Politics Current Events Feb 27
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“… One of the unreleased reports says the cutbacks threaten the ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip, jeopardizing more than $300 million in humanitarian aid for the devastated Palestinian enclave, according to three people familiar with the situation, who like others spoke on the condition of anonymity to talk about sensitive matters.
And an unpublished global audit found security dangers, risks of widespread looting and disease, and tens of millions of dollars in new costs brought about by the withdrawal of foreign aid and mass relocation of USAID staff, according to documents and interviews. Conditions are particularly dire across southern Africa, South Sudan and Senegal, where initial findings by auditors in the field predict heightened hunger and desperation caused by the ongoing dismantling of USAID, documents show.
… The reports were both planned for release about two weeks ago, but remain in draft form in the email inboxes of acting deputy inspector general Marc Meyer — the de facto inspector general — and his top staff out of fear that the critical findings will prompt the White House to come after the agency in retaliation, according to an official familiar with their thinking. …”
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dukeman92
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Callayeahs, why is don so weak on China?
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Shoulda kept that conflicts of interest thread … or not.
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Mexico Extradites 29 Jailed Drug Bosses to U.S., Including Killer of DEA Agent
Drug lord Rafael Caro Quintero has long been wanted by DEA for killing of agent Enrique ‘Kiki’ Camarena
“Mexican authorities extradited to the U.S. drug boss Rafael Caro Quintero who is wanted for the 1985 killing of a U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration agent, delivering on a longstanding demand by the U.S. amid rising pressure from the Trump administration.
Caro Quintero’s extradition comes as President Trump threatened to impose 25% tariffs on Mexico’s exports to the U.S. if the government of President Claudia Sheinbaum didn’t boost efforts to fight U.S.-bound fentanyl, which kills tens of thousands of Americans each year. Several members of her cabinet are in Washington this week to discuss bilateral cooperation and make the case that Mexico shouldn’t be punished with tariffs.
… Mexico’s government said that Caro Quintero was part of a group of 29 imprisoned Mexicans accused of crimes in the U.S. extradited Thursday. Two leaders of the violent Zetas cartel, notorious for carrying out massacres in Mexico, were also extradited, the government said.
“This action is part of bilateral reciprocity and coordination and cooperation efforts,” the Mexican government said in a statement.
While Mexico has extradited numerous people to face charges in the U.S. over the past decade, this extradition was unprecedented because of its size, observers said. In recent years, many U.S. extradition requests of high-profile drug kingpins faced long delays in Mexican tribunals.
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Several senior Sinaloa cartel members have been captured in recent days. One of them was extradited on Thursday. Jose Angel Canobbio Insunza, known as “El Guerito,” was indicted in federal court in Chicago last year. He is considered to be a top adviser and the security chief for Iván Archivaldo Guzmán, the leader of the “Chapitos,” one of the two most important factions of the Sinaloa cartel.
Many of the people extradited were leaders of most of the Mexican cartels designated foreign terrorist organizations last week by the Trump administration. …”
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A successful story for Trump’s pressure on Mexico.
Mulberry Heel
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One thing I didn't think about is that many companies are going to get screwed by Musk & Trump, like Verizon here. If this continues I wonder if any of these companies will decide to stop playing ball with Trump 2.0 and file lawsuits or otherwise speak out. Why play ball if you're getting any benefits and having your contracts cancelled by the likes of Elon?
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He has the Oligarch-controlled companies solidly in his corner, so probably judges he can screw the publicly held companies with relative impunity?
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FBI investigating Trump EPA claims of fraud in $20B Biden grant fund
While career prosecutors in two U.S. attorney offices and a U.S. judge balked at a court-ordered freeze, Citibank has locked down billions without explanationGIFT LINK
—> https://wapo.st/4h7ostQ“… The move came after the Justice Department in recent weeks took unusual steps to advance the investigation, having a Trump-appointed U.S. attorney submit a warrant request when career prosecutors were unwilling and seeking prosecutors in other offices who would agree to participate in the case, people familiar with the matter said, speaking on the condition of anonymity to disclose internal deliberations about an ongoing criminal investigation.
At issue are $20 billion in grants under the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, a program established in Joe Biden’s signature 2022 climate law. The fund seeks to leverage public and private dollars to invest in clean-energy technologies such as solar panels, heat pumps and more, including through community lenders in low-income areas. The Trump-appointed EPA administrator has alleged publicly that the money was awarded with little oversight and said the agency would try to claw back the money from Citibank, which was tasked with disbursing the funds.
… The administration ran into its first roadblock in that effort last week, when a senior career prosecutor in the U.S. attorney’s office in D.C. resigned rather than carry out the administration’s demand to freeze the funds over possible wire fraud. But the investigation did not end there, according to people familiar with the matter.
… Meanwhile, acting deputy attorney general Emil Bove’s office approached at least one other U.S. attorney’s office in the southeastern United States to launch a grand jury investigation and seek a court-ordered bank freeze, but prosecutors in the office again refused the warrant request, two of the people said. It is not clear if more evidence has since been obtained or if a warrant was granted elsewhere. But at least three groups that had been awarded money said their accounts have been frozen, and the bank won’t tell them why. …”
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“… The events began to unfold Feb. 12, when Zeldin said that the agency would try to claw back the $20 billion and terminate its contract with Citibank for disbursing the funds. Zeldin claimed the Biden administration had awarded the money in “a rush job with reduced oversight,” although he did not provide any specific evidence of abuses.FBI investigating Trump EPA claims of fraud in $20B Biden grant fund
While career prosecutors in two U.S. attorney offices and a U.S. judge balked at a court-ordered freeze, Citibank has locked down billions without explanation
GIFT LINK
“… The move came after the Justice Department in recent weeks took unusual steps to advance the investigation, having a Trump-appointed U.S. attorney submit a warrant request when career prosecutors were unwilling and seeking prosecutors in other offices who would agree to participate in the case, people familiar with the matter said, speaking on the condition of anonymity to disclose internal deliberations about an ongoing criminal investigation.
At issue are $20 billion in grants under the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, a program established in Joe Biden’s signature 2022 climate law. The fund seeks to leverage public and private dollars to invest in clean-energy technologies such as solar panels, heat pumps and more, including through community lenders in low-income areas. The Trump-appointed EPA administrator has alleged publicly that the money was awarded with little oversight and said the agency would try to claw back the money from Citibank, which was tasked with disbursing the funds.
… The administration ran into its first roadblock in that effort last week, when a senior career prosecutor in the U.S. attorney’s office in D.C. resigned rather than carry out the administration’s demand to freeze the funds over possible wire fraud. But the investigation did not end there, according to people familiar with the matter.
… Meanwhile, acting deputy attorney general Emil Bove’s office approached at least one other U.S. attorney’s office in the southeastern United States to launch a grand jury investigation and seek a court-ordered bank freeze, but prosecutors in the office again refused the warrant request, two of the people said. It is not clear if more evidence has since been obtained or if a warrant was granted elsewhere. But at least three groups that had been awarded money said their accounts have been frozen, and the bank won’t tell them why. …”
The EPA chief cited a secretly recorded video from Project Veritas, a right-wing group known for its undercover sting operations, in which an EPA official said the Biden administration was “trying to get the money out as fast as possible before they come in and stop it all. … It truly feels like we’re on the Titanic and we’re throwing, like, gold bars off the edge.”
About a week later, on Feb. 18, the head of the criminal division in the U.S. attorney’s office in D.C. resigned after declining to order Citibank to freeze the accounts. Denise Cheung wrote in her resignation letter that the criminal investigation sought by Bove and Martin was unfounded. …”
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I knew that a lot of states have their own names for Medicaid assistance but somehow it never really occurred to me that the beneficiaries wouldn’t understand them to be Medicaid programs … I wonder if that is really true for any but a small minority?
Does Alaska have to change that name to McKinley Care now?
Does Alaska have to change that name to McKinley Care now?
I knew that a lot of states have their own names for Medicaid assistance but somehow it never really occurred to me that the beneficiaries wouldn’t understand them to be Medicaid programs … I wonder if that is really true for any but a small minority?
Does Alaska have to change that name to McKinley Care now?
How many Americans have Obamacare by another name and they despise Obamacare?
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I don’t know but probably a lot?
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