Latest news with #CodeofFederalRegulations
Miami Herald
a day ago
- Politics
- Miami Herald
What is a special counsel? Trump faces calls to appoint one over Jeffrey Epstein
President Donald Trump's approach to the Jeffrey Epstein case has frustrated many of his own supporters, fueling growing demands for the appointment of an independent investigator. Criticism began mounting in July after the administration concluded its lengthy investigation into Epstein, determining that no 'client list' exists and that there is insufficient evidence to pursue charges against additional individuals. It also reaffirmed an earlier finding that Epstein — who was charged with sex trafficking minors — died by suicide in his jail cell in 2019. In response, several of the president's staunchest allies — including Steve Bannon, Laura Loomer and Rep. Lauren Boebert — have called for a special counsel to take over the case. 'People are frustrated. We want to know if there's more information,' Boebert, a Colorado Republican, said in a July 16 interview with NewsNation. 'Let there be a special counsel to actually get the information that Americans want.' The next day, the White House said the president is not interested in tapping a special prosecutor. However, he did direct Attorney General Pam Bondi to release 'any and all pertinent Grand Jury testimony,' following a Wall Street Journal report, which revealed the existence of a 2003 birthday letter from Trump to Epstein. What exactly is a special counsel? How independent are they? And could they help Trump put the Epstein saga behind him? McClatchy News reached out to legal experts to weigh in. What is a special counsel? A special counsel is an independent prosecutor appointed by the attorney general to investigate, and potentially prosecute, cases in extraordinary circumstances. These include 'when there is a conflict of interest' or 'if a situation is so unusual and significant that it necessitates an independent investigator,' Robert Shapiro, a professor of government at Columbia University, told McClatchy News. According to the Code of Federal Regulations, a special counsel must have 'a reputation for integrity and impartial decisionmaking' and 'an informed understanding of the criminal law and Department of Justice policies.' Once appointed, they are given a budget, staff, the authority to issue subpoenas, warrants and indictments, and ability to charge individuals with crimes, according to the Associated Press. Past special counsels have included Robert Mueller, who was tapped to look into allegations of Russian interference in the 2016 election, and David Weiss, who was appointed to lead a criminal investigation into Hunter Biden. The Epstein case is unusual by comparison, Cody Corliss, a professor at the West Virginia University College of Law, told McClatchy News. 'The calls for a special counsel are odd more generally because the special counsel regulations require an investigation into a criminal matter,' he said. 'Epstein is dead and Ghislaine Maxwell has been convicted. There's no indication that there is any active DOJ criminal investigation here.' How independent are they? Special counsels are intended to act with full independence, Shapiro said. And they should be insulated from outside pressure. 'The special counsel has greater job security, at least in theory, to prevent their being dismissed for partisan reasons,' Michael Gerhardt, a professor at the University of North Carolina School of Law, told McClatchy News. That said, there are some limits to their authority. 'The attorney general has a big role in setting the scope of the investigation,' Corliss said. Additionally, 'the special counsel operates subject to the supervision of the attorney general.' Further, their findings are not necessarily delivered directly to the public. Rather, the attorney general is responsible for examining them and can release them at their discretion, Shapiro said. For example, after Mueller submitted a report of his findings in 2019, then Attorney General Bill Barr released a four-page letter of the 'principal conclusions.' Should Bondi tap a special counsel? Will she? If Bondi were to appoint a special counsel, there would be a number of downsides for the president, experts said, concluding that this scenario is unlikely. 'A special counsel would help Trump in delaying any further revelations but it would also keep this controversy salient for months to come,' Shapiro said. Corliss concurred, saying, 'Trump knows from experience that a special counsel can dominate headlines and derail a political agenda.' Further, at the end of their investigation, the president would still likely face the same problem: widespread calls for the release of all files and documents related to Epstein. Additionally, given there is no indication of a criminal investigation, it's not clear if the regulations governing the appointment of a special counsel apply, Corliss said. On top of this, Trump, and members of his administration, have previously argued that independent special counsels are unconstitutional, Josh Blackman, a professor at the South Texas College of Law, told McClatchy News. Because of this, he said, 'I think it unlikely that Bondi appoints a special counsel.'
UPI
a day ago
- Business
- UPI
Musk's brain-computer interface company sought 'disadvantaged' status
Elon Musk's Neuralink company reportedly claimed to be a "small disadvantaged business" in a filing with the Small Business Administration shortly before investors valued the company in the billions of dollars. File Photo by Francis Chung/UPI | License Photo July 18 (UPI) -- Elon Musk's brain-implant company, Neuralink, which helps paralyzed people regain some independence, allegedly claimed "small disadvantaged business" status in a filing with the Small Business Administration earlier this year. The filing was made just weeks before the company received a valuation of $9 billion in June in a funding round aimed at making the tech available to more patients and developing new interfaces that "deepen the connection between biological and artificial intelligence." SDB status, the eligibility for which is majority ownership and control by one or more "disadvantaged" individuals who are "socially disadvantaged and economically disadvantaged," can make it easier to secure government contracts. The Code of Federal Regulations further requires that the ability of the disadvantaged owners to compete in the free market was "impaired due to diminished capital and credit opportunities as compared to others in the same or similar line of business who are not socially disadvantaged." None of these criteria appear applicable to Musk, a white male, Anglican, with a net worth of $404 billion and a track record of building highly successful multi-billion-dollar companies, according to MuskWatch. The federal government hands out contracts to SDB's worth $50 billion every year, MuskWatch says the designation provides a significant advantage to companies seeking a share of the pie, as well as prominence in listings in the SBA's business search directories and other government databases. No federal funding has been passed to Neuralink, although it may have tendered for government contracts or applied for grants, loans or alternative forms of financial help in the past. The filing April 24 coincided with the perios during which Musk was downsizing government departments and agencies in his role as head of the Trump administration's Department of Government Efficiency, where he placed particular emphasis on attacking diversity, equality and inclusion programs and the staff who administered them. The filing, which is self-certified, was signed by Neuralink executives. Neuralink executive Jared Birchall, who is named on the filing as the company's contact person, didn't immediately respond to a request for comment. Government contractors who wrongly claimed SDB status or misrepresented the nature of their companies in their profiles in government business directories have been the subject of Justice Department prosecutions, resulting in imprisonment and/or hefty fines.
The Irish Sun
4 days ago
- Science
- The Irish Sun
Nasa trials TINY supersonic ‘Son of Concorde' for 925mph flight in tunnel – but prototype airplane measures just inches
NASA researchers have been using a tiny aircraft dubbed "Son of Concorde" in trials to assess the impact of supersonic flights on residents. The tests took place in a wind tunnel in Japan measuring just 3ft by 3ft. 1 The tiny 'Son of Concorde' undergoes tests in a wind tunnel in Japan At present there is a The latest tests come after President Trump ordered the Federal Aviation Administration to scrap a longstanding ban on supersonic air travel across the US. He wants to replace it with a to-be-determined set of regulations that will allow faster-than-sound travel so long as the In an executive order signed in June, Trump directed the FAA administrator to begin the process of repealing a section of the Code of Federal Regulations that prohibits anyone in the United States from flying a civilian aircraft 'at a true flight Mach number greater than 1'. Read more in Tech That regulation was imposed in April 1973, at a time when the British and French governments were jointly developing Engineers from Nasa and the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) completed the fresh round of supersonic testing using a miniature version of Nasa's X-59 quiet-supersonic experimental aircraft in the trials. Vid shows supersonic test launch in bid for 1hr cross-Atlantic flights in 5yrs The campaign was conducted at JAXA's facility in Chofu, Tokyo. It assessed how the aircraft's pressure signature, audible on the ground as a sonic 'thump,' will reach people beneath its flight path. Most read in Tech The X-59 demonstrator measures 99.7ft in length with a 29.7-ft wingspan, but the Chofu tunnel could only accommodate the miniature model, which is just 1.62% of the real jet. Engineers nevertheless subjected the replica to airflow conditions representing the aircraft's planned cruise of Mach 1.4 – about 925 miles per hour. By comparing the wind-tunnel data with detailed Computational Fluid Dynamics predictions, Nasa can validate how air will wrap around the jet's slender fuselage and long, highly swept wing. Critically, it will also show how its shock waves are expected to behave. Unlike conventional supersonic airplanes, whose shock waves combine into a single, ground-shaking blast, the X-59's carefully sculpted nose and chine are intended to separate those waves. The goal is a brief, low-volume 'sonic thump' rather than an ear-splitting boom, opening the door to overland supersonic passenger flight, reports Interest Engineering. The Chofu tests mark the third time the model has entered a wind tunnel, following earlier runs at JAXA and NASA's Glenn Research Center in Ohio. Researchers delivered 'critical experimental data to compare to…predictions", Nasa noted. The X-59 is the centerpiece of NASA's Quesst mission, an effort to prove that quiet supersonic flight is technically and socially viable. Once airborne, the jet will make a series of community overflights across the United States so researchers can gauge how residents react to its muted acoustic footprint. Their feedback, combined with the aerodynamic and acoustic data now being amassed in wind tunnels and ground tests, will inform regulators as they consider lifting the decades-old ban on supersonic flight over land. A short history of Concorde – from Live Aid to sonic booms Concorde was used 40 years ago this week to allow superstar drummer Phil Collins to perform at Two decades ago the Concorde took its last-ever flight. It became supersonic in 1969, flying passengers from New York to London in less than three hours. It was the only aircraft in the British Airways fleet that required a flight engineer. Concorde needed unsustainable amounts of fuel and created very loud sonic booms. Then, in July 2000, a horror accident saw 113 people killed when an Air France Concorde ran over a small piece of metal while taking off from Charles de Gaulle Airport. It caused the tyre to explode and the engine to ignite. A year after the horrific crash, 9/11 majorly affected passenger numbers. Ultimately a combination of these events led to its downfall. By 2003, Air France and British Airways announced they would be retiring their fleet of Concorde planes.
Scottish Sun
4 days ago
- Science
- Scottish Sun
Nasa trials TINY supersonic ‘Son of Concorde' for 925mph flight in tunnel – but prototype airplane measures just inches
Trials in Japan follow US plans to scrap ban on supersonic air travel AIR WE GO! Nasa trials TINY supersonic 'Son of Concorde' for 925mph flight in tunnel – but prototype airplane measures just inches Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) NASA researchers have been using a tiny aircraft dubbed "Son of Concorde" in trials to assess the impact of supersonic flights on residents. The tests took place in a wind tunnel in Japan measuring just 3ft by 3ft. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 1 The tiny 'Son of Concorde' undergoes tests in a wind tunnel in Japan At present there is a ban on supersonic flights over land as researchers scramble to find new ways to limit the impact at ground level. The latest tests come after President Trump ordered the Federal Aviation Administration to scrap a longstanding ban on supersonic air travel across the US. He wants to replace it with a to-be-determined set of regulations that will allow faster-than-sound travel so long as the sonic booms it creates do not breach certain noise limitations. In an executive order signed in June, Trump directed the FAA administrator to begin the process of repealing a section of the Code of Federal Regulations that prohibits anyone in the United States from flying a civilian aircraft 'at a true flight Mach number greater than 1'. Read more in Tech UP AND AWAY 'Son of Concorde' bosses reveal over 600 routes could see flight times HALVED That regulation was imposed in April 1973, at a time when the British and French governments were jointly developing Concorde, a supersonic airliner that had a cruising speed in excess of Mach 2, or twice the speed of sound. Engineers from Nasa and the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) completed the fresh round of supersonic testing using a miniature version of Nasa's X-59 quiet-supersonic experimental aircraft in the trials. Vid shows supersonic test launch in bid for 1hr cross-Atlantic flights in 5yrs The campaign was conducted at JAXA's facility in Chofu, Tokyo. It assessed how the aircraft's pressure signature, audible on the ground as a sonic 'thump,' will reach people beneath its flight path. The X-59 demonstrator measures 99.7ft in length with a 29.7-ft wingspan, but the Chofu tunnel could only accommodate the miniature model, which is just 1.62% of the real jet. Engineers nevertheless subjected the replica to airflow conditions representing the aircraft's planned cruise of Mach 1.4 – about 925 miles per hour. By comparing the wind-tunnel data with detailed Computational Fluid Dynamics predictions, Nasa can validate how air will wrap around the jet's slender fuselage and long, highly swept wing. Critically, it will also show how its shock waves are expected to behave. Unlike conventional supersonic airplanes, whose shock waves combine into a single, ground-shaking blast, the X-59's carefully sculpted nose and chine are intended to separate those waves. The goal is a brief, low-volume 'sonic thump' rather than an ear-splitting boom, opening the door to overland supersonic passenger flight, reports Interest Engineering. The Chofu tests mark the third time the model has entered a wind tunnel, following earlier runs at JAXA and NASA's Glenn Research Center in Ohio. Researchers delivered 'critical experimental data to compare to…predictions", Nasa noted. The X-59 is the centerpiece of NASA's Quesst mission, an effort to prove that quiet supersonic flight is technically and socially viable. Once airborne, the jet will make a series of community overflights across the United States so researchers can gauge how residents react to its muted acoustic footprint. Their feedback, combined with the aerodynamic and acoustic data now being amassed in wind tunnels and ground tests, will inform regulators as they consider lifting the decades-old ban on supersonic flight over land.
The Hill
5 days ago
- Politics
- The Hill
Is ICE following rules for ID'ing itself in migrant arrests?
(NewsNation) — With U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers being pressed by the White House to arrest thousands of migrants each day, how they are carrying out their mission remains under scrutiny amid complaints the agency is shrouded in secrecy. Democrats are pushing legislation that would require federal immigration officers to identify themselves properly and to operate without their faces covered. Lawmakers claim ICE's tactics 'endanger public safety by creating confusion, fear and mistrust' in communities migrant advocates say have been terrorized by threats of arrests and deportation. Department of Homeland Security officials insist officers and agents are acting properly despite significantly rising cases of ICE officers being assaulted. But the Trump administration's insistence that ICE put 3,000 migrants in custody per day is putting officers in a very dangerous position, a former ICE official told NewsNation. 'The eye is off the ball for public safety, and it's about the quota,' Jason Houser, the agency's chief of staff between 2021-23, said. 'The ICE officer is now the sword of the political class in the White House.' According to the Code of Federal Regulations, federal immigration officers are required to identify themselves 'as soon as it is practical and safe to do so'. The rules stipulate that officers are required to inform a person that they are being arrested and for what reason. The National Defense Authorization Act of 2021 requires federal officers responding to a civil disturbance to visibly display identifying information of the officer and the agency they represent unless they are working under cover. But some insist that's not happening, including Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., who said federal officers are 'pulling people off the street' with their faces covered and dressed in civilian clothing. Booker and Sen. Alex Padilla are among the lawmakers to introduce bills that would force ICE officers to show their faces. Houser said that by officers attempting to arrest migrants while dressed in hoodies and other non-identifiable items, officers put themselves and colleagues from other federal immigration agencies at risk. ICE is leaving how officers dress to the discretion of individual field offices, which is creating confusion among the general public, Houser said. Houser said ICE and other federal immigration enforcement agencies often act outside the bounds of other law enforcement organizations. 'There is no policy, there is no stance, there is no procedure for what they are doing,' Houser said, adding, 'Nobody conforms in this way and acts in this manner.' However, DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin argued in a statement to NewsNation that federal immigration agents and officers 'clearly identify themselves as law enforcement' despite needing to protect themselves from 'highly sophisticated gangs' by covering their faces. ICE Director Todd Lyons told NewsNation that officers rarely wore masks before President Donald Trump took office in January. However, citing rising attacks being reported on federal immigration officers who also face doxing threats, some officers have been forced to mask their identities. 'They don't want to wear those masks, but it's for their own safety,' Lyons said. 'If I could figure out a way that we could do it and they could do their job safely, I would love to sit down with lawmakers and come up with some solution to that. But until I can assure the men and women of ICE and their families are going to be protected, I'm going to let them do whatever they need to do to protect themselves.' However, Houser said that by covering their faces, federal officers are creating confusion about whether they are true federal employees or part of a growing number of people who have been accused of impersonating federal officers. Other complaints include that federal officers are using unmarked cars as part of their operations. While acknowledging that some DHS officers are working undercover, a spokesperson for the agency told NewsNation that some of the claims being made against DHS are 'getting a little desperate.' In June, Huntington Park, Calif., police arrested a man who had previously been arrested on human smuggling charges. Police alleged that he had a loaded gun, passports and materials purporting him to be a federal immigration officer in a vehicle that was parked in a handicapped spot. The city's mayor, Arturo Flores, said that the incident highlighted the fear that exists among a largely immigrant population due to the uncertainty of whether people claiming to be federal officers actually work for immigration agencies. 'Masked agents, unmarked vehicles and refusal to identify yourself is not the image of a just and lawful government – it is the image of fear,' Flores said. Meanwhile, U.S. Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., has accused ICE of inflaming tensions by allowing officers to cover their faces. 'If they are standing on lawfulness, they shouldn't be afraid to show their faces,' Swalwell said on 'CUOMO'. 'No other law enforcement agency operates routinely the way that they're doing, and it's terrorizing people.' The California arrest came weeks before DHS officers recently refused to identify themselves in Chicago, where 10-15 vehicles pulled up to the National Museum of Puerto Rican Art & Culture and remained for nearly two hours. Museum workers said federal officers refused to show identification or inform employees why they were there. DHS said the visit was not immigration-related and was instead connected to a narcotics investigation being conducted by a Homeland Security Investigations financial task force. 'Why didn't (officers) say that before, and why didn't (they) identify yourselves to the folks there so they didn't have to sound the alarm that this type of activity was occurring?' Chicago Ald. Gil Villegas told NewsNation. 'Had they said that, it would have never escalated.' While Democrats of migrant advocates push for more federal transparency, Houser puts much of the blame for how ICE officers are being treated squarely on the White House, citing calls by Border Czar Tom Homan and others for the number of migrant arrests to continue by whatever means necessary. He said as long as those directives remain in place, federal officers will remain under a difficult spotlight. Homan said that while many are complaining about the 3,000 daily arrest figure, calculations would require federal officers to make 7,000 arrests per day to capture the migrants that Homan said former President Joe Biden allowed into the country. 'When you have quotas on arrests and you're now targeting non-criminal working migrants, this is what happens,' Houser told NewsNation. 'ICE agents are put at risk, where they're personally going to be targeted because of a really bad policy.' NewsNation's Ali Bradley contributed reporting to this story
