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      Trump 'money bomb' scheme raised millions from unwitting donors – report

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      Donald Trump’s 2020 presidential campaign used pre-checked boxes and obscure design on fundraising emails to wring millions of dollars out of unwitting supporters, detonating a “money bomb” which allowed the Republican to compete against Joe Biden in the last months of the race.The practice, pursued by the campaign and WinRed, a for-profit company, was detailed in an extensive report by the New York Times on Saturday. It is legal, but Ira Rheingold, executive director of the National Association of Consumer Advocates, told the paper it was “unfair, unethical and inappropriate”.Another expert quoted by the Times said such “dark pattern” digital marketing “should be in textbooks of what you shouldn’t do” in politics.The “money bomb” did not bring victory, as Trump lost the electoral college by 306 votes to 232. He also lost the popular vote by more than 7m ballots.But, the Times said, “the recurring donations swelled Mr Trump’s treasury in September and October, just as his finances were deteriorating. He was then able to use tens of millions of dollars he raised after the election, under the guise of fighting his unfounded fraud claims, to help cover the refunds he owed.”Trump still claims his defeat was caused by massive electoral fraud. It was not, as a succession of court cases concluded.After escaping conviction in his second impeachment trial, for inciting the Capitol riot of 6 January, the former president is free to run for office again. He continues to seek donations, leading to friction with the party he dominates.The Republican WinRed operation was conceived as a response to ActBlue, an online fundraising platform set up by Democrats to attract small-dollar donations.As the Times reported, refunds to donors are not unusual and can be made when individuals give more than the legal limit. The paper said that at the end of 2020, after Trump’s defeat, the Biden campaign and Democratic bodies made 37,000 online refunds worth $5.6m.The Trump campaign and the Republican National Committee made more than 530,000 refunds, returning $64.3m.“In effect,” the Times wrote, “the money that Mr Trump eventually had to refund amounted to an interest-free loan from unwitting supporters at the most important juncture of the 2020 race.”Jason Miller, a Trump spokesman, told the Times: “Our campaign was built by the hardworking men and women of America and cherishing their investments was paramount to anything else we did.”The Times reported that the practice was used for the Georgia Senate runoffs in January and continues to be used by the Republican party.It also detailed distressing experiences affecting Trump donors hit by surprise deductions and consequent trouble with banks and credit card companies.Victor Amelino, a 78-year-old from California, donated $990 in September. It recurred seven times for a total of almost $8,000, the Times said.Calling the Trump campaign and the RNC “bandits”, Amelino told the paper: “I’m retired. I can’t afford to pay all that damn money.” More

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      Washington shaken after officer and suspect killed in attack at US Capitol

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      Washington woke on Saturday shaken by another deadly attack at the US Capitol, an incident which left a police officer and a suspect dead and stirred memories of 6 January, when supporters of Donald Trump stormed the building in an attempt to overturn the election.The incident on Friday was on a much smaller scale but it still spread confusion and fear. Early in the afternoon, a man rammed his vehicle into two Capitol police officers standing in front of a barricade. Exiting the vehicle, the suspect then lunged at officers with a knife. He was shot dead.Yogananda Pittman, acting chief of Capitol police, told reporters two officers were taken to hospital after the attack. One, William “Billy” Evans, an 18-year department veteran and the father of two young children, died from his injuries.House Speaker Nancy Pelosi called Evans a “martyr for democracy”.“America’s heart has been broken by the tragic and heroic death of one of our Capitol police heroes,” Pelosi said in a statement. “Once again, these heroes risked their lives to protect our Capitol and our country, with the same extraordinary selflessness and spirit of service seen on 6 January.“On behalf of the entire House, we are profoundly grateful.”A neighbour of Evans, Bob Epskamp, told the Washington Post he was a “loving and caring father”. After the insurrection at the Capitol, he said, he told Evans he “was glad he was fortunate enough not to be on duty that day”.Police did not immediately name the suspect and the motive remained unclear. Multiple news outlets, however, named the attacker as Noah Green, who was 25 and from Indiana.Friends and family members told news outlets they had been concerned about Green’s mental health in recent years, especially after he posted disturbing comments to social media.Green’s Facebook profile was public until it was suspended on Friday. Two weeks before the attack at the Capitol, he reportedly wrote: “These past few years have been tough, and these past few months have been tougher.“I have been tried with some of the biggest, unimaginable tests in my life. I am currently unemployed after I left my job partly due to affiliations, but ultimately, in search of a spiritual journey.”Green reportedly grew up in Virginia and played football in college. Andre Toran, a former team-mate, told USA Today he was a “really quiet guy” who would occasionally crack jokes with the team but mostly just smiled when listening to conversations.“I know people say this all the time, but the guy who I played with is not the same person who did this,” Toran said.[embedded content]According to other friends and family members, Green became paranoid after alleging he had been drugged with Xanax by former room-mates. The experience, he claimed, made him addicted to the drug and led to withdrawal symptoms.Toran showed USA Today a Facebook post he said Green wrote during the pandemic, in which Green said that withdrawal symptoms included seizures, a lack of appetite, paranoia, depression and suicidal ideation.Green’s brother told the Washington Post Green moved around after college, going from Virginia to Indianapolis and even to Botswana. Green moved in with his brother two weeks before he attacked the Capitol, his brother said, and in the hours before the attack sent a text message that read: “I’m sorry but I’m just going to go and live and be homeless. Thank you for everything that you’ve done. I looked up to you when I was a kid. You inspired me a lot.”On his Facebook page, Green claimed to be a follower of Louis Farrakhan, the leader of the Nation of Islam, and said his faith in Farrakhan and the extremist group was “one of the only things that has been able to carry me through these times”.The Nation of Islam is designated as a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center, for its “deeply racist, antisemitic and anti-gay rhetoric of its leader”.On Friday, acting chief of the Metropolitan police Robert Contee said the attack did not appear to be terrorism-related, though police were still investigating.Only three months have passed since the Capitol breach on 6 January by hundreds of supporters of Donald Trump. Then, lawmakers, staff members and journalists were forced to hide as rioters roamed the building, allegedly looking for politicians to kidnap and even kill, until police were able to clear the building.Five people, including a US Capitol police officer who confronted rioters, were killed. At least 350 people have been charged in relation to the attack.Security around the Capitol was greatly increased. A tall fence now surrounds the building, and thousands of members of the national guard have been stationed in the area. The national guard plans to stay at the Capitol until May at the request of US Capitol police, whose small force struggled to handle the January riot.While Friday’s attack was much smaller in scale, it renewed concerns over the Capitol being a target for violence.Congressman Ro Khanna, a Democrat from California, was at the Capitol on Friday despite most representatives and senators being away for Easter.He told MSNBC: “The question we have to ask is what is happening in our country, where we have people coming in, trying to use violence and knives and arms [at] the heart of American democracy.” More

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      Trump and Carlson lead backlash as MLB pulls All-Star Game from Georgia

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      Donald Trump and Tucker Carlson led rightwing backlash after Major League Baseball said it would not play its All-Star game in Georgia because of a new law that restricts voting rights in the state.The former president and the Fox News host some say is his Republican political heir thereby ranged themselves against current president Joe Biden and the Democrat he served as vice-president, Barack Obama.“Baseball is already losing tremendous numbers of fans,” Trump said in a statement, “and now they leave Atlanta with their All-Star Game because they are afraid of the radical left Democrats.“… Boycott baseball and all of the woke companies that are interfering with free and fair elections. Are you listening Coke, Delta and all?”Coke and Delta are among companies which have expressed concern over the Georgia law, which restricts early and mail-in voting, measures seen to target minority voters likely to back Democrats.Laws under consideration in other Republican-run states have attracted criticism from corporate America. The Georgia law was passed by Republicans after Biden won the state against Trump and Democrats won both Senate runoff elections in January.Referring to the segregation of the post-civil war south, Biden called the law: “Jim Crow in the 21st century.”In his own statement on Saturday, Obama congratulated MLB “for taking a stand on behalf of voting rights for all citizens”.He also said: “There’s no better way for America’s pastime to honor the great Hank Aaron, who always led by example.”Aaron, known as the Hammer, was a long-time MLB home-run record holder who played for the Atlanta Braves and endured racist abuse throughout his life in the sport. He died in January, aged 86.MLB commissioner Rob Manfred said he had “decided that the best way to demonstrate our values as a sport is by relocating this year’s All-Star Game and MLB draft” from the home of the Atlanta Braves.“Major League Baseball fundamentally supports voting rights for all Americans and opposes restrictions to the ballot box.”The move was not without precedent. In 2016 North Carolina lost the right to host high-profile NCAA college events over a bill which restricted rights for transgender people.On Friday night Carlson, who some say could be a contender for the Republican presidential nomination in 2024 if Trump does not run again, claimed MLB “believes it has veto power over the democratic process”.Before MLB acted, Biden said he would support moving events from Atlanta. Carlson said that showed the president was “willing to destroy even something as wholesome as the country’s traditional game purely to increase the power of his political party”.The chief of the MLB players union has indicated support for the move. In a statement on Friday, the New York Yankees great and Miami Marlins chief executive Derek Jeter said: “We should promote increasing voter turnout as opposed to any measures that adversely impact the ability to cast a ballot … We support the commissioner’s decision to stand up for the values of our game.”Georgia governor Brian Kemp – a bête noire for Trump over his refusal to overturn Biden’s win – said MLB had “caved to fear, political opportunism and liberal lies”. He also decried “cancel culture”, a key Republican talking point.Stacey Abrams, who Kemp beat in a 2018 election he ran as Georgia secretary of state, said she was “disappointed” the All-Star game would not be played in the state.But Abrams, who campaigns for voting rights and has become an influential figure in the national Democratic party, also said she was “proud of [MLB’s] stance on voting rights” and “urged events and productions to come and speak out or stay and fight”.Also on Friday, nearly 200 companies signed a statement expressing concern at moves to restrict voting rights in Republican-run states.Many observers pointed out that the political ramifications of MLB’s decision to move the All-Star Game will be stronger than the economic fallout, given that coronavirus-related restrictions would have placed limits on capacity at the event this year.A leading professor of sports economics warned that MLB could risk losing the support of conservatives in a fanbase which skews right.“After the country’s top professional basketball and football leagues embraced the Black Lives Matter movement last year,” Andrew Zimbalist of Smith College told the New York Times, “they faced organised boycotts from conservatives, though the effort ultimately had little effect. And baseball’s fanbase is older and whiter than basketball’s or football’s.” More

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      'A 10ft pole is not long enough': Matt Gaetz isolated in sex-trafficking scandal

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      The Florida Republican congressman Matt Gaetz appears increasingly politically isolated amid a spiralling scandal over a federal sex-trafficking investigation. Even for Donald Trump, one Republican political operative said, “a 10ft pole is not long enough”.Federal prosecutors are reportedly examining whether Gaetz and a political ally facing sex trafficking allegations may have paid underage girls or offered them gifts in exchange for sex.Few Republicans have rushed to offer any kind of support to Gaetz, a three-term conservative provocateur known for support of Trump, high-volume attacks, sometimes against those in his own party, and frequent media appearances.The Associated Press reported that several lawmakers and aides who spoke on condition of anonymity said Gaetz’s prospects for remaining in Congress were complicated by his unpopularity in his own party.The Daily Beast, meanwhile, reported that advisers were pleading with the former president to keep quiet. Trump was reported to have said the affair seemed “really bad”, though he also thought the allegations could be a “smear” against Gaetz.“I don’t hope for anybody to be guilty of anything but it sounds like [Gaetz has] got a lot of explaining to do,” Barry Bennett, a longtime Republican operative and former Trump adviser, told the website.“People underestimate Donald Trump’s political ear … For something like this, a 10ft pole is not long enough. The former president should stay as far away from this as possible.”Fox News has also stayed quiet. As Vox reported, the Gaetz affair was not mentioned on the rightwing network on Thursday, or on Friday until the news anchor Brett Baier covered the allegations on his evening show.Gaetz has been a familiar presence on Fox News, according to Mediate appearing on the channel 18 times in March. Shortly before news of the allegations against him broke, he was reported to be considering retiring from Congress in order to pursue a media career.Any such plans are now under threat. The scrutiny of Gaetz reportedly stems from a justice department investigation of Joel Greenberg, a former Florida tax collector indicted last year and accused of a number of federal crimes. He has pleaded not guilty.In addition, CNN has reported that Gaetz allegedly showed nude photos of women he slept with to colleagues on the floor of the House of Representatives.Republican leaders have largely been silent. But Gaetz’s spokesman, Luke Ball, has resigned.Part of the investigation is examining whether Gaetz, 38, had sex with a 17-year-old and other underage girls and violated federal sex trafficking laws, sources told the AP, adding that federal agents suspect Greenberg may have enticed the girls and introduced some to Gaetz. Investigators are reported to be examining whether the two men had sex with the same girls.Details of the investigation were first reported by the New York Times, which also said Gaetz took ecstasy, an illegal drug, before having sex.Gaetz has said: “No part of the allegations against me are true.”Among rare lawmakers to express support for Gaetz is the freshman Georgia representative Marjorie Taylor Greene, another rising figure propelled by media appearances and baseless conspiracy theories.House minority leader Kevin McCarthy told reporters the accusations against Gaetz were “serious”. Nancy Pelosi, the Democratic House speaker, told reporters: “If in fact these allegations are true, of course being removed from the Judiciary committee is the least that could be done. From what we’ve heard so far, this would be a matter for the ethics committee.”The investigation into Gaetz has been extant since at least summer 2020 and has reportedly reached the highest levels of the justice department. Investigators have interviewed several witnesses and have been scrutinizing travel and financial records.Greenberg was the elected tax collector in Seminole county near Orlando when he resigned last June after his arrest on charges including stalking a political opponent, trafficking a minor for sex and illegally using a state database to create fake drivers licenses and other ID cards.Since then, the case has ballooned to more than 30 charges, including wire fraud and charges involving efforts to divert at least $400,000 from the tax collectors office into cryptocurrency for Greenberg’s own use. Other charges accuse him attempting to fraudulently obtain coronavirus relief funds.The justice department has a separate investigation into the extortion allegations, the AP reported. Gaetz has said his family has been cooperating with the FBI. More

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      in US Politics

      Trump on the ballot again? Daughter-in-law Lara ponders Senate run

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      The Trump flags and yard signs are still up. Flags that shout “Impeach Biden” fly on the back of pickup trucks. “Most people here believe Donald Trump is still the president,” says Nancy Allen of her neighborhood in Shelby, North Carolina. “And I call him President Trump.”Allen might get the chance to vote Trump again sooner than expected. But it will not be for Donald or his politically ambitious daughter Ivanka. Instead the former president’s daughter-in-law, Lara Trump, a North Carolina native, is considering a run for the US Senate next year.“If she decides to run, I will campaign for her,” added Allen, 74, who used to run a business in Wilmington, where Lara Trump (née Yunaska) was born and raised and where her parents still live. “She’s very approachable: it’s amazing that she’s just like one of us. She has no airs about her at all. She’s a people’s person.“She is well known all across the state, which is very important, and I think she is good and she would win. Henry, my husband, said yesterday that it would be a landslide if if she ran.”Lara, 38, a former TV producer who has also worked as a chef and personal trainer, married Eric Trump at his father’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Florida, in 2014. Since becoming a member of the family, she has displayed the zeal of the convert and proved an ardent champion of the “Make America great again” movement.Lara played up her local roots when addressing rallies for the president in North Carolina and her bio on Twitter, where she amassed 1.2m followers, says simply: “NC girl in NYC #MAGA.” She also led Women for Trump events, hosted numerous campaign video streams and, after her father-in-law’s defeat, unabashedly pushed false claims of voter fraud.She told Sean Hannity, a host on the conservative Fox News network, on 5 December: “I want to make it very clear to the American people: this is not over. So don’t for a second think that Joe Biden is going to be sworn in on January 20th.”This week Lara returned to the spotlight in more ways than one. She conducted Trump’s first on-camera interview since leaving the White House on her online show The Right View, but the conversation was removed from Facebook and Instagram because he has been banned from those platforms for incendiary comments.It also emerged that Lara is joining Fox News as a paid on-air contributor – a potential boost to her political brand ahead of a possible run for the Senate seat in North Carolina to be vacated next year by retiring Republican Richard Burr. She told the Fox & Friends programme on Monday that she has not “officially made a decision, but hopefully sometime soon”.Such a move would require her to sever ties with Fox News, according to the network’s policy. It would also represent the first electoral test of the Trump name since 2020 and underline how the former president’s children and their partners have emerged as some of his most influential allies and surrogates.Don Jr’s girlfriend, Kimberly Guilfoyle, a former Fox News presenter, campaigned vigorously for the president and went viral with a Republican national convention address that ended with a crescendo: “The best is yet to come!” Ivanka’s husband, Jared Kushner, served a senior White House adviser with a portfolio so sprawling that it was ridiculed by critics.The surprise, perhaps, is that the first standard-bearer would be Lara rather than Ivanka, who amid much speculation has ruled out a run for the Senate in Florida.Wendy Schiller, a political science professor at Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island, said: “She would be what I think Donald Trump hoped Ivanka would be. She would become the avatar for the Trump family name. She looks like a Trump, she talks like a Trump.“Every president has wanted his children or grandchildren to run for office for a long time. Trump is no different. This is a daughter-in-law, but it doesn’t matter, and we’ll see. Maybe she can do whatever Ivanka can’t do and appeal to suburban college educated women who defected from Trump.”How Lara fares in at the ballot box could also offer clues to the presidential election, Schiller added, even if Donald Trump himself decides not to run again. “By Lara Trump running in North Carolina, the Trump brand get tested and, if she’s successful, that’s an indication that the Trump brand might do well in 2024 in the presidential race, which may lead to pushing Don Jr out there to run for president.“There are a lot of other people who want to run for president in the Republican party in 2024. You’re going to see a very complicated dance between prominent Republicans and the Trump children and Trump himself in the next two years because they want his support but they do not want them to get too successful because that will crowd them all out.”There is no guarantee that Lara would win a Republican primary where the Trump name might turn from asset into liability. Rivals could include Mark Meadows, a former congressman from North Carolina who became Trump’s chief of staff. Burr, the outgoing senator, voted in favour of convicting Trump at his impeachment trial following the 6 January insurrection at the US Capitol.Larry Jacobs, director of the Center for the Study of Politics and Governance at the University of Minnesota, said: “There are going to be other candidates on the Republican side in North Carolina and some of them are going to both claim loyalty to Donald Trump to try to neutralise that but also suggest to voters that they have a better chance of beating a fairly competitive Democratic candidate come the general election.“Because one thing we know about Donald Trump – and this will be part of the political genetics here – is that he’s a turnoff for independents.”Trump won North Carolina by just 1.3% against Joe Biden, significantly less than his margin in 2016. Democrats hope that the state can trend in the same direction as Georgia and Virginia, where anti-Trump resistance was a rallying point.Antjuan Seawright, a Democratic strategist based in South Carolina who works in North Carolina frequently, said: “The demographics of North Carolina still would give us real possibilities, real opportunities to do the unthinkable, just like we did in Georgia in January.“I think that the timing is right, the environment is right and Republicans are going to have a fight on their hands that they did not expect for that Senate seat. The same way Georgia was key to the Senate in the 2020 cycle, I think North Carolina will be just as key for the 2022 cycle.” More

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      in US Politics

      US Capitol: police officer and suspect dead after vehicle rams barrier – live

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      Key events

      Show

      5.07pm EDT
      17:07

      Biden orders White House flags at half staff

      5.01pm EDT
      17:01

      Today so far

      4.41pm EDT
      16:41

      Major League Baseball pulls All-Star Game from Georgia over voting law

      4.26pm EDT
      16:26

      Pelosi mourns killed USCP officer as ‘a martyr for our democracy’

      4.20pm EDT
      16:20

      USCP identifies killed officer as William ‘Billy’ Evans

      3.20pm EDT
      15:20

      USCP lifts Capitol lockdown after car attack

      2.53pm EDT
      14:53

      Police: ‘It does not appear to be terrorism related’

      Live feed

      Show

      5.49pm EDT
      17:49

      Alejandro Mayorkas, the secretary of the homeland security, has released a statement in response to the attack at the Capitol this afternoon.
      “My thoughts and prayers go out to the family, friends, and colleagues of the U.S. Capitol Police Officer who lost his life today protecting the very symbol of our democracy,” Mayorkas said.
      “There is still much to be determined about this attack and DHS offers its full support to Capitol Police and DC Mayor Bowser.”
      USCP has identified the officer killed in the attack as William “Billy” Evans, an 18-year veteran of the force.

      5.44pm EDT
      17:44

      After two deadly attacks on the US Capitol mere months apart, questions are being raised about whether security measures, which were enhanced after Jan. 6, are extensive enough, Vox reports.
      A review of the security released last month found that the Capitol Police are “understaffed, insufficiently equipped, and inadequately trained” to defend the nation’s seat of government from future attacks.
      In a 15-page draft report, commissioned by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, retired Army Lt. Gen Russel Honoré called for adding 854 officers, including 424 to specialize in intelligence, dignitary protection, and operational planning.
      He also recommended additional fencing, specifically barriers that are “easily erected and deconstructed.”

      Scott Taylor 7 News I-Team
      (@ScottTaylorTV)
      More of my interview with former @FBI agent Brad Garrett about today’s attack at the U.S. Capitol. @BradInvestigate tells me the current threat is too high not to add more security at the Capitol. @7NewsDC pic.twitter.com/xQSQFoW56n

      April 2, 2021

      Roughly 4-miles of 7-foot-high “non-scalable” metal fencing was set up around the Capitol complex following the Jan. 6 riot but it was taken down in March, according to Vox.
      Rep. Tim Ryan told reporters today that new permanent additions to security are being considered by lawmakers. “We’ll be reviewing everything, at this point, including the fencing,” he said, emphasizing that there are still many unknowns about today’s incident
      “We can’t get too far ahead of ourselves without knowing that we have the ability to protect the Capitol, to harden the Capitol,” he added.

      5.07pm EDT
      17:07

      Biden orders White House flags at half staff

      Gabrielle Canon here, signing in from the west coast to take you through the Friday afternoon news.
      President Biden has issued a statement on today’s violent attack at the US Capitol that resulted in the death of Officer William Evens and left another US Capitol police officer injured.
      “We know what a difficult time this has been for the Capitol, everyone who works there, and those who protect it,” Biden said in the statement, after expressing his condolences to Evans’ family. His death is the second line-of-duty death this year for the Capitol police, who also lost an officer during the Jan. 6 attack, and the 7th in the agency’s history, according to the Associated Press.
      Here is Biden’s full statement:

      Jill and I were heartbroken to learn of the violent attack at a security checkpoint on the U.S. Capitol grounds, which killed Officer William Evans of the U.S. Capitol Police, and left a fellow officer fighting for his life. We send our heartfelt condolences to Officer Evans’ family, and everyone grieving his loss. We know what a difficult time this has been for the Capitol, everyone who works there, and those who protect it.
      I have been receiving ongoing briefings from my Homeland Security Advisor, and will be getting further updates as the investigation proceeds.
      I want to express the nation’s gratitude to the Capitol Police, the National Guard Immediate Response Force, and others who quickly responded to this attack. As we mourn the loss of yet another courageous Capitol Police officer, I have ordered that the White House flags be lowered to half-mast.

      Updated
      at 5.16pm EDT

      5.01pm EDT
      17:01

      Today so far

      That’s it from me on this sad day in Washington. My west coast colleague, Gabrielle Canon, will take over the blog for the next few hours.
      Here’s where the day stands so far:

      US Capitol Police officer William “Billy” Evans was killed after a car rammed through a security barrier at the Capitol this afternoon. The acting USCP chief, Yogananda Pittman, said a suspect attempted to drive through the barrier and then exited his car wielding a knife. The suspect lunged at the two officers present, and at least one of the officers opened fire on the man, who later died of his injuries.
      The Capitol attack did not appear to be terrorism-related, the acting chief of the Metropolitan Police Department of DC said. At an afternoon press conference, acting MPD chief Robert Contee said it did not appear the Capitol was under active threat. The lockdown at the Capitol was lifted soon afterwards.
      Nancy Pelosi mourned Evans as “a martyr for our democracy”. The House speaker said in a statement, “Today, once again, these heroes risked their lives to protect our Capitol and our Country, with the same extraordinary selflessness and spirit of service seen on January 6. On behalf of the entire House, we are profoundly grateful.” A spokesperson for Pelosi also said the Capitol flags will be lowered to half-staff in honor of Evans.
      The Major League Baseball All-Star Game is being moved out of Georgia over the state’s new voting law. The law, which Republican Governor Brian Kemp signed late last month, restricts access to voting, and it has been widely criticized by Democrats and voting rights activists.
      Fully vaccinated Americans can travel without quarantining, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said. According to the CDC’s newest guidelines, vaccinated individuals can travel without getting tested for coronavirus or quarantining after their return. The agency said such travel is low-risk for those who have been vaccinated.

      Gabrielle will have more coming up, so stay tuned.

      4.41pm EDT
      16:41

      Major League Baseball pulls All-Star Game from Georgia over voting law

      The Guardian’s Sam Levine reports:
      Major League Baseball will not hold the annual All-Star Game in Atlanta this year after Georgia passed a new law that makes it significantly harder to vote.
      The announcement is perhaps the most consequential action taken since Georgia governor Brian Kemp, a Republican, signed the measure into law. Delta Airlines and Coca-Cola spoke out against the bill this week, but faced criticism for not doing so earlier, when their influence could have had a significant impact on the legislation.
      “I have decided that the best way to demonstrate our values as a sport is by relocating this year’s All-Star Game and MLB draft,” Rob Manfred, the league’s commissioner, said in a statement. “Major League Baseball fundamentally supports voting rights for all Americans and opposes restrictions to the ballot box.”
      The Georgia law implements new requirements for mail-in voting, a process voters in the state used in record numbers without evidence of fraud in 2020.

      4.26pm EDT
      16:26

      Pelosi mourns killed USCP officer as ‘a martyr for our democracy’

      House speaker Nancy Pelosi has released a statement mourning the loss of US Capitol Police Officer William “Billy” Evans in this afternoon’s attack.
      “Today, America’s heart has been broken by the tragic and heroic death of one of our Capitol Police heroes: Officer William Evans. He is a martyr for our democracy,” the Democratic speaker said.
      “Members of Congress, staff and Capitol workers, and indeed all Americans are united in appreciation for the courage of the U.S. Capitol Police. Today, once again, these heroes risked their lives to protect our Capitol and our Country, with the same extraordinary selflessness and spirit of service seen on January 6. On behalf of the entire House, we are profoundly grateful.”
      Pelosi pledged that Congress was ready to “assist law enforcement with a swift and comprehensive investigation into this heinous attack”.
      “May we always remember the heroism of those who have given their lives to defend our Democracy,” the speaker said. “May it be a comfort to the family of Officer Evans that so many mourn with them and pray for them at this sad time.”

      4.20pm EDT
      16:20

      USCP identifies killed officer as William ‘Billy’ Evans

      The US Capitol Police has identified the officer who was killed in the attack this afternoon as William “Billy” Evans.
      “It is with profound sadness that I share the news of the passing of Officer William ‘Billy’ Evans this afternoon from injuries he sustained following an attack at the North Barricade by a lone assailant,” USCP acting chief Yogananda Pittman said in a statement.

      U.S. Capitol Police
      (@CapitolPolice)
      Statement on the Loss of USCP Colleague Officer William “Billy” Evans: https://t.co/JMAEbTcbAp pic.twitter.com/DPvkAv5ptO

      April 2, 2021

      Pittman noted Evans, who succumbed to his injuries after being struck by a car that rammed through a security barrier, had been a member of the USCP force for 18 years.
      “He began his USCP service on March 7, 2003, and was a member of the Capitol Division’s First Responder’s Unit,” Pittman said. “Please keep Officer Evans and his family in your thoughts and prayers.”

      4.17pm EDT
      16:17

      Senator Brian Schatz, a Democrat of Hawaii, offered his thoughts to the US Capitol Police, after an officer died in the attack this afternoon.
      “Being a Capitol Police officer has never been more difficult or more stressful. All the love and comfort in the world to them and their family members,” Schatz said on Twitter.

      Brian Schatz
      (@brianschatz)
      Being a Capitol Police officer has never been more difficult or more stressful. All the love and comfort in the world to them and their family members.

      April 2, 2021

      This is the second line-of-duty death for the USCP since January, when Officer Brian Sicknick succumbed to his injuries from the Capitol insurrection.
      Prior to 2021, a total of four USCP officers had died in the line of duty in the entire history of the force, according to the USCP website.

      4.06pm EDT
      16:06

      Martin Pengelly

      The House and Senate are not in session but some elected officials and staff were in the building on Friday, as a car rammed a security barrier on the grounds.
      Ro Khanna, a Democratic representative from California, spoke to CNN from his car, where he said officers had told him to go after he came back to the Capitol from going out for lunch.
      “It’s really sad,” he said. “Once the barriers were removed we were moving back to some sense of normalcy, but this just shows the level of risk there still is.
      “I can’t imagine saying that going to the United States Capitol to represent your constituents is actually a dangerous thing.”

      3.50pm EDT
      15:50

      Noah Green, a 25-year-old man from Indiana, is the suspect who rammed through a Capitol security checkpoint in his car this afternoon, according to NBC News.

      Tom Winter
      (@Tom_Winter)
      BREAKING / NBC News: Multiple senior law enforcement officials briefed on the investigation say Noah Green, 25 year old male, from Indiana is the person who attacked the Capitol today. Reported by @PeteWilliamsNBC @jonathan4ny and myself.

      April 2, 2021

      US Capitol Police has said the suspect exited the vehicle wielding a knife and was then shot by at least one of the officers present. He later succumbed to his injuries and died.

      3.45pm EDT
      15:45

      The US Capitol Police has provided the latest information on the attack that occurred this afternoon.
      According to USCP, a man in a blue sedan charged a security barrier at the Capitol, striking two officers. The man then exited the vehicle with a knife and ran toward the officers.
      At least one of the officers drew their weapon and shot the suspect, who succumbed to his injuries about 30 minutes later. One of the USCP officers who was hit by the car also died of his injuries.

      U.S. Capitol Police
      (@CapitolPolice)
      UPDATE: Here is the latest information. pic.twitter.com/GOVaMv8EXk

      April 2, 2021

      3.31pm EDT
      15:31

      Senate majority leader Chuck Schumer said he was “heartbroken” for the US Capitol Police officer who was killed today, after a car rammed through a security barrier.
      “I’m praying for the officer injured and his family. We’re in their debt,” the Democratic leader said on Twitter. “We thank the Capitol Police, National Guard, & first responders for all they do to protect the Capitol and those inside.”

      Chuck Schumer
      (@SenSchumer)
      I’m heartbroken for the officer killed today defending our Capitol and for his family. I’m praying for the officer injured and his family.We’re in their debtWe thank the Capitol Police, National Guard, & first responders for all they do to protect the Capitol and those inside

      April 2, 2021

      3.20pm EDT
      15:20

      USCP lifts Capitol lockdown after car attack

      The US Capitol Police has lifted the lockdown on the Capitol grounds, about two hours after a car rammed a security barrier and injured two USCP officers, killing one of them.
      But the police force noted the area immediately surrounding the attack site is still under restricted access as officials continue to process the scene.

      U.S. Capitol Police
      (@CapitolPolice)
      The USCP has cleared the external security threat incident located at all of the U.S. Capitol Campus buildings, however the area around the crime scene will continue to be restricted and individuals should follow police direction. pic.twitter.com/6SXr5WJmcE

      April 2, 2021

      Updated
      at 3.21pm EDT More

    • 88 Shares129 Views

      in World Politics

      Is India’s Vaccine Diplomacy a Good Idea?

      by

      In terms of numbers, India ranks the third worst after the US and Brazil when it comes to COVID-19 infections. At the time of publishing, the country has recorded over 12.3 million confirmed cases and more than 163,000 deaths. The BBC reports that India is facing a “severe, intensive” second wave of the pandemic. The situation in states like Maharashtra, Gujarat and Punjab has reached alarming proportions.

      How Did India Combat COVID-19 in 2020?

      Last year, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi imposed a stringent lockdown that brought economic activity to a shuddering halt. This lockdown led to a dramatic contraction of India’s GDP by 23.9% in the April-June 2020 quarter. The economy recovered somewhat in later quarters, but it experienced a recession in the 2020-21 financial year for the first time in 25 years.

      Arguably, the lockdown was a success in preventing a rapid spread of COVID-19 last year. In percentage terms, India did not do too badly. After all, it has nearly 1.4 billion people in contrast to the US population of 330 million. The daily new cases in India dramatically declined until recently when the second wave hit the country. Thanks to a young population and public health measures, India experienced a remarkably low mortality rate.

      What’s Behind Chile’s Vaccination Success?

      READ MORE

      India has low per capita income and poor health care facilities. So, its achievement in controlling the COVID-19 outbreak has been hailed by many public health experts, including the World Health Organization (WHO). In January, India launched a massive vaccination program to fight the pandemic. This was possible because the country has a track record of mass vaccination and massive vaccine production.

      Indian manufacturers supply more than 60% of the world’s vaccines against diseases like polio and measles. Early on, the country began mass production of two COVID-19 vaccines: Covishield and Covaxin. The Serum Institute of India (SII), which partnered with the University of Oxford and AstraZeneca, had already produced and stocked approximately 70 million Covishield doses even before India granted emergency approval to their vaccine. 

      On January 16, India launched an ambitious plan to vaccinate around 300 million people by June. The world’s largest vaccination program focused first on those with high vulnerability to the coronavirus. First on the list were health care workers. They were followed by those who were 65 years or older. This ensured that the vaccine was not monopolized by the richest sections of Indian society. 

      As vaccinations have increased, the Modi government has eased restrictions in the country. Crowds have gathered at large weddings, sporting events and festival celebrations. The government lifted restrictions to stimulate economic activity. A poor country like India with a large population could not afford a lockdown for too long. However, the easing of restrictions has not only led to increased economic growth, but also rising cases of COVID-19 infections. India faces a tough balancing act between stimulating economic activity and curtailing a pandemic.

      India’s Vaccine Diplomacy

      During the pandemic, India has embarked on an ambitious foreign policy initiative. Modi announced the Vaccine Maitri initiative to supply COVID-19 vaccines to other nations only four days after India began domestic vaccinations. With the world’s largest manufacturer of vaccines, India has shipped approximately 61 million doses to 84 countries, which have included free batches. It has pledged 200 million doses for the WHO’s COVID-19 Vaccines Global Access (COVAX) initiative to ensure vaccines for 92 low and middle-income countries.

      Embed from Getty Images

      India began its vaccine diplomacy by distributing doses to its immediate neighbors: Nepal, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and the Maldives. The country has also exported vaccines to faraway places such as the Caribbean, where the likes of Barbados, Dominica and Jamaica have benefited from Indian aid. Leaders of countries such as Brazil and Antigua and Barbuda have publicly thanked Modi for his country’s generosity.

      As per some foreign policy experts, India’s vaccine distribution is a diplomatic masterstroke. It helps the country gain goodwill and increase its soft power. It could lead to a more peaceful neighborhood. In the future, India might win much support, strengthen its claim to a permanent seat at the UN Security Council and emerge as a great world power.

      Vaccine diplomacy might be giving a rare chance to counter China, which has launched the Belt and Road Initiative to increase its global footprint. For decades, China has backed Pakistan and, for the last few years, has increased its presence in Myanmar, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Nepal. With Chinese influence growing in India’s closest neighbors, the country has understandably become anxious.

      In June 2020, Chinese and Indian troops engaged in a bloody hand-to-hand combat with many dying in the process. Since that clash, relations between India and China have been fraught. India has banned over 200 Chinese apps and restricted Chinese investment into the country. COVID-19 has given a unique opportunity to India — the “pharmacy of the world” — to compete with China. By shipping vaccines to low and middle-income countries, India is gaining influence at the Chinese expense whose vaccines have been questioned by Western media.

      Rich countries have failed poorer ones because they have focused on domestic programs. Unlike India, the United States, the European Union and the United Kingdom are focused completely on vaccinating their domestic populations. India’s generosity is unique and might lead to long-term gains.

      Masterstroke or Distraction?

      However, there is a counterargument that India has been premature in kicking off vaccine diplomacy. It did so before setting its own house in order. According to the Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center, as of April 2, India has administered nearly 69 million doses, fully inoculating only 9.6 million people. That is just 0.71% of its population. India’s focus should have been getting every one of its citizens vaccinated instead of basking in complimentary tweets from foreign leaders. Such goodwill might turn out to be very transient. 

      Recently, India has slowed down its vaccine exports and speeded up its vaccination program. The government has now enrolled private hospitals in its vaccination drive, and everyone above the age of 45 is now eligible for the vaccine. Modi himself got vaccinated on March 1, boosting public faith in COVID-19 vaccines and increasing their uptake nearly four-fold. It seems that the government is paying attention to its critics.

      Time will tell whether India’s vaccine diplomacy was a bold masterstroke or an unwise distraction. It reveals that there are no easy choices for any nation during a raging pandemic.

      The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect Fair Observer’s editorial policy. More

    • 125 Shares179 Views

      in US Politics

      DoJ reportedly investigating whether Matt Gaetz paid women for sex

      by

      One of Donald Trump’s loudest cheerleaders in the US Congress is under federal investigation over allegations that he paid for sex with women recruited online, according to a media report.Matt Gaetz, a Republican congressman from Florida, is one of the former president’s most ardent supporters and frequently appeared on TV to promote his lies about a stolen election.But the 38-year-old’s rapid ascent is threatened by a strange, sordid and escalating scandal that includes a report by CNN that he allegedly showed nude photos of women he slept with to colleagues on the floor of the House of Representatives.The crisis for Gaetz began this week when it was reported that the justice department is investigating claims that he had a sexual relationship with an underage girl and paid the 17-year-old to travel with him, potentially breaking interstate sex trafficking laws.Gaetz denied the allegation and sought to deflect it by suggesting that he and his father are the victims of an “organised crime extortion”.But there was a further twist when it was reported that scrutiny of Gaetz stems from a separate justice department investigation into one of his allies, Florida politician Joel Greenberg, who was indicted last summer on sex trafficking and other charges that he stalked a political opponent.Greenberg was involved with multiple women who were recruited online for sex and received cash payments, the New York Times reported on Thursday. Greenberg “initially met the women through websites that connect people who go on dates in exchange for gifts, fine dining, travel and allowances, according to three people with knowledge of the encounters”, the paper said.“Mr Greenberg introduced the women to Mr Gaetz, who also had sex with them, the people said.”The New York Times said it obtained receipts from mobile apps that show payments from Gaetz and Greenberg to one of the women, and a payment from Greenberg to a second woman. “The women told their friends that the payments were for sex with the two men, according to two people familiar with the conversations.”Gaetz took ecstasy, an illegal drug, before having sex, the paper’s sources also claimed.The congressman vehemently denies the reports. His office said in a statement: “Matt Gaetz has never paid for sex. Matt Gaetz refutes all the disgusting allegations completely. Matt Gaetz has never ever been on any such websites whatsoever. Matt Gaetz cherishes the relationships in his past and looks forward to marrying the love of his life.”But adding to a sense of growing momentum against him, a separate report from CNN, based on anonymous sources, told how Gaetz showed off images of women on his phone – sometimes on the House floor – and talked openly about having sex with them. “It was a point of pride,” one source told the network.And on Friday Gaetz’s communications director, Luke Ball, resigned. A statement said: “The office of Congressman Matt Gaetz and Luke Ball have agreed that it would be best to part ways. We thank him for his time in our office, and we wish him the best moving forward.”Gaetz, who came to Congress in 2017, is among a pro-Trump coterie that has found a smash-mouth style and talent to outrage is a short cut to political stardom via rightwing media. He even travelled to Wyoming to hold a rally demanding that Liz Cheney, the No 3 Republican in the House, resign over her vote to impeach Trump following the 6 January riot at the US Capitol.But the congressman is also the latest in a long list of Trump allies to be tarnished by proven or alleged wrongdoing, with some ending up behind bars. So far the ex-president has remained silence on the issue and few of his followers have taken a firm position.Kevin McCarthy, the Republican minority leader in the House and a staunch Trump supporter, said on Wednesday that he would not strip Gaetz of his committee assignments until the case against is established.McCarthy told Fox News: “Those are serious implications. If it comes out to be true, yes, we would remove him, if that was the case. But right now, Matt Gaetz says that it’s not true and we don’t have any information. So let’s get all the information.”But Democrats are urging McCarthy to remove Gaetz the House judiciary committee, which oversees the justice department. On Wednesday Ted Lieu, a Democratic congressman from California, tweeted that Gaetz should not be “sitting on the Congressional Committee that has oversight over the Department that is investigating him”.And Nancy Pelosi, the House speaker, told reporters: “If in fact these allegations are true, of course being removed from the Judiciary committee is the least that could be done. From what we’ve heard so far, this would be a matter for the ethics committee.”The ethics committee, consisting of five members from each party, can recommend punishments ranging from a reprimand, or formal rebuke, to expulsion. The full House would have to approve such actions, with expulsion requiring a two-thirds majority.Gaetz – whose Twitter bio says “Florida man. Fiancé. Firebrand. America First” – posted to his 1m followers on Thursday: “The allegations against me are FALSE. The extortion of my family by a former DOJ official is REAL. DOJ has the tapes. Please release them.” More