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☆ DeSantis responds to 2nd Trump indictment by promising to 'end weaponization' of DOJ if elected president
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-09 | by ( Kimberly Leonard | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

DeSantis came to the defense of Trump, his top 2024 rival, after news of the federal indictment. Ron DeSantis promised Thursday evening that if elected president he would overhaul the US Department of Justice in response to news that former President Donald Trump was indicted. With the indictment, Trump became the first former president in US history to face federal criminal charges. The DeSantis administration will bring accountability to the DOJ, excise political bias, and end weaponization once and for all." DeSantis didn't say whether he would pardon Trump if elected, as 2024 challenger and entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy did.

Persons: DeSantis, Trump, —, Ron DeSantis, Donald Trump, Hunter, Asa Hutchinson, Hillary Clinton's, Joe Biden, Hunter Biden, Vivek Ramaswamy Organizations: of Justice, Service, Gov, US Department of Justice, Twitter, Biden, Trump, DOJ, Democratic, Fox News, Burisma Holdings, FBI, White, Truth, Fox News Digital Locations: Florida, Arkansas, Trump's, Palm Beach , Florida, Miami

☆ MAGA world frantically points at Biden bribery story as Trump's second indictment hits
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-09 | by ( Aditi Bharade | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The MAGA faithful rallied around a twice-indicted Trump, and pointed fingers at Joe Biden. They claim the indictment distracts people from a $5 million bribe that Biden received. Greene tweeted on Thursday: "This is what Joe Biden got paid $5 million to do. President Donald Trump will be back in the White House and Joe Biden will be Hunter's cellmate," he wrote. Sen. Marsha Blackburn from Tennessee tweeted: "Now that President Biden is reportedly involved in a $5 million bribery scheme with a foreign nation, what does the DOJ do?

Persons: MAGA, Trump, Joe Biden, Biden, Marjorie Taylor Greene, Matt Gaetz, Lauren Boebert, —, Donald Trump, he's, Greene, Marjorie Taylor Greene 🇺🇸 ( Organizations: Service, Twitter, DOJ, —

☆ Judge threatens to jail Hunter Biden for up to 6 months if he doesn't appear for questioning about his finances in his child support suit
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-07 | by ( Jennifer Cunningham | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Lunden Roberts, the child's mom, accused him of mischaracterizing his wealth in a child support suit. A judge has ordered Biden to appear in court next month to answer Roberts' questions. Although he initially denied paternity, Biden said he has since paid Robert's more than $750,000 in support payments for her. Biden has asked a judge to reduce his $20,000-a-month child support payments, and not grant Robert's petition to change their daughter's last name to Biden. Neither Biden's lawyer, Abbe Lowell, nor Lancaster, Roberts' lawyer, returned Insider's requests for comment on Wednesday.

Persons: Hunter Biden, Lunden Roberts, Biden, Roberts, —, Holly Meyer, Clint Lancaster, Biden's, Meyer, Abbe Lowell Organizations: Service, Independence Locations: Arkansas, Batesville , Arkansas, Lancaster

☆ Twitter’s own lawyers refute Elon Musk’s claim that the ‘Twitter Files’ exposed US government censorship
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-06 | by ( Brian Fung | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

The foundation for those claims rests on the so-called “Twitter Files,” a series of reports by a set of handpicked journalists who, at Musk’s discretion, were given selective access to historical company archives. Now, though, Twitter’s own lawyers are disputing those claims in a case involving former President Donald Trump — forcefully rejecting any suggestion that the Twitter Files show what Musk and many Republicans assert they contain. The Twitter Files also show the Trump administration made its own requests for removal of Twitter content. Musk’s release of company files has given lawyers for Trump and other plaintiffs in the case another shot. But Twitter argued last week that the judge should not allow the case to be reopened because nothing in the Twitter Files supports the already dismissed claim of federal coercion.

Persons: Elon Musk, Hunter Biden, Donald Trump —, Musk, ”, Joe Biden’s, Twitter, Trump, Biden, Twitter’s, ’, — Organizations: CNN, Twitter, New York, FBI, ”, Trump ”, Trump, Capitol Locations: New

☆ Republicans, Escalating Attacks on F.B.I., Vow to Hold Director in Contempt
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-05 | by ( Luke Broadwater | Adam Goldman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

House Republicans said on Monday that they would move this week to hold the F.B.I. director, Christopher A. Wray, in contempt of Congress, escalating their attacks on the federal law enforcement agency as they grasp for evidence of wrongdoing by President Biden. Representative James R. Comer, the Kentucky Republican who is chairman of the Oversight Committee, made the announcement after summoning F.B.I. officials to Capitol Hill for a closed-door briefing on a document containing an unverified allegation of bribery against Mr. Biden when he was vice president. But Mr. Comer complained afterward that the agency, citing concern about protecting the identity of the informant, declined to allow other members of the committee to view it.

Persons: Christopher A, Wray, Biden, James R, Comer, F.B.I, Mr, Hunter Biden’s, “, Wray’s, Jamie Raskin Organizations: Republicans, Kentucky Republican, Capitol, Trump Justice Department, Maryland Locations: Ukraine

personnel conducted this investigation,” Mr. Parlatore said. Along with the classified documents case, prosecutors under Mr. Smith are also scrutinizing efforts by Mr. Trump and his aides to overturn the results of the 2020 election. The letter to Mr. Garland was an abbreviated version of a longer one that contained a more detail account of the concerns by Mr. Trump’s lawyers, according to two people familiar with the matter. The legal team’s visit to the Justice Department came amid indications that Mr. Smith is approaching the end of his investigation into the documents case and could soon make a decision about whether to seek charges. The initial letter to Mr. Garland was directly confrontational, accusing officials at the Justice Department of showing favoritism to President Biden and his son, Hunter Biden, who is under criminal investigation by the department.

Persons: “, ” Mr, Parlatore, that’s, Peter Carr, Smith, Garland, Trump, Biden, Hunter Biden Organizations: Justice Department, Mr, Capitol, Justice

☆ Opinion | A Peek Behind the MAGA Curtain
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-02 | by ( David French | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

It is President Biden, not Trump, who mishandles classified documents. False narratives are often sustained by a few kernels of truth, and so it is in MAGA America. Moreover, not all of Trump’s opponents possess the cleanest of hands. Given these facts — and Thursday night’s peek at MAGA America — my colleague Frank Bruni’s warning to Democrats yesterday was timely and important: Democrats should not hope to face Trump in 2024. All too many Trump opponents — in both parties — have spent so long building their voluminous cases against him that they’ve forgotten how he looks to the other side.

Persons: Biden, Trump, he’s, Trump’s, isn’t, Hunter Biden, MAGA, MAGA America —, Frank Bruni’s, — Organizations: Trump, MAGA America, — Locations: Ukraine, Afghanistan, United States, MAGA America, Russia

☆ Hunter Biden’s Lawyers Cite Landmark Gun Ruling in Bid to Stave Off Charges
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-31 | by ( Glenn Thrush | Michael S. Schmidt | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

Mr. Biden is under investigation for several potential offenses, including whether he had lied on a federal firearms application in 2018 when asked if he was addicted to drugs. It is unclear if Mr. Weiss is receptive to that suggestion. A spokeswoman for Mr. Weiss did not immediately respond to a request for comment. At the time, Mr. Biden was struggling to remain sober. But such federal prosecutions are relatively rare, and seldom pursued as stand-alone charges.

Persons: Biden, Christopher Clark, Weiss, Hunter Biden, Bryan David Range, Hunter Biden’s Organizations: U.S ., Appeals, Third Circuit, Department, Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, Explosives Locations: U.S, Delaware, Pennsylvania

☆ IRS Employee Says He Was Removed From Hunter Biden Tax Probe
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-16 | by ( C. Ryan Barber | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

President Biden with first lady Jill Biden and children Hunter Biden and Ashley Biden in Philadelphia this week. Photo: Patrick Semansky/Associated PressWASHINGTON—An IRS supervisory agent has been removed from the tax investigation into President Biden’s son, Hunter Biden , the agent’s lawyers told lawmakers this week, after claiming to have evidence of political interference in the criminal inquiry. In a letter to House and Senate leaders, lawyers for the Internal Revenue Service supervisor said “his entire investigative team” had also been removed from the inquiry, in what they suggested was retaliation. The supervisor, who is seeking whistleblower protections, was informed that the change was made at the request of the Justice Department, according to a copy of the letter obtained by The Wall Street Journal.

☆ Officials Who Cast Doubt on Hunter Biden Laptop Face Questions
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-16 | by ( Luke Broadwater | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

As Justice Department officials weigh the matter, the investigator overseeing the Internal Revenue Service’s portion of the case has also come forward with allegations of political favoritism in the inquiry. On Monday, a lawyer for that investigator sent a short letter to Congress that said the investigator and the rest of his team were being removed from the inquiry, which is reaching its end as officials weigh whether to pursue charges. The former intelligence officials stress that their letter stated that they had no evidence of a Russian disinformation campaign, and that they were merely stating an opinion. “The Congress is wasting its time and our money by investigating the First Amendment rights of private citizens,” Mark Zaid, a lawyer who represents seven signers of the letter, said in an interview. Democrats also argue that the letter must be understood in its proper context.

☆ WSJ Opinion: Charging Daniel Penny, the Subway Samaritan
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( Wsj Opinion | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

E101WSJ Opinion: Biden 2020 and Shutting Down the Hunter Biden Laptop Story Review and Outlook: During the final presidential debate in 2020, Mr. Biden pointed to a statement from 51 former U.S. spies who declared that the Hunter Biden laptop story had “all the classic earmarks of a Russian information operation.” Now we know the Biden campaign helped orchestrate the statement. Images: AP/Reuters/AFP Composite: Mark Kelly

☆ WSJ Opinion: The Biden Family Business
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-12 | by ( Wsj Opinion | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

☆ The Biden Family Business
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-11 | by ( The Editorial Board | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Hunter Biden Photo: Aaron Chown/Zuma PressHouse Republicans on Wednesday released their latest report on the Biden family’s business ties, and one conclusion is that it’s good to be related to Joseph Robinette Biden . Hunter Biden and his relatives traded profitably off the Biden name with transactions that suggest the main family business is influence peddling. House Oversight Chair James Comer ’s staff report shows in detail that Hunter had extensive dealings with unsavory foreign actors. This yielded millions of dollars for Biden family members via a web of shell companies that would be hard to untangle without subpoena power. Why so much complexity?

The release of a House Oversight Committee memo came as Hunter Biden faces legal scrutiny on other fronts, including on his taxes. Photo: Susan Walsh/Associated PressHouse Republicans released a pair of reports Wednesday related to President Biden’s family as they sought new momentum in investigations involving his son, Hunter Biden . In a memo from a House Judiciary subcommittee and the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, GOP committee staff alleged that an employee of the Central Intelligence Agency inappropriately sought at least one signatory for a letter aimed at helping both Bidens on the eve of the 2020 presidential election.

☆ A Long Island crowd booed George Santos after he tried to pivot from his criminal charges to complain about Hunter Biden
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-10 | by ( Natalie Musumeci | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Long Islanders booed Rep. George Santos after he tried to deflect from the charges against him. "The reality is, it's a witch hunt because it makes no sense that in four months, four months, five months, I'm indicted," Santos told a crowd of reporters and onlookers. I'm going to deliver. I'm going to fight the witch hunt. I'm going to take care of clearing my name and I look forward to doing that," Santos said.

☆ House Republican Report Finds No Evidence of Wrongdoing by President Biden
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-10 | by ( Luke Broadwater | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

After four months of investigation, House Republicans who promised to use their new majority to unearth evidence of wrongdoing by President Biden acknowledged on Wednesday that they had yet to uncover incriminating material about him, despite their frequent insinuations that he and his family have been involved in criminal conduct and corruption. Republicans described the transactions as proof of “influence peddling” by Mr. Biden’s family, including his son Hunter Biden, and referenced some previously known, if unflattering, details of the younger Mr. Biden’s business dealings. lawmakers also produced material suggesting that President Biden and his allies had at times made misleading statements in their efforts to push back aggressively against accusations of wrongdoing by Hunter Biden. But on Wednesday, the Republicans conceded that they had yet to find evidence of a specific corrupt action Mr. Biden took in office in connection with any of the business deals his son entered into. lawmakers have made in finding clear evidence of questionable transactions they can tie to Mr. Biden, their chief political rival.

☆ Biden defends son Hunter ahead of possible federal tax, gun charges
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-06 | by ( Katherine Doyle | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

U.S. President Joe Biden (L) and his son Hunter Biden attend the annual Easter Egg Roll on the South Lawn of the White House on April 10, 2023 in Washington, DC. WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden defended his son Hunter as federal prosecutors are said to be nearing a decision on whether to charge the president's son with tax and firearms violations after a four-year criminal investigation. Asked how charges against his son could impact his presidency, Biden said he stands by Hunter. Hunter Biden has said he has since reconciled delinquent tax filings. Aides insist that Biden has not been involved and that the president stands by his promise not to politicize the Justice Department.

☆ Fox demands Media Matters stop publishing leaked Tucker Carlson videos
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-05 | by ( Jon Passantino | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —Fox sent a cease-and-desist letter on Friday to Media Matters, the progressive watchdog, and its president, demanding that it take down embarrassing behind-the-scenes videos of Tucker Carlson attacking Fox News’ streaming service and making crude remarks while joking with staff. “For Fox to argue otherwise is absurd and further dispels any pretense that they’re a news operation. Carlson referred to a Dominion lawyer as a “slimy little motherf**ker” and confessed to his producer “the hate” that he felt for him. It’s totally bad for you to feel that way,” Carlson said. “But that guy, he triggered the sh*t out of me.”The footage also showed Carlson trashing the right-wing network’s streaming service Fox Nation, expressing frustration that the platform “sucks” and complaining that its “unbelievable” shortcomings were a “betrayal” of his efforts.

☆ Fox News' lawyers send cease and desist to stop Media Matters from publishing leaked videos of Tucker Carlson's comments
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-05 | by ( Chris Panella | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Fox News' lawyers sent a cease and desist letter to Media Matters over coverage of Tucker Carlson. The letter demands Media Matters stop publishing behind-the-scenes videos of Carlson. Media Matters has shared videos of Carlson making sexist remarks and complaining about Fox. Fox News' lawyers have sent a cease and desist letter to Media Matters for America over its publication of leaked videos showing Tucker Carlson making offensive and embarrassing comments off-air. In other videos, Carlson complained that "nobody watches Fox Nation because the site sucks" and said he'd rather put his interviews on YouTube than on Fox's site.

☆ Hunter Biden’s Legal Issues Shadow Launch of President’s Re-Election Campaign
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-03 | by ( C. Ryan Barber | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

WSJ’s Ken Thomas breaks down how the political landscape has changed since 2020 and what challenges President Biden will face in 2024. Photo Illustration: Ryan TrefesWASHINGTON—In the week since President Biden announced his re-election bid, legal developments in Washington and Arkansas have underscored the potential liabilities his son, Hunter Biden , could present for the campaign. The day after the president’s campaign launch, lawyers for Hunter Biden met with Justice Department officials about the continuing criminal inquiry focused on his taxes and whether he made false statements in connection with a gun purchase, according to people familiar with the gathering.

☆ Prosecutors close to decision on charging Hunter Biden, report says
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-03 | by ( Dan Mangan | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Hunter Biden, U.S. President Joe Biden's son, attends the annual Easter Egg Roll on the South Lawn of the White House on April 10, 2023 in Washington, DC. Federal prosecutors are getting close to deciding whether to criminally charge Hunter Biden, the son of President Joe Biden, after a yearslong investigation, a new report said. Prosecutors are known to be weighing whether to charge Hunter Biden with tax crimes, as well as another charge related to an allegedly false statement he made when buying a gun in 2018. Hunter's lawyers met last week in Washington, D.C., with prosecutors at the Department of Justice about the probe, a step routinely taken shortly before authorities move to charge people. Among those prosecutors was David Weiss, the U.S. attorney for Delaware, who is leading the investigation, and who will decide whether to charge Hunter, according to The Washington Post report on Wednesday, adding it could happen soon.

☆ Prosecutors are reportedly close to deciding whether to indict Hunter Biden in connection to his taxes and a gun purchase
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-03 | by ( Sonam Sheth | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Prosecutors are nearing a charging decision in the Hunter Biden case, The Washington Post reported. A lawyer for Hunter Biden and a spokesperson for the president did not immediately respond to a request for comment for this story. The Hunter Biden investigation has been underway for nearly four years, and he first announced the existence of the probe in December 2020. CNN reported prosecutors started investigating Biden's taxes in 2018 but temporarily halted the inquiry because of Justice Department rules barring prosecutors from taking actions that could influence the outcome of an election. The letter did not name the subject, but ABC News reported that lawmakers had been made aware that the individual was Hunter Biden.

☆ Hunter Biden's lawyers say he has already paid $750K in child support as he fights to reduce payments
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-01 | by ( Natalie Musumeci | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Hunter Biden's attorneys revealed Monday that he has paid $750,000 so far in child support. The president's son is fighting to reduce his child support payments to the mother of one of his kids. A trial to decide whether Hunter's child support payments can be decreased is slated to take place in July, CNN reported. "Mr. Biden claims to be nothing more than a Yale-educated attorney/artist who is somewhat financially destitute and needs his child support adjusted," the brief said. The case was closed in 2020 but reopened last fall after Hunter sought to reduce his child support payments.

☆ A North Carolina Supreme Court Switcheroo
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-29 | by ( The Editorial Board | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +1 min

Images: AP/Reuters/AFP Composite: Mark KellyNorth Carolina’s Supreme Court reversed itself Friday on partisan gerrymandering, ruling 5-2 that it poses “nonjusticiable, political questions.” Last year a 4-3 court said the opposite. In between was the November election, in which GOP candidates won two Supreme Court seats, giving conservatives a majority again. Critics will call the reversal a judicial power play, but it’s really a corrective to the old majority’s overreach. Four liberal justices held that the North Carolina Constitution bans partisan map-making, because it guarantees “free elections,” the rights of speech and assembly, and so forth. At one point the court floated specific metrics that could be used to police gerrymandering, saying that a map could be presumptively constitutional if it has “a mean-median difference of 1% or less.”

☆ Cooking the IRS Study Books
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-28 | by ( The Editorial Board | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +1 min

Images: AP/Reuters/AFP Composite: Mark KellyThe Internal Revenue Service isn’t saying how it will spend all of its new $80 billion windfall from Congress, but the political shenanigans over a proposed new IRS tax filing system aren’t cause for comfort. The agency is employing progressives to study how to make the tax collector the first and last arbiter of how much Americans owe. Most of the $80 billion will go to turbocharging audits, but the Inflation Reduction Act also earmarked $15 million to study a bad idea. This would end America’s longtime voluntary system that lets taxpayers determine their tax, subject to IRS review. The law instructed the IRS to hire an “independent third party” to examine the idea.

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