U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday defended his choice for the next U.S. spy chief as someone who could “rein in” intelligence agencies that “have run amok,” fueling concerns Trump seeks assessments that support his own views. Trump’s choice of Republican Representative John Ratcliffe of Texas as the next director …
Read More »Microsoft uncovers new Russian hacking attempts targeting Republicans ahead of midterm elections
Microsoft said Tuesday it has uncovered new Russian hacking attempts targeting U.S. political groups ahead of the midterm elections. The company said that a hacking group tied to the Russian government created fake internet domains that appeared to spoof two American conservative organizations: the Hudson Institute and the International Republican …
Read More »Palestinians applaud Erdogan win, pin hopes on Turkey
It’s an understatement to say Palestinians like Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. They might like him more than many Turks do. Palestinians name stores — and even babies — after him. This week, Palestinians watched closely as Turks headed to polling stations June 24 to cast their votes in the parliamentary …
Read More »Erdogan declares victory in Turkish election
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has declared himself the winner of a high-stakes election, in which he sought to cement his power on the nation he has ruled for 15 years. But the opposition has cried foul, claiming that state media and the election commission have manipulated the results. The …
Read More »Facebook gets into more trouble as data security issues mount
Even as Cambridge Analytica and its alleged illegal use of private data and profiles put Facebook in trouble this last week, the social media giant is falling deeper into the vortex created over security fears. Zuckerberg says Facebook ‘made mistakes’ on Cambridge Analytica (Reuters) Facebook Inc Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg …
Read More »Trump is ignoring the worst attack on America since 9/11
Imagine if, after 9/11, the president had said that the World Trade Center and Pentagon could have been attacked by “China” or “lots of other people.” Imagine if he had dismissed claims of al-Qaeda’s responsibility as a “hoax” and said that he “really” believed Osama bin Laden’s denials. Imagine if he saw …
Read More »DHS official: Russians ‘successfully penetrated’ voter registration rolls in several states before 2016 election
Jeanette Manfra, head of cybersecurity at the Department of Homeland Security, said that several states’ voter registration rolls were “successfully penetrated” by Russians ahead of the 2016 election. “We saw a targeting of 21 states and an exceptionally small number of them were actually successfully penetrated,” Manfra told NBC News, adding …
Read More »‘Never any hesitation’: Trump was quickly persuaded to support memo’s release
President Trump was only vaguely aware of a controversial, classified memo about the FBI’s Russia investigation when two House conservatives brought it to his attention in a Jan. 18 phone call. The conversation piqued Trump’s interest. Over the next two weeks, according to interviews with eight senior administration officials and …
Read More »‘High-level FBI officials’ allegedly involved in Strzok-Page ‘secret society’
The “secret society” referenced in a text message between Trump-bashing FBI lovers Peter Strzok and Lisa Page allegedly involved multiple “high-ranking FBI officials,” a top GOP lawmaker said Wednesday. Senate Homeland Security Committee Chairman Ron Johnson, R-Wis., revealed this week that his committee met with a whistleblower informant who gave more …
Read More »The FBI is investigating the Clinton Foundation
The FBI has been discreetly investigating the Clinton Foundation for months, reviving a probe that was dialed back during the 2016 election amid tensions between Justice Department prosecutors and FBI agents about the politically charged case, according to people familiar with the matter. The investigation is being run out of …
Read More »Trump says Bannon ‘not only lost his job, he lost his mind’ as president’s lawyers send cease-and-desist letter
President Trump on Wednesday castigated his former chief strategist Stephen K. Bannon as a self-aggrandizing political charlatan who has “lost his mind,” marking an abrupt and furious rupture with the onetime confidant that could have lasting political impact on the November midterms and beyond. The White House’s sharp public break …
Read More »Hillary Clinton backer paid $500G to fund women accusing Trump of sexual misconduct before Election Day, report says
One of Hillary Clinton’s wealthy pals paid $500,000 in an unsuccessful effort to fund women willing to accuse President Trump of sexual misconduct before the 2016 election, The New York Times reported Sunday. Susie Tompkins Buell, the founder of Esprit Clothing and a major Clinton campaign donor for many years, gave the …
Read More »A bold new legal defense for Trump: Presidents cannot obstruct justice
The brazen assertion Monday by one of President Trump’s lawyers that a president cannot be found guilty of obstruction of justice signaled a controversial defense strategy in the wide-ranging Russia probe, as Trump’s political advisers are increasingly concerned about the legal advice he is receiving. Trump tweeted over the weekend …
Read More »Trump lawyer says president knew Flynn had given FBI the same account he gave to vice president
President Trump’s personal lawyer said on Sunday that the president knew in late January that then-national security adviser Michael Flynn had probably given FBI agents the same inaccurate account he provided to Vice President Pence about a call with the Russian ambassador. Trump lawyer John Dowd said the information was …
Read More »Purge of Rohingya Lifts Popular Support for Myanmar’s Top General
The most powerful person in Myanmar now, Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing, was little known outside the country’s military circles until the villages started burning. Within just a few weeks in 2009, his forces drove tens of thousands of people out of two ethnic enclaves in eastern Myanmar — first …
Read More »‘Do you think they’ll get the president?’: Kushner is reportedly worried as the Russia investigation heats up
Jared Kushner, President Donald Trump’s senior adviser and son-in-law, is worried about the widening scope of special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russian interferencein the 2016 election, Vanity Fair reported. As part of his investigation, Mueller is looking into whether members of the Trump campaign colluded with Moscow to tilt the election in his favor. Mueller’s office …
Read More »White House attacks legacies of both Bush presidents after reports that they refused to vote for Trump
The White House on Saturday disparaged the legacies of the only two living Republican presidents to precede Donald Trump, after reports that both men castigated Trump in interviews last year and refused to vote for him. Former president George H.W. Bush mocked then-candidate Trump as a “blowhard” and voted for a Democratic president, while the younger Bush …
Read More »Trump campaign adviser pleads guilty to misleading investigators about Russia contacts; Manafort indicted on conspiracy
George Papadopoulos, a foreign policy adviser to Donald Trump‘s presidential campaign, pleaded guilty this month to making false statements to FBI agents about his correspondence with Russian nationals and attempts to arrange a meeting between the campaign and Russian officials. Interested in Russia Investigation? Add Russia Investigation as an interest …
Read More »Trump Tries to Shift Focus as First Charges Reportedly Loom in Russia Case
He did not specify who should take such action, though critics have accused him of trying to improperly sway the inquiries. President Trump’s frustration at the investigations into his campaign’s ties with Russia boiled over on Sunday, as he sought to shift the focus to a litany of accusations against …
Read More »Hustler’s Larry Flynt Offers $10M Reward For Info That Impeaches Trump
One of porn’s most prominent figures has offered up big money for a ‘smoking gun’ that can successfully depose the U.S. president, according to media reports and some pricey advertising real estate. Larry Flynt, the creator of Hustler Magazine and producer of a galaxy of XXX-rated porn films, has announced …
Read More »Twitter, With Accounts Linked to Russia, to Face Congress Over Role in Election
After a weekend when Americans took to social media to debate President Trump’s admonishment of N.F.L. players who do not stand for the national anthem, a network of Twitter accounts suspected of links to Russia seized on both sides of the issue with hashtags such as #boycottnfl, #standforouranthem and #takeaknee. …
Read More »Facebook Has Told Mueller More About Russian Ad Spending, Source Says
Facebook Inc. has given special counsel Robert Mueller extra details on political ad spending from a Russian group that tried to sow discord online ahead of last year’s U.S. presidential election, according to a person familiar with the matter. The social network provided copies of ads and explained how they …
Read More »Trump bans US government from using Russian cyber security firm Kaspersky
The Trump administration on Wednesday told U.S. government agencies to remove Kaspersky Lab products from their networks, saying it was concerned the Moscow-based cyber security firm was vulnerable to Kremlin influence and that using its anti-virus software could jeopardize national security. The decision represents a sharp response to what U.S. …
Read More »Trump’s legal team debated whether Kushner should leave White House
A small group of White House lawyers this summer urged that President Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner step down from his White House role amid a broadening probe into whether the Trump campaign coordinated with Russians in the 2016 election, according to multiple people familiar with the discussion. Some of the …
Read More »In payback mode, US demands Russia close 3 facilities
Escalating a diplomatic tit-for-tat, the United States abruptly ordered Russia on Thursday to shutter its San Francisco consulate and close offices in Washington and New York, intensifying tensions between the former Cold War foes. Washington gave Moscow 48 hours to comply. The Trump administration described its action as retaliation for …
Read More »Top Trump Organization executive asked Putin aide for help on business deal
A top executive from Donald Trump’s real estate company emailed Russian President Vladimir Putin’s personal spokesman during the U.S. presidential campaign last year to ask for help advancing a stalled Trump Tower development project in Moscow, according to documents submitted to Congress on Monday. The request came in a mid-January …
Read More »Trump, former top spy trade verbal barbs
President Donald Trump traded verbal barbs Thursday with James Clapper, the former national intelligence chief, who has questioned Trump’s fitness to be in the Oval Office. “James Clapper, who famously got caught lying to Congress, is now an authority on Donald Trump,” Trump tweeted. “Will he show you his beautiful …
Read More »Grand jury issues subpoenas in connection with Trump Jr., Russian lawyer meeting: sources
A grand jury has issued subpoenas in connection with a June 2016 meeting that included President Donald Trump’s son, his son-in-law and a Russian lawyer, two sources told Reuters on Thursday, signaling an investigation is gathering pace into suspected Russian meddling in the 2016 U.S. election. The sources added that …
Read More »Exclusive: Trump says he does not fault son for meeting Russian lawyer
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday he did not fault his son Donald Trump Jr. for meeting with a Russian lawyer during the 2016 presidential election campaign and that he was unaware of the meeting until a few days ago. Asked if he knew that his son was meeting …
Read More »Trump and Putin find chemistry, draw criticism in first meeting
In a meeting that ran longer than either side had planned, U.S. President Donald Trump and Russia’s Vladimir Putin discussed alleged Russian meddling in the U.S. election on Friday but agreed to focus on better ties rather than litigating the past. Trump, a Republican who called it an “honor” to …
Read More »Hezbollah rules out imminent presidential election despite dialogue
The Daily Star – Hezbollah’s deputy leader Sheikh Naim Qassem has ruled out an imminent presidential election despite recent attempts at dialogue between rivals, citing “complexities” in the case. “I don’t think the presidential election will take place soon due to complexities related to it, even though Hezbollah has a …
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