
Pregnant doctor denied Covid-19 vaccine sues Trump administration
The lawsuit specifically takes aim at health secretary Robert F Kennedy's unilateral decision to recommend against Covid-19 vaccines for pregnant women and healthy children.
Kennedy's announcement circumvented expert scientific review panels and flouted studies showing pregnant women are at heightened risk from the virus, and made it more difficult for some to get the vaccine.
'This administration is an existential threat to vaccination in America, and those in charge are only just getting started,' said Richard H Hughes IV, partner at Epstein Becker Green and lead counsel for the plaintiffs in a statement.
The American Academy of Pediatrics, American College of Physicians and American Public Health Association are among a list of leading physicians associations named as plaintiffs in the lawsuit.
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'If left unchecked, Secretary Kennedy will accomplish his goal of ridding the United States of vaccines, which would unleash a wave of preventable harm on our nation's children,' said Hughes. 'The professional associations for pediatricians, internal medicine physicians, infectious disease physicians, high-risk pregnancy physicians, and public health professionals will not stand idly by as our system of prevention is dismantled. This ends now.'
In late May, Kennedy announced that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) would no longer recommend Covid-19 vaccines for healthy children or pregnant women. The announcement, made on social media, contradicted a raft of evidence showing pregnant women and infants are at especially high-risk from the disease, including from the administration's own scientific leaders.
In June, Kennedy went further by firing all 17 sitting members of a key vaccine advisory panel to the CDC. The advisory panel is a key link in the vaccine distribution pipeline, helping to develop recommendations insurers use when determining which vaccines to cover.
That panel met for the first time in late June. Members announced they would review both the childhood vaccine schedule and any vaccines that had not been formally reviewed in seven years. They also recommended against a long vilified vaccine preservative, in spite of a lack of evidence of harm.
The news comes amid the largest annual measles case count in 33 years, and amid reports of more parents seeking early vaccination for their children, fearing vaccines will go into shortage or no longer be covered by insurance.
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Times
14 minutes ago
- Times
I was abused by Jeffrey Epstein. Why is Trump silencing me?
A Jeffrey Epstein victim has said the Trump administration's decision to close the case is 'worse than silencing', as a lawsuit is filed to force the government to reveal what it knew about one of the worst sex-trafficking rings in history. Danielle Bensky, 38, who was abused by Epstein when she was a teenage aspiring ballerina in 2004, said the decision left her feeling like she was on a 'first-class flight on a refurbished Lolita Express', using the nickname for Epstein's private jet, which ferried victims around the financier's various homes. 'It feels like the current cabinet is essentially erasing our voices after years of bravery and work to find our way out of silence,' Bensky told The Times. 'It's actually worse than silencing — it's rewriting a narrative as if none of us existed in the first place. 'What does this teach our children? That if you are wealthy and powerful enough, you can make anything disappear, or play the blame game and create conspiracy theories?' Bensky accused Epstein of using her mother's brain-cancer diagnosis as leverage to repeatedly sexually abuse Bensky when she was 18, threatening to withhold treatment if she told anyone. 'Epstein told Bensky that he knew the best surgeons in New York, but that if Bensky wanted Epstein to help her mother then she would have to recruit other girls for him,' her lawyers alleged in a lawsuit filed last year. The US justice department and the FBI announced last week they had found no evidence that Epstein had blackmailed powerful people or kept a 'client list', and reiterated that he died by suicide in his prison cell in 2019. On Monday night Republicans in the House of Representatives voted against attaching a Democratic amendment to another piece of legislation that would force the justice department to release 'the Epstein files'. The measure would have forced Pam Bondi, the attorney-general, to publish all documents related to the convicted sex offender within 30 days. • Pam Bondi said Epstein client list was 'on her desk'. What happened? 'Are you on the side of the rich and powerful, or are you on the side of the people?' Ro Khanna, the California Democrat proposing the measure, said before the vote, promising to introduce the amendment 'again and again and again'. Bensky said it was 'deplorable' the victims' wishes had been ignored. 'For victims, it isn't political. Those documents hold and represent the fragmented pieces of our teenage selves that we have desperately been trying to glue back together for two decades.' Bensky has only recently returned to professional dancing after years of counselling. She said memories of the abuse 'eat at us in the dark corners of our minds, long after politicians go to sleep at night … I thought that we were in an era of shedding light, so that those fragmented pieces could finally become a mosaic. We will never be the same, but at least we could feel whole. The shutdown undermines all of that.' The only one of Epstein's associates to face criminal charges is Ghislaine Maxwell, the daughter of the British media magnate Robert Maxwell, who was convicted of sex-trafficking and sentenced to 20 years in prison. • Ghislaine Maxwell refused appeal on sex-trafficking verdict The victims allege their abuse, however, was enabled by people in his inner circle, as well as associates who have 'never been held to account'. Last year Bensky sued two of Epstein's closest advisers in Manhattan federal court. She alleged in her suit that Darren Indyke, Epstein's longtime personal lawyer, and his accountant, Richard Kahn, helped the financier create a complex web of corporations and bank accounts that let him hide his abuses and pay off victims and recruiters, while leaving them 'richly compensated' for their work. 'Epstein did not act alone and the breadth and depth of Epstein-related information that the government is withholding is profound,' said Bensky's lawyer, Sigrid McCawley, managing partner of Boies Schiller Flexner. McCawley said the government had yet to disclose information collected from Epstein's computers during raids of his homes in New York and Palm Beach, Florida, as well as financial records that may shed light on how he accrued his vast wealth. 'The government has failed these survivors time and time again,' she said. 'The public should demand nothing less than full accountability for all that were involved irrespective of title, wealth or social status.' Daniel Weiner, Indyke and Khan's lawyer, said in response that neither had 'ever been found in any forum to have committed any misconduct, and they emphatically reject the allegations of wrongdoing contained in the complaint'. Another victim, Maria Farmer, sued the justice department and the FBI last month, claiming they 'chose to do absolutely nothing' after she brought sexual abuse claims against Epstein to an FBI agent in 1996. According to Farmer's lawsuit, she was sexually assaulted by Epstein and Maxwell while she stayed at Epstein's estate as an 'artist-in-residence' in 1996. She also accused them of abusing her sister Annie, who was 16. Annie was one of the four victims who testified against Maxwell during her federal trial. While reporting her concerns to the FBI, Farmer said the agency hung up on her and failed to follow up or properly investigate, and she accused the agency of violating its manual for investigative operations and guidelines, which tasks the FBI with investigating violations of federal law. Farmer alleges that Epstein got away with a 'wide-ranging sex trafficking venture' and was able to do so because the FBI and justice department 'failed to listen to or protect his sex-trafficked, sexually abused and sexually exploited victims'. The FBI declined a request for comment, citing its standard practice of not commenting on ongoing litigation. 'The government had so many missed opportunities to protect victims,' Jennifer Freeman, Farmer's lawyer, told The Times. 'Had the FBI listened to Maria's complaints about Epstein starting in 1996, nearly 25 years of Epstein's abuse of victims could have been avoided as well as additional years of trying to figure out how and why the US government failed to stop Epstein.' Freeman believes a civil lawsuit may be one of the last remaining avenues the victims have to force the justice department to release the findings of the bureau's investigation. 'The one bright spot for victims is the FBI's statement in its recent memorandum: 'One of our highest priorities is combating child exploitation and bringing justice to victims',' Freeman said. 'We will press Maria Farmer's case forward — and hold the US government to its word.'


The Guardian
15 minutes ago
- The Guardian
Trump to unveil $70bn AI and energy plan at summit with oil and tech bigwigs
Donald Trump will join big oil and technology bosses on Tuesday at a major artificial intelligence and energy summit in Pittsburgh, outraging environmentalists and community organizations. The event comes weeks after the passage of a megabill that experts say could stymy AI growth with its attacks on renewable energy. The inaugural Pennsylvania energy and innovation summit, held at Carnegie Mellon University, will attempt to position the state as an AI leader, showcasing the technological innovation being developed in the city and the widespread availability of fossil fuel reserves to power them. At the gathering, Trump will announce $70bn in AI and energy investments for the state, Axios first reported, in a move the event's host Republican Pennsylvania senator Dave McCormick says will be a boon to local economies. But activists say the investment, which will boost planet-heating energy production, will have disastrous consequences for the climate and for nearby communities. 'Pennsylvanians are paying the price for decisions made behind closed doors: higher utility bills, contaminated water, poor air quality, and worsening health,' said Hilary Flint, Pennsylvania field organizing manager at the non-profit Center for Oil and Gas Organizing. Flint signed a Tuesday letter to Pennsylvania governor Josh Shapiro opposing his plans to work with Trump to expand AI, along with dozens of organizations and individuals. The event also comes less than two weeks after Republicans on Capitol Hill passed a Trump-backed budget bill which could dramatically increase the spending and effort needed to power AI data centers, thanks to its rollback of green energy tax credits. Renewable energy is almost always cheaper to build and easier to bring online than fossil fuels. Many tech executives invited to the event have said the availability of wind and solar are essential to the success of AI. Microsoft's Satya Nadella said last May that powering data centers with renewable energy would 'drive down the cost of AI', while OpenAI head Sam Altman said months earlier that 'there's no way' to grow his industry without a 'breakthrough' in affordable clean energy technology. Tech giants Google and its parent company Alphabet, as well as Meta have also both invested in wind and solar to power data centers. But the oil industry, whose top brass are also at the Pittsburgh summit, lobbied in favor of the megabill's green energy incentive rollbacks. 'It includes almost all of our priorities,' Mike Sommers, president of the American Petroleum Institute, the fossil fuel industry's largest lobbying group, told CNBC about the legislation. Sommers is on the guest list for the event. The gathering, to which no public interest consumer or environmental groups were invited, is expected to severely downplay the climate and health consequences of this technological expansion fueled by oil and gas. Data centers used for AI are highly resource intensive, sometimes consuming as much power as entire cities. By the end of the decade, data processing, mainly for AI, is expected to consume more electricity in the US alone than manufacturing steel, cement, chemicals and all other energy-intensive goods combined, according to the International Energy Agency. 'Political leaders should be investing their time meeting with frontline communities, environmental scientists, and renewable energy leaders and using their political muscle to create a just transition to renewable energy — not attending summits that double down on old, dirty energy,' said Jess Conard, Appalachia director at the environmental group Beyond Plastics, who lives in the nearby town of East Palestine, Ohio. 'Fossil fuels aren't progress, no matter how you try to rebrand them.' Critics have also raised concerns about security and privacy in the wake of AI's growth. The New York Times and other plaintiffs, including prominent authors Ta-Nehisi Coates, Michael Chabon and Junot Díaz and the comedian Sarah Silverman, are suing OpenAI and Microsoft for copyright infringement; OpenAI has also received scrutiny for reported labor misconduct. Both OpenAI and Microsoft have defended their positions around copyright infringement allegations. 'Trump's radical AI plan is yet another example of the President siding with powerful corporations ahead of the American people,' said Tyson Slocum, director of the energy program at the consumer advocacy group Public Citizen.


Daily Mail
24 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Ghislaine Maxwell's former cellmate shares chilling premonition of what she thinks will happen to Epstein's fixer
's former cellmate shared a chilling premonition after Jeffrey Epstein 's former accomplice revealed she would 'tell all' about the pedophile's sex trafficking scheme. Jessica Watkins, a transgender veteran who was serving time for the January 6 riots before receiving a pardon by Donald Trump, suggested 63-year-old Maxwell could meet the same fate as Epstein, who was found dead in his prison cell. 'Just putting this out there: I know Ghislaine Maxwell personally when I was in prison with her. She isn't suicidal in the least,' Watkins posted on X. 'There are also virtually no working cameras in FCI Tallahassee,' she added in an apparent reference to the suspicious coincidences around Epstein's death, which was ruled a suicide. Watkins claimed that only 'maybe ten' cameras in the 'entire' prison were present or working. 'Just getting ahead of potential narratives,' Watkins said. Her chilling post implied Maxwell's life may be in danger after she expressed willingness to testify before Congress about the so-called Epstein list. It comes amid a furious civil war between Trump's top MAGA lieutenants after the Department of Justice and Federal Bureau of Investigation stated there was no evidence that Epstein possessed a client list or "blackmailed prominent individuals". Watkins said that should Maxwell ' would not [be] by her own hand.' 'She also doesn't do drugs, is in good health, and works out everyday, so no "old age" or "natural causes" arguments will work either,' Watkins wrote. Watkins's warnings about her former cell mate come as a source claimed that Ghislaine Maxwell is willing to reveal the 'truth' on The Epstein Files in front of Congress Watkins said Maxwell was drawn to her as the only other 'celebrity inmate' in the Florida prison, based on her being named as Trump's codefendant in a January 6 legal case. 'Fortunately,' Maxwell was 'actually very nice' and a 'staunch advocate for her fellow inmates,' Watkins said, adding that that Epstein's accomplice lives in an 'open dorm' and had 'about 50 witnesses' who have eyes and ears on her at all times. . She describe Maxwell as a 'model inmate' who was 'sociable and kind.' 'So most people were nice to her. Doesn't mean she didn't do something evil,' Watkins wrote. 'But generally, she kept to herself.' 'She's safer there than in the SHU (Special Housing Unit- The Hole). They sent her there sometimes for talking to the Media,' she added. Watkins was sentenced to eight and a half years prison for charges connected to the January 6 Capitol riot, including conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding, obstruction of an official proceeding, interfering with law enforcement officers during a civil disorder, and conspiracy to prevent an officer from discharging duties. The former 'Oath Keeper' was released in January after Trump commuted sentences to 'time served'. 'In my mind I thought it was this heroic American moment where I thought people were going into our house, we were going to be heard,' Watkins said. 'It was this moment where I lost all basic objectivity. I wasn't doing security anymore; I wasn't medic Jess anymore. I was just another idiot.' While the pardoned Jan 6 rioter said she and Maxwell were 'not friends at all,' they lived and worked together closely while behind bars. 'She always creeped me out, so I avoided her when I could . But even still, we talked often enough. In prison, it's kinda unavoidable,' she said. Watkins claimed that Maxwell was 'very tight lipped' about her case, but wrote: 'She did tell me (and I quote) "They had no interest in me until Jeffrey... died".' However, Maxwell allegedly asked members of the media, 'Why do you keep asking about [Trump], and not the Clintons?,' Watkins claimed. Maxwell is serving 20 years for her role in a scheme to sexually exploit and abuse multiple minor girls with Epstein over the course of a decade. Epstein allegedly controlled a web of underage girls who claimed they were passed around as sex toys to his wealthy friends and billionaire business associates. A source told Daily Mail that 'she would be more than happy to sit before Congress and tell her story.' 'Despite the rumors, Ghislaine was never offered any kind of plea deal,' the source said. 'No-one from the government has ever asked her to share what she knows. She remains the only person to be jailed in connection to Epstein and she would welcome the chance to tell the American public the truth.' Maxwell argues she should have been protected from prosecution as part of a Non Prosecution Agreement made by Epstein - her former lover and boss - in 2007 when he agreed to plead guilty to two minor charges of prostitution in a 'sweetheart deal' which saw him spend little time behind bars. Controversy continues to rage over the Department of Justice's statement that there is no Epstein 'client list', despite the release of videos from inside New York's Metropolitan Correctional Center the DOJ claims 'proves' he committed suicide. Critics have pointed to the fact that there is a crucial minute missing from the jail house video that also does not show the door or, indeed, the inside of Epstein's jail cell. The scandal - and alleged 'cover up' - has prompted a rebellion amongst President Trump's loyal MAGA base. Some even believe Attorney General Pam Bondi should be fired after promising to release all files relating to Epstein and his high-profile male friends only to apparently renege on that promise. 'Congressional hearings have been held into everything from JFK's assassination to 9/11. The Epstein Files rank up there with those cases. Ghislaine would be willing to speak before Congress and tell her story,' the source close to Maxwell said. Maxwell had her appeal to overturn her conviction turned down yesterday. Her attorneys then appealed directly to President Trump, calling him the 'ultimate dealmaker,' in the hopes that he may overrule Attorney General Pam Bondi. The White House, however, dismissed any suggestion that the President would pardon Maxwell. 'There have been no discussions or consideration of a pardon for Ghislaine Maxwell, and there never will be,' a senior White House official told the Daily Mail. Outcry for Maxwell's release increased after she revealed she would be willing to testify to Congress about the case against Epstein.