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☆ Trump still hasn’t signed ethics agreement required for presidential transition
▼ + stars: | 2024-11-09 | by ( Betsy Klein | Alayna Treene | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

As president, Trump repeatedly came under fire from ethics groups for potential conflicts of interest relating to his businesses and brands. A source familiar with the process acknowledged that details are still being worked out with the Biden administration regarding the ethics agreement, which is required by law under the Presidential Transition Act and which applies to all members of the transition team. Updates to that bill requiring the ethics pledge were introduced by Trump ally Sen. Ron Johnson, a Wisconsin Republican, and signed into law by Trump himself in March 2020. The Trump team ignored a pair of key preelection deadlines to unlock transition activities with the Biden administration’s General Services Administration and the White House. The ethics agreement was also due by October 1.

Persons: Donald Trump, Biden, Trump, Trump’s, Sen, Ron Johnson, Valerie Smith Boyd, Boyd, Max Stier, Joe Biden’s, Stier, ” Stier, ”, Jeff Zients, Howard Lutnick, Linda McMahon, Jamie Raskin, ” Raskin, George W, Al Gore’s, CNN’s Arlette Saenz, Fredreka Schouten Organizations: CNN, Trump, Wisconsin Republican, Truth, Biden, Services Administration, White, GSA, Center, Public Service, Public, “, Vance Locations: Wisconsin, Maryland, Florida

☆ What we know about the transition so far
▼ + stars: | 2024-11-06 | by ( Betsy Klein | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

Representatives from Trump’s team met with federal agency transition planners last week to discuss “post-election readiness,” according to a White House official. GSA “is prepared to provide services to the Trump transition team once an MOU is executed and services are accepted,” a GSA spokesperson said. The federal transition coordinator, a White House spokesperson told CNN, is “actively working” with the president-elect’s transition team to complete its MOU. Trump’s transition team also has not met that deadline. The Agency Transition Directors Council, co-chaired by OMB deputy director Jason Miller and the GSA’s federal transition coordinator, Aimee Whiteman, began meeting monthly with career representatives from each agency.

Persons: Donald Trump, Biden, ” Max Stier, Stier, “ The, ”, Linda McMahon, Cantor Fitzgerald, Howard Lutnick, Harris, Jason Miller, Aimee Whiteman, Valerie Boyd, Barack Obama, Joe Biden, Obama, Trump, ” Trump Organizations: Washington CNN —, Trump’s, White, Public Service, CNN, “ The Biden, Trump, Office of Management, Budget, General Services Administration, Republican, Democratic Party, OMB, GSA, Small Business Administration, ”, House, Activity, Center, Partnership for Public Service

“To date, GSA has entered into an MOU with the Harris transition team outlining the terms for space and services, and is prepared to provide services to the Trump transition team once an MOU is executed and services are accepted,” a GSA spokesperson said. The Harris team has also submitted its ethics plan; the Trump team has not. The federal transition coordinator, a White House spokesperson told CNN, is “actively working” with the former president’s transition team to complete its MOU. Inside Biden administration preparationsThe Biden administration began preparing for this transition in 2023, starting with the appointment of a federal transition coordinator, a senior career official who serves as the main liaison between the candidates and eventual president-elect. “We were waiting for the phone calls [from the Trump team], waiting for people to show up, and they never did.

Persons: Donald Trump’s, Max Stier, “, ”, Trump, Chris Lu, Barack Obama’s, Harris, Biden, Linda McMahon, Cantor Fitzgerald, Howard Lutnick, Joe Biden, Yohannes Abraham, ” Stier, Stier, Chris Christie, Christie, Mike Pence, Obama, Jason Miller, Aimee Whiteman, Valerie Boyd, Bush, John McCain, Lu, George W, Al Gore’s, Harris ’, Boyd, Trump’s, –, you’re Organizations: CNN, Public Service, White, Office of Management, Budget, General Services Administration, Republican, Democratic, ’, Trump, Small Business Administration, Association of Southeast Asian Nations, GSA, ”, House, New, New Jersey Gov, Biden, Activity, OMB, Center, Partnership for Public Service, Senate Locations: Indonesia, New Jersey, Florida

About 3.3% of high school students identify as transgender and another 2.2% have at some point questioned if they were one, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. About one-quarter, 26%, of trans and questioning students attempted suicide in the past year compared with 11% of cisgender female students and 5% of cisgender male students, the CDC found. Trans students were also more likely to report being bullied at school, consistent with previous research on the subject. An estimated 40% of trans and questioning students said they were bullied at school, compared to 20.3% of cis female students and 14.8% of cis male students. Significantly more trans students and questioning students, at 10.7% and 10%, respectively, reported experiencing unstable housing in the past 30 days, compared to 1.8% of cisgender female students and 2.1% of cisgender male students.

Persons: ” Kathleen Ethier, Ethier, ” Ethier, Trevor, Ronita Nath, ”, ” Nath Organizations: Centers for Disease Control, CDC, GSA Locations: United States, U.S

WASHINGTON — The Harris campaign has tapped Yohannes Abraham for a top role in the presidential transition team, according to a source familiar with the planning. Covington and Burling LLP, the law firm where former U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder works, will help the transition team get set up. Abraham's appointment comes as the General Services Administration prepares to engage the Harris and Trump campaigns in the presidential transition process. Federal law related to presidential transitions stipulates Sept. 1 as the deadline for GSA to enter into formal agreements with presidential transition teams. Several former Trump administration staffers are part of the groups behind Project 2025, but McMahon and Lutnick haven’t been connected to the effort.

Persons: WASHINGTON, Harris, Yohannes Abraham, Abraham, Kamala Harris, Donald Trump, Covington, Burling, Eric Holder, Holder, Biden, Rod Lamkey, Trump, Linda McMahon, Howard Lutnick, Cantor Fitzgerald, McMahon, Lutnick Organizations: Association of Southeast Asian Nations, ASEAN, U.S, Burling LLP, State Department, National Security Council, General Services Administration, Trump, GSA, Foreign Relations, Reuters, Washington , D.C, Small Business Administration, Trump White House, Democrats Locations: U.S, Indonesia, Jakarta, Asia, Dirksen, Washington ,, USA

Tim Walz plays cards with students on a river boat cruise in China in the summer of 2001. Tim Walz, left, singing "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" at karaoke on a trip to China with students in the summer of 2001. Larissa Beck and Tim Walz at the Minnesota state capitol on March 19, 2024, for Disability Services Day. Mankato West High SchoolAs for his former students, Walz’s ascent to vice presidential candidate has inspired them to reconnect with each other and share their memories of “Mr. Walz.”“I’ve talked to hundreds of people from high school that I haven’t talked to in 20 years because of this,” Meyer said.

Persons: Tim Walz, Kamala Harris ’, Walz ”, Jacob Reitan, Walz, “, Tim, Gwen, ” Reitan, Seth Elliot Meyer, Meyer, ” Meyer, ” Tim Walz, Seth Elliott Meyer Meyer, Emily Scott Emily Scott, Scott, ‘, China, ’ ” Scott, ‘ Emily, ” Scott, Emily Scott Scott, ” Larissa Beck, Larissa Beck, Larissa Beck Beck, “ We’re, ”, He’s, Reitan, Randi, ‘ Tim, ‘ Randi, ’ ” Walz, wouldn’t, “ Don’t, Donald Trump, “ There’s, ” Trump, “ Fox, Mr, ” “ I’ve Organizations: Minnesota Gov, Straight Alliance, GSA, Mankato West High School, MSNBC, America, ”, Mankato West, Woodward Academy, University of Wisconsin, Madison, Services, National Guard, Minneapolis ’ Star Tribune, Republican, Minnesota, Fox News, NBC Locations: Minnesota, Mankato , Minnesota, Minneapolis, Atlanta, China, St, Paul , Minnesota, Guilin, United States, Massachusetts, Vermont

☆ Maryland won a tentative victory in the race for a new FBI headquarters, a potential economic boon for a majority Black county near DC
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-20 | by ( John L. Dorman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

"And he recognized the importance of the FBI for Maryland and in particular for Prince George's County." Related storiesPrince George's County, the majority-Black county directly to the east of Washington, DC, has for years had one of the most affluent Black populations of any jurisdiction in the country. But compared to Northern Virginia localities like Fairfax County, which has been an economic powerhouse for decades, Prince George's County hasn't enjoyed a similar level of economic development. "We have 4% of leased federal office space in Prince George's County," Hoyer told me, while also pointing out that the county is home to roughly 20% of the Washington region's federal workers. "We're absolutely convinced that everything was done properly," Hoyer told me.

Persons: Wes Moore, Steny Hoyer, —, Edgar Hoover, Ben Cardin, Chris Van Hollen, Hoyer, Robert Mueller, Mueller, Moore's, George's County, Prince, Prince George's County hasn't, ERIC BARADAT, Moore, Christopher Wray, We're, I've Organizations: GSA, FBI, Gov, Virginia, Service, Metro, Maryland Gov, Maryland, Democratic Rep, Democratic, eventual, Prince, Getty, Washington, Marine Corps Base Quantico, General Service Administration Locations: Maryland, Virginia, Greenbelt , Maryland, Prince George's County, Maryland Sens, George's, Black, Washington, Northern Virginia, Fairfax County, AFP, Prince George's, Fairfax

☆ FBI Accuses Biden Appointee of Bias in Selection of Headquarters Site
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-09 | by ( Sadie Gurman | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

‘We have concerns about fairness and transparency in the process and GSA’s failure to adhere to its own site selection plan,’ FBI Director Christopher Wray wrote to staff. Photo: Chris Machian/Associated PressA final pick this week for a new Federal Bureau of Investigation headquarters in the Maryland suburbs was supposed to end a decadelong drama that had engulfed the site-selection process. Instead, it looks like it’s only heating up. In a sharply worded note to employees Thursday, the usually taciturn FBI Director Christopher Wray blasted the General Services Administration’s decision-making process and said a Biden appointee might have inappropriately interfered with the outcome.

Persons: Christopher Wray, Chris Machian Organizations: Federal Bureau of Investigation, General Services, Biden Locations: Maryland

Ivanka Trump’s brothers, Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr., who are co-defendants in the case, testified last week. Video Ad Feedback Analyst: Ivanka Trump isn't a 'secondary player' in fraud trial 04:12 - Source: CNN“Mr. Trump and Ivanka Trump participated personally in the bidding process in 2011,” the attorney general’s office wrote. “The record before us…indicates that defendant Ivanka Trump was no longer within the agreement’s definition of ‘Trump Organization’ by the date the tolling agreement was executed,” the order states. “The allegations against defendant Ivanka Trump do not support any claims that accrued after February 6, 2016.

Persons: New York CNN — Donald Trump’s, Ivanka Trump, Letitia James ’, badgered, Arthur Engoron, Engoron, Ivanka Trump’s, Eric Trump, Donald Trump Jr, Jared Kushner, Trump, Ivanka, “, ” Engoron, ”, “ I’ve, I’ve, I’m, James ’, ” Trump, Bennet Moskowitz, Trump’s, Chris Kise, Donald Bender Organizations: New, New York CNN, Trump Organization, Ivanka, Trump, Doral, “, Deutsche Bank, Mr, Post, CNN, GSA, Wharton School of Business, University of Pennsylvania, ‘ Trump Organization ’ Locations: New York, Manhattan, Florida, Chicago, Washington , DC, Trump, Mazars

☆ Ivanka Trump can't recall key details of the single biggest fraud-trial penalty threat her father faces
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-08 | by ( Laura Italiano | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

At her family's civil fraud trial, Ivanka Trump was grilled about the 2011 Old Post Office lease. AdvertisementAdvertisementIn afternoon testimony at her family's civil fraud trial in Manhattan, Ivanka Trump repeatedly said she could not remember key details about the single, costliest penalty threat her father faces in the case. Donald Trump, Jr. and Eric Trump – both executive vice presidents at Trump Org and defendants in the AG's case – made $4 million each. Ivanka Trump, too, made $4 million. Ivanka Trump is the final witness in the attorney general's direct fraud case against Donald Trump, his company, and his top executives.

Persons: Ivanka Trump, —, Donald Trump, Letitia James, Trump, Donald Trump , Jr, Eric Trump –, James, Michael M, Santiago, Donald Trump's, Donald J, Louis Solomon, she'd, Solomon, curtly Organizations: NY, Service, Post Office, Washington , D.C, New York, Trump International, Trump Organization, Trump Org, Post, government's General Services Administration, Trump, GSA Locations: Manhattan, Washington ,

☆ Travel news: Living in lighthouses, delivering during a flight and touring Japan
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-01 | by ( Lilit Marcus | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

This week has been rough for air travelers in the United States, but we have flight attendants’ secrets for surviving summer travel. Waterfront real estateThe US General Services Administration is giving away or auctioning lighthouses in New England. Like the small towns in Italy selling off houses for just 1 euro, these lighthouses come with stipulations. Written in stoneAnd while we’re on the subject of summer travel peak season, this period is often tourists-behaving-badly season. Dr. Sij Hemal was on a flight from Paris to New York when a fellow passenger reported severe abdominal pains.

Persons: CNN — It’s, you’ve, Ivan, Haley, ”, Sig Hemal, Susan Shepherd, Sij Hemal, Chelsea Dickenson, Dickenson, Richard Quest, Beckham Organizations: CNN, General Services Administration, Police, Cleveland, Asahi Shimbun Locations: United States, New England, Italy, Rome, United Kingdom, Paris, New York, Japan, Tottori Sand, Tokyo, Nagoya, Tottori, British, Macao, Vegas of Asia

WASHINGTON, June 26 (Reuters) - The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday ordered the dismissal of a lawsuit by a group of congressional Democrats who had sought details about a government lease for a Washington hotel concerning when it was owned by former President Donald Trump. The court's action came after the lawmakers voluntarily dropped the case earlier this month. The justices had previously agreed to hear a bid by President Joe Biden's administration to block the lawsuit. The lawmakers sought information about a 2013 lease of the Old Post Office building to the Republican former president's company to convert it into a hotel. RELATED CONTENT: L1N37C1HQ "U.S. Supreme Court to hear dispute over Democratic bid for Trump hotel documents"Reporting by John KruzelOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Donald Trump, Joe Biden's, John Kruzel Organizations: U.S, Supreme, Monday, Democratic, General Services Administration, GSA, Post, Republican, Appeals, District of Columbia Circuit, Department, Trump, Thomson Locations: Washington

☆ The U.S. is giving away 6 lighthouses—here's what it's like to actually own one: 'It's truly a labor of love'
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-06 | by ( Celia Fernandez | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

The U.S. is giving away and auctioning off lighthouses across the East Coast and Midwest. The GSA will also sell four lighthouses in Ohio, Connecticut, Michigan and New York in a public auction. But there's a catch: While the lighthouse is free, the new owners will be responsible for the cost of upkeep and maintenance. Warwick Neck Light is located on Narragansett Bay in Rhode Island and is one of the lighthouses being given away for free. Kelly told TIME that there are nonprofits that already maintain some of the lighthouses being offered up this year.

Persons: you've, John Kelly, Kelly, Richard Cucé, Blastco, Cucé Organizations: U.S . General Services Administration, GSA, CNBC, TIME, Istock, Getty, U.S . Navy, U.S, Congress, Historic Lighthouse Locations: East Coast, Midwest, Massachusetts , Connecticut, Maine, Rhode Island, Pennsylvania, Ohio , Connecticut, Michigan, New York, Narragansett, Old Saybrook , Connecticut, Hopper, Chesapeake, Penfield, Fairfield , Connecticut

☆ Here are six lighthouses the government is literally giving away for free
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-27 | by ( Lakshmi Varanasi | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The US General Services Administration (GSA) is offering a record number of lighthouses to the public. The GSA will give away six to nonprofits and government entities, and sell another four via public auction. The lighthouses are being offered as part of the National Historic Lighthouse Preservation Act. Since its inception, over 150 lighthouses have circulated through the NHLPA program, the GSA said. See the six lighthouses that GSA is giving away for free this year:

The opulent hotel with a soaring clock tower, located on Pennsylvania Avenue between the White House and the U.S. Capitol, opened shortly before Trump was elected in 2016. The hotel became a gathering spot for Trump supporters, lobbyists and foreign dignitaries, who Democrats and watchdog groups complained could patronize the hotel in order to curry favor with Trump when he was in office. Lawsuits accused Trump of violating the U.S. Constitution's anti-corruption provisions by maintaining ownership of his businesses including the Washington hotel while in office. The justices ordered those cases dismissed because they became moot with Trump leaving office in 2021 after his election loss to Biden, a Democrat. Some of the lawmakers who sued are no longer part of the committee while some others are no longer in Congress.

☆ A Tennessee high school club tried to put up flyers for transgender awareness month. The school said they were illegal.
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-06 | by ( Yelena Dzhanova | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

A school club in Tennessee tried to put a flyer that defined the word "transgender" in November. But the principal of Northeast High School rejected it, a 17-year-old member of the club said. After the poster was rejected, Elizabeth came up with other ideas in an effort to get the word out about Transgender Awareness Month. Elizabeth said the experience raised her awareness about the extent to which trans rights are threatened in the state of Tennessee. The Tennessee law is part of a wave of legistion focused on trans people largely fueled by anti-LGBTQ sentiment in the United States.

☆ Factbox: What's in the U.S. Congress's Electoral Count Reform Act?
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Here are details on the Electoral Count Reform Act, which lawmakers included in a year-end government funding bill:AIMS TO PREVENT ANOTHER JAN. 6The bipartisan effort would rewrite the 1887 Electoral Count Act, which lays out the process by which Congress tallies the state-by-state results from a presidential election and formally certifies the winner. Trump and his advisers had cited provisions of the 1887 law as they pressed Republican allies to overturn his loss. BIPARTISAN SUPPORTWhile other election-law reforms have foundered in Congress this year due to Republican opposition, the Electoral Count Reform Act has solid bipartisan support, at least in the Senate. Trump had urged his vice president, Mike Pence, to prevent lawmakers from certifying Biden's victory. Current law requires Congress to consider a challenge if only one lawmaker from each chamber raises an objection.

A source familiar with the matter confirmed the DOJ's request, which was first reported by The Washington Post. The request comes after Trump's lawyers recently discovered at least two documents with such markings in a storage unit in West Palm Beach, Florida. That search turned up over 100 documents with such markings, including some marked top secret, in a storage room in Mar-a-Lago and in Trump's office there. Judge Beryl Howell's hearing on the DOJ’s request, and the legal arguments underpinning it, are being kept under wraps because they involve grand jury proceedings. Corcoran drafted the June letter certifying all documents with classification markings had been returned, NBC News has previously reported.

That search came after the feds issued a subpoena in May demanding the return of any documents marked classified that left the White House with Trump. Trump’s lawyers hired an outside firm to conduct searches last month at the storage facility and other locations. One of the sources said Trump has never been inside the storage facility. The pallets were delivered in August of 2021, with four going to the storage facility and two going to Mar-a-Lago, the emails show. The discovery of the new documents is further evidence that Trump and his team did not fully comply with a grand jury subpoena issued in May seeking all documents marked classified still in their possession.

☆ Lawyers reportedly found more classified government documents in Trump's Florida storage units alongside 'swords and wrestling belts'
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-07 | by ( Jacob Shamsian | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Trump hired the team himself to do a more thorough search pursuant to a subpoena request. The documents were found with suits, swords, and wrestling belts, a source told the Washington Post. The FBI executed a search warrant at Trump's Mar-a-Lago country club estate in August, believing Trump's lawyers didn't comply with the earlier subpoena. According to the Post, Trump hired an outside law firm to conduct additional searches to comply with instructions by Chief US District Judge Beryl A. Howell. A person familiar with the search told the Post that the Florida storage unit was not cataloged and contained an assortment of gifts and clothing.

☆ How Trump Org's tax fraud conviction could bar Trump from federal contracts, even for Secret Service
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-06 | by ( Laura Italiano | Dave Levinthal | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

The Trump Organization was found criminally liable of tax fraud on Tuesday after a six-week trial. A ban could end his 'exorbitant' billing of Secret Service agents who protect him at his resorts. At the Trump Organization headquarters in Trump Tower on Fifth Avenue, the cars, apartments, and tuition were considered part of Weisselberg's $940,000-a-year income, prosecutors said. Secret Service a tough targetWatchdogs concede that Trump's Secret Service billing is a tough target. Barring the unlikelihood of a cash-free solution — Trump letting the Secret Service "stay at our properties for free," as Eric Trump once promised, or forgoing Secret Service protection voluntarily, as Richard Nixon did — Trump's Secret Service spigot may well remain open, watchdogs acknowledge.

☆ How a conviction in Trump Org's upcoming trial could bar Trump from federal contracts, even for Secret Service
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-23 | by ( Laura Italiano | Dave Levinthal | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

A ban could end his 'exorbitant' billing of Secret Service agents who protect him at his resorts. Add to that the recent news that the Trump Organization had billed the Secret Service more than $ 1.4 million to stay at Trump properties during the former president's time in office. At the Trump Organization headquarters in Trump Tower on Fifth Avenue, the cars, apartments and tuition were considered part of Weisselberg's $940,000-a-year income, prosecutors allege. Secret Service a tough targetWatchdogs concede that Trump's Secret Service billing is a tough target. Barring the unlikelihood of a cash-free solution — Trump letting the Secret Service "stay at our properties for free," as Eric Trump once promised, or forgoing Secret Service protection voluntarily, as Richard Nixon did — Trump's Secret Service spigot may well remain open, watchdogs acknowledge.

Trump twisted the Secret Service’s protective mission into a personal cash cow — all while lying about it to taxpayers. When Eric Trump visited Washington a few months earlier, the nightly government rate was supposed to be capped at $242 per night; the Trump hotel billed the Secret Service $1,160. But we’ve never seen a commander-in-chief and his family repeatedly use the Secret Service to line their pockets in this way. There’s no reason the Trump family needed to stay at Trump properties. The stays became such a moneymaker for the Trump family that the Secret Service had to request a larger budget to cover all of its trips to Trump properties.

☆ The National Archives slapped down Trump's claim that Obama and Bush mishandled government records after leaving office
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-12 | by ( Tom Porter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The National Archives rejected Trump's claim that other former presidents mishandled government docs. NARA described Trump's accusations as "false and misleading." Trump is being investigated by the Justice Department for how he handled government records. In recent statements and at a rally on Sunday, Trump has accused other former presidents of mishandling government records after leaving office, but said they faced no legal penalties. Under the Presidential Records Act, presidents must hand over all government records to the NARA on leaving office.

☆ George Conway says individuals defending Trump over his handling of presidential records are 'basically desperate'
▼ + stars: | 2022-08-13 | by ( John L. Dorman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

George Conway during a CNN interview was highly critical of Trump's handling of classified documents. "Having top-secret FBI information in our home? Conway said individuals defending Trump and criticizing the FBI were "basically desperate." On CNN, Conway proceeded to lambast individuals who have backed Trump's claims regarding the FBI's search. He had no business bringing top-secret FBI material from the Situation Room or the Oval Office up to the residence.

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