NYC Revenue Won’t Tank in Office ‘Doomsday’ Scenario, Comptroller Says
A “doomsday” scenario for the Manhattan office market would only result in a modest property tax revenue shortfall
2023-06-14 03:45
Trump pleads not guilty as he makes history as first president to be criminally charged – twice
For the second time in three months, the man who served as the 45th President of the United States stood before a judge as a defendant in a criminal case that could cost his freedom for a significant portion of his remaining lifespan. Flanked by attorneys Todd Blanche and Christopher Kise, Donald Trump entered a Miami federal courtroom as US Magistrate Judge Jonathan Goodman formally presented him with a 37-count indictment accusing the former president of illegally retaining national defense documents and other classified materials at his Florida home, and obstructing government efforts to reclaim them. Asked to enter a plea to the charges, Mr Blanche replied on behalf of the twice-impeached and now twice-indicted former president: “Not guilty”. Mr Trump was arraigned alongside his longtime personal aide and now co-defendant Walt Nauta, who served as Mr Trump’s White House valet and followed him to political exile in Florida when he left the White House in January 2021. The former president arrived at the Wilkie Ferguson Jr Federal Courthouse shortly before 2pm ET on 13 June after traveling with a motorcade and police motorcycle escort from his National Doral Hotel. He was not photographed entering the court complex as he surrendered to authorities; the armoured SUV carrying the former president entered through an underground gate typically reserved as a secure entrance for vehicles transporting defendants in law enforcement custody. Cameras, recording devices and laptops are prohibited from the courtroom. Outside the courthouse following Mr Trump’s arrest, one of his attorneys Alina Habba told reporters in brief remarks that the former president remains “defiant” while condemning what Mr Trump and his allies have characterised as a “two-tiered system of justice, where selective treatment is the norm.” “Today is not about President Donald J Trump, who is defiant,” she said. “It is about the destruction of the long-standing American principles that have set this country apart for so long.” Two of the more experienced criminal defence lawyers in his legal team, James Trusty and John Rowley, resigned from Mr Trump’s federal case last week, hours after a Florida grand jury voted to charge him with 37 separate counts stemming from alleged violations of the Espionage Act and other crimes. Another criminal defence attorney who once represented Mr Trump in the documents probe, Evan Corcoran, stepped away from that role in the wake of a court ruling ordering him to give evidence against the former president before a grand jury and turn over his notes and recordings. A judge invoked a rarely used exception to the attorney-client privilege used in cases where an attorney’s advice is found to have been used to commit crimes. Mr Corcoran’s testimony and evidence figured heavily in Mr Trump’s federal indictment, which detailed his reaction after he was served with a subpoena compelling him to return all documents with classification markings in his possession. Mr Blanche, who represented Mr Trump in his criminal case in Manhattan, and Mr Kise, a former Florida solicitor general who joined the former president’s legal team after the FBI search of Mar-a-Lago last summer, are representing him in his federal case. Mr Trump did not pose for a mugshot or be handcuffed after his surrender to authorities as US Marshals and probation officers began pretrial services. He is scheduled to immediately return to his Bedminster, New Jersey club to deliver remarks before a fundraising event. He similarly returned to his Mar-a-Lago property hours after he appeared in Manhattan criminal court in April to face 34 felony counts of falsifying business records. In his remarks from his estate that night, he lambasted District Attorney Alvin Bragg and the judge overseeing the case, as well as the judge’s family members, and continued his narrative of political persecution. This is a developing story Read More Trump arraignment – live: Trump spared handcuffs at Miami court as he rages at ‘saddest’ day in US history How Trump’s second indictment unfolded: A timeline of the investigation into Mar-a-Lago documents Handcuffs, fingerprints or a mugshot? What to expect as Trump faces arraignment in federal court
2023-06-14 03:29
WNBA schedule: 3 must-see matchups this week
The WNBA schedule has a full slate of games this week. Which matchups should be at the top of your viewing list?The WNBA season is in full swing and entering week four of action. Awards races are starting to shape up. All-Star voting has already started. Some teams are already a quarter of their...
2023-06-14 03:29
Disney Delays ‘Avatar,’ ‘Star Wars’ Films in Major Shakeup
Walt Disney Co. updated its film release schedule on Tuesday, delaying some major films by as long as
2023-06-14 03:25
Lindsey Graham insists he’s not ‘inconsistent’ for backing Trump as he’s dismissed as ‘a spineless coward’
Senator Lindsey Graham defended himself after a former CIA head called him a "spineless coward" for refusing to condemn Donald Trump’s alleged mishandling of classified documents. Mr Graham said his opposition to Mr Trump's second indictment related to the documents and his beliefs that sensitive materials must be handled properly are not contradictory. "I'm very concerned about mishandling classified information," he told The Independent. "I'm also very concerned about ... equal treatment under the law. Those two things are not inconsistent." His comments come after former CIA director John Brennan called him a "spineless coward" for defending the former president. “That is why I find it so, so disheartening and It makes me angry when I hear people like Lindsey Graham make excuses and apologies for Donald Trump," Mr Brennan said during an appearance on MSNBC. “Those are the words of a spineless coward, quite frankly, who is frightened by Donald Trump and is frightened by those individuals who still cling to an image of Donald Trump as being this very strong leader, which he is not.” Mr Graham defended Mr Trump during an ABC News interview on Sunday, arguing his second indictment would make him "stronger" in his re-election campaign. The senator insisted that Mr Trump's investigation is no different than the Hillary Clinton email scandal — despite their being notable difference between those situations — and argued that the former president had been "overcharged" through the use of the Espionage Act. "Did he do things wrong? Yes, he may have. He will be tried about that. But Hillary Clinton wasn't," he told ABC News's George Stephanopoulos. When Stephanopoulos pressed Mr Graham on the audio recordings of Mr Trump discussing the secret information and admitting he had not declassified it when he was in office, Mr Graham claimed ignorance. "I don't know what happened; I haven't heard the audio," Mr Graham said. "But look at who's been charged under the Espionage Act: Julian Assange, Edward Snowden, Chelsea Manning -- people who turned over classified information to news organizations ... or provide it to a foreign power. That did not happen here." Each time Mr Graham was confronted with the evidence against Mr Trump, he deflected to Ms Clinton, prompting Stephanopoulos to tell him that she had been fully investigated and that no charges were brought against her. Mr Graham dismissed that explanation saying "yeah right" and "give me a break." No evidence was found that Ms Clinton intended to "communicate classified information on unclassified systems," according to the investigation's findings. That report also noted that Ms Clinton's emails were not marked in a way that would inform her of their classification status. The evidence against Mr Trump includes the previously stated audio recording, but also allegations that he worked to conceal the records from federal authorities after they asked for their return. Both Joe Biden and former Vice President Mike Pence were also found to have sensitive documents in their personal possession, but they cooperated with authorities to return those documents — a key difference between their situations and Mr Trump's. With reporting from Eric Garcia Read More What time is Trump’s arraignment and will it be live-streamed? Donald Trump arrives at federal court to face 37-count indictment in Mar-a-Lago documents case Trump will not be handcuffed or asked to pose for mugshot at Miami arraignment Ivanka and Jared split over attending Trump 2024 launch – follow live Why was Donald Trump impeached twice during his first term? Four big lies Trump told during his 2024 presidential announcement
2023-06-14 03:21
Hoda Kotb, 58, admits she ‘sometimes’ worries if she’ll see her daughters get married
Hoda Kotb has opened up about her fears of ageing and missing out on parenting milestones as she raises her two daughters: Haley Joy, six, and Hope Catherine, four. The 58-year-old NBC anchor discussed her anxieties about getting older during a recent episode of Bethenny Frankel’s Just B podcast. While speaking to the entrepreneur and former Real Housewives of New York City star, Kotb detailed her approach to parenting as an older mother to young girls. “I do have it sometimes,” Kotb said, when asked by Frankel if she has “anxiety” about ageing. “My dad died when he was 54, 55. I always think that the foundation he laid down was good for me. It helped me in my life.” Kotb was a junior in college at Virginia Tech when her late father, Abdel Kotb, died of a heart attack in 1986 at age 51. The Emmy-winning journalist became a first-time mother in 2017 when she adopted her eldest daughter Haley with ex Joel Schiffman. However, Kotb admitted that she “sometimes does the math” when thinking about being present for her daughters getting married or having children of their own. “I look at my mom, who’s 86, and I think to myself, ‘OK, what’s the difference here between me and her? 30 years. OK, that’s kind of good,’” Kotb said. “So I add 30 to Haley and I add 30 to Hope. And I think to myself, won’t that be spectacular? I can do that.” The Today host added, “Wouldn’t that be amazing? Do I get to see them get married? Maybe. That would be really good. Or do I get to see them have a child? Maybe. That would be really good.” While Hoda Kotb admitted that she sometimes has anxiety about watching her daughters grow up, she ultimately decided to not look at the future in a negative way. Rather, she explained how she chooses to focus on how “special” it would be to witness her daughters’ milestones. “I think about it, but I don’t think about it on the end of, ‘Oh, no, I won’t be able to…’ I would be delighted if all those things were possible, and I think that would be special,” she said. Kotb then recalled writing her mother’s age minus her age on the glass in the shower one day. “And I looked at the number and I was like,” she shared, clapping her hands. “What if you get that many years? That’s more than I got with my dad.” Meanwhile, Frankel, 52, opened up about her anxieties of getting older and missing out on moments with her 13-year-old daughter, Bryn. The Skinny Girl founder shared that it’s her daughter who tends to “do the math” on their age gap. “I watch her make the connection and then I watch her get distracted because it’s anxiety for her,” Frankel told Kotb. “We’re very close. It just keeps getting better, it’s so beautiful.” Elsewhere during the podcast, Hoda Kotb detailed the moment she learned she was going to become a mother for the first time. In the episode, the Today star shared the text she received from someone named Ashley at the adoption agency after her daughter Haley was born. The mother of two said that, after she saw the adoption agent’s number displayed on her phone, she took out a yellow pad of paper and wrote the time, 11:55. “This is the moment everything changes,” Kotb recalled thinking. “I knew it.” “And I took a deep breath and dialed the number, and I said, ‘Ashley?’ and she said two words to me. She said, She’s here.’” “I don’t know what birth feels like, and I bet it was amazing, but this was really close,” she added. Hoda Kotb adopted her second child, Hope Catherine, in April 2019. Earlier this year, Hope experienced health complications that caused her to spend time at the hospital. Upon returning to the Today show after a two-week absence, Kotb revealed that her then-three-year-old had been in the hospital’s intensive care unit. “My youngest, Hope, was in the ICU for a few days and in the hospital for a little more than a week,” Kotb told Today co-host Savannah Guthrie. “I’m so grateful she’s home. She is back home. I was waiting for that day to come. And we are watching her closely. I’m just so happy.” The journalist then expressed her gratitude for all those who helped her daughter and provided support for her family during the scary experience. “You know what I realised too, Savannah? It’s like, when your child is ill, the amount of gratitude you can have for people who helped you out,” she said. “So I’m grateful for the doctors at Weill Cornell, who were amazing and the nurses. And I’m grateful for my family and I’m grateful to friends like you who were there every single day. So I want to say thank you for that. I love you.” Read More Hoda Kotb reveals ‘terrible’ letter criticising her for being an older mother Hoda Kotb returns to Today show after three-year-old daughter Hope is discharged from hospital ICU Jenna Bush Hager discusses body image after revealing her grandmother once called her ‘chubby’ Keke Palmer says she faced ‘breast milk discrimination’ at airport Colin McFarlane diagnosed with prostate cancer 7 tips and tricks for hay fever relief
2023-06-14 03:20
John Amos, 'Good Times' star, speaks out against reports he is in ICU
Actor John Amos wants people to know he is "doing well," despite reports to the contrary.
2023-06-14 02:59
Trump Arrives in Florida Court to Face Espionage Act Charges
Donald Trump is poised to enter an initial plea to respond to historic charges accusing him of mishandling
2023-06-14 02:48
Biden’s Labor Chief Visits California to Break Deadlock in West Coast Port Talks
Acting Labor Secretary Julie Su is in California for talks with West Coast port employers and the dockworkers’
2023-06-14 02:28
Trump arraignment – live: Trump surrenders at Miami court to face indictment
Donald Trump is in court in Miami to be arraigned on 37 charges over his handling of classified documents after leaving the White House, as he becomes the first current or former US president to ever face federal criminal charges. The former president arrived for his arraignment at a federal court in the Southern District of Florida shortly before 2pm ET for a 3pm hearing, where he has vowed to plead not guilty to all charges. “I’ll just say ‘not guilty.’ I didn’t do anything wrong,” he told Boston radio show WRKO on Monday. Despite his confidence, The Independent exclusively revealed that Mr Trump was struggling to find attorneys willing to defend him in Florida. Miami officials meanwhile were braced for protests outside the courthouse with Mayor Francis Suarez saying at a press conference that the city is enacting plans to “make sure that everyone has a right to peacefully express themselves and exercise their constitutional rights” in “an obviously peaceful manner”. Several supporters have voiced violent rhetoric online and MAGA loyalists Kari Lake and Laura Loomer, the Proud Boys and at least one Capitol rioter (named Baked Alaska) are expected to descend on Miami in support of the former president. Read More Trump vows to ‘go after’ Biden’s family in bitter Truth Social rant before boarding Miami arraignment jet Trump will face judge in historic court appearance over charges he mishandled secret documents What time is Trump’s arraignment and will it be live-streamed?
2023-06-14 02:19
Rays vs. Athletics prediction and pick for Tuesday, June 13 (Will the Athletics ever lose again?)
The Oakland Athletics have won six straight games with the latest coming against the best team in Major League Baseball. That's a factual sentence that you just read. Unbelievable.Two wins against the Pirates, a series sweep of the Brewers, and now a 4-3 win in the series opener against the...
2023-06-14 01:57
Amazon experiments with using AI to sum up product reviews
Amazon is experimenting with using artificial intelligence to sum up customer feedback about products on the site, with the potential to cut down on the time shoppers spend sifting through reviews before making a purchase.
2023-06-14 01:51
