Former chief of staff to Illinois House Speaker receives prison time for lying under oath
A federal judge in Chicago sentenced a former chief of staff to longtime Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan to two and a half years in prison Monday for lying under oath to a grand jury to protect his once-powerful boss. U.S. District Judge John F. Kness imposed the sentence on Timothy Mapes, 69, of Springfield. A jury in U.S. District Court in Chicago last year convicted Mapes of making false declarations before a grand jury and attempted obstruction of justice. “I don’t understand why. You were immunized by the grand jury, and all you had to do was go in and tell the truth,” Judge John Kness said. “You knew the testimony was false. … I can’t ignore that finding.” PROSECUTION RESTS CASE IN CORRUPTION TRIAL FOR EX-ILLINOIS HOUSE SPEAKER’S ASSOCIATES Mapes is to report to prison in mid-June to begin his sentence, the judge said. Kness said in court he felt a sense of loyalty had potentially motivated Mapes’ deception, but said that such a feeling was a mistake. “Your loyalty was misguided, and now you will pay the price for that,” he said. Prosecutors told jurors that Mapes lied repeatedly when he testified in 2021 to a grand jury investigating Madigan and others. They said he specifically lied when he said he couldn’t recall any relevant details about Madigan’s ties to Michael McClain, who was a Madigan confidant. One witness, a legislator, told jurors that Madigan, Mapes and McClain formed a mighty triumvirate — with Madigan at its head — in the Illinois House for years, controlling which bills got through the legislative body. Government evidence included wiretapped phone recordings and audio of Mapes testifying before the grand jury. “He did everything he could to obstruct the process … to minimize his participation, to act as if he was clueless,” prosecutor Julia Schwartz said of Mapes during closing arguments. During his closings, defense attorney Andrew Porter said Mapes would have had no motivation to lie to protect his old boss after Madigan had forced him to resign in 2018 amid allegations of harassment, which Mapes denied. “Why would he fall on his sword for a guy who kicked him to the curb three years before?” Porter asked. ILLINOIS DEMOCRAT MICHAEL MADIGAN INDICTED ON FEDERAL RACKETEERING, BRIBERY CHARGES Federal jurors last May convicted four defendants of bribery conspiracy involving the state’s largest electric utility. Prosecutors said McClain, two former ComEd executives and a former utility consultant arranged contracts, jobs and money for Madigan’s associates to ensure proposed bills boosting ComEd profits became law. A year before Madigan was indicted and amid speculation that he was a federal target, Madigan resigned from the Legislature as the longest-serving state House speaker in modern U.S. history. The indictment accused Madigan of reaping the benefits of private legal work that was illegally steered to his law firm, among other things. He has denied any wrongdoing. Madigan lost the speakership and resigned his House seat in 2021, a year before being indicted along with McClain in a separate racketeering case alleging Madigan sold his office for personal gain. That trial is set to begin in October.
House GOP will attempt 2nd impeachment vote for Homeland Security Secretary Mayorkas on Tuesday
House Republicans are expected to hold a second vote to impeach Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas on Tuesday, after an initial effort seeking to do so failed last week. He is the first Cabinet secretary to face charges in nearly 150 years. House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-Louisiana, has signaled he intends to bring the two articles of impeachment against Mayorkas before the House floor as early as Tuesday evening. These articles were initially filed by the House Homeland Security Committee. Their passage is far from certain, however, as the GOP holds only a narrow majority in the chamber. While Majority Leader Steve Scalise has returned to the chamber after being away from Washington for cancer care, even one other missing or weather-delayed lawmaker could prevent Republicans from impeaching Mayorkas for a second time. The chamber’s Democratic members staunchly oppose the impeachment effort. HOUSE FAILS TO IMPEACH DHS SECRETARY ALEJANDRO MAYORKAS IN MAJOR BLOW TO GOP Republicans are seeking to impeach Mayorkas over failing to secure the U.S.-Mexico border and for repeatedly telling Congress that the Biden administration maintained operational control despite historic levels of migrant encounters and crossings. The specific article charges Mayorkas with having “refused to comply with Federal immigration laws” and the other of having violated “public trust.” HERE ARE THE 3 HOUSE REPUBLICANS WHO TORPEDOED MAYORKAS’ IMPEACHMENT VOTE Last week, three Republicans opposed the impeachment vote in the final tally. Democrats remained united, and the vote failed 216-214. One Democrat, Rep. Al Green of Texas, who had been hospitalized for emergency abdominal surgery, made a surprise arrival and wheeled into the chamber in scrubs and socks to vote against it. Johnson could push the vote later into the week, should he wish to wait for the outcome of Tuesday’s special election in New York to replace ousted Rep. George Santos from New York’s 3rd Congressional District — which could send another Republican to Washington. GOP LAWMAKER ON KEY IMMIGRATION SUBCOMMITTEE SLAMS MAYORKAS IMPEACHMENT Mazi Pilip, an Ethiopian-Israeli immigrant and a former Israel Defense Forces soldier, is seeking to keep the seat red as she fends off a challenge from her Democratic opponent, former Rep. Tom Suozzi, who served in Congress from 2017 to 2023. The effort comes as border security remains one of the most important issues for voters around the country. Republicans, including presidential front-runner former President Trump, have made the issue a focus of their re-election campaigns in November, when the GOP is looking to keep its majority in the House of Representatives, as well as win back the White House and the U.S. Senate. Trump has vowed to launch “the largest domestic deportation operation in American history” on day one if he retakes the White House. “We have no choice,” Trump said at a rally in South Carolina. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Al Jazeera journalist, cameraman wounded in Israeli strike on Gaza
Correspondent Ismail Abu Omar and cameraman Ahmad Matar in serious condition, rushed to European Hospital. Two journalists, including an Al Jazeera reporter, have been wounded in an Israeli attack north of Rafah in southern Gaza. The condition of Al Jazeera Arabic correspondent Ismail Abu Omar and his cameraman Ahmad Matar was described as serious and both were transferred to the European Gaza Hospital, in Khan Younis, for treatment on Tuesday. Abu Omar has had his right leg amputated, but pieces of shrapnel remain in his head and chest. Doctors are attempting to save his left leg. He is currently in surgery after suffering significant blood loss from a possible cut in the femoral artery. The two journalists were hit by an Israeli drone strike in the Miraj area north of Rafah city. They were documenting the condition of displaced Palestinians who have been crammed into the area as Israel intensifies its attacks by land, sea and air across the besieged enclave, killing more than 28,000 people. Doctor Muhammad al-Astal, an emergency physician at the hospital, said Abu Omar’s life was at risk due to his severe injuries. Ahmed Matar, who was accompanying Al Jazeera correspondent Ismail Abu Omar, in hospital [Screengrab/Sanad] Reporting from Rafah, Al Jazeera’s Hani Mahmoud said this is another tragedy hitting journalists trying to cover Israel’s war on Gaza. “They were in the field documenting the living conditions of displaced Palestinian families in that particular area, and documenting the horror that they have experienced and lived through in the past 24 hours as massive air strikes targeted major parts of Rafah city, where close to 100 people were killed,” he said. “They were directly targeted by a missile fired from a drone.” ‘Everyone is a target’ The Government Media Office in Gaza denounced the “targeting of the Al Jazeera channel crew for the fifth time”, in an attack it said was “deliberate”. “This targeting comes within the framework of intimidation of journalists,” it said, to prevent media coverage of the military offensive in Gaza. At least 126 journalists have been killed in Gaza since October 7, while 10 journalists have been arrested, according to government figures. “This is not the first incident and we are expecting this is not the last one. There is ongoing, systematic, almost consistent attacks on journalists – there are more than 100 journalists since the beginning of this war that have been targeted,” Al Jazeera’s Mahmoud reported. “There are no terms to this genocidal war. Everyone is a target.” Al Jazeera’s Gaza bureau chief Wael Dahdouh was wounded in an Israeli drone strike in December in which Al Jazeera Arabic’s cameraperson Samer Abudaqa was killed while they were reporting in southern Gaza. Dahdouh lost his wife Amna, son Mahmoud, daughter Sham and grandson Adam in October after an Israeli air raid hit the home they were sheltering in at the Nuseirat refugee camp, after being displaced from their house in Gaza City. In January, the veteran journalist’s eldest son, Hamza, also an Al Jazeera journalist, was killed by an Israeli missile strike in Khan Younis, southern Gaza. Adblock test (Why?)
Ethiopian forces killed ‘at least 45 citizens’ in Amhara, rights body says
The Amhara violence is Ethiopia’s most serious crisis since a 2022 peace agreement ended war in neighbouring Tigray. Ethiopia’s federal security forces killed at least 45 civilians in a massacre in Amhara state in late January, the independent state-affiliated Ethiopian Human Rights Commission (EHRC) said on Tuesday. A statement said the EHRC had confirmed “the identity of at least 45 civilians who were extrajudicially killed by government security forces for allegedly ‘supporting [ethnic Amhara armed group] Fano’.” “However, it can be assumed that the number of victims is even higher,” it said. The killings in the Amhara town of Merawi follow months of clashes last year between Ethiopia’s military and Fano, a “self defence” organisation with no publicly known command structure that draws volunteers from the local population. The fighting prompted the federal government to impose a state of emergency in August that politicians extended by four months, this month. There has also been a rise in deadly drone activity in the region. Tewodrose Tirfe, chairman of the United States-based advocacy group Amhara Association of America, told Al Jazeera in December that his organisation has accumulated data on about 70 drone strikes that caused civilian casualties in the Amhara region since May. The Ethiopian army is the only operator of armed drones in the Horn of Africa country, Last week, the United States said it was deeply concerned by reports of “targeted civilian killings” in Merawi and called for an independent investigation. The Amhara violence is Ethiopia’s most serious crisis since a peace agreement was signed in November 2022 to end a two-year conflict in the neighbouring region of Tigray. Amhara regional forces including Fano fought alongside federal troops against Tigrayan rebels but ties frayed in April last year when Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s government decided to dismantle state paramilitaries across the country. Amhara nationalists said it would weaken their region and protested against the move. In September, the EHRC accused federal government forces of carrying out extrajudicial killings in Amhara, and mass arbitrary detentions in the region and elsewhere. Adblock test (Why?)
How is satire being used to highlight Israel’s war on Gaza?
They say laughter is the best medicine. But in the face of Israel’s attacks on Gaza, can satire heal the wounds of war? Israel’s war on Gaza is far from a laughing matter, but some comedians are addressing the story head-on in their stand-up shows. It’s not because they think the destruction or deaths of thousands of Palestinians are funny or worthy of ridicule, but because they believe in the power of satire – comedy’s ability to challenge narratives, build bridges, and even help people heal through humour. Presenter: Anelise Borges Guests:Nasser Al Rayess – Comedian and creator, Habiiibi NightsJess Salomon – Comedian and former war crimes lawyerNina Kharoufeh – Stand-up comedian Adblock test (Why?)
PM Modi announces rooftop solar scheme for free electricity: Here is step-by-step guide on how to apply
PM stated that with an investment of over Rs. 75,000 crores, the PM Surya Ghar: Muft Bijli Yojana, aims to illuminate over 1 crore households by offering 300 units of free electricity monthly.
Georgia positioned to aid Texas Gov. Abbott’s border security dispute with Biden
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp is poised to offer aid to Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s effort to control illegal crossings on the U.S.-Mexico border, as fellow Republican Abbott pursues a showdown with the Biden administration over immigration enforcement. Kemp scheduled an announcement for Tuesday afternoon as both chambers of Georgia’s Republican-led Legislature push through identically worded resolutions condemning President Joe Biden’s border policy and saying they back any effort by Kemp to “allocate resources and assistance to the protection of the southern border.” The Georgia Senate voted 31-15 for its resolution Monday, and a House committee approved its version Friday. BORDER COMMUNITIES STRUGGLE TO KEEP UP WITH THE MIGRANT CRISIS The sharply partisan resolutions were accompanied by Republican talking points that characterized anyone who crosses the border illegally as a criminal, even those seeking asylum from persecution at home and concluding that many are drug traffickers or potential terrorists. The measures are progressing in an election year not only for the president, but for all of Georgia’s 236 legislative seats as well. Kemp could choose to send more Georgia National Guard troops to the U.S.-Mexico border in Texas. Kemp deployed troops there in 2019. Garrison Douglas, a spokesperson for Kemp, said 29 guard members remain deployed performing missions that include aerial surveillance. Kemp was one of 13 Republican governors who joined Abbott at Eagle Pass, Texas, on Feb. 4. Abbott has been locked in a standoff with the Biden administration after the state began denying access to U.S. Border Patrol agents at a park on the edge of the Rio Grande in the Texas border town. Kemp, who has a history of conflict with former President Donald Trump, continues to keep his distance from the Republican frontrunner while backing other Republicans and opposing Biden. But several other Georgia Republicans made clear in debate Monday that what they wanted was a return to Trump’s specific border policies. “We’re condemning President Biden that he took back and did a reversal in regard to what President Trump passed into law by executive order,” said Sen. Majority Leader Steve Gooch, a Daholonega Republican. “What we’ve said is we want that executive order reinstated.” Democrats attacked Trump and Republicans during debate for rejecting a border security plan developed in the U.S. Senate by negotiators including Republican U.S. Sen. James Lankford of Oklahoma. “This list of opportunities to secure the border thrown in the trash can by congressional Republicans is long,” said state Sen. Elena Parent, an Atlanta Democrat. “But none of this list compares to the most recent debacle we have witnessed.” Republicans also made clear that the resolution was an election-year messaging exercise. Georgia senators, in particular, have debated a clutch of partisan measures in recent weeks aimed at pleasing Republicans and riling Democrats. “We’re not going to pass a bill today that is going to move the needle in a large way,” Gooch said. “What we are going to do today is take a position on this issue.” Georgia is at least the third Republican-led state where lawmakers in recent weeks have introduced resolutions backing calls to send more National Guard troops to support Abbott, after Oklahoma and Tennessee. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis announced last month he would send hundreds of additional guard members. The state has sent more than 1,000 guard members, state troopers and other officers to the Texas border since last May, according to the Florida Division of Emergency Management. Georgia Republicans echoed their party’s national claims that Biden needs no help from Congress to control the border and that Democrats had unified control of Congress for Biden’s first two years. Democrats, meanwhile, said they support some increased controls at the border, showing how the issue has shifted, but said Georgia lawmakers have little control over the issue. “This resolution is politics for politics’ sake,” said Senate Democratic Whip Harold Jones II, of Augusta.
PM Modi arrives in Abu Dhabi to inaugurate UAE’s first Hindu temple
PM Modi was welcomed by UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. The two leaders shook hands and hugged each other. PM Modi also received a guard of honour.
‘MSP law cannot…’: Union Agriculture Minister Arjun Munda amid farmers’ protest
Union Minister Arjun Munda is part of the ministerial delegation that held two rounds of discussion with the farmers’ groups to resolve their concerns.
Biden garners 67K TikTok followers on first day using Chinese-owned app he banned over security concerns
President Biden’s new campaign account garnered more than 67,000 TikTok followers in the first day since joining the Chinese-owned app he banned over national security concerns. The @bidenhq account’s following had jumped even higher to nearly 82,000 followers as of Tuesday morning, with more than 681,300 likes. That’s still a far cry from Biden’s 37.8 million followers on his campaign account on X, formerly Twitter. “Lol hey guys,” the first TikTok video on the account, published during the Super Bowl game Sunday, read in the caption. Biden, in khaki slacks and a navy sweater, stood with his hands in his pockets as he was asked a series of questions. Asked “Chiefs or Niners?,” Biden responded, “Two great quarterbacks, hard to decide, but if I didn’t say I was for the Eagles, then I’d be sleeping alone. My wife’s a Philly girl.” When challenged on if he preferred the game or commercials or the game or the halftime show, Biden responded game twice. TIKTOK CEO GRILLED ON CHINESE COMMUNIST PARTY INFLUENCE, SEARCHES OF TAYLOR SWIFT VS. TIANANMEN SQUARE “Jason Kelce or Travis Kelce?” someone questioned from behind the camera. “Mama Kelce. I understand she makes great chocolate chip cookies,” Biden said. “Deviously plotting to rig the season so the Chiefs would make the Super Bowl? Or are the Chiefs just being a good football team?” the voice asked again. “I’d get in trouble if I told you,” Biden responded, as the video cuts briefly to the Dark Brandon meme. “Trump or Biden?” he’s asked, as the screen shows a side by side of Trump, a bit sunburned, in a Make America Great Again hat and polo, next to Biden seen smiling and wearing a suit in his official headshot. “Are you kidding?” the president chuckles, concluding the video. “Biden.” Biden’s reelection campaign on Monday defended its new TikTok account as a vital way to boost its appeal with young voters, even as his administration continued to raise security concerns about whether the popular social media app might be sharing user data with China’s communist government. Biden in 2022 signed legislation banning the use of TikTok by the federal government’s nearly 4 million employees on devices owned by its agencies, with limited exceptions for law enforcement, national security and security research purposes. With 150 million U.S. users, TikTok is best known for quick snippets of viral dance routines. But Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., posted on X that Biden’s campaign is “bragging about using a Chinese spy app even though Biden signed a law banning it on all federal devices.” “The President’s TikTok debut last night — with more than 5 million views and counting — is proof positive of both our commitment and success in finding new, innovative ways to reach voters in an evolving, fragmented, and increasingly personalized media environment,” Biden reelection deputy campaign manager Rob Flaherty said in a statement Monday. The Biden campaign said it had been mulling establishing a TikTok account for months and had ultimately done so at the urging of youth activists and organizations, who argued that the app was key to reaching young voters. The campaign said it is using a separate cellphone to engage on TikTok in order to isolate using the app from other workstreams and communications, including emails. The campaign said it was taking additional steps but declined to name them, citing security concerns. BIG TECH FACES BRUTAL QUESTIONING ON CAPITOL HILL OVER CONTENT HARMING KIDS At the White House, though, national security spokesman John Kirby acknowledged that “there are still national security concerns about the use of TikTok on government devices and there’s been no change to our policy not to allow that.” Kirby referred most questions about TikTok to the Biden campaign and ducked a more general query about whether it was wise to use the app at all. He said the potential security issues “have to do with concerns about the preservation of data and potential misuse of that data and privacy information by foreign actors.” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said she is not in contact with the campaign and had no advance warning that its TikTok account was going live. Both the FBI and the Federal Communications Commission have warned that TikTok’s Chinese owner, ByteDance, could share user data — such as browsing history, location and biometric identifiers — with that country’s authoritarian government. Separately, the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States has been reviewing the app for years while trying unsuccessfully to force TikTok ownership to divest from its parent company. The White House said Monday the review is ongoing. Another three videos had been added to Biden’s TikTok by Tuesday morning. “Weird brag,” one was captioned, including clips of former President Trump championing the Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade. Another video captioned “lol” showed Biden making a joke about his memory at a D.C. conference Monday, taking a jab at Special Counsel Robert Hur’s report. The latest video on the account was captioned, “He really said that…,” and showed Trump at a recent South Carolina rally stating he’d encourage Russia to do “whatever the hell they want” if U.S. allies did not pay their fair share into NATO. The Associated Press contributed to this report.