Weekly News Bites #004 | DOJ allows White House counsel to conduct search for classified documents & Alec Baldwin is charged
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Weekly News Bites #004 | DOJ allows White House counsel to conduct search for classified documents & Alec Baldwin is charged
Nibbles of news while you nibble on your toast
Hey Friends!
I finally released the first two parts of The Twitter Filed for Dummies, and there will be more parts, so stay tuned.
I’m sorry it took me so long to get them out. However, I am glad I took my time because some of the threads had cross-over and jump timelines. My goal is to provide a concise chronological narrative which is easier to follow for me personally.
If you want more in-the-moment daily news and culture breakdowns, follow me on Instagram. I publish breaking news and live updates in my stories every day. For example, I gave my two cents on the DW vs. Crowder drama this morning.
Don’t worry; I am not recording the conversation. ;)
Anyways, don’t forget to turn on notifications because Instagram loves to hide me.
Ok, that is enough. Time for some news bites!
Justice Department Considered but Rejected Role in Biden Documents Search. According to a new Wall Street Journal report, the Department of Justice consented to forgo supervision of the search for classified documents in President Biden's home in Wilmington, Delaware.
The report suggested that Justice Department personnel thought extra monitoring of the classified material search at Biden’s home could make later portions of the investigation more difficult.
The DOJ believed supervision wouldn’t be needed given Biden’s supposed willingness to cooperate.
The Department of Justice and Vice President Joe Biden's legal team have agreed that FBI agents will not be involved in an investigation searching for classified documents at his residence.
House Oversight Committee demands a visitor’s log from Biden’s Delaware House, but White House counsel says visitor logs for Biden's Delaware home do not exist. The Secret Service has confirmed that it does not keep a log of people coming and going from President Biden's Delaware home even though the residence is a weekend White House.
Since taking office in January 2021, Biden has made 52 trips to the Wilmington house, spending all or part of 164 days there, according to a tally by The Post.
Even though the president travels home regularly, according to Secret Service spokesman Anthony Guglielmi, “we don’t independently maintain our own visitor logs because it’s a private residence.”
Biden’s State of the Union address is scheduled for Feb 7. The White House Press Secretary, Jean-Pierre, has announced that President Biden's speech will be devoted to issues such as the economy, global competitiveness of America, and national security.
Trump-backed candidates, like Marjorie Taylor Greene, have been appointed to head the House Oversight Committee to investigate alleged corruption of the Biden administration. The Left has maintained that Greene and other individuals who aided and propagated the Jan. 6 incident should not be chosen for the oversight position. The GOP insists on putting the most qualified and experienced people in high-ranking positions to monitor the Biden administration and Jan. 6 Committee and make sure they are held accountable.
Speaker McCarthy has called an end to the “proxy rule” in Congress, meaning members of the House are now expected to be present in the chamber for every vote. Proxy voting was created by former Speaker Pelosi in 2020 to avoid Covid contagion. The Right says the move would compel Representatives to consider proposed legislation in person carefully. On the other hand, The Left argues that this would limit them from attending professional and personal matters away from the Capitol.
SCOTUS investigators narrow Dobbs leak suspects to a small list. An investigation into the leak of a draft opinion in the case that overturned Roe v. Wade has reportedly narrowed its focus to a few suspects, including one law clerk, as stated by the Wall Street Journal last Friday. Despite progress, the perpetrator behind Justice Samuel Alito's draft writing disclosure is still unknown. It remains uncertain how many people are supposed to be held accountable for this serious infringement of Supreme Court protocol.
Treasury resorts to ‘extraordinary measures’ after US hits debt limit. On Thursday, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen announced to lawmakers that her office would initiate certain extraordinary measures to ensure the U.S. government does not default on its debt obligations.
The nation’s debt climbed to more than $31.4 trillion this week to avoid a default. To steer clear of a financial disaster, Yellen has outlined emergency steps to be taken, namely redemption of the Civil Service Retirement and Disability Fund plus the Postal Service Retiree Health Benefits Fund and suspension of new investments in both.
FTX discloses a “substantial shortfall” of customer assets. On Tuesday, FTX revealed that a check of its financial records found fewer customer funds than its internal systems indicated. This marks the first time FTX has acknowledged inadequate funds at their U.S.-based exchange.
Earlier this month, it was revealed that the filing of bankruptcy by the company was soon followed by a hack where nearly half of its crypto assets were stolen. These assets were worth around $90 million. Additionally, a hacker managed to make away with almost $323 million in crypto from FTX.
Over 6 dozen Illinois sheriffs refuse to enforce Illinois’ assault weapons ban. The “Protect Illinois Communities Act” bans the distribution and sale of "assault weapons," high-capacity magazines, and switches in Illinois. Those who own such guns must register them with Illinois State Police by Jan. 1, 2024. Illinois sheriffs of almost 80 counties are refusing to enforce the state's " assault weapons " ban recently signed into law by Gov. J.B. Pritzker.
Edwards County Sheriff Darby Boewe wrote in a statement that part of his duty is to protect the right to keep and bear arms.
"The right to keep and bear arms for defense of life, liberty, and property is regarded as an inalienable right by the people. I like many others, believe that HB 5471 is a clear violation of the 2nd amendement to the U.S. Constition. Therefore, as the custodian of the jail and chief law enforcement officer for Edwards County, that neither myself or my office will be checking to ensure that lawful gun owners register their weapons with the State, nor will we be arresting or housing individuals that have been charged solely with noncompliance of this act."
The State Department has announced new initiative focused on refugee resettlement. The resettlement scheme is supported by individuals, entities and charities. Though it does not apply to illegal immigrants on the border, some Republican voices have warned that such schemes could be abused by illegal immigrants seeking sanctuary.
The owner of Miss Universe, a trans woman, gives a speech declaring the pageant is “ran by women, for all women.” Anne Jakrajutatip, a biological male from Thailand, bought the Miss Universe franchise in October 2022 for $20 million.
Facebook, Instagram lift breast ban — but only for trans, nonbinary users. Facebook and Instagram are to allow female transgender and non-binary users to upload topless photographs while restrictions will remain in place for women.
Jamie Lee Curtis responds to the backlash for the naked child photo. Earlier this week JLC posted a picture of her office on her Instagram. Many noticed a disturbing image of a nude child in a box. Flooded with comments on the image JLC removed the post.
Microsoft is planning to lay off 10,000 Workers. The job cuts, which amount to less than 5 percent of the company’s workforce, are its largest in roughly eight years. According to media reports on Tuesday, some roles are expected to be eliminated in human resources and engineering divisions.
CDC launches investigation into the link between Covid mRNA vaccines and strokes. With the increasing number of vaccine-induced stroke cases, the CDC has initiated an investigation to look into any possible connection between Covid mRNA vaccines and strokes. Fox News recently reported that "a sufficient number of vaccinated individuals have experienced a stroke after being immunized."
Following the report, the Washington Post published an article that a deep dive into several large databases failed to confirm the preliminary information, leading federal health officials to conclude the risk is extremely low — and probably nonexistent.
Physician and CNN analyst Dr. Leana Wen admits that Covid deaths and hospitalizations have been overcounted. Wen has always been a vocal supporter of both adults and children getting the Covid vaccine. In a recent Washington Post Opinion piece, she said, “the vaccinated should not have to pay the price for the so-called choices of the unvaccinated anymore."
Unredacted NIH emails show efforts to rule out lab origin of Covid. Emails and telephone conversations between top virologists, including Fauci and Dr. Francis Collins, then the director of the NIH, revealed worries early on in the pandemic that SARS-CoV-2 may have been man-made. The participants discussed how certain laboratory experiments could have inadvertently released the virus into the environment. They considered this to be a potential cause of the outbreak.
Idaho murders: Bryan Kohberger search warrants unsealed. Newly unsealed search warrants reveal what police were looking for when they searched his apartment around the time of his arrest.
The items seized included possible hair strands, a nitrite-type black glove, a computer tower, and cuttings from an uncased pillow of a "reddish/brown stain," according to the warrant.
The British government has halted a Scottish bill that would have enabled transgender citizens to transition without being subjected to a medical assessment for gender dysphoria. The Scottish Minister of State, Alister Jack, stopped the bill from moving forward due to worries about its influence on Great Britain's equality law rather than objecting to its actual contents. The Scottish National Party, fighting for Scotland's autonomy from Britain, voted for the bill.
Greta Thunberg suspected of staging arrest with German police during coal mine protest. News reports state that Thunberg was "forcibly removed" by officials, but behind-the-scenes footage shows officers calmly standing – even posing for pictures – with Thunberg.
Pentagon sends U.S. arms stored in Israel to Ukraine. In recent months, the U.S. has transferred hundreds of thousands of artillery shells from its stockpiles in Israel to Ukraine to support Ukraine's defense capabilities. A supply of U.S. armaments had been stockpiled in warehouses on Israeli soil. This stockpile was tapped into, and some ammunition was transferred to Ukraine.
Kanye West allegedly marries a Kim Kardashian look-alike named Bianca Censori. Censori was West’s designer behind his Yeezy brand. The two allegedly had a private wedding ceremony, and West was spotted wearing a new ring on his left ring finger.
Alec Baldwin and armorer are to be charged with involuntary manslaughter after the fatal shooting of Halyna Hutchins on the set of 'Rust.' Hutchins, a cinematographer on the set of 'Rush' was killed when a gun Baldwin was rehearsing with went off. There was not supposed to be live ammunition on the location.