List of All Articles with Tag 'us politics'

Donald Trump has claimed he is “not frightened” about his third potential indictment on criminal charges – after he revealed that he had been sent a letter by special prosecutor Jack Smith informing him he is the “target” of a grand jury investigation into his efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election. The former president took to Truth Social on Tuesday morning to say that he had been told to report to a grand jury over the January 6 Capitol riot, which he pointed out “almost always means an Arrest and Indictment”. The Independent has learned that the indictment could be handed down as soon as this week. Mr Trump spoke out about the potential looming indictment to Fox News’ Sean Hannity, admitting that “it bothers me”. “They want to try to demean and diminish and frighten people. But they don’t frighten us because we’re going to make America great again. That’s all there is,” he said. Meanwhile, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel announced criminal charges against 16 people who signed certificates falsely declaring Mr Trump won the 2020 election, part of a nationwide scheme to upend the results in states that the former president lost to Joe Biden. Read More Donald Trump brands US a ‘third-world hellhole’ run by ‘perverts’ and ‘thugs’ Ron DeSantis campaign fires staff as Florida governor trails Trump in the polls Fundraising takeaways: Trump and DeSantis in their own tier as Pence and other Republicans struggle RFK Jr revives antisemitic conspiracy theory that Covid-19 was ‘ethnically targeted’ to spare Jewish people

Long-time Donald Trump ally Rudy Giuliani has denied accusations that he may have flipped on his close friend. This comes on the heels of the former president’s announcement that he is readying himself for an indictment related to the Jan 6 riots and the revelation of three federal statutes, including conspiracy and obstruction, that could form the basis of fresh charges against him. “Any speculation that mayor Rudy Giuliani ‘flipped’ against president Donald Trump is as false as previous lies that America’s mayor was somehow a Russian agent,” tweeted Mr Giuliani’s adviser Ted Goodman. Mr Giuliani was previously New York city’s mayor, Mr Trump’s personal lawyer, and also a former US associate attorney general. “In order to ‘flip’ on president Trump – as so many in the anti-Trump media are fantasizing over – mayor Giuliani would have had to commit perjury because all the information he has regarding this case points to president Trump’s innocence,” he further said in his tweet. Mr Giuliani reportedly participated in a voluntary interview with prosecutors as part of what is known as a “queen for a day” deal, under which the ex-mayor can avoid indictment for anything he tells prosecutors about during the interview. The former Trump lawyer had his law license suspended in New York and Washington as a result of allegedly making multiple false representations while seeking to help Mr Trump overturn the 2020 election. In a critical turn for Mr Trump, prosecutors could ask a grand jury to return an indictment against him relating to the Jan 6 attack on the US Capitol and his efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election as soon as this week, The Independent has learned. A source familiar with the special counsel’s probe and Department of Justice operating procedures told The Independent that the earliest an indictment could be handed down is late Thursday or Friday, after the deadline prosecutors set for Mr Trump to avail himself of their invitation to testify before the grand jury investigating crimes relating to the Capitol attack. Reports have said the charges could stem from three federal statutes: Conspiracy to commit offence or to defraud the United States, deprivation of rights under colour of law and tampering with a witness, victim or informant. The Independent has also learned that Mr Smith’s team is ready to bring charges against several of the attorneys who have worked for Mr Trump, including those who aided the ex-president in his push to ignore the will of voters and remain in the White House despite having lost the 2020 election. One of those figures is Mr Giuliani. Read More Next Trump indictment could drop as soon as this week Steve Bannon and Michael Flynn subpoenaed in Smartmatic lawsuits against Fox News and Newsmax Rudy Giuliani sparks backlash with bizarre appearance at Gilgo Beach murder suspect’s home Giuliani blames ‘deep state’ after Washington DC panel recommends he be disbarred over false 2020 claims Ex-Trump aide reportedly joins Giuliani in cooperating with special counsel in 2020 election probe

The letter Donald Trump said he had received from special counsel Jack Smith reportedly listed three federal statutes that could constitute charges against him over the Jan 6 riots. The three federal statutes mentioned in the letter by Mr Smith, according to several reports, are conspiracy to commit offence or to defraud the United States, deprivation of rights under colour of law and tampering with a witness, victim or informant. Mr Trump is the sole individual mentioned in the letter and there are no other names mentioned, according to a source with knowledge of the matter cited by Rolling Stone magazine. Mr Trump had earlier on Tuesday confirmed he had received a letter from Mr Smith in a Truth Social post. “On Sunday night, while I was with my family...HORRIFYING NEWS for our country was given to me by my attorneys,” he wrote. “Deranged Jack Smith...sent a letter (again, it was Sunday night!) stating that I am a TARGET of the January 6th Grand Jury investigation, and giving me a very short 4 days to report to the Grand Jury, which almost always means an Arrest and Indictment.” Meanwhile, Florida representative Matt Gaetz revealed on his podcast that he planned to introduce a bill in the near future to defund Mr Smith’s investigation into the former president. Mr Gaetz’s announcement came just hours after Mr Trump gave confirmation of him receiving Mr Smith’s letter. “In the coming hours, the coming days, I will be introducing legislation under my name, in the House of Representatives, as a freestanding bill, to defund the Jack Smith investigation,” Mr Gaetz said on Tuesday. “And one reason why is the election interference feature. Another reason why: the lack of transparency.” CNN reported that the former president has reached out to House of Representatives speaker Kevin McCarthy and House GOP Conference chair Elise Stefanik for political assistance with the fallout from the probe. Should Mr Trump face criminal charges related to his efforts to stop Joe Biden’s lawful assumption of power following his own failure to prove his countless conspiratorial allegations of election fraud, it would be the third criminal indictment to come down on the ex-president’s shoulders this year. A source familiar with the special counsel’s probe and Department of Justice operating procedures told The Independent that the earliest an indictment could be handed down is late Thursday or Friday, after the deadline for Mr Trump to avail himself of the invitation to testify before the grand jury has passed. Read More DeSantis fights to reset his stagnant campaign as Trump dominates the 2024 conversation Trump's target letter suggests the sprawling US probe into the 2020 election is zeroing in on him Trump fumes about ‘crooked’ DOJ after losing immunity in E Jean Carroll case Voting fraud claims spread ahead of Spanish election IRS whistleblowers to testify to Congress as they claim 'slow-walking' of Hunter Biden case A key part of Biden's strategy to control immigration at the US-Mexico border gets a court hearing

Few citizens face the kind of perfect storm of legal threats engulfing Donald Trump. And given that he is a past and possibly future president running for a new term, the entire country could share in his historic ordeal.

When Georgia Republican congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene tried to criticise President Joe Biden by comparing his programmes to those of Presidents Franklin Roosevelt and Lyndon Johnson, the White House took it as a compliment. “Caught us. President Biden is working to make life easier for hardworking families,” the official White House account tweeted. Later, the Democratic president went a step further and released the video as a campaign ad. Rep Greene outlined President Johnson’s programmes, called The Great Society, which addressed “education, medical care, urban problems, rural poverty, transportation, Medicare, Medicaid, food stamps and welfare,” as well as the Office of Economic Opportunity and labor unions. While Johnson had The Great Society, Joe Biden has Build Back Better, Ms Greene said, describing it as: “The largest public investment in social infrastructure and environmental programs that is actually finishing what FDR started that LBJ expanded on.” “And Joe Biden is attempting to complete socialism,” Ms Greene continued. “Marjorie Taylor Greene thought her recent speech was an attack on ⁦POTUS⁩. It’s actually a huge compliment,” California Democratic Congressman Ted Lieu chimed in. New York Democratic Congressman Ritchie Torres also reacted: “Marjorie Taylor Greene, a recovering member of the House Freedom Caucus, has accused President Biden and Congressional Democrats of ‘trying to finish what FDR started.’” He added, “Yes! We are guilty as charged.” Rep Greene went on to criticise President Biden’s investments, saying the US is “now $32 trillion in debt with record high homelessness, 40 year record inflation. We’re losing the US Dollar as the number one world currency. We’re losing our freedoms. Our government is one big fat bloated machine and it’s killing the American dream.” But Rep Greene’s initial remarks spread like wildfire on social media, with some accounts tweeting it out as if it were an ad for Mr Biden’s re-election campaign. The President himself took note and formally released his own version. Read More Marjorie Taylor Greene’s antics show that the 2024 election will be about America’s role in the world Far-right pundits and lawmakers evangelise and crown Trump and Tucker at Turning Point’s Florida conference Marjorie Taylor Greene brands Nato ‘not a reliable partner’ as she calls for US to withdraw Trump downplays his legal challenges on the campaign trail in Iowa after revealing new target letter Michigan charges 16 fake electors for Donald Trump with election law and forgery felonies DeSantis says charging Trump for Jan 6 is ‘criminalising political differences’

State prosecutors in Michigan announced criminal charges Tuesday against the 16 Republicans who served as fake electors in 2020, a watershed moment in the still-ongoing federal and state investigations into the 2020 election aftermath.

The Biden administration has suspended funding for the Wuhan Institute of Virology following a monthslong review that determined that the Chinese research institute "is not compliant with federal regulations and is not presently responsible," according to a memo from the Department of Health and Human Services.

A super PAC supporting Sen. Tim Scott's presidential run is placing a $40 million TV and digital ad reservation -- the largest amount booked for any presidential candidate so far in the 2024 race.

Former US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger met in Beijing with Chinese Defense Minister Li Shangfu, according to the Chinese Ministry of Defense.

Rep Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, ordinarily a strong supporter of Israeli policy, referred to the country’s “apartheid wall” during an address in the US House of Representatives. Israel has again been in the headlines in Washington this week after Rep Pramila Jayapal of Washington called Israel a “racist state” before walking her comments back over the weekend. The House overwhelmingly voted in favour on Tuesday of a resolution backing Israel that did not name Ms Jayapal but appeared to be crafted in response to her comments. Israeli President Isaac Herzog, meanwhile, is set to address a joint session of Congress on Wednesday that several progressive lawmakers have announced they will boycott. On Tuesday, Ms Greene waded into the fray. In a speech on the importance of borders, Ms Greene quoted from an article that referred to the giant wall Israel has constructed between its territory and the Palestinian West Bank as an “apartheid” wall. “Walls are very important for most countries,” Ms Greene began. “There’s many countries with walls. I have one article here that comes from earlier this month that says, talking about 65 countries that have erected fences on their borders, also talking about walls, talking about security fears, widespread refusals to help refugees have fueled a new spate of wall-building around the world. “They include Israel’s apartheid — “apartheid” — wall, India’s 2,500-mile fence around Bangladesh, and Morocco’s huge sand berm,” Ms Greene continued. “So many countries around the world agree that walls are important in protecting the people within the country.” It was not immediately clear which article Ms Greene was citing, but if the second-term lawmaker from Georgia chooses to stand by her characterisation of Israel’s policy towards the Palestinians as apartheid, she will be in good company. Two years ago, Human Rights Watch said Israel is guilty of crimes against humanity in the West Bank and Gaza including apartheid. Public opinion in the Democratic Party, meanwhile, has shifted to the point where more Democrats now say their sympathies primarily lie with the Palestinians rather than Israel. That change in opinion has not, however, been reflected in Congress. Only nine members of the House opposed Tuesday’s resolution on support for Israel, all progressives. With just a pair of exceptions, the rest of the Democratic caucus and all voting Republicans supported the resolution. Mr Herzog, the Israeli president, serves as head of state while Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu serves as head of government. Mr Herzog visited President Joe Biden at the White House on Tuesday. Read More AOC and other progressives to boycott Israeli president’s joint address to Congress Republicans under fire for hosting Robert F Kennedy Jr on the Hill in wake of antisemitism claims

The Illinois Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that the state's historic move to ban cash bail is constitutional, overturning a lower court decision.

Louisiana's legislature utilized its Republican supermajority Tuesday to enact a ban on gender-affirming care for most minors, overriding its Democratic governor who had vetoed the bill.