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☆ Hunter Biden to plead guilty in criminal gun and tax case
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-20 | by ( Jacob Shamsian | Brent D. Griffiths | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Hunter Biden agreed to plead guilty to two criminal charges for failing to pay taxes. The gun charge will likely be dismissed if Biden seeks treatment for substance abuse. In a court filing Tuesday, prosecutors in the US Attorney's office in Delaware said the son of President Joe Biden has agreed to plead guilty to two criminal counts for failing to pay income tax. Hunter Biden reportedly failed to pay around $1.2 million in taxes in 2017 and 2018, but his attorneys say he has since paid the IRS the money in full. House Republicans, armed with their razor-thin majority, have also zeroed in on Hunter Biden through multiple probes.

Persons: Hunter Biden, Joe Biden's, Biden, —, Joe Biden, Prosecutors, David Weiss, Donald Trump's, Weiss, Biden's, Donald Trump, Sen, Chuck Grassley, aren't, James Comer, Hunter, Ian Sams Organizations: Justice, Service, Justice Department, Washington Post, Department, House Republicans, Hunter Locations: Delaware

The president's son has worked as a lobbyist, lawyer, investment banker and artist, and has publicly detailed his struggles with substance abuse. Hunter Biden disclosed in December 2020 that Weiss's office was investigating his tax affairs. President Biden has long expressed support and pride in his son for overcoming his addiction. The corrupt Biden DOJ just cleared up hundreds of years of criminal liability by giving Hunter Biden a mere 'traffic ticket.' President Biden has two surviving children, Hunter Biden and daughter Ashley Biden.

Persons: Joe Biden's, Hunter Biden, David Weiss, Donald Trump, Trump, Christopher Clark, Hunter, Clark, " Hunter Biden, Biden, Ian Sams, Weiss, James Comer, Comer, Ashley Biden, Beau Biden, Naomi Biden, Aaron Crawford, Crawford, George H.W, Bush's, Neil, Richard Nixon's, Don, Howard Hughes, Sarah N, Lynch, Jeff Mason, Trevor Hunnicutt, Susan Heavey, Tom Hals, Moira Warburton, Doina Chiacu, Heather Timmons, Jonathan Oatis Organizations: Democratic, Republican, U.S . Navy Reserve, Reuters, . Treasury, Republicans, Biden DOJ, University of Tennessee, Thomson Locations: U.S, Delaware, Ukraine, China, Washington, Wilmington , Delaware

CNN —Hunter Biden, the son of President Joe Biden, will plead guilty to two tax misdemeanors and struck a deal with federal prosecutors to resolve a felony gun charge, the Justice Department said Tuesday in court filings. Trump criticized the Hunter Biden plea deal on Truth Social. Hunter Biden’s legal team sought a meeting with the Justice Department in April, which Weiss attended, and where Hunter Biden’s lawyers gave a presentation detailing why they believe Hunter Biden shouldn’t be charged. Part of their argument included that Hunter Biden paid back taxes owed, including penalties. Correction: This story has been updated to reflect that Hunter Biden is pleading guilty to two tax charges and struck a deal to resolve the gun charge.

Persons: CNN — Hunter Biden, Joe Biden, Hunter Biden, Biden, Donald Trump, Trump, David Weiss, Hunter, Christopher Clark, Department’s, “ Hunter, ” Clark, ” “, ”, Ian Sams, Hunter Biden’s, Weiss, Hunter Biden shouldn’t, Prosecutors, Clark, “, Garland, Justice Department wouldn’t, Christopher Wray, he’s, Beau . Hunter Biden, Melissa Cohen, Jake Tapper, –, He’s, ” Joe Biden, Department’s prosecutorial, “ I’m, I’m, Tapper, “ That’s, it’s, General Merrick Garland, Justice Department’s, CEFC, Obama Organizations: CNN, Justice Department, Internal, Service, Trump, Government, House, Truth, Biden DOJ, Republican, Democratic, IRS, FBI, Department, people’s Justice Department, Hunter, Justice, CEFC China Energy, White, Yorker, State Department Locations: Delaware, Wilmington, China, Ukraine, United States

Hunter Biden arrives at Hancock Field Air National Guard Base after disembarking from Air Force One with his father, U.S. President Joe Biden, in Syracuse, New York, Feb. 4, 2023. Hunter Biden, the son of President Joe Biden, has agreed to plead guilty to two federal misdemeanor crimes of willfully failing to pay federal income taxes, a court filing Tuesday revealed. The corrupt Biden DOJ just cleared up hundreds of years of criminal liability by giving Hunter Biden a mere 'traffic ticket,'" Trump wrote. Trump later wrote on Truth Social: "People are going wild over the Hunter Biden Scam with the DOJ!" "These charges against Hunter Biden and sweetheart plea deal have no impact on the Oversight Committee's investigation.

Persons: Hunter Biden, Joe Biden, Chris Clark, Hunter's, Delaware David Weiss, Weiss, Donald Trump, Joe Biden's, Hunter —, Hunter, Ian Sams, Merrick Garland, Clark, Trump, James Comer, Biden, Biden's, Comer Organizations: Hancock Field Air National Guard Base, Air Force, CNBC, NBC, U.S, Attorney, Prosecutors, Department, Justice, United States Attorney's Office, District of, Government, White, Biden DOJ, Hunter, DOJ, Kentucky Republican Locations: Syracuse , New York, U.S, Delaware, Malibu , California, District of Delaware

The deal would be contingent on Mr. Biden remaining drug free for 24 months and agreeing never to own a firearm again. Mr. Biden is expected to appear in federal court in Delaware in the coming days to be arraigned on the misdemeanor tax charges and plead guilty. Image The Justice Department investigation into Hunter Biden continued after his father became president. Allegations promoted by Republicans that the elder Mr. Biden’s Justice Department went easy on his son are unlikely to fade away. supervisor who had been overseeing the investigation into Hunter Biden hired a lawyer and went to Congress, alleging political favoritism in how the investigation had been handled.

Persons: Hunter Biden, Biden’s, Hunter Biden’s, Biden, Mr, Hunter, Christopher Clark, Ian Sams, Donald J, Trump, Trump’s, David C, Weiss, General Merrick B, Garland, Clark, “ Hunter, ” Mr, Burisma, Haiyun Jiang, Obama, Beau, I.R.S, Seamus Hughes Organizations: Department, The, United States Attorney’s Office, District of, Republicans, Justice Department, House Republicans, Trump, Credit, New York Times, Prosecutors, United, Mr, Yale, Obama, Biden’s Justice Department, Congressional Republicans Locations: Delaware, District of Delaware, Ukrainian, China, United States, Ukraine

The deal would be contingent on Mr. Biden remaining drug free for 24 months and agreeing never to own a firearm again. Mr. Biden is expected to appear in federal court in Delaware in the coming days to be arraigned on the misdemeanor tax charges and plead guilty. As president, Mr. Trump had long sought to tie Hunter Biden’s business deals and personal troubles to his father. Image The Justice Department investigation into Hunter Biden continued after his father became president. Allegations promoted by Republicans that the elder Mr. Biden’s Justice Department went easy on his son are unlikely to fade away.

The North Lawn of the White House in Washington, DC, on November 18, 2022. Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty Images/FileThe White House is declining to comment on reports that former President Donald Trump has been indicted. Biden upheld that very notion earlier on Thursday when he was asked what he would tell Americans to convince them that they should trust the independence and fairness of the Justice Department. “Because you’ll notice, I have never once, not one single time, suggested to the Justice Department what they should do or not do on whether to bring any charges or not bring any charges. I’m honest,” Biden said.

Persons: Mandel Ngan, Donald Trump, Ian Sams, Justice Department —, “, Joe Biden, Biden, ” Biden Organizations: White, Getty, Justice Department, Department of Justice Locations: Washington ,, AFP

☆ Russia's fearsome S-400 air-defense missiles are getting unexpected missions as Moscow struggles in Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-25 | by ( Michael Peck | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Russia's S-400 is a highly regarded weapon designed to intercept a variety of aircraft and missiles. But in Ukraine, Moscow has pressed its S-400s into service to intercept US-made HIMARS rockets or, more bizarrely, to bombard Ukrainian cities. Ukraine has used the S-300 — predecessor to the S-400 — and the American-made Patriot to intercept Kalibr cruise missiles and even Kinzhal hypersonic weapons. A more suitable system to destroy HIMARS rockets would be Israel's Iron Dome, which has frequently intercepted small rockets and even mortar shells. An S-400 missile is launched at a military base in southern Russia during an exercise in September 2020.

☆ The Russian navy's biggest warships are becoming its biggest headaches
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-24 | by ( Benjamin Brimelow | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +10 min

Ongoing problems with the Russian navy's biggest warships illustrate that trend. This seems most evident with Russia's largest surface warships: its Kirov-class nuclear-powered battlecruisers, Admiral Nakhimov and Pyotr Velikiy, and the Admiral Kuznetsov, Russia's sole aircraft carrier. Admiral Kuznetsov in a floating dry dock in a shipyard in Murmansk in August 2010. Other Russian navy sources quickly denied the report to another state media outlet. Izvestia has also reported that the Russian navy is reforming the Kuznetsov's crew, which was mostly disbanded when the ship began its refit.

☆ Ukraine's Patriots aren't hard to find, and Russia's gunning for them with one of its best weapons — Putin's prized Kinzhals
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-17 | by ( Ryan Pickrell | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +12 min

Ukraine's Patriots aren't hard to find, and Russia appears to be using one of its best weapons to hunt them. Patriot missile defense system at Schwesing military airport in Germany on March 17, 2022. Photo by Axel Heimken/picture alliance via Getty ImagesUkraine presently has just two Patriot air defense batteries in its arsenal, one from the US and another provided by European partners. A general view of a mobile defence surface-to-air missile system, Patriot, before it is transported to Poland from Gnoien, Germany January 23, 2023. He asserted that "to the extent possible, replenishing Ukraine's air defense capacity should remain a priority for Western military aid for the foreseeable future."

☆ Ukraine wants F-16s to shoot down Russian strike fighters dropping bombs it can't beat. Airpower experts say give them the jets.
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-09 | by ( Ryan Pickrell | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +13 min

Its defenses struggle to counter the bombs, so Ukraine wants tools to take out the Russian strike fighters. "Guided bombs are tricky for air defense because they have short flight times and usually very little infrared signature," he said. "The air defense system with the longest distance available to us is the S-300, but it's Soviet-era weapons." That is absolutely unrealistic," he said, challenging the arguments against sending fighter aircraft. There are significant training, supply chain, and operational hurdles to overcome, making essential ground-based air defense a priority in the meantime.

☆ Russia's air force has taken a beating, but its jets could still turn the tables in Ukraine, experts say
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-04 | by ( Michael Peck | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Russia's air force has had a limited role in Ukraine, despite numerical and technological advantages. Russia has held its air force back largely because of Ukraine's effective air-defense network. Which raises the question: If Ukrainian air defenses fade, will the Russian Air Force — known as the VKS — finally become a decisive factor in the war? Ukraine's small but resourceful air force put up spirited resistance that mitigated Russia's numerical and technological superiority, however. "So the air force, I think, would definitely be committed much more heavily if they had a chance."

☆ Moscow's 'special' forces: An inside look at how Russia's famed Spetsnaz really operate
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-30 | by ( Mark Galeotti | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +24 min

Russia's Spetsnaz forces are often depicted as a kind of Russian super troops. Osprey PublishingMost countries' special forces emphasize physical fitness, determination and aggression. Special people, for special tasksMembers of the Russian military's 16th Separate Special Purpose Brigade during an exercise in 2018. Even so, being better than most of the Soviet army's miserable and recalcitrant conscript forces did not make most of them truly special, special forces. The special operations commandMembers of Russian's 22nd Separate Guards Special Purpose Brigade during an exercise in November 2017.

☆ Ukraine's fight to fend off Russia's superior air force hinges on its surface-to-air missiles, expert says, but leaked top secret documents show it may be running out
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( Jake Epstein | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Russia's air force has an edge over Ukraine's aircraft, requiring Ukraine to rely on other capabilities. Fighting off Russia's air force is dependent on Ukraine's surface-to-air missiles, a new report says. One document in particular that was obtained and reviewed by Insider details Ukraine's air defense capabilities and the risks it faces. Soldiers of the German Armed Forces stand on a trailer with launching pads for guided missiles of the Patriot air defense system on a snow-covered field in southeastern Poland. "Our beautiful Ukrainian sky becomes more secure because Patriot air defense systems have arrived in Ukraine," Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov said last week.

☆ World-class ships and new supersonic jets mark the quiet rise of a new defense industry powerhouse in Asia
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-10 | by ( Benjamin Brimelow | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

South Korea's defense industry has seen meteoric growth in recent years. 2023 is also shaping up to be a good year for South Korea's defense industry. South Korea's defense industry was originally tailored to meet the country's own needs, and Seoul assisted its growth with subsidies and other incentives. As South Korea's defense products increased in quality, so too did its exports. The South Korean defense industry's most anticipated product might be the KF-21 Boramae, a multi-role combat jet optimized for air-superiority missions.

☆ Quake deals new blow to Syrian medics after years of war
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-21 | by ( Khalil Ashawi | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

AL-DANA, Syria, Feb 21 (Reuters) - As a nurse working near the frontlines of the Syrian war, Ibrahim Zeidan endured many desperate moments including when shelling destroyed a hospital, leaving him trapped by rubble. But he says an earthquake which hit the region on Feb. 6 has proved the most difficult challenge yet for medics in the rebel-held region, overwhelming health facilities already battered by more than a decade of conflict. The night of the disaster, Zeidan oversaw the evacuation of infants from the hospital where he was working in the town of al-Dana. CCTV footage from the hospital showed masonry falling and equipment shaking as the quake struck. Zeidan previously worked at a hospital that operated out of a cave in the Kafr Zeita region of the rebel-held northwest.

☆ Russian balloons are drifting over Kyiv, likely to fake out its air defenses and force them to waste valuable missiles, Ukraine says
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-16 | by ( Chris Panella | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Ukrainian forces reportedly detected six Russian balloons in Kyiv's airspace on Thursday. A Ukrainian military spokesman said the balloons were meant to " exhaust our air defense forces." The Kyiv City Military Administration posted about the balloons on Telegram on Wednesday. Yuriy Ihnat, a spokesman of the Air Force of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, said the high-altitude balloons "were launched to detect and exhaust our air defense forces," the BBC reported. Shooting them down can waste valuable surface-to-air missiles (SAMs), which can be effective against aircraft, helicopters, drones, and slower cruise missiles.

☆ Republicans' 'weaponization' committee is a "Fox News reboot of McCarthyism," White House says ahead of first hearing
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-09 | by ( Nicole Gaudiano | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

The House "Weaponization of the Federal Government" subcommittee is holding its first hearing. The White House likened it to a "reboot of McCarthyism" designed to help Republicans get on Fox News. The hearing will cover "the politicization of the FBI and DOJ and attacks on American civil liberties." The hearing led by House Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan will include witness testimony from Fox News commentators, the White House notes. Jordan, in a House floor speech last month, rejected the notion that the committee is a "ploy" and said whistleblowers have talked to Republicans about alleged government intrusions.

☆ Republican-led U.S. House panel probes Twitter block of Hunter Biden story
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-08 | by ( David Morgan | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Even before the proceedings began, the White House denounced the hearing as "a bizarre political stunt" motivated by denial of Biden's 2020 election victory over Republican former President Donald Trump. "America witnessed a coordinated campaign by social media companies, mainstream news, and the intelligence community to suppress and de-legitimize the existence of Hunter Biden's laptop and its contents," Comer said. The former Twitter executives acknowledged that blocking the New York Post tweets was an error and said they reversed the decision within 24 hours. We applied this policy to the New York Post's tweets and blocked links to articles," Gadde said. The social platform has since been purchased by billionaire Elon Musk, who many Republicans view as a champion of free speech.

☆ Powerful quake rocks Turkey and Syria, kills more than 3,400
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-06 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

A man carries a girl following an earthquake, in rebel-held town of Jandaris, Syria February 6, 2023. People search through rubble following an earthquake in Diyarbakir, Turkey February 6, 2023. Rescuers carry out a girl from a collapsed building following an earthquake in Diyarbakir, Turkey February 6, 2023. He said their shared four-story building collapsed just as he, his wife and three children ran toward the exit. Rescuers stand on rubble of a collapsed building, following an earthquake, in Latakia, Syria, February 6, 2023 in this handout image.

The morning search by FBI agents appeared to represent an expansion of the probe into Biden's handling of classified documents. The White House counsel's office did not have representatives present at the search, White House spokesperson Ian Sams told reporters. Classified documents have also been found in the home of Trump's former vice president, Mike Pence, giving some political cover to Biden. Trump resisted efforts to return materials in his possession, prompting a FBI search of his Florida home and resort last year. It is unlawful to knowingly or willfully remove or retain classified material, although no current or former president or vice president has been charged with wrongdoing.

☆ 'We will get F-16s': Ukraine aims for NATO's fighter jets after winning battle for Western tanks
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-26 | by ( Holly Ellyatt | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Kenzo Tribouillard | Afp | Getty ImagesThe dust has barely settled on the decision by the U.S. and Germany to supply battle tanks to Ukraine, but talk has already turned to the possible use of other firepower, namely, fighter jets. Kyiv appears confident that, as with Western tanks, it will eventually be given F-16s too. The U.S. has been tight-lipped about giving Ukraine F-16s, or allowing other countries to re-export their own U.S.-made fighter jets to Ukraine (National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said he had no announcement to make on the issue Wednesday). How helpful fighter jets would be to Ukraine is a matter for debate, and depends on the aircraft, its weaponry and flying conditions, experts note. Germany arrived at its decision to send tanks after months of pressure and deliberation, making any question over fighter jets a very distant prospect, according to Carsten Nickel, deputy director of research at analysis firm Teneo.

WASHINGTON, Jan 23 (Reuters) - The White House said on Monday that a search by the Justice Department of President Joe Biden's home on Friday had been carried out after a "voluntary, proactive offer" by his personal lawyers to the department. It was the latest in a string of discoveries of classified documents at Biden's Wilmington home and at a temporary office at the University of Pennsylvania. "This was a voluntary, proactive offer by the president's personal lawyers to DOJ to have access to the home," said White House spokesperson Ian Sams. Sams declined to provide more clarity on the exact content of the materials taken from the Wilmington house. Biden had been kept informed throughout this process, the White House said.

☆ White House: DOJ searched Biden's home after 'voluntary, proactive offer' by president's lawyers
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

WASHINGTON, Jan 23 (Reuters) - The White House said on Monday that the search by the Justice Department of President Joe Biden's home was carried out after a "voluntary, proactive offer" by the president's personal lawyers to the Department of Justice. Biden's lawyers have kept him informed throughout this process as they have been in discussions with the Justice Department, White House spokesman Ian Sams said. Sams declined to provide more clarity on the exact content of the materials taken from Biden's Wilmington, Delaware, home. Reporting by Steve Holland, Nandita Bose and Jarrett Renshaw in Washington; Editing by Leslie AdlerOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Additional classified items found in Biden's Delaware home during Justice Department search, attorney says
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-22 | by ( Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Dennis-Romero-Circle-Byline-Template.Jpg | Dennis Romero | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +4 min

Six additional items, including documents with classified markings, were found in President Joe Biden's Delaware home after Department of Justice officials searched the residence Friday, the president's personal attorney said Saturday. Joseph D. Fitzpatrick, assistant U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, said FBI agents conducted the search of Biden's personal property. In June, Trump’s lawyers turned over 38 classified documents, including 17 marked top secret, as well as other material. Special counsel Jack Smith is heading the FBI’s criminal investigation into the handling of the Trump documents. There’s no indication a criminal investigation has been launched into Biden's handling of sensitive documents.

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