"A scandal in plain sight": Melber on Trump's $100M bond-buying spree since taking office
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Los Angeles Times
a minute ago
- Los Angeles Times
Judge says former Trump lawyer Alina Habba has been unlawfully serving as U.S. attorney in New Jersey
WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. — A federal judge ruled Thursday that President Trump's former lawyer, Alina Habba, has been unlawfully serving as the the top federal prosecutor in New Jersey. The court, saying the administration used 'a novel series of legal and personnel moves,' held that Habba's term as the interim U.S. attorney ended in July, and the Trump administration's maneuvers to keep her in the role without getting confirmation from the U.S. Senate didn't follow procedures required by federal law. 'Faced with the question of whether Ms. Habba is lawfully performing the functions and duties of the office of the United States Attorney for the District of New Jersey, I conclude that she is not,' Chief U.S. District Judge Matthew Brann wrote. The opinion says that Habba's actions since July 'may be declared void.' Brann, a President Obama appointee, said he's putting his order on hold pending an appeal. It wasn't immediately clear if that meant Habba would remain in charge of the U.S. attorney's office. A message seeking comment was sent to Habba's office Thursday. The Justice Department said it intends to appeal the ruling. Brann's decision comes in response to a filing on behalf of New Jersey defendants challenging Habba's tenure and the charges she was prosecuting against them. They sought to block the charges against them, arguing that Habba didn't have the authority to prosecute the case after her 120-day term as interim U.S. attorney expired in July. The defendants' motion to block Habba, a onetime White House advisor to President Trump and his former personal defense attorney, is another high-profile chapter in her short tenure. She made headlines when Trump named her U.S. attorney for New Jersey in March. She said the state could 'turn red,' a rare, overt political expression from a prosecutor, and said she planned to investigate the state's Democratic governor and attorney general. She then brought a trespassing charge, which was eventually dropped, against Newark Mayor Ras Baraka stemming from his visit to a federal immigration detention center. Habba later charged Democratic Rep. LaMonica McIver with assault stemming from the same incident, a rare federal criminal case against a sitting member of Congress other than for corruption. She denies the charges and has pleaded not guilty. Volatility over her tenure unfolded in late July when the four-month temporary appointment was coming to a close and it became clear that she would not get support from home state Sens. Cory Booker and Andy Kim, both Democrats, effectively torpedoing her chances of Senate approval. The president withdrew her nomination. Around the same time, federal judges in New Jersey exercised their power under the law to replace Habba with a career prosecutor when Habba's temporary appointment lapsed, but Atty. Gen. Pam Bondi fired that prosecutor and renamed Habba as acting U.S. attorney. In his opinion, Brann questioned the legal moves the administration conducted to keep Habba in place. 'Taken to the extreme, the President could use this method to staff the United States Attorney's office with individuals of his personal choice for an entire term without seeking the Senate's advice and consent,' he wrote. The Justice Department has said in filings that the judges acted prematurely and that the executive has the authority to appoint his preferred candidate to enforce federal laws in the state. Trump had formally nominated Habba as his pick for U.S. attorney on July 1, but Booker and Kim's opposition meant that under long-standing Senate practice known as senatorial courtesy, the nomination would stall out. A handful of other Trump picks for U.S. attorney are facing a similar circumstance. Catalini writes for the Associated Press.
New York Post
a minute ago
- New York Post
Steak ‘n Shake slams Cracker Barrel CEO for eliminating ‘old-timer' from logo: ‘We take pride in our history'
Steak 'n Shake has taken aim at Cracker Barrel, accusing the Southern country-themed chain of erasing its heritage and identity with its controversial new logo. The Indianapolis-based burger chain took to X on Thursday to slam Cracker Barrel for allegedly abandoning its roots, implying that CEO Julie Felss Masino is stripping away the identity of the restaurant and gift store chain in pursuit of short-term trends. Advertisement 'Sometimes, people want to change things just to put their own personality on things,' Steak 'n Shake posted on X on Thursday, along with an image of part of the old Cracker Barrel logo. 'At [Cracker Barrel], their goal is to just delete the personality altogether. Hence, the elimination of the 'old-timer' from the signage.' Steak 'n Shake continued, 'Heritage is what got Cracker Barrel this far, and now the CEO wants to just scrape it all away. At Steak 'n Shake, we take pride in our history, our families, and American values. All are welcome. We will never market ourselves away from our past in a cheap effort to gain the approval of trend seekers.' 3 Steak 'n Shake has fired back at Cracker Barrel CEO Julie Felss Masino, accusing the company of eliminating its heritage with its new, controversial logo. FOX News Advertisement The fiery post followed just one day after Steak 'n Shake called out Cracker Barrel on Wednesday for the logo change. Replying to a post from Trump advisor Alex Bruesewitz in which he criticized the chain's leadership for the new logo, Steak 'n Shake accused Cracker Barrel's board of directors of not respecting its 'historical customers' or 'brand.' 'At Steak 'n Shake, we have gone back to basics,' Steak 'n Shake posted to X on Wednesday. 3 The Indianapolis-based burger chain posted on X that Cracker Barrel CEO Julie Felss Masino is stripping away the restaurant's identity. AP Advertisement 'Our tallow fries are waiting for you. Oh yeah, you can also now pay with Bitcoin!' Cracker Barrel unveiled its new logo on Tuesday as part of its new branding campaign — eliminating the iconic image of a man resting on a barrel in favor of a text-only logo for the first time since 1977. Start your day with all you need to know Morning Report delivers the latest news, videos, photos and more. Thanks for signing up! Enter your email address Please provide a valid email address. By clicking above you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Never miss a story. Check out more newsletters Conservative critics said the logo was the company's 'Bud Light' moment after receiving intense online backlash, while CEO Masino contended the response was 'overwhelmingly positive.' Advertisement According to a company press release, this new logo is still 'anchored in Cracker Barrel's signature gold and brown tones' and 'now rooted even more closely to the iconic barrel shape and word mark that started it all.' 3 The company posted an image of the old Cracker Barrel logo with the caption, 'Sometimes, people want to change things just to put their own personality on things.' Getty Images On Thursday, shares of Cracker Barrel (CBRL) dropped more than 12%, the steepest drop since April. Steak 'n Shake and Cracker Barrel have been serving customers for more than 50 years. Steak 'n Shake was founded in 1934 in Normal, Illinois, while Cracker Barrel opened its first store in 1969 in Lebanon, Tennessee, according to their websites. Steak 'n Shake and Cracker Barrel did not immediately respond to FOX Business' request for comment.
TechCrunch
a minute ago
- TechCrunch
OpenAI lawyers question Meta's role in Elon Musk's $97B takeover bid
OpenAI is asking Meta to produce evidence related to any coordination with Elon Musk and xAI to acquire or invest in the ChatGPT-maker. The request was made public in a brief filed Thursday in Elon Musk's ongoing lawsuit against OpenAI. Lawyers representing OpenAI said they subpoenaed Meta in June over its potential involvement in Musk's unsolicited, $97 billion bid to takeover the startup in February. It's unclear from the filing whether such documents and communications exist. OpenAI's lawyers say they discovered that Musk communicated with Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg concerning xAI's bid to purchase the ChatGPT-maker, including 'about potential financing arrangements or investments.' Meta objected to OpenAI's initial subpoena in July; the ChatGPT-maker's lawyers are now seeking a court order to obtain such evidence. OpenAI is also asking the court for any of Meta's documents and communications related to 'any actual or potential restructuring or recapitalization of OpenAI' — the core issue in Musk's lawsuit against OpenAI. In the background of OpenAI's fight with Elon Musk, Meta has significantly invested in its own efforts to develop frontier AI models. That effort has included poaching several of OpenAI's leading AI researchers, including a co-creator of ChatGPT, Shengjia Zhao, who now leads research efforts at Meta Superintelligence Labs, the company newest AI unit. Meta also invested $14 billion in Scale AI, and reported approached several other AI labs about acquisition deals. Lawyers representing Meta asked the court to reject OpenAI's request for evidence, arguing that Musk and xAI can provide any relevant information. Meta also argues that its internal discussions of OpenAI's restructuring and recapitalization are not relevant to the case. This is a developing story… Check back for updates.
