverages, including Directors & Officers Liability as well as Errors & Omissions, General Partnership Liability, Employment Practices Liability, Fiduciary, Crime, and Kidnap & Ransom.

The senior team of Prentis and Bowlus brings a combined experience of 50 years in the industry. Prentis most recently co-led Aon’s Financial Services Group in San Francisco, providing advisory and placement services for a variety of executive lines. Bowlus served as senior vice president and team leader within the same group, specializing in D&O and management liability insurance programs for public and private companies. Both bring a breadth of experience across industry groups, with deep experience handling executive risks for technology, life science companies and financial institutions, among many others in the public and private sectors.

“We are extremely pleased to welcome John and Larry to EPIC,” said Steve Denton, EPIC CEO. “Their experience serving large publicly traded clients and deep expertise in the technology sector fits perfectly with our deep resources currently deployed in the large account risk management sector. In fact, they will work closely with our Policy Response Unit focused on complex shareholder claims and our Analytics practice where we perform risk modeling and benchmarking analysis.”

Prentis and Bowlus will lend significant expertise to EPIC’s Executive Risk and Cyber practice, which emphasizes a holistic approach to identifying, understanding and managing risks.

“We’re fortunate to add two senior risk advisors and brokers in John and Larry to our team of experts,” said Kelly Geary, EPIC National Practice Leader, Executive Risk and Cyber. “Our clients will benefit instantly from their perspective and expertise, particularly in today’s challenging and dynamic marketplace.”

Prentis and Bowlus will work from the firm’s San Francisco office.

John Prentis
[email protected]
Cell: 415.238.4575

Larry Bowlus
[email protected]
Cell: 415.254.5918

About EPIC Insurance Brokers & Consultants

EPIC Insurance Brokers & Consultants has more than 2,600 team members operating from more than 80 offices across the U.S., providing Property and Casualty, Employee Benefits, Specialty Programs, and Private Client solutions to EPIC clients. For more information on EPIC, visit: https://epicbrokers.com/.

*LOGO link for media: https://www.Send2Press.com/300dpi/19-0808s2p-epic-logo-300dpi.jpg

News Source: EPIC Insurance Brokers and Consultants

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MSNBC host Joy Reid slammed Democratic New York Governor Andrew Cuomo during her show Tuesday night over his $5 million book deal and his response to allegations of sexual harassment.

Figures released from Cuomo’s office Monday showed that the governor is set to make more than $5 million off his book “American Crisis: Leadership Lessons from the COVID-19 Pandemic,” which was published in October.

His office said in March that a “significant portion” of proceeds from the book would go to a coronavirus-related charity. Filings showed that one-third of the approximately $1.5 million he made so far after taxes was donated to United Way of New York State and the rest of the proceeds went into a trust for his three daughters.

It was also revealed that Cuomo undercounted nursing home deaths for months to obscure the true toll of the pandemic. The Daily Caller News Foundation first reported on May 15 that Cuomo was undercounting nursing home deaths. (RELATED: It Has Been One Year Since Cuomo Ordered Nursing Homes To Accept COVID Patients)

“We learn today that New York governor Andrew Cuomo will earn $5.1 million for his book on how great he handled the pandemic,” Reid said. “Problem is, while he was soaking up all that good press – mostly because he wasn’t a Republican governor resistant to taking action on the pandemic – he was also suppressing information on how bad the death toll was in New York’s nursing homes and what Times calls a month-long effort to obscure the full scope of nursing home deaths. Cuomo’s office has denied altering the data.”

“But that’s not even the only scandal he’s faced this year, with multiple women accusing him of sexual harassment,” she continued. “Cuomo’s denied any wrongdoing and his denials have become more strident with each passing week. He delivered this particularly tone-deaf response to a reporter last week.”

Reid played a clip of Cuomo talking about the sexual harassment allegations against him. The governor claimed that “making someone feel uncomfortable” is “not harassment.” (RELATED: TIMELINE: How Andrew Cuomo Went From America’s ‘Love Gov’ To Fending Off Calls For His Resignation In Less Than 12 Months)

“Harassment is not making someone feel uncomfortable,” Cuomo said. “That’s not harassment. If I just made you feel uncomfortable, that’s not harassment.”

“As the reporter later pointed out, Cuomo’s definition of workplace harassment seems to contradict a law that he signed in 2019 which lowers the standard of what’s considered harassment,” Reid said. “Through all of this, Cuomo has refused to resign, and for that, and plus the money he made profiting off the pandemic, he’s pretty much the worst.”

Reid went on to say that Cuomo is not “the absolute worst that the state of New York could do,” and claimed that Rudy Giuliani’s son, Andrew Giuliani – who recently announced a bid for governor of New York – was actually worse.

The Pentagon has created the world’s largest undercover force comprised of about 60,000 people who work at name-brand companies under false identities, Newsweek reported Monday.

The Pentagon’s secret army: Shadowy 60K-strong undercover force is operating across the globe https://t.co/Vg1L97wZnq

— Daily Mail US (@DailyMail) May 18, 2021

These spies carry out their work in made-up personas under a program called “signature reduction,” Newsweek reported. While “signature reduction” does not have an unclassified definition, the Defense Intelligence Agency said it applies to “operational security (OBSEC) measures for a variety of activities and operations,” according to Newsweek.

A Department of Defense spokesperson told Newsweek “signature reduction” includes “measures to protect operations.”

Members of this force, which is about 10 times the size of the Central Intelligence Agency’s (CIA) clandestine operations, participate in domestic and foreign assignments — in-person and online — in military uniforms and civilian garb at private businesses and at consulting firms, according to Newsweek. (RELATED: Repair Shop Owner Who Leaked Hunter Biden Data Says He Is Not A Russian Spy)

The soldiers, civilians and contractors work under false identities to pursue high-value targets, according to Newsweek. About 130 companies participate in the “signature reduction” program that costs about $900 million, Newsweek reported.

The companies draw in $900 million in total each year to supply the force, according to Newsweek. The civilians have manufactured disguises, pay their taxes under assumed names, and use devices to obtain information in the Middle East and Africa, Newsweek reported.

Newsweek reportedly obtained this information over the past two years by investigating more than 600 resumes and 1,000 job postings, requesting Freedom of Information Act documents and interviewing participants and defense officials. Little is known about this unregulated sector of the Pentagon, and Congress has never held a hearing on the matter, according to Newsweek.

• Catholic archbishops will discuss denying President Joe Biden Communion for his abortion stances in June, but until then, most of them are staying quiet on the issue. 
• The Daily Caller News Foundation asked all U.S. archbishops whether they would deny the president Communion. Most did not respond, despite repeated requests for comment, and five archbishops declined to comment on the matter. 
• Archbishops Salvatore Cordileone and Samuel Aquila said that they would first engage in conversations with a high profile individual who persisted in publicly supporting abortion, and then ultimately ask the individual to refrain from Communion. 

Catholic archbishops will discuss denying President Joe Biden Communion over his abortion stances in June, but until then, most of them are staying quiet on the matter.

The Associated Press reported in late April that the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) will hold a national meeting in June where the bishops will decide whether to tell the president, and other high profile Catholic politicians like Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, not to receive Communion at Mass if they continue to publicly advocate for abortion.

In an early May letter, the Vatican’s Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith Cardinal Luis Ladaria warned the archbishops to approach public discussion of the matter with caution. (RELATED: Archbishop Cordileone Says He Had ‘Conversations’ With Pro-Abortion Pelosi About Holy Communion)

Any new policy “requires that dialogue occurs in two stages: first among the bishops themselves, and then between bishops and Catholic pro-choice politicians within their jurisdictions,” Ladaria wrote, according to the Catholic News Service.

The Daily Caller News Foundation asked all U.S. archbishops whether they would deny the president Communion. Most did not respond, despite repeated requests for comment, and five archbishops said they would not comment at this time.

It is a question that not all Catholic clergy agree on, though the Catholic Church teaches that abortion is “a crime against human life,” “constitutes a grave offense” and that a person who obtains an abortion is automatically excommunicated from the Catholic Church.

Washington, D.C., Archbishop Wilton Gregory, who did not respond to requests for comment from the DCNF, said in late November that he would not deny Biden Communion. The archbishop noted that Biden went to Mass and received Communion while he served as former President Barack Obama’s vice president.

“I’m not going to veer from that,” he said in an interview with America Magazine.

But other archbishops have frankly said that if Biden persists in his support for abortion, they would ultimately ask him to refrain from Communion.

Earlier this month, San Francisco Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone warned pro-abortion Catholic public figures not to receive Communion at Mass if they find that they “are unwilling or unable to abandon” their “advocacy for abortion.” The archbishop told the DCNF in an interview that clergy should first have conversations with high profile pro-abortion politicians like Biden before denying them Holy Communion.

“In the case of President Biden or any other prominent Catholic, I think what I would do is if I knew that they were coming into the area here and planned to attend Mass, I would try to have those conversations as well ahead of time,” he said. (RELATED: Here’s How Joe Biden Has Evolved On Abortion As He Attempts To Become President)

“If we don’t say anything, if we don’t speak out, then we are also culpable,” Cordileone told the DCNF. “I tremble at the responsibility that God has given me … When it comes to pastoral application of church teaching, that’s where pastoral discretion is needed, different judgements might be made by different bishops in different situations.”

“But in the case of someone so prominent as the president of the United States, again this is a scandal, and it’s causing confusion in the minds of our Catholics,” he said.

Archbishop Samuel Aquila of Denver, Colorado, similarly said that bishops should first have private conversations with the individual.

“In responding to individual situations, it is important for bishops to follow the steps presented by Jesus in Matthew’s Gospel, that is, have a private conversation with the person, if the person persists, have another conversation with two or three people present as witnesses, and finally, if the person still persists, then ask the person to refrain from Communion,” Aquila said in a statement.

The statement was previously provided to the Associated Press, his director of public relations told the DCNF, but the AP does not appear to have printed it.

“Charity demands that we help people understand the truth of who they are receiving in Eucharist and that they need to be properly prepared and in a state of grace,” the archbishop continued. (RELATED: Should Priests Deny Biden Communion? Theologians Weigh In)

Shortly after Biden’s inauguration, USCCB President and Los Angeles Archbishop José H. Gomez warned Americans in a lengthy statement that “we cannot stay silent” on the president’s pro-abortion stances.

Gomez, who declined to comment to the DCNF through the USCCB, highlighted that Biden has promised to pursue policy “that would advance moral evils and threaten human life and dignity” — most notably in regards to abortion, marriage, gender and contraception.

“Abortion is a direct attack on life that also wounds the woman and undermines the family,” Gomez wrote in January. “It is not only a private matter, it raises troubling and fundamental questions of fraternity, solidarity, and inclusion in the human community.”

Gomez expressed the hope that Biden would work with the Catholic Church to better understand these issues and to engage in a “dialogue to address the complicated cultural and economic factors that are driving abortion and discouraging families.”

The Vatican Secretariat of State reportedly intervened before Gomez’s statement could be released so that Pope Francis could first release his statement, according to Catholic news website the Pillar. The pope’s statement made no direct mention of abortion but urged Biden to respect the “rights and dignity of every person,” including those who “have no voice.”

The Vatican did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the DCNF. (RELATED: Here’s Why Media Calls Biden A ‘Devout Catholic’ According To Theologians, Commentators)

Archbishop Joseph F. Naumann of Kansas City, Kansas, who is the chairman of the USCCB Committee on Pro-Life Activities, also declined to comment for this story through the USCCB. But the archbishop condemned Biden’s abortion stances in a Jan. 22 statement, “strongly” urging the new Catholic president to reject abortion.

“It is deeply disturbing and tragic that any President would praise and commit to codifying a Supreme Court ruling that denies unborn children their most basic human and civil right, the right to life, under the euphemistic disguise of a health service,” Naumann said.

He continued: “I take this opportunity to remind all Catholics that the Catechism states, ‘Since the first century the Church has affirmed the moral evil of every procured abortion. This teaching has not changed and remains unchangeable.’ Public officials are responsible for not only their personal beliefs, but also the effects of their public actions.”

WATCH:

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8UHs6IkQTN0]

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Jennifer Love Hewitt can hardly wait to expand her family!

The actress announced Tuesday that she is pregnant and expecting her third child with husband Brian Hallisay.

The couple are already parents to a son, Atticus, 5, and a daughter, Autumn, 7.

"We had always been open to a third, but definitely didn’t think in the crazy year that the entire world was having that it would necessarily be this moment," Hewitt, 42, told People magazine. "I feel like we’ve been able to so far raise two really special kids who will be great role models."

JENNIFER LOVE HEWITT TALKS BETTY WHITE FRIENDSHIP, RECALLS ‘SUPER DRUNK’ NIGHT OUT WITH STAR: ‘SHE’S THE BEST'

Jennifer Love Hewitt and her husband Brian Hallisay are expecting their third child together. (Getty Images)

Hewitt told the weekly she was "proud" of keeping her pregnancy a secret for so long, even while her character she plays on the Fox series "9-1-1" had her own pregnancy arc on the show recently.

Hewitt said her costar Kenneth Choi even joked to her, "‘See? Playing pregnant got you pregnant!’ I’m like, ‘Yeah, I guess so.’ The craziest, most surreal moment was having to give birth while being pregnant. That was very interesting."

JENNIFER LOVE HEWITT RECALLS PAST ‘GROSS’ COMMENTS ABOUT HER BODY, SAYS BRITNEY SPEARS DOC ‘HURT MY HEART’

And she has nothing but positive words for Hallisay, to whom she’s been married since 2013.

Jennifer Love Hewitt has two other children: Autumn James, 7, and Atticus James, 5. (Photo by Chelsea Guglielmino/WireImage)

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"During labor, he’s like a rock, solid. … The only thing about him and labor that really makes me laugh is that he eats a lot of snacks. Usually in my hospital bag it is like an outfit for me and outfit for the baby, and then snacks for Brian!"

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

Hewitt doesn’t see herself getting pregnant again, however: "I don’t think I could do another one."

A St. Louis attorney who famously defended his home from Black Lives Matter protesters who broke into his neighborhood announced his bid for U.S. Senate on Tuesday, telling "Tucker Carlson Tonight" he will defend Missourians the same way he defended his wife and family.

Mark McCloskey, who alongside wife Patricia, was pictured last year wielding a rifle and a handgun respectively when Black Lives Matter demonstrators ingressed toward their property, told host Tucker Carlson that the confrontation may have been a message in itself.

"God came knocking on my door disguised as an angry mob. It really did wake me up," he said. 

"As I campaigned for [Donald Trump], and we've continued to do rallies and events supporting our constitutional rights, what I've learned is that the people are sick and tired of cancel culture – and the poison of critical race theory and the big lie of systemic racism."

McCloskey said he wanted to correct widespread claims he is or was a Democrat, and told Carlson he has always been Republican, but not necessarily overtly political.

"People are sick of it, they don’t want any more posers or egotists going to D.C. All we hear is talk. Nothing ever changes," he said. 

"It seemed to me that people have to stand up. Each and every one of us needs to stands up and say we are not sheep, we are a free people."

On the day some states like Pennsylvania were holding municipal and judicial elections, McCloskey added that people need to be active in politics "at every level from the school board" on up through borough council, state and federal offices.

"You have to send people to D.C. that are willing to tell the truth and fight for our freedom regardless what have it costs you personally, economically, or socially," he added.

"If we don’t stand up now and take this country back, it’s going away. We used to talk about the erosion of our civil liberties… [S]ince [the Biden] administration took over there has been the wholesale slaughter of our civil liberties and institution of what can’t be called anything but socialism."

McCloskey slammed Biden for instituting "socialist" policies in the form of federal payments to Americans that he and other critics say encourage them to stay home rather than seek the millions of job openings in struggling small businesses nationwide.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

"Our president says, ‘gee, I don’t think that’s taking place’. Everything is nonsense. Everything is upside down. It’s time to straighten things back up."

McCloskey joins former Gov. Eric Greitens in the Republican field seeking to keep Sen. Roy Blunt's seat in GOP hands after he retires at the end of his term in 2022.

A homeless man has been charged in connection with a Los Angeles wildfire that has destroyed over 1,000 acres in steep and remote terrain and prompted the evacuation of hundreds of homes over the weekend, authorities said.

Ramon Rodriguez, 48, was taken into custody just before 11 a.m. Sunday, more than 30 hours after the Palisades fire in the Santa Monica Mountains began. He was booked on two arson charges and is being held on $75,000 bail. 

He pleaded not guilty on Tuesday. 

Ramon Rodriguez, 48, is charged in connection with a wildfire in Los Angeles.  (Los Angeles Fire Department )

"After interviews from eyewitnesses, firefighters, and police officers, as well as hours of analyzing burn patterns and documenting the fire scene, arson investigators determined that the fire was incendiary," the Los Angeles Fire Department said in a statement Tuesday. 

Rodriguez was taken into custody after emerging from a burned brush near where the fire was ignited and subsequently treated for smoke inhalation. The arrest came after he was spotted by a private security guard who called the police. 

Another person was detained and released in connection with the blaze over the weekend. 

The fire began Friday night and resulted in evacuation orders for homes in the Topanga Canyon area. It continued to spread over the weekend into steep terrain and brush that had not seen fire in 75 years. The fire department deployed hundreds of firefighters along with aircraft and bulldozers in an "all-out attack."

By Monday evening, all evacuation orders were lifted as firefighters were making progress. As of Tuesday, the blaze was 32% contained and had burned 1,158 acres. 

The day before he was arrested, Rodriguez was seen by a Los Angeles police helicopter crew igniting multiple additional fires after fire crews reported someone moving around in the brush along a steep hillside near the fire, authorities said. 

A firefighting helicopter drops water on a brush fire scorching in the Pacific Palisades area of Los Angeles on Saturday. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu)

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

Police and Los Angeles County sheriff's deputies attempted to arrest him but were overwhelmed by the growing fire and "were forced to retreat," the LAFD said. 

A number of fires in Southern California have been started by transients or have come from homeless encampments in recent years. 

A homeless man was sentenced in March to five years in prison for starting the Ranch 2 Fire near Los Angeles during an argument with another transient. The fire charred thousands of acres and took two weeks to contain.  

"UFOs" author Leslie Keane joins "Tucker Carlson Tonight" to discuss why the United States government has "covered up" UFO information for decades.

LESLIE KEANE: It’s such a big and complex question, Tucker. The coverup, if you want to call it a coverup, began in the ‘40s, 50s, ‘60s during the Cold War. So there was a lot of concern because we were dealing with Russians. You know, they didn’t want things to get mixed up with all the issues of Russian aircraft and all the issues within the Cold War. I think there has been a concern what to tell people when you can't explain something. There's something operating with impunity that shows advanced technology. What do you tell people about that when you can’t stop it when you can't explain it?

I think there's also a stigma, Tucker, that you are aware of. You have been one of those people battling this stigma where it's just been considered for decades and decades to be something ridiculous. People don’t want to talk about something that's going to make them look ridiculous or even damage their careers. So there are so many factors that kept this under wraps, and we're really at an important time right now. I am so happy to see it changing after all of these years.

CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE FULL INTERVIEW

Prince Harry has summer plans.

For many years now – but especially in recent weeks after his interview with Meghan Markle and Oprah Winfrey – a tension between the prince, 36, and his brother Prince William has existed.

It's understood that the two have made attempts to repair their relationship, particularly during Harry's recent visit to the U.K. following the death of his grandfather, Prince Philip.

While things haven't been entirely patched up just yet, the two brothers are "absolutely" set to reunite in July, according to a palace insider.

PRINCE HARRY, OPRAH WINFREY UNVEIL TRAILER FOR ‘THE ME YOU CAN’T SEE' DOCUSERIES

A palace source told the New York Post's Page Six that the brothers will come together again July 1 for the unveiling of a statue of their mother, Princess Diana, at Kensington Palace. The date would have been Diana's 60th birthday.

Prince William, left, and Prince Harry are set to reunite this summer. (Getty Images)

"No one is going to tell Harry not to come, but how does he face his family?" the source said.

Not only did Harry make bold claims against his family in the interview with Winfrey, but also during a recent podcast appearance when he said his father passed down "pain and suffering."

"Harry’s still coming, we’re told, but how will it all go down?" added the insider. "Will he just turn up on the day without having seen them beforehand?"

PIERS MORGAN SLAMS PRINCE HARRY OVER FIRST AMENDMENT COMMENTS, CALLS IT ‘MEGHAN-INSPIRED PSYCHOBABBLE’

Another source claimed that things were going from bad to worse between the brothers.

"Things between Harry and William have been terrible since Megxit, then Harry and Meghan gave that nuclear Oprah [Winfrey] interview, and now Harry has spoken out again," the source said. "It’s just one thing after the other."

Prince Harry has made several bombshell claims against the royal family in recent months. (Getty Images)

The status of the July 1 event depends on when Markle gives birth to their daughter, the outlet reports. The baby is said to be due very soon.

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It seems that those in the palace are growing tired of Harry and his public statements, as another palace source told the outlet that it's getting "so tiring."

"Stop whining about how awful your privileged upbringing was … and stop using your title if you are so miserable about being royal," the source said.

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Yet another joked: "We really should start calling him Henry Wales."

Fox News has reached out to reps for Prince Harry.

Dru Nielsen is one of two high-profile attorneys representing Barry Morphew, the Colorado man charged in the murder of his wife, who disappeared around Mother’s Day 2020. 

The announcement of his legal represenation was first made by FOX 21’st Lauren Scharf. 

WHO IS IRIS EYTAN, ATTORNEY REPRESENTING BARRY MORPHEW

With nearly 25 years of experience, Nielsen has defended clients accused of murder, sexual assault, domestic violence, theft and fraud, among other crimes. 

Dru Nielsen, one of two high-profile attorneys representing Colorado man Barry Morphew.  (Eytan Nielsen)

She has won dozens of "not guilty" verdicts at trial but has also resolved cases before they even went to trial, according to her website. 

Dru worked as a Colorado deputy state public defender for a decade before joining her longtime criminal defense partner, Iris Eytan, and Larry Pozner in the criminal division of Reilly Pozner. Then in 2015, Nielsen and Eytan formed Eytan Nielsen LLC. 

WISCONSIN TEEN FOUND DEAD AFTER DISAPPEARANCE, PROMPTING POLICE INVESTIGATION

Together with Eytan, Nielsen has been recognized within Colorado and nationally for their high-profile criminal defense work. In 2017, their law firm was on the cover of Colorado Super Lawyers and its feature article was on the great results they have achieved in criminal defense cases. 

Barry Morphew's May 5, 2021 booking photo.  (Chaffee County Sheriff’s Office)

Some notable clients they have represented include Krystal Kenney, an Idaho nurse charged with helping clean up a crime scene, and "Days of Our Lives" actor Cody Longo, who was charged with sexual assault involving a nine-year-old girl. 

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On her online profile, it says that Nielsen, as a mother of two boys, "is particularly passionate about defending boys and men wrongfully accused of domestic violence or sexual misconduct in both university disciplinary and criminal proceedings." 

Chrissy Teigen’s Cravings empire was dealt a crushing blow on Tuesday when retailer Bloomingdale's reportedly pulled out of a deal it had in place with the author and model amid an online bullying scandal involving Teigen that resurfaced and left a heap of bad press in its wake.

Since the former Sports Illustrated swimsuit model was outed by reality star and singer Courtney Stodden for cyberbullying when Stodden, 26 – who identifies as non-binary – was just 16 years old, major retail brands have ceased carrying Teigen’s Cravings by Chrissy Teigen cookware line while the mother of two’s cookbooks appear to still be readily available.

Here is a list of where retailers stand on Teigen's products: 

Target

It was revealed last week that Teigen's cookware line was dropped by Target in December, however, her trilogy of cookbooks remains on the retailer’s website. Teigen's mom, Vilailuck Teigen's cookbook, "The Pepper Thai Cookbook: Family Recipes from Everyone's Favorite Thai Mom," is also still available. 

The timing of Target’s retract of Teigen’s line is purely coincidental as a rep for the big box store told Fox Business on May 13 that the decision had been made back in 2020.

CHRISSY TEIGEN'S CRAVINGS COOKWARE LINE NO LONGER SOLD ONLINE BY TARGET

"We made the mutual decision in December to no longer carry the cookware line, given our continued focus on brands we develop and that can only be found at Target," the memo stated. 

The cookware was originally exclusive to Target and Macy’s.

Macy's

A rep for Macy’s, which shares a parent company with the aforementioned Bloomingdale’s, told Fox News on Tuesday that it was "not actively selling Cravings by Chrissy Teigen on our site."

As for Teigen's cookbooks, they do not currently appear on the retailer's site. However, it is unclear if Macy's ever carried the cookbooks online or in its physical stores.

Amazon

A look at the e-commerce giant's website shows that "Cravings: Recipes for All the Food You Want to Eat: A Cookbook," "Cravings: Hungry for More: A Cookbook," and Vilailuck Teigen's cookbook are still available. 

Other available Teigen products include her 12-piece aluminum cookware set and Serrated Santoku Knife.

CHRISSY TEIGEN APOLOGIZES TO COURTNEY STODDEN FOR YEARS OF SOCIAL MEDIA BULLYING: ‘I’M ASHAMED, EMBARRASSED’

Barnes & Noble and Walmart 

Like Amazon, both retailers have "Cravings: Recipes for All the Food You Want to Eat: A Cookbook," "Cravings: Hungry for More: A Cookbook" and "The Pepper Thai Cookbook" available to purchase on their sites. 

Chrissy Teigen, right, was accused of cyberbullying by singer Courtney Stodden when Stodden was 16 years old.  (Getty)

Reps for Amazon, Target, Walmart, and Barnes & Noble did not immediately respond to Fox News’ request for comment on whether they had respective plans to pull Teigen’s line of cookbooks. Macy's did not immediately respond to Fox News' request for comment seeking clarification on if they've ever carried Teigen's books. 

COURTNEY STODDEN BLASTS CHRISSY TEIGEN FOR 'HARASSING' AND 'SLUT SHAMING' HER AS A MINOR WITH DUG-UP TWEETS

Last week, Teigen took to Twitter to publicly apologize to Stodden.

"Not a lot of people are lucky enough to be held accountable for all their past bulls--t in front of the entire world," Teigen began in a series of tweets addressing the criticism from Stodden. "I’m mortified and sad at who I used to be. I was an insecure, attention seeking troll. I am ashamed and completely embarrassed at my behavior."

Macy's is among the retailers that have removed Chrissy Teigen's Cravings cookware line from its website. (Photo by Emma McIntyre/Getty Images for Global Citizen VAX LIVE)

"But that is nothing compared to how I made Courtney feel," she continued. "I have worked so hard to give you guys joy and be beloved and the feeling of letting you down is nearly unbearable, truly. These were not my only mistakes and surely won’t be my last as hard as I try but god I will try!!"

Stodden didn't buy it, however, and called the apology "a public attempt to save her partnerships with Target and other brands."

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"I accept her apology and forgive her. But the truth remains the same, I have never heard from her or her camp in private," Stodden captioned an Instagram post of an alleged screenshot showing Stodden was blocked on the app.

Last year, Stodden also opened up to Fox News about the online bullying they received from Teigen over the years in which the "Bring the Funny" judge allegedly made vile remarks to Stodden to "kill" themselves.

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"I was basically being abused," Stodden said in February following the release of the "Framing Britney Spears" documentary that highlighted the persistent slut-shaming and mockery Spears faced during her teenage years.

The leading Black Lives Matter organization declared "solidarity with Palestinians" Monday, a week after Hamas terrorists in Gaza began firing a relentless barrage of rockets into Israel, indiscriminately shelling civilian targets as well as dropping some missiles short and blowing up buildings within its territory.

"Black Lives Matter stands in solidarity with Palestinians," the group tweeted. "We are a movement committed to ending settler colonialism in all forms and will continue to advocate for Palestinian liberation. ( always have. And always will be ). #freepalestine."

The announcement prompted a "thank you" tweet from the controversial Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement, or BDS, which has for years called for an economic embargo of Israel.

Israeli Iron Dome air defense system launches to intercept rockets fired from Gaza Strip, near Sderot, Israel, Thursday, May 13, 2021. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

"Thank you for your solidarity," the left-wing group tweeted in response. "From Ferguson to Palestine, our struggles against racism, white supremacy and for a just world are united!"

NYC FREE PALESTINE PROTESTERS OVERTAKE STREETS OF MIDTOWN

The tweet came as pro-Palestinian protesters gathered in the U.S. and other Western countries to call for a cease-fire in the region.

A man is detained by police as Palestinian supporters gather during a demonstration near the United Nations headquarters Tuesday, May 18, 2021, in New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)

Amid the ongoing battle between Israel and Hamas militants, at least 12 Israelis and 213 Palestinians have been killed over the past eight days, including 61 children and 36 women. More than 100 Israelis and 1,400 Palestinians had been wounded as of Tuesday evening.

ISRAEL STRIKES GAZA TUNNELS AS TRUCE EFFORTS REMAIN ELUSIVE

The military conflict escalated dramatically on May 10 when Hamas began firing rocket after rocket at Jerusalem following a violent clash between Israeli police and Palestinian protesters at the Al-Aqsa mosque, a sacred site for both Jews and Muslims. Despite hundreds of Israeli counterattacks and its Iron Dome defense system, the rockets have continued to fly.

But left-wing groups, and progressive lawmakers, have blamed Israel for the violence, describing it as an "apartheid state" committing "war crimes" and other atrocities on Palestinian civilians, who Hamas frequently treats like human shields, attracting airstrikes on high-rise buildings that share space with civilians.

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The Israeli Defense Forces say they warn civilians ahead of strikes on such locations, giving them time to run for safety before leveling Hamas facilities.

"Israel fights to protect its civilians," the IDF tweeted Tuesday. "Hamas uses civilians to protect itself."

If you have a fear of heights, this may not be for you.

Brooklyn’s tallest residential tower, Brooklyn Point, just unveiled the highest infinity pool in the Western Hemisphere — beating out Singapore’s 492-foot-high pool for the title.

Designed by world-renowned architecture firm Kohn Pedersen Fox, the pool sits atop the 68-story tower featuring a sculptural façade with oversized windows at 138 Willoughby St.

While it’s nearly double the height of Singapore’s Marina Bay Sands Hotel pool, it’s not the highest in the world. The tallest infinity pool in the entire world is located at the Address Beach Resort in Dubai and stands at just over 964 feet high.

NYC REELING FROM VIOLENCE AS POLICE GROUP, OFFICIALS ASK: ‘WHEN IS THIS GOING TO END?’

With panoramic views of the Manhattan skyline, the pool, which is heated, will be open to residents of Brooklyn Point annually from the spring through the fall.

The project took over three years to complete, initially beginning construction in early 2018.

This marks the first development project for Extell, the same company responsible for the 1,550-foot-tall Central Park Tower. 

The pool deck will include outdoor showers, changing rooms and plenty of space for al fresco dining. It will also come with its own stargazing observatory, and there will be open-air movie screenings.

Brooklyn Point features 483 luxury apartments that range from studios to three-bedroom apartments, with the cheapest residence starting at $900,000. 

Amenities of the building include the triple-height Park Lounge with a signature bar, salon, fireplace and co-working space, as well as a chef’s demonstration kitchen, wine library, game lounge, screening and performance room, private study, children’s playroom and a health and wellness facility with an indoor saltwater swimming pool.

Other features include a 35-foot rock climbing wall, yoga studio, infrared sauna, squash and basketball court, children’s playground, landscaped rooftop retreat with a sundeck, al fresco dining areas, changing rooms, showers, an outdoor movie screening space and more.

Sales for the tower are being handled by "Million Dollar Listing" star Ryan Serhant.

"With soaring views of the Manhattan skyline as the backdrop, this pool is unprecedented and incomparable to anything else out there," Serhant told The Post. "It has over 40,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor amenities in addition to intelligent pricing. It is one of the best buys in Brooklyn and there is just so much to love about it."

"It’s simply amazing," he added.

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In late 2019, Nets point guard Spencer Dinwiddie purchased the building’s $3.9 million penthouse.

The developers also plan on adding a spa equipped with a sauna, men’s and women’s steam rooms and a hot tub. 

To read more from the New York Post, click here.

Reporters out of Chicago are alleging that Democratic Mayor Lori Lightfoot is now only granting interviews to journalists of color. 

NBC 5 Chicago political reporter Mary Ann Ahern took to Twitter on Tuesday to mark the "midway point" of Lightfoot's first term in office and apparently acknowledged her failed effort to land an interview. 

"As ⁦@chicagosmayor reaches her two year midway point as mayor, her spokeswoman says Lightfoot is granting 1 on 1 interviews - only to Black or Brown journalists," Ahern tweeted. 

CHICAGO MAYOR LORI LIGHTFOOT WILL ENCOURAGE MASKS DESPITE CDC GUIDANCE 

And apparently, Ahern wasn't the only one. 

"I was told the same thing," WTTW Chicago Tonight anchor and correspondent Paris Schutz reacted to Ahern's tweet.

"I can confirm," Chicago politics reporter Heather Cherone similarly tweeted.

It is unclear when such a practice was enacted and if it only applies to local reporters, particularly after her MSNBC appearance with Stephanie Ruhle on Monday.

Lightfoot was slammed on social media, facing allegations of racism for choosing to speak with journalists solely on the color of their skin. 

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Mayor Lightfoot's office did not immediately respond to Fox News' request for comment. 

During her MSNBC interview, Lightfoot told Ruhle she would "encourage" Chicago residents to continue wearing masks despite the new CDC guidance allowing those with the coronavirus vaccine to go without them.

"I know for me personally, I’m going to continue to wear a mask in public and I’m going to encourage others to do so," Lightfoot told Ruhle. "We’ve got to make sure that people are continuing to follow the public health guidance that has gotten us this far, and masks, I think, are a big and important part of that."

CHICAGO, Ill., May 18, 2021 (SEND2PRESS NEWSWIRE) — It’s been twenty years since Lucky Boys Confusion arrived on the global scene with their 2001 debut, “Throwing the Game.” During the TTG era, the hard-touring Chicago five-piece crisscrossed the U.S. innumerable times over, made their national television debut on the CBS Late Late Show, and even made a pit stop in Japan to play for their enthusiastic overseas fan base.

The ensuing two decades have been a story of artistic growth (see 2003’s follow-up, “Commitment”) and perseverance through tragedy (the unexpected loss of founding member Joe Sell in 2012) as the band has continued to perform and create, culminating with their 2017 comeback record, “Stormchasers.”

Now, with the “Throwing the Game 20th Anniversary Special” the boys are back, and ready to celebrate their legacy. This special global streaming event – an “in-studio concert & documentary special” – is a combination of recently recorded live footage (including TTG classics such as “40/80’” and “Fred Astaire”), new interviews with the band members, and unearthed archival footage from the recording of the album, as well as the ensuing 2001-2002 tours. Oh, and maybe a few surprise guests will drop by to say hello!

The “Throwing the Game 20th Anniversary Special” streams worldwide on Thursday, May 27 at 8 p.m. Central Time on the Moment House streaming platform (https://www.momenthouse.com/co/luckyboysconfusion-throwing-the-game-20-year-anniversary), where the band will be doing a live, virtual “VIP after party” with fans immediately following the airing. Virtual tickets are available now, which will provide users a link to the event.

Follow Lucky Boys Confusion on social:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/luckyboysconfusion/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/luckyboysconfusion/

News Source: Lucky Boys Confusion

LOS ANGELES, Calif., May 18, 2021 (SEND2PRESS NEWSWIRE) — Over the last 30 years, Dr. Bruce Perry has been an active teacher, clinician and researcher in children’s mental health and neurosciences, holding a variety of academic positions. His work on the ramifications of abuse, neglect and trauma on the developing brain has impacted clinical practice and policy across the world. Reflecting on his new book with Oprah Winfrey, “What Happened to You? Conversations on Trauma, Resilience and Healing,” Dr. Perry sits down this week for an in-depth conversation with Compassion Prison Project Founder and award-winning film producer Fritzi Horstman.

PHOTO CAPTION: Developmental Health Expert, Author and Physician Dr. Bruce Perry.

The interview, which will be shared as an episode on CPP’s podcast, Compassion in Action, delves into the concept of “Getting to the Cortex” while examining ACEs in society versus ACEs in prison.

In CPP’s research, using the CDC/Kaiser Permanente ACEs study (Adverse Childhood Experiences), they discovered that childhood trauma is disproportionately high within the prison system. CPP is focused on bringing childhood trauma awareness and responsiveness training to prisons and communities both in the U.S. and globally. CPP’s programs include a new six-part video series and corresponding workbooks titled Trauma Talks which shed light on the devastating impact of childhood trauma, while guiding prison residents and staff through various healing exercises.

CPP’s ultimate mission is to transform prisons into centers of healing and education so that the most traumatized members of our society can begin the process of healing, creating a lasting positive impact on families and communities. Dr. Perry’s analysis of childhood trauma within prisons is at once insightful and thought-provoking, making this a noteworthy, groundbreaking exchange.

Dr. Bruce Perry and Compassion Prison Project (CPP)

“Dr. Bruce Perry is one of the pioneers working today in the childhood developmental trauma field. His insights and compassionate perspective will ultimately change how the systems of our society treat the poor, disenfranchised and traumatized. It is an honor to have this conversation,” says Fritzi Horstman – CPP Founder and Executive Director.

About Compassion Prison Project

Compassion Prison Project is a grassroots organization with a mission to transform prisons and communities through compassionate action. To learn more please visit www.compassionprisonproject.org a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization.

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MULTIMEDIA

VIDEO (YouTube): https://youtu.be/q6v9L321WIk

News Source: Compassion Prison Project

ZUG, Switzerland, May 18, 2021 (SEND2PRESS NEWSWIRE) — VR-All-Art, one of the leading platforms for exhibiting and acquiring art in virtual reality, today announced an integration with the Solana blockchain. The adoption of a blockchain infrastructure for virtual exhibitions is meant to ease art trade in virtual reality while bringing liquidity and regulation to the growing NFT art market. The platform will ensure that art registered on the blockchain is compatible with established regulations and copyright laws by developing the All-Art Protocol on Solana.

With the All-Art Protocol, VR-All-Art is aiming to bring constant liquidity to the world of tokenized art by creating a unique type of AMM (automated market maker) liquidity pools for NFTs. The protocol introduces a new standard, the NFT-PRO, designed for stakeholders in the art market. The NFT-PRO standard will enable artists to customize license rights for each art piece they create and embed them into NFT-PRO smart contracts. Through this mechanism, the All-Art Protocol will protect both artists and collectors, while enabling new use cases for owning, exhibiting and trading art on the blockchain.

“What we have witnessed with the latest trend in registering art as NFTs is a lack of proper infrastructure to handle the demand,” said Vitomir Jevremovic, CEO and Founder of VR-All-Art. “Ethereum transactions are slow, while the fees for minting and trading NFTs are skyrocketing. The environmental impact of a single NFT mint is enormous. This is not sustainable. Artists and galleries need affordable ways to put their art on the blockchain and have real-time transactions to handle live auctions. This is why we have chosen Solana. It is the fastest and most promising blockchain with a low energy-consumption footprint. We simply need things to work when people are minting NFTs and creating virtual exhibitions.”

Talking about the NFT standard currently in use, Jevremovic said, “The art market got a good introduction to what blockchain can do for it, but it was a tough lesson to learn because NFTs are just not a good enough solution.” He went on to state, “With the current NFT model, you basically own a string of text in the form of a hash or a link. This is not an art piece. We need better ways to incorporate art license rights into smart contracts. We believe the global art market needs a blockchain standard in line with the regulatory framework for art. Only then can we expect the art market to expand and scale in the digital and virtual space, with more people engaging and transacting value through NFTs.”

Anatoly Yakovenko, the President of the Solana Foundation said, “Fast, low-cost NFTs have the potential to bridge legal rights and digital authentication in ways never before possible. I’m delighted the All-Art Protocol is choosing to build on Solana, and look forward to their launch.” VR-All-Art invites other platforms to use the All-Art Protocol and join its efforts to regulate the NFT art market and provide more liquid assets for stakeholders.

Don’t miss any news about the All-Art Protocol and hot NFT topics on Twitter @allartprotocol.

About VR-All-Art

VR-All-Art is an established platform in the art and XR space. It is a platform and a marketplace for artists, galleries, museums and the general public to exhibit, explore and acquire art in virtual exhibitions. A virtual space, a metaverse of galleries and exhibition spaces with no physical boundaries, it is revolutionizing art exhibitions and art spaces by giving new power to artists as they are no longer constrained to the limitations of real world space and time.

To learn more, please visit https://vrallart.com/. To learn more about the All-Art Protocol, please visit https://allart.io/.

About Solana

Solana is a high-performance Proof of Stake (PoS) blockchain focused on delivering scalability without sacrificing decentralization or security.

Until now, blockchains have been single-threaded computers, guaranteeing no two transactions conflict if executed in parallel. Solana unlocks concurrent GPU-parallelization for the first time, using Proof of History (PoH), a clock before consensus, delivering high speed, low latency, and inexpensive transactions, all at layer 1 without sharding.

Developed by a team of former Qualcomm, Apple, Intel, and Dropbox engineers, Solana is stewarded by The Solana Foundation and is advanced by a loyal community of decentralized developers around the world. To learn more, please visit https://solana.com/.

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News Source: VR-All-Art

DALLAS, Texas, May 17, 2021 (SEND2PRESS NEWSWIRE) — After a 30-day call for entries, winners for the black album.mixtape. were announced during a virtual Block Party event. The black album. mixtape. is an initiative of Regina Taylor — the Golden Globe-winning actress, playwright, and activist — in partnership with Southern Methodist University’s (SMU) Meadows School of the Arts. In response to the historical significance of 2020 defined by COVID-19 and social protest, the black album. mixtape. invited students, professionals, and the community to explore identity, activism, art, and change.

PHOTO CAPTION: Golden Globe-Winning Actress, Playwright, and Activist Regina Taylor Announces Winners of the black album.mixtape.com.

“The recipients of the black album mixtape awards represent a myriad of voices in several fields who are shining their transformative light in these difficult times,” said Ms. Taylor. “We received entries from all over the U.S. and abroad. I’m very honored to have hosted this initiative to showcase a shining array of talent on this platform to be a witness and recording this moment as we find our footing towards paths to a better tomorrow.”

The black album.mixtape. submissions were evaluated by an 11-judge panel for the eight $500 cash awards in the youth and adult categories of art, activism, innovation, and STEM. The winning entries can be viewed here and are as follows:

YOUTH WINNERS

Activist Award: “Through My Mind,” a short film by SMU students Leon Jones, Rhett Goldman, and Caleb Mosley that explores racial injustice, black mental health, and what it means to be black in 2021 through visual art, dance, film, music, and monologues.

Artist Award: “In the Dark,” an original song written and performed on guitar by Alexandria Carrington, a senior at Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts in Dallas. 

Artist Award: “All,” a song by SMU theatre student Ben Woods. The track is about freedom. Finding it. Seizing it. And running with it. Then, eventually passing it on to the next generation.

STEM Award: “I Believe,” a spoken word piece presented by sixth-grader Nya Smith from Atlanta, GA.

ADULT WINNERS

Activist Award: “This Voice,” a song written by Bobby Daye, Sylvia MacCalla, and Yvette Cason, with a video created by Arnetia Walker, New York, NY. The song was created to highlight the importance of voting and having your voice heard.

Artist Award: “Culture Loop,” by Wilfredo Rivera, Cerqua Rivera Dance Theatre, Chicago, IL. The work represents a female African American choreographer’s personal response to and meditation on the racial injustice movement explosion following George Floyd’s assassination in 2020.

Artist Award: “Make the Change,” a song by John Tyler, Baltimore, MD.

“Make the Change” is the closing song to John Tyler’s EP titled “No Color.” The song was heavily inspired from ’60s and ’70s soul and blues but is relevant today. The lyrics convey that there’s still hope for justice for Black people in America and that soon they won’t have to fight for their lives. The song encourages all listeners to help make a change.

Innovation Award: “Portrait of a Nation,” an audio-driven visualization by Mark Hirsch, Santa Barbara, CA.

Other entries can be viewed here – https://blog.smu.edu/theblackalbum/the-mixtape-submissions/

Over the past several months, the black album project has hosted virtual roundtables, dinner discussions, and more than a dozen individual interviews featuring leaders in arts and activism across the country. Videos of the interviews and discussions are posted on the black album website.

“Everyone across the globe is going through the same things all at once with different perspectives, each speaking on it in these conversations through their work in various disciplines,” said Ms. Taylor.

The black album.mixtape. Award Winners https://blog.smu.edu/theblackalbum/winners/

The black album.mixtape. Submissions https://blog.smu.edu/theblackalbum/the-mixtape-submissions/

The black album mixtape. Events https://blog.smu.edu/theblackalbum/events/

YouTube Link

The black album.mixtape. Black Bone China Dinner and Discussion https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ss4MRF-hxmM

MEDIA CONTACT
Taryn Brown
Taryn Brown + CO
[email protected]
214-210-4400 (media only)

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*Caption: Golden Globe-Winning Actress, Playwright, and Activist Regina Taylor Announces Winners of the black album.mixtape.com

News Source: Regina Taylor

MIAMI, Fla., May 15, 2021 (SEND2PRESS NEWSWIRE) — Legendary marijuana activist and ganjapreneur Ed “NJWeedman” Forchion is continuing his legacy of promoting ‘puff and paint’ cannabis creativity. The opening of his new marijuana lounge in Miami, The Joint of Miami in the Wynwood Art District, will be an extension of his legacy in support of ‘pot art.’

The Joint of Miami, alongside NJWeedman’s Joint in Trenton, NJ now both boast beautiful new outdoor wall murals painted by graffiti art master, Ayumi Chisolm aka SANOizm. In addition, NJWeedman is hosting an art themed pre-opening “Puff & Paint” event at his Miami location from May 14th, 10 a.m. ET to June 11th, 10 p.m. ET. “Puff & Paint” at The Joint of Miami is inviting artists to blaze and paint while creating artwork for the interior walls of the weed lounge! Professional artists who are looking to participate can send examples of their artwork to art director Jazz Tarver at [email protected] for consideration and invitation details. The Joint of Miami is located at 2010 NW Miami Ct. in Miami.

NJWeedman’s longstanding love for weed art dates back to his first marijuana dispensary, The Liberty Bell Temple, (see https://youtu.be/-jWnvGd-N4M ) located in Hollywood, CA. In 2008, Ayumi Chisolm aka SANOizm painted an interior canvas and mural covering the ceiling plus the front windows of that now mythical location. SANOizm (SimpleArtNiceOutlinez, StylesAllwayzNumberOne, SmokeAnotherNiceOne) is an award winning multi-disciplined urban artist originally from Cleveland, Ohio. He began doing graffiti art in 1983 and now travels the world creating community aerosol art murals, illustration and designs. His mark on now three of NJWeedman’s businesses are important contributions to the culture of cannabis creativity. Sano maintains a small art studio in Chinatown, Los Angeles where he prints his brand, Thieveland T-shirts.

“It was important for me to have Sano leave his artistic impression on both my Trenton and Miami locations. I consider his imprint a blessing to my businesses. He has artistically documented my marijuana legacy in a way that words could not capture. If a picture is worth a thousand words, the spirit of his images is worth 10,000 words. I think my favorite is his mural outside of NJWeedman’s Joint in Trenton. It’s called “The Battle of Trenton 2” and is an accurate depiction of how I won my fight against the prosecutor’s office in Trenton for unfair charges filed against me (see https://nj1015.com/nj-weedman-promises-to-give-prosecutor-legal-ass-whooping-after-major-bust.”)

“It’s no secret that marijuana and hip hop art are like first cousins,” adds Sano, an avid partaker of the herb. “It has been an amazing journey to illustrate the story of NJWeedman with my art. I deeply appreciate his patronage over the years and am excited to have my work adorn both locations in Trenton and now in Miami, particularly in the Wynwood Art District which is famous for Art Basel and street art. Our work is sometimes overlooked and underrated in the contemporary art world but is an important component of our culture.”

A cult figure in the marijuana legalization community, Forchion has since become one of the most vocal and controversial members of the pro-pot movement. He is the founder of the Legalize Marijuana Party of New Jersey and has run previous campaigns for Governor, U.S. Senate, Congress, the State Legislature, and the Burlington County Board of Freeholders. After decades of public persecution, Ed Forchion is finally being acknowledged for his decades of activism. He has spoken on virtual panels at Stockton and Princeton University, was featured on NBC News in New York and he is slated to appear on an upcoming segment of Vice TV and ABC-TV Nightline.

While NJWeedman’s Joint in Trenton, NJ is a bustling marijuana themed eatery and smoke shop with his partner, Debi Madaio, The Joint of Miami is an extension of the NJWeedman brand, offering a more inclusive cannabis experience. The Joint of Miami, located in the Wynwood Art District, will be an art and music marijuana lounge with ‘members only’ access. Slated to open midsummer, The Joint of Miami will be a franchise operation and NJWeedman is already fielding inquires in other cities.

For more information about The Joint of Miami and Puff & Pass, head over to https://thejointofmiami.com/.

Take a puff with NJWeedman and read all about his adventures at https://linktr.ee/NJWeedman

Follow Ayumi Chisolm aka SANOizm at @sanoizm (https://www.instagram.com/sanoizm/) on Instagram.

MEDIA CONTACT:

Makeda Smith Jazzmyne Public Relations [email protected] 323-380-8819

News Source: The Joint of Miami

SILVER SPRING, Md., May 12, 2021 (SEND2PRESS NEWSWIRE) — The American College of Nurse-Midwives (ACNM) is pleased to announce that Melissa D. Avery, PhD, CNM, FACNM, FAAN will be the Editor-in-Chief (EIC) of the “Journal of Midwifery & Women’s Health” (JMWH) starting January 1, 2022, succeeding Frances E. Likis, CNM, NP, DrPH, who has served as EIC since 2008.

“We look forward to Dr. Avery’s contributions to the Journal, building on its strong foundation and bringing new ideas, skills, and energy,” said ACNM Chief Executive Officer, Katrina H. Holland.

Dr. Avery is a Professor in the School of Nursing at the University of Minnesota. Her recent research has examined prenatal care practices to enhance maternal confidence for physiologic labor and birth. She is Co-Principal Investigator on a nationally funded project to develop and implement an interprofessional education curriculum for graduate midwifery students and obstetrics-gynecology residents. Dr. Avery is a past ACNM president and is a Fellow of ACNM and the American Academy of Nursing (AAN).

Dr. Avery received her Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Northern Illinois University, her Master of Science in Nursing with midwifery specialization from University of Kentucky, and the Doctor of Philosophy with a major in Nursing from the University of Minnesota. She has authored and co-authored a variety of articles for JMWH and received JMWH’s Best Paper of the Year Award in 2003 as a co-author of “Vaginal birth after cesarean birth: A national survey of U.S. midwifery practice.” She has been a JMWH peer reviewer since 1992, contributing editor from 2012-2014, education consulting editor from 2019-2020, and associate editor since 2020.

Dr. Avery looks forward to continuing the tradition of excellence the JMWH has maintained in its 66 years of publication. To learn more about JMWH, visit http://jmwh.org.

About ACNM

With over 6,500 members, ACNM is the professional association that represents certified nurse-midwives (CNMs) and certified midwives (CMs) in the United States. ACNM promotes excellence in midwifery education, clinical practice, and research. With roots dating to 1929, our members are primary care providers for women throughout the lifespan, with a special emphasis on pregnancy, childbirth, and gynecologic and reproductive health. ACNM provides research, administers, and promotes continuing education programs, establishes education and clinical practice standards, and creates liaisons with state and federal agencies and members of Congress to increase the visibility and recognition of midwifery care. Learn more at https://www.midwife.org/.

MEDIA CONTACT

ACNM Membership & Communications

240.485.1813; [email protected]

News Source: American College of Nurse-Midwives

NEW YORK CITY, N.Y., May 12, 2021 (SEND2PRESS NEWSWIRE) — Executive Producers Eric Conte and Dan Weinreich of Content.23 Media, Inc. return to produce the global media industry event, the IAB 2021 Podcast Upfront, right on the heels of last week’s IAB 2021 NewFronts.

In producing this year’s Podcast Upfront, Content.23 Media will leverage its best-in-class live production skills and industry-leading live video production technology to deliver an amazing three-day live event.

The IAB 2021 Podcast Upfront will be held virtually May 11-13; three days of digital audio content from over two dozen of the biggest names in the industry. This global event is designed for advertisers and buyers to preview the latest in podcast programming with the theme, “Listen Up!”

All the presentations will focus on future creative opportunities, and digital audio insights that will define the podcast landscape for the year ahead.

“We are honored to return as the exclusive production partner for the IAB 2021 Podcast Upfront, and partner with such amazing brands for this global event to help shape the future of the podcast business,” says President and Executive Producer, Eric Conte.

Content.23 Media, Inc. just wrapped production of the IAB 2021 NewFronts, a four-day live stream event, which took place May 3-6. The event is the world’s biggest digital video marketplace attended by thousands of media buyers and marketers.

Since the beginning of the pandemic, Content.23 Media, Inc. has successfully pivoted to virtual events, pioneering multiple industry-leading techniques for innovative content. This includes creating new formats and helping to raise millions of dollars for those impacted by the pandemic.

Content.23 will continue to follow local and CDC guidance, all while delivering best-in-class production services. Content.23 Media, Inc. was nominated in the Livestream Event category at the Vimeo Festival & Awards for the 2020 IAB NewFronts.

About Content.23 Media, Inc.  

Founded by Eric Conte and Dan Weinreich in 2012, Content.23 Media, Inc. is a full-service production company specializing in digital media, live streams, branded content, music specials, and award shows. Content.23 Media, Inc. is proud to have delivered groundbreaking projects for many Fortune 500 companies.

You can visit our website at https://www.content23.com/

About IAB

The Interactive Advertising Bureau empowers the media and marketing industries to thrive in the digital economy. Its membership comprises more than 650 leading media companies, brands, and the technology firms responsible for selling, delivering, and optimizing digital ad marketing campaigns. The trade group fields critical research on interactive advertising, while also educating brands, agencies, and the wider business community on the importance of digital marketing. In affiliation with the IAB Tech Lab, IAB develops technical standards and solutions. IAB is committed to professional development and elevating the knowledge, skills, expertise, and diversity of the workforce across the industry. Through the work of its public policy office in Washington, D.C., the trade association advocates for its members and promotes the value of the interactive advertising industry to legislators and policymakers. Founded in 1996, IAB is headquartered in New York City.

News Source: Content.23 Media Inc.

NEW YORK, N.Y., May 11, 2021 (SEND2PRESS NEWSWIRE) — RE:ARTISTE International Art Organization and The Espejo Organization for the Arts are pleased to present “GROUNDED,” an art exhibition juried by award-winning visual artist Mensur Bojda that will be hosted at the SLEEPCENTER Gallery from May 10th to May 20, 2021.

PHOTO CAPTION: Igor Kovalov. Untitled 1. 23×30 inches. Digital painting.

“The word ‘grounded’ means ‘well-balanced’ and ‘sensible,’ while it also means ‘prohibited from doing certain things.’ During the past year, we have been forced indoors by the pandemic and the quarantine measures. But what happened to artists’ mental and emotional stability and confidence? Did they feel grounded and if so, in what way?” explain curators Natalie Burtluskaya and Kika Espejo about the concept behind the art show.

“We selected artworks that appeared recently in a process of self-reflection and introspection. The artists were encouraged to submit pieces that inspect the feelings on a threshold of imbalance and sensibility. Having taken history, literature, theater, politics, science, and arts as inspiration, the artists kept creating art, and it helped them stay afloat during the unprecedented year of the limited opportunities to work, travel, or feel safe,” explains Mensur Bojda, the juror of the show.

The list of selected international artists includes Jeremie Queyras, Igor Kovalov, Hildos, Aida Miro, Maksym Kazarin, Amaia Marzabal, and Kuldeep Singh.

The opening event will take place on May 13, 2021, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. and will follow all COVID-19 CDC guidelines. The exhibition will also be open by appointment between May 10 and May 20.

Hyperlinks:

Mensur Bojda – https://www.mensurbojda.com/

RE:ARTISTE International Art Organization – http://www.reartiste.com/

The Espejo Organization for the Arts – https://www.eoarts.com/

News Source: The Espejo Organization for the Arts

SKOKIE, Ill., May 5, 2021 (SEND2PRESS NEWSWIRE) — Music Theater Works presents “Legends Of The 50s And 60s: Greatest Hits” at North Shore Center For The Performing Arts (9501 Skokie Blvd, Skokie, IL 60076) from June 18, 2021 through June 27, 2021 as the first production of the 2021 season.

About The Show

Join Music Theater Works for an evening filled with beloved hits from the 50s and 60s. This flashback performance features the songs made famous by iconic names like Buddy Holly, Doris Day, Aretha Franklin, The Supremes, The Temptations, Elvis, and many others. This concert is guaranteed to bring a smile to your face and help you remember your favorite memories from the past and introduce these hits to a new generation.

This is an outdoor, socially-distanced performance.

Production Details

WHO:

Music Theater Works

WHAT:

– “Legends Of The 50s And 60s: Greatest Hits”

– Music by Hit Artists of the 1950s and 1960s

– Directed by Kyle Dougan and Martin L. Woods

_ Music Director and Conducted by Jermaine Hill

CAST:

– Adia Bell

– Curtis Bannister

– Dawn Bless

– Evan Tyrone Martin

– Gilbert Domally

– Justin Brill

– Lydia Burke

WHEN:

– Group Performance: Friday, June 18, 2021 @ 1:00 PM

– Press Performance: Saturday, June 19, 2021 @ 2:00 PM

– Sunday, June 20, 2021 @ 2:00 PM

– Wednesday, June 23, 2021 @ 1:00 PM

– Thursday, June 24, 2021 @ 1:00 PM

– Friday, June 25, 2021 @ 8:00 PM

– Saturday, June 26, 2021 @ 2:00 PM & 8:00 PM

– Sunday, June 27, 2021 @ 2:00 PM

WHERE:

North Shore Center For The Performing Arts
9501 Skokie Blvd.
Skokie, IL 60077

TICKETS:

Tickets start at $39 for Standard Seating and tickets start at $48 for Preferred Seating. Tickets for those ages 25 and under are half-price.

Box Office: (847) 673-6300

Website: http://www.musictheaterworks.com/BoxOffice/

HEALTH SAFETY:

Health safety guidelines imposed by North Shore Center For The Performing Arts have been followed in the staging of this event. For more information about measures being taken please visit the North Shore Center For The Performing Arts website at NorthShoreCenter.org.

UPCOMING SHOWS

The 2021 season will feature MAMMA MIA! (Aug 19th – Aug 29th), RAGTIME (Oct 28th – Nov 7th), and BILLY ELLIOT THE MUSICAL (Dec 23rd – Jan 2, 2022).

The 2021 season has been proudly sponsored by Joyce Saxon.

ABOUT MUSIC THEATER WORKS

Music Theater Works is a professional non-profit theater company based in Wilmette, Illinois featuring a colorful repertoire including operetta, the Golden Age of Broadway, the Great American Songbook, and modern classics since 1980.

As of 2021, Music Theater Works has become a resident theater company at the North Shore Center For The Performing Arts (9501 Skokie Blvd, Skokie, IL 60076).

The mission of Music Theater Works is to produce and present musical theater from a variety of world traditions and to engage the local community through educational and outreach programs.

MEDIA CONTACT
Aaron Ozee
Director of Marketing
Music Theater Works
Phone: (847) 920-5360 ext. 7
Email: [email protected]

News Source: Music Theater Works

PORTLAND, Maine, May 4, 2021 (SEND2PRESS NEWSWIRE) — Zootility, a design-driven U.S. manufacturing company, proudly announces the next great innovation in recreational games – a wall-hung beer pong game. Free Pong is quick to pick up and play and easily converts into minimal home décor when not being played.

PHOTO CAPTION: Zootility introduces a wall-hung beer pong game that easily converts into minimal home decor when not being played.

The Free Pong design team recognized that traditional beer pong takes a lot of space to play, cups can get knocked over and spilled, and it’s not a fit for most social gatherings. Free Pong is a vertical take on a classic drinking game that allows the game to be played quickly, cleanly, and in any home living space. It uses patent-pending Tension Grip Technology™ that locks brackets in place. The brackets or cups won’t fall out even when struck by hard shots. The light design allows it to mount on any surface. When brackets are removed, Free Pong fits seamlessly into the living space as a piece of decorative wall art showcasing engraved mountain peak details.

Free Pong game play follows the same basic principles of beer pong. Alternating turns, the goal is to eliminate cups by landing shots in cups before your opponent. A two-board game of Free Pong can be played in teams, the first team to clear their board wins.

“Our company has always had an affinity for recreational games. During our Friday social hour, we started chatting about our own ‘Zootility twist’ on beer pong. We applied the idea to our laser cutting technology and Free Pong was born,” says Nate Barr, Founder of Zootility.

Visit Zootility’s Kickstarter page to pre-order your Free Pong, meet the creators, and learn more about the product that’s bridging the gap between recreational games and interior decor: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/wall-pong/310474365?ref=3l29v9&token=fdb46462.

ABOUT ZOOTILITY:

Zootility designs, launches, and manufactures exciting functional everyday products that solve interesting problems using clever solutions, quality materials, and futuristic technology. For more information on Zootility, please visit https://zootility.com/.

*PHOTO link for media: https://www.Send2Press.com/300dpi/21-0504s2p-Zootility-beer-pong-300dpi.jpg

*Caption: Zootility introduces a wall-hung beer pong game that easily converts into minimal home decor when not being played.

News Source: Zootility Co.