This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift ShareFormer national security adviser John Bolton plans to move ahead with publication of his memoir about working in the Trump White House despite a new warning from the administration that it contains classified material and needs to be further revised, his lawyer said.The letter Wednesday from a White House lawyer arrived just two weeks before “The Room Where It Happened: A White House Memoir” isand as Bolton is negotiating media appearances to promote the book.The letter said Bolton would be provided with a redacted...…This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift ShareFormer national security adviser John Bolton plans to move ahead with publication of his memoir about working in the Trump White House despite a new warning from the administration that it contains classified material and needs to be further revised, his lawyer said.The letter Wednesday from a White House lawyer arrived just two weeks before “The Room Where It Happened: A White House Memoir” isand as Bolton is negotiating media appearances to promote the book.The letter said Bolton would be provided with a redacted...WW…

This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift SharePresident Trump said Monday that former national security adviser John Bolton could face criminal liability if his memoir is released, asserting that the book contains classified material.Eight days before Bolton’s tell-all book was set to go on sale, Trump warned that the administration may “soon be in court.”“I will consider every conversation with me as president highly classified,” he told reporters at the White House. “So that would mean that, if he wrote a book and if the book gets out, he’s broken the law, and I...…This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift SharePresident Trump said Monday that former national security adviser John Bolton could face criminal liability if his memoir is released, asserting that the book contains classified material.Eight days before Bolton’s tell-all book was set to go on sale, Trump warned that the administration may “soon be in court.”“I will consider every conversation with me as president highly classified,” he told reporters at the White House. “So that would mean that, if he wrote a book and if the book gets out, he’s broken the law, and I...WW…

WASHINGTON - The political appointee President Donald Trump installed last week to investigate waste, fraud and abuse at the Transportation Department is the same official in charge of one of the agency's key divisions.That means Howard "Skip" Elliott is now running an office charged with investigating his own actions.Elliott serves simultaneously as the Transportation Department's inspector general and head of the department's pipeline and hazardous materials agency, whose mission includes enforcement of safety regulations on nearly 1 million daily shipments of gas, oil and other dangerous...…WASHINGTON - The political appointee President Donald Trump installed last week to investigate waste, fraud and abuse at the Transportation Department is the same official in charge of one of the agency's key divisions.That means Howard "Skip" Elliott is now running an office charged with investigating his own actions.Elliott serves simultaneously as the Transportation Department's inspector general and head of the department's pipeline and hazardous materials agency, whose mission includes enforcement of safety regulations on nearly 1 million daily shipments of gas, oil and other dangerous...WW…

This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift ShareA federal judge on Saturday to block publication of John Bolton’s White House memoir but said the former Trump national security adviser “likely jeopardized national security” and exposed himself to criminal prosecution.U.S. District Judge Royce C. Lamberth of the District of Columbia for a restraining order on the book, set for publication Tuesday, citing the publisher’s declaration that more than 200,000 copies have already shipped for sale.But Lamberth noted that it appeared Bolton failed to complete a pre-publication...…This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift ShareA federal judge on Saturday to block publication of John Bolton’s White House memoir but said the former Trump national security adviser “likely jeopardized national security” and exposed himself to criminal prosecution.U.S. District Judge Royce C. Lamberth of the District of Columbia for a restraining order on the book, set for publication Tuesday, citing the publisher’s declaration that more than 200,000 copies have already shipped for sale.But Lamberth noted that it appeared Bolton failed to complete a pre-publication...WW…

This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift ShareAs a wave of coronavirus restrictions shuttered more than two dozen of his hotels, Dallas hotelier Monty Bennett publicly pleaded for help.“Every American should expect just enough from government that our businesses can survive. Is that too much to ask?” the longtime GOP donor in a March blog post.Behind the scenes, Bennett’s companies paid $50,000 to hire two well-connected allies of President Trump for help seeking financial relief: Jeff Miller, former vice chairman of Trump’s inaugural committee, and Roy Bailey, a top...…This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift ShareAs a wave of coronavirus restrictions shuttered more than two dozen of his hotels, Dallas hotelier Monty Bennett publicly pleaded for help.“Every American should expect just enough from government that our businesses can survive. Is that too much to ask?” the longtime GOP donor in a March blog post.Behind the scenes, Bennett’s companies paid $50,000 to hire two well-connected allies of President Trump for help seeking financial relief: Jeff Miller, former vice chairman of Trump’s inaugural committee, and Roy Bailey, a top...WW…

This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift ShareA pair of Republican Senate committee chairmen released a report Wednesday that revived attacks on the son of Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden and argued his position with a Ukrainian energy company was “problematic,” but the report did not show that it influenced the then-vice president’s behavior or changed the Obama administration’s policy toward Ukraine.Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Chairman Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) and Finance Committee Chairman Charles E. Grassley (R-Iowa)...…This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift ShareA pair of Republican Senate committee chairmen released a report Wednesday that revived attacks on the son of Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden and argued his position with a Ukrainian energy company was “problematic,” but the report did not show that it influenced the then-vice president’s behavior or changed the Obama administration’s policy toward Ukraine.Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Chairman Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) and Finance Committee Chairman Charles E. Grassley (R-Iowa)...WW…

This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift ShareConservative members of Congress and advocacy groups that ardently criticize excessive government spending were among those accepting small-business pandemic relief funds from the Treasury this year, according to data released Monday.Americans for Tax Reform Foundation, led by firebrand anti-tax advocate Grover Norquist, took a loan between $150,000 and $350,000 from the Paycheck Protection Program. The Ayn Rand Institute and Citizens against Government Waste likewise accepted loans funded by the program.Groups on the...…This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift ShareConservative members of Congress and advocacy groups that ardently criticize excessive government spending were among those accepting small-business pandemic relief funds from the Treasury this year, according to data released Monday.Americans for Tax Reform Foundation, led by firebrand anti-tax advocate Grover Norquist, took a loan between $150,000 and $350,000 from the Paycheck Protection Program. The Ayn Rand Institute and Citizens against Government Waste likewise accepted loans funded by the program.Groups on the...WW…

This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift ShareAlexis Wong, a Hong Kong-based trader who’s been exporting medical masks since the early days of the covid-19 crisis, says the business brings out every species of crook. But she likes to joke that the market for the iconic N95 mask is in perfect balance.“You have buyers with no money and sellers with no product,” she says.The international market for desperately needed medical masks is riddled with fraud. Up and down the supply chain, from factories to hospitals, opportunists are benefiting from the chaotic market as...…This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift ShareAlexis Wong, a Hong Kong-based trader who’s been exporting medical masks since the early days of the covid-19 crisis, says the business brings out every species of crook. But she likes to joke that the market for the iconic N95 mask is in perfect balance.“You have buyers with no money and sellers with no product,” she says.The international market for desperately needed medical masks is riddled with fraud. Up and down the supply chain, from factories to hospitals, opportunists are benefiting from the chaotic market as...WW…

This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift ShareU.S. manufacturers shipped millions of dollars’ worth of face masks and other protective medical equipment to China in January and February with encouragement from the federal government, a Washington Post review of economic data and internal government documents has found. The move underscores the Trump administration’s failure to recognize and prepare for the growing pandemic threat.In those two months, the value of protective masks and related items exported from the United States to China grew more than 1,000“Instead...…This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift ShareU.S. manufacturers shipped millions of dollars’ worth of face masks and other protective medical equipment to China in January and February with encouragement from the federal government, a Washington Post review of economic data and internal government documents has found. The move underscores the Trump administration’s failure to recognize and prepare for the growing pandemic threat.In those two months, the value of protective masks and related items exported from the United States to China grew more than 1,000“Instead...WW…

This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift ShareWhile running for office in 2016, Donald Trump asked Russia to hunt for the emails of his Democratic rival and touted documents stolen by Russia intelligence agents that had been published by WikiLeaks.Last year, he requested “a favor” of the president of Ukraine, asking him personally for an investigation into his likely 2020 opponent, former vice president Joe Biden, which could have benefited Trump politically.Now, a forthcoming book by John Bolton, President Trump’s former national security adviser, asserts that Trump...…This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift ShareWhile running for office in 2016, Donald Trump asked Russia to hunt for the emails of his Democratic rival and touted documents stolen by Russia intelligence agents that had been published by WikiLeaks.Last year, he requested “a favor” of the president of Ukraine, asking him personally for an investigation into his likely 2020 opponent, former vice president Joe Biden, which could have benefited Trump politically.Now, a forthcoming book by John Bolton, President Trump’s former national security adviser, asserts that Trump...WW…