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☆ The Sleeping Japanese Giant Awakes
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-17 | by ( The Editorial Board | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

History is on speed-dial these days, and the latest seismic shift is Japan’s announcement Friday of a new defense strategy and the spending to implement it. This is an historic change, and Prime Minister Fumio Kishida deserves credit for taking the political risk to educate his country about the growing threats from China and North Korea and how to deter them. Tokyo said it will increase defense spending to 2% of the economy by 2027, double the roughly 1% now. The accompanying strategy documents are right to call the current moment “the most severe and complex security environment” since the end of World War II.

☆ As regional threats rise, Japan eases defense-only strategy
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-16 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +2 min

With China, North Korea and Russia directly to its west and north, Japan “faces the severest and most complicated national security environment since the end of the war,” the strategy said, referring to World War II. Japan’s defense buildup has long been considered a sensitive issue at home and in the region, especially for Asian victims of Japanese wartime atrocities. Rapid advancement of missiles have become “realistic threats” in the region, making interception by existing missile defense systems more difficult, the strategy said. North Korea fired more than 30 ballistic missiles this year, including one that flew over Japan. Japan needs standoff, or long-range missiles, to strike back and prevent further attacks “as an unavoidable minimum defensive measure,” the document stated.

From now on, the criminal convictions will place an indelible asterisk next to the Trump business name. With serious criminal investigations underway against Trump in Washington, Atlanta and New York, the convictions remind us of the sharpest arrow in a prosecutor’s quiver: flipping the target’s lieutenants. Loyal to the end, Weisselberg never fingered Trump personally at trial and even cooperated with defense lawyers by forswearing Trump’s involvement in the fraud. Before joining the top tier at DOJ, Colangelo led New York Attorney General Letitia James’ inquiry into Trump. By thrusting himself into the national spotlight, there is no way that his misconduct wouldn’t catch stellar prosecutors’ careful attention.

☆ Archegos' Bill Hwang says prosecutor misconduct justifies indictment's dismissal
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-03 | by ( Jonathan Stempel | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

NEW YORK, Dec 3 (Reuters) - Bill Hwang is seeking the dismissal of his U.S. fraud indictment over the collapse of his once-$36 billion Archegos Capital Management LP, saying prosecutors committed misconduct by sandbagging him when building their case. In a separate filing, Hwang and co-defendant Patrick Halligan, Archegos' former chief financial officer, said their indictment should be dismissed because Archegos' trading activity was "entirely lawful," using methods that are "clearly permitted by the existing regulatory structure." These discussions, the last occurring two days before Hwang's April 27 arrest, "revealed what has now become (as prosecutors doubtless knew it would) his defense strategy," Hwang's lawyers said. Hwang also wants U.S. District Judge Alvin Hellerstein, who oversees the case, to hold a hearing to determine the extent of any taint. The case is U.S. v. Hwang et al, U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York, No.

"The entire defense strategy here is to promote the notion that Weisselberg did it for Weisselberg," Steinglass told the jury in a New York state court in Manhattan. Steinglass told jurors that Trump executives other than Weisselberg were involved, saying the company's chief operating officer and a former general counsel received Christmas bonuses as if they were independent contractors. If convicted on all nine counts it faces, Trump's company faces up to $1.6 million in fines. 'SMORGASBORD OF BENEFITS'Defense lawyers had told jurors on Thursday that Weisselberg's intent was to benefit himself and not the company. Weisselberg is expected to serve five months in jail after pleading guilty to tax fraud and other charges.

☆ Chinese spaceship with 3 aboard docks with space station
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-30 | by ( The Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +4 min

BEIJING — Three Chinese astronauts docked early Wednesday with their country’s space station, where they will overlap for several days with the three-member crew already onboard and expand the facility to its maximum size. Without the attached spacecraft, the Chinese station weighs about 66 tons — a fraction of the International Space Station, which launched its first module in 1998 and weighs around 465 tons. With a lifespan of 10 to 15 years, Tiangong could one day be the only space station still up and running if the International Space Station retires in the coming years as planned. The U.S. excluded China from the International Space Station because of its program’s military ties, although China has engaged in limited cooperation with other nations’ space agencies. While proceeding smoothly for the most part, China’s space program has also drawn controversy.

☆ China rocket taking 3 to space station to blast off Tuesday
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-28 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +4 min

BEIJING — A rocket carrying three astronauts to finish building China’s space station will blast off Tuesday amid intensifying competition with the U.S., the government said Monday,The crew includes a veteran of a 2005 space mission and two first-time astronauts, according to the China Manned Space Agency. Previous missions to the space station have taken about 13 hours from liftoff to docking. The permanent Chinese station weighs about 66 tons — a fraction of the International Space Station, which launched its first module in 1998 and weighs around 465 tons. With a lifespan of 10 to 15 years, Tiangong could one day find itself the only space station still running if the International Space Station adheres to its 30-year operating plan. The U.S. excluded China from the International Space Station because of its program’s military ties.

☆ A federal judge compared the January 6 mentality to 'Nazi Germany' at the sentencing of a Capitol rioter
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-18 | by ( C. Ryan Barber | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Walton made the comment as he sentenced a Capitol rioter who blamed Trump for January 6. The rioter, Dustin Thompson, was sentenced to three years in federal prison. Judge Reggie Walton made the remark at the sentencing of Dustin Thompson, a Capitol rioter who blamed Trump for his involvement in the January 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol. Following Thompson's conviction, Walton and federal prosecutors accused him of lacking candor while testifying under oath. In his own remarks to Walton, Thompson said he was "deeply ashamed" and apologized to the Capitol Police and "everyone" in the United States.

LOS ANGELES — The judge in the rape trial of “That ‘70s Show” star Danny Masterson dealt the defense a potential setback Monday by allowing a fourth woman who says she was assaulted by the actor to testify. Jane Doe #4 was not in cahoots with Masterson's accusers or a Scientologist, Mueller said. He said the jury should be aware there is another woman "out there with similar experience with Mr. Masterson who also was interviewed" by detectives from the Los Angeles Police Department. The judge had initially barred the testimony of Jane Doe #4, who told police she was sexually assaulted by Masterson in 1996. Dua Anjam and Diana Dasrath reported from Los Angeles, Corky Siemaszko from New York City

☆ Pentagon, U.S. arms makers to meet on labor and supply chain
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-04 | by ( Mike Stone | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Prior meetings between Pentagon officials and top arms makers including Lockheed Martin Corp (LMT.N), Raytheon Technologies Corp (RTX.N) and General Dynamics Corp (GD.N) were focused on Ukraine and hypersonic weapon development. Pandemic related supply-chain issues are still hurting defense contractors because components and materials fail to arrive on time, which delays production and ultimately payment. read moreTHE LONGEST POLEIn the meantime, the defense industry is taking steps on its own to shore up supplies and labor. "If I had to boil it down to the longest pole in the tent, it's the labor issues that are pervasive throughout the supply chain," Raytheon Chief Financial Officer Neil Mitchill told Reuters. read moreReporting by Mike Stone in Washington; Editing by Alexandra Alper and Stephen CoatesOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ South Korea issues air raid alert after North fires missiles
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-02 | by ( The Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +4 min

SEOUL, South Korea — Air raid sirens sounded in South Korea after the North fired about a dozen missiles in its direction Wednesday, at least one of them landing near the rivals’ tense sea border. South Korea’s military said North Korea launched more than 10 missiles of various kinds off its eastern and western coasts. The North Korean missile’s landing site is also 104 miles northwest of South Korea’s Ulleung island, where an air raid alert was then issued. It said South Korea has strengthened its surveillance posture on North Korea. Some experts still doubt North Korea could use nuclear weapons first in the face of U.S. and South Korean forces.

☆ Trump Org jury sees 1st evidence linking Donald Trump's Sharpie to alleged tax-dodge scheme
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-02 | by ( Laura Italiano | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

The documents were introduced through the trial's first witness, Jeffrey McConney, who as Trump Organization's controller is responsible for its payroll and tax reporting. "President Trump," McConney said of the signature, identifying the now widely-recognized, mini mountain range of Sharpie ink at the bottom of the letter. "In other words, Donald J. Trump authorized Donald J. Trump to sign the lease" for the apartment, Steinglass asked of the letter's content. "Weisselberg did it for Weisselberg," as Trump Organization lawyer Michael van der Veen told jurors repeatedly in openings. "Who decided that Donald Trump would pay Allen Weisselberg's tuition," the prosecutor then asked.

☆ Accused Paul Pelosi attacker David DePape pleads not guilty to attempted murder and other charges
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-01 | by ( Kevin Breuninger | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

David DePape, the man accused of breaking into House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's residence and violently assaulting her husband with a hammer, pleaded not guilty Tuesday to charges including attempted murder, according to NBC news. The 42-year-old suspect was booked in San Francisco county jail on numerous state charges, including attempted murder, burglary, assault and false imprisonment, after being discharged from the hospital. The attorney also gave his best wishes to Paul Pelosi, who is recovering after undergoing surgery to repair a skull fracture. Paul Pelosi managed to call 9-1-1, and when officers arrived, DePape struck him with the hammer, authorities said. DePape had arrived at the San Francisco home toting zip ties, tape, rope and at least one hammer, according to the affidavit.

☆ Trump Organization unveils its defense strategy: Keep any of the blame away from Trump
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-31 | by ( Laura Italiano | Natalie Musumeci | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Defense attorneys in the New York criminal tax-fraud trial of former President Donald Trump's international real-estate company unveiled their strategy in the case on Monday — keep all blame off the former president and anyone else with the Trump name. Trump Organization lawyer Susan Necheles told the jury during opening statements on Monday that the fraud scheme "started with" former Trump Organization CFO Allen Weisselberg "and it ended with Allen Weisselberg." "So when the prosecutor said the Trump Organization did something illegal for Allen Weisselberg, what they really mean is that Allen Weisselberg did something illegal," Necheles told the 12-person jury. Necheles continued, "The evidence will show that it's all about Allen Weisselberg. But Allen Weisselberg does not own the Trump Organization."

☆ North Korea fires missiles toward sea as U.S. warns against using nuclear weapons
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-28 | by ( The Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +4 min

South Korea’s military has strengthened its surveillance posture and maintains readiness amid close coordination with the United States, it said. North Korea sees such regular drills by Seoul and Washington as practice for launching an attack on the North, though the allies say their exercises are defensive in nature. The area was apparently closer to South Korea than any other missile launch site North Korea has used so far this year. South Korea and the United States have strongly warned North Korea against using its nuclear weapons preemptively. North Korea has said the artillery firings were in reaction to South Korean live-fire exercises at land border areas.

☆ U.S. Defense Strategy Casts China as Greatest Danger to American Security
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-27 | by ( Michael R. Gordon | Brett Forrest | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

The Biden administration unveiled a new defense strategy Thursday, casting China as the greatest danger to American security and calling for an urgent, concerted effort to build the military capabilities to deter Beijing in the decades to come. The strategy document warns that China is seeking to undermine U.S. alliances in the Indo-Pacific, engaging in coercive activity on Taiwan and is posing a potential threat to the U.S. homeland through its ability to mount cyberattacks against the U.S. industrial base and the system used to mobilize American forces.

The decision to cancel the submarine-launched cruise missile could help President Joe Biden address calls from fellow Democrats to scale back America's nuclear arsenal without sacrificing major components of its nuclear "triad" of nuclear-tipped ground-based inter-continental ballistic missiles, nuclear-capable bomber aircraft and submarine-launched nuclear arms. The Biden administration released three documents on Thursday: the National Defense Strategy, Nuclear Posture Review and Missile Defense Review. Under President Donald Trump's administration, the military made a decision in 2018 to develop a new nuclear-armed sea-launched cruise missile, with a focus on the threat from Russia. But the Biden administration said in its review the sea-launched cruise missile program (SLCM-N) was unnecessary and would be cancelled because the United States already had the "means to deter limited nuclear use." U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin told reporters the military did not need the SLCM-N because there was enough capability in the nuclear inventory already.

☆ China still the biggest threat to the U.S.
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-27 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailChina still the biggest threat to the U.S. Despite Russia’s brutal and unprovoked war in Ukraine, China is still the biggest threat to the United States, according to the Pentagon’s new national defense strategy, which is out today. Michael O’Hanlon, sr. fellow at the Brookings Institution, joins Kayla Tausche and ‘The News with Shepard Smith’ to discuss.

☆ Biden knows there are limits on American power, but they're nowhere to be found in his first major security strategy
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-25 | by ( Gil Barndollar | Defense Priorities | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

This month, the Biden administration released its long-delayed National Security Strategy. The brief moment of post-Cold War American hyperpower is long gone, a victim of both natural power dynamics and three decades of incessant American foreign policy hubris and error. Six months before the assault on Ukraine began, the Biden administration admitted the limits of American power in another land that defeated Russian invaders: Afghanistan. The saving grace of the National Security Strategy may be its meaninglessness. The Biden administration's actual emerging national security strategy could be far better than the document lets on.

☆ Coronavirus pandemic prompts Biden to focus on biological threats
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON, Oct 18 (Reuters) - U.S. President Joe Biden on Tuesday set in motion a plan to counter biological threats and prepare for the next pandemic after the COVID-19 coronavirus caused more than 1 million deaths in the United States. Biden signed three documents on biodefense security aimed at establishing a strategy and an implementation plan to gird for the next time a virus spreads widely in the United States. The National Biodefense Strategy, released by the White House, said the United States must address the "accidental release of biological agents, and threats posed by terrorist groups or adversaries seeking to use biological weapons." The United States has suspicions that the virus originated in China despite Beijing's denials. The plan establishes a goal of "recruiting, training and sustaining a robust, permanent cadre of health workers in all 50 states" to confront biological threats, the official said.

☆ A female doctor fled Russia to avoid being drafted amid fears the 'partial mobilization' will include women medics
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-15 | by ( Joshua Zitser | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

A female doctor told Insider she fled Russia because she feared being called up to serve in Ukraine. Another Russian woman, who trained as a nurse, told Insider that she'd rather go to prison than serve. "I'd been planning to immigrate to Germany for a while for work," she told Insider. The majority of doctors in Russia are womenVarvara had been planning to move to Germany with her husband in November. Sonia Subbotina, the girlfriend of jailed anti-war artist Alexandra Skochilenko, told Insider that she intends to remain indefinitely in St. Petersburg to care for Skochilenko.

☆ Donald Trump subpoena by Jan. 6 committee doesn't mean he'll testify
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-14 | by ( Richard A. Serafini | Is A Criminal Defense Attorney | Former Senior Trial Attorney For The Justice Department S Criminal Division. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +7 min

Near the conclusion of Thursday’s U.S. House hearing into the events of Jan. 6, 2021, the committee voted unanimously to subpoena former President Donald Trump. In a letter Friday morning to the committee, Trump didn’t say whether he planned to comply in this case. The Jan. 6 committee is a select committee, not a standing committee or subcommittee of the House. When it comes to the Jan. 6 committee specifically, Trump has pushed former aides from his inner circle to take his approach. Even when the Justice Department does act, that doesn’t always guarantee the result.

A NASA spacecraft successfully changed an asteroid's orbit by intentionally smashing into it last month, agency officials confirmed Tuesday. The results of the cosmic collision are significant because it was the first real-life test of humanity's ability to protect the Earth from potentially catastrophic asteroids. "All of us have a responsibility to protect our home planet," NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said in a statement. NASA /ESA / STScI / HubbleThe DART mission (short for Double Asteroid Redirection Test) was a rare chance to test a key planetary defense strategy, offering scientists an opportunity to assess whether "nudging" an asteroid can actually change its orbit. "NASA has proven we are serious as a defender of the planet," Nelson said, adding that the mission was "a watershed moment for planetary defense and all of humanity."

☆ North Korea fires missile after Harris leaves South Korea
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-29 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

North Korea test-fired two ballistic missiles on Wednesday, a day before Harris visited South Korea, and one before she left Washington on Sunday. Getty Images AsiaPacSouth Korea’s military says North Korea has fired at least one ballistic missile toward its eastern waters. Thursday’s launch was the third round of missile tests by North Korea this week. North Korea test-fired two ballistic missiles on Wednesday, a day before Harris visited South Korea, and one before she left Washington on Sunday. In this handout image provided by the South Korean Defense Ministry, The U.S. nuclear-powered aircraft carrier Ronald Reagan (C) and South Korean warships seen during a US-South Korea combined naval exercise on September 29, 2022 in East Sea, South Korea.

The dramatic moment when a NASA spacecraft intentionally flew head-on into an asteroid was captured by a tiny, Italian-built satellite that was designed to survey the aftermath of the cosmic collision. Photos of NASA's DART probe slamming into a small and harmless asteroid known as Dimorphos were released Tuesday by L'Agenzia Spaziale Italiana, the Italian Space Agency. The images show Dimorphos and the larger, brighter asteroid that it orbits right before and immediately after the impact. The intentional crash, which occurred Monday, was the world's first test of a planetary defense strategy that involves "nudging" an asteroid to permanently alter its trajectory. Dimorphos is located about 6.8 million miles from Earth and does not pose any threat to the planet.

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