Ted Cruz rails against Hunter Biden special counsel appointment that he requested
Ted Cruz was among more than 30 senators urging US Attorney General Merrick Garland to appoint Davis Weiss as special counsel to lead investigations into Hunter Biden. That was 19 September 2022. Less than a year later, on 11 August, Mr Garland announced that Mr Weiss would receive special counsel status. But the Republican senator from Texas is now calling the appointment of the same person he was urgently recommending a “wildly inappropriate” pick to lead the investigation. “This appointment is camouflage and it’s cover-up. I think it’s disgraceful,” he told Fox News on 13 August. Mr Weiss, who has served as the US Attorney for Delaware since 2018, has led federal investigations into President Joe Biden’s son since 2019. Last month, Hunter Biden was reportedly prepared to enter a plea deal following charges stemming from unpaid taxes and a federal application for a firearm. That deal appeared to fall apart, and Hunter Biden pleaded not guilty to two of the charges after a federal judge questioned whether the deal would prohibit other potential prosecutions. IRS whistleblowers speaking to Republican members of Congress who are eager to prosecute the president’s son have claimed that it was necessary that Mr Weiss be designated special counsel powers because he could not pursue prosecutions in other jurisdictions outside of Delaware, as the US attorney for that state. Whistleblowers also testified that US Department of Justice officials had prevented Mr Weiss from seeking felony tax evasion charges in California and Washington DC. Mr Cruz is now accusing Mr Weiss of either being an “active participant” in covering up “criminality” and obstructing justice by “protecting” the president, or “he was just complicit.” “He was so weak that he couldn’t stop the partisans in main justice from turning it into a political effort to protect Joe Biden,” Mr Cruz said. But in their letter to Mr Garland last year, Mr Cruz and 32 other senators said it is “important” that Mr Weiss receive special counsel status to “allow him to investigate an appropriate scope of potentially criminal conduct, avoid the appearance of impropriety, and provide additional assurances to the American people that the Hunter Biden is free from political influence.” Mr Cruz now accuses Mr Weiss of spending “the last five years covering it up”. The senator has also been requesting information from Mr Weiss this month, sending a letter with a list of questions surrounding whistleblower testimony, none of which accuse Mr Weiss of wrongdoing. The Independent has requested comment from his office. His apparent about-face follows other objections from GOP officials who had also previously called for Mr Weiss to step in as special counsel. Tennessee Senator Marsha Blackburn, another senator who signed last year’s letter, claimed that Mr Garland only appointed Mr Weiss because “he knows Weiss will protect Hunter Biden.” In her appearance on Fox News, she called Mr Weiss “a collaborator”. “The sweetheart deal that he had cooked up for Hunter Biden, now they’re going to give him a sweetheart deal with a special counsel and run out the plot,” she said. “Merrick Garland, he owes the American people better than to do something like this.” South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham – another signatory – told NewsNation that the appointment “poured gasoline on a political fire.” He told Fox News that he believes Mr Weiss has been “compromised” after a “sweetheart” plea deal fell apart. And Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley – who acknowledged signing the letter during an appearance on Fox News – said that Mr Weiss has “pulled punches” and “didn’t investigate as he should’ve.” Read More Matt Gaetz suggests he wants to be America’s next attorney general: ‘A boy can dream’ Trump and Hunter Biden legal blockbusters rock Washington – but offer a contrast House Democrats call for investigation into Clarence Thomas over corruption claims Georgia prosecutors have text messages linking Trump team to voting system breach, report says
2023-08-14 00:17
Tottenham held by Brentford in first taste of life after Kane
Tottenham began life without Harry Kane with an entertaining 2-2 draw at Brentford on Sunday to start Ange...
2023-08-13 23:58
Marseille stalwart Payet joins Brazil's Vasco da Gama
Marseille veteran Dimitri Payet is bound for Brazil side Vasco da Gama after signing a "pre-contract", the Rio de Janeiro...
2023-08-13 23:57
Tottenham begins life without Kane with 2-2 draw at Brentford in Premier League
Tottenham began life without Harry Kane with an entertaining 2-2 draw at Brentford in the Premier League on Sunday
2023-08-13 23:56
Report: PSG forward Neymar agrees a 2-year deal with Saudi club Al-Hilal
Paris Saint-Germain soccer superstar Neymar has reportedly agreed a two-year deal to join Saudi Arabian club Al-Hilal
2023-08-13 23:53
Illinois governor signs ban on firearms advertising allegedly marketed to kids and militants
Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker has signed a law banning firearms advertising that officials determine produces a public safety threat or appeals to children, militants or others who might later use the weapons illegally
2023-08-13 23:53
Stetson Bennett IV laying groundwork to be Rams QB of future
Stetson Bennett IV looked impressive in his Los Angeles Rams preseason debut on Saturday.Don't be shocked if Stetson Bennett IV eventually takes the reins of the Los Angeles Rams offense from fellow Georgia boy Matthew Stafford.Although Stafford did not play in the Rams' first pres...
2023-08-13 23:51
Two assists for James Maddison as Tottenham move on without Harry Kane with draw
James Maddison provided two assists to help fill the creative void left by Harry Kane’s departure, but Tottenham could only start the Ange Postecoglou era with a 2-2 Premier League draw at Brentford. Kane’s exit to Bayern Munich – coupled with four full debutants being used in their season opener – contributed to the start of a new dawn at Spurs and along with hosts Brentford, they produced an entertaining affair in west London. New vice-captain Cristian Romero headed Tottenham in front after 11 minutes, but quick-fire efforts from Bryan Mbeumo and Yoane Wissa turned around this Premier League opener for the Bees. Emerson Royal was able to level on the stroke of half-time after another assist by Maddison, who was wearing the number 10 shirt, and despite both teams fashioning further chances in the second half, the spoils were shared. It had been a whirlwind period for everyone involved at Tottenham with Kane beginning his journey to Germany on Friday and making his debut for Bayern on Saturday night. By that point, his former club had moved on. Son Heung-min was confirmed as Spurs’ new captain, with Hugo Lloris still expected to depart before September 1, and Postecoglou handed out several debuts during his own Premier League bow. A slight delay occurred to kick-off at Brentford due to a sanitation issue inside the stadium, but it took only 11 minutes for Tottenham to score the first goal of this new era. Maddison curled in a free-kick for fellow vice-captain Romero to head home but that would prove the World Cup winner’s last involvement. Romero had clashed heads with Mbeumo after five minutes and despite insisting he could carry on, Davinson Sanchez was introduced. Brentford started to grow into proceedings and Tottenham’s new number one Guglielmo Vicario saved well from Mbeumo before Son started his captaincy duties with a low point. The Spurs forward caught Mathias Jensen inside the area and – while it looked innocuous at first glance – VAR told referee Robert Jones to review the incident with the pitchside monitor and he pointed to the penalty spot. With Brentford without the banned Ivan Toney due to repeated betting breaches, Mbeumo took on the spot-kick responsibility and slotted the ball home after 26 minutes in a similar fashion to his fellow strike partner. Nine minutes later, Thomas Frank’s side were ahead when Rico Henry got in behind Emerson too easily on the right and cut back, where Wissa’s shot was deflected beyond Vicario by fellow debutant Micky Van De Ven. A booking for Oliver Skipp on the stroke of half-time made it five yellows handed out to the visitors, which included coach Ryan Mason and those minor delays contributed towards 11 minutes being added on at the end of the first half. It proved enough time for Tottenham to go in level after Emerson rifled home from 22 yards following Maddison’s pass to continue his resurgence after he was booed onto the pitch against Aston Villa at the start of 2023. Brentford substitute Mikkel Damsgaard should have made it 3-2 after 58 minutes, but he scuffed his effort straight at Vicario from 12 yards after the Italian had punched away Vitaly Janelt’s cross. Spurs improved afterwards with Son testing Mark Flekken, who produced a strong display after replacing Arsenal-bound David Raya. Flekken was equal to Richarlison’s 64th-minute effort when Maddison had slipped through the Brazil forward before a host of changes were made by both managers. Van De Ven breathed a sigh of relief after VAR decided to not intervene when he caught Bees substitute Kevin Schade inside the area with 12 minutes left. And it proved the final noteworthy moment of an entertaining opener, which showed both sides there was life without talismans Kane and Toney. Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Kylian Mbappe returns to PSG squad after ‘constructive and positive’ talks Beth Shriever: BMX world title win ‘the perfect practice’ for Olympic defence Fred completes move from Manchester United to Fenerbahce
2023-08-13 23:47
Americans abroad: Josh Sargent stars in Norwich City draw
Josh Sargent and Antonee Robinson were among the standout performers on Saturday as English Premier League and EFL Championship action pushed forward this summer.
2023-08-13 23:45
PSG confirm Kylian Mbappe's return to training after 'positive' talks over future
Paris Saint-Germain have confirmed that Kylian Mbappe has been allowed to return to first-team training after "constructive and positive discussions" regarding his future.
2023-08-13 23:29
Conspiracy theorists are claiming a 'space laser beam' started the Hawaii wildfires
Conspiracy theorists have managed to go viral after spreading false claims that the devastating wildfires that have torn through the island of Maui in Hawaii were started by a 'space laser.' 93 people have died as a result of the fires making it the deadliest in modern US history and destroying most of the beautiful island's natural habitat. Yet, whenever the climate is related to a tragic story it doesn't take long for conspiracy theorists to try and spin the narrative to make others think what they are seeing isn't really about the state of the planet. One of the most farfetched theories doing the rounds in connection to the Hawaii fires is that they were caused by a space laser aimed at Maui, as noted by Forbes. A verified account on Elon Musk's X website, formerly known as Twitter, asked its followers: "This photo is circulating social media. Apparently, this beam was captured before the Hawaii fires. Can anyone confirm?" The post has been liked more than 6000 times and had more than 300 shares. The image does appear to show a beam of light hitting a leafy hillside next to a coast but it's not in Hawaii. In fact, it does have a connection to Elon Musk as the community note that has been added to the post declares that it is actually an image of a SpaceX Falcon 9 launch from Vandenberg Air Force base in California. This isn't the only laser-related image that has circulated about Hawaii either. Another Twitter account asked: "If the fires in Hawaii were natural, what in the h is this?" The picture showed a large explosion at night in a non-specific location which resulted in the tweet getting 19,000 likes and more than 500 shares. Once again, this was not in Hawaii at all but in Michigan in 2018, as fact-checked by Snopes. Finally, another account this time on TikTok has suggested that 'direct energy weapons' have been used on Hawaii with suggestions that it has been deployed by either the Chinese government or by the Joe Biden administration. @mrmclark the directed energy weapon is getting it's use this week In Hawaii I see!!! This is insane , we know they're doing it still nothing happened? #hawaii #fire #directedenergyweapons #military #attack #information #prophecy #truth Once again there is no evidence to suggest that the Maui fires were caused by the US or Chinese governments or were started by a giant laser beam from space. In fact, the fires were probably started by an 'abnormally dry' period for Maui in August making the area more prone to wildfires. Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.
2023-08-13 23:26
Scholz Sees Green Tech Investment Rousing Germany’s Slow Economy
Chancellor Olaf Scholz sees upcoming green tech investments in Germany helping revive growth in Europe’s largest economy. Spending
2023-08-13 23:23
