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☆ Explainer: US special counsels work with independence and a spotlight
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Unlike other federal prosecutors, special counsels work without day-to-day control by the Justice Department. Unlike with other cases, the attorney general must notify Congress if he or she overrules one of the special counsel's decisions. And the special counsel must submit a report laying out the reasons for charging people or declining to do so. Those lawyers worked with an even greater degree of independence than special counsels. When statute creating independent counsels expired in 1999 it was replaced by existing Department of Justice rules for appointing special counsels.

Persons: General Merrick Garland, David Weiss, Hunter Biden, Joe Biden, Bonnie Cash, Joe Biden's, Hunter, Weiss, Garland, Jack Smith, Donald Trump's, Smith, Robert Mueller, Trump, Biden, Robert Hur, Brad Heath, Don Durfee Organizations: U.S, Justice Department, REUTERS, FBI, of Justice, Thomson Locations: Washington , U.S, Florida, Russia, U.S, Delaware, Maryland, Kosovo

☆ Explainer: How Hunter Biden, Trump special counsels work independently
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Unlike other federal prosecutors, special counsels work without day-to-day control by the Justice Department. Unlike with other cases, the attorney general must notify Congress if he or she overrules one of the special counsel's decisions. And the special counsel must submit a report laying out the reasons for charging people or declining to do so. When statute creating independent counsels expired in 1999 it was replaced by existing Department of Justice rules for appointing special counsels. The special counsel's investigation could weigh on Biden's 2024 reelection campaign, some Democrats say, because it has the potential to broaden to other issues.

Persons: General Merrick Garland, David Weiss, Hunter Biden, Joe Biden, Bonnie Cash, Joe Biden's, Hunter, Weiss, Garland, Jack Smith, Donald Trump's, Smith, Robert Mueller, WEISS, HUR, SMITH, Trump, Biden, Robert Hur, HUNTER BIDEN, Brad Heath, Don Durfee, Heather Timmons Organizations: U.S, Justice Department, REUTERS, WHO CAN, FBI, of Justice, Thomson Locations: Washington , U.S, Florida, Russia, U.S, Delaware, Maryland, Kosovo

☆ Karen Pence said that she 'never' feared for her life on January 6 and felt 'such a peace and God's presence' as she was evacuated from the Senate chamber
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-14 | by ( John L. Dorman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Former second lady Karen Pence said that she "never felt afraid" while at the Capitol on January 6. Karen Pence said her role as second lady prepared her for the precautions she took that day. But throughout that harrowing day, Karen Pence in an interview with ABC News said that she "never" feared for her life and remarked that she felt "God's presence" despite the uncertainty that filled the air. When Davis asked Karen Pence about her drawing the curtains in the ceremonial office, the former second lady attributed it to "conditioning" from being in the public eye. "I think once you become, you know, second lady, life changed a lot for us," she said.

Persons: Karen Pence, Joe Biden's, Mike Pence, Linsey Davis, Davis, Let's, Charlotte, president's, Pence, Donald Trump's Organizations: Capitol, ABC News, Service, United States Capitol, Biden's, Christian Broadcasting Network, Trump, Republican, GOP Locations: Wall, Silicon, Iowa, Indiana

☆ Trump judge sets limits on what evidence he can publicly share in D.C. election case
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-11 | by ( Kevin Breuninger | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

The federal judge overseeing Donald Trump's election interference case hammered out the details of a protective order at the center of an early dispute between the former president's attorneys and special counsel Jack Smith's prosecutors. But she gave the Department of Justice the opportunity to deem which materials are "sensitive" enough to be covered by the protective order. The judge brushed aside a defense attorney's concerns that the protective order could hamper Trump's political speech as he seeks the 2024 Republican presidential nomination. Before the hearing wrapped, Chutkan told Trump and his team to avoid making any public statements that could impact the integrity of the case. Trump faces four counts related to his efforts to overturn his loss to President Joe Biden in the 2020 election.

Persons: Donald Trump's, Jack Smith's, Tanya Chutkan, Chutkan, Trump, Joe Biden Organizations: U.S, Washington , D.C, Department of Justice, NBC News, The Justice, Trump Locations: Washington ,

☆ Rudy Giuliani puts luxury Manhattan apartment on the block for $6.5 million
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-07 | by ( Jack Newsham | Mattathias Schwartz | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Rudy Giuliani's 3-bedroom Upper East Side co-op apartment just hit the market. The listing comes after Giuliani appeared as a co-conspirator in Trump's latest indictment. It's not clear why Giuliani is selling the unit, which he has owned for several decades. Despite his history as a prominent prosecutor and mayor of New York City, Giuliani, whose New York law license has been suspended, has had liquidity issues in the past. In 2022, a judge said Giuliani would be locked up if he didn't pay his ex-wife Judith Giuliani over $200,000 in alimony.

Persons: Rudy Giuliani's, Giuliani, Trump's, Rudy Giuliani, Donald Trump's, Donald Trump, Joe DiMaggio's, Ted Goodman, couldn't, Robert Costello, Serena Boardman didn't, Judith Giuliani Organizations: Service, Sotheby's Realty, FBI, Joe DiMaggio's Yankees, Village Voice, Giuliani, Cameo Locations: Wall, Silicon, Ukraine, Central, New York City, York

☆ Biden's Education Department just finalized a rule allowing states to protect student-loan borrowers from 'unfair and deceptive practices,' reversing the Trump administration's efforts
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-24 | by ( Ayelet Sheffey | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The Education Department finalized a rule to allow state oversight into federal student-loan servicers. The rule is intended to protect borrowers from misleading behavior or inaccurate payment counts. The department concluded that the Higher Education Act of 1965 allows states to play a role in regulating federal loan servicers to better protect borrowers from misleading behavior. "States may consider and adopt additional measures which protect borrowers and can be harmonized with Federal law," it said. The notice does have some limits on what states can do, like ruling a federal loan servicer in a state cannot continue operations.

Persons: Joe Biden's, Miguel Cardona, Donald Trump's, Betsy DeVos, —, servicers Organizations: Education Department, Service, Joe Biden's Education Department, Federal, Higher, Department, servicer Locations: Wall, Silicon, Federal, —

☆ Schumer slams 'MAGA-captured Supreme Court' that now has led the right to achieve 'dangerous, regressive policies'
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-30 | by ( Brent D. Griffiths | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Chuck Schumer unloaded on the Supreme Court after a pair of 6-3 rulings on Friday. The top Senate Democrat called the body a "MAGA-captured Supreme Court." The cases were 303 Creative LLC v. Elenis and Biden v. Nebraska, respectively. "The ill-founded and disappointing decisions from the Supreme Court are a stark reminder that it will take a sustained effort to rebalance our federal courts ...," Schumer said. Schumer's past criticism of the Supreme Court has drawn more than just eyebrows.

Persons: Chuck Schumer, MAGA, —, Joe Biden's, Schumer, Biden, Elenis, ProPublica, Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, Thomas, Alito, Mitch McConnell, McConnell, Barack Obama, Antonin Scalia's, Donald Trump's, Amy Coney Barrett, Brett Kavanaugh, Neil Gorsuch, John Roberts, Roberts, Elena Kagan's Organizations: Democrat, Service, Biden, New York Democrat Locations: Colorado, . Nebraska, Nebraska

☆ Fox News agrees to pay $12 million to settle ex-producer's lawsuit alleging 'sexist' work environment
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-30 | by ( Jacob Shamsian | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Fox News agreed to pay $12 million to settle a hostile workplace lawsuit from Abby Grossberg. Grossberg alleged she experienced a "sexist" environment at Fox and says lawyers coerced her testimony for Dominion's lawsuit. One lawsuit, filed in Manhattan federal court, alleged rampant workplace sexism. Grossberg withdrew her Delaware lawsuit shortly after Fox agreed to settle Dominion's lawsuit for the record-breaking sum of $787.5 million. Grossberg's case threw a wrench in the lawsuit between Dominion and Fox News.

Persons: Abby Grossberg, Grossberg, —, Maria Bartiromo, Tucker Carlson, Parisis Filippatos, Nancy Pelosi, Rudy Giuliani, Carlson, Kevin McCarthy, Wells, Jack Smith, Donald Trump's, Filippatos Organizations: Fox News, Fox, Trump, Service, News, New York Times, Network, Dominion Voting Systems, New, Dominion, Republican, Times Locations: Manhattan, Delaware, New York, Smartmatic

☆ 'Obama,' 'Trump gets impeached twice' and the other top political references in Fall Out Boy's new cover of the Billy Joel classic 'We Didn't Start the Fire'
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-28 | by ( Brent D. Griffiths | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

Fall Out Boy's new cover of the 1989 Billy Joel classic covers a lot of the bases the original touch. "Cambridge Analytica" (2018): The British consulting firm had been around for years, but bombshell reporting by The New York Times and The Guardian in 2018 sparked a scandal. Obama went on to defeat Republican presidential nominee John McCain en route to becoming the nation's first Black president. "Trump gets impeached twice" (2021): President Donald Trump became the first president to be impeached twice in the wake of the January 6, 2021 Capitol riot. Video later showed that Rice, who was 12 years old, was killed within two seconds of officers arriving, The New York Times reported.

Persons: Billy Joel, Obama, Trump, —, Billy Joel's, Gamal Abdel Nasser, Dwight D, Eisenhower, It's, Egypitan Hosni Mubarak, Muammar Gaddafi, Rodney King, King, Vladimir Putin, Putin, Viktor Yanukovych, Russia's, Donald Trump's, Alexander Nix, Cambridge Analytica, Osama bin Laden's, Illinois Sen, Barack Obama, New York Sen, Hillary Clinton, John McCain, Donald Trump, acquit Trump, Roberto Schmidt, Timothy McVeigh, Alfred P, Marjorie Taylor Greene, Sandra Bland, Tamir Rice, Bland, Rice, George Floyd, Derek Chauvin, Chauvin, Kerem Yucel, Gore, George W, Bush, Al Gore, Sandra Day O'Connor, Tom Delonge Organizations: Service, Cubs, Israel, NPR, National Guard, Russia, Cambridge, The New York Times, Guardian, London Thomson Reuters, US, New York, Democratic, Affordable, Republican, AFP, Getty, Murrah Federal Building, Georgia Republican, Minneapolis Police, Civil, Hennepin County Government Center, Texas Gov, Electoral College, Washington Post, CNN, Fox News, The Washington Post, New York Times Locations: Suez, Israel, Egypt, United Kingdom, France, British, Tunisia, North Africa, California's, Crimea, Ukraine, Azov, Kerch, Moscow, Russian, London, Afghanistan, Illinois, Iowa, Washington, Oklahoma, Georgia, The, Hennepin County, Minneapolis , Minnesota, AFP, Florida

☆ Georgia election official Raffensperger to speak with Jan. 6 investigators
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-27 | by ( Joseph Ax | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

June 27 (Reuters) - Georgia's top election official, Brad Raffensperger, is scheduled on Wednesday to answer questions from federal investigators examining former President Donald Trump's efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election, a spokesperson for Raffensperger's office said. Trump, front-runner in the 2024 Republican presidential race, has denied any wrongdoing and asserts falsely that the election was rigged. The Atlanta district attorney is also conducting an investigation into whether Trump and his allies unlawfully sought to interfere with the 2020 election. Trump faces state charges in Manhattan that he falsified business records to conceal a hush-money payment to a porn star who claimed to have had a sexual encounter with him. Reporting by Joseph Ax; Editing by Andy Sullivan and Howard GollerOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Brad Raffensperger, Donald Trump's, Raffensperger, Trump, Joe Biden's, Jack Smith, General Merrick Garland, Smith, Raffensperger's, Joseph Ax, Andy Sullivan, Howard Goller Organizations: Trump, U.S . Capitol, Republican, Washington Post, Thomson Locations: U.S, Atlanta, Manhattan

☆ Mike Pence's 2024 campaign site glosses over that time he was Donald Trump's vice president
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-07 | by ( Paul Squire | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Mike Pence is running for president against Donald Trump and a crowded GOP field. But it summarizes his time as Trump's vice president in a single sentence. Pence, Trump's former Vice President, announced he's running for the nation's highest office on Wednesday, saying in a launch video that "different times call for different leadership." Pence's campaign website bio details his time as a syndicated radio talk show host, a member of Congress, and governor of Indiana. Pence, for his part, said that Trump's "reckless words endangered my family and everyone at the Capitol that day, and I know history will hold Donald Trump accountable."

Persons: Mike Pence, Donald Trump, Pence, —, Mike Pence's, Trump's, Donald Trump's, It's, Trump, Joe Biden's Organizations: Service, Trump, Capitol Locations: Indiana, CNN's

☆ Call her Ivanka Kushner
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-27 | by ( Katherine Tangalakis-Lippert | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Ivanka Trump has been steadily distancing herself from her father's brand since he left office. A former adviser in the Trump White House, Ivanka now says she's done with politics. Despite the rebrand, Ivanka remains in legal trouble for her role in Trump businesses. Beyond public appearances or showings of political support, Ivanka's distance from the rest of the Trump family has also begun to show itself legally. They've got a lot going on over in the Kushner clan, and she has her kids and her family.

☆ A TikTok ban in Montana points to how a US ban would play out: messy and hard to enforce
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-25 | by ( Paayal Zaveri | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Montana is the first US state to ban TikTok, as US lawmakers discuss a federal ban. US lawmakers have been talking about a possible TikTok ban over its ties to China. Montana's law suggests a federal ban would be hard to enforce — and might not solve anything. Last week, Montana became the first US state to ban TikTok — and the rule's implementation could show just how hard it would be to enact a federal ban. Montana's TikTok ban is hard to enforce from a tech standpointWhile the ACLU and other civil rights groups are questioning the legality of Montana's TikTok ban, even if it did stand up to a court challenge, it's hard to actually enforce.

Persons: TikTok, it's, Montana's, that's, Evan Greer, Aaron Mendes, Banning TikTok, Mendes, Donald Trump's, Karen Gullo Organizations: ACLU, TikTok, Apple, Washington Post, Facebook, Electronic Frontier Foundation Locations: Montana, China, British, TikTok

☆ The 7 theories for why Tucker Carlson got fired from Fox News
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-27 | by ( Ryan Hogg | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

Tucker Carlson was axed by Fox News Monday, days after it settled Dominion's defamation lawsuit. Here are seven theories for why Fox News decided to part ways with Carlson. Since then, media industry insiders have been buzzing with different theories for why Carlson was pushed out. The C-wordWithin the Dominion lawsuit, there emerged a pattern of vulgar language spewed by Carlson throughout his time at Fox News. Rupert Murdoch (right) and Lachlan Murdoch at the US Open in 2018.

At issue is whether a public official's social media activity can amount to governmental action bound by First Amendment limits on government regulation of speech. The Garniers sued O'Connor-Ratcliff and Zane in federal court, claiming their free speech rights under the First Amendment were violated. Zane and O'Connor-Ratcliff each had public Facebook pages identifying them as government officials, according to the Garniers' court filing. O'Connor-Ratcliff also had a public Twitter profile. Circuit Court of Appeals last July agreed, finding that the school board members had presented their social media accounts as "channels of communication with the public" about school board business.

Investors are using provisions in Delaware corporate law to demand internal Fox records to investigate how Fox's leaders acted as its Fox News network aired segments on Trump's false claims that he lost the 2020 presidential election due to voter fraud, two sources confirmed. In moves not previously reported, shareholders are looking for records such as board minutes, emails and texts that may contain evidence that Fox directors and executives were derelict by allowing the network to air the false claims. It was not clear how many Fox shareholders are pursuing information demands. Fox has argued that Dominion's case falls short of proving actual malice and its damages request is "untethered from reality." If Fox prevails in the Dominion case, the shareholders' cases would not be as strong, said Ann Lipton, a professor at Tulane University Law School.

☆ New Hampshire GOP Gov. Chris Sununu, a potential presidential candidate, says a win 'ain't gonna happen' if Republicans can't attract independents: 'I get nervous about 2024'
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-15 | by ( John L. Dorman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Chris Sununu said Republicans won't be able to win in 2024 without independent voters. The potential presidential candidate made the remarks at the annual NRA conference in Indianapolis. Sununu has been a vocal critic of former President Trump's efforts to return to the White House. Chris Sununu, a potential 2024 presidential candidate, spoke out against some of the ideological divisions within the party on Friday, admitting that he was "nervous" about the White House contest next year. And Sununu, who has been critical of former President Donald Trump's efforts to win the GOP presidential nomination next year, was blunt on what he foresaw as a potential problem for the party.

WASHINGTON, April 11 (Reuters) - Ukrainian hackers claim to have broken into the emails of a senior Russian military spy wanted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation for hacking the Hillary Clinton campaign and other senior U.S. Democrats ahead of Donald Trump's election to the presidency in 2016. It wasn't immediately clear what information the hackers had managed to steal or how significant it was. Morgachev's inbox could potentially hold insight into Russia's hacking operations, including the operation against Clinton and the Democrats. It said his department was "dedicated to developing and managing malware," including the "X-Agent" spy software used to hack the DNC. In its message announcing the theft, the group said of Morgachev: "A very cool and clever hacker, but ... We hacked him."

☆ $6 billion in student-loan forgiveness for 200,000 borrowers just cleared another hurdle — and all members involved in the years-long lawsuit can now get relief
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-05 | by ( Ayelet Sheffey | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

An appeals court rejected three companies' request to pause relief for borrowers in the Sweet vs. Cardona lawsuit. Last year, a federal judge signed off on a settlement in the case that would give 200,000 borrowers $6 billion in debt relief. Those borrowers filed a lawsuit in 2019 over stalled borrower defense claims against the schools they attended. Cardona agreed to a settlement last summer in the case that would give 200,000 impacted borrowers $6 billion in debt relief. Borrowers who filed a claim against a school not included on that list will receive relief based on the following timeline:

☆ Mike Pence will testify before a grand jury about Trump's efforts to overturn the 2020 election
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-05 | by ( Oma Seddiq | Sonam Sheth | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Pence will not fight a court ruling ordering him to testify before a grand jury about Trump efforts to overturn the 2020 election. A federal judge ruled last month that Pence must testify about conversations he had with Trump leading up to January 6, 2021. Trump pressured Pence, both publicly and privately, to assist in his efforts to overturn Biden's 2020 election victory. Trump supporters could be heard chanting that they wanted to "hang Mike Pence" during the Capitol riot, according to video footage. They're literally calling for the vice president to be effing hung,'" Hutchinson testified.

☆ Jack Smith is investigating the Trump White House meeting with Sidney Powell where a plan to seize voting machines was discussed: report
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-05 | by ( Charles R. Davis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Special Counsel Jack Smith is investigating a December 2020 meeting at the Trump White House, per CNN. At the meeting, participants, including Sidney Powell, discussed a plan to seize voting machines. Of particular interest to Smith is a December 18, 2020 meeting at the White House where Trump was joined by attorney Sidney Powell, who was falsely claiming that electronic voting machines were hacked by foreign adversaries, sources told CNN. Flynn, prior to the meeting, had for weeks been pushing the idea of seizing voting machines, arguing that Trump could unilaterally demand it be done. O'Brien told prosecutors that he "had made clear there was no evidence of foreign interference affecting voting machines," according to the outlet.

☆ Biden could protect student-loan borrowers from being stuck with useless degrees and a lot of debt by bringing back a rule Trump ditched, progressive lawmakers say
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-03 | by ( Ayelet Sheffey | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

It included reinstating and strengthening the gainful employment rule, which protects student-loan borrowers from unaffordable debt post-graduation. Biden delayed implementation of the rule until 2024 and is expected to put out a proposal this month. "The Gainful Employment rule is a cornerstone of our ambitious regulatory agenda," the spokesperson said. Along with reinstating gainful employment, lawmakers and advocates have also called for the executives of for-profit schools to be held liable for costs when the school shuts down, rather than taxpayers and borrowers. Now, lawmakers and advocates await the department's gainful employment proposal.

REUTERS/Bing Guan/File PhotoNEW YORK, April 2 (Reuters) - New York City police have thrown up metal barriers around Trump Tower and blocked roads near Manhattan Criminal Courthouse as they brace for potential protests ahead of Donald Trump's expected surrender to prosecutors on Tuesday. The downtown courthouse, home to criminal and supreme courts, will shut down some courtrooms ahead of Trump's expected appearance, a court official said. However, many Trump supporters online have expressed wariness about public demonstrations, even after Trump called for them, concerned they could be arrested. Trump is expected to fly to New York on Monday from Florida and spend the night at Trump Tower, before arriving early Tuesday morning at the courthouse, a Trump adviser said. A court official told Reuters that courtrooms on higher floors of the courthouse will be closed at 1 p.m., shortly before Trump's expected 2:15 p.m. (1815 GMT) arraignment.

☆ No, Ron DeSantis can't stop Donald Trump's extradition from Florida to New York. Here's what happens now that he's been indicted.
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-30 | by ( Jacob Shamsian | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +12 min

Ron DeSantis can't stop extradition from Trump's home in Florida, but he could slow the process. DeSantis can't stop Trump's extradition, but he could slow it downThe standard method of interstate extradition in Florida, according to Holder and Bachner, involves the governors of each state. DeSantis is then required to make sure the indictment is valid before ordering Trump's extradition from Florida. The Florida extradition statute describes the governor's role as simply making sure the extradition demand meets all the legal requirements. It's unlikely that DeSantis will look too closely under the hood of the indictment, Bachner told Insider before news of the grand jury vote Thursday.

☆ Mike Pence must testify before grand jury investigating Trump's efforts to overturn the 2020 election, judge rules
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-28 | by ( Oma Seddiq | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A federal judge ruled that Pence must provide testimony in the federal investigation into January 6. A federal grand jury is investigating Trump's efforts to overturn the 2020 election and his role in January 6. Trump had similarly invoked executive privilege, but a federal judge dismissed his claims. Smith had subpoenaed Pence for testimony and documents related to the probe in February. As vice president, Pence played a mostly ceremonial role overseeing the certification of the 2020 election results as Congress met on January 6.

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