Twitch temporarily bans President Trump, Reddit removes Pres. Trump subreddit to align with new hate speech policies
SEATTLE -- Twitch, a streaming platform owned by Amazon mogul Jeff Bezos, has temporarily banned President Donald Trump’s account for “hateful conduct” stemming from footage of the president’s speeches.
Jacksonville enacts mandatory mask requirement
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The city of Jacksonville, where President Trump is expected to accept the Republican nomination, enacted a mandatory mask requirement for public and indoor locations, and “in other situations where individuals cannot socially distance.”The requirement begins at 5 p.m. Monday.This is a reversal from city leaders.
Iran issues arrest warrant for President Trump that Interpol rejects
TEHRAN, Iran — Iran has issued an arrest warrant and asked Interpol for help in detaining President Donald Trump and dozens of others it believes carried out the U.S. drone strike that killed a top Iranian general in Baghdad, a local prosecutor reportedly said Monday.Interpol later said it wouldn't consider Iran's request, meaning President Trump faces no danger of arrest.
Japan to boost space cooperation with US in revised policy
TOKYO — Japan said Monday it will step up its defense capability in space and improve its ability to detect and track missiles, while cooperating with the United States in response to what it called a growing threat from North Korea and China.A revised basic space policy adopted by the government’s strategic space development panel endorses plans for a number of small-scale intelligence-gathering satellites to quickly assess North Korean missile movements.In civil aerospace, Japan will seek to cooperate with the U.S. in sending astronauts on an American lunar mission.The revised policy is be adopted by the Cabinet on Tuesday.Japan aims to double the scale of its space industry from the current 1.2 trillion yen ($11 billion) by the early 2030s.Prime Minister Shinzo Abe pledged Monday that his government will promote investment in future strategic areas such as technology to clean up or avoid hitting space debris, as he set a goal for Japan to become “a future independent space power.”Abe has pushed for Japan’s Self-Defense Force to expand its international role and capability by bolstering cooperation and weapons compatibility with the U.S., as it increasingly works alongside American troops amid concerns about the increasing capabilities of China and North Korea.Japan launched a new space defense unit in May to monitor and counter threats to the country’s satellites.The Space Operations Squadron, part of Japan’s Air Self-Defense Force, started with 20 members and is expected to grow to about 100 once it is fully operational in 2023.The launch of the squadron comes amid growing Japanese concern that China and Russia are seeking ways to interfere, disable or destroy satellites.The squadron will cooperate with the U.S. Space Command that President Donald Trump established last year, as well as Japan’s space exploration organization, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency.
President Trump tweets video with 'white power' chant, then deletes it
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump on Sunday tweeted approvingly of a video showing one of his supporters chanting “white power," a racist slogan associated with white supremacists.
President Trump denies briefing on reported bounties against US troops
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump on Sunday denied that he had been briefed on reported U.S. intelligence that a Russian military intelligence unit secretly offered bounties to Taliban-linked militants for killing American troops in Afghanistan, and he appeared to minimize the allegations against Moscow.American intelligence officials concluded months ago that Russian officials offered rewards for successful attacks on American service-members last year, at a time when the U.S. and Taliban were holding talks to end the long-running war, according to The New York Times.President Trump, in a Sunday morning tweet, said “Nobody briefed or told me” or Vice President Mike Pence or chief of staff Mark Meadows about “the so-called attacks on our troops in Afghanistan by Russians.”"Everybody is denying it & there have not been many attacks on us,” he said.The White House had issued a statement Saturday denying that Trump or Pence had been briefed on such intelligence. “This does not speak to the merit of the alleged intelligence but to the inaccuracy of the New York Times story erroneously suggesting that President Trump was briefed on this matter,” press secretary Kayleigh McEnany said.President Trump's director of national intelligence, John Ratcliffe, also said neither the president nor vice president was “ever briefed on any intelligence alleged” in the Times' report and he said the White House statement was “accurate.”President Trump's tweet came a day after presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden said that the report, if accurate, was a “truly shocking revelation” about the commander in chief and his failure to protect U.S. troops in Afghanistan and stand up to Russia.Russia called the report “nonsense.""This unsophisticated plant clearly illustrates the low intellectual abilities of the propagandists of American intelligence, who instead of inventing something more plausible have to make up this nonsense,” the Russian Foreign Ministry said.A Taliban spokesman said the militants “strongly reject this allegation” and are not “indebted to the beneficence of any intelligence organ or foreign country.”John Bolton, a former national security adviser who was forced out by President Trump last September and has now written a tell-all book about his time at the White House, said Sunday that "it is pretty remarkable the president’s going out of his way to say he hasn’t heard anything about it, one asks, why would he do something like that?”Bolton told NBC's “Meet the Press” that he thinks the answer "may be precisely because active Russian aggression like that against the American service members is a very, very serious matter and nothing’s been done about it, if it’s true, for these past four or five months, so it may look like he was negligent.
Rolling Stones threaten to sue President Trump over using their songs
LONDON — The Rolling Stones are threatening President Donald Trump with legal action for using their songs at his rallies despite cease-and-desist directives.The Stones said in a statement Sunday that their legal team is working with music rights organization BMI to stop the use of their material in Trump's reelection campaign.“The BMI have notified the Trump campaign on behalf of the Stones that the unauthorized use of their songs will constitute a breach of its licensing agreement,’’ the Stones said. “If Donald Trump disregards the exclusion and persists, then he would face a lawsuit for breaking the embargo and playing music that has not been licensed.’’The Stones had complained during Trump's 2016 campaign about the use of their music to fire up his conservative base at rallies.The Rolling Stones’ 1969 classic “You Can’t Always Get What You Want” was a popular song for his events.
Joe Biden 'outraged,' slams President Trump over reported bounties placed on US troops
WASHINGTON — Joe Biden attacked President Donald Trump on Saturday over a report that he said, if true, contains a “truly shocking revelation” about the commander in chief and his failure to protect U.S. troops in Afghanistan and stand up to Russia.The New York Times reported Friday that American intelligence officials concluded months ago that a Russian military intelligence unit secretly offered bounties to Taliban-linked militants for killing U.S. troops in Afghanistan.
Dr. Deborah Birx says President Trump never requested slow-down in coronavirus testing
LOS ANGELES - At his Tulsa, Oklahoma rally on June 20, President Trump ignited a firestorm of controversy when he suggested a slow down in coronavirus testing."When you do testing to that extent you're going to find more people, you're going to find cases,” the President told those in attendance. “So I said to my people, 'Slow the testing down, please.' They test and they test.
President Trump signs 'strong' executive order to protect monuments
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump signed an executive order Friday to protect monuments, memorials and statues facing new scrutiny amid fresh debate over the nation's racist beginnings.President Trump had promised to take action earlier this week after police thwarted an attempt by protesters to pull down a statue of Andrew Jackson in a park across from the White House.The order calls on the attorney general to prosecute to the fullest extent of the law any person or group that destroys or vandalizes a monument, memorial or statue.
Pelosi pushes Senate with House passage of George Floyd bill
WASHINGTON — Passage of the House Democrats' far-reaching police overhaul bill returned attention to the Senate on Friday, as the divided Congress struggles to address the global outcry over the killings of George Floyd and other Black Americans.House Speaker Nancy Pelosi signaled she's willing to negotiate if the Senate is able to approve its own bill.
Appeals court: President Trump wrongly diverted $2.5B for border wall
SAN FRANCISCO — A federal appeals court on Friday ruled against the Trump administration in its transfer of $2.5 billion from military construction projects to build sections of the U.S. border wall with Mexico, ruling it illegally sidestepped Congress, which gets to decide how to use the funds.In two opinions, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals agreed with a coalition of border states and environmental groups that contended the money transfer was unlawful and that building the wall would pose environmental threats.The rulings were the latest twist in the legal battle that has largely gone President Trump’s way.
As COVID cases rise, White House seeks to scrap 'Obamacare'
WASHINGTON — As coronavirus cases rise in more than half of the states, the Trump administration is urging the Supreme Court to overturn the Affordable Care Act.The administration's high court filing at 10:30 p.m. Thursday came the same day the government reported that close to half a million people who lost their health insurance amid the economic shutdown to slow the spread of COVID-19 have gotten coverage through HealthCare.gov.The administration's legal brief makes no mention of the virus.More than 20 million Americans could lose their health coverage and protections for people with preexisting health conditions also would be put at risk if the court agrees with the administration.
President Trump returns to a changed Wisconsin to shore up support
MADISON — The last time President Donald Trump visited Wisconsin he staged a raucous rally at an arena in downtown Milwaukee.
Joe Biden, President Trump stage rare dueling events in pandemic area in battleground states
LANCASTER, Pa. — Both President Donald Trump and his Democratic challenger, Joe Biden, are swinging through key battleground states on Thursday, June 25, presenting dueling events in a way that hasn't happened much in the age of coronavirus and that will showcase their contrasting styles in response to the pandemic.The former vice president wore a black mask as he met with three mothers and two children who told of benefiting from the Obama administration's signature health care law in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, and then giving a speech on how he would improve broader access to health insurance.
Trump administration retiring 13 federally operated COVID-19 testing sites amid sharp rise in cases
WASHINGTON -- The Trump administration has announced that it is currently “transitioning” the last remaining federally operated coronavirus testing sites, of which there are 13 located in five states, to be re-established within local pharmacies in what The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) says is an attempt to “increase testing capacity.”The move comes after President Donald Trump said he had asked his administration to slow down coronavirus testing because robust testing turns up too many cases of COVID-19.President Trump has falsely associated the rise in cases with the rise in testing in the U.S.The virus has been blamed for over 120,000 U.S. deaths — the highest toll in the world — and more than 2.3 million confirmed infections nationwide as of June 24, 2020.
New MU Law School Poll: High support for Black Lives Matter, declining concern about COVID-19
MILWAUKEE -- A new Marquette Law School Poll of Wisconsin registered voters finds Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden with 49 percent support and Republican President Donald Trump with 41 percent.
Barr to testify as Democrats examine DOJ politicization
WASHINGTON -- Attorney General William Barr said Wednesday he will testify before the House Judiciary Committee next month for the first time as the panel examines whether he has inappropriately politicized the Justice Department.One of Barr's federal prosecutors is testifying to the committee Wednesday that Roger Stone, a close ally of President Donald Trump, was given special treatment ahead of his sentencing because of his relationship with the president.
Appeals court orders Flynn case dismissal, after years-long legal saga
NEW YORK -- A federal appeals court on Wednesday ordered a lower court to allow the case against former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn to be dismissed, as requested by the Justice Department -- likely ending the years-long legal saga stemming from the Russia investigation.The abrupt ending came in a 2-1 ruling and order from judges on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia.This was the result of an appeal from Flynn's lawyers asking for a so-called writ of mandamus -- essentially an order telling a government official to carry out a certain duty -- directing Judge Emmet Sullivan to approve the DOJ's motion to dismiss.Sullivan did not immediately grant that motion and instead sought to hold hearings on the matter, angering Flynn allies.The unusual move from Sullivan to keep the case alive despite prosecutors' wishes was preceded by an unusual move from the DOJ itself to drop the charges against Flynn even after he had pleaded guilty -- saying the FBI interview that led to his charge of lying to investigators about his contacts with Russia's ambassador had no "legitimate investigative basis."It's unclear whether Sullivan could try to appeal to the full appeals court or even to the Supreme Court in order to keep the case alive.
Prosecutor: President Trump ally Roger Stone was 'treated differently' ahead of sentencing
WASHINGTON -- A federal prosecutor is prepared to tell Congress on Wednesday that Roger Stone, a close ally of President Donald Trump, was given special treatment ahead of his sentencing because of his relationship with the president.Aaron Zelinsky, a career Justice Department prosecutor who was part of special counsel Robert Mueller's team and worked on the case against Stone, will say he was told by supervisors that political considerations influenced the decision to overrule the recommendation of the trial team and propose a lighter prison sentence, according to testimony released by the House Judiciary Committee.Zelinsky now works in the U.S. attorney’s office in Maryland, and his testimony will feature the extraordinary spectacle of a current prosecutor castigating decisions made by the leadership of the Justice Department where he still serves.