Latest news with #Trump-Russia
Mint
12 hours ago
- Politics
- Mint
Fear, polygraphs, and loyalty tests: Inside Kash Patel's controversial FBI overhaul
The FBI is undergoing a sweeping and controversial transformation under its new director, Kash Patel, appointed by President Donald Trump. According to a detailed report by The New York Times, Patel has forced out senior officials, ramped up the use of polygraph tests, and centralised control in an apparent effort to realign the bureau with the Trump administration's political agenda. Behind closed doors, Patel's aggressive shake-up is 'quietly taking shape,' with insiders describing a climate of fear and retaliation. 'The FBI has become so thoroughly compromised that it will remain a threat to the people unless drastic measures are taken,' Patel wrote in his book Government Gangsters, laying out his vision to dismantle and rebuild the agency's leadership structure. Multiple senior officials, including seasoned women agents leading field offices, have been given ultimatums: accept a demotion, relocate to less influential roles, or retire. In Los Angeles, a senior agent in charge of intelligence was reassigned to a low-profile post in Huntsville, Alabama. Similar incidents were reported in San Diego, St. Louis, Jacksonville, and Washington, per interviews with nearly a dozen current and former law enforcement officials. Dan Bongino, Patel's deputy and former right-wing media host, stated on social media: 'The director and I will have most of our incoming reform teams in place by next week… This will help us both in doubling down on our reform agenda.' The new leadership team is reportedly revisiting politically charged cases, including the 2022 Supreme Court leak, the discovery of cocaine at the White House, and pipe bombs near the Capitol on January 6. Bongino controversially referred to the latter as a case of 'public corruption' rather than domestic terrorism, echoing past podcast claims that the FBI was 'covering up' the incident. Agents have been put on administrative leave, often without explanation, as per the news report. Two officials connected to the Hunter Biden laptop case were reportedly sidelined — one of whom had previously been disciplined for his handling of the Trump-Russia investigation. A lawyer in charge of human resources was, as per the report, removed while on medical leave, while a senior official was reportedly forced out after Patel discovered his wife had kneeled in a 2020 protest against police violence — despite the official passing a polygraph and leaving with an unblemished record. Patel's FBI has increasingly relied on polygraphs to identify potential leakers — even for issues unrelated to classified information or open cases. 'I never used them to suss out gossip,' said Jim Stern, a former FBI agent who conducted hundreds of polygraphs. 'If an agent who legitimately talked to the news media in a previous role had to take one, that's going to be an issue.' Sources told The New York Times that executives are being polygraphed 'at a rapid rate.' A May incident involved a senior official forced out partly due to a political act by his spouse, raising concerns over loyalty tests within the bureau. Despite the turmoil, Patel reportedly insists the agency is stable: 'We've been able to retain significant levels of senior leadership both in Washington and throughout the country,' he told senators during a recent budget hearing.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Trump Had His Executive Order Called "Unconstitutional" AND One Of His Own Moves Used Against Him In One Fell Swoop
A certain judge isn't going to stand for this type of nonsense anymore!!!!!!!!! One of President Donald Trump's executive orders, targeting law firms he doesn't like for incredibly petty reasons, was struck down Tuesday by Richard Leon, a U.S. District Judge for the District of Columbia. In addition to calling Trump's order 'unconstitutional,' Leon's 73-page opinion utilized a specific type of punctuation that Trump frequently uses himself: a crap-load of exclamation points. Leon's opinion included a total of 26 exclamation marks (plus one more in a quotation of a comment by Trump). It's rare to see a judge make such use of the exclamation mark, an expression of strong emotion that legal writing experts discourage. Perhaps Leon's usage was an attempt to communicate with Trump in a way the president could actually understand. Related: 18 Major Global Events That American Media Is Ignoring Right Now, And Why They Actually Matter To Us Related: "MAGAs Are The Dumbest People On This Planet": 26 Tweets About The Sad State Of Politics This Week Some highlights from the opinion include Leon describing the Trump administration's arguments in court as 'absurd!' and responding to one of the government's requests with an exasperated 'Please!' At one point, Leon memorably writes: 'The Order shouts through a bullhorn: If you take on causes disfavored by President Trump, you will be punished!' Since returning to the White House, Trump has targeted several law firms that either refused to represent him or were associated with people he doesn't like by suspending their attorneys' security clearances and barring their employees from federal buildings. In March, he aimed his ire at the law firm WilmerHale because it had hired former special counsel Robert Mueller, who oversaw the 2016 Trump-Russia investigation. WilmerHale quickly fired back by suing the Trump administration in an attempt to block the order, stating that it is 'a plainly unlawful attack on the bedrock principles of our nation's legal system—our clients' right to counsel and the First Amendment.' Leon ruled in WilmerHale's favor Tuesday, the third time this month that a federal judge in Washington has found Trump's attacks on law firms unconstitutional. Leon even took the time to explain the fundamentals of democracy to Trump in his ruling — and it's sassy! 'The cornerstone of the American system of justice is an independent judiciary and an independent bar willing to tackle unpopular cases, however daunting. The Founding Fathers knew this! Accordingly, they took pains to enshrine in the Constitution certain rights that would serve as the foundation for that independence. Little wonder that in the nearly 250 years since the Constitution was adopted no Executive Order has been issued challenging these fundamental rights. Now, however, several Executive Orders have been issued directly challenging these rights and that independence. One of these Orders is the subject of this case. For the reasons set forth below, I have concluded that this Order must be struck down in its entirety as unconstitutional. Indeed, to rule otherwise would be unfaithful to the judgment and vision of the Founding Fathers!' This article originally appeared in HuffPost. Also in In the News: An Ad Against Far-Right Voters Is Going Viral For Being Both Terrifying And (Kinda) Accurate Also in In the News: This Republican Congressman Decided A Nap Was More Important Than Millions Of People Losing Their Medicaid, And The Photos Are Infuriating Also in In the News: A Clip Of Donald Trump Getting Angry After Being Fact-Checked Is Going Mega Viral, And It Sums Up His Entire Presidency In A Nutshell
Buzz Feed
3 days ago
- Business
- Buzz Feed
Judge Uses 26 Exclamation Marks To Strike Down Trump
A certain judge isn't going to stand for this type of nonsense anymore!!!!!!!!! One of President Donald Trump 's executive orders, targeting law firms he doesn't like for incredibly petty reasons, was struck down Tuesday by Richard Leon, a U.S. District Judge for the District of Columbia. In addition to calling Trump's order 'unconstitutional,' Leon's 73-page opinion utilized a specific type of punctuation that Trump frequently uses himself: a crap-load of exclamation points. Leon's opinion included a total of 26 exclamation marks (plus one more in a quotation of a comment by Trump). It's rare to see a judge make such use of the exclamation mark, an expression of strong emotion that legal writing experts discourage. Perhaps Leon's usage was an attempt to communicate with Trump in a way the president could actually understand. Some highlights from the opinion include Leon describing the Trump administration's arguments in court as 'absurd!' and responding to one of the government's requests with an exasperated 'Please!' At one point, Leon memorably writes: 'The Order shouts through a bullhorn: If you take on causes disfavored by President Trump, you will be punished!' Since returning to the White House, Trump has targeted several law firms that either refused to represent him or were associated with people he doesn't like by suspending their attorneys' security clearances and barring their employees from federal buildings. In March, he aimed his ire at the law firm WilmerHale because it had hired former special counsel Robert Mueller, who oversaw the 2016 Trump-Russia investigation. WilmerHale quickly fired back by suing the Trump administration in an attempt to block the order, stating that it is 'a plainly unlawful attack on the bedrock principles of our nation's legal system—our clients' right to counsel and the First Amendment.' Leon ruled in WilmerHale's favor Tuesday, the third time this month that a federal judge in Washington has found Trump's attacks on law firms unconstitutional. Leon even took the time to explain the fundamentals of democracy to Trump in his ruling — and it's sassy! 'The cornerstone of the American system of justice is an independent judiciary and an independent bar willing to tackle unpopular cases, however daunting. The Founding Fathers knew this! Accordingly, they took pains to enshrine in the Constitution certain rights that would serve as the foundation for that independence. Little wonder that in the nearly 250 years since the Constitution was adopted no Executive Order has been issued challenging these fundamental rights. Now, however, several Executive Orders have been issued directly challenging these rights and that independence. One of these Orders is the subject of this case. For the reasons set forth below, I have concluded that this Order must be struck down in its entirety as unconstitutional. Indeed, to rule otherwise would be unfaithful to the judgment and vision of the Founding Fathers!'
Yahoo
4 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Judge Steals 1 Of Trump's Moves To Emphasize How Dumb His Executive Order Is
A certain judge isn't going to stand for this type of nonsense anymore!!!!!!!!! One of President Donald Trump's executive orders, targeting law firms he doesn't like for incredibly petty reasons, was struck down Tuesday by Richard Leon, a U.S. District Judge for the District of Columbia. In addition to calling Trump's order 'unconstitutional,' Leon's 73-page opinion utilized a specific type of punctuation that Trump frequently uses himself: a crap-load of exclamation points. Leon's opinion included a total of 26 exclamation marks (plus one more in a quotation of a comment by Trump). It's rare to see a judge make such use of the exclamation mark, an expression of strong emotion that legal writing experts discourage. Perhaps Leon's usage was an attempt to communicate with Trump in a way the president could actually understand. Some highlights from the opinion include Leon describing the Trump administration's arguments in court as 'absurd!' and responding to one of the government's requests with an exasperated 'Please!' At one point, Leon memorably writes: 'The Order shouts through a bullhorn: If you take on causes disfavored by President Trump, you will be punished!' Since returning to the White House, Trump has targeted several law firms that either refused to represent him or were associated with people he doesn't like by suspending their attorneys' security clearances and barring their employees from federal buildings. In March, he aimed his ire at the law firm WilmerHale because it had hired former special counsel Robert Mueller, who oversaw the 2016 Trump-Russia investigation. WilmerHale quickly fired back by suing the Trump administration in an attempt to block the order, stating that it is 'a plainly unlawful attack on the bedrock principles of our nation's legal system—our clients' right to counsel and the First Amendment.' Leon ruled in WilmerHale's favor Tuesday, the third time this month that a federal judge in Washington has found Trump's attacks on law firms unconstitutional. Leon even took the time to explain the fundamentals of democracy to Trump in his ruling — and it's sassy! 'The cornerstone of the American system of justice is an independent judiciary and an independent bar willing to tackle unpopular cases, however daunting. The Founding Fathers knew this! Accordingly, they took pains to enshrine in the Constitution certain rights that would serve as the foundation for that independence. Little wonder that in the nearly 250 years since the Constitution was adopted no Executive Order has been issued challenging these fundamental rights. Now, however, several Executive Orders have been issued directly challenging these rights and that independence. One of these Orders is the subject of this case. For the reasons set forth below, I have concluded that this Order must be struck down in its entirety as unconstitutional. Indeed, to rule otherwise would be unfaithful to the judgment and vision of the Founding Fathers!'
Politico
4 days ago
- Business
- Politico
Big Law's big mistake
TIRED OF WINNING — Another law firm — the third so far — scored a resounding legal victory this week against the Trump administration. They were successful because they decided not to capitulate and instead take him to court. Earlier this year, Trump issued an unprecedented series of executive orders that imposed a variety of sanctions — including barring lawyers from the firms from entering federal property — on a number of large law firms. After Trump began his effort, a sharp split among firms emerged. The law firm Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison, which was on the receiving end of one of those orders, agreed to provide $40 million worth of pro bono legal services for issues supported by the White House in exchange for Trump rescinding his order and lifting the sanctions against the firm and its lawyers. Eight more firms followed suit, ultimately pledging nearly a billion dollars' worth of similar pro bono services in support of administration causes. Four law firms, however, refused to buckle. They filed lawsuits challenging their respective orders — targeting the orders on First Amendment grounds, among others. On Tuesday, a federal judge in D.C. struck down the executive order against WilmerHale, one of the four prominent firms to fight back. The firm joins two others — Jenner & Block and Perkins Coie — that also successfully pushed back in court. (It is not yet clear whether the Justice Department will appeal.) Meanwhile, a fourth firm, Susman Godfrey, obtained a preliminary victory; a final decision remains outstanding, though the firm's odds are looking better by the day. These developments suggest that we may be seeing a shift in the political and legal dynamics around these deals. When Paul, Weiss entered into the first deal, the firm's chairman, Brad Karp, told lawyers in the firm that he had no choice because the order posed an 'existential' threat to the firm and 'could easily have destroyed' it. This assertion was highly questionable even at the time, but the assessment looks even worse in hindsight. All indications are that WilmerHale, Jenner & Block, Perkins Coie and Susman Godfrey still very much exist — with lawyers, clients, offices and all the rest. (Disclosure: Your correspondent this evening worked at Paul, Weiss years ago.) WilmerHale's victory came on the heels of the announcement from four Paul, Weiss partners on Friday that they were leaving the firm to start their own venture. They include Karen Dunn, a prominent litigator and long-time fixture in Democratic circles who oversaw Kamala Harris's debate prep last year; Jeannie Rhee, a former federal prosecutor who worked on special counsel Robert Mueller's Trump-Russia investigation; and William Isaacson, another prominent trial lawyer. Exactly why they left is not clear. According to reporting from The New York Times, Dunn supported the decision to strike a deal with Trump and in fact helped rally support among the partnership. She apparently shares the blame for a deal that may have run afoul of the law in multiple serious ways and that paved the way for others to cave. Since then, however, Paul, Weiss has become a pariah of sorts in the eyes of the Democratic Party — a symbol of elite capitulation in the age of Trump 2.0. It's a remarkable fall from grace both for the firm as an institution, once seen as a largely reliable supporter of Democrats and home to quite a few former Democratic administration lawyers, and for Karp personally, a major fundraiser for the party who once styled himself as a power broker of sorts at the intersection of Manhattan's law and finance worlds. Seen against that backdrop, Dunn's departure may partly reflect the atmosphere among Democrats in Washington these days. Dunn was once widely seen within Paul, Weiss as a potential successor to Karp as the head of the firm, so her decision to leave was surprising — the job is worth tens of millions of dollars a year — and is also likely to put a small dent in the firm's revenue. But for a lawyer who wants to remain a political player in Democratic circles, the Paul, Weiss brand — along with the brands of the other firms that surrendered to Trump — may no longer be helpful. In fact, it may be a hindrance to professional advancement within the party and to the sorts of jobs — like White House counsel or a senior position in the Justice Department — that many of the most prominent Democratic lawyers aspire to hold. The ongoing fallout for the settling firms now appears to present a cautionary tale: They may have succeeded in taking the easy way out and keeping their very profitable businesses humming along, but memories in Washington are long. Even early into his second term, the firms that are fighting Trump in court are winning. Welcome to POLITICO Nightly. Reach out with news, tips and ideas at nightly@ Or contact tonight's author at akhardori@ What'd I Miss? — Trump gives Putin 2 weeks for action on Ukraine as relationship frays: Donald Trump says American efforts to bring Russia and Ukraine to peace are going 'fine,' but appears cognizant that Russian President Vladimir Putin may be only pretending to engage in good faith. 'We'll find out whether or not he's tapping us along or not and if he is, we'll respond a little bit differently but it will take about a week and a half to two weeks,' the U.S. president said today in response to reporters' questions at the White House. 'They seem to want to do something, but until the document is signed I can't tell you. Nobody can.' — Trump weighs pardons of people convicted for Whitmer's 2020 kidnapping plot: President Donald Trump said today that he is considering pardons for the people involved in a plot to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer in 2020. Trump insinuated that the trial had not been handled correctly by the legal system while taking questions from reporters in the Oval Office, describing it as potentially being a 'railroad job.' The kidnapping plot against the Michigan Democrat rattled the final weeks of the 2020 election and marked an incident of anti-government extremism that prosecutors said was intended to ignite a civil war. The leaders, Barry Croft Jr. and Adam Fox, were convicted in 2022 of conspiring to abduct the Democratic governor from her vacation home. — Trump slams a new Wall Street acronym referring to his reversals on tariffs: Wall Street has a new shorthand about President Donald Trump — and he's not happy about it. Traders have reportedly come up with the acronym TACO, which stands for 'Trump always chickens out,' to describe the tumultuous trade environment created by the president's habit of threatening to impose tariffs on countries, and then back off at the last moment. He bristled when asked about it today in an Oval Office press conference. 'Don't ever say what you say, that's a nasty question,' Trump told a journalist who asked for his response to the acronym. 'To me that's the nastiest question.' Trump rejected the idea that his reversals on tariffs amounted to him backing down, saying that usually receives a different critique. — Rubio targets foreign nationals who he alleges police Americans' social media posts: Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced today a new visa restriction policy targeting foreign officials who he says are complicit in censoring what Americans say online. 'For too long, Americans have been fined, harassed, and even charged by foreign authorities for exercising their free speech rights,' Rubio wrote on X. 'Today, I am announcing a new visa restriction policy that will apply to foreign officials and persons who are complicit in censoring Americans. Free speech is essential to the American way of life — a birthright over which foreign governments have no authority.' AROUND THE WORLD CHINA HACK — The Czech government today condemned China for carrying out a cyberattack against its foreign ministry exposing thousands of unclassified emails. Czechia said that the Chinese state-sponsored group Advanced Persistent Threat 31 (APT31) targeted the foreign ministry from 2022 — the year the country held the rotating EU presidency — and was able to read unclassified emails sent between embassies and EU institutions. The Czech foreign minister, Jan Lipavský, said he would summon the Chinese ambassador immediately to explain the findings and tell him this would damage the countries' bilateral relations. 'With today's move, we have exposed China, which has long been working to undermine our resilience and democracy,' Lipavský said. 'Through cyberattacks, information manipulation, and propaganda, it interferes in our society — and we must defend ourselves against that.' It is the first time the Czech government has attributed a national cyberattack to a state-backed actor. BLACK SEA STRATEGY — The EU unveiled a new Black Sea strategy today that will allow the region to better transport heavy military gear as the Russian threat looms over Eastern Europe. 'Security in the Black Sea is vital also to European security,' EU top diplomat Kaja Kallas said at a press conference, adding that it is currently being undermined by the Kremlin's all-out war in Ukraine and hybrid attacks on maritime infrastructure. The strategy is also a response to 'geopolitical challenges' in a world where 'dependencies are being weaponized,' said Marta Kos, commissioner for EU enlargement. The Black Sea is a bridge to the South Caucasus and Central Asia, and a vital artery for energy and food trade, she said. The Black Sea region has been destabilized by Russia's invasion of Ukraine, as the large-scale use of mines and military actions hindered the flow of goods. Separately, Eastern European countries fear further aggression from Moscow beyond Ukraine, and want to ramp up their defensive capabilities. Nightly Number RADAR SWEEP LAST OF ITS KIND — In Wheeling, West Virginia, at the Wheeling Island Hotel, Casino & Racetrack, greyhounds are still racing. It's an outdated practice — so much so that there are only two racetracks of its kind left in the country, and the number of races the track puts on have dropped off significantly. It's also one that animal rights activists have consistently railed against. But, like many other rickety old institutions, it still has a vibrant culture that doesn't want to let go of their hobby just yet. The unassuming, rundown track is the scene for a story about American culture and what it means to be at the end of something. Michelle Orange writes for Oxford American. Parting Image Did someone forward this email to you? Sign up here.
