Latest news with #Marine
2 hours ago
- Politics
Trump pardons former NY Rep. Michael Grimm after tax fraud conviction
WASHINGTON -- President Donald Trump has pardoned former U.S. Rep. Michael Grimm, a New York Republican who resigned from Congress after a tax fraud conviction. The pardon was disclosed Wednesday by a White House official who requested anonymity before an official announcement. Grimm, a former Marine and FBI agent, pleaded guilty in late 2014 to underreporting wages and revenue at a restaurant he ran in Manhattan. He resigned from Congress the following year and served eight months in prison. Grimm tried to reenter politics in 2018 but lost a primary for his old district. While he was in Congress, Grimm made headlines for threatening to throw a reporter off a balcony in the Capitol after the reporter asked about the long-running FBI investigation into his campaign finances. 'Let me be clear to you. If you ever do that to me again, I'll throw you off this (expletive) balcony,' he told the reporter during the exchange, which was captured on video. When the reporter pushed back, telling the then-congressman that it was a valid question, Grimm responded, 'No. No. You're not man enough. You're not man enough. I'll break you in half. Like a boy.' After heavy criticism, Grimm said he was wrong for threatening the reporter and that 'it shouldn't have happened.' The former congressman worked at the conservative news outlet Newsmax. Last year, Grimm was paralyzed from the chest down after being thrown from a horse during a polo tournament. In a short video posted on Grimm's Facebook in January, the former congressman said, 'little by little, I'm getting better,' and said he was working on getting more dexterity in his fingers and getting his legs to move. In March, a GoFundMe page that was set up for Grimm posted that he had been able to 'withstand 4 minutes upright assisted on the tilt-table,' along with a picture of Grimm smiling.
Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Stefany Shaheen kicks off 1st Congressional District Democratic primary bid
Stefany Shaheen kicks off 1st C.D. Dem primary bid Stefany Shaheen of Portsmouth, the eldest daughter of Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., launched her Democratic primary bid for the too-be-vacant, 1st Congressional District seat. Health care advocate and businesswoman Stefany Shaheen, 51, launched her Democratic primary for the to-be-vacant, 1st Congressional District seat, vowing to push back against the Trump administration cuts to medical research and insurance for children. The eldest daughter of retiring U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen instantly becomes a leading contender to try and replace four-term U.S. Rep. Chris Pappas, who is running for the Senate in 2026 to try and replace the elder Shaheen. The announcement creates a competitive primary between two Portsmouth Democrats, Shaheen and Maura Sullivan, a Marine Iraq War veteran and former Obama administration official who finished second to Pappas in 2018. Derry Republican businessman Chris Bright, who finished fourth in a 2024 primary in this district, is the only GOP figure to confirm that he'll be running next year. The top three finishers in that 2024 GOP primary, former Executive Councilor Russ Prescott, Greenland businesswoman and veteran Hollie Noveletsky and Manchester Board of Aldermen President Joe Kelly Levasseur, are all considering their own campaigns. Shaheen became a best-selling author of 'Elle & Coach' and an advocate when her eldest daughter, Elle, was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes at age 8. She founded Good Measures, a small business that provides clinical and nutritional support to people living with chronic conditions and was a named inventor of some of the company's patents. 'For 15 years I've been a fierce fighter for medical research and innovation in health care to help people like my daughter, Elle, battling chronic, life-threatening diseases, like diabetes. So, when I see Donald Trump crushing medical research and slashing health care for kids, seniors and veterans to give tax breaks to billionaires and corporations, I have to fight back,' Shaheen said. That's why I'm running for Congress,' said Shaheen. 'No one fights harder than a mom for her kids, and that's how I will fight for your family too. I'll never give up.' Craig Welch and Shaheen have four children. Stefany Shaheen kicks off 1st C.D. bid Stefany Shaheen, third from left, kicked off her Democratic primary bid for the First Congressional District seat. At far right is her husband, Craig Welch. Joined Kamen's ARMI team Shaheen released a two-minute video entitled, 'No One Fights Harder' as part of her campaign kickoff and planned to visit several communities in the 1st District the rest of this week. She is part of a biotech initiative in Manchester's historic millyard as the chief strategy officer for Dean Kamen's Advance Regenerative Manufacturing Institute. 'If you are as outraged as I am, get in this fight with me,' Stefany Shaheen said in the video. 'In New Hampshire, we stand up for each other. Let's do this.' A spokeswoman for the Republican Congressional Campaign Committee said Shaheen has made a career of climbing the ladder thanks to her last name. Stefany Shaheen kicks off 1st C.D. bid Stefany Shaheen, third from left, kicked off her Democratic primary bid for the First Congressional District seat. At far right is her husband, Craig Welch. "Nepo baby Stefany Shaheen is a DC elitist who is committed to the Democrats' radical agenda that makes life more expensive and less safe. Granite Staters will resoundingly reject her and her out of touch policies,' said Maureen O'Toole, the eastern regional press secretary for NRCC. A 'nepo baby' is a slang term referring to someone who has achieved success or opportunities due to familial connections. Shaheen's team created a website and released several testimonials to her candidacy. Andrea Amico, founder of Testing for Pease, said Shaheen became a champion for treating PFAS contamination found in the drinking water at the Pease International Tradeport. 'You could feel how deeply she related to the parents at Pease, who were worried about their children and the possible health effects from drinking contaminated water,' Amico said. 'Our fight was her fight, and she helped get the PFAS blood testing program, create the city's Community Advisory Board, and advocate for the first national PFAS Health Study to include our families,' Her elective office career began when she won election to a seat on the Portsmouth City Council where she worked to tackle a parking shortage and also served on the Portsmouth Police Commission. klandrigan@
USA Today
5 hours ago
- Politics
- USA Today
Chaos and criticism for Trump-backed Gaza aid plan as 47 are injured
Chaos and criticism for Trump-backed Gaza aid plan as 47 are injured People stampeded and shots were fired as a Trump-backed plan to distribute food in Gaza at sites guarded by armed contractors got underway. Show Caption Hide Caption Israel prepares to 'conquer' and 'clear out' all of Gaza Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he plans to "take over" Gaza and move the civilian population southward. "We are taking control of the food distribution in the Gaza Strip," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on May 28. WASHINGTON − Chaos erupted after a new Trump-backed plan to distribute food in Gaza at sites staffed with armed contractors got under way. With famine imminent after nearly three months of Israeli blockade, thousands of Palestinians stampeded a fenced checkpoint in southern Gaza on May 27, and Israeli soldiers opened fire, according to Israel's military and the United Nations. At least 47 people were injured in the melee, most from gunshots, the U.N. said. "This is not humanitarianism," Jonathan Whittall, head of office at the United Nations' Palestinian affairs agency, said at a May 28 briefing. He said the new aid system continues "collective punishment of Palestinians" and is an "assault on their human dignity." More: Pope Leo calls for ceasefire in Gaza, laments 'cries' of parents of dead children Mistrust of the UN The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation – the murky, fledgling organization distributing food aid – said its staff, anticipating disorder, had "intentionally relaxed its security protocols to safeguard against crowd reactions to finally receiving food." Supported by the Trump administration and Israel, the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation has pitched its "secure distribution sites," staffed with paramilitary contractors, as the solution to Gaza's humanitarian crisis and Israel's distrust of the U.N. Between two operating sites, 14,550 food boxes – each with enough food for 5.5 people over 3.5 days – had been distributed, as of May 28. But the aid organizations the new foundation wants to replace say its model of militarized aid distribution and its ties to Israel violate basic humanitarian principles. Those fears come down to "complaints about style," State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said at a May 27 briefing. "Unfortunately, there are many parties who wish to see GHF fail," the foundation said. Foundation director resigns over neutrality The foundation is off to a rocky start. The day before it began distributing food aid, Jake Wood, a former Marine who founded the humanitarian response group Team Rubicon, resigned as head of the foundation, citing concerns it not operate with impartiality. 'It is clear that it is not possible to implement this plan while also strictly adhering to the humanitarian principles of humanity, neutrality, impartiality, and independence,' Wood wrote in a statement. A member of the group told USA TODAY that Wood felt the aid plan could not run independently of Israel's military operations. Humanitarian groups in Gaza had long aired similar critiques. 'This is a plan that has not demonstrated that it would be fully impartial, or that it would provide enough aid to all those in need in Gaza to prevent looting and diversion for profit,' said Sean Carroll, president and CEO of U.S. aid group Anera. The New York Times reported on May 24 that the foundation originated from a group of Israeli and American military and business leaders as a plan to wrest control of Gaza from Hamas and replace the U.N. as the primary distributor of aid in Gaza. Members of the foundation and U.S. officials, including U.S. ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee, have insisted it operates independent of Israel. "The Israelis are going to be involved in providing necessary military security because it is a war zone, but they will not be involved in the distribution of the food or even bringing the food into Gaza," Huckabee told reporters in Jerusalem on May 9. Israel has been increasingly vocal in its support of the plan. "We are taking control of the food distribution in the Gaza Strip," Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on May 28. In a statement released after Wood's resignation, the foundation said it was 'disappointed' by his departure. 'Unfortunately, from the moment GHF was announced, those who benefit from the status quo have been more focused on tearing this apart than on getting aid in,' the statement said. Wood and GHF did not return requests for comment. Suspicion from humanitarian groups Israel lifted its blockade on all humanitarian aid into Gaza early last week, allowing the first trucks in more than two months on May 19 to trickle into the war-ravaged enclave. Around 100 trucks have entered daily since then, but humanitarians say it's a fraction of what is needed to prevent famine. 'It's a drop in the bucket,' Cindy McCain, director of the World Food Program, said May 25 on CBS' 'Face the Nation.' Israel cut off humanitarian aid in early March, after a ceasefire with Hamas broke down. As of mid-May, 470,000 people there face catastrophic hunger, and the entire population is experiencing acute food insecurity, according to WFP. As aid groups clamored for access, the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation stepped onto the scene. In addition to Wood, the foundation's board included Nate Mook, a former CEO of World Central Kitchen and Bill Miller, a former U.N. director, and corporate executives. Former military and intelligence personnel were also involved, chief among them Phil Reilly, a veteran CIA paramilitary officer turned security contractor. In calls aid workers said were led by Aryeh Lightstone, an aide to President Donald Trump's envoy Steve Witkoff, the foundation sought to win over humanitarian organizations already on the ground. They did not succeed. As aid workers learned more about the plan, they concluded it was at best ineffective and at worst risked militarizing aid distribution to serve Israel's wartime goals. Suspicion grew that the organization was an Israeli government front. Reports that the foundation would use biometric technology to identify and track Palestinians sparked alarm. 'I don't see it happening. How do you serve 2 million people overnight?' Bushra Khalidi, Oxfam's policy lead for Palestine, said, citing the foundation's limited distribution sites and lack of experience. The plan is 'a process of militarizing and controlling aid to a much higher degree,' said Joseph Belliveau, executive director of Illinois-based MedGlobal. People will fear coming to a distribution site that is 'under the gun,' he said. According to a publicly available planning document and a member of the foundation, the group's model of securitized aid 'hubs' was meant to address Israel's accusations that Hamas loots aid, while getting more assistance into Gaza. In her Face the Nation interview, McCain said there was no evidence of Hamas stealing food aid in the most current round of distribution. She did not address previous rounds. "This doesn't have anything to do with Hamas or any kind of organized crime," McCain, the widow of Republican Sen. John McCain, said in the interview. "It has simply to do with the fact these people are starving to death." The foundation also ignited fears among some humanitarians that it would work in tandem with Israel's military operations to forcibly displace Palestinians from north Gaza into the southern part of the enclave. "The biggest fear is that, with a concentration of food provision in the south, it will be complicit in forced displacement, which is a war crime," said Carroll. Israel launched a new military operation – dubbed 'Gideon's chariots' – in Gaza earlier in May that left more than 500 people dead in the span of eight days. It was unclear how many were civilians and how many were combatants. On May 26, the day the foundation launched its aid operation, at least 45 people were killed throughout the Gaza strip. More than 53,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza since Hamas launched an Oct. 7, 2023, raid on southern Israel that took 1,200 lives. Netanyahu said May 19 that Israel would achieve 'complete victory' and control the entire enclave; Israeli officials have outlined a goal to push Palestinians to Gaza's south. Palestinians in northern Gaza have received evacuation orders in recent days. Khalidi said her colleagues were told by the Israeli military to evacuate from northern Gaza and Deir al-Balah in central Gaza. Military contractors to guard aid distribution The new foundation would first establish four 'secure distribution sites' – each one to serve 300,000 people with 'pre-packaged rations' of 1750-calorie meals, 'hygiene kits and medical supplies,' according to the initial plan. Armored vehicles would transport the supplies to the hubs, which would be guarded by armed security contractors. The aid would 'move through tightly controlled corridors, monitored in real time to prevent diversion,' according to a planning document. The firms providing security include Safe Reach Solutions, founded by Reilly, and UG Solutions, which was tasked earlier this year with guarding the Netzarim Corridor, a road that runs across the middle of Gaza, according to reports. Safe Reach Solutions has posted a job listing for a 'humanitarian liaison officer' and UG Solutions for an 'international humanitarian security specialist' on LinkedIn in recent weeks. A member of the foundation said the group may seek assistance from Egypt or other countries in the region, since almost none of the contractors speaks Arabic. It is also unclear how the plan is funded. The foundation registered in Switzerland in February – according to its planning document, its Swiss branch would "address donors who would prefer to participate outside of the U.S. structure." TRIAL International, a Switzerland-based legal nonprofit, filed legal submissions on May 23 asking for the foundation's funding to be investigated to determine if it is operating "in line with Swiss law and international humanitarian law," according to a press release. 'Too weak to cry' Khalidi and other aid workers say the situation in Gaza is unthinkably dire. Although aid trucks had entered, food distribution has been minimal. Only four bakeries were able to operate in Gaza due to lack of fuel as of May 24, according to Khalidi. Meanwhile, health workers in the enclave reported to her that they saw "children with symptoms of malnutrition and severe acute malnutrition" and "numerous cases of severe diarrhea." Children are "so hungry that they're too weak to cry,' she said. Belliveau said that, as of May 23, no MedGlobal trucks had gotten into Gaza, and overall, far less than the promised 100 trucks had reached Gazans. The organization's doctors and nurses are already on the ground, but they need MedGlobal's medicine and therapeutic food to be allowed in, he said. 'The real solution here is to lift the blockade and just let us do our do our jobs," he said.
Time of India
7 hours ago
- Time of India
'I just knew he was up to something crazy': Hero marine tackles passenger trying to open plane door mid-flight
A US Marine shared a moment he wrestled a disruptive passenger to the ground to prevent him from opening a plane's emergency exit mid-air. Sgt Maj Jody Armentrout, 50, said his instincts kicked in when a man began behaving oddly on Saturday morning's All Nippon Airways flight from Japan to Texas. The long-serving Marine, who has spent more than two decades in the US Marine Corps, said he first noticed the passenger wandering aimlessly between bathrooms. 'He came out of that one and began pacing up and down the aisle, so that just threw my radar on,' Armentrout told NBC News. 'His eyes — you could definitely tell there was something going on.' When the passenger began tampering with an emergency exit, Armentrout jumped into action. 'He grabbed a strap around the door, pulled it off, and about that time is when I took him and slammed him, put him on the ground,' he said. Another older passenger helped restrain the man, while Armentrout zip-tied him to a seat. The Houston-bound flight was then diverted to Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, where the man, reportedly undergoing a medical crisis, was taken to hospital. He has not been charged, the New York Post reported. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Trade Bitcoin & Ethereum – No Wallet Needed! IC Markets Start Now Undo Japan based Armentrout, stayed seated beside the passenger for the remainder of the journey and said he acted out of concern for others onboard. 'I just knew he was up to something crazy, and at the end of the day, I was willing to take the risk of him saying 'I'm not doing anything' and then just them making him go sit back down than me allowing him to do anything that's going to put anybody at risk.' Several passengers thanked the Marine for his quick thinking and bravery, especially as there were babies and families on the flight. However, the drama didn't end there. Upon landing in Seattle, another passenger, reportedly angry about the diversion, punched a bathroom door. The FBI confirmed that this person, too, was removed by Port of Seattle Police but had not been charged as of Wednesday. Reflecting on the incident, Armentrout simply said, 'It was a weird flight.'
New York Post
9 hours ago
- New York Post
Marine ‘slammed' passenger who tried to open door mid-flight: ‘He was up to something crazy'
A hero Marine has told how he 'slammed' a crazy-looking passenger to the ground to stop him from opening their plane's door mid-flight, then zip-tied him to a seat while the flight made an emergency diversion. Jody Armentrout, a sergeant major who has served more than 20 years in the US Marine Corps, said the unidentified passenger caught his attention on Saturday morning's All Nippon Airways flight from Japan to Texas when he took down his backpack and went aimlessly from bathroom to bathroom. 'He came out of that one and began pacing up and down the aisle, so that just threw my radar on,' the 50-year-old Marine told NBC News. 'His eyes — you could definitely tell there was something going on.' 3 Sgt. Maj. Jody Armentrout said he tackled a passenger who tried to open an airplane door midflight. U.S. Marines Keeping a close watch on the crazed-looking passenger, Armenault said he watched him start to eye up the emergency exit beside him. The Marine stood up and blocked the door — just for the other passenger to turn around and burst through the galley toward the door on the opposite side. 'He grabbed a strap around the door, pulled it off, and about that time is when I took him and slammed him, put him on the ground,' Armentrout told the outlet. 3 Officials said the man was suffering a medical crisis and he was taken to a hospital in Seattle. FOX 26 'And then there was an older gentleman sitting on that side [who] woke up, and he got up and kind of helped me.' Armentrout then used zip ties to secure the troubled passenger to his seat as the Houston-bound flight was instead diverted to Seattle-Tacoma International Airport in Washington. He sat next to him for the remainder of the flight from Japan, where the Marine is based. The unidentified passenger was experiencing a medical crisis, officials have said. He was taken to a hospital and had not been charged as of Wednesday. The Marine said he felt compelled to act to save others onboard — including babies — with some of the other passengers later thanking him for his potentially life-saving response. 'I just knew he was up to something crazy, and at the end of the day, I was willing to take the risk of him saying 'I'm not doing anything' and then just them making him go sit back down than me allowing him to do anything that's going to put anybody at risk,' Armentrout told NBC News. It was not the end of the drama on the flight. When the plane landed in Seattle, another passenger ' frustrated at the flight diversion' punched a bathroom door, according to the FBI's Seattle field office. 3 The Marine zip-tied the man to a chair as they diverted to Seattle. FOX 26 That person, not publicly identified, was also removed by the Port of Seattle Police from the flight, but hjas likewise not been charged as of Wednesday. 'It was a weird flight,' said Armentrout, who will be heading back to Japan next week.
