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AP News Summary At 6:07 A.m. EDT https://digitalalaskanews.com/ap-news-summary-at-607-a-m-edt/ Pressure on Russian forces mounts after Ukraine’s advances KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Western defense officials and analysts say said they believe the Russian forces are setting up a new defensive line in Ukraine’s northeast after Kyiv’s troops broke through the previous one and tried to press their advances further into the east. The British defense ministry said that the line likely was between the Oskil River and Svatove, southeast of Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city. The new line comes after a Ukrainian counteroffensive punched a hole through the previous front line and recaptured large swaths of land in the northeastern Kharkiv region. Ukrainian forces are continuing to cross a key river as they try to press on in a counteroffensive targeting Russian-occupied territory in the country’s northeast, according to a Washington-based think tank. Man arrested after ‘disturbance’ as line to see queen swells LONDON (AP) — Thousands of people spent London’s coldest night in months huddled in line to view the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II. Authorities warned Saturday that arriving mourners face a 24-hour wait. Police arrested a man after what the force described as a “disturbance” Friday night in Parliament’s Westminster Hall, where the queen’s coffin is lying in state. Parliamentary authorities said the queue was briefly halted after someone tried to approach the coffin on its platform. The Metropolitan Police force said a man was detained for a suspected public-order offense. The tide of people wanting to see the queen has grown steadily since the public was first admitted on Wednesday. Royal fans give London tourism a bump amid UK economic woes LONDON (AP) — Hotels, restaurants and shops are packed as royal fans pour into the heart of London to experience the flag-lined roads, pomp-filled processions and brave a mileslong line for the once-in-a-lifetime chance to bid adieu to Queen Elizabeth II. Visitors crowding into central London from as far away as the U.S. and India for the historic moment are giving a boost to businesses at a time when the British economy is facing a cost-of-living crisis fueled by the highest inflation in four decades and predictions of a looming recession. The overall economic boost might be limited because Monday has been declared a public holiday for the queen’s funeral. But experts said renewed interest in the royal family could sustain tourism demand. In Yemen, Queen’s death recalls memories of colonial past ADEN, Yemen (AP) — There are few remaining reminders that the Yemeni port city of Aden was once a British colony. But the death of Queen Elizabeth II has prompted some Yemenis to remember a colonial rule that oppressed many and deepened divisions inside the country. Elizabeth passed by the city, on the southern tip of the Arabian Peninsula, in 1954 in a visit current generations remember their grandfathers talking about. Some credit the British era with bringing order and organization to Aden. But many say that the chaos of Yemen’s civil war today is no reason to feel nostalgia for a colonial occupation. Voter challenges, records requests swamp election offices Election conspiracy theorists are flooding local election offices with voter challenges and public records requests. The wave of inquiries is adding to the already heavy workload those offices face as they scramble to prepare for November’s elections. Election officials say many of the challenges they’re receiving contest the presence on voter rolls of people who already are being removed or have the right to be registered. At a minimum, it takes time for election offices to record all the challenges. And if some of the targeted voters cast ballots in November, there could be a fight over whether to count their votes. Abrams’ strategy to boost turnout: Early voting commitments DECATUR, Ga. (AP) — Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams is launching an intensive effort to get out the vote by urging potential supporters to cast in-person ballots the first week of early voting as she tries to navigate the state’s new election laws. The strategy, outlined to The Associated Press by Abrams’ top aides, is a shift from 2018, when she spent generously in her first gubernatorial bid to encourage voters to use mail ballots. It also moves away from Democrats’ pandemic-era emphasis on mail voting, a push that delivered Georgia’s electoral votes to President Joe Biden and helped Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff win concurrent U.S. Senate runoffs. Hungary faces reckoning with EU that could cost it billions BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) — Hungary’s nationalist-populist government is facing a reckoning with the European Union after nearly a decade of accusations that it has failed to uphold the EU’s democratic values. The EU’s executive arm, the European Commission, appears set to impose financial penalties against Hungary on Sunday over corruption concerns and alleged rule-of-law violations. Hungary is one of the largest net beneficiaries of EU funds in the 27-nation bloc, and the sanctions could cost Budapest billions and cripple its already ailing economy. Prime Minister Viktor Orban has denied the commission’s accusations. A lawmaker who is a former member of Orban’s party alleges the government has channeled large sums of EU money into the businesses of politically connected insiders. US asks appeals court to lift judge’s Mar-a-Lago probe hold WASHINGTON (AP) — The Justice Department has asked a federal appeals court to lift a judge’s order that temporarily barred it from reviewing a batch of classified documents seized during an FBI search of former President Donald Trump’s Florida home last month. The department made the request Friday with the 11th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals in Atlanta. It says the judge’s hold is impeding the “government’s efforts to protect the nation’s security” and interfering with its investigation into the presence of top-secret information at Mar-a-Lago. It says the hold needs to be lifted immediately so work can resume. Biden meets with families of Whelan, Griner at White House WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden met with family members of WNBA star Brittney Griner and another American detained in Russia, Paul Whelan. The meetings Friday at the White House are the first face-to-face encounter between the president and the relatives of Griner and Whelan. Administration officials say the sessions are meant to underscore Biden’s commitment to bringing home Americans held overseas and to establish a personal connection, but are not an indication that negotiations with Russia for their release have reached a breakthrough. A national security spokesman told reporters Friday that the U.S. had made a serious offer to get the Americans home but the Russians had not responded to that offer. Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan hold talks to end border fighting MOSCOW (AP) — The security chiefs of Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan have sat down for talks to stop fighting on the border between the two countries that has killed at least 24 people and wounded over 100. The Kyrgyz border service announced the new round of talks as the two ex-Soviet nations traded blame for shelling that resumed Saturday morning after a respite overnight. The fighting started Wednesday for no obvious or publicly announced reason. An attempt to establish a cease-fire on Friday afternoon quickly failed. Kyrgyzstan’s Health Ministry says the bodies of 24 people killed in the clashes were delivered to hospitals in the Batken region. It wasn’t immediately clear whether there were any casualties on Tajikistan’s side. Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Read More Here

Trump SPAC Fails To Pay Proxy Firm Despite Tough Hunt For Votes – FT By Reuters https://digitalalaskanews.com/trump-spac-fails-to-pay-proxy-firm-despite-tough-hunt-for-votes-ft-by-reuters/ © Reuters. FILE PHOTO: The Truth social network logo is seen on a smartphone in front of a display of former U.S. President Donald Trump in this picture illustration taken February 21, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo (Reuters) -Executives behind a blank-cheque company Digital World Acquisition Corp that plans to take Donald Trump’s media business public have failed to pay their proxy solicitors, The Financial Times reported on Saturday. https://on.ft.com/3BpVjal Digital World Acquisition Corp, set up by Patrick Orlando, has not paid Saratoga Proxy Consulting for its work helping to rally shareholders, report said, citing people familiar with the matter. Digital World and Saratoga Proxy Consulting did not respond to emailed requests for comment outside of business hours. Read More Here

Kodiak Vs. Lathrop – High School Football 2022 Full Match https://digitalalaskanews.com/kodiak-vs-lathrop-high-school-football-2022-full-match/ Sep 17, 2022 1 hr ago 0 Watch Live Here : https://bit.ly/3BuGOmS The Lathrop (Fairbanks, AK) varsity football team has a home conference game vs. Kodiak (AK) on Saturday, September 17 @ 7p. Alaska High School Boys Football Post a comment as anonymous Welcome to the discussion. Keep it Clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language. PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK. Don’t Threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated. Be Truthful. Don’t knowingly lie about anyone or anything. Be Nice. No racism, sexism or any sort of -ism that is degrading to another person. Be Proactive. Use the ‘Report’ link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts. Share with Us. We’d love to hear eyewitness accounts, the history behind an article. Support Local Journalism Now, more than ever, the world needs trustworthy reporting—but good journalism isn’t free. Please support us by subscribing or making a contribution. By MAISIE THOMAS Fairbanks Daily News-Miner Apr 4, 2022 1 In Alaska, Covid-19 cases are leveling off after reaching record highs during the Omicron surge, but a new and even more highly contagious variant is on the rise. The BA.2 variant of Omicron now accounts for over 50% of new cases nationally, and just under half of cases in Alaska, state epid… LINDA F. HERSEY Fairbanks Daily News-Miner Apr 1, 2022 0 North Pole Rep. Mike Prax was one of eight lawmakers diagnosed with Covid-19 Wednesday in an outbreak that has swept through the Alaska House. By LIV CLIFFORD Fairbanks Daily News-Miner Mar 31, 2022 0 Alaskans lost more than $13 million to suspected internet crimes in 2021, federal data shows. Read More Here

AP News Summary At 4:05 A.m. EDT https://digitalalaskanews.com/ap-news-summary-at-405-a-m-edt/ Royal fans give London tourism a bump amid UK economic woes LONDON (AP) — Hotels, restaurants and shops are packed as royal fans pour into the heart of London to experience the flag-lined roads, pomp-filled processions and brave a mileslong line for the once-in-a-lifetime chance to bid adieu to Queen Elizabeth II. Visitors crowding into central London from as far away as the U.S. and India for the historic moment are giving a boost to businesses at a time when the British economy is facing a cost-of-living crisis fueled by the highest inflation in four decades and predictions of a looming recession. The overall economic boost might be limited because Monday has been declared a public holiday for the queen’s funeral. But experts said renewed interest in the royal family could sustain tourism demand. King stands vigil; Wait to see queen’s coffin hits 24 hours LONDON (AP) — A surging tide of people — ranging from London retirees to former England soccer captain David Beckham — have lined up to file past Queen Elizabeth II’s coffin as it lies in state at Parliament. So many have shown up that authorities called a temporary halt Friday to others joining the miles-long queue. The waiting line reopened late Friday afternoon. Still the British government warned the waiting time to see the queen’s coffin had climbed to more than 24 hours. King Charles III on Friday visited Llandaff Cathedral in Wales for a prayer service in honor of his late mother. Later in the evening, Charles and his three siblings stood vigil around queen’s flag-draped coffin in London. Ukrainian president: Burial site contains torture victims IZIUM, Ukraine (AP) — Investigators searching through a mass burial site in Ukraine have found evidence that some of the dead were tortured, including bodies with broken limbs and ropes around their necks. That’s according to Ukrainian President Volodymr Zelenskyy, who spoke Friday. The site near Izium was recently recaptured from Russian forces. It appears to be one of the largest of its kind discovered in Ukraine. Zelenskyy rushed out a video statement just hours after the exhumations began, apparently to underscore the gravity of the discovery. Military intel chief says Putin can’t achieve Ukraine goal WASHINGTON (AP) — The Pentagon’s intelligence chief says Russian forces have shown themselves incapable of achieving President Vladimir Putin’s initial objectives in Ukraine, as things stand now. Lt. Gen. Scott Berrier spoke on Friday to an intelligence and national security forum outside Washington. He said Putin is at a point where he will have to revise his initial aims in invading Ukraine. Berrier said what Putin decides next will determine how long the conflict continues. His comments followed Russian forces latest major setback, a Ukrainian offensive that drove Russians out of a large swath of northeast Ukraine. Putin on Friday vowed to keep pressing his offensive. Voter challenges, records requests swamp election offices Election conspiracy theorists are flooding local election offices with voter challenges and public records requests. The wave of inquiries is adding to the already heavy workload those offices face as they scramble to prepare for November’s elections. Election officials say many of the challenges they’re receiving contest the presence on voter rolls of people who already are being removed or have the right to be registered. At a minimum, it takes time for election offices to record all the challenges. And if some of the targeted voters cast ballots in November, there could be a fight over whether to count their votes. Abrams’ strategy to boost turnout: Early voting commitments DECATUR, Ga. (AP) — Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams is launching an intensive effort to get out the vote by urging potential supporters to cast in-person ballots the first week of early voting as she tries to navigate the state’s new election laws. The strategy, outlined to The Associated Press by Abrams’ top aides, is a shift from 2018, when she spent generously in her first gubernatorial bid to encourage voters to use mail ballots. It also moves away from Democrats’ pandemic-era emphasis on mail voting, a push that delivered Georgia’s electoral votes to President Joe Biden and helped Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff win concurrent U.S. Senate runoffs. US asks appeals court to lift judge’s Mar-a-Lago probe hold WASHINGTON (AP) — The Justice Department has asked a federal appeals court to lift a judge’s order that temporarily barred it from reviewing a batch of classified documents seized during an FBI search of former President Donald Trump’s Florida home last month. The department made the request Friday with the 11th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals in Atlanta. It says the judge’s hold is impeding the “government’s efforts to protect the nation’s security” and interfering with its investigation into the presence of top-secret information at Mar-a-Lago. It says the hold needs to be lifted immediately so work can resume. Trump openly embraces, amplifies QAnon conspiracy theories Donald Trump is increasingly embracing and endorsing the QAnon conspiracy theory, even as the number of frightening real-world events linked to the movement rises. Using his Truth Social platform, Trump this week reposted an image of himself overlaid with the words “the Storm is Coming.” In QAnon lore, the storm refers to Trump’s final victory, when his opponents supposedly will be tried and possibly executed. It’s among dozens of recent Q-related posts from the Republican former president, who also ended a rally with a QAnon song. Experts who study QAnon say Trump may be trying to rally his most stalwart supporters as investigations into his conduct escalate. Biden meets with families of Whelan, Griner at White House WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden met with family members of WNBA star Brittney Griner and another American detained in Russia, Paul Whelan. The meetings Friday at the White House are the first face-to-face encounter between the president and the relatives of Griner and Whelan. Administration officials say the sessions are meant to underscore Biden’s commitment to bringing home Americans held overseas and to establish a personal connection, but are not an indication that negotiations with Russia for their release have reached a breakthrough. A national security spokesman told reporters Friday that the U.S. had made a serious offer to get the Americans home but the Russians had not responded to that offer. Surprise is key part of migrant travel from Florida, Texas EDGARTOWN, Mass. (AP) — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis took the playbook of a fellow Republican, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, to a new level by catching officials flat-footed in Martha’s Vineyard with two planeloads of Venezuelan migrants. An immigration attorney says the migrants had “no idea of where they were going or where they were.” Providing little or no information is part of the plan. On Friday, the migrants were being moved voluntarily to a military base on nearby Cape Cod. Before going to the wealthy Massachusetts island, a woman in San Antonio showered them with gifts and promised jobs and housing. Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Read More Here

This Republican’s Pivot Should Fool No One – The Boston Globe https://digitalalaskanews.com/this-republicans-pivot-should-fool-no-one-the-boston-globe/ Bolduc’s reversal is part of a pathetic pattern of GOP candidates parroting Trump’s lies in order to win Republican primaries and then immediately changing their tune in the general election. In Massachusetts, Republican gubernatorial nominee Geoff Diehl said the election was rigged — but now says, “the election is over and he [Biden] won.” Get Today in Opinion Globe Opinion’s must-reads, delivered to you every Sunday-Friday. Well, duh. There’s never been even a scintilla of evidence of the contrary, much less any that would take weeks of research to untangle. Trump’s continuing attacks on the integrity of the election were based on fiction, as Bolduc and Diehl surely knew all along. The joke’s on anyone in the Republican Party who actually believed Bolduc when, as recently as last month, he echoed Trump’s lie that he had actually won the election. “I signed a letter … saying that Trump won the election, and, damn it, I stand by my letter,” he said in a debate just last month. “I’m not switching horses, baby. This is it.” The Republican candidates performing U-turns on the 2020 election seem to be hoping that voters will welcome them back to the world of objective reality, forgive them for their sins, and move on. But the harm they — and any politician who lent credence to Trump’s lies — have done cannot be erased so easily. The people who amplified ludicrous claims of election fraud helped create an environment in which the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol was possible, and those who continue to undermine confidence in the election afterward risk fomenting future violence. Election denial is a blot on the record of any politician who embraces it — and a red flag about their own personal integrity. Not to defend shape-shifting politicians, but there’s a big difference between moving to the ideological center after a hard-fought primary — something Democrats and Republicans alike have been known to do — and pivoting on election denial. Someone who has shown a willingness to undermine the legitimacy of democracy out of political expedience has tipped their hand about who they are, not just what they believe. But if Bolduc’s reversal is a reminder of his own lack of principle, it’s also a reminder of the danger that Democrats courted when they chose to boost Bolduc and other far-right candidates in Republican primaries this year. Democratic political action committees spent hundreds of thousands of dollars beating up Bolduc’s primary opponent, Chuck Morse, who had the support of more mainstream Republicans like Governor Chris Sununu. Bolduc ended up ekeing out a victory of less than 2 percentage points over Morse. Democrats believe that Bolduc will be a weaker candidate against Democratic incumbent Maggie Hassan. Maybe so — but putting money behind an election denier for political ends is just as cynical as embracing election denialism for political ends. Neither political party should be doing anything to boost political extremists in this environment. As the campaign heats up, candidates like Bolduc and Diehl shouldn’t be allowed to erase their support for election denialism. When America needed politicians willing to defend democratic norms, even if it meant paying a political price, they were nowhere to be found. There’s nothing they can say that will change that now. Editorials represent the views of the Boston Globe Editorial Board. Follow us on Twitter at @GlobeOpinion. Read More Here

The 9 At 9: Saturday https://digitalalaskanews.com/the-9-at-9-saturday/ GOOD MORNING. Here’s all the news that you need to know as you start your day. Landlord TD’s FactFind 1. Politicians’ ownership of rental accommodation is supposed to be declared on the Dáil’s register of interests, which all TDs are legally required to fill out annually. As such, figuring out the number of landlords who rent out houses should be easy. However, it is not actually that straightforward and The Journal has delved into the register to determine the actual figure. Tax report 2. The Commission on Taxation and Welfare report caused a significant stir when it was published this week. Tánaiste Leo Varadkar was quick to dismiss some of the conclusions in the 547-page report while Taoiseach Micheál Martin said he didn’t agree with the Tánaiste.  But what does the report actually say? RTÉ staff safety 3. RTÉ has said it is “in ongoing contact” with gardaí over the safety of its staff, as a video has emerged of a crowd of people confronting one of the national broadcaster’s camera operators and other members of the media. The video footage shows one man pushing past a television camera and some news photographers outside the Four Courts in Dublin’s city centre. The man can first be seen shouting at one photographer in particular, but he then goes on to knock an RTÉ camera operator’s phone out of his hand, pushing the camera tripod a number of times. Ukraine 4. Ninety-nine percent of exhumed bodies had signs of violent death, Ukraine’s regional administration head said of the mass burial site discovered after Kyiv’s forces recaptured the east Ukrainian town of Izyum. “Among the bodies that were exhumed today, 99% showed signs of violent death,” Oleg Synegubov, head of Kharkiv regional administration, said on social media. Trump documents probe 5. The US Justice Department has asked a federal appeals court to lift a judge’s order that temporarily barred it from reviewing classified documents seized during an FBI search of former president Donald Trump’s Florida home. The department told the 11th Circuit US Court of Appeals that the judge’s hold was impeding the “government’s efforts to protect the nation’s security” and interfering with its investigation into the presence of top-secret information at Mar-a-Lago. It said the hold needed to be lifted immediately so work could resume. Disturbance at queen’s coffin  6. A man is in police custody after he moved out of the queue of mourners and approached the queen’s coffin in Westminster Hall, London, last night. Metropolitan Police said the incident occurred around 10pm, as the live feed from inside the hall cut away for a brief period. Garda drug testing 7. New rules around drug testing for Gardaí are set to come into effect before the end of the year, according to a new action plan from the Department of Justice on tackling garda corruption. Earlier this week, Justice Minister Helen McEntee received Government approval to publish the action plan to counter the threat of internal corruption within An Garda Síochána. While legislation has already been enacted to allow drug testing within the Gardaí, consultations are now ongoing with Garda Associations and Unions on the matter. Dead birds 8. An uptick in cases of avian flu in wild Irish sea birds is prompting experts to call on the government to ensure that carcasses are disposed of quickly and carefully to prevent the disease from spreading to other animals. Reports of Avian Influenza A (H5N1), a contagious virus also known as bird flu, have increased in recent weeks, particularly among gannets – a large, white bird known as Ireland’s largest breeding sea bird. Abortion ban 9. Republican governor Jim Justice has signed into law a ban on abortions at all stages of pregnancy, making West Virginia the second state to enact a law prohibiting the procedure since the US Supreme Court overturned Roe v Wade in June. The bill will go into effect immediately, except for the criminal penalties, which will go into effect in 90 days, he said. Making a difference A mix of advertising and supporting contributions helps keep paywalls away from valuable information like this article. Over 5,000 readers like you have already stepped up and support us with a monthly payment or a once-off donation. For the price of one cup of coffee each week you can make sure we can keep reliable, meaningful news open to everyone regardless of their ability to pay. Read More Here

Watch Live: Preparations Begin Ahead Of Queen’s Funeral – Sky News https://digitalalaskanews.com/watch-live-preparations-begin-ahead-of-queens-funeral-sky-news/ Your browser isn’t supported anymore. Update it to get the best YouTube experience and our latest features. Learn more Read More Here

CUET 2022: Find Answers To All Your Post-Results FAQs Here https://digitalalaskanews.com/cuet-2022-find-answers-to-all-your-post-results-faqs-here/ What should you do now that the National Testing Agency (NTA) has announced the CUET UG results? How will your CUET score determine your admission to a university or college? When will universities start their first-year classes? We spoke to NTA and UGC officials to get you some answers: Q. What should students do after the announcement of CUET results? Since there is no common counselling or common admission process to fill seats, the action will now move to the participating universities. “As soon as we release the results, the same data will also be simultaneously available to the 90 universities that adopted CUET for admission to their undergraduate programmes. From this point, the NTA has no role,” said a senior official of NTA. The University Grants Commission (UGC) chairman M Jagadesh Kumar suggests that students should now visit the websites and admission portals of the universities they are interested in taking admission in. “Students are required to visit the admission portals of individual universities and fill their online applications along with the required documents. NTA will provide the scores of the students to the participating universities for verification,” he told The Indian Express. Q. What is a good CUET score to help me to land a programme and DU college of my choice? Given that this is the first year of DU admitting students through an entrance test, there is no precedent to help us answer this question. According to DU’s Joint Dean Admissions Sanjeev Singh, it is too soon to make any inferences on what kind of CUET scores are likely to feature on the merit lists of various programmes. “The process has just begun. Also looking at the high number of students with 100 percentile in, say in CUET’s English paper, will not tell us much about the merit lists ahead because that will not be determined for any programme with one subject but with a combination of subjects,” he said. Each university Q. I am unhappy with my CUET score. Can I challenge my results? There is no formal way to challenge your results. However, if candidates have a grievance they can mail it to cuetgrievance@nta.ac.in, cuetug@nta.ac.in, ak@cuet.nta.ac.in. “For grievances related to results, students can write to NTA. For grievances related to admissions, students need to first write to the University where they have applied. If the issue is not resolved, students can lodge their complaint on E-Samadhan portal of UGC for redressal,” Kumar added. Q. How will my CUET score determine my admission to a university or college? Every participating university will prepare its own merit list based on applicants’ CUET score. Different universities may adopt different ways of arriving at merit. For instance, Delhi University, will calculate a candidate’s merit (for a specific programme or a group of programmes) by simply adding the normalised marks of the four subjects/papers stated under the eligibility criteria of a given programme or programmes. Candidates are advised to check with individual universities on how they are making their merit lists. However, UGC has clarified that universities and colleges will use the normalised marks and not percentile. Q. Why has NTA normalised my marks? Does that not put me at a disadvantage? “The raw scores have been normalised to provide a level playing field for students since they wrote tests in the same subject on different days,” Kumar said. He also added that students need not worry about these differences as the normalisation formula was drawn up by a panel of experts from Indian Statistical Institute, IIT Delhi and Delhi University. Q. Do my Class 12 Board marks no longer play any role in my admission to a university? Class 12 Board marks play little role. However, some universities, like DU, will use your Board marks, as a last resort, in the event that two or more candidates are tied at the same CUET score and have applied to the same programme and college. Q. When do I start my college life? “Once the CUET-UG scores are announced, universities may typically take about 6 weeks to finalise the results as they may issue first list, second list and so on until most of the seats are filled. Either in October last week or November first week, most universities may attempt to start their new academic session,” Kumar said. Read More Here

PD Editorial: No More Stock Trading For Members Of Congress https://digitalalaskanews.com/pd-editorial-no-more-stock-trading-for-members-of-congress/ September 17, 2022, 12:10AM It’s easy to beat the stock market when you have inside information about upcoming congressional findings or legislation that will affect a company. Just ask the nearly 100 members of Congress who traded stocks in companies with business pending before lawmakers. It’s past time to cleanse Congress of both the appearance and the fact of profiteering, corruption and conflicts of interest. A New York Times analysis of stock trades by members of Congress makes the Capitol dome look like the world’s biggest cookie jar. The Times reviewed financial disclosure documents filed by all U.S. senators and representatives from 2019 to 2021. Ninety-seven — nearly 1 in 5 — reported that they or members of their immediate families had bought or sold stocks or other financial instruments that “intersected with their congressional work.” The 97 wheeler-dealers are evenly divided between Democrats and Republicans. They range from backbenchers to leaders and senior members like Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Sen. Dianne Feinstein. For example, Rep. Ro Khanna, a South Bay Democrat, had more troubling trades than any other member of Congress — more than 10,000 involving 900 companies made by trusts in the name of his wife and children. They included selling stocks of at least eight companies being investigated by committees that Khanna sat on. Another example: Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Alabama and a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, sold off Microsoft futures weeks before the software company lost a $10 billion defense contract. Khanna, Tuberville and others insist that all their trades were hands-off and aboveboard. Congressional financial conflicts, whether perceived or real, are doubly corrosive. They weaken public confidence in the fairness of the financial markets. And they deepen Americans’ already profound cynicism toward Congress and government in general. Insider trading is illegal for everyone. Congress has subjected itself to additional restrictions, including the Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge Act of 2012, which prohibits members of Congress from using “any nonpublic information derived from the individual’s position … or gained from performance of the individual’s duties, for personal benefit.” Yet even seemingly blatant cases of insider trading are difficult to prove. And no member of Congress has been prosecuted under the 2012 act, while fines violating the law’s financial reporting requirements are nominal. Set against the weak protections of current law are the strong advantages members of Congress bring to their trading decisions. They regularly obtain information before it is made public. They routinely get an inside scoop from lobbyists, executives and experts. Their job is to shape laws and regulations that can affect individual companies or entire industries. What’s needed is a comprehensive barrier to conflicts of interest. One approach would be to follow the model of every recent president except Donald Trump by placing financial assets in blind trusts. Another would be to ban members of Congress from trading in individual stocks, directing them instead to mutual funds, bonds and such. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, whose wife has made a few trades, encourages members of the Republican caucus not to own individual stocks. Pelosi long has resisted restrictions, but she seems to be softening her stance lately. The New York Times analysis should soften it further. Congress exists to serve the nation, not its members. You can send letters to the editor to letters@pressdemocrat.com. Read More Here

Experts Warn US Is Falling Behind China In Key Technologies https://digitalalaskanews.com/experts-warn-us-is-falling-behind-china-in-key-technologies/ At a gathering of current and former U.S. officials and private-sector executives Friday in Washington, concern was rampant that the United States has fallen behind China in the development of several key technologies, and that it faces an uncertain future in which other countries could challenge its historic dominance in the development of cutting-edge communications and computing technology. The gathering was convened by the Special Competitive Studies Project, an effort spearheaded by former Google CEO Eric Schmidt, the stated purpose of which is “to ensure that America is positioned and organized to win the techno-economic competition between now and 2030, the critical window for shaping the future.” Among attendees, the prevailing sentiment was that the nation’s ability to actually win that competition was under threat. Dire predictions A few days before the summit, the SCSP issued a report predicting what would happen if China became the global technological leader. “Understanding the stakes requires imagining a world in which an authoritarian state controls the digital infrastructure, enjoys the dominant position in the world’s technology platforms, controls the means of production for critical technologies, and harnesses a new wave of general purpose technologies, like biotech and new energy technologies, to transform its society, economy and military,” the report said. FILE – China’s President Xi Jinping is shown during the World Internet Conference in Wuzhen, Zhejiang province, China, Nov. 23, 2020. The report envisions a future where China, not the U.S., captures the trillions of dollars of income generated by the new technological advances and uses its leverage to make the case that autocracy, not democracy, is the superior form of government. In the report’s grim vision, China promotes the concept of a “sovereign” internet, where individual countries limit the flow of information to their people, and where China develops and possibly controls the key technology supporting critical infrastructure in countries around the world. Finally, the report warns that under such a scenario, the U.S. military would lose its technological lead over China and other competitors, and China might be in a position to cut off the supply of “microelectronics and other critical technology inputs.” ‘Nothing is inevitable’ In an address to the summit, White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan appeared to agree that the nation faces significant challenges in keeping pace with China in the development of new technology. “We know that nothing is inevitable about maintaining America’s core strength and competitive advantage in the world,” Sullivan said. “And we know that it has to be renewed, revitalized and stewarded, and that is especially true when it comes to U.S. technological leadership.” In China, he said, “we’re facing a competitor that is determined to overtake U.S. technology leadership and is willing to devote nearly limitless resources to do so.” FILE – Biden White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan speaks during the daily briefing at the White House in Washington, Oct. 26, 2021. Sullivan also said, however, that President Joe Biden’s administration is aware of the threat and has been working to meet it. In particular, Sullivan noted the recent passage of the CHIPS Act, which directs more than $50 billion toward establishing advanced microchip fabrication facilities in the U.S. “We’re making historically unprecedented investments, putting us back on track to lead the industries of the future,” Sullivan said. “We’re doubling down on our efforts to be a magnet for the world’s top technical talent. We’ve adapted our technology protection tools to new geopolitical realities. And most importantly, we’ve done this in a way that is inclusive, force multiplying and consistent with our values.” Not ‘fast enough’ H.R. McMaster, a retired Army general who served as national security adviser during the Trump administration, appeared as a panelist at the conference. He said that while progress is being made, the pace needs to be quickened. “It’s not going fast enough, because we’re so far behind, because there’s too many years of complacency based on flawed assumptions about the nature of the post-Cold War world,” McMaster said. He called for a more active effort to block China’s technological advancement, saying, “We need export controls now, to prevent China from getting a differential advantage, [while] maintaining our competitive advantages.” China has repeatedly criticized U.S. efforts to impede its technological advancement, an issue that Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning addressed this week when asked about U.S. export controls. “What the U.S. is doing is purely ‘sci-tech hegemony,’ ” she said. “It seeks to use its technological prowess as an advantage to hobble and suppress the development of emerging markets and developing countries. While trumpeting a level playing field and a so-called ‘rules-based order,’ the U.S. cares only about ‘America first’ and believes might makes right. The U.S. probably hopes that China and the rest of the developing world will forever stay at the lower end of the industrial chain. This is not constructive.” 5G as a warning A recurring theme at the event was the development of 5G wireless internet technology, a field in which Western countries, including the U.S., fell far behind China. With the benefit of favorable treatment from Beijing, Chinese firms, specifically Huawei, developed a dominant global position in the provision of 5G networking equipment. FILE – A 5G logo is displayed on a screen outside the showroom at the Huawei campus in Shenzhen city, in China’s Guangdong province. Concerned that having Chinese-made equipment serve as the backbone of sensitive communications technology could create an espionage or security risk, the U.S. and some of its allies mounted a global campaign to block the installation of Huawei’s equipment, even if that meant significant delays in the rollout of 5G wireless service. “The key message here is we need to make sure that what happened to us in 5G does not happen again,” said Schmidt. “I cannot say that more clearly. You do not want to work on platform technologies that you use every day that are dominated by nondemocratic, nonopen systems.” Schmidt said that it would be difficult to stay ahead of China technologically, predicting that Beijing would “double down on competing in the areas that we care about,” including artificial intelligence, quantum computing, biotechnology and others. Maintaining relations Jon Huntsman, a former U.S. ambassador to China, said that Americans are generally uninformed about how far China is ahead of the United States in some technologies. Now the vice chairperson of Ford Motor Company, Huntsman said that in the development of electric vehicles, for example, China is at least five years ahead of the U.S. He said that the U.S. must walk a fine line to catch up with China in some areas and to maintain its advantage in others. In particular, he stressed the need to retain person-to-person business and other relationships with the Chinese people. “Decoupling our people is not a good thing,” he said. “We’ll wind up with China right where we are with Russia if we do that.” He added, “Decoupling is only going to create estrangement, misunderstandings and instability, globally, on the security side.” Read More Here

Rally With Trump? Some G.O.P. Candidates Aren’t Thrilled About It. https://digitalalaskanews.com/rally-with-trump-some-g-o-p-candidates-arent-thrilled-about-it/ Whether he is invited or not, the former president keeps holding rallies in battleground states. It reflects an awkward dance as Republican candidates try to win over general-election voters. Send any friend a story As a subscriber, you have 10 gift articles to give each month. Anyone can read what you share. Former President Donald J. Trump held a rally in Wilkes-Barre, Pa., after his aides told the campaign of Dr. Mehmet Oz, the Republican nominee for Senate, that Mr. Trump wanted to hold an event in the state.Credit…Hannah Beier for The New York Times Sept. 17, 2022, 3:00 a.m. ET Former President Donald J. Trump is preparing to swoop into Ohio on Saturday to rally Republicans behind J.D. Vance in a key Senate race. Two weeks earlier, he did the same for Mehmet Oz in Pennsylvania. Neither candidate invited him. Instead, aides to the former president simply informed the Senate campaigns that he was coming. Never mind that Mr. Trump, while viewed heroically by many Republicans, remains widely disliked among crucial swing voters. The question of how to handle Mr. Trump has so bedeviled some Republican candidates for Senate that they have held private meetings about the best way to field the inevitable calls from his team, according to strategists familiar with the discussions. This awkward state of affairs reflects the contortions many Republican candidates are going through as they leave primary season behind and pivot to the general election, when Democrats are trying to bind them to the former president. In New Hampshire, Don Bolduc won the Republican Senate nomination on Tuesday after a primary campaign in which he unequivocally repeated Mr. Trump’s false claims of 2020 election fraud. Just two days later, he reversed himself, telling Fox News, “I want to be definitive on this: The election was not stolen.” Image Two days after Don Bolduc, left, won the Republican primary for Senate in New Hampshire, he reversed his position that the 2020 election was marred by fraud. Credit…John Tully for The New York Times Some of Mr. Trump’s chosen candidates, after pasting his likeness across campaign literature and trumpeting his seal of approval in television ads during the primaries, are now distancing themselves, backtracking from his positions or scrubbing their websites of his name. The moves reflect a complicated political calculus for Republican campaigns, which want to exploit the energy Mr. Trump elicits among his supporters — some of whom rarely show up to the polls unless it is to vote for him — without riling up the independent voters needed to win elections in battleground states. In North Carolina, Bo Hines, a Republican House candidate who won his primary in May after proudly highlighting support from Mr. Trump, has deleted the former president’s name and image from his campaign site. A campaign official described the move as part of an overhaul of the website to prioritize issues that are important to general-election voters. But Mr. Trump’s endorsement remains prominent on Mr. Hines’s social media accounts. Reached by phone, the 27-year-old candidate said he planned to attend a Trump rally in the state next week and then cut short the call. In Wisconsin, Tim Michels, the Republican nominee for governor, erased from his campaign home page the fact that Mr. Trump had endorsed him — but then restored it after the change was reported, saying it had been a mistake. “The optimal scenario for Republicans is for Trump to remain at arm’s length — supportive, but not in ways that overshadow the candidate or the contrast,” said Liam Donovan, a Republican strategist and a former top aide at the National Republican Senatorial Committee. Mr. Donovan, as well as consultants and staff members working for Trump-backed Senate candidates, said the former president could be most helpful, if he chose, by providing support from his powerful fund-raising machine. “A big part of the problem is that these nominees emerged from messy fields where the party has been slow to unify,” Mr. Donovan said. “But to fix what ails, what these G.O.P. candidates need isn’t a Trump rally, it’s a MAGA money bomb.” Taylor Budowich, a spokesman for Mr. Trump, said in a statement that the former president’s “name and likeness was responsible for the unprecedented success of the G.O.P.’s small-dollar fund-raising programs,” and that he continued to “fuel and define the success of the Republican Party.” Mr. Budowich added, “His rallies, which serve as the most powerful political weapon in American politics, bring out new voters and invaluable media attention.” But linking arms with the former president could create problems for candidates in close races. Even though he has been out of office for nearly 20 months, Mr. Trump has remained a constant presence in news headlines because of mounting criminal and congressional investigations into his role in the attack on the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, his refusal to hand over sensitive government documents that he took to his Florida home, and whether he and his family fraudulently inflated the value of their business assets. What we consider before using anonymous sources. Do the sources know the information? What’s their motivation for telling us? Have they proved reliable in the past? Can we corroborate the information? Even with these questions satisfied, The Times uses anonymous sources as a last resort. The reporter and at least one editor know the identity of the source. On Thursday, when asked about the possibility of his being indicted in the document inquiry, Mr. Trump told a conservative radio host that there would be “problems in this country the likes of which perhaps we’ve never seen before.” Polls suggest these controversies could be taking a toll. Among independent voters, 60 percent said they had an unfavorable view of Mr. Trump, compared with 37 percent who had a favorable view, according to a New York Times/Siena College poll released this week. President Biden was also underwater among these key voters, but by a far smaller margin of eight percentage points. Asked whether Mr. Trump had “committed any serious federal crimes,” 62 percent of independent voters said they believed he had, and 53 percent said he had threatened American democracy with his actions after the 2020 election. Republican candidates appear to be aware of such sentiments, backing away from Mr. Trump’s fixation on the 2020 election. While he has said that election fraud is the most important issue in the midterms, polls show that voters are far more worried about economic issues and abortion rights. Three days after Mr. Trump’s rally in Pennsylvania, Dr. Oz, the Republican Senate nominee, told reporters that he would have defied the former president and voted to certify the 2020 presidential election. Dr. Oz, a former TV personality, leaned on Mr. Trump’s endorsement to win a bitter primary. Since then, he has removed prominent mentions of the endorsement from his campaign website and has swapped out Trump-themed branding from his social media. Republican campaigns said that they would not reject Mr. Trump’s help out of hand, but that accepting it created a whole set of other problems: Where, for instance, could a rally be held to energize the conservative base, while minimizing the damage among independents? When Mr. Trump’s team called to say that the former president wanted to come back to Pennsylvania for a rally this month, Mr. Oz’s campaign guided him to Wilkes-Barre in Luzerne County. The county was one of three that voted twice for Barack Obama and flipped to Mr. Trump in 2016. It was also the only one of those three counties that backed Mr. Trump again in 2020. The other two — Erie and Northampton — supported Mr. Biden. Mr. Trump’s rally in Ohio on Saturday will be his third visit to the state since leaving office — more than any other state so far. He twice won Ohio, a longtime presidential battleground, by eight percentage points. This year, his endorsement of Mr. Vance’s Senate bid has been widely viewed as the clearest example of his enduring political influence. Mr. Vance, an author and venture capitalist, was trailing in the polls before Mr. Trump backed him with just over two weeks left in the race. Mr. Vance won the crowded primary by nearly 10 points. For the rally on Saturday, Mr. Vance’s team directed the former president to Youngstown, a blue-collar area that had been a Democratic stronghold until Mr. Trump ran for president. The rally, at the 6,000-seat Covelli Centre, is also squarely in the congressional district represented by Tim Ryan, the Democrat running against Mr. Vance. The event is scheduled to start at the same time as kickoff for an Ohio State University football game. Buckeyes games regularly draw huge statewide audiences, and the matchup on Saturday is against the University of Toledo, an in-state team. The timing was not viewed as ideal by either Mr. Vance’s campaign or Mr. Trump’s team, and Mr. Trump was ultimately consulted on the decision, according to people familiar with the discussions. In the end, the two sides determined that it was more important to hold the rally on a Saturday night, when Mr. Trump has the easiest chance of drawing a strong crowd. Image Representative Tim Ryan at a tailgate party before Ohio State’s first game of the season this month.Credit…Maddie McGarvey for The New York Times Ohio politicians have long tried to avoid competing for attention with Ohio State football games. In an interview, Mr. Ryan said holding a rally at the same time suggested that Mr. Vance — an Ohio State graduate — was out of touch with the “cultural things” important to Ohioans. “It just says a lot,” Mr. Ryan said. “These little things just sometimes reveal a lot more about a ...

Ayres May Get 60 Days For 1/6 Role https://digitalalaskanews.com/ayres-may-get-60-days-for-1-6-role/ The U.S. government is recommending a Champion man serve 60 days in prison for his role in the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the nation’s Capitol in Washington, D.C. Attorneys on both sides of the case involving Stephen Ayres submitted memos this week to U.S. Judge John D. Bates of the District of Columbia District Court, who set the sentencing hearing for Thursday. Stephen Ayres, 39, of Carolewood Circle NW, pleaded guilty June 8 as part of a plea agreement his lawyer reached with prosecutors in May. He remains free on bond. Ayres, through his attorney Eugene Ohm, asked the court to sentence him to probation and community service. At the beginning of a 19-page memorandum to the court, Ohm writes his client “is a devoted husband and father to a 1-year-old son and a 10-year-old stepson.” At the time of his arrest, Ayres was working as a supervisor for KraftMaid Cabinetry in Middlefield. “Because of his mistakes on January 6th, he was terminated from that job — a place he had worked for 20 years beginning in high school,” Ohm states. “This termination — and more specifically, his mistake on January 6th — wreaked havoc on Mr. Ayres’ life.” THOUGHTS OF A FRIEND The defense memo also talks about Ayres’ emotional sufferings, especially from the tragic loss of his co-defendant and high school friend Matthew Perna. Ohm’s memo stated that Perna killed himself largely because of the pressures of this case after Perna pleaded guilty to federal charges late last year. “Mr. Ayres thinks of Mr. Perna every day,” Ohm wrote, noting that Perna had conveyed to his client that he felt responsible that Ayres had been charged. Ohm stated his client is deeply ashamed to be categorized as a rioter who attacked the Capitol. “Mr. Ayres has spent considerable time reflecting on what led him to be part of January 6th, how his loyalty to a president somehow led him to becoming — to the world — an insurrectionist.” In live testimony in June to a House committee investigating the Jan. 6 riot, Ayres said he no longer follows politics as closely and is off social media entirely. In his sentencing memo, Ohm reiterated this issue. “He (Ayres) recognizes the deep divisions that still exist in politics, and he is determined that extracting himself from them is the only way to ensure that he remains focused on what is and has always been his greatest priority — his family,” Ohm wrote. According to the memo, Jan. 6 was the first political rally Ayres attended upon an invitation from Perna, who gave him a ride to Washington, D.C. “Ayres… wanted to see President Trump speak and had no designs of going to the Capitol,” Ohm wrote. But as Ayres told the house committee, Trump had told him to march to the Capitol. According to the memo, Ayres waited until the end of the rally and joined the crowd, wondering if the president would be speaking again. The memo said Ayres has no excuse for making the poor choice to walk into the building. “But he entered and walked around for about ten minutes, never departing from the velvet ropes from the hallway. Then he left and went outside,” Ohm writes. A footnote in the memo stated that Ayres had remained in the general area until a Trump tweet at 4:17 p.m. that day urged all to leave the area. Ohm also talks about Ayres’ decision to testify before the House committee. “While he first faced scorn when he was arrested, he was met with anger and was even abandoned by some close to him after he testified. But Mr. Ayres did what he had to do and became a cooperating witness albeit in a nontraditional sense,” Ohm writes. Ayres was asked by the government to help by assisting in the prosecution of others for the aftermath of what happened on Jan. 6 and help in determining what steps the government can take to ensure that this would never happen again. “Ayres did everything that was asked,” Ohms writes, noting that Ayres provided testimony on three occasions, twice in person in D.C. GOVERNMENT MEMO In its 18-page memo, assistant U.S. Attorney Nihar Moharity — in addition to the short prison term — recommends that Ayres serve one-year of supervised release, do 60 hours of community service and pay $500 in restitution. Ayres participated in an attack that forced the interruption of Congress’ certification of the 2020 Electoral College vote count, threatened the peaceful transfer of power, injured more than 100 police officers and resulted in more than $2.7 million in losses, which accounts for damage to the Capitol building and grounds, costs borne by the Capitol Police and cost of repairs. Ayres had pleaded guilty to one count of committing disorderly or disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds. Moharity wrote she thinks 60 days is appropriate based on Ayres’ social media statements prior to Jan. 6 that stated members of Congress, Chief Justice John Roberts and Vice President Mike Pence had committed treason and “were now put on notice.” She also noted Ayres’ entry into the building and posting images of the riot on social media as well as agreeing with another person in a YouTube video posted after the attack that the purpose of the riot was “to expose Pence as a traitor.” “The Court must also consider that Ayres’ conduct on January 6, like the conduct of hundreds of other rioters, took place in the context of a large and violent riot that relied on numbers to overwhelm police, breach the Capitol and disrupt the proceedings,” the government lawyer wrote. Today’s breaking news and more in your inbox Read More Here

Breaches Of Voting Machine Data Raise Midterm Fears https://digitalalaskanews.com/breaches-of-voting-machine-data-raise-midterm-fears/ ATLANTA (AP) — Sensitive voting system passwords posted online. Copies of confidential voting software available for download. Ballot-counting machines inspected by people not supposed to have access. The list of suspected security breaches at local election offices since the 2020 election keeps growing, with investigations underway in at least three states — Colorado, Georgia and Michigan. The stakes appeared to rise this week when the existence of a federal probe came to light involving a prominent loyalist to former President Donald Trump who has been promoting voting machine conspiracy theories across the country. While much remains unknown about the investigations, one of the most pressing questions is what it all could mean for security of voting machines with the midterm elections less than two months away. Election security experts say the breaches by themselves have not necessarily increased threats to the November voting. Election officials already assume hostile foreign governments might have the sensitive data, and so they take precautions to protect their voting systems. The more immediate concern is the possibility that rogue election workers, including those sympathetic to lies about the 2020 presidential election, might use their access to election equipment and the knowledge gained through the breaches to launch an attack from within. That could be intended to gain an advantage for their desired candidate or party, or to introduce system problems that would sow further distrust in the election results. In some of the suspected security breaches, authorities are investigating whether local officials provided unauthorized access to people who copied software and hard drive data, and in several cases shared it publicly. After the Georgia breach, a group of election security experts said the unauthorized copying and sharing of election data from rural Coffee County presented “serious threats” to the November election. They urged the state election board to replace the touchscreen devices used throughout the state and use only hand-marked paper ballots. Harri Hursti, a leading expert in voting security, said he is concerned about another use of the breached data. Access to the voting equipment data or software can be used to develop a realistic looking video in which someone claims to have manipulated a voting system, he said. Such a fake video posted online or to social media on or after Election Day could create chaos for an election office and cause voters to challenge the accuracy of the results. “If you have those rogue images, now you can start manufacturing false, compelling evidence — false evidence of wrongdoing that never happened,” Hursti said. “You can start creating very compelling imaginary evidence.” There has been no evidence that voting machines have been manipulated, either during the 2020 election or in this year’s primaries. But conspiracy theories widely promoted among some conservatives have led to calls for replacing the machines with hand-marked and hand-counted ballots and raised concerns that they could be targeted by people working inside election offices or at polling places. The suspected breaches appear to be orchestrated or encouraged by people who falsely claim the 2020 election was stolen from Trump. In several of the cases, employees of local election offices or election boards gave access to voting systems to people who were not authorized to have it. The incidents emerged into public view after the voting system passwords for Mesa County, Colorado, were posted online, prompting a local investigation and a successful effort to replace the county clerk from overseeing elections. MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell, who has organized or attended forums around the U.S. peddling conspiracy theories about voting machines, said this week that he had received a subpoena from a federal grand jury investigating the breach in Colorado and was ordered to hand over his cellphone to FBI agents who approached him at a fast-food restaurant in Minnesota. “And they told me not to tell anybody,” Lindell said in a video afterward. “OK, I won’t. But I am.” Lindell and others have been traveling the country over the past year, holding events where attendees are told that voting machines have been corrupted, that officials are “selected” rather than elected and that widespread fraud cost Trump the 2020 election. In an interview with the Star Tribune of Minneapolis, Lindell said FBI agents questioned him about the Colorado breach and Dominion Voting Systems. The company provides voting equipment used in about 30 states and has had its machines targeted in the Colorado, Georgia and Michigan breaches. When agents asked him why he flies between different states, Linden told them, “I’m going to attorney generals and politicians, and I’m trying to get them to get rid of these voting machines in our country.” The Justice Department did not respond when asked for details about its investigation. Dominion has sued Lindell and others, accusing them of defamation. In a statement this week, the company said it would not comment about ongoing investigations but said its systems are secure. It noted that no credible evidence has been provided to show that its machines “did anything other than count votes accurately and reliably in all states.” The scope of the federal grand jury probe in Colorado isn’t known, but local authorities have charged Mesa County clerk Tina Peters in what they described as a “deceptive scheme which was designed to influence public servants, breach security protocols, exceed permissible access to voting equipment and set in motion the eventual distribution of confidential information to unauthorized people.” Peters has pleaded not guilty and said she had the authority to investigate concerns that the voting equipment had been manipulated. She has appeared at numerous events with Lindell over the past year, including Lindell’s “cybersymposium” last August in which a digital copy of Mesa County’s election management system was distributed. David Becker, a former U.S. Justice Department attorney who now leads the Center for Election Innovation & Research, notes the irony of those who raise alarms about voting equipment being involved in allegations of breaches of the same systems. “The people who have been attacking the integrity of elections are destroying the actual integrity of elections,” he said. Today’s breaking news and more in your inbox Read More Here

AP News Summary At 1:23 A.m. EDT https://digitalalaskanews.com/ap-news-summary-at-123-a-m-edt/ Trump openly embraces, amplifies QAnon conspiracy theories Donald Trump is increasingly embracing and endorsing the QAnon conspiracy theory, even as the number of frightening real-world events linked to the movement rises. Using his Truth Social platform, Trump this week reposted an image of himself overlaid with the words “the Storm is Coming.” In QAnon lore, the storm refers to Trump’s final victory, when his opponents supposedly will be tried and possibly executed. It’s among dozens of recent Q-related posts from the Republican former president, who also ended a rally with a QAnon song. Experts who study QAnon say Trump may be trying to rally his most stalwart supporters as investigations into his conduct escalate. Ukrainian president: Burial site contains torture victims IZIUM, Ukraine (AP) — Investigators searching through a mass burial site in Ukraine have found evidence that some of the dead were tortured, including bodies with broken limbs and ropes around their necks. That’s according to Ukrainian President Volodymr Zelenskyy, who spoke Friday. The site near Izium was recently recaptured from Russian forces. It appears to be one of the largest of its kind discovered in Ukraine. Zelenskyy rushed out a video statement just hours after the exhumations began, apparently to underscore the gravity of the discovery. US asks appeals court to lift judge’s Mar-a-Lago probe hold WASHINGTON (AP) — The Justice Department has asked a federal appeals court to lift a judge’s order that temporarily barred it from reviewing a batch of classified documents seized during an FBI search of former President Donald Trump’s Florida home last month. The department made the request Friday with the 11th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals in Atlanta. It says the judge’s hold is impeding the “government’s efforts to protect the nation’s security” and interfering with its investigation into the presence of top-secret information at Mar-a-Lago. It says the hold needs to be lifted immediately so work can resume. Military intel chief says Putin can’t achieve Ukraine goal WASHINGTON (AP) — The Pentagon’s intelligence chief says Russian forces have shown themselves incapable of achieving President Vladimir Putin’s initial objectives in Ukraine, as things stand now. Lt. Gen. Scott Berrier spoke on Friday to an intelligence and national security forum outside Washington. He said Putin is at a point where he will have to revise his initial aims in invading Ukraine. Berrier said what Putin decides next will determine how long the conflict continues. His comments followed Russian forces latest major setback, a Ukrainian offensive that drove Russians out of a large swath of northeast Ukraine. Putin on Friday vowed to keep pressing his offensive. Live updates: China to attend queen’s funeral despite worry China announced that Vice President Wang Qishan would attend the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II as the special representative of President Xi Jinping. A group of British legislators sanctioned by China have expressed concern that the Chinese government has been invited to the funeral. One told the BBC the invitation should be rescinded because of human rights abuses in the treatment of the Uyghur ethnic group in China’s far-western region of Xinjiang. Wang was named to the largely ceremonial post of vice president in 2018 and often attends events on Xi’s behalf. Meanwhile, Japanese Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako left for Britain on Saturday to attend the queen’s funeral and pay respects. King stands vigil; Wait to see queen’s coffin hits 24 hours LONDON (AP) — A surging tide of people — ranging from London retirees to former England soccer captain David Beckham — have lined up to file past Queen Elizabeth II’s coffin as it lies in state at Parliament. So many have shown up that authorities called a temporary halt Friday to others joining the miles-long queue. The waiting line reopened late Friday afternoon. Still the British government warned the waiting time to see the queen’s coffin had climbed to more than 24 hours. King Charles III on Friday visited Llandaff Cathedral in Wales for a prayer service in honor of his late mother. Later in the evening, Charles and his three siblings stood vigil around queen’s flag-draped coffin in London. Voter challenges, records requests swamp election offices Election conspiracy theorists are flooding local election offices with voter challenges and public records requests. The wave of inquiries is adding to the already heavy workload those offices face as they scramble to prepare for November’s elections. Election officials say many of the challenges they’re receiving contest the presence on voter rolls of people who already are being removed or have the right to be registered. At a minimum, it takes time for election offices to record all the challenges. And if some of the targeted voters cast ballots in November, there could be a fight over whether to count their votes. Biden meets with families of Whelan, Griner at White House WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden met with family members of WNBA star Brittney Griner and another American detained in Russia, Paul Whelan. The meetings Friday at the White House are the first face-to-face encounter between the president and the relatives of Griner and Whelan. Administration officials say the sessions are meant to underscore Biden’s commitment to bringing home Americans held overseas and to establish a personal connection, but are not an indication that negotiations with Russia for their release have reached a breakthrough. A national security spokesman told reporters Friday that the U.S. had made a serious offer to get the Americans home but the Russians had not responded to that offer. Abrams’ strategy to boost turnout: Early voting commitments DECATUR, Ga. (AP) — Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams is launching an intensive effort to get out the vote by urging potential supporters to cast in-person ballots the first week of early voting as she tries to navigate the state’s new election laws. The strategy, outlined to The Associated Press by Abrams’ top aides, is a shift from 2018, when she spent generously in her first gubernatorial bid to encourage voters to use mail ballots. It also moves away from Democrats’ pandemic-era emphasis on mail voting, a push that delivered Georgia’s electoral votes to President Joe Biden and helped Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff win concurrent U.S. Senate runoffs. Surprise is key part of migrant travel from Florida, Texas EDGARTOWN, Mass. (AP) — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis took the playbook of a fellow Republican, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, to a new level by catching officials flat-footed in Martha’s Vineyard with two planeloads of Venezuelan migrants. An immigration attorney says the migrants had “no idea of where they were going or where they were.” Providing little or no information is part of the plan. On Friday, the migrants were being moved voluntarily to a military base on nearby Cape Cod. Before going to the wealthy Massachusetts island, a woman in San Antonio showered them with gifts and promised jobs and housing. Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. 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Virginia Will Block Schools From Accommodating Transgender Students https://digitalalaskanews.com/virginia-will-block-schools-from-accommodating-transgender-students/ In a major rollback of LGBTQ rights, the administration of Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) will require that transgender students in Virginia access school facilities and programs that match the sex they were assigned at birth and is making it more difficult for students to change their names and genders at school. Under new “model policies” for schools’ treatment of transgender students released Friday evening, the Department of Education is requiring that families submit legal documentation to earn their children the right to change names and genders at school. The guidelines also say teachers cannot be compelled to refer to transgender students by their names and genders if it goes against “their constitutionally protected” free speech rights. And the guidelines say schools cannot “encourage or instruct teachers to conceal material information about a student from the student’s parent, including information related to gender” — raising the prospect that teachers could be forced to out transgender students to their parents. School districts must adopt the new state guidelines or “policies that are more comprehensive,” after a 30-day comment period that will begin on Sept. 26, the Education Department said. The Board of Education will not have to vote to adopt the policies. “These 2022 Model Policies reflect the Department’s confidence in parents to prudently exercise their fundamental right under the Fourteenth Amendment and the Virginia Constitution to direct the upbringing, education, and control of their children,” the guidelines state. “This primary role of parents is well established and beyond debate. Empowering parents is essential to improving outcomes for children.” The model policies reverse guidelines published in 2021 by the administration of Gov. Ralph Northam (D). Those guidelines mandated that transgender students be allowed to access restrooms, locker rooms and changing facilities that match their gender identities, stipulated that schools let students participate in sports and programs matching their gender identities and required that school districts and teachers accept and use students’ gender pronouns and identities without question. In their own guidelines, Youngkin administration officials wrote that Northam’s guidance sought “cultural and social transformation in schools” and “disregarded the rights of parents.” The Youngkin guidelines state the Northam-era policies are dead: they “have no further force and effect.” The Northam guidelines were developed in accordance with a 2020 law, proposed by Democratic legislators, that required the Virginia Education Department to develop model policies — and later required all school districts to adopt them — for the protection of transgender students. The law does not define the specific nature of these policies but says they should “address common issues regarding transgender students in accordance with evidence-based best practices” and says they should be designed to prevent bullying and harassment of transgender students. But — in a move that is likely to draw legal challenges — the Youngkin administration has used that same law to issue its own version of the Education Department guidelines. The 20-page document released Friday states it is being issued “as required under” the 2020 legislation. The Youngkin administration is also attempting to repurpose the period of public scrutiny the Northam-era rules were subjected to. Those guidelines, as is typical, were posted for weeks online so the public could share their reactions. The Friday document states that Youngkin’s guidelines were developed by “taking into account the over 9,000 comments received during the public comment period” for the Northam-era policies. “The 2022 model policy posted today delivers on the governor’s commitment to preserving parental rights and upholding the dignity and respect of all public school students,” Youngkin spokeswoman Macaulay Porter said in a written statement. “It is not under a school’s or the government’s purview to impose a set of particular ideological beliefs on all students.” The reaction from Democratic lawmakers was swift. “These new policies are cruel and not at all evidence based,” tweeted Del. Marcus Simon, who was a co-sponsor of the Northam-era law. “If enacted these policies will harm Virginia children. Stop bullying kids to score political points.” Allies of the governor praised the proposal. “Thank you @GovernorVA for fixing one of the most overreaching and abusive uses of a ‘model policy’ that I’ve seen,” tweeted GOP Del. Glenn Davis. “This new standard ensures all students have the right to attend school in an environment free from discrimination, harassment, and bullying. Laura Vozzella contributed to this report. Read More Here

Domenica Tripodi Obituary (2022) https://digitalalaskanews.com/domenica-tripodi-obituary-2022/ Domenica Tripodi’s passing on Thursday, September 15, 2022 has been publicly announced by AK Macagna Funeral Home in Cliffside Park, NJ. According to the funeral home, the following services have been scheduled: Visitation, on September 18, 2022 at 3:00 p.m., ending at 7:00 p.m., at A.K. Macagna Funeral Home, 495 Anderson Avenue, Cliffside Park, NJ. Funeral Mass, on September 19, 2022 at 10:00 a.m., at Our Lady of Grace RC Church, 395 Delano Ave, Fairview, NJ. Entombment, on September 19, 2022, at Fairview Mausoleum, Fairview, NJ, Get Directions. Legacy invites you to offer condolences and share memories of Domenica in the Guest Book below. The most recent obituary and service information is available at the AK Macagna Funeral Home website. Published by Legacy on Sep. 17, 2022. Legacy.com reports daily on death announcements in local communities nationwide. Visit our funeral home directory for more local information, or see our FAQ page for help with finding obituaries and sending sympathy. Read More Here

US Asks Appeals Court To Lift Judge https://digitalalaskanews.com/us-asks-appeals-court-to-lift-judge/ US asks appeals court to lift judge’s order on Mar-a-Lago investigation  KATU Read More Here

Justice Department Asks Appeals Court To Revive Its Criminal Probe Into Classified Mar-A-Lago Documents – KVIA https://digitalalaskanews.com/justice-department-asks-appeals-court-to-revive-its-criminal-probe-into-classified-mar-a-lago-documents-kvia/ By Tierney Sneed and Katelyn Polantz, CNN The Justice Department on Friday asked an appeals court to put on hold parts of a judge’s order requiring a third-party review of the materials seized last month at Mar-a-Lago. In its request with the 11th US Circuit Court of Appeals, the Justice Department said the lower court’s move to block criminal investigations from reviewing the seized documents marked as classified would cause irreparable harm, writing that the “criminal investigation is itself essential to the government’s effort to identify and mitigate potential national-security risks.” The department sought the intervention after District Judge Aileen Cannon on Thursday rejected prosecutors’ request that they be allowed to restart their criminal investigation into the classified documents. “The court’s order hamstrings that investigation and places the FBI and Department of Justice (DOJ) under a Damoclean threat of contempt should the court later disagree with how investigators disaggregated their previously integrated criminal-investigative and national-security activities,” the Justice Department wrote. The Justice Department is also asking the appeals court to exclude the documents marked as classified from the so-called special master review Cannon has ordered. Noting that Cannon’s order would require those documents be provided to Trump’s lawyers, the prosecutors said there was “no basis for disclosing such sensitive information,” and that the order required them to make “disclosure of highly sensitive material to a special master and to Plaintiff’s counsel—potentially including witnesses to relevant events—in the midst of an investigation, where no charges have been brought.” The Justice Department on Friday asked for the 11th Circuit to take action “as soon as practicable.” The new filing with the 11th Circuit fast-tracks the dispute over the Mar-a-Lago search up to the appeals court and raises the possibility that the US Supreme Court will be asked to weigh in as well in the coming weeks. The Justice Department originally sought the warrant to search Mar-a-Lago after months of negotiations with Trump’s team over documents that were brought from his White House to the Florida resort after he left office. The FBI is investigating at least three potential crimes in its probe: violations of the Espionage Act, illegal handling of government records and obstruction of justice. In her Thursday night order rejecting the Justice Department’s bid to resume its criminal investigation, Cannon cast doubt that the 100 or more documents in question were actually classified, concluding that the question was in dispute and one best reviewed by an independent party. She also blew off Justice Department arguments that the hold she had put on its criminal probe was putting national security at risk. That approach is at odds with the deference courts normally show to government assertions about classification and national security. In their request to the 11th Circuit, the prosecutors said that the lower court had disregarded the evidence they had put forward about the risks posed by how the government records were bring stored. The record, they said Friday, “makes clear that the materials were stored in an unsecure manner over a prolonged period, and the court’s injunction itself prevents the government from even beginning to take necessary steps to determine whether improper disclosures might have occurred or may still occur.” The prohibitions on the criminal investigation, the prosecutors said, was undercutting the intelligence community assessment’s ability to “evaluate the harm that would result from disclosure of the seized records.” “The court’s injunction restricts the FBI—which has lead responsibility for investigating such matters in the United States—from using the seized records in its criminal-investigative tools to assess which if any records were in fact disclosed, to whom, and in what circumstances,” the Justice Department told the appeals court. Cannon also concluded that the classification designations were in doubt without the Trump team putting forward the type of evidence — such as declarations — that would suggest the materials weren’t in fact classified. Trump has claimed in media appearances he declassified the documents he took to Mar-a-Lago, but his lawyers have yet to make that assertion in court filings. Cannon has repeatedly acknowledged in court decisions that her rationale is based in part on Trump’s status as a former president, writing Thursday that the “principles of equity” required her “to consider the specific context at issue, and that consideration is inherently impacted by the position formerly held by Plaintiff.” In their appeal to the 11th Circuit, the Justice Department wrote that none of the 100 documents marked as classified could possibly be Trump’s personal records — a type of claim he’s trying to make to keep some of the documents out of the evidence. “None of those rationales applies to the records bearing classification markings: The markings establish on the face of the documents that they are not [Trump]’s personal property,” the department writes. The case now lands before a circuit court where six of the 11 active judges are Trump-appointees. It will go to a panel of three randomly selected judges from the court. A panel that includes some of the appellate judges picked by the former President could still be sympathetic to the Justice Department, given the deference the government is usually given when it says national security is at risk. There is also skepticism among outside legal observers about Cannon’s decision to intervene in the first place, given that a separate magistrate judge in Florida approved the warrant for the search and the investigation itself is being run out of a grand jury in DC. Cannon — a 2020 appointee of then-President Trump — was randomly assigned the lawsuit that Trump filed two weeks after the FBI executed the search warrant. Documents marked as classified aren’t Trump’s property, DOJ says The Justice Department argued that Trump’s attempts to assert privileges are weak — if he’s even made them at all. “Neither [Trump] nor the court has suggested that they might be subject to attorney-client privilege. [Trump] has never even attempted to make or substantiate any assertion of executive privilege. Even if he did, no such assertion could justify restricting the Executive Branch’s review and use of these records for multiple independent reasons.” The Justice Department also takes issue with both Trump going to court to try to block investigators from being able to access classified records seized from Mar-a-Lago and with Cannon stepping in. Trump “lacks standing at least as to the discrete set of records with classification markings because those records are government property, over which the Executive Branch has exclusive control and in which Plaintiff has no property interest,” the DOJ writes. The government attorneys say that the courts can only get involved in exceptional circumstances, such as when constitutional rights are disregarded in a search or when a search subject has a special need to keep seized material, and that “cannot extend to these records.” “The district court reasoned that other materials in which Plaintiff [Trump] might have a cognizable interest cannot readily be separated from those in which he does not. But that rationale is inapplicable to records with classification markings, which are easily identifiable and already segregated from the other seized materials,” the department writes. This story has been updated with additional details. The-CNN-Wire & © 2022 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved. Read More Here

AP News Summary At 11:06 P.m. EDT https://digitalalaskanews.com/ap-news-summary-at-1106-p-m-edt/ Trump openly embraces, amplifies QAnon conspiracy theories Donald Trump is increasingly embracing and endorsing the QAnon conspiracy theory, even as the number of frightening real-world events linked to the movement rises. Using his Truth Social platform, Trump this week reposted an image of himself overlaid with the words “the Storm is Coming.” In QAnon lore, the storm refers to Trump’s final victory, when his opponents supposedly will be tried and possibly executed. It’s among dozens of recent Q-related posts from the Republican former president, who also ended a rally with a QAnon song. Experts who study QAnon say Trump may be trying to rally his most stalwart supporters as investigations into his conduct escalate. Ukrainian president: Burial site contains torture victims IZIUM, Ukraine (AP) — Investigators searching through a mass burial site in Ukraine have found evidence that some of the dead were tortured, including bodies with broken limbs and ropes around their necks. That’s according to Ukrainian President Volodymr Zelenskyy, who spoke Friday. The site near Izium was recently recaptured from Russian forces. It appears to be one of the largest of its kind discovered in Ukraine. Zelenskyy rushed out a video statement just hours after the exhumations began, apparently to underscore the gravity of the discovery. US asks appeals court to lift judge’s Mar-a-Lago probe hold WASHINGTON (AP) — The Justice Department has asked a federal appeals court to lift a judge’s order that temporarily barred it from reviewing a batch of classified documents seized during an FBI search of former President Donald Trump’s Florida home last month. The department made the request Friday with the 11th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals in Atlanta. It says the judge’s hold is impeding the “government’s efforts to protect the nation’s security” and interfering with its investigation into the presence of top-secret information at Mar-a-Lago. It says the hold needs to be lifted immediately so work can resume. Military intel chief says Putin can’t achieve Ukraine goal WASHINGTON (AP) — The Pentagon’s intelligence chief says Russian forces have shown themselves incapable of achieving President Vladimir Putin’s initial objectives in Ukraine, as things stand now. Lt. Gen. Scott Berrier spoke on Friday to an intelligence and national security forum outside Washington. He said Putin is at a point where he will have to revise his initial aims in invading Ukraine. Berrier said what Putin decides next will determine how long the conflict continues. His comments followed Russian forces latest major setback, a Ukrainian offensive that drove Russians out of a large swath of northeast Ukraine. Putin on Friday vowed to keep pressing his offensive. Surprise is key part of migrant travel from Florida, Texas EDGARTOWN, Mass. (AP) — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis took the playbook of a fellow Republican, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, to a new level by catching officials flat-footed in Martha’s Vineyard with two planeloads of Venezuelan migrants. An immigration attorney says the migrants had “no idea of where they were going or where they were.” Providing little or no information is part of the plan. On Friday, the migrants were being moved voluntarily to a military base on nearby Cape Cod. Before going to the wealthy Massachusetts island, a woman in San Antonio showered them with gifts and promised jobs and housing. King stands vigil; Wait to see queen’s coffin hits 24 hours LONDON (AP) — A surging tide of people — ranging from London retirees to former England soccer captain David Beckham — have lined up to file past Queen Elizabeth II’s coffin as it lies in state at Parliament. So many have shown up that authorities called a temporary halt Friday to others joining the miles-long queue. The waiting line reopened late Friday afternoon. Still the British government warned the waiting time to see the queen’s coffin had climbed to more than 24 hours. King Charles III on Friday visited Llandaff Cathedral in Wales for a prayer service in honor of his late mother. Later in the evening, Charles and his three siblings stood vigil around queen’s flag-draped coffin in London. Breaches of voting machine data raise worries for midterms ATLANTA (AP) — The revelation earlier this week that federal prosecutors are involved in investigations of suspected voting system breaches across the U.S. is fueling questions about the security of voting machines just two months before the midterm elections. Security breaches at election offices in Colorado, Georgia and Michigan have been sometimes aided by local officials who allowed unauthorized access to people who copied software and hard drive data, and in several cases shared it publicly. Security experts say the breaches by themselves have not necessarily increased threats to the November elections, but say they increase the possibility that rogue election workers could access election equipment to launch attacks. Biden meets with families of Whelan, Griner at White House WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden met with family members of WNBA star Brittney Griner and another American detained in Russia, Paul Whelan. The meetings Friday at the White House are the first face-to-face encounter between the president and the relatives of Griner and Whelan. Administration officials say the sessions are meant to underscore Biden’s commitment to bringing home Americans held overseas and to establish a personal connection, but are not an indication that negotiations with Russia for their release have reached a breakthrough. A national security spokesman told reporters Friday that the U.S. had made a serious offer to get the Americans home but the Russians had not responded to that offer. Alaska braces for huge storm, flooding, power outages feared JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — Residents on Alaska’s vast and sparsely populated western coast braced for what forecasters said could be one of the worst in recent history, accompanied by strong winds and high surf that could knock out power and cause flooding. The storm is the remnants of Typhoon Merbok. Warnings anticipate winds reaching hurricane-force speeds in places, water levels reaching up to 18 feet above normal high tide in some communities and widespread power outages and areas of flooding and erosion. The storm also is influencing weather patterns far from Alaska — a rare late-summer storm is expected to bring rain this weekend to drought-stricken parts of California. Nakate: Leaders are missing the human face of climate change NEW YORK (AP) — Vanessa Nakate’s climate activism over the past three years has propelled her to the world stage as UNICEF’s newest goodwill ambassador. Since 2019, she has worked to amplify the voices of African climate activists and spearheaded initiatives to stop deforestation and install solar panels on buildings in remote areas of her home country Uganda. But she says it’s not enough to save the planet or save people in the global south who greatly suffer the effects of the climate crisis. Nakate says global leaders need to do more to acknowledge the impact of climate change on those who are most often left out of the conversation. Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Read More Here

DeSantis Suggests More Migrant Flights Are Coming As He Defends ‘stunt’ – Live https://digitalalaskanews.com/desantis-suggests-more-migrant-flights-are-coming-as-he-defends-stunt-live/ ‘Just plain wrong’: White House condemns migrant flight to Martha’s Vineyard A group of migrants flown by Florida’s Governor Ron DeSantis from Texas to Martha’s Vineyard have been transported from the island to a large shelter operation supported by state agencies in Cape Cod. Following two nights on the island, agencies are now “coordinating efforts among state and local officials to ensure access to food, shelter and essential services for these men, women and children,” according to Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker’s office. The governor also plans to activate up to 125 members of the Massachusetts National Guard. Mr DeSantis has faced widespread criticism after arranging flights for 50 migrants, including families with children, most of whom initially fled Venezuela, arriving unnannounced in Massachusetts. He has defended the effort, pledging that there will be “more and more” to come from a $12m state-funded programme that he has promised to “exhaust.” Immigration advocates and attorneys have suggested that the governor facilitated their kidnapping. Officials are calling on the US Department of Justice to investigate, and federal officials are reportedly discussing “litigation options” in response. Registration is a free and easy way to support our truly independent journalism By registering, you will also enjoy limited access to Premium articles, exclusive newsletters, commenting, and virtual events with our leading journalists Email Please enter a valid email Please enter a valid email Password Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number First name Please enter your first name Special characters aren’t allowed Please enter a name between 1 and 40 characters Last name Please enter your last name Special characters aren’t allowed Please enter a name between 1 and 40 characters You must be over 18 years old to register You must be over 18 years old to register Year of birth I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent.  Read our Privacy notice You can opt-out at any time by signing in to your account to manage your preferences. Each email has a link to unsubscribe. Already have an account? sign in Registration is a free and easy way to support our truly independent journalism By registering, you will also enjoy limited access to Premium articles, exclusive newsletters, commenting, and virtual events with our leading journalists Email Please enter a valid email Please enter a valid email Password Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number First name Please enter your first name Special characters aren’t allowed Please enter a name between 1 and 40 characters Last name Please enter your last name Special characters aren’t allowed Please enter a name between 1 and 40 characters You must be over 18 years old to register You must be over 18 years old to register Year of birth I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent.  Read our Privacy notice You can opt-out at any time by signing in to your account to manage your preferences. Each email has a link to unsubscribe. Already have an account? sign in Read More Here

Some Bodies Found At Mass Burial Site In Izium Show 'signs Of Torture,' Ukraine Says | CNN https://digitalalaskanews.com/some-bodies-found-at-mass-burial-site-in-izium-show-signs-of-torture-ukraine-says-cnn/ Izium, Ukraine CNN  —  Even the heavy rainfall couldn’t erase the smell of death in the pine forest in Izium on Friday afternoon, as Ukrainian investigators worked their way through a mass burial site found in the eastern Ukrainian city after its recapture from Russian forces. Ukraine’s Defense Ministry said at least 440 “unmarked” graves were found in the city in recent days. The country’s President Volodymyr Zelensky said Friday that some of the bodies found in Izium showed “signs of torture,” blaming Russia for what he called “cruelty and terrorism.” Izium was subject to intense Russian artillery attacks in April. The city, which sits near the border between the Kharkiv and Donetsk regions, became an important hub for the invading military during five months of occupation. Ukrainian forces took back control of the city on Saturday, delivering a strategic blow to Russia’s military assault in the east. When CNN arrived to the mass burial site on Friday afternoon, officials were transporting body bags, including one that appeared to be holding something very small, into a refrigerated truck. Most graves at the burial site are individual graves, with wooden crosses placed at the head of the dirt mounds. Some with names and numbers handwritten on them. One had a number as high as 398. Another with the name of an 82-year-old man. One official at the site told CNN that investigations would have to determine when these people died. Further down in the forest lies what appeared to be a former military position, with tank positions dug deep into the ground. A policeman at the scene told CNN that the spot is a mass grave where 17 bodies were found. “Here are civilian bodies and military ones further along,” Igor Garmash, an investigator at the scene said of the specific part of the site he was examining, pointing to a location nearby. “Over 20 bodies have been examined and sent for further investigation,” he told CNN. Ukraine’s Center for Strategic Communications said on Thursday that some of the graves discovered at Izium were “fresh,” and that the corpses buried there were “mostly civilians.” Dmytro Lubinets, the Ukrainian Parliament’s Commissioner for Human Rights, said in a video statement from the site that “there is a whole family right next to me… This is a young family… The father was born in 1988, the wife was born in 1991, their little daughter was born in 2016.” He said local people told the investigators that the family had died in a Russian airstrike. “Also we saw here a mass burial of servicemen of the Ukrainian army. The way they were buried – you will see evidence that their hands were tied, they were killed at close range,” Lubinets said. An Izium resident living across the street from the mass burial site told CNN the Russians first hit a nearby city graveyard with an airstrike and then moved in. “They brought their special machines. They dug some trenches for their vehicles. We only heard how they were destroying the forest,” Nadezhda Kalinichenko told CNN. She said she tried not to go out during the time the city was under the Russian occupation because she was too scared. “When they left, I don’t know if there was fighting or not. We just heard a lot of heavy trucks one night a week ago,” she said. Zelensky said during his address on Thursday that Russia must be held accountable for deaths there, and in other cities where large numbers of bodies had been found. “Bucha, Mariupol and now, unfortunately, Izium… Russia leaves death everywhere. And must be responsible for it. The world must hold Russia to real responsibility for this war. We will do everything for this,” he added. The Governor of the Kharkiv region, Oleh Syniehubov, said that “the scale of the crimes committed by the invaders in Izium is enormous. This is bloody brutal terror.” Syniehubov said that “450 bodies of civilians with traces of violent death and torture were buried in a forest belt. It is difficult to imagine something like this in the 21st century, but now it is a tragic reality in Izium.” Syniehubov said that among the bodies exhumed on Friday “99 percent showed signs of violent death.” “There are several bodies with their hands tied behind their backs, and one person is buried with a rope around his neck. Obviously, these people were tortured and executed. There are also children among the buried,” he said. 01:58 – Source: CNN Zelensky speaks to CNN about Ukraine’s counteroffensive against Russia Meanwhile, Oleh Kotenko, Ukraine’s commissioner for missing persons, said in a Telegram post that search operations for the remains of “fallen heroes” were proceeding cautiously throughout the region. “The biggest problem is that some areas are still mined. Despite this, we continue to work, because we have to return each hero home so that the families can honor the memory of the soldiers who died for Ukraine in a dignified manner as soon as possible,” Kotenko said. Zelensky visited Izium on Wednesday and told journalists he was “shocked” by the number of “destroyed buildings” and “killed people” left in the wake of the Russian occupation. In his nightly address on Friday, Zelensky said exhumation of the bodies at the mass burial site was continuing and it was still “too early to speak about the total number of people buried there.” He added that investigations were taking place in all areas of the country that had been recaptured from Russian forces and that a number of civilians, including foreigners, who had been held captive in occupied cities and towns had been found alive. Among the foreigners rescued were seven students from Sri Lanka, he said. They were studying in Kupyansk Medical College but were captured by Russian soldiers back in March and held in a basement. “Only now, after the liberation of Kharkiv region, these people were rescued and are being provided proper medical care,” Zelensky said. A United Nations source has told CNN that a team from the UN’s human rights monitoring agency – the OCHR – would be going to Izium and areas around it as soon as possible. The War Crimes investigation team may follow after that, the source said. Their specific destination remains unclear at this time. Moscow was using Izium as a launching pad for attacks southward into the Donetsk region and Kupyansk, some 48 kilometers (30 miles) to the north of Izium, and as a rail hub to resupply its forces. Zelensky also thanked foreign governments for sending investigators and prosecutors to investigate alleged human rights abuses by occupying forces in Ukraine, adding that all occupied areas would eventually return. Ukrainian forces have been on a sustained military offensive, particularly in the country’s northeast and southern regions. Zelensky said on Tuesday that 8,000 square kilometers (3,088 square miles) of territory had now been liberated by Ukrainian forces so far this month, with roughly half the area still undergoing “stabilization” measures. Read More Here

A https://digitalalaskanews.com/a-14/ Access to this page has been denied because we believe you are using automation tools to browse the website. This may happen as a result of the following: Javascript is disabled or blocked by an extension (ad blockers for example) Your browser does not support cookies Please make sure that Javascript and cookies are enabled on your browser and that you are not blocking them from loading. Reference ID: #c799356d-3637-11ed-996d-6b5858577164 Read More Here

Equal Rights Commission Sees Fewer Complaints In 2020, 2021 https://digitalalaskanews.com/equal-rights-commission-sees-fewer-complaints-in-2020-2021/ ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) – The Anchorage Equal Rights Commission presented the findings of their annual report to members of the Anchorage Assembly during a work session on Friday. The department is tasked with resolving complaints from the public in all areas where a citizen’s equal rights are protected: housing, employment, financing, education, public accommodations, and in the practices of the Municipality of Anchorage. They do not address internal municipal employee issues or claims filed against the Anchorage Police Department. Previous years saw the Equal Rights Commission investigate up to 125 complaints a year in the area of employment discrimination alone, but that number is trending downward. Only 68 claims of discrimination on the job were made in 2020, and in 2021 there were just 57 claims. A variety of reasons could factor in, including a transition to working from home for most employees during the pandemic. New commission Director Keoki Kim says another factor is the current employment landscape. “If you have an opportunity to get another job, you’re not necessarily going to file a complaint and go through this process as opposed to just getting a better job where you don’t suffer discrimination,” Kim said. A human rights attorney who formerly served on the Alaska State Commission for Human Rights, Kim is also concerned that a lack of public awareness about what the Equal Rights Commission does may be affecting the reported claims. “It brings up another point, that I would really like to do a lot of outreach to the business community and be proactive about just educating people about what is discrimination, what is allowable or what is not allowable, and trying to prevent it from even reaching that level,” he said. Assembly Member Forrest Dunbar wondered if a change in the value of an employee may also be a contributing factor. “I’m a millennial, and this is the first time in my generation’s existence where we have actual market power,” Dunbar said. Millennials are now the largest age group in the workforce and are projected to grow in numbers through 2029, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. “Now if an employer is mistreating you, that’s their loss. There’s almost certainly going to be a job that is as good or better for you out there. It’s the first time in my generation’s history we have actual power in the marketplace, and I tell you a lot of folks are really upset about it,” Dunbar said. Kim joined the commission just last month and already has big plans to increase awareness of the commission and its work. He says outreach is critical. “We don’t just want to be the hammer that comes down as enforcement, but we also want to be the educators that allow people to understand what the law is so they can avoid it, because I think most businesses want to be successful, they don’t want to lose employees and they don’t want to be part of any enforcement process. They’re motivated, and perhaps they just need our help,” Kim said. “Because I find that a lot of people, they mean well, but not everybody necessarily understands every nuance of the law as it’s passed.” To assist in educating the public, the commission has created materials in some of Anchorage’s most-spoken languages to assist the public in the process of defending their rights. Literature is available in Korean, Russian, Tagalog, Hmong, Spanish and English. The commission, which consists of nine members, has only a small support staff of seven people to address complaints, but it is integral in preventing discrimination issues reached the litigation stage and keeping costs down overall. Former interim director of the commission Marie Husa is proud of the work that her team has been doing. She noted that the small team operates on a paltry .14% of the total municipal budget — and still manages to make a large community impact. “For the work we do and for the impact in the community, who we can help in the community, I thought that was striking and noteworthy,” Husa said. Copyright 2022 KTUU. All rights reserved. Read More Here

AP News Summary At 9:22 P.m. EDT https://digitalalaskanews.com/ap-news-summary-at-922-p-m-edt/ Trump openly embraces, amplifies QAnon conspiracy theories Donald Trump is increasingly embracing and endorsing the QAnon conspiracy theory, even as the number of frightening real-world events linked to the movement rises. Using his Truth Social platform, Trump this week reposted an image of himself overlaid with the words “the Storm is Coming.” In QAnon lore, the storm refers to Trump’s final victory, when his opponents supposedly will be tried and possibly executed. It’s among dozens of recent Q-related posts from the Republican former president, who also ended a rally with a QAnon song. Experts who study QAnon say Trump may be trying to rally his most stalwart supporters as investigations into his conduct escalate. Ukrainian president: Burial site contains torture victims IZIUM, Ukraine (AP) — Investigators searching through a mass burial site in Ukraine have found evidence that some of the dead were tortured, including bodies with broken limbs and ropes around their necks. That’s according to Ukrainian President Volodymr Zelenskyy, who spoke Friday. The site near Izium was recently recaptured from Russian forces. It appears to be one of the largest of its kind discovered in Ukraine. Zelenskyy rushed out a video statement just hours after the exhumations began, apparently to underscore the gravity of the discovery. US asks appeals court to lift judge’s Mar-a-Lago probe hold WASHINGTON (AP) — The Justice Department has asked a federal appeals court to lift a judge’s order that temporarily barred it from reviewing a batch of classified documents seized during an FBI search of former President Donald Trump’s Florida home last month. The department made the request Friday with the 11th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals in Atlanta. It says the judge’s hold is impeding the “government’s efforts to protect the nation’s security” and interfering with its investigation into the presence of top-secret information at Mar-a-Lago. It says the hold needs to be lifted immediately so work can resume. Military intel chief says Putin can’t achieve Ukraine goal Read More Here

Justice Department Asks Appeals Court To Intervene In Mar-A-Lago Classified Documents Fight | News Channel 3-12 https://digitalalaskanews.com/justice-department-asks-appeals-court-to-intervene-in-mar-a-lago-classified-documents-fight-news-channel-3-12/ By Tierney Sneed and Katelyn Polantz, CNN The Justice Department on Friday asked an appeals court to put on hold parts of a judge’s order requiring a third-party review of the materials seized last month at Mar-a-Lago. In its request with the 11th US Circuit Court of Appeals, the Justice Department says it wants the court to allow its criminal investigators to review the materials marked as classified and for the court to exclude those documents from the special master’s review of the search. The department sought the intervention after District Judge Aileen Cannon on Thursday rejected prosecutors’ request that they be allowed to restart their criminal investigation into the classified documents, which they said was necessary for assessing the national security risks in how the materials had been handled. “The court’s order hamstrings that investigation and places the FBI and Department of Justice (DOJ) under a Damoclean threat of contempt should the court later disagree with how investigators disaggregated their previously integrated criminal-investigative and national-security activities,” the Justice Department wrote. “It also irreparably harms the government by enjoining critical steps of an ongoing criminal investigation and needlessly compelling disclosure of highly sensitive records, including to Plaintiff’s counsel,” DOJ added. The Justice Department on Friday asked for the 11th Circuit to take action “as soon as practicable.” The new filing with the 11th Circuit fast-tracks the dispute over the Mar-a-Lago search up the appeals court and raises the possibility that the US Supreme Court will be asked to weigh in as well in the coming weeks. The Justice Department originally sought the warrant to search Mar-a-Lago after months of negotiations Trump’s team over documents that were brought from his White House to the Florida resort after he left office. The FBI is investigating at least three potential crimes in its probe: violations of the Espionage Act, illegal handling of government records and obstruction of justice. In her Thursday night order, Cannon cast doubt that the 100 or more documents in question were actually classified, concluding that the question was in dispute and one best reviewed by an independent party. She also blew off Justice Department arguments that the hold she had put on its criminal probe was putting national security at risk. That approach is at odds with the deference courts normally show to government assertions about classification and national security. Cannon also concluded that the classification designations were in doubt without the Trump team putting forward the type of evidence — such as declarations — that would suggest the materials weren’t in fact classified. Trump has claimed in media appearances he classified the documents he took to Mar-a-Lago, but his lawyers have yet to make that assertion in court filings. Cannon has repeatedly acknowledged in court decisions that her rationale is based in part on Trump’s status as a former president, writing Thursday that the “principles of equity” required her “to consider the specific context at issue, and that consideration is inherently impacted by the position formerly held by Plaintiff.” The case now lands before a circuit court where six of the 11 active judges are Trump-appointees. It will go to a panel of three randomly selected judges from the court. A panel that includes some of the appellate judges picked by the former President could still be sympathetic to the Justice Department, given the deference the government is usually given when it says national security is at risk. There is also skepticism among outside legal observers about Cannon’s decision to intervene in the first place, given that a separate magistrate judge in Florida approved the warrant for the search and the investigation itself is being run out of a grand jury in DC. Cannon — a 2020 appointee of then-President Trump — was randomly assigned the lawsuit that Trump filed two weeks after the FBI executed the search warrant. Documents marked as classified aren’t Trump’s property, DOJ says The Justice Department points out that none of the 100 documents marked as classified could possibly be Trump’s personal records — a type of claim he’s trying to make to keep some of the documents out of the evidence. “None of those rationales applies to the records bearing classification markings: The markings establish on the face of the documents that they are not [Trump]’s personal property,” the department writes. They continue, arguing out that Trump’s attempts to assert privileges are weak — if he’s even made them at all. “Neither [Trump] nor the court has suggested that they might be subject to attorney-client privilege. [Trump] has never even attempted to make or substantiate any assertion of executive privilege. Even if he did, no such assertion could justify restricting the Executive Branch’s review and use of these records for multiple independent reasons.” The Justice Department also takes issue with both Trump going to court to try to block investigators from being able to access classified records seized from Mar-a-Lago and with Cannon stepping in. Trump “lacks standing at least as to the discrete set of records with classification markings because those records are government property, over which the Executive Branch has exclusive control and in which Plaintiff has no property interest,” the DOJ writes. The government attorneys say that the courts can only get involved in exceptional circumstances, such as when constitutional rights are disregarded in a search or when a search subject has a special need to keep seized material, and that “cannot extend to these records.” “The district court reasoned that other materials in which Plaintiff [Trump] might have a cognizable interest cannot readily be separated from those in which he does not. But that rationale is inapplicable to records with classification markings, which are easily identifiable and already segregated from the other seized materials,” the department writes. This story has been updated with additional details. The-CNN-Wire & © 2022 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved. Read More Here

Pennsylvania Republican Governor Candidate Doug Mastriano Registered To Vote In New Jersey — Just Like Dr. Oz https://digitalalaskanews.com/pennsylvania-republican-governor-candidate-doug-mastriano-registered-to-vote-in-new-jersey-just-like-dr-oz/ Doug Mastriano, the Republican candidate for Pennsylvania governor, was reportedly registered to vote in New Jersey until last year, opening himself up to the kind of carpetbagger accusations that have dogged Dr. Mehmet Oz. The underdog GOP candidate grew up in the Garden State and voted in Jersey for 28 years until 2010, the New Jersey Globe reported. Mastriano, who claims the 2020 election was stolen from former President Donald Trump, remained registered and eligible to vote in New Jersey until notifying authorities that he was no longer living there in 2021. In the meantime, the staunch Trump supporter moved to Pennsylvania where he won a state Senate seat in 2018. There is no indication that Mastriano, who attended the Jan. 6 rally but says he didn’t storm the Capitol, voted or even tried to vote in both states at the same time. But the revelation comes as a reminder of Mastriano’s roots in New Jersey, a less-than-welcome biographical detail for a wannabe Keystone State governor. Oz, a fellow Republican running for U.S. Senate from Pennsylvania, is also a longtime New Jersey resident. He moved to Pennsylvania to run for the seat left open by the retiring Sen. Pat Toomey, R-Pa. The TV doctor’s opponent, Democratic Lt. Gov. John Fetterman, has relentlessly needled Oz about his Garden State roots, claiming he doesn’t know how to pump his own gas because self-service is banned in New Jersey. Fetterman also recruited Jersey celebs like Snooki from “Jersey Shore” and rocker Steve Van Zandt to make mock pleas for Oz to abandon his campaign and come home. Mastriano may not face similarly fierce attacks because he was serving in the military for most of the years he was registered to vote in New Jersey. The election denier won a crowded GOP primary. But he faces an uphill fight in the general election against Democratic Attorney General Josh Shapiro. Polls show Shapiro leading by about 10% over Mastriano, who has virtually no cash in his campaign war chest. Fetterman is also leading Oz but by a somewhat smaller margin. ——- Read More Here

Breaches Of Voting Machine Data Raise Worries For Midterms https://digitalalaskanews.com/breaches-of-voting-machine-data-raise-worries-for-midterms/ By CHRISTINA A. CASSIDY Associated Press ATLANTA (AP) — Sensitive voting system passwords posted online. Copies of confidential voting software available for download. Ballot-counting machines inspected by people not supposed to have access. The list of suspected security breaches at local election offices since the 2020 election keeps growing, with investigations underway in at least three states — Colorado, Georgia and Michigan. The stakes appeared to rise this week when the existence of a federal probe came to light involving a prominent loyalist to former President Donald Trump who has been promoting voting machine conspiracy theories across the country. While much remains unknown about the investigations, one of the most pressing questions is what it all could mean for security of voting machines with the midterm elections less than two months away. Election security experts say the breaches by themselves have not necessarily increased threats to the November voting. Election officials already assume hostile foreign governments might have the sensitive data, and so they take precautions to protect their voting systems. The more immediate concern is the possibility that rogue election workers, including those sympathetic to lies about the 2020 presidential election, might use their access to election equipment and the knowledge gained through the breaches to launch an attack from within. That could be intended to gain an advantage for their desired candidate or party, or to introduce system problems that would sow further distrust in the election results. In some of the suspected security breaches, authorities are investigating whether local officials provided unauthorized access to people who copied software and hard drive data, and in several cases shared it publicly. After the Georgia breach, a group of election security experts said the unauthorized copying and sharing of election data from rural Coffee County presented “serious threats” to the November election. They urged the state election board to replace the touchscreen devices used throughout the state and use only hand-marked paper ballots. Harri Hursti, a leading expert in voting security, said he is concerned about another use of the breached data. Access to the voting equipment data or software can be used to develop a realistic looking video in which someone claims to have manipulated a voting system, he said. Such a fake video posted online or to social media on or after Election Day could create chaos for an election office and cause voters to challenge the accuracy of the results. “If you have those rogue images, now you can start manufacturing false, compelling evidence — false evidence of wrongdoing that never happened,” Hursti said. “You can start creating very compelling imaginary evidence.” There has been no evidence that voting machines have been manipulated, either during the 2020 election or in this year’s primaries. But conspiracy theories widely promoted among some conservatives have led to calls for replacing the machines with hand-marked and hand-counted ballots and raised concerns that they could be targeted by people working inside election offices or at polling places. The suspected breaches appear to be orchestrated or encouraged by people who falsely claim the 2020 election was stolen from Trump. In several of the cases, employees of local election offices or election boards gave access to voting systems to people who were not authorized to have it. The incidents emerged into public view after the voting system passwords for Mesa County, Colorado, were posted online, prompting a local investigation and a successful effort to replace the county clerk from overseeing elections. MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell, who has organized or attended forums around the U.S. peddling conspiracy theories about voting machines, said this week that he had received a subpoena from a federal grand jury investigating the breach in Colorado and was ordered to hand over his cellphone to FBI agents who approached him at a fast-food restaurant in Minnesota. “And they told me not to tell anybody,” Lindell said in a video afterward. “OK, I won’t. But I am.” Lindell and others have been traveling the country over the past year, holding events where attendees are told that voting machines have been corrupted, that officials are “selected” rather than elected and that widespread fraud cost Trump the 2020 election. In an interview with the Star Tribune of Minneapolis, Lindell said FBI agents questioned him about the Colorado breach and Dominion Voting Systems. The company provides voting equipment used in about 30 states and has had its machines targeted in the Colorado, Georgia and Michigan breaches. When agents asked him why he flies between different states, Linden told them, “I’m going to attorney generals and politicians, and I’m trying to get them to get rid of these voting machines in our country.” The Justice Department did not respond when asked for details about its investigation. Dominion has sued Lindell and others, accusing them of defamation. In a statement this week, the company said it would not comment about ongoing investigations but said its systems are secure. It noted that no credible evidence has been provided to show that its machines “did anything other than count votes accurately and reliably in all states.” The scope of the federal grand jury probe in Colorado isn’t known, but local authorities have charged Mesa County clerk Tina Peters in what they described as a “deceptive scheme which was designed to influence public servants, breach security protocols, exceed permissible access to voting equipment and set in motion the eventual distribution of confidential information to unauthorized people.” Peters has pleaded not guilty and said she had the authority to investigate concerns that the voting equipment had been manipulated. She has appeared at numerous events with Lindell over the past year, including Lindell’s “cybersymposium” last August in which a digital copy of Mesa County’s election management system was distributed. David Becker, a former U.S. Justice Department attorney who now leads the Center for Election Innovation & Research, notes the irony of those who raise alarms about voting equipment being involved in allegations of breaches of the same systems. “The people who have been attacking the integrity of elections are destroying the actual integrity of elections,” he said. ___ Associated Press writer Michael Balsamo contributed to this report. ___ Follow the AP’s voting coverage at: https://apnews.com/hub/voting Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission. Read More Here

LETTER: Democrats Misread Voters https://digitalalaskanews.com/letter-democrats-misread-voters/ Alice Wilder, letter to the editor Sep. 16, 2022 President Joe Biden walks towards Marine One on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, Friday, Jan. 21, 2022, to travel to Camp David, Md. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)Andrew Harnik, STF / Associated Press As each election cycle rolls around, I learn more and more about myself. From President Obama I learned I’m a Bible-thumping, gun-toting redneck. Hillary Clinton said I’m in a basket of deplorables, who trades at Walmart and smells bad. She and Katie Couric think there should be training camps to reprogram me because of my ignorance in voting for Trump. From President Biden I learned I’m a white supremacist, a racist and a MAGA semi-fascist who’s destroying democracy.   I plead guilty to all charges and wear them as my red badge of courage.      Former President Trump and I are accused of destroying democracy by Biden and his fellow travelers – Sen. Bernie Sanders, AOC, Sen. Elizabeth Warren and the Squad who are trying to turn the USA into a third-world socialist country like Venezuela or Cuba. Like the Castros, they will rule. Biden and friends trample the Constitution and First and Second Amendments, saying since the Constitution was written by old white men who were slave owners, thus it’s outdated and irrelevant. They are politicizing the FBI and DOJ. Mark Zuckerberg and cable news admit the FBI strongly suggested they bury the Hunter Biden stories before the 2020 election. Parents objecting at school board meetings are called domestic terrorists. Biden has added 87,000 IRS agents to do audits and allow the IRS to check our bank accounts.  But no voter ID. We’re learning the White House and Big Tech co-ordinated to suppress free speech, also politicizing the military with critical race theory classes – and probably wokeness and cancel culture, too. Biden even planned a disinformation bureau. But they are allowing the drug cartels to flood the country with fentanyl, wanting to pack the Supreme Court and do away with the filibuster when the vote doesn’t go their way. They are also lying about not wanting to defund the police.  And Trump is destroying democracy? Alice Wilder, Beaumont Read More Here

Special Master In Trump Mar-A-Lago Case To Hold First Hearing Tuesday https://digitalalaskanews.com/special-master-in-trump-mar-a-lago-case-to-hold-first-hearing-tuesday/ The third-party arbiter appointed to independently review the classified documents seized from Donald Trump’s Florida resort last month will hold his first hearing in the case in Brooklyn federal court on Tuesday. Judge Raymond Dearie, 78, directed lawyers for the former president and Department of Justice prosecutors to submit agenda items for the Sept. 20 preliminary conference, according to court documents filed in West Palm Beach federal court Friday. Dearie, a longtime Brooklyn federal court judge, was appointed Thursday as a special master in the case at Trump’s request. The government did not object to him being brought on to sift through the trove of files the FBI took from Mar-a-Lago on Aug. 8 to determine if any of them could be subject to claims of attorney-client or executive privilege. Judge Raymond Dearie directed lawyers for former President Donald Trump and federal prosecutors to submit agenda items ahead of the hearing. Gregory P. Mango Agents raided Trump’s West Palm Beach home on Aug. 8. AP The feds have been blocked from examining any of the approximately 300 seized classified documents that Trump held onto after leaving office since US District Judge Aileen Cannon granted his team’s request for a special master last week. Cannon on Thursday denied a request from the government to lift the block until Dearie finishes his review. The Trump-appointed judge imposed a Nov. 30 deadline for the special master’s vetting process. Prosecutors are investigating whether the potential 2024 presidential candidate illegally commandeered national defense records and obstructed the justice department’s efforts to recover them. Read More Here

India’s Richest Man Surpasses Bezos On Billionaires List https://digitalalaskanews.com/indias-richest-man-surpasses-bezos-on-billionaires-list/ The jostling among the world’s richest humans intensified Friday as three men rotated through the No. 2 spot in the span of 24 hours, highlighting the volatility of the markets and meteoric rise of Indian billionaire Gautam Adani on a list long dominated by tech titans. On Friday morning, Adani edged out French business magnate Bernard Arnault and pushed Amazon founder Jeff Bezos down to the No. 4 spot on Forbes’s real-time billionaire rankings. The shake-up didn’t end there, however, Adani fell to No. 3, ahead of Bezos, by the afternoon. By 5 p.m. Friday, Arnault was worth $154.7 billion, Adani $152.2 billion, and Bezos $146.9 billion. Staggering numbers by any measure, but well behind the $273.2 billion fortune of Elon Musk. As chair of the Adani Group, a multinational conglomerate, Adani’s portfolio of companies and investments spans coal mining, data centers, airports and renewable energy. And his wealth has soared over the past year, just as the value of the largest American tech companies has slipped alongside much of Wall Street’s biggest names. Read More Here