Ken Paxton impeachment records reveal fights over witness testimony and alleged bullying
The Texas Senate released hundreds of pages of previously-unreleased documents that pull back the curtain on the proceedings, revealing behind-the-scenes fights between Paxton’s defense team and the prosecution.
Hunter Biden testifies he ‘did not involve’ his father in his businesses, calls impeachment inquiry ‘baseless’
Hunter Biden testified Wednesday that he “did not involve” his father in his businesses, while blasting House Republicans for having “hunted” him in their “partisan political pursuit” and impeachment inquiry into his father. Hunter Biden appeared on Capitol Hill Wednesday for his closed-door, deposition at the House Oversight and Judiciary committees. Hunter Biden said Republicans have no evidence against his father “because there isn’t any,” according to an opening statement obtained by Fox News. BIDEN MET WITH CHAIRMAN OF CHINESE ENERGY FIRM HUNTER DID BUSINESS WITH IN 2017, EX-ASSOCIATE TESTIFIES “I am here today to provide the Committees with the one uncontestable fact that should end the false premise of this inquiry: I did not involve my father in my business,” Hunter Biden testified Wednesday morning. “Not while I was a practicing lawyer, not in my investments or transactions domestic or international, not as a board member, and not as an artist. Never.” “You read this fact in the many letters that have been sent to you over the last year as part of your so-called impeachment investigation. You heard this fact when I said it weeks ago, standing outside of this building. You heard this fact from a parade of other witnesses – former colleagues and business partners of mine, including my uncle – who have testified before you in similar proceedings. And now, today, you hear this fact directly from me,” he continued in his opening statement. The first son said that for more than a year, the committees “have hunted me in your partisan political pursuit of my dad. You have trafficked in innuendo, distortion, and sensationalism — all the while ignoring the clear and convincing evidence staring you in the face. ” “You do not have evidence to support the baseless and MAGA-motivated conspiracies about my father because there isn’t any,” he testified. The first son said House Republicans “have built your entire partisan house of cards on lies told by” past witnesses. Hunter Biden blasted his ex-business associates Tony Bobulinski and Jason Galanis who also testified as part of the impeachment inquiry, and the since-indicted former FBI informant Alexander Smirnov. JOE BIDEN ‘ENABLED’ FAMILY TO SELL ACCESS TO ‘DANGEROUS ADVERSARIES,’ TONY BOBULINSKI TESTIFIES “Rather than follow the facts as they have been laid out before you in bank records, financial statements, correspondence, and other witness testimony, you continue your frantic search to prove the lies you, and those you rely on, keep peddling. Yes, they are lies,” he said. Hunter Biden, reflecting on “mistakes” he has made in his life, said he has “squandered opportunities and privileges that were afforded to me. I know that. I am responsible for that. And I am making amends for that.” “But my mistakes and shortcomings are my own and not my father’s, who has done nothing but devote his entire life to public service and trying to make this country a better place to live,” he said. FLASHBACK: GRASSLEY, JOHNSON SHARE HUNTER BIDEN’S CHINA-LINKED BANK RECORDS WITH US ATTORNEY LEADING CRIMINAL PROBE And reflecting on his “battle with addiction,” Hunter Biden said his father was there for him. “He helped save my life. His love and support made it possible for me to get sober, stay sober and rebuild my life as a father, husband, son, and brother,” he testified. “What he got in return for being a loving and supportive parent is a barrage of hate-filled conspiracy theories that hatched this sham impeachment inquiry and continue to fuel unrelenting personal attacks against him and me.” Hunter Biden went on to point to records of his text messages, emails and other communications that the committees have obtained. “Republicans have taken my communications out of context, relied on documents that have been altered, and cherry-picked snippets of financial or other records to misrepresent what really happened,” he said. “Examples of this include a few references to my family in emails or texts that I sent when I was in the darkest days of my addiction.” FLASHBACK: GOP-LED COMMITTEES RELEASE INTERIM REPORT ON HUNTER BIDEN, BURISMA PROBE He added: “If you try to do that again today, my answers will reveal your tactics and demonstrate the truth that my father was never involved in any of my businesses.” The first son said he hopes his testimony will “put an end to this baseless and destructive political charade.” “You have wasted valuable time and resources attacking me and my family for your own political gain when you should be fixing the real problems in this country that desperately need your attention,” he testified. Hunter Biden’s testimony comes after his uncle, President Biden’s younger brother James Biden, testified last week as part of the impeachment inquiry. James Biden testified that President Biden “has never had any involvement or any direct or indirect financial interest” in his business ventures. House Republicans have heard testimony from a number of the first son’s former business associates, like Tony Bobulinski, who testified before the committees earlier this month that Joe Biden was involved in the family’s business ventures. He also testified that he personally met with him. Days before Bobulinski’s testimony, another former business associate, Rob Walker, testified that Joe Biden met with the chairman of the Chinese energy firm CEFC that his brother and son did business with. After Walker’s testimony, the House Oversight Committee said it was able to “now confirm Joe Biden met with nearly every foreign national who funneled money to his son.” House Democrats and the White House have criticized the inquiry as baseless, but Republicans insist they have just scratched the surface of the investigation into Biden family businesses. “The House Oversight, Judiciary, and Ways and Means Committees have unearthed a record of evidence revealing Joe Biden was ‘the brand’ his family sold to enrich the Bidens,” House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer, R-Ky, said in statement Tuesday. “Joe Biden knew of, participated in, and benefited from these schemes. Joe Biden attended dinners, spoke on speakerphone, showed up to meetings, and had coffee with his son’s foreign business
Biden says he’s making unannounced visit to Walter Reed for physical exam
President Biden revealed Wednesday that he is making an unannounced trip to Walter Reed Hospital for a physical exam. Biden has undergone yearly physical examinations since the beginning of his presidency. Walter Reed Hospital, the standard medical center for all presidents, is located in Bethesda, Maryland. Critics have demanded more transparency from the White House regarding Biden’s physical and mental health following the report from Special Counsel Robert Hur that claimed the president had significant memory issues. This is a developing story and will be updated.
Marianne Williamson returns to presidential race, saying Biden is vulnerable against Trump
Self-help guru Marianne Williamson returned to the 2024 presidential race on Wednesday, just weeks after announcing the suspension of her campaign. Williamson made the announcement in a video statement on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter. Williamson said she returned to the race because she feels President Biden is a vulnerable candidate to put up against former President Donald Trump. “As of today, I am unsuspending my campaign for the presidency of the United States,” Williamson said. “I had suspended it because I was losing the horse race. But something so much more important than the horse race is at stake here, and we must respond.” “Right now, we have a fascist standing at the door. Everybody’s all upset about it. Well, we should be upset about it. But we’re not going to defeat the fascist by–well, by what? What is President Biden offering?” she asked. This is a developing story. Check back soon for updates.
Washington state’s budget in flux as Republicans try to repeal carbon program
A conservative-backed effort to repeal Washington state’s landmark carbon pricing program and tax on the sale of stocks and bonds is putting the budget into limbo, with billions of dollars at stake in the final days of this year’s Legislative session. Lawmakers are scrambling to finalize a trio of statewide supplemental budgets that feature new investments in everything from curbing the opioid crisis to electric ferries before the regular session ends March 7. But initiatives that are expected for the November ballot could cumulatively strip more than $2.1 billion from the bottom line. The initiatives to repeal the state’s landmark Climate Commitment Act and the tax on the sale of stocks and bonds are part of a broader effort by conservatives to overturn some of the biggest recent policy wins by the majority Democratic party. WASHINGTON GOP CHAIR CALLS DECLARING PARTY ON OUTSIDE OF BALLOT ‘QUESTIONABLE DESIGN’ AS VOTERS RAISE CONCERNS “While yes there’s a lot of pet projects that wouldn’t be funded going forward, a lot of that money was one time anyways,” said Rep. Chris Corry, top Republican on the House appropriations committee. “But the direct result is consumers will have more money in their paychecks, which is what they’re telling us they want.” Losing the carbon emissions pricing program could remove $1.3 billion from the budget and ending the tax on the sale of stocks and bonds could remove another $833 million in fiscal year 2025 alone if the initiatives took effect by June 6, according to estimates provided by the Office of Financial Management. Those numbers would likely be smaller if they aren’t approved until November, a spokesperson for the office said. The result has been lawmakers working to finalize multibillion-dollar budgets that run through fiscal year 2025 with caveats sprinkled throughout. “You can’t cut billions of dollars out of the state budget without really impacting people,” said Democratic Rep. Joe Fitzgibbon, House majority leader. “And that’s something that we’re trying to really make clear to Washingtonians this year.” The last time Fitzgibbon said he remembers an initiative having such a big impact on the state transportation and operating budgets was about 25 years ago, when voters repealed the state’s motor vehicle excise tax, eliminating up to $1.1 billion in state revenues in 1999-2001. Dozens of programs funded through the carbon pricing program will have belated start dates of Jan. 1, 2025, and stipulations that they would not take effect if these funds disappear. In one instance a budget assumes less revenue from the program in 2024 to better prepare for it potentially disappearing. Another budget stipulates that unspent money generated by the program would go to an account that could be tapped into even if voters repealed the program. The capital gains tax is more difficult to preemptively adjust for, as most of the programs it funds are written into state laws, Fitzgibbon said. The money from the tax funds the Fair Start for Kids Act, for example, which helps makes childcare and early learning more affordable — and if it is repealed by voters, lawmakers would have to reconsider keeping that in place. Some Republican lawmakers see the talk surrounding these initiatives as fearmongering, explaining that this funding did not exist before the current biennial budget period and the state would make do without it. Both the carbon pricing program and the capital gains tax are relatively new, with funds first coming in in 2023. “We have enough money to fund priorities of government that include a variety of – whether it’s social programs, roads, ferries, bridges,” said Corry. “Yes, there’s additional revenues in there, but they come at a cost, right? And if you think about it the cost is increase tax burden on Washington consumers.” The 7% capital gains tax on the sale of stocks, bonds and other high-end assets, with exemptions for the first $262,000, goes to childcare and school construction. When enacted in 2021, it was expected to be paid by 7,000 people — fewer than 1 in every 1,000 residents. It is known as a volatile revenue source, subject to change. The 1-year-old Climate Commitment Act, which works to cap and reduce pollution while creating revenue for investments that address climate change, raised $1.8 billion in 2023 through quarterly auctions in which emission allowances are sold to businesses covered under the act. If voter-approved initiatives succeed in November, the impact would likely extend beyond specific areas of funding. Democratic Majority Leader Sen. Andy Billig has given the example of the Senate’s $14.6 billion transportation budget proposal, explaining that some things funded by the carbon pricing program will likely remain because they’re so important. “What’s going to happen is we’re going to have to reprioritize everything in transportation,” he told reporters recently. “That’s why basically everything in the transportation budget, which is already a budget under a lot of duress, will be in question if the Climate Commitment Act fails.” These initiatives are just two of six certified after a conservative group submitted hundreds of thousands of signatures in support of them. The Legislature is considering one on Tuesday and expected to consider two others later this week, while the carbon pricing program and capital gains tax, which would have the biggest impact on the state’s budget if they were repealed, will likely head straight to voters.
GOP senator introduces bill to defend gun dealers from Biden’s ‘gun-grabbing agenda’: ‘Extremist policies’
FIRST ON FOX: Iowa Sen. Joni Ernst has introduced legislation to protect gun owners from what critics have called a Biden administration crackdown on gun dealers as part of a larger anti-gun push by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. The bill, introduced on Tuesday, will “provide firearm licensees an opportunity to correct statutory and regulatory violations, and for other purposes” and says the “Attorney General may not bring an enforcement action to revoke, or deny a renewal of, a license for a violation of any provision of this chapter or any implementing regulation thereof on the basis of a self-reported violation.” Ernst’s bill comes as gun dealers across the country have cried foul over hundreds of licenses being taken away by Biden’s ATF and suggesting that they are being unfairly targeted for political reasons over paperwork errors as part of an agenda to combat gun violence which President Biden has vocally pushed. “We were making $1 million a year, now it’s less than $100,000,” Anthony Navarro, a gun dealer who lost his license in 2022 after receiving three warnings for legal violations since 2009, told Wall Street Journal. “This policy is designed to be a backdoor violation of the Second Amendment.” CALIFORNIA BILLY CLUB BAN STRUCK DOWN BY COURT ON SECOND AMENDMENT GROUNDS Ernst says the bill aims to ensure the government works with gun dealers to comply with the law rather than shut them down. “Biden’s ATF has had it out for gun owners since day one,” the Iowa Republican senator said in a statement. “For years, the Biden administration has cracked down on law-abiding gun dealers to advance its gun-grabbing agenda, even preventing small businesses from making a living. Rather than helping dealers comply with the law, Biden’s ATF has created more hurdles to legally sell guns, so it can turn around and revoke licenses for inconsequential, so-called ‘violations.’ While Joe Biden’s ATF has avoided critical oversight on its FFL abuse for over a year, I am proud to stand up for law-abiding Iowa gun dealers.” GUN RIGHTS IN BATTLEGROUND STATE TAKE CENTER STAGE AHEAD OF 2024: ‘SHALL NOT BE INFRINGED’ The bill would create a safe harbor for gun dealers to self-report violations, require the ATF to work with gun dealers to fix violations, and allow for a direct judicial review of license revocations. “Senator Joni Ernst’s ‘FIREARM’ Act will help restore confidence that the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives will fulfill its mission as a regulatory agency over the manufacture and sale of firearms rather than being used as a political tool by special interests,” Lawrence G. Keane, National Shooting Sports Foundation Senior Vice President & General Counsel, said in a statement. “For too long, the firearm and ammunition industry has seen the ATF turned into a sledgehammer to carry out the extremist policies of antigun administrations. This damages the cooperative relationships between firearm retailers, who are often the frontline preventing illegal straw purchases of firearms, and the ATF, who enforces laws to safeguard our communities. NSSF is thankful for Senator Ernst’s leadership to provide remedies that repair this necessary public trust in our federal agencies.” Similar legislation is also being worked through in the House by GOP Rep. Darrell Issa. “From the beginning, this Administration has sought to undermine the Second Amendment and weaponize federal agencies against law-abiding citizens and family-owned small businesses targeted for being a part of the lawful firearms industry,” Issa said in a statement. “This has delivered a transparently unfair assault on the fundamental rights of our fellow Americans, and that’s why my friend Senator Ernst and I are introducing the FIREARM Act. It’s time to stop this abuse of power and prevent it from ever happening again.” Last fiscal year, 122 gun dealers had their licenses revoked by the ATF which is up from 90 the year before and 27 in 2021, Wall Street Journal reported. During the Trump and Obama presidencies, the number of licenses revoked never exceeded 81. “ATF’s core mission is to protect the public from violent crime, particularly crimes involving the use of firearms,” ATF Spokesperson Kristina Mastropasqua told Fox News Digital in a statement. “An essential part of this mission is ensuring that federal firearms licensees (FFLs) comply with applicable federal laws and regulations, particularly the implementing regulations of the Gun Control Act of 1968. FFLs are one of the first lines of defense against gun crime and are often a source of critical enforcement information that helps law enforcement identify straw purchasers and disrupt illegal firearms trafficking schemes. However, FFLs who willfully break the law put public safety at risk.” “Accordingly, in June 2021, Attorney General Garland announced a Gun Crime Prevention Strategy as part of the Department’s Comprehensive Strategy for Reducing Violent Crime, which included an enhanced regulatory enforcement policy aimed at preventing the diversion of firearms from lawful commerce by ensuring a consistent enforcement response to certain willful violations of the federal firearm regulations and laws. Specifically, absent extraordinary circumstances, the policy provides that ATF will issue a notice of license revocation when an inspection results in a preliminary finding that an FFL has willfully committed one or more of the following violations: (1) transferring a firearm to a prohibited person; (2) failing to conduct a required background check; (3) falsifying records, such as a firearms transaction form; (4) failing to respond to an ATF trace request; or (5) refusing to permit ATF to conduct an inspection.” The statement continued, “This enhanced regulatory enforcement policy did not alter the statutory or regulatory provisions applicable to the FFL revocation process. While the policy identifies specific violations that may result in ATF issuing a revocation notice, it is limited to the initial step in the revocation process—the issuance of a notice. Whether issued pursuant to the enhanced regulatory enforcement policy or for other violations of the law, a revocation notice initiates additional procedural rights for FFLs, including the right to an administrative hearing, and if applicable, the right
Lara Trump officially announces campaign for RNC co-chair as Trump loyalists move in
Lara Trump officially announced her candidacy for co-chair of the Republican National Committee (RNC) on Wednesday. Her announcement comes days after current RNC Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel announced that she will resign on March 8, following the Super Tuesday primaries. Trump is among several loyalists former President Trump has supported to take over key roles at the RNC. Lara wrote to committee members on Wednesday, saying she is “proud to have the endorsement of my father-in-law and 45th president, Donald J. Trump, for this position and understand the fundamental importance of this role.” “In the coming days, I look forward to connecting with you, the members of the RNC, and hopefully earning your vote,” she added. BIDEN CAMPAIGN TROLLS TRUMP’S ‘WEAKEST OPERATION IN RECENT HISTORY’ AMID LAGGING CAMPAIGN CASH The former president has also endorsed North Carolina GOP Chair Michael Whatley to replace McDaniel as chair of the RNC, and senior adviser Chris LaCivita to become chief operating officer. LARA TRUMP UNLEASHES ON NIKKI HALEY AMID RNC FEUD, REFUSAL TO DROP OUT OF GOP PRIMARY RACE Lara Trump laid out her priorities to turbocharge the organization, which has been struggling to keep up with its Democrat counterpart’s massive fundraising numbers. “We have to legally ballot harvest everywhere we possibly can,” she said at a campaign rally last week. She has also argued that “every single penny” the RNC receives should go toward ensuring her father-in-law is elected in November, as well as expanding the Republican majority in the House of Representatives and flipping the Senate from Democratic control. WATCH: TRUMP CONDEMNS ALEXEI NAVALNY’S DEATH AS ‘HORRIBLE THING’ AFTER FACING SHARP BACKLASH FROM HALEY McDaniel formally announced her resignation plans on Monday, saying it was traditional for a presidential candidate to make changes. “It has been the honor and privilege of my life to serve the Republican National Committee for seven years as Chairwoman to elect Republicans and grow our Party,” McDaniel said in a statement. “I have decided to step aside at our Spring Training on March 8 in Houston to allow our nominee to select a Chair of their choosing. The RNC has historically undergone change once we have a nominee and it has always been my intention to honor that tradition.” Fox News’ Brandon Gillespie contributed to this report.
NYC mayor continues calls for sanctuary city amendment to allow deportation of violent illegal immigrants
New York City Mayor Eric Adams is seeking to amend the city’s sanctuary laws to exclude illegal migrants who have committed violent crimes. Adams has mentioned his desire to tighten the city’s regulations on illegal migrants multiple times this week, with his latest at a Tuesday press conference. “I don’t believe people who are violent in our city and commit repeated crimes should have the privilege of being in our city,” Adams said on Tuesday. NYC MAYOR ERIC ADAMS DOUBLES DOWN ON CALL FOR CHANGES TO CITY’S ‘SANCTUARY’ STATUS AMID MIGRANTS CRISIS He added, “You don’t have the right to be in our city and tarnish the overwhelming number who are here following the rules.” This echoes the New York City mayor’s previous remarks made during a Q&A session at an event on Monday. “The overwhelming amount of migrants that are here, they want to work. I still don’t understand why the federal government’s not allowing them to work,” Adams said Monday. “They need to have the right to work like all of us that have come to this country had the ability to do so.” MAYOR ERIC ADAMS SAYS NEW YORK CITY HAS ‘RUN OUT OF ROOM’ FOR MIGRANTS: ‘IT’S NOT GOING TO GET ANY BETTER’ “But those small numbers that are committing crimes, we need to modify the sanctuary city law that if you commit a felony, a violent act, we should be able to turn you over to [Immigration and Customs Enforcement] and have you deported.” He added, “It is a right to live in this city, and you should not be committing crimes in our city. Right now, we don’t have the authority to do so.” Adams commended his administration on Monday for doing an excellent job during a challenging time, but he stated his hands are tied by federal and local law. The mayor spoke about some migrants participating in robberies and using mopeds to commit snatch-and-grab stick-ups. Adams has said before that migrants committing crimes should be handed over to ICE and deported. Fox News Digital’s Greg Wehner contributed to this report.
Who was Aaron Bushnell, the US airman who died protesting over Gaza?
NewsFeed People across the US have been holding vigils for Aaron Bushnell, the airman who died after setting himself on fire to protest against Israel’s war on Gaza. Here’s what we know about him. Published On 28 Feb 202428 Feb 2024 Adblock test (Why?)
June elections proposed during Senegal dialogue to end political crisis
Senegal has been thrown into crisis since the president attempted to push the February 25 elections till December. A national dialogue panel in Senegal has proposed holding elections in early June, the first such proposal since President Macky Sall attempted to push the February 25 elections till December. In early February, Sall, who is serving his second term and has said he would not run again, announced the postponement of the elections. But Senegal’s highest election authority, the Constitutional Council, rejected that move and ordered the government to set a new election date as soon as possible. On Tuesday, the panel sat as part of a two-day national dialogue that Sall called earlier this week, aiming at fostering trust among the candidates and the population. Civil, political, and religious leaders attended, but almost all of the candidates on the ballot refused to participate. The panel proposed holding the vote on June 2. Sall has said he will step down by April 2, which is the end of his current term, but it is unclear who will take over if elections are not held before that. A member of the dialogue panel, Ndiawar Paye, told the Reuters news agency on Tuesday that it would recommend Sall remain in office until his successor is sworn in. The delay of the vote has sparked deadly protests across Senegal, often seen as a rare stable democracy in a region rife with coups. Security forces have killed at least three people and injured dozens of others. The panel called for the Constitutional Council to review decisions that blocked candidates including Karim Wade, an opposition leader and son of former President Abdoulaye Wade, from the ballot. The election authority disqualified the younger Wade because he previously held dual citizenship. He renounced his French nationality to run. Sall has defended his decision to delay elections but has accepted the Constitutional Council’s ruling and attempted to calm the situation. At the launch of the dialogue, he said he would propose a general amnesty law addressing the protests, in which hundreds of people were jailed. It remains uncertain if the amnesty would include Ousmane Sonko, a popular opposition leader who is currently in jail. Adblock test (Why?)