Page 1834 – Texas Weekly Online

Hunter Biden pretrial hearing on gun charges set for Friday in Delaware

A pre-trial hearing for Hunter Biden’s federal gun trial is set for Friday in Delaware, after multiple failed attempts by the first son to have charges brought against him dismissed. Hunter Biden pleaded not guilty to federal gun charges in the U.S. District Court for Delaware, after Special Counsel David Weiss charged him with making a false statement in the purchase of a firearm; making a false statement related to information required to be kept by a licensed firearm dealer; and one count of possession of a firearm by a person who is an unlawful user of or addicted to a controlled substance. Judge Maryellen Noreika will preside over the trial, which is set to begin on June 3. HUNTER BIDEN PLEADS NOT GUILTY TO FEDERAL GUN CHARGES OUT OF SPECIAL COUNSEL DAVID WEISS’ PROBE With all counts combined, the total maximum prison time for the charges could be up to 25 years. Each count carries a maximum fine of $250,000, and three years of supervised release. According to the indictment, Hunter Biden bought a Coldt Cobra revolver on Oct. 12, 2018, and “knowingly made a false and fictitious written statement, intended and likely to deceive that dealer with respect to a fact material to the lawfulness of the sale of the firearm… certifying he was not an unlawful user of, and addicted to, any stimulant, narcotic drug, and any other controlled substance, when in fact, as he knew, that statement was false and fictitious.” HOUSE GOP CLAIMS HUNTER BIDEN LIED UNDER OATH MULTIPLE TIMES DURING CONGRESSIONAL DEPOSITION The indictment also charges Hunter Biden for possessing that firearm — which was “shipped and transported in interstate commerce” — for nearly a week despite being addicted to narcotics. Fox News first reported in 2021 that police had responded to an incident in 2018, when a gun owned by Hunter was thrown into a trash can outside a market in Delaware. A source with knowledge of the Oct. 23, 2018, police report told Fox News that it indicated that Hallie Biden, who is the widow of President Biden’s late son, Beau, and who was in a relationship with Hunter at the time, threw a gun owned by Hunter in a dumpster behind a market near a school. HUNTER BIDEN TAX TRIAL POSTPONED TO SEPTEMBER Hallie Biden may be required to testify during Hunter Biden’s trial. A firearm transaction report reviewed by Fox News indicated that Hunter purchased a gun earlier that month. On the firearm transaction report, Hunter answered in the negative when asked if he was “an unlawful user of, or addicted to, marijuana or any depressant, stimulant, narcotic drug, or any other controlled substance.” Hunter was discharged from the Navy in 2014 after testing positive for cocaine. Meanwhile, Weiss also brought federal tax charges against Hunter Biden in U.S. District Court for the Central District of California. IRS WHISTLEBLOWER SHAPLEY SAID HE ‘COULD NO LONGER PURSUE’ HUNTER BIDEN SUGAR BROTHER KEVIN MORRIS DUE TO CIA Biden pleaded not guilty to those charges — specifically, three felonies and six misdemeanors concerning $1.4 million in owed taxes that have since been paid. Weiss alleged a “four-year scheme” when the president’s son did not pay his federal income taxes from January 2017 to October 2020 while also filing false tax reports. On Wednesday, Judge Mark Scarsi heard arguments during a pre-trial hearing in California. That criminal trial was scheduled for June 20, but Hunter Biden’s attorneys requested to delay the trial. Scarsi sided with Hunter Biden’s attorneys, and moved the tax trial from June 20 to September 5, when jury selection will begin.

Pune Porsche crash: All six accused, including minor’s father, sent to judicial custody till June 7

On Friday, the special court in Pune sends all six accused, including the minor’s father Vishal Agarwal to judicial custody till June 7.

Delhi Lok Sabha Elections 2024: Check what’s open, what’s closed on May 25

All liquor shops in Delhi will remain closed from May 23, 6 PM onwards till May 25, 6 PM.

Christian legal firm celebrates win as Chase scales back ‘debanking’ policy

A Christian law firm is applauding a major bank chain for rolling back one of its controversial policies that led to the de-banking of several conservative individuals and nonprofit organizations over the last few years. JPMorgan Chase, the largest bank in the U.S., rolled back its WePay service that required merchants to refrain from accepting payments or using the service for activities related to “social risk issues,” which the bank defined as anything “subject to allegation and impacts related to hate groups, systemic racism, sexual harassment and corporate culture.” The language was removed from the company’s WePay terms of service, the Alliance for Defending Freedom (ADF) discovered this month. “We support clients around the globe and in every state in the U.S., across industries, religions, and political affiliations,” a JPMorgan Chase spokesperson told Fox News Digital in a statement on Thursday evening. CHRISTIAN NONPROFIT CLAIMS IT WAS ‘DE-BANKED’ BY BANK OF AMERICA OVER ITS RELIGIOUS VIEWS “Chase has used this policy to discriminate on the basis of viewpoint,” ADF senior counsel Jeremy Tedesco told Fox News Digital in an interview. “The policy itself is a risk to every single person who uses WePay and Chase, the biggest bank in America.” “There’s millions of people where it’s a threat to them being denied or losing payment processing,” Tedesco continued. “So, it is significant that they eliminated that policy. The next step we think for Chase is because they’ve been saying, ‘we’re firmly committed to not discriminating against people on their religious or political views,’ in different documents. That statement, we want them to put in their forward-facing customer policies. That’s the next step.” In recent years, Chase and other major banking chains have booted people from their services without much explanation. In one incident, Chase closed the account of the National Committee for Religious Freedom (NCRF), a political nonprofit, without explanation in 2022. That same year, Chase abruptly terminated the account of former U.S. Ambassador Sam Brownback’s National Committee for Religious Freedom without providing a reason. GOP AGs PUT MAJOR US BANK ON NOTICE FOR ALLEGED ‘DE-BANKING’ OF CONSERVATIVES “Americans shouldn’t have to fear that they can lose access to their bank accounts or payment processing because of their religious and political beliefs,” Tedesco said. “And we think it’s significant that Chase took this step.” Another incident in 2021 involved WePay denying ticket-payment processing services for a Republican event hosted by a nonprofit organization, Defense of Liberty. The event featured Donald Trump, Jr., and WePay initially denied services by citing policies against providing services connected to “hate … racial intolerance … or items or activities that encourage, promote, facilitate, or instruct others regarding the same.” At the time, JPMorgan Chase reversed the decision and said the group “didn’t violate the terms of service” after Missouri State Treasurer Scott Fitzpatrick called out the bank and warned that the state would reconsider doing business with the bank because of what he viewed as ideological discrimination. To encourage private companies to uphold freedom of speech, ADF launched a Business Index that ranks companies based on their own policies. ‘STRONG LIKELIHOOD’ BANKS ARE STILL USING TERMS TO SEARCH AMERICAN’S FINANCIAL DATA: JIM JORDAN More than 90% of businesses on the index rely “on divisive concepts like Critical Race Theory in its employee training materials,” according to ADF. “A plurality (40%) of employees polled in the 2023 Freedom at Work Survey say this approach divides, rather than unites, colleagues, while the same number say they are less likely to trust others or feel included at work if they were told in a company-sponsored training that they were complicit in racism or oppression based on their skin color, religion, or sex.” Tedesco’s group launched its most updated index this week. Chase’s rollback comes as, last month, a group of 15 financial officers representing 13 states issued a warning to Bank of America over its alleged practices of “politicized de-banking” targeting conservatives. Fox News Digital’s Eric Revell contributed to this report.

Maryland Democratic Senate candidate says there should be no limit on abortion

Democratic Senate candidate Angela Alsobrooks took aim Wednesday at her Republican opponent, former Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan, over his position on abortion. Alsobrooks spoke at an abortion rights rally, where she criticized Hogan’s statements that abortion should be legal up to 26 weeks of pregnancy, the standard set by the U.S. Supreme Court’s 1973 decision in Roe v. Wade. That decision was overturned in 2022, and now states can make their own laws regulating abortion, which has galvanized Democrats nationwide, who are campaigning to protect abortion access as Republicans seek to limit or ban the procedure. “I don’t believe that these decisions are ones that should be left to politicians,” Alsobrooks told reporters Wednesday. “The decision about reproductive choice, about the freedom to access an abortion belongs to that women. And to her, it’s a family decision. The woman, her family and her doctor. I believe politicians, Larry Hogan, ought to get out of the examination room.” When asked if there should be any cut-off on abortion access, Alsobrooks answered, “no.” MARYLAND GOP SENATE CANDIDATE LARRY HOGAN LINES UP WITH BIDEN ON ABORTION, WOULD CODIFY ROE “I believe the decision belongs to a woman and her doctor,” she said, pointing to circumstances when a pregnant woman’s life may be at risk without medical intervention. Hogan, a moderate who served two terms as blue state Maryland’s popular GOP governor, recently came out as “pro-choice” and has said the abortion issue should not be decided by “extremes” on both sides. LARRY HOGAN WINS REPUBLICAN SENATE PRIMARY IN MARYLAND; GOP AIMS TO FLIP DEMOCRATIC-HELD SEAT In a 30-second campaign ad released this week, Hogan agreed with Democrats that “no one should come between a woman and her doctor.” “Today, with Roe overturned, many have asked what I’ll do in the United States Senate. I’ll support legislation that makes Roe the law of the land in every state so every woman can make her own choice,” he said in the ad. The GOP candidate clarified his position in a radio interview on Wednesday, stating that he supports a compromise bill offered by Sens. Susan Collins, R-Maine, Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., and Kyrsten Sinema, I-Ariz., that would codify Roe into federal law. REPUBLICAN AIMING TO FLIP KEY SENATE SEAT IN DARK BLUE STATE GETS PRAISE FROM THESE TOP DEMS “Democrats want to take it much further,” Hogan told WBAL. “I didn’t do anything to take away access to abortion for any woman in Maryland,” Hogan said, pointing to his record as governor. “I don’t think this is what the election’s going to be decided about. And my record is very clear,” he added. The latest Fox News Poll shows that the issue of abortion is the biggest single issue among self-described Democrats (24%), suburban women (24%), self-described very liberals (23%), Black voters (17%), those with a college degree (17%), and voters under age 30 (16%). Fox News’ Brooke Singman contributed to this report. Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.

Will your Aadhaar Card become invalid after June 14 if not updated? Here’s what UIDAI has to say

There have been some reports which claim that if your Aadhaar card hasn’t been updated in the last 10 years, it will become invalid after June 14, 2024

Documents detail how Texas’ DEI ban is changing university campuses

In an update to lawmakers, university system leaders expressed worries about how the ban might affect crucial applications for federal funds.

‘No open debate’: Blue state judge removes controversial ballot initiative after backlash over parents’ rights

The controversial Equal Rights Amendment, which was on the ballot for the November elections in New York, has been tossed by a judge on procedural grounds. The ruling is a victory for Republicans and opponents of the bill who say it was written too broadly and could trample parents’ rights when it comes to decisions like children receiving gender-affirming procedures. The ERA was a rapid response by New York Democrats to the Supreme Court’s Dobbs v. Jackson’s Women’s Health Organization decision in June 2022. The amendment passed both houses of the New York legislature in a special session just one week after the Dobbs decision was rendered. The amendment, which advocates say is meant to enshrine women’s right to abortion in the Empire State, was passed so quickly that a judge in Livingston County determined the legislation was fatally flawed due to a procedural mistake. NY BALLOT INITIATIVE COULD BLOCK PARENTS FROM SAY IN CHILD’S TRANS SURGERY, CRITICS WARN IN FIERY CAMPAIGN Bobbie Anne Cox, the attorney who sued the legislature to stop the referendum, said, “They put forth this amendment to the constitution. There was no open debate. There was no public hearings, there was nothing.” “They referred it to the AG that day, but then they voted that same day. They didn’t even wait one day,” Cox continued. The New York constitution requires that a proposed amendment must be presented to the attorney general to ensure that the proposal is not in conflict with other provisions of the constitution. The AG has 20 days to respond. DOCTOR DEFENDS GIVING TRANSGENDER TREATMENTS TO 8- AND 10-YEAR-OLDS: ‘RESPECT KIDS AS INDIVIDUALS’ Supreme Court Justice Daniel J. Doyle declared the amendment “null and void” because the Democrats did not wait for the AG’s analysis. “For them to violate the constitution and to want to do that in order to change the constitution is not acceptable, in fact it’s dangerous for the people, for the citizens,” Cox said. Following the decision, Democrats have promised an appeal. Gov. Kathy Hochul said in a statement, “Our decades-long fight to protect equality and reproductive freedom will not be thrown off track by one extremist judge and I look forward to casting my ballot for the Equal Rights Amendment in November.” GENDER DYSPHORIA GROWING AMONG YOUNGER ADULTS AMID ‘INCREASING ACCEPTANCE,’ STUDY FINDS Opponents of the amendment include former House Republican John Faso, who praised the decision to toss the referendum, calling the amendment “a cynical maneuver to try to boost [voter] turnout based on a false premise that abortion is at risk.” Faso pointed to the legislature’s adoption of abortion rights legislation in 1970. He said the ERA goes far beyond guaranteeing a right to abortion. “It would, for instance, give a minor a right to so-called gender-affirming care, puberty blockers even surgeries, without permission, without consent of their parents,” Faso said. “It would also, for instance, say that biological males could compete on girls sports teams,” he added. “Any decent lawyer will take one look at the Proposition One language and say, ‘You’ve got to be kidding me,” Greg Garvey, the executive director of the Coalition to Protect Kids – New York, a group “dedicated to defeating the Equal Rights Amendment,” said in a statement to Fox News Digital. “This ballot initiative is written so broadly and so poorly that it could cause irreparable harm to children and families,” he continued. “This is no soft-sounding equal rights amendment, it’s nothing less than the parent replacement act.” Democrat MaryJane Shimsky, a member of the New York State Assembly and advocate for the referendum, pushed back on opponents’ criticism, saying, “We need the ERA now precisely because of the extremists who would scapegoat children for political gain and the dangers their culture wars are creating in our communities.” “New Yorkers know that we are stronger together and when we stand up for each other,” Shimsky continued. “Should the ERA proposition be restored to the ballot, I expect that it will pass with broad popular support.” New York Senate leadership did not respond to Fox Digital’s request for comment.

DOJ’s Inspector General takes heat for allegedly ‘targeting political opponents’

The Office of Inspector General (OIG) at the Justice Department is coming under fire after reports that some of its personnel have an apparent political bias against the targets of their investigations. The OIG says its mission is to “detect and deter fraud, waste, abuse, and misconduct by conducting objective, independent, and impactful oversight of the Department, its programs, and the conduct of its personnel.” OIG personnel are non-political employees and do not shift with changes to the executive branch. Inspector General Michael Horowitz was confirmed by the Senate in 2012. However, recent reporting and documents reviewed by Fox News Digital reveal that some OIG personnel, including ones responsible for overseeing investigations into Trump administration political appointees, appear to have partisan bias. IRS WHISTLEBLOWER SHAPLEY SAID HE ‘COULD NO LONGER PURSUE’ HUNTER BIDEN SUGAR BROTHER KEVIN MORRIS DUE TO CIA America First Legal (AFL) on Wednesday sent a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to the DOJ to investigate the “existence of politically motivated employees in positions that demand impartiality.” “The Department’s Office of Inspector General itself describes that ‘[i]n light of today’s wide-spread lack of trust and negative views of government, a key facet of the Department’s challenge of strengthening public trust is ensuring that DOJ personnel fulfill their duties without any actual or perceived political influence or partisan consideration,’” the FOIA request states. “Despite this unambiguous obligation to avoid the appearance of political or partisan considerations, there is evidence that the Office of the Inspector General is deeply infected with partisan actors,” it says. According to documents reviewed by Fox News Digital, one OIG attorney, Deborah Falk Zerwitz, has donated 35 times to Democrats or Democrat-linked entities since 2007, totaling $6,466. DOJ URGED TO ‘TAKE IMMEDIATE ACTION’ TO PROSECUTE MICHAEL COHEN OVER STRING OF ALLEGED LIES Zerwitz is currently overseeing OIG’s investigation into the department’s 2020 probe into deaths in state-run nursing homes in New York, New Jersey, Michigan and Pennsylvania. On her X account, Zerwitz “liked” dozens of political posts including disparaging posts about then-Attorney General Bill Barr and Trump appointees, including one post saying all White House lawyers drafting executive orders should be “disbarred,” and one accusing Barr of promoting a “myth of unaccountable career prosecutor.” Another post she appeared to have “liked” said, “We need to send Donald Trump packing, but we can’t stop there. We need to boot his Republican enablers out of office — at every level of government.” She also “liked” posts that referenced “Trump and his racist homophobic cult members,” and one that read “Attention QANON, MAGAT Fascists,” and ended with, “SO F— OFF.” She also liked a post that accused Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., of “eroding our democracy.” Jennifer Ramella, another OIG lawyer investigating DOJ’s nursing home death probe, donated 33 times between 2020 and 2022 to the Democratic PAC ActBlue, totaling over $300. Another is Christina Monta, a former OIG counsel who led the investigation into the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania’s probe into reports of potential issues with a few mail-in ballots at the Luzerne County Board of Elections in 2020. Monta, according to FEC data, made several contributions to ActBlue and Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s Senate campaign, totaling $1,014.50 between 2019 and 2020. OBAMA STATE DEPT BLOCKED FBI FROM ARRESTING SUPPORTERS OF IRAN NUCLEAR PROGRAM IN US: EMAILS Monta was counsel in one of the first cases DOJ litigated to allow biological males into women’s bathrooms in 2015. She also joined the DOJ’s challenge of Texas’ voter ID law around the same time. “It is imperative that Americans learn whether these views persist within the Department of Justice, certainly meeting the Department’s standard that a ‘matter of widespread and exceptional media interest in which there exist possible questions about the government’s integrity that affect public confidence,’ especially as we approach a Presidential election,” AFL’s FOIA request states. “It is vital for our democracy and trust in government that those in government with duties to be impartial do not wield their power by targeting political opponents,” they said. A spokesperson for the OIG told Fox News Digital, “Consistent with the First Amendment, Citizens United, and federal law, the OIG respects the constitutional rights of its employees, and of all citizens.” “The OIG’s work is fact-based and objective, as evidenced by our reports on FISA abuses, Operation Fast and Furious, and decades of other oversight. Our ongoing work meets the same standards,” the spokesperson said. In 2019, the OIG released a report on FISA abuses in the FBI’s Crossfire Hurricane investigation and outlined their investigation process: “As part of the standard practice in our reviews, we provided a draft copy of this report to the Department and the FBI to conduct a factual accuracy review. Also consistent with our standard practice, we contacted individuals who were interviewed as part of the review and whose conduct is addressed in this report, and certain other witnesses, to provide them an opportunity to review the portions of the report that pertain to their testimony to the OIG. With limited exceptions, these witnesses availed themselves of this opportunity, and we provided those who did conduct such a review with the opportunity to provide oral or written comments directly to the OIG concerning the portions they reviewed, consistent with rules to protect classified information.” The Civil Service Reform Act also prohibits OIG from discriminating against employees based on their political affiliations. Gene Hamilton, AFL executive director, said in a statement that, “if the ‘watchdog’ is a mere partisan bulldog, it does not deserve to exist.”

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