Digital Alaska News

Kanye West's Instagram Account Gets Restricted For Violating Platform's Rules And Guidelines https://digitalalaskanews.com/kanye-wests-instagram-account-gets-restricted-for-violating-platforms-rules-and-guidelines/ Kanye West attends Sean Combs 50th Birthday Bash presented by Ciroc Vodka on December 14, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. Kevin Mazur/Getty Kanye West Kanye West is facing action from Meta after sharing what some have deemed an anti-Semitic post. Instagram restricted the Grammy Award winner’s account and deleted content from his page after he violated the social media platform’s rules and guidelines, according to NBC News, although a Meta spokesperson did not confirm to the outlet what content violated their rules. In a now-deleted post from Friday, West shared a screenshot of a text exchange between himself and Diddy, in which allegedly appeared to show West claiming that Combs was controlled by Jewish people. “Jesus is Jew,” he wrote in the caption, reported NBC News. RELATED: Kanye West Turns on Jared Kushner in New Interview, Says He Was ‘Holding Trump Back’ The American Jewish Committee (AJC) on Friday called out West’s language for perpetuating “anti-Semitic tropes like greed and control,” writing in a statement: “Kanye West should figure out how to make a point without using antisemitism. Over the last week, the musician has fomented hatred of Jews.” They also referenced his appearance this week on Tucker Carlson Tonight, in which he said that Jared Kushner‘s work with Israel that resulted in a peace treaty with the United Arab Emirates “was to make money.” “The greed theme has led to a long list of Jewish stereotypes, such as being money-oriented or controlling the world’s finances. The control theme seeks to falsely portray Jews as secret puppet masters ruling over others,” AJC continued. “Ye needs to learn that words matter.” RELATED VIDEO: Gigi Hadid Slams Kanye West for Attacking Fashion Editor Gabriella Karefa-Johnson: ‘You’re a Bully’ Following his controversial two-part interview on the Fox News show in which he talked about the blowback from wearing a “White Lives Matter” shirt for his Yeezy show Monday at Paris Fashion Week, West’s social media activity abruptly moved from Instagram to Twitter on Friday night, where he called out Meta owner Mark Zuckerberg. West was last on Twitter in November 2020, Election Day. “Look at this Mark. How you gone kick me off instagram?,” he wrote in part, sharing a throwback photo of the two of them singing karaoke. Elon Musk responded to the tweet with the reception, “Welcome back to Twitter, my friend!” Read More Here

Your Turn, Oct. 9: When Does A Fence Become A Wall? https://digitalalaskanews.com/your-turn-oct-9-when-does-a-fence-become-a-wall/ Dear Gov. Greg Abbott: During the Sept. 30 debate, in your response to the draconian state abortion bill you signed into law, you said you are a Catholic and you were the first person to hold your adopted newborn daughter. You stated everyone should be able to have that precious moment, and you said you govern on your personal principles. Thus the new abortion law in Texas. You do not allow, however, for others to act on their principles. Under the law you signed, you have tied the hands of obstetricians and doctors who treat and care for women so they can have safe deliveries of their babies. Beyond arguing against the law because it omits abortions for rape victims, including 11-year-old girls, you are neglecting to see the myriad reasons an abortion might be medically necessary to keep the mother from dying. These mothers would love to have that “precious moment” holding their babies, but in many instances, they may die or lose their ability to have another child. This is all due to the “lawful neglect” created by this law. It is shameful for you not to take into account the pain, damage and despair of women and their families. Women deserve to be treated with care, especially during vulnerable times. Erin Strauss debt relief Students need help, too I have heard people complain about students having their school debt forgiven. “Why bail them out?” they ask. How selfish are some who seem to think, “I didn’t get help, so why should someone else get it?” Does anyone want to bet that the same people who are complaining about student debt relief don’t say a thing when the government helps big business? Think about the bailouts for Wall Street and corporate farms. No complaints then. I wonder why some have no problems with a business getting help but object to American citizens getting it. David Maurice, Schertz politics Trump a clear danger If former President Donald Trump, with his hyperbolic, insulting and brutal language is not calling for violence, I don’t know what else to label his rhetoric. If he has not been, and is not still, the most dangerous man to have been in the White House and to seek it still, I don’t know who is. He is the most irresponsible, unprofessional and least diplomatic person I’ve experienced in politics in the United States. God bless those who recognize the clear and present danger he and those like him represent as they work to keep him from doing more damage to this country. Valerie Overstreet How parties see America In every election the character and policies of each candidate are important, but so is the vision of the party they represent. The GOP sees today’s America as a very dark place, full of conspiracies and rigged elections, full of people who hate them, God and America. Its leaders claim that only they can make our country great again as it once was. The Democratic Party sees our country as already great, even with its flaws, with optimism that together we can build a future brighter for all people. Vote for the party focused on an inclusive future. John Fehlauer Immigration More analysis like this Re: “Political theatrics muddle immigration debate,” Another View, Oct. 1: University of Texas at San Antonio professor Jon Taylor’s guest column was very helpful. I appreciate thoughtful analysis like this. I would like to read an article on the various status types of visas given to immigrants. What, for instance, is temporary protected status and which immigrants receive it? Thanks for your continuing coverage of this important issue. Francille Radmann When a fence is a wall Whatever is going up at the border in Texas, it’s not a wall. You’d think that cowboys and farmers would know the difference. Someday, maybe, I can visit the Great Fence of China, and hopefully I won’t slip through the slots. Lucia Casares Uvalde Let the town heal The grief period for the victims of the Uvalde school shooting will last for a long time because of the media coverage. Maybe it’s time to back off from coverage and let people in Uvalde have a breather so time can help heal some of their hurt. Our prayers continue for all those caught up in this tragedy. Bill Ault Read More Here

Trump Set To Appear With Lombardo, Laxalt At Northern Nevada Rally https://digitalalaskanews.com/trump-set-to-appear-with-lombardo-laxalt-at-northern-nevada-rally/ MINDEN—Former President Donald Trump is set to appear at a rally in Minden Saturday evening and will be joined by U.S. Senate candidate Adam Laxalt and Republican gubernatorial candidate Sheriff Joe Lombardo, both of whom have been previously endorsed by Trump. It’s not the former president’s first trip to the state this year. Trump appeared at a Las Vegas campaign event held for Lombardo and Laxalt in July, during which he called Nevada a “cesspool of crime.” I’m at the Minden-Tahoe airport where former Pres. Trump is set to appear. Other guests will include U.S. Senate candidate @AdamLaxalt & gov candidate @JoeLombardoNV. Follow along for updates from me for @reviewjournal. pic.twitter.com/cd7oxPuyxe — Taylor R. Avery (@travery98) October 8, 2022 Nor is it Trump’s first rally at the Minden-Tahoe airport. The former president spoke at an event held in same place a little over two years ago. The event, which was attended by thousands of supporters, led to state officials issuing Douglas County more than $5,000 in fines for violating state COVID-19 restrictions. The event is exactly two weeks before the beginning of early voting in Nevada and could mean the difference in tight races for some of the state’s top spots. Laxalt, the state’s former attorney general, is running against current Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto in one of the most closely watched in the nation, with many polls placing the race within the margin of error. Lombardo is running against Democratic Gov. Steve Sisolak. They faced off for the first, and likely last time, during a debate in Las Vegas on Oct. 2, which was hosted by The Nevada Independent. During the debate, Lombardo declined to say Trump was a “great president.” “I wouldn’t use that that adjective. I think he was a sound president,” Lombardo said during the debate. Later, his campaign walked back the remark in a release which said Trump was a great president by “all measures.” In an emailed statement sent before the rally began, Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto again linked her opponent to the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol. “Adam Laxalt led the fight to overturn Nevada’s 2020 election for Donald Trump, and now he’s once again standing with the defeated former president instead of the people of Nevada,” she said in an emailed statement. “The baseless lies that Laxalt and Trump pushed inspired a violent attack on our Capitol and law enforcement, and neither one of them has shown remorse. Laxalt will do whatever it takes to gain power because he’s only out for himself.” A spokesperson with Gov. Steve Sisolak’s campaign likened Lombardo’s appearance with the former president as a “desperate attempt to change the subject.” “Whether it’s on abortion or Donald Trump, Lombardo has consistently shown that he will do or say anything to win, including lying to Nevadans whenever it is politically convenient. At the end of the day, no amount of Trump visits will change the fact that Lombardo is a corrupt, failed politician who is only looking out for himself,” said Sisolak spokesperson Natalie Gould in a statement sent before the start of the rally. This is a developing story. Check back for updates. Contact Taylor R. Avery at TAvery@reviewjournal.com. Follow @travery98 on Twitter. Read More Here

Tropical Storm Julia Strengthens Into Category 1 Hurricane https://digitalalaskanews.com/tropical-storm-julia-strengthens-into-category-1-hurricane/ MIDDLE AND LET HER HALF OF THE WORKWEEK ASKED WEEK. THE LATEST ON JULIA, IT IS NOW A HURRICANE AT THAT IS BECAUSE THERE ARE TWO PLANES IN THE SYSTEM RIGHT NOW. AS THEY WERE INVESTIGATED THIS STORM THEY DID FIND HURRICANE STRENGTH WINDS. IT WAS JUST ISSUED A SPECIAL ADVISORY AT 7:00. WINDS SUSTAINING AT 75 MILES PER HOUR. RIGHT NOW IT IS ABOUT 140 MILES OFF THE COAST OF NICARAGUA. THIS WILL MOVE WEST AND MAKE LANDFALL EARLY TOMORROW MORNING AS A CATEGORY ONE HURRICANE AND WEAKEN INTO A TROPICAL STORM AS IT MOVES INLAND. IT COULD ACTUALLY MOVE OUT TOWARDS THE PACIFIC OCEAN AND IT HAS A LOW CHANCE OF REDEVELOPING IN THE PACIFIC. WE WILL KEEP AN EYE ON THAT PART RIGHT NOW THE CHANCES LOOK FAIRLY LOW. IT IS EXPECTED TO BRING HEAVY RAIN ACROSS CENTRAL AMERICA. SOME AREAS WILL PICK UP OVER A FOOT OF RAINFALL AND THAT COULD CAUSE FLASH FLOODING. NO IMPACTS HERE AT HOME IN TERMS OF JULIA BUT LOOK AT OUR LOCAL FORECAST. FEBRUARY — FABULOUS FALL WEATHER STICKS AROUND AN BEAST OR TO SEE THE RAIN CHANCES INCREASE BY EARLY NEXT WEEK. Tropical Storm Julia strengthens into Category 1 hurricane Tropical Storm Julia strengthened into a hurricane on Saturday and is forecast to move toward Central America. As of Saturday night, the system was 20 miles west-southwest of San Andres Island, Colombia and 125 miles east-southeast of Bluefields, Nicaragua.Julia had winds of 75 mph, and the system was moving west at 17 mph.”On the forecast track, the center of Julia is expected to reach the coast of Nicaragua overnight, move across Nicaragua on Sunday, and then move near or along the Pacific coasts of Honduras, El Salvador, and Guatemala through Monday,” the National Hurricane Center wrote. “Strengthening is forecast until landfall in Nicaragua.”Julia is forecast to weaken as it moves inland and dissipate by Monday. This storm is not expected to impact Florida.SUMMARY OF WATCHES AND WARNINGS IN EFFECT:A hurricane warning is in effect for…* San Andres, Providencia, and Santa Catalina Islands Colombia* Nicaragua from Bluefields to Puerto CabezasA hurricane watch is in effect for…* Nicaragua north of Puerto Cabezas to the Honduras/Nicaragua borderA tropical storm warning is in effect for…* Nicaragua south of Bluefields to the Nicaragua/Costa Rica border* Nicaragua north of Puerto Cabezas to the Honduras/Nicaragua border* Pacific coast of Nicaragua* Pacific coast of Honduras* Coast of El SalvadorA tropical storm watch is in effect for…* Honduras from the Nicaragua/Honduras border to Punta PatucaKNOW WHAT TO DO WHEN A HURRICANE WATCH IS ISSUEDStay tuned to WESH 2 News, WESH.COM, or NOAA Weather Radio for storm updates.Prepare to bring inside any lawn furniture, outdoor decorations or ornaments, trash cans, hanging plants, and anything else that can be picked up by the wind.Understand hurricane forecast models and cones.Prepare to cover all windows of your home. If shutters have not been installed, use precut plywood.Check batteries and stock up on canned food, first-aid supplies, drinking water, and medications.The WESH 2 First Warning Weather Team recommends you have these items ready before the storm strikes.Bottled water: One gallon of water per person per dayCanned food and soup, such as beans and chiliCan opener for the cans without the easy-open lidsAssemble a first-aid kitTwo weeks’ worth of prescription medicationsBaby/children’s needs, such as formula and diapersFlashlight and batteriesBattery-operated weather radioWHAT TO DO WHEN A HURRICANE WARNING IS ISSUEDListen to the advice of local officials. If you are advised to evacuate, leave.Complete preparation activities.If you are not advised to evacuate, stay indoors, away from windows.Be alert for tornadoes. Tornadoes can happen during a hurricane and after it passes over. Remain indoors, in the center of your home, in a closet or bathroom without windows.HOW YOUR SMARTPHONE CAN HELP DURING A HURRICANEA smartphone can be your best friend in a hurricane — with the right websites and apps, you can turn it into a powerful tool for guiding you through a storm’s approach, arrival and aftermath.Download the WESH 2 News app for iOS | AndroidEnable emergency alerts — if you have an iPhone, select settings, then go into notifications. From there, look for government alerts and enable emergency alerts.If you have an Android phone, from the home page of the app, scroll to the right along the bottom and click on “settings.” On the settings menu, click on “severe weather alerts.” From the menu, select from most severe, moderate-severe, or all alerts.PET AND ANIMAL SAFETYYour pet should be a part of your family plan. If you must evacuate, the most important thing you can do to protect your pets is to evacuate them too. Leaving pets behind, even if you try to create a safe space for them, could result in injury or death.Contact hotels and motels outside of your immediate area to see if they take pets.Ask friends, relatives and others outside of the affected area whether they could shelter your animal. Tropical Storm Julia strengthened into a hurricane on Saturday and is forecast to move toward Central America. As of Saturday night, the system was 20 miles west-southwest of San Andres Island, Colombia and 125 miles east-southeast of Bluefields, Nicaragua. Julia had winds of 75 mph, and the system was moving west at 17 mph. This content is imported from Twitter. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site. “On the forecast track, the center of Julia is expected to reach the coast of Nicaragua overnight, move across Nicaragua on Sunday, and then move near or along the Pacific coasts of Honduras, El Salvador, and Guatemala through Monday,” the National Hurricane Center wrote. “Strengthening is forecast until landfall in Nicaragua.” Julia is forecast to weaken as it moves inland and dissipate by Monday. This storm is not expected to impact Florida. SUMMARY OF WATCHES AND WARNINGS IN EFFECT: A hurricane warning is in effect for… * San Andres, Providencia, and Santa Catalina Islands Colombia * Nicaragua from Bluefields to Puerto Cabezas A hurricane watch is in effect for… * Nicaragua north of Puerto Cabezas to the Honduras/Nicaragua border A tropical storm warning is in effect for… * Nicaragua south of Bluefields to the Nicaragua/Costa Rica border * Nicaragua north of Puerto Cabezas to the Honduras/Nicaragua border * Pacific coast of Nicaragua * Pacific coast of Honduras * Coast of El Salvador A tropical storm watch is in effect for… * Honduras from the Nicaragua/Honduras border to Punta Patuca KNOW WHAT TO DO WHEN A HURRICANE WATCH IS ISSUED Stay tuned to WESH 2 News, WESH.COM, or NOAA Weather Radio for storm updates. Prepare to bring inside any lawn furniture, outdoor decorations or ornaments, trash cans, hanging plants, and anything else that can be picked up by the wind. Understand hurricane forecast models and cones. Prepare to cover all windows of your home. If shutters have not been installed, use precut plywood. Check batteries and stock up on canned food, first-aid supplies, drinking water, and medications. The WESH 2 First Warning Weather Team recommends you have these items ready before the storm strikes. Bottled water: One gallon of water per person per day Canned food and soup, such as beans and chili Can opener for the cans without the easy-open lids Assemble a first-aid kit Two weeks’ worth of prescription medications Baby/children’s needs, such as formula and diapers Flashlight and batteries Battery-operated weather radio WHAT TO DO WHEN A HURRICANE WARNING IS ISSUED Listen to the advice of local officials. If you are advised to evacuate, leave. Complete preparation activities. If you are not advised to evacuate, stay indoors, away from windows. Be alert for tornadoes. Tornadoes can happen during a hurricane and after it passes over. Remain indoors, in the center of your home, in a closet or bathroom without windows. HOW YOUR SMARTPHONE CAN HELP DURING A HURRICANE A smartphone can be your best friend in a hurricane — with the right websites and apps, you can turn it into a powerful tool for guiding you through a storm’s approach, arrival and aftermath. Download the WESH 2 News app for iOS | Android Enable emergency alerts — if you have an iPhone, select settings, then go into notifications. From there, look for government alerts and enable emergency alerts. If you have an Android phone, from the home page of the app, scroll to the right along the bottom and click on “settings.” On the settings menu, click on “severe weather alerts.” From the menu, select from most severe, moderate-severe, or all alerts. PET AND ANIMAL SAFETY Your pet should be a part of your family plan. If you must evacuate, the most important thing you can do to protect your pets is to evacuate them too. Leaving pets behind, even if you try to create a safe space for them, could result in injury or death. Contact hotels and motels outside of your immediate area to see if they take pets. Ask friends, relatives and others outside of the affected area whether they could shelter your animal. Read More Here

FEMA Provides Alaska Disaster Assistance Hotline https://digitalalaskanews.com/fema-provides-alaska-disaster-assistance-hotline/ ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) – The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has established an Alaska-specific disaster assistance hotline for residents who have experienced damage or loss from the severe mid-September storm in the areas of the Bering Strait, Kashunamiut, Lower Kuskokwim, and Lower Yukon. The online news release states residents affected by the storm can apply for FEMA disaster assistance in the following ways: Residents can call 1-866-342-1699, the Anchorage-based FEMA hotline will be operable from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., Monday through Saturday, and from 12 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 9 and Oct. 16. Dial 711 for TTY users. For TTY users with an out-of-state area code, dial 1-800-770-8973 for Alaska Relay. Go online to disasterassistance.gov. Download the FEMA app. “FEMA’s Individual Assistance program may include grants for temporary housing expenses, basic home repairs, or other essential disaster-related needs that are not covered by insurance. In Alaska, subsistence items lost or damaged from the September storms may be eligible for assistance,” the release says. The State of Alaska has an Individual Assistance Program, which is a separate application. Residents should apply for both FEMA and Alaska’s disaster assistance program. “If you are found ineligible for federal assistance, you may still qualify for assistance through the State of Alaska, but if you do not submit both applications it is possible that no assistance will be available to you,” says FEMA. Some residents who apply may be referred to the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) to apply for a disaster loan. Here are the ways to apply for an SBA loan: Apply online at https://disasterloanassistance.sba.gov/. Call 1-(800) 659-2955, for TTY users please dial 711. Email disastercustomerservice@sba.gov for more information on SBA disaster assistance. More information is available about FEMA’S support for the impact of the storm on Western Alaska on the FEMA Disaster Site. . Copyright 2022 KTUU. All rights reserved. Read More Here

In Trump Case, Texas Creates A Headache For Georgia Prosecutors https://digitalalaskanews.com/in-trump-case-texas-creates-a-headache-for-georgia-prosecutors/ ATLANTA — Witnesses called to testify in a Georgia criminal investigation into former President Donald Trump and his allies have not always come willingly. A number of them have fought their subpoenas in their home-state courts, only to have local judges order them to cooperate. That was the case with Trump-aligned lawyers John Eastman in New Mexico, Jenna Ellis in Colorado and Rudy Giuliani in New York; Giuliani was also told by an Atlanta judge that he could come “on a train, on a bus or Uber” after his lawyers said a health condition prevented him from flying. But the state of Texas is proving to be an outlier, creating serious headaches for Fani Willis, the Fulton County district attorney, who is leading the investigation into efforts by Trump and others to overturn his 2020 election loss in Georgia. Last month, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, the state’s highest criminal court, thwarted Willis’ effort to force Jacki Pick, a Republican lawyer and pundit, to testify in Atlanta, saying that her subpoena had essentially expired. But in a pair of opinions, a majority of the judges on the all-Republican court went further, indicating that they believed the Georgia special grand jury conducting the inquiry may not have the legal standing to compel testimony from Texas witnesses. After the court’s ruling, two other pro-Trump Texans, Sidney Powell and Phil Waldron, did not show up for their scheduled court dates in Atlanta. And while there may be workarounds for Willis — experts say the Atlanta prosecutors could go to Texas to depose the witnesses — it looks to some Georgia observers like a pattern of Texas Republicans meddling with Georgia when it comes to the fate of Trump. “It does seem like there’s a substantial resistance from Texas and Texans to forcing people to cooperate in ways that we haven’t seen from any other jurisdiction,” said Anthony Michael Kreis, a constitutional law professor at Georgia State University in Atlanta. Ken Paxton, the Texas attorney general, has also weighed in, filing an amicus brief late last month along with other Republican attorneys general that supported efforts by Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina to avoid testifying in the Atlanta investigation. Paxton, in a statement accompanying his brief, assailed the investigation for what he said were its “repeated attempts to ignore” the Constitution. Paxton, who is running for reelection this year despite having been indicted and arrested on criminal securities-fraud charges, has sought to intervene in Georgia before. After the 2020 election, he sued Georgia and three other swing states that Trump lost, in a far-fetched attempt to get the Supreme Court to delay the certification of their presidential electors. By refusing to compel the three Texas residents to testify in Georgia, the court is breaking with a long tradition of cooperation between states in producing subpoenaed witnesses. All 50 states have versions of what is known as the Uniform Act, which was created in the 1930s to establish a framework for one state to compel testimony from a witness residing in another. Willis, in a statement, said, “We expect every state to abide by the Constitutional requirement to ensure that full faith and credit is given by them to the laws and proceedings of other states. That requirement includes abiding by the interstate compact to produce witnesses for other states’ judicial proceedings.” Willis is weighing potential conspiracy and racketeering charges, among others, and is examining the phone call that Trump made on Jan. 2, 2021, to Brad Raffensperger, the Georgia secretary of state, imploring him to “find” nearly 12,000 votes, or enough to reverse the outcome of the Georgia vote. On Friday, her office filed paperwork seeking to compel testimony from three more witnesses, The Associated Press reported: former House Speaker Newt Gingrich as well as Michael Flynn, a former national security adviser, and Eric Herschmann, a lawyer who worked in the Trump White House. Nearly 20 people, including Giuliani, have already been informed that they are targets of Willis’ investigation and could face criminal charges. Pick, a radio host and former lawyer for House Republicans whose husband, Doug Deason, is a prominent Republican donor and Dallas power broker, has also been told she is among the targets of the investigation, according to one of her lawyers, Geoffrey Harper. She played a central role in one of two December 2020 hearings before Georgia lawmakers that were organized by Giuliani, who advanced a number of falsehoods about the election. During a hearing before the Georgia Senate, Pick narrated a video feed that showed ballot counting taking place at a downtown Atlanta arena where voting was held. Fulton County prosecutors are also seeking the testimony of Powell, who like Pick lives in the Dallas area. She is a lawyer and conspiracy theorist who played a high-profile role in efforts to keep Trump in power. In Georgia, she helped put together a team of Trump allies and consultants who gained access to a wide range of voter data and voting equipment in rural Coffee County; they are currently being investigated by Raffensperger’s office, as well as the Georgia Bureau of Investigation and Willis’ office. The body overseeing the Fulton County investigation is known under Georgia law as a special purpose grand jury. It can sit for longer periods than a regular grand jury and has the ability to subpoena targets of the investigation to provide testimony, though it lacks the power to indict. Once a special grand jury issues a report and recommendations, indictments can be sought from a regular grand jury. A majority of judges on the Texas court expressed the view that the Georgia grand jury was not a proper criminal grand jury because it lacks indictment authority, and thus likely lacks standing to compel the appearance of witnesses from Texas. “I am inclined to find such a body is not the kind of grand jury envisioned by the Uniform Act,” wrote Judge Kevin Yeary. “And if I may be wrong about that, I would place the burden to show otherwise on the requesting state.” His view was essentially backed by four other judges on the nine-member court. The question of whether the Fulton County special grand jury is civil or criminal in nature came up in late August, when lawyers for Gov. Brian Kemp, a Republican, unsuccessfully sought to quash a subpoena demanding that he testify. The governor’s lawyers argued that the special grand jury was civil, and that Kemp would not have to testify in a civil action under the doctrine of sovereign immunity. But in a written order on Aug. 29, Fulton County Superior Court Judge Robert C.I. McBurney rejected the idea that the special grand jury was civil, noting that none of the paperwork establishing the grand jury mentioned that it would be considering civil actions. “That a special purpose grand jury cannot issue an indictment does not diminish the criminal nature of its work or somehow transmogrify that criminal investigation into a civil one,” McBurney wrote. “Police officers, too, lack the authority to indict anyone, but their investigations are plainly criminal.” Ronald Wright, a law professor at Wake Forest University who studies the work of criminal prosecutors, said that the Texas court’s decision, based on its interpretation of the special grand jury’s purpose, appeared unusual. “I haven’t heard anything about one state saying categorically, ‘No we read your statute, that doesn’t apply here, you can’t get this witness,’” he said. This story was originally published at nytimes.com. Read it here. Read More Here

Kari Lake Was Booted From Arizona Town Hall Audience Before Hobbs Took The Stage https://digitalalaskanews.com/kari-lake-was-booted-from-arizona-town-hall-audience-before-hobbs-took-the-stage-2/ Democrat Katie Hobbs won’t debate her opponent in Arizona’s race for governor, yet Republican Kari Lake tried to make it happen at a candidate town hall that organizers say she disrupted. Under the agreed-upon rules for the pre-recorded event, which was taped Monday and airs at 7 p.m. Saturday Arizona time, the candidates were not supposed to be onstage at the same time and Hobbs was supposed to go first. But a problem arose before Hobbs even took the stage: Lake was sitting in the front row, in a direct line of sight at where her opponent would sit. As a crowd of more than 200 watched, organizers said Lake was supposed to be in a hold room under the rules, a copy of which they refused to provide to NBC News. Lake protested, saying she was unaware of that rule and said Hobbs should come out and debate her. Hobbs didn’t. After several minutes, Lake complied, leaving behind her campaign surrogate, Mexican telenovela star Eduardo Verástegui. “Kari Lake brought along a Mexican telenovela star and she brought the drama. It was like a telenovela,” said Joe Garcia, an independent voter and the executive director of voter outreach for the group Chicanos Por La Causa Action Fund, which was a co-sponsor of the event along with the state and national Hispanic Chambers of Commerce. Garcia’s description of the scene matched the account of five eyewitnesses — including representatives from both campaigns — as well as video provided by Lake’s campaign that showed the Republican pleading her case with moderator León Krauze, a Univision News anchor, and event producer Mary Rabago. Garcia believes Lake’s actions were a stunt designed to rattle Hobbs, which he said appeared to work, because the Democrat gave an uneven performance in his view. Of Lake, Garcia said: “She rattled her opponent. She was big, brash, and very larger than life, Trump-esque. Anyone who thinks she was there to follow all the rules doesn’t know Kari Lake.” The scene was emblematic of the contrasting styles of Lake and Hobbs: Lake is a former local TV anchor, while Hobbs is the elected secretary of state in Arizona, one of the nation’s most competitive swing states. One observer of the town hall described the race as a clash between “an NPR Democrat and a Trump Republican.” Hobbs’ campaign said in September that debates were a no-go, pointing to Lake’s penchant for causing “chaos” and her embrace of false conspiracy theories of a stolen election. Lake has repeatedly called Hobbs a “coward” for her refusal to share the debate stage and points out that Hobbs also refused to debate Democratic primary rivals. Reached for comment about the incident, both campaigns issued statements to NBC News about the forum that echoed their candidates’ talking points about one another, with Lake questioning Hobbs’ courage and Hobbs denouncing Lake for causing chaos. TV viewers won’t be able to see the spectacle that unfolded at Monday’s forum. It was pre-recorded to give Univision time to translate the event into Spanish before it airs Saturday night. The English-language version is scheduled to be webcast online by Univision, which forbade audience members from recording the event on video. But Verástegui did uploaded video to social media of the pre-event back-and-forth between Lake, Krauze and Rabago, according to two sources who spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren’t authorized to discuss the matter on the record. The video was subsequently deleted from social media. Later, when Lake was onstage for her one-on-one with Krauze, an event staffer suspected the candidate’s husband was recording another video with her security volunteer, Scott Masino, a local sheriff’s deputy volunteering his time for the candidate who relayed the story to NBC News. Masino told NBC News they weren’t recording, but a Phoenix police officer was called over to make sure. “This is ridiculous,” Masino said. “She has a police officer watching a police officer to make sure that police officer doesn’t videotape when he’s not videotaping.” According to Masino, a different event staffer had told them that Lake couldn’t leave her green room until it was her turn to be on stage. Lake ignored the request and went to her seats in the front row ahead of the town hall’s start, which Masino said he picked because it was close to the aisle and an exit door — not because it put her potentially in Hobbs’ line of sight. But Garcia and another official from his group, Max Gonzalez, both said the rules of the town hall were “absolutely clear” and that Lake wasn’t supposed to be in the audience while Hobbs was onstage. “I can understand why, perhaps, Hobbs is hesitant to appear on stage with Lake. This was staged. This was planned,” said Gonzalez. The Lake campaign disputes the suggestion that the disruption was staged. Neither Gonzalez or Garcia negotiated the town hall’s terms with the campaigns and referred related questions to the event’s cosponsors at the state and national Hispanic Chambers of Commerce. Those organizations declined to comment, as did Univision. Another person, who was not authorized to speak on the record about the event confirmed Garcia’s account of the incident. The Hobbs campaign provided a pre-event email from the organizers that said “each candidate will have their own separate green room to prep and hold prior to going onto the main stage.” The Lake campaign said it did not receive the email and that the language about the hold room read like an offered amenity, not a demand she remain sequestered. The show got off to an awkward start when Krauze gave his introduction and welcomed Hobbs to the stage, the eyewitnesses told NBC News. But Hobbs didn’t come out. Instead, they said, Arizona Hispanic Chamber of Commerce President Monica Villalobos came onstage to talk. Krauze, after putting his finger to his ear piece that was connected by remote to the control room, then told Lake she was supposed to leave the room. Lake initially refused and another staffer soon shot video of her that was provided to NBC News. “I would love to be on the same stage actually. Is that possible?” Lake asked. Krauze responded: “I know it would [be something you would want to do]. And I’m going to ask [Hobbs] about that. Trust me.” Lake said she wanted “a real debate” and Krauze repeated that he would ask Hobbs about it. “Unfortunately, you’re not going to be able to share the stage with Miss Hobbs,” he said, reminding Lake that she would join him later onstage. “I cannot invite her to the stage if you are in the audience. This is not me. This is the … the campaign agreement.” Lake then stood and partly faced the audience as a few people clapped, saying, “I’m happy to be here. I don’t think I should be trapped in my room. I’d love to be part of this. We should be talking about the issues that affect everyone … I want the people here to know I’m willing to sit on stage with Miss Hobbs and talk about the important issues.” Rabago then walked on stage and asked Lake to “do us the honor to go to your designated area…This is a town hall. That was the agreement that we have. I really want to make sure that the audience … can hear you both. So if you don’t mind — continue with our agreement. I would really appreciate it so we can respect the time of everyone.” More people applauded, and Lake said she was complying at that moment. “You will have plenty of time, I promise,” Rabago said. “We designated the same amount of time for both of you guys. We’re going to have you onstage. This is the opportunity for you guys to share your platform, your ideals … your vision. But please respect that agreement that we have.” Once she departed, the forum began. This article was originally published on NBCNews.com Read More Here

GOP Leaders Silent After Trump Says McConnell Has A ‘Deathwish’ & Slurs Wife https://digitalalaskanews.com/gop-leaders-silent-after-trump-says-mcconnell-has-a-deathwish-slurs-wife/ GOP leaders have been silent after former President Donald Trump took to Truth Social to criticize Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell for not attempting to block the spending package to prevent a government shutdown. The former president, in his post, described McConnell as an avid supporter of “Democratic sponsored bills. He has a DEATH WISH. Must immediately seek help and advise from his China loving wife, Coco Chow!” This is not the first time Trump has attacked McConnell. After Senate Republican leader voted for President Joe Biden‘s bipartisan infrastructure package Trump wrote, “Is McConnell approving all of these Trillions of Dollars worth of Democrat sponsored Bills, without even the slightest bit of negotiation, because he hates Donald J. Trump, and he knows I am strongly opposed to them, or is he doing it because he believes in the Fake and Highly Destructive Green New Deal, and is willing to take the Country down with him?” Neither McConnell nor his wife Elaine Chao, who is Taiwanese born not Chinese, responded to the racist jab. Trump has gone back and forth on the issue of government spending. In 2020, he supported Democratic backed $2,000 stimulus checks, instead of the $600 planned by his party. Back when this debate was raging, he also accused Republicans of having a “death wish.” In fact, McConnell has blocked various attempts by Democrats to get much of their agenda passed during Biden’s presidency. A feud has been brewing between the former president and Senate minority leader since the January 6 insurrection when McConnell blasted Trump for not doing more. One of the only Republicans to speak out against Trump’s racist rant was defeated Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyoming), who has led the investigation into Trump in the January 6 hearings, who called Trump’s words “absolutely despicable.” Read more about: Read More Here

Lindsey Graham Wanted Jan. 6 Rioters Shot Dead, Book Claims https://digitalalaskanews.com/lindsey-graham-wanted-jan-6-rioters-shot-dead-book-claims/ Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) told Capitol police officers they should have shot and killed rioters who stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, a former police officer claims in his new book Hold the Line. “We gave you guys guns, and you should have used them,” Michael Fanone quoted Graham as saying during a May 2021 discussion with law enforcement. “You guys should have shot them all in the head,” the Republican lawmaker was quoted saying, according to excerpts of the book obtained by Politico. Graham denounced the insurrection on the Senate floor at the time but quickly returned to his role as a hardcore Trump loyalist. Fanone was almost killed on Jan. 6 as rioters attacked him while trying to enter the Capitol. He left his job less than a year after the attack, slamming Republican politicians for downplaying the attack. Read it at Politico Read More Here

Ohio Elections Chief Announces New Public Integrity Unit – LimaOhio.com https://digitalalaskanews.com/ohio-elections-chief-announces-new-public-integrity-unit-limaohio-com/ Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose announced a new public integrity unit Wednesday in response to what he called Americans’ “crisis of confidence” in the electoral process even while acknowledging the state’s own reputation for secure voting. AP Photo/Paul Vernon ” href=”https://www.limaohio.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/129877003_web1_AP22278560880691.jpg” Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose announced a new public integrity unit Wednesday in response to what he called Americans’ “crisis of confidence” in the electoral process even while acknowledging the state’s own reputation for secure voting. AP Photo/Paul Vernon COLUMBUS, Ohio — Ohio’s Republican elections chief on Wednesday announced a new public integrity unit in response to what he called Americans’ “crisis of confidence” in the electoral process even while acknowledging the state’s reputation for secure voting. The unit, taking effect next week, will consolidate and highlight the Ohio secretary of state’s investigative work and eventually have one or more dedicated investigators, Secretary of State Frank LaRose said in a statement. Those investigators won’t start until after the General Election, however. He referenced a growing national trend “that indicates a crisis of confidence in the electoral process.” That crisis is largely a concern of Republican voters and stems from lies told by former President Donald Trump about election fraud in the campaign won by Joe Biden. Numerous federal and local election officials in both parties, a long list of courts, top former campaign staffers and even Trump’s own attorney general have all said there is no evidence of the election fraud the former president alleges. For his part, LaRose initially said the 2020 election was secure and accurate, but as last spring’s primary neared — which LaRose won, defeating a 2020 election skeptic — he began to echo some of Trump’s talking points. LaRose claimed there were problems in other states and touted his office’s work to combat voter fraud. Trump endorsed LaRose, a longtime supporter. LaRose said his new division will help his office more efficiently and thoroughly do work it already does, such as voting system certification and investigation of election law violations, including a team dedicated at looking into rare cases of voter fraud or suppression and campaign finance violations, said LaRose, who is seeking a second term in November. “Our elections are being scrutinized like never before, and any lack of absolute confidence in the accuracy and honesty of those elections weakens the very foundation of our democracy,” LaRose said in a statement. He also referred to Ohio’s “strong national reputation for secure, accurate, and accessible elections.” LaRose’s announcement follows a decision in Florida in which lawmakers and Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis created a police force dedicated to pursuing voter fraud and other election crimes. Democrats called LaRose’s news a waste of taxpayer dollars aimed at bolstering his political aspirations. LaRose’s name is often mentioned as a possible 2024 U.S. Senate candidate. In a referral of 11 individuals for possible election fraud in August, LaRose identified just a single case of possible illegal voting, said party spokesperson Matt Keyes, making the new office “a taxpayer-funded solution to a problem that doesn’t exist.” In fact, in a series of referrals since 2019, LaRose identified at least 548 cases of potential election fraud violations it referred to prosecutors, his office said. LaRose has acknowledged that cases of election fraud are a tiny fraction of overall votes cast in Ohio. Chelsea Clark, LaRose’s Democratic opponent, questioned the timing of the announcement. She also noted LaRose’s efforts to keep his other opponent, independent candidate Terpeshore Maras, off the ballot. Clark called out LaRose for a “history of politicizing these investigations to punish opponents.” Maras is a conservative podcaster who embraces Trump’s lies about the 2020 election. Last month, the Ohio Supreme Court ruled her eligible to run for Ohio secretary of state this fall. In August, LaRose’s office had upheld a judge’s decision that a number of Maras’ petition signatures were invalid, and invalidated her candidacy, a move overturned by the state Supreme Court. Maras dismissed the move as pre-election posturing. If elected, she wouldn’t need such a unit, because “everyone employed in our office already has some delegated part in ensuring each Ohioan has a single secure vote that is properly counted – nothing more and nothing less,” Maras said. Read More Here

As Mar-A-Lago Case Advances, Trump’s Initial Success Could Fade https://digitalalaskanews.com/as-mar-a-lago-case-advances-trumps-initial-success-could-fade-2/ Former President Trump’s battle against the Justice Department investigation into the mishandling of government records at Mar-a-Lago has now reached the highest court, but legal experts say he may not fare as well as his case is pushed before new judges.  Trump scored an initial victory before a federal district court judge in Florida, who granted his request to appoint a special master to review the more than 10,000 government documents seized at his home to determine whether any might be protected by executive or attorney-client privileges.  But as the case works its way through the court system, other judges seem more hesitant to grant Trump’s requests.  The 11th Circuit Court of Appeals served the Department of Justice (DOJ) an initial victory in the case, siphoning off the more than 100 classified records from special master review and later agreeing to an expedited schedule to review DOJ’s challenge to Judge Aileen Cannon’s decision to approve the special master process.  But Trump’s emergency appeal to the Supreme Court wasn’t treated like an urgent matter — Justice Clarence Thomas gave DOJ a week to respond.   “All indications are that the appellate litigation continues to move in the government’s direction,” Brad Moss, a national security law expert, told The Hill.  “The 11th Circuit is expediting the appeal of the special master appointment, and the Supreme Court is conversely taking its sweet time considering Mr. Trump’s appeal of the lifting of Judge Cannon’s injunction. If nothing else, the appellate judges are making clear how serious they take the government’s national security concerns and how little credence they place in Mr. Trump’s legal theories.”  Trump’s appeal to the Supreme Court to intervene in the case was the latest step from a legal team that’s taken an aggressive posture in its battle with the Justice Department.  But the filing itself was actually quite narrow.  The request from Trump asks that the classified records in question are returned to the pool of documents included under the special master review, opting not to ask the court to exclude those documents from being used by the Justice Department as they continue their investigation — something Cannon had included in her original order.  “This is a very specific and narrow request by Trump, the merits of which turn on a technical jurisdictional question, but which runs into fatal procedural obstacles long before that. It’s not laughable, but only because it’s small,” Steve Vladeck, a professor at the University of Texas School of Law specializing in federal courts and national security law, wrote on Twitter.   “This is what good lawyers who are stuck do to appease bad clients….It’s a way of filing *something* in the Supreme Court without going all the way to crazytown and/or acting unethically,” Vladeck added.  Trump’s lawyers argued that the federal appeals court erred by allowing the Department of Justice to appeal a move that was procedural in nature.  They argued the appeal “impairs substantially the ongoing, time-sensitive work of the special master” and said the 11th Circuit’s intervention “effectively compromis[es] the integrity of the well-established policy against piecemeal appellate review.”  Trump’s team also recycled legal arguments from earlier briefs insinuating that he could have declassified the records in his home but stopped short of doing so. It’s a statement that generated skepticism from the special master, who initially asked the legal team to back the claim before Cannon stepped in and said Trump did not need to comply with the request.  Even if Trump convinced the court, the DOJ would still be able to use the documents in its investigation even as the special master reviewed them.  Moss, likewise, suspected the filing is likely to accomplish little for Trump.  “The appeal to the Supreme Court by the Trump legal team was done for one reason: Mr. Trump no doubt demanded something be filed. The narrowness of the appeal reflects the efforts by his lawyers to craft something — anything — they could justify as non-frivolous. Even if it succeeds, it would likely come too late in the special master process anyway to matter,” he said.  Brian Greer, a former attorney for the CIA, sees one potential upside for Trump — but only if the Department of Justice decides to prosecute him.  “Even if Trump is granted the relief they’re seeking, it’s not clear how helpful it’s going to be to them other than getting early access to those classified records,” he told The Hill.   “To me, the only real end game with the Supreme Court litigation, other than delay, is getting access to those records prior to an indictment so that they can start building their defense.”  The 11th Circuit agreement to an expedited review for the Justice Department’s case could also prove helpful for the government.  In its initial ruling, a three-judge panel for the court suggested Cannon erred by appointing the special master, a sign it may be convinced Trump has little claim as a former executive to any of the documents.  But as a practical matter it also aids their investigation.  “The Justice Department is correct in asserting that being unable to use the unclassified documents currently before the special master could hinder its ongoing investigation into the classified records,” Greer said.  “That’s because, as the Justice Department asserted, they may want to explore how those unclassified documents were commingled with the classified records, whether there are fingerprints on those documents, and to ask witnesses about those documents, all of which might be relevant to investigating the classified records,” he continued.  But the victories for the Department of Justice still delay the ultimate determination on the records.  The process before the 11th Circuit and Supreme Court could take months, and a ruling from the appeals court would likely come in December at the earliest.  “The timing is still not great for DOJ as they would likely want to complete any investigation involving the relevance of the unclassified records prior to bringing charges on the classified records,” Greer said.  Read More Here

Rourke, Bangura Help Lead Ohio To 55-34 Win Over Akron https://digitalalaskanews.com/rourke-bangura-help-lead-ohio-to-55-34-win-over-akron/ Published Saturday, Oct. 8, 2022 | 2:57 p.m. Updated 22 minutes ago ATHENS, Ohio (AP) — Kurtis Rourke passed for three touchdowns, Sieh Bangura ran for three and added another receiving and Ohio beat Akron 55-34 on Saturday. Rourke was an efficient 24-of-27 passing for 427 yards with Sam Wiglusz grabbing two TDs with a career-high 144 yards on seven catches including a 75-yarder for the game’s first points and a lead the Bobcats (3-3, 1-1 Mid-American Conference) would keep. Jacoby Jones added a personal-best 121 yards receiving, also on seven receptions. Bangura had 90 yards on 16 carries. Ohio led 28-13 at halftime. Akron got within seven on Clyde Price III’s 4-yard run but Ohio followed with a Wiglusz’s 30-yard TD catch, Bangura’s 25-yard scoring catch and Jack McCrory’s fumble return for a score to make it 48-20 heading into the fourth quarter. DJ Irons completed 43 of 54 passes for a person-best 418 yards but no scores plus a late interception for the Zips (1-5, 0-2). He ran for one score. Shocky Jacques-Louis had a career-high 152 yards receiving and Daniel George 108, also a career best, on 11 receptions apiece. Price had three short touchdown runs. ___ More AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/college-football and https://twitter.com/ap_top25. Sign up for the AP’s college football newsletter: https://tinyurl.com/mrxhe6f2 Read More Here

Tropical Storm Julia Forms, Expected To Become Hurricane https://digitalalaskanews.com/tropical-storm-julia-forms-expected-to-become-hurricane/ INTERCOASTAL WATERWAYS. LOOK AT TROPICAL STORM JULIA. THIS LOOKS LIKE A HURRICANE. WE HAVE TO SEE WHAT RECON SAYS. IT IS NOT MOVING TOWARDS US. IT WILL MOVE INTO CENTRAL AMERICA, WEAKEN, CROSS TO THE PACIFIC WAR MOVE UP TO MEXICO. THERE’S A LOT OF WINDSHEAR. WERE NOT ANTICIPATING DEVELOPMENT. WE ARE GOING TO WATCH IT JUST TO BE ON THE SAFE SIDE. A GREAT STRETCH OF WEATHER THROUGH MONDAY. WEDNESDAY, THURSDAY AND FRIDAY RAIN CHANCES DRAMATICALLY INCREASE. IT IS NOT SUMMER WEATHER BUT IT IS RISING RAIN. Tropical Storm Julia forms, expected to become hurricane Tropical Depression 13 strengthened into Tropical Storm Julia on Friday. It’s headed toward Central America and is expected to strengthen into a hurricane.As of Saturday afternoon, the system was 55 miles south of Isla de Providencia, Colombia and 175 miles east-northeast of Bluefields, Nicaragua.Julia had winds of 70 mph, and the system was moving west at 17 mph.”On the forecast track, the center of Julia is expected to reach the coast of Nicaragua overnight, move across Nicaragua on Sunday, and then move near or along the Pacific coasts of Honduras, El Salvador, and Guatemala through Monday,” the National Hurricane Center said. “Some additional strengthening is forecast this evening and tonight, and Julia could become a hurricane while passing near San Andres and Providencia Islands this evening.”This storm is not expected to impact Florida. SUMMARY OF WATCHES AND WARNINGS IN EFFECT:A hurricane warning is in effect for…* San Andres, Providencia, and Santa Catalina Islands Colombia* Nicaragua from Bluefields to Puerto CabezasA hurricane watch is in effect for…* Nicaragua north of Puerto Cabezas to the Honduras/Nicaragua borderA tropical storm warning is in effect for…* Nicaragua south of Bluefields to the Nicaragua/Costa Rica border* Nicaragua north of Puerto Cabezas to the Honduras/Nicaragua border* Pacific coast of Nicaragua* Pacific coast of Honduras* Coast of El SalvadorA tropical storm watch is in effect for…* Honduras from the Nicaragua/Honduras border to Punta PatucaKNOW WHAT TO DO WHEN A HURRICANE WATCH IS ISSUEDStay tuned to WESH 2 News, WESH.COM, or NOAA Weather Radio for storm updates.Prepare to bring inside any lawn furniture, outdoor decorations or ornaments, trash cans, hanging plants, and anything else that can be picked up by the wind.Understand hurricane forecast models and cones.Prepare to cover all windows of your home. If shutters have not been installed, use precut plywood.Check batteries and stock up on canned food, first-aid supplies, drinking water, and medications.The WESH 2 First Warning Weather Team recommends you have these items ready before the storm strikes.Bottled water: One gallon of water per person per dayCanned food and soup, such as beans and chiliCan opener for the cans without the easy-open lidsAssemble a first-aid kitTwo weeks’ worth of prescription medicationsBaby/children’s needs, such as formula and diapersFlashlight and batteriesBattery-operated weather radioWHAT TO DO WHEN A HURRICANE WARNING IS ISSUEDListen to the advice of local officials. If you are advised to evacuate, leave.Complete preparation activities.If you are not advised to evacuate, stay indoors, away from windows.Be alert for tornadoes. Tornadoes can happen during a hurricane and after it passes over. Remain indoors, in the center of your home, in a closet or bathroom without windows.HOW YOUR SMARTPHONE CAN HELP DURING A HURRICANEA smartphone can be your best friend in a hurricane — with the right websites and apps, you can turn it into a powerful tool for guiding you through a storm’s approach, arrival and aftermath.Download the WESH 2 News app for iOS | AndroidEnable emergency alerts — if you have an iPhone, select settings, then go into notifications. From there, look for government alerts and enable emergency alerts.If you have an Android phone, from the home page of the app, scroll to the right along the bottom and click on “settings.” On the settings menu, click on “severe weather alerts.” From the menu, select from most severe, moderate-severe, or all alerts.PET AND ANIMAL SAFETYYour pet should be a part of your family plan. If you must evacuate, the most important thing you can do to protect your pets is to evacuate them too. Leaving pets behind, even if you try to create a safe space for them, could result in injury or death.Contact hotels and motels outside of your immediate area to see if they take pets.Ask friends, relatives and others outside of the affected area whether they could shelter your animal. ORLANDO, Fla. — Tropical Depression 13 strengthened into Tropical Storm Julia on Friday. It’s headed toward Central America and is expected to strengthen into a hurricane. As of Saturday afternoon, the system was 55 miles south of Isla de Providencia, Colombia and 175 miles east-northeast of Bluefields, Nicaragua. Julia had winds of 70 mph, and the system was moving west at 17 mph. “On the forecast track, the center of Julia is expected to reach the coast of Nicaragua overnight, move across Nicaragua on Sunday, and then move near or along the Pacific coasts of Honduras, El Salvador, and Guatemala through Monday,” the National Hurricane Center said. “Some additional strengthening is forecast this evening and tonight, and Julia could become a hurricane while passing near San Andres and Providencia Islands this evening.” This storm is not expected to impact Florida. SUMMARY OF WATCHES AND WARNINGS IN EFFECT: A hurricane warning is in effect for… * San Andres, Providencia, and Santa Catalina Islands Colombia * Nicaragua from Bluefields to Puerto Cabezas A hurricane watch is in effect for… * Nicaragua north of Puerto Cabezas to the Honduras/Nicaragua border A tropical storm warning is in effect for… * Nicaragua south of Bluefields to the Nicaragua/Costa Rica border * Nicaragua north of Puerto Cabezas to the Honduras/Nicaragua border * Pacific coast of Nicaragua * Pacific coast of Honduras * Coast of El Salvador A tropical storm watch is in effect for… * Honduras from the Nicaragua/Honduras border to Punta Patuca KNOW WHAT TO DO WHEN A HURRICANE WATCH IS ISSUED Stay tuned to WESH 2 News, WESH.COM, or NOAA Weather Radio for storm updates. Prepare to bring inside any lawn furniture, outdoor decorations or ornaments, trash cans, hanging plants, and anything else that can be picked up by the wind. Understand hurricane forecast models and cones. Prepare to cover all windows of your home. If shutters have not been installed, use precut plywood. Check batteries and stock up on canned food, first-aid supplies, drinking water, and medications. The WESH 2 First Warning Weather Team recommends you have these items ready before the storm strikes. Bottled water: One gallon of water per person per day Canned food and soup, such as beans and chili Can opener for the cans without the easy-open lids Assemble a first-aid kit Two weeks’ worth of prescription medications Baby/children’s needs, such as formula and diapers Flashlight and batteries Battery-operated weather radio WHAT TO DO WHEN A HURRICANE WARNING IS ISSUED Listen to the advice of local officials. If you are advised to evacuate, leave. Complete preparation activities. If you are not advised to evacuate, stay indoors, away from windows. Be alert for tornadoes. Tornadoes can happen during a hurricane and after it passes over. Remain indoors, in the center of your home, in a closet or bathroom without windows. HOW YOUR SMARTPHONE CAN HELP DURING A HURRICANE A smartphone can be your best friend in a hurricane — with the right websites and apps, you can turn it into a powerful tool for guiding you through a storm’s approach, arrival and aftermath. Download the WESH 2 News app for iOS | Android Enable emergency alerts — if you have an iPhone, select settings, then go into notifications. From there, look for government alerts and enable emergency alerts. If you have an Android phone, from the home page of the app, scroll to the right along the bottom and click on “settings.” On the settings menu, click on “severe weather alerts.” From the menu, select from most severe, moderate-severe, or all alerts. PET AND ANIMAL SAFETY Your pet should be a part of your family plan. If you must evacuate, the most important thing you can do to protect your pets is to evacuate them too. Leaving pets behind, even if you try to create a safe space for them, could result in injury or death. Contact hotels and motels outside of your immediate area to see if they take pets. Ask friends, relatives and others outside of the affected area whether they could shelter your animal. Read More Here

Women Students Tell Iran's President To 'get Lost' As Unrest Rages https://digitalalaskanews.com/women-students-tell-irans-president-to-get-lost-as-unrest-rages/ DUBAI, Oct 8 (Reuters) – Female students in Tehran chanted “get lost” as Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi visited their university campus on Saturday and condemned protesters enraged by the death of a young woman in custody, videos on social media showed. Raisi addressed professors and students at Alzahra University in Tehran, reciting a poem that equated “rioters” with flies, as nationwide demonstrations entered a fourth week. “They imagine they can achieve their evil goals in universities,” Raisi said on state TV. “Unbeknownst to them, our students and professors are alert and will not allow the enemy to realise their evil goals.” Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com A video posted on Twitter by the activist 1500tasvir website showed what it said were women students chanting “Raisi get lost” and “Mullahs get lost” as the president visited their campus. Another social media video showed students chanting: “We don’t want a corrupt guest”, in reference to Raisi. Reuters could not immediately verify the videos. A state coroner’s report denied that 22-year-old Mahsa Amini had died due to blows to the head and limbs while in custody of the morality police and linked her death to pre-existing medical conditions, state media said on Friday. Amini, an Iranian Kurd, was arrested in Tehran on Sept. 13 for wearing “inappropriate attire” and died three days later. Her death has ignited nationwide demonstrations, marking the biggest challenge to Iran’s clerical leaders in years. Women have removed their veils in defiance of the clerical establishment while furious crowds called for the downfall of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. The government has described the protests as a plot by Iran’s enemies including the United States, accusing armed dissidents – among others – of violence in which at least 20 members of the security forces have been reported killed. Rights groups say more than 185 people have been killed, hundreds injured and thousands arrested by security forces confronting protests. After a call for mass demonstrations on Saturday, security forces shot at protesters and used tear gas in the Kurdish cities of Sanandaj and Saqez, according to the Iranian human rights group Hengaw. In Sanandaj, capital of the northwestern Kurdistan province, one man lay dead in his car while a woman screamed “shameless”, according to Hengaw, which said the man had been shot by security forces after he honked his horn as a sign of protest. A senior police official repeated the claim by security forces that they did not use live bullets and told state media that the man had been killed by armed dissidents. State media played down the protests across Tehran, the capital, reporting “limited” demonstrations in dozens of areas. It said many bazaar traders had shut their shops for fear of damage in the unrest, denying there was a strike. But videos on social media showed what appeared to be the largest protests in the past three weeks in many Tehran neighbourhoods, including a crowd packing streets in the lower-income southern neighbourhood of Nazi Abad. Videos shared on social media showed protests in several major cities. One video showed a young woman lying unconscious on the ground after she was apparently shot in the northeastern city of Mashhad, Iran’s second most populous city. The Norway-based Iran Human Rights said at least 185 people had been killed in the protests, with the highest number of killings in the restive Sistan-Baluchistan province in the southeast. As state TV showed footage of Ayatollah Khamenei on its main evening news, the broadcast was briefly interrupted in an apparent hack with his image, surrounded by flames, next to pictures of Amini and three other women allegedly killed during the protests. The protests’ signature slogan, “Woman, Life, Freedom”, could be heard as Edalate Ali hacker group posted its web addresses. The group last year hacked security cameras and exposed mistreatment of prisoners in a jail mostly holding political prisoners. [nL1N2PV1CH} CALL FOR UNITY After a weekly meeting, Raisi and Iran’s head of judiciary and parliament speaker called for unity. “Currently, the Iranian society needs the unity of all its strata regardless of language, religion and ethnicity to overcome the hostility and division spread by anti-Iranians,” they said in a statement. Hengaw also carried a video of emergency personnel trying to resuscitate a person and said one protester had died after being shot in the abdomen by security forces in Sanandaj. Reuters could not verify the video. One of the schools in Saqez city’s square was filled with girls chanting “Woman, life, freedom”, Hengaw reported. The widely followed 1500tasvir Twitter account also reported shootings at protesters in the two northwestern Kurdish cities. A university student who was on his way to join protests in Tehran said he was not afraid of being arrested or even killed. “They can kill us, arrest us but we will not remain silent anymore. Our classmates are in jail. How can we remain silent?” the student, who asked to remain anonymous, told Reuters. Internet watchdog NetBlocks said the internet had been cut in Sanandaj again amid protests in Kurdish areas. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com Reporting by Dubai newsroom; Writing by Michael Georgy Editing by Ros Russell, Nick Macfie and Leslie Adler Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles. Read More Here

New University Of Alaska Research Demonstrates Potential For North Slope Heavy Oil Production – Alaska Native News https://digitalalaskanews.com/new-university-of-alaska-research-demonstrates-potential-for-north-slope-heavy-oil-production-alaska-native-news/ Joint public-private partnership is yielding promising results BLM map showing Coastal Plain on the North Slope of Alaska (Fairbanks, AK) – New research conducted by the Institute for Northern Engineering’s Petroleum Development Lab at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, demonstrates the potential for commercial production of the estimated billions of barrels of heavy oil under existing oil fields on Alaska’s North Slope. UAF engineers and Hilcorp Alaska have successfully deployed an enhanced oil recovery method using a process known as polymer flooding to pull the thick, viscous oil to the surface at Milne Point. The latest results of the research were presented at a press conference at UAF this afternoon. The process injects a mixture of polymer and seawater into the reservoir, substantially increasing the production of heavy oil compared to traditional water injection. The research demonstrates the technology works on the North Slope, and the results are promising. UAF researchers are encouraged by the progress they are making and believe higher production can be achieved over the next decade. The Dunleavy Administration directed $5 million for the next phase of the research project in its FY23 state budget after the U.S. Department of Energy eliminated funding for all heavy oil research earlier this year. “The next state funded phase of the heavy oil project underway at UAF could unlock the tens of billions of barrels of heavy oil lying underneath Alaska’s North Slope. That is a resource too large to ignore,” said Governor Mike Dunleavy. “If we have a breakthrough, heavy oil will extend the lifespan of the oil pipeline and provide substantial revenue for the state, and the Alaska Permanent Fund. University of Alaska research, whether it is heavy oil, renewable energy or drone technology, can propel Alaska’s economy into the future.” “This project demonstrates how UAF is contributing to developing Alaska’s economy, while also educating and training the workforce,” said UAF Chancellor Dan White. “The University of Alaska today showed another example of Governor Dunleavy’s vision for the state’s flagship research center powering the resource development potential of the Last Frontier,” said acting DNR Commissioner Akis Gialopsos “We have the geology, the North Slope infrastructure, and the skilled workers to make Alaska a premier resource locale for subjects like heavy oil, methane hydrates, as well as carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS).” Click here for a copy of Petroleum Development Lab’s presentation.   North slope, oil, polymers, production, research, uaf Read More Here

Trump Says US Agency Packed Top-Secret Documents. These Emails Suggest Otherwise – Latest Tweet By Bloomberg | LatestLY https://digitalalaskanews.com/trump-says-us-agency-packed-top-secret-documents-these-emails-suggest-otherwise-latest-tweet-by-bloomberg-latestly/ The latest Tweet by Bloomberg states, ‘Trump says US agency packed top-secret documents. These emails suggest otherwise …’ Socially Team Latestly| Oct 09, 2022 02:43 AM IST Trump says US agency packed top-secret documents. These emails suggest otherwise https://t.co/NTfJVD9hZi— Bloomberg (@business) October 8, 2022 (SocialLY brings you all the latest breaking news, viral trends and information from social media world, including Twitter, Instagram and Youtube. The above post is embeded directly from the user’s social media account and LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body. The views and facts appearing in the social media post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY, also LatestLY does not assume any responsibility or liability for the same.) Read More Here

Warnock Says Walker 'has Trouble With The Truth' But Does Not Comment On Abortion Allegations – KESQ https://digitalalaskanews.com/warnock-says-walker-has-trouble-with-the-truth-but-does-not-comment-on-abortion-allegations-kesq/ CNN By Michael Warren, CNN Democratic Sen. Raphael Warnock of Georgia said Saturday that his Republican rival Herschel Walker “has trouble with the truth” but did not directly address the recent allegation that Walker once paid for a woman to have an abortion. “It’s up to Georgia voters. It’s not up to him, it’s not up to me,” Warnock told reporters after a rally here. “We do know that my opponent has trouble with the truth. And we’ll see how all this plays out, but I am focused squarely on the health care needs of my constituents, including reproductive health care.” The Georgia Senate race has been rocked by an allegation first reported by The Daily Beast that the GOP nominee paid for a woman’s abortion in 2009. The woman told The New York Times that Walker asked her to terminate a second pregnancy two years later but she refused the request and their relationship ended. CNN has not independently confirmed the woman’s allegation about the abortion or that Walker urged her to terminate a second pregnancy. CNN has reached out to the Walker campaign for comment. Walker, who said in May he supports a full ban on abortions, with no exceptions, has denied the earlier report from The Daily Beast, calling the allegation a “flat-out lie.” Pressed by CNN on Saturday whether he believes Walker’s denial, Warnock declined to say. “What I believe is irrelevant because the people of Georgia will decide,” he said. Warnock has avoided directly commenting on the allegations since the Daily Beast story broke. At his rallies and in front of reporters, the Georgia Democrat avoids mentioning Walker’s name, referring to him instead as “my opponent.” The Senate contest between Walker and Warnock, who is seeking a full six-year term, is among the most competitive of the 2022 midterm elections and could be instrumental in deciding control of the evenly divided chamber. Republican groups have vowed not to abandon Walker, even as the scandal sent his campaign scrambling. Campaign manager Scott Paradise, addressing staff earlier this week, acknowledged that the initial Daily Beast report was a setback, but pointed to Trump’s victory in 2016 — despite the initial backlash to the release of the “Access Hollywood” tape in which he spoke crudely about groping women — as evidence that Walker remained a viable candidate. Earlier Friday, Walker’s campaign split from its political director, Taylor Crowe, over suspicions that he was leaking information to the media, two people familiar with the matter told CNN. Crowe did not respond to multiple requests for comment from CNN. It is unclear if there were other factors at play or if the move had any connection to the abortion allegations. The-CNN-Wire & © 2022 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved. CNN’s Gregory Krieg and Shania Shelton contributed to this report. Read More Here

Kari Lake Was Booted From Arizona Town Hall Audience Before Hobbs Took The Stage https://digitalalaskanews.com/kari-lake-was-booted-from-arizona-town-hall-audience-before-hobbs-took-the-stage/ Democrat Katie Hobbs won’t debate her opponent in Arizona’s race for governor, yet Republican Kari Lake tried to make it happen at a candidate town hall that organizers say she disrupted. Under the agreed-upon rules for the pre-recorded event, which was taped Monday and airs at 7 p.m. Saturday Arizona time, the candidates were not supposed to be onstage at the same time and Hobbs was supposed to go first. But a problem arose before Hobbs even took the stage: Lake was sitting in the front row, in a direct line of sight at where her opponent would sit. As a crowd of more than 200 watched, organizers said Lake was supposed to be in a hold room under the rules, a copy of which they refused to provide to NBC News. Lake protested, saying she was unaware of that rule and said Hobbs should come out and debate her. Hobbs didn’t. After several minutes, Lake complied, leaving behind her campaign surrogate, Mexican telenovela star Eduardo Verástegui. “Kari Lake brought along a Mexican telenovela star and she brought the drama. It was like a telenovela,” said Joe Garcia, an independent voter and the executive director of voter outreach for the group Chicanos Por La Causa Action Fund, which was a co-sponsor of the event along with the state and national Hispanic Chambers of Commerce. Garcia’s description of the scene matched the account of five eyewitnesses — including representatives from both campaigns — as well as video provided by Lake’s campaign that showed the Republican pleading her case with moderator León Krauze, a Univision News anchor, and event producer Mary Rabago. Garcia believes Lake’s actions were a stunt designed to rattle Hobbs, which he said appeared to work, because the Democrat gave an uneven performance in his view. Of Lake, Garcia said: “She rattled her opponent. She was big, brash, and very larger than life, Trump-esque. Anyone who thinks she was there to follow all the rules doesn’t know Kari Lake.” The scene was emblematic of the contrasting styles of Lake and Hobbs: Lake is a former local TV anchor, while Hobbs is the elected secretary of state in Arizona, one of the nation’s most competitive swing states. One observer of the town hall described the race as a clash between “an NPR Democrat and a Trump Republican.” Hobbs’ campaign said in September that debates were a no-go, pointing to Lake’s penchant for causing “chaos” and her embrace of false conspiracy theories of a stolen election. Lake has repeatedly called Hobbs a “coward” for her refusal to share the debate stage and points out that Hobbs also refused to debate Democratic primary rivals. Reached for comment about the incident, both campaigns issued statements to NBC News about the forum that echoed their candidates’ talking points about one another, with Lake questioning Hobbs’ courage and Hobbs denouncing Lake for causing chaos. TV viewers won’t be able to see the spectacle that unfolded at Monday’s forum. It was pre-recorded to give Univision time to translate the event into Spanish before it airs Saturday night. The English-language version is scheduled to be webcast online by Univision, which forbade audience members from recording the event on video. But Verástegui did uploaded video to social media of the pre-event back-and-forth between Lake, Krauze and Rabago, according to two sources who spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren’t authorized to discuss the matter on the record. The video was subsequently deleted from social media. Later, when Lake was onstage for her one-on-one with Krauze, an event staffer suspected the candidate’s husband was recording another video with her security volunteer, Scott Masino, a local sheriff’s deputy volunteering his time for the candidate who relayed the story to NBC News. Masino told NBC News they weren’t recording, but a Phoenix police officer was called over to make sure. “This is ridiculous,” Masino said. “She has a police officer watching a police officer to make sure that police officer doesn’t videotape when he’s not videotaping.” According to Masino, a different event staffer had told them that Lake couldn’t leave her green room until it was her turn to be on stage. Lake ignored the request and went to her seats in the front row ahead of the town hall’s start, which Masino said he picked because it was close to the aisle and an exit door — not because it put her potentially in Hobbs’ line of sight. But Garcia and another official from his group, Max Gonzalez, both said the rules of the town hall were “absolutely clear” and that Lake wasn’t supposed to be in the audience while Hobbs was onstage. “I can understand why, perhaps, Hobbs is hesitant to appear on stage with Lake. This was staged. This was planned,” said Gonzalez. The Lake campaign disputes the suggestion that the disruption was staged. Neither Gonzalez or Garcia negotiated the town hall’s terms with the campaigns and referred related questions to the event’s cosponsors at the state and national Hispanic Chambers of Commerce. Those organizations declined to comment, as did Univision. Another person, who was not authorized to speak on the record about the event confirmed Garcia’s account of the incident. The Hobbs campaign provided a pre-event email from the organizers that said “each candidate will have their own separate green room to prep and hold prior to going onto the main stage.” The Lake campaign said it did not receive the email and that the language about the hold room read like an offered amenity, not a demand she remain sequestered. The show got off to an awkward start when Krauze gave his introduction and welcomed Hobbs to the stage, the eyewitnesses told NBC News. But Hobbs didn’t come out. Instead, they said, Arizona Hispanic Chamber of Commerce President Monica Villalobos came onstage to talk. Krauze, after putting his finger to his ear piece that was connected by remote to the control room, then told Lake she was supposed to leave the room. Lake initially refused and another staffer soon shot video of her that was provided to NBC News. “I would love to be on the same stage actually. Is that possible?” Lake asked. Krauze responded: “I know it would [be something you would want to do]. And I’m going to ask [Hobbs] about that. Trust me.” Lake said she wanted “a real debate” and Krauze repeated that he would ask Hobbs about it. “Unfortunately, you’re not going to be able to share the stage with Miss Hobbs,” he said, reminding Lake that she would join him later onstage. “I cannot invite her to the stage if you are in the audience. This is not me. This is the … the campaign agreement.” Lake then stood and partly faced the audience as a few people clapped, saying, “I’m happy to be here. I don’t think I should be trapped in my room. I’d love to be part of this. We should be talking about the issues that affect everyone … I want the people here to know I’m willing to sit on stage with Miss Hobbs and talk about the important issues.” Rabago then walked on stage and asked Lake to “do us the honor to go to your designated area…This is a town hall. That was the agreement that we have. I really want to make sure that the audience … can hear you both. So if you don’t mind — continue with our agreement. I would really appreciate it so we can respect the time of everyone.” More people applauded, and Lake said she was complying at that moment. “You will have plenty of time, I promise,” Rabago said. “We designated the same amount of time for both of you guys. We’re going to have you onstage. This is the opportunity for you guys to share your platform, your ideals … your vision. But please respect that agreement that we have.” Once she departed, the forum began. Read More Here

John Grindrod: When Celebrities Walk Among The Common Folks – LimaOhio.com https://digitalalaskanews.com/john-grindrod-when-celebrities-walk-among-the-common-folks-limaohio-com/ For everyone I know, seeing someone famous is rare unless you paid to see him or her on stage or at an athletic venue. When it happens, it always seems to give someone a story destined to be repeated. I still smile when I think of my father telling whoever would listen about his meeting Chuck Connors in a Chicago restaurant restroom in the early 1960s. Each year, my dad would return to my birth city of Chicago for Central Steel and Wire Corporation’s annual sales meeting and receive his Christmas bonus, which was of great interest to his family. After all, the bigger the bonus, the more festively wrapped boxes there were likely to be beneath the boughs of our live Christmas tree. When Dad entered the restroom, there stood none other than the star of ABC’s The Rifleman. Since the show was one of Dad’s favorites, he was a tad gobsmacked when he saw the imposing 6’6” Connors, who, before turning to acting, was one of the few ever to play two sports professionally, with the basketball Celtics and the baseball Cubs. Whenever my dad spoke of his chance encounter with Connors in that restaurant washroom, his go-to line was always, “Now I know why they call him The Rifleman,” which always brought a gentle rebuke from my mother, who felt pretty much anything that went on behind bathroom doors shouldn’t really be a topic of conversation. Dad spoke to Connors for a few minutes and told me he said to the actor that he looked a lot bigger in person than he did on our 23-inch black-and-white RCA screen at home. Now, over the years, I’ve had my own occasional celebrity sightings from time to time. As for sheer volume, well, that happened at the Atlantic City Convention Center in June of 1987. On a family trip, my bro-in-law John Whittaker and I grabbed a couple 50-dollar nosebleed tickets to see the Jerry Cooney-Michael Spinks heavyweight boxing match. The fight was billed as “The War at the Shore,” although Cooney, the 6’7” behemoth, didn’t feel much like going to war, finished off in the fifth round by the much smaller Spinks. There to cover the event, the Chicago Tribune sportswriter Sam Smith later wrote that Cooney ate so many punches in the fifth “that he certainly figured to skip his post-fight meal.” While walking around the venue before the preliminary matches were to begin, I rode up the elevator one step behind a future president of the United States. Donald Trump was there with his wife Ivana, who sadly, was in the news this past summer when she died following a fall down her stairs. While The Donald never turned around, I do remember Ivana turning, smiling and nodding a hello to me. Trump had a vested interest in the fight, paying over $3 million to bring it to the Atlantic City Boardwalk, just paces away from his casino. While that seemed a gamble to some, the New Jersey Boxing Hall of Fame has reported that gamblers left over $7 million at Trump’s casino tables in the days surrounding the fight. Also in the lobby before the fight was a 21-year-old Mike Tyson surrounded by a large entourage. I did not approach Iron Mike. My fourth celebrity of the evening was the most unlikely, since most artists live pretty much in a shroud of anonymity. However, this artist, LeRoy Neiman, did rise to celebrity status, known for his paintings that captured major sporting events with some used by Sports Illustrated as covers. Neiman walked by me, and I knew instantly it was him. His appearance was so unique I’m certain he didn’t have a doppelganger anywhere in the world. The artist, who passed away at 91 in 2012, not only had a huge coif of salt-and-pepper hair but also a trademark mustache that stretched from one long sideburn to the other. He passed me back in a time when smoking within the walls wasn’t verboten, leaving a blue-gray plume of his signature cigar smoke behind before he disappeared into the restroom. As an homage to my father, who passed away nine years earlier, I headed for the restroom myself and chatted him up a bit as we washed our hands at the sinks. Next week, I’ll wrap up my celebrity reminisce by focusing on one particular night in Cincinnati with friends when I had my most in-depth encounters with the rich and the famous. John Grindrod is a regular columnist for The Lima News, a freelance writer and editor and the author of two books. Reach him at [email protected] Read More Here

Our Best Stuff From Another Big Week For Ukraine https://digitalalaskanews.com/our-best-stuff-from-another-big-week-for-ukraine/ The bridge connecting Russia and Crimea. (Photo by Vera Katkova/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images) Hello! It’s another Saturday with breaking news out of Ukraine. Well, I guess that depends on whether you think Crimea is part of Ukraine or part of Russia. Russia illegally annexed the peninsula in 2014, and it’s been using Crimea to supply its forces in the south. It had been doing so in part by transporting things over the Kerch Bridge connecting Crimea to the Russian mainland. The 12-mile bridge, which Reuters describes it as a “prestige symbol of Moscow’s annexation of the peninsula.” is the longest in Europe and in 2018, Vladimir Putin was on hand to open it. But an explosion early Saturday morning took out a portion of the bridge, dealing Russia not only a logistical blow but a psychological one as well.  The Washington Post is reporting, based on a quote from an unidentified official, that Ukrainian special services took out the bridge. The Ukrainian government has made no official statement, but official Ukrainian Twitter accounts are reveling in the moment. As has been the case for the last six weeks, Ukraine’s advances and accomplishments are worth celebrating, and it’s hard to begrudge a beleaguered nation a few moments of levity. The Ukrainian post office has already said it will issue a commemorative stamp in honor of the explosion, as it did when Ukraine sank the Moskva, the flagship of the Black Sea fleet. Not to repeat myself from last weekend, when we woke up to the news that Ukraine had retaken the town of Lyman, but a cornered Putin is a dangerous Putin. In The Current this week, Klon Kitchen wrote a very helpful explainer on how nukes work, how many the U.S. and Russia have, how Putin might deploy them, and what we are doing to stop them. It feels even more timely now than when we published it. We’ll also have an item from Nick on Monday examining Putin’s options on the nuclear front.  Before I sign off, we have some news of our own that you should know about. Our website will have a different look on Wednesday, and our newsletters will be coming to you from a new email address. We have a post with more details here. We hope that the new site will allow you to have an even better experience with The Dispatch. Thanks for reading. Join now I don’t know about you, but I’ve had some version of the same conversation every election season since 2016 when I explain I’m not voting for either major-party candidate in a given race, whether for president or statehouse or dog catcher. “If you don’t vote for A, that’s a vote for B!” (See also: “If you don’t vote for B, that’s a vote for A!”) It’s reached a bit of a fever pitch this midterm season, as some on the right insist that not voting for Republicans will allow the Marxist Democrats to bring about the end of the republic through economic ruin and a frayed social fabric. Kevin’s heard it too, and he’s not having it. Especially when Republicans came out in indignant support of Herschel Walker after The Daily Beast published a report claiming that Walker had paid for a woman’s abortion in 2009. Walker supports a national ban on abortions and says he does not believe in exceptions for rape, incest, or even to save the life of the mother, but hey, what’s a little hypocrisy when control of the Senate is at stake? Kevin writes: “Nobody on the right seems able to stop and ask: ‘Why? Why do we want a party whose leading lights are such figures as Donald Trump and Herschel Walker to control the Senate? Why would we want such figures as Lindsey Graham or Josh Hawley to control anything?’” For more on Walker, Nick argues that this scandal might just matter to swing voters … but probably not to MAGA voters. While traditional European powers Germany and France have waffled in supporting Ukraine since Russia invaded in February, Poland has been a stalwart. Charlotte is reporting from Europe for the next couple of months, and this week she has a piece from Warsaw detailing the Poles’ efforts and how it could raise their stature within NATO. Poland has committed to spending a higher percentage of its GDP on defense and signed contracts to purchase a substantial number of tanks from the U.S. and South Korea. It’s also provided Ukraine with $1.8 billion in military aid and taken in about 2 million refugees. The Poles’ actions have influenced others.  “German and French rhetoric, which often harped on not humiliating Putin and avoiding escalation, has become more in line with Polish and American sentiment,” Charlotte writes. “Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock recently acknowledged that ‘Germany did not listen carefully enough to the right assessment of many partners with regard to Russia.’ Whether the country takes concrete action is another question.”  “The pandemic changed how we think about internet access,” Harvest writes in a well-reported story about the state of broadband internet in rural areas. She notes that 42 million Americans lack access to the always-connected high-speed internet that let so many work from home and attend school online during COVID. The bipartisan infrastructure package provided $65 billion to address the problem, with $40 billion going directly to states, though money can’t fix everything: “But even with billions of dollars to use, states implementing broadband build-outs will face big hurdles: a lack of reliable data on just how deep the digital divide is, years-long bureaucratic delays, and rapidly changing technology.”  What happens to U.S. support for Ukraine if Republicans take control of Congress in November? It’s a question Nick explores this week. While polling shows bipartisan support among Americans for Ukraine’s war effort and ongoing assistance from the U.S., the “America First” wing of the party could cause problems in Congress. Nick notes that more nationalist Republicans are already complaining that the money we’ve sent to Ukraine could have been spent on border security, and that there will be some temptation to vote against any further Ukraine packages just to stick it to Joe Biden. “Very soon the Russia apologists on the right will begin arguing that, inasmuch as appeasing Putin is the only way we all get out of this alive, any Republican who votes for Ukraine aid is voting for nuclear war. Do we think an invertebrate like Kevin McCarthy is prepared to stare down the Tucker Carlsons and cast that vote anyway?” Join now And heres’s the best of the rest. The left has often used climate change to advance an anti-capitalist agenda and argue that the modern way of life is destroying the planet. John Gustavsson says the conservative response should not be to deny climate change exists, but to embrace pragmatic solutions that don’t require going vegans, eating bugs, or giving up our cars. Just a few weeks ago, a new nuclear deal with Iran seemed dead. But with protests over the death of Mahsa Amini spreading, the regime has struck a friendlier tone lately, hoping for sanctions relief. Danielle Pletka warns the Biden administration not to fall for it. A new book on America during World War I has Jonah thinking about one of his favorite topics: the awfulness of Woodrow Wilson. In the Wednesday G-File, he’s also amused that people are coming around on the subject, and happy to point out that he was criticized by the left for years for his condemnation of Wilson. OPEC’s announcement this week that it would cut petroleum production by 2 million barrels a day has heightened existing tensions between congressional Democrats and the Biden administration. Haley has the details in Uphill. David’s opposition to Donald Trump and support for free speech have earned him, shall we say, negative attention from some elements of the right. He usually doesn’t say much about it but an episode this week prompted him to respond. Read his French Press. In Capitolism, Scott Lincicome offers up some lessons about pricing and the long sordid history of price controls, which are back in vogue since inflation is such a problem. On the pods: On The Dispatch Podcast, the gang covers the Herschel Walker news, checks in on the midterms, and discusses the new Supreme Court term. On Friday, it was reported that Ben Sasse will be announcing his retirement from the Senate to serve as president of the University of Florida. Jonah has thoughts on Sasse and many other topics in his weekend solo Remnant. Personal finance might not sound like an obvious topic for Good Faith, but that’s where David and Curtis Chang go this week. And in perhaps our most entertaining podcast this week, David and Sarah discuss an amicus brief filed with the Supreme Court by The Onion. Read More Here

Only 27 People Showed Up To Pro-Trump Rally In Washington DC https://digitalalaskanews.com/only-27-people-showed-up-to-pro-trump-rally-in-washington-dc/ Merely 27 people attended a pro-Trump rally in Washington DC this week. Event organisers toldThe Daily Beast that the extremely low turnout at the rally on Capitol grounds was the result of several factors, but it was still a “success.” “We put the word out, literally, about a week ago. We would have liked to have more people, but I would consider it a success,” John Paul Moran, founder of GOUSA, told the outlet. Liberal activists using whistles who approached the gathering to protest were branded “paid agitators” and members of Antifa by Mr Moran. Trump was not an organiser and was not at the “Stop the Tyrants and Unite for Freedom” rally on Friday. Among those present, were former White House chief strategist to Trump Steve Bannon, MAGA fashion designer Andre Soriano and Trump aide Matt Braynard. Two security guards are also included in the 27 attendees. “I want you to recognise something,” Mr Braynard told The Daily Beast. “They are trying to interrupt. That’s why they’re blowing the whistles. To make it hard to hear us!” Other organisers and attendees hinted that invitation emails going to spam folders and the event taking place on a weekday were factors to blame for the low turnout. “They didn’t go into my inbox. They disappeared entirely,” Deborah Weiss told the Daily Beast. The rally on Friday comes just weeks after a similar gathering, also on Capitol grounds, failed to have the expected turnout. Read More Here

Hampton Inn: Dearborn Fatal Shooting Was Not Caused By Billing Dispute https://digitalalaskanews.com/hampton-inn-dearborn-fatal-shooting-was-not-caused-by-billing-dispute/ The fatal shooting Thursday at the Hampton Inn in Dearborn was not sparked by a billing dispute, the hotel chain said in a late-night statement Friday evening, contrary to the narrative thus far by police who have yet to conclude their investigation. “We can confirm that we lost one of our associates yesterday in a tragic incident with an individual described by the local authorities as suffering from mental health issues,” the statement reads. “Contrary to what was previously reported, we further can confirm with absolute certainty that this issue was not related to any invoice dispute or refund.” The shooting Thursday occurred shortly after 1 p.m. at the hotel on Michigan Avenue in the city’s west downtown, and resulted in the death of a hotel clerk, 55, of Riverview. Law enforcement officials engaged in a seven-hour negotiation with the barricaded gunman, 38, of Detroit, before he surrendered to police at about 8:30 p.m. Thursday. The suspect is scheduled for arraignment at the 19th District Court in Dearborn at 1 p.m. Sunday. The Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office declined a Saturday request for more information on what charges are being pursued. A hotel spokesman declined a Free Press request Saturday afternoon for proof from the scene of the incident to verify that the confrontation was not about billing, due to the ongoing investigation. A Freedom of Information Act request to Dearborn police for video and audio of the incident had yet to be fulfilled Saturday afternoon. “The Hampton brand, by its very design, has the 100% satisfaction guarantee, so that if there’s ever any type of billing issue, all employees are encouraged — empowered, if you will — to resolve any issue immediately up to and including refunding money for the entire stay,” said Chris Daly, a spokesman for the Hampton Inn by Hilton. “So, the brand is designed, if you will, so that those types of billing issues aren’t an issue.” The statement from the hotel did not specify what did cause the confrontation between the men, only that it was not related to any invoice concerns or a request for a refund. It also thanked the police department for its swift actions and “valiant efforts.” More:Dearborn police: Suspect in Hampton Inn shooting suffered from PTSD More:Shooting suspect surrenders at Dearborn’s Hampton Inn, 1 killed, police say “Our heartfelt condolences go out to everyone involved, particularly the family of our beloved associate, whom we very much consider one of our own,” the statement concludes. A city spokesman said the police department is considering homicide among the potential charges to present to the prosecutor’s office. The family of the suspect told Dearborn police that he suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) that has not been treated, according to the spokesman. The suspect is a veteran, the city confirmed Friday afternoon but could not provide further information on which branch he served in or for how many years. At the scene on Thursday, both Dearborn Mayor Abdullah Hammoud and Police Chief Issa Shahin joined a chorus calling for increased mental health support nationwide. Police have yet to identify the victim or release the name of the suspect. Contact Miriam Marini: mmarini@freepress.com Read More Here

Exxon Illegally Fired Two Scientists Suspected Of Leaking Information To WSJ, Labor Department Says | CNN Business https://digitalalaskanews.com/exxon-illegally-fired-two-scientists-suspected-of-leaking-information-to-wsj-labor-department-says-cnn-business/ New York CNN  —  ExxonMobil has been ordered to reinstate two scientists who were fired after being suspected of leaking information to The Wall Street Journal, the US Labor Department said Friday. A federal whistleblower investigation found the oil and gas giant terminated the two computational scientists illegally in late 2020. The Labor Department’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration also ordered ExxonMobil to pay the two employees back more than $800,000 in back wages, interest and compensatory damages. An article in The Wall Street Journal last year claimed ExxonMobil might have inflated its production estimates and the value of oil and gas wells in the Texas Permian Basin, where much of US production is located. The story scrutinized the company’s assumption in its 2019 SEC filings that drilling speed would increase substantially in the next five years. Exxon denied the allegations at the time, maintaining that it was reaching its drilling targets. “The claims made about drilling rates are demonstrably false,” an ExxonMobil spokesperson said. The two unidentified employees “raised concerns about the company’s use of these assumptions in late 2020,” according to the Labor Department’s release. Exxon claimed it fired one scientist for “mishandling proprietary company information,” the Labor Department statement said, and the other for “having a ‘negative attitude,’ looking for other jobs, and losing the confidence of company management.” In a statement to CNN Business, Exxon denied the allegations and said that it will “defend itself accordingly.” “The terminations in late 2020 were unrelated to the ill-founded concerns raised by the employees in 2019,” an ExxonMobil spokesperson said. Though neither employee was revealed as a source for the Journal’s story, OSHA learned that the company knew one of the scientists was a relative of a source quoted in the WSJ article and had access to the leaked information. “ExxonMobil’s actions are unacceptable. The integrity of the US financial system relies on companies to report their financial condition and assets accurately,” said Assistant Secretary for Occupational Safety and Health Doug Parker. Read More Here

High Winds Cause South Anchorage Power Outage https://digitalalaskanews.com/high-winds-cause-south-anchorage-power-outage/ ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) – Over 1,000 residents in South Anchorage are without power, according to a 10:40 a.m. post on Chugach Electric’s Twitter page. We have an outage in South Anchorage in the area around Huffman and Wilderness impacting about 100 members. A crew has been dispatched. Will update when we know more. — Chugach Electric (@chugachelectric) October 8, 2022 In a later update on their outage map, the power outage had increased to 218 customers mainly centered between O’Malley and Huffman, with a few other locations around Anchorage. Crews estimate having power restored by 12:15 p.m. Saturday. The National Weather Service in Anchorage has issued a High Wind Warning for the Anchorage Municipality, but with a focus on the Anchorage Hillside and Turnagain Arm until 1 a.m. Sunday. Sustained winds of 40-50 mph with gusts as high as 65 mph can be expected in these locations. Chugach Electric is reminding its customers that this is a good time to charge their electronics and get emergency supplies ready in the event of additional outages. This is a developing story. Check back for updates. Copyright 2022 KTUU. All rights reserved. Read More Here

Russia Appoints New Overall Commander For Its Military In Ukraine https://digitalalaskanews.com/russia-appoints-new-overall-commander-for-its-military-in-ukraine/ Russian President Vladimir Putin (L) toasts with Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev next to Sergei Surovikin, the commander of Russian troops in Syria, after a ceremony to bestow state awards on military personnel who fought in Syria, at the Kremlin in Moscow on December 28, 2017. (Photo by Kirill KUDRYAVTSEV / POOL / AFP) (Photo by KIRILL KUDRYAVTSEV/POOL/AFP via Getty Images) Kirill Kudryavtsev | Afp | Getty Images WASHINGTON – Russia has appointed a new commander to lead all of its forces in Ukraine as the Kremlin’s war marches into its eighth month. Sergei Surovikin, an Army general who also oversees Russia’s air force, previously led Russian forces in Syria. His new role will involve galvanizing Russian troops after a slew of setbacks, including heavy losses of troops and equipment, and the forfeiture of thousands of square miles of occupied territory. Surovikin’s appointment comes on the heels of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s plans to conscript hundreds of thousands of Russian men for the war. Putin’s order for approximately 300,000 Russians to join the fight in Ukraine is the first time since World War II that Moscow has drafted civilians into the military. The Kremlin’s decision to impose a partial draft was triggered in part by a series of stunning Ukrainian advances in recent weeks. Last week, Putin declared that four Ukrainian regions now belonged to Russia. The Russian leader cited referendums, widely viewed as rigged and illegal by Western governments, held in Russian-occupied regions of Ukraine. “The results are known, well known,” Putin said on Sept. 30. “There are four new regions of Russia,” referring to the Ukrainian regions of Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson. On the heels of Putin’s address, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he will submit an “accelerated” application for his country to join the NATO military alliance. Equipped with an arsenal of Western weapons, Ukrainian forces have retaken vast swaths of territory that had been occupied by Russian forces since the early days of the war. Their battlefield successes have dented the reputation of the Kremlin’s mighty war machine. But as Ukraine fights to retake land one village at a time, the cost to civilians has been enormous. So far, the U.N. estimates that Russia’s invasion has claimed more than 6,000 civilian lives and led to more than 8,600 injuries. The Office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights adds that the death toll in Ukraine is likely higher. Read More Here

MSNBC's Cross Laments It's 'mind-Boggling' That Sen. Ron Johnson Isn't Getting Crushed In Senate Race https://digitalalaskanews.com/msnbcs-cross-laments-its-mind-boggling-that-sen-ron-johnson-isnt-getting-crushed-in-senate-race/ MSNBC host Tiffany Cross claimed it’s “mind-boggling” that Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Mandela Barnes isn’t crushing his opponent, incumbent Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., in the polls.  While interviewing Barnes on her Saturday show, “The Cross Connection” host and her guest talked about how “dangerous” and “out-of-touch” Johnson’s policies are, claiming that they’re “not based in facts.”  Cross also referred to Johnson as a “Trump acolyte” and fixated on his “anti-abortion” policies, which Barnes has been hammering throughout the campaign. RON JOHNSON PUSHES BARNES ON CRIME POSITIONS AS GOP PULLS AHEAD IN WISCONSIN RACE MSNBC host Tiffany Cross speaks to U.S. Senate candidate Mandela Barnes about his race against Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis. Prior to introducing Barnes, Cross briefly touched on the latest Marquette University Law School poll showing how close Johnson and Barnes are in their race. Cross’ graphic showed that Johnson has a one-point lead over Barnes at 49% of the vote to 48%. Cross said, “Now a recent Marquette Law School poll shows that the race is in a dead heat. Mind-blowing considering where Johnson is.” She slammed the Republican, saying, “Johnson’s campaign has aired a flurry of racist ads attacking Barnes on crime.”  During the October 1 episode of “The Cross Connection,” Cross claimed that GOP ads fixating on Barnes’ soft-on-crime policies were “racist” and compared them to the “Willie Horton” ad of the 1988 presidential race between George H.W. Bush and Michael Dukakis. She then discussed Barnes’ campaign, saying, “Meanwhile Barnes has been focusing on Johnson’s anti-abortion stance and his launching his ‘Ron Against Roe’ tour today.” Speaking to Barnes directly, Cross stated, “It’s kind of mind-boggling that you guys are in a dead heat. It reminds me of the Herschel Walker, um, Raphael Warnock dead heat.” She ripped into Johnson even more, saying, “Because Ron Johnson has said some wild things, he’s a Trump acolyte, he says things that are not based in fact.” RON JOHNSON DEMANDS PROBE OF ‘SCHEME’ TO SUPPRESS HUNTER BIDEN INFO Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., and his U.S. Senate race opponent Mandela Barnes. (Fox News) Cross asked Barnes, “What’s the biggest challenge your campaign is facing right now?” Barnes mentioned the “flurry of spending” and “insane amounts of money that have been poured into this race by [Johnson’s] allies.” Though Barnes claimed that the fact they’re spending so much money and the race is still so close “signals that we’re doing the right thing.” He criticized Johnson, stating, “We are leading with the fact that Ron Johnson has left people behind. Ron Johnson has turned his back on every day hardworking Wisconsin people.” Barnes also attacked Johnson’s abortion stance directly, saying, “And his position on abortion is dangerous and, excuse me, out of touch – and extremely out of touch with the 70% of people of this state that think Roe v. Wade should be the law of the land.” Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., at the Wisconsin State Fair. (Fox News Digital) Cross slammed Johnson for purporting “to be pro-law enforcement, yet he’s defending who attacked law enforcement on [Janurary 6th].” Barnes responded, “Well, the reality is Ron Johnson will say whatever he wants to say. He’s gonna say he supports law enforcement, but he turned his back 140 officers that were injured on January 6th. This happened because he called the election into question.”  Barnes asserted that Johnson questioning the election helped create the “chaos that ensued” on January 6th. CLICK TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Gabriel Hays is an associate editor for Fox News Digital.  Read More Here

For Round 2, Kanye West Assures Tucker Carlson: https://digitalalaskanews.com/for-round-2-kanye-west-assures-tucker-carlson/ A day after opening up about ex-wife Kim Kardashian and his support for former President Donald Trump, Kanye West gave Tucker Carlson another earful about his worldview in a two-hour conversation that the anchor said was originally scheduled for 30 minutes. Fox News’ “Tucker Carlson Tonight” aired more of its interview with the provocative rapper Friday. Former President Barack Obama, Elon Musk and West’s firm belief that he’ll be president one day were among the hot topics. Copyright 2022 Tribune Content Agency. Read More Here

Trump Told Advisers Last Year He Would Return Mar-A-Lago Files In Exchange For “sensitive” Documents About The FBI Investigation Into His 2016 Campaign’s Ties To Russia: NYTNews WAALI https://digitalalaskanews.com/trump-told-advisers-last-year-he-would-return-mar-a-lago-files-in-exchange-for-sensitive-documents-about-the-fbi-investigation-into-his-2016-campaigns-ties-to-russia-nytnew/ Then-President Donald Trump speaks to reporters while receiving Republican congressional leaders and members of his cabinet in the Oval Office on July 20, 2020.Doug Mills-Pool/Getty Images Trump floated the idea of ​​trading Mar-a-Lago crates for documents on the Russia probe, according to The NYT. Trump’s aides did not submit his proposal to the National Archives, knowing it would be rejected. According to the newspaper, Trump repeatedly delayed the agency’s requests for the boxes to be handed over. – Advertisement – Former President Donald Trump floated the idea of ​​swapping the files he took from the White House to Mar-a-Lago in exchange for “sensitive” documents about the FBI investigation into the ties, according to The New late last year of his 2016 election campaign to Russia York Times. When the National Archives urged Trump to return the dozens of official documents kept at his estate in Mar-a-Lago in South Florida that were not in their possession, the former president – who is still plagued by the Russia probe was – frustrated by the government at the agency’s refusal to disclose documents he believed would support his claims, according to The Times. – Advertisement – Trump told advisers he would give the boxes of materials stored at Mar-a-Lago to the archives for access to those documents, the newspaper said. Aides to the former president did not go through with the proposal, but it was one of many ways the former president has repeatedly delayed calls from the archives to hand over the documents held at his personal residence. Shortly after Trump entered the White House, there were clear concerns about the then-president’s tendency to bring documents into his bedroom, and near the middle of his tenure, finding the files in the living quarters of the historic building became a stumbling block for individuals aware of the situation who spoke to the Times. During Trump’s third year in office, senior White House officials were aware that certain files were in places where they shouldn’t be kept. After Trump left the Oval Office, Trump’s representatives were told by National Archives General Counsel Gary M. Stern that the former president should return the files in the boxes. Stern had a series of discussions about the files with former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, along with three attorneys employed by the White House office. Per The Times star continued to push for missing boxes in September 2021, but Trump told Meadows they only contained newspaper clippings and other personal items. Meadows relayed Trump’s message to former White House Counsel Patrick Philbin, who then relayed the message to Stern. However, the archives indicated that even newspaper clippings and printouts of articles were considered presidential records that had to be turned over to the agency. Late last year, former White House aide Eric Herschmann told Trump he could face significant legal trouble if he didn’t turn over the documents requested by the archives, according to the Times. After telling advisers the boxes were “mine,” the former president agreed to review the files in December 2021, according to the newspaper. Stern was then told the boxes were ready for pickup. According to The Times, no one among Trump’s officials has informed Stern that there are classified files in the boxes. When the archives began opening the boxes, they found they were viewing the files in a room unsuitable for such high-level documents and expeditiously transported the boxes to safer zones, where the paper said the files would be closely examined could . The FBI later in August executed a search warrant in Mar-a-Lago looking for classified documents it suspected Trump had brought to Mar-a-Lago after leaving office. The Justice Department is investigating whether Trump violated three federal laws related to handling classified information, including the Espionage Act. Trump has long been fixated on the Justice Department’s investigation into campaign ties to Russia ahead of his first presidential election; He has repeatedly called the probe a “hoax” intended to harm his presidency. Read the original article on Business Insider Read More Here

Judge Rules Jan. 6 Panel Can See Arizona GOP Chair's Phone Records https://digitalalaskanews.com/judge-rules-jan-6-panel-can-see-arizona-gop-chairs-phone-records/ A federal judge in Phoenix has opened the door for the Jan. 6 select committee to receive the phone records of Arizona Republican Party leader Kelli Ward. Why it matters: The judge rejected Ward’s claims that her First Amendment rights would be challenged if investigators uncovered who she spoke with when trying to challenge the 2020 presidential election results. Details: U.S. District Judge Diane Humetewa said Friday she wouldn’t stop her own order to require Ward’s phone records to be turned over to the Jan. 6 select panel, the Associated Press reports. She said Friday that the GOP chair had failed to show how her First Amendment rights would be harmed by sharing the records with investigators. Humetewa said she found Ward’s “alleged concern speculative — and in light of disclosures made during oral argument — dubious,” per AP. Context: Humetewa’s ruling comes days after arguments in court over the subpoena, which asked for her cellphone provider T-Mobile to turn over all call and text message activity from November 2020 to January 2021, the Arizona Republic reports. That time period was selected because it includes when Ward helped bring together electors at the state party headquarters to cast votes for former President Donald Trump in the 2020 election if he had won. Trump lost Arizona to Biden in the election, but Ward and others still met, declaring themselves Arizona’s “duly elected and qualified” electors, according to the Republic. The big picture: Ward, who posed as a fake elector for Trump, refused to answer questions during her own testimony with the panel, Politico reports. “She declined to answer on every substantive question and asserted her rights under the Fifth Amendment,” lawyer Eric Columbus told Humetewa at a hearing earlier this month, according to Politico. Read More Here

As Mar-A-Lago Case Advances, Trump’s Initial Success Could Fade https://digitalalaskanews.com/as-mar-a-lago-case-advances-trumps-initial-success-could-fade/ Former President Trump’s battle against the Justice Department investigation into the mishandling of government records at Mar-a-Lago has now reached the highest court, but legal experts say he may not fare as well as his case is pushed before new judges.  Trump scored an initial victory before a federal district court judge in Florida, who granted his request to appoint a special master to review the more than 10,000 government documents seized at his home to determine whether any might be protected by executive or attorney-client privileges.  But as the case works its way through the court system, other judges seem more hesitant to grant Trump’s requests.  The 11th Circuit Court of Appeals served the Department of Justice (DOJ) an initial victory in the case, siphoning off the more than 100 classified records from special master review and later agreeing to an expedited schedule to review DOJ’s challenge to Judge Aileen Cannon’s decision to approve the special master process.  But Trump’s emergency appeal to the Supreme Court wasn’t treated like an urgent matter — Justice Clarence Thomas gave DOJ a week to respond.   “All indications are that the appellate litigation continues to move in the government’s direction,” Brad Moss, a national security law expert, told The Hill.  “The 11th Circuit is expediting the appeal of the special master appointment, and the Supreme Court is conversely taking its sweet time considering Mr. Trump’s appeal of the lifting of Judge Cannon’s injunction. If nothing else, the appellate judges are making clear how serious they take the government’s national security concerns and how little credence they place in Mr. Trump’s legal theories.”  Trump’s appeal to the Supreme Court to intervene in the case was the latest step from a legal team that’s taken an aggressive posture in its battle with the Justice Department.  But the filing itself was actually quite narrow.  The request from Trump asks that the classified records in question are returned to the pool of documents included under the special master review, opting not to ask the court to exclude those documents from being used by the Justice Department as they continue their investigation — something Cannon had included in her original order.  “This is a very specific and narrow request by Trump, the merits of which turn on a technical jurisdictional question, but which runs into fatal procedural obstacles long before that. It’s not laughable, but only because it’s small,” Steve Vladeck, a professor at the University of Texas School of Law specializing in federal courts and national security law, wrote on Twitter.   “This is what good lawyers who are stuck do to appease bad clients….It’s a way of filing *something* in the Supreme Court without going all the way to crazytown and/or acting unethically,” Vladeck added.  Trump’s lawyers argued that the federal appeals court erred by allowing the Department of Justice to appeal a move that was procedural in nature.  They argued the appeal “impairs substantially the ongoing, time-sensitive work of the special master” and said the 11th Circuit’s intervention “effectively compromis[es] the integrity of the well-established policy against piecemeal appellate review.”  Trump’s team also recycled legal arguments from earlier briefs insinuating that he could have declassified the records in his home but stopped short of doing so. It’s a statement that generated skepticism from the special master, who initially asked the legal team to back the claim before Cannon stepped in and said Trump did not need to comply with the request.  Even if Trump convinced the court, the DOJ would still be able to use the documents in its investigation even as the special master reviewed them.  Moss, likewise, suspected the filing is likely to accomplish little for Trump.  “The appeal to the Supreme Court by the Trump legal team was done for one reason: Mr. Trump no doubt demanded something be filed. The narrowness of the appeal reflects the efforts by his lawyers to craft something — anything — they could justify as non-frivolous. Even if it succeeds, it would likely come too late in the special master process anyway to matter,” he said.  Brian Greer, a former attorney for the CIA, sees one potential upside for Trump — but only if the Department of Justice decides to prosecute him.  “Even if Trump is granted the relief they’re seeking, it’s not clear how helpful it’s going to be to them other than getting early access to those classified records,” he told The Hill.   “To me, the only real end game with the Supreme Court litigation, other than delay, is getting access to those records prior to an indictment so that they can start building their defense.”  The 11th Circuit agreement to an expedited review for the Justice Department’s case could also prove helpful for the government.  In its initial ruling, a three-judge panel for the court suggested Cannon erred by appointing the special master, a sign it may be convinced Trump has little claim as a former executive to any of the documents.  But as a practical matter it also aids their investigation.  “The Justice Department is correct in asserting that being unable to use the unclassified documents currently before the special master could hinder its ongoing investigation into the classified records,” Greer said.  “That’s because, as the Justice Department asserted, they may want to explore how those unclassified documents were commingled with the classified records, whether there are fingerprints on those documents, and to ask witnesses about those documents, all of which might be relevant to investigating the classified records,” he continued.  But the victories for the Department of Justice still delay the ultimate determination on the records.  The process before the 11th Circuit and Supreme Court could take months, and a ruling from the appeals court would likely come in December at the earliest.  “The timing is still not great for DOJ as they would likely want to complete any investigation involving the relevance of the unclassified records prior to bringing charges on the classified records,” Greer said.  Read More Here