The Department of Justice rookie prosecutor who's been leading the effort to charge former FBI Director James Comey stepped off the case, NBC News reported. Matthew Petracca, an assistant U.S. attorney, brought the case to a federal grand jury for the second indictment against Comey because of his sheashell photo. NBC News found in a court filing that Petracca is no longer on the case, per a court filing.The office of the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina, where Petracca worked, requested that he "be removed from the court's docket as counsel for the government," the two-page filing stated, without offering details. According to NBC News, Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy Severo will take over in his place. Petracca recently left other criminal cases in the Eastern District of North Carolina, and a substitute also handled a recent interaction with Comey's defense team, per NBC News. Petrecca didn't respond to NBC News' request for comment.
China has expelled a New York Times journalist from the country over an interview the US-based newspaper conducted with Taiwan’s president, as Beijing ramps up its campaign to isolate the self-ruled island on the world stage.
A TikToker lost her day job after posting a video wishing pain and suffering on beleaguered former Attorney General Pam Bondi. Bondi, who was ousted as AG […]
Advocates for disability rights are fighting the lawsuit, which would push more people to be warehoused in institutions.
Congress gave the Kennedy Center its name, and only Congress can change it, U.S. District Court Judge Christopher Cooper said in his ruling.
President Donald Trump went off on another long Truth Social rant Friday as he fumed over criticisms of his renovations to the Reflecting Pool."The Failing New York Times is doing everything possible to criticize the magnificent restoration of the Reflecting Pool," Trump's rambling post began.The NYT has reported on the various questionable contracts and high costs involved with Trump's restoration of the landmark. Trump was upset that it hadn't instead highlighted his efforts to bring the pool "BACK TO LIFE!"The post included screenshots of similarly long posts by Interior Secretary Doug Burgum. Trump promised the "Great and Beautiful" construction would wrap up before July 4.His attack on the NYT sunk to repeated claims that it's "doing poorly" and told the publication to "spend more of its energy fixing its broken 'shop,' and celebrating America's greatness."
With the current Supreme Court term coming to an end soon, there is growing speculation that 76-year-old Justice Sam Alito may step down from the seat he has held for 20 years, and that is leading to some under-the-radar maneuvering.According to the Washington Post, Alito is widely considered the justice most likely to step down, with observers pointing to his age, the release of his first book, and the November midterm elections as potential motivators due to Republican fears of losing control of the Senate. That has Republican leaders already preparing to fast-track a successor, including Sens. Ted Cruz (R-TX) and Mike Lee (R-UT), both of whom could be pushed through swiftly.Though recent reports suggest Alito has no plans to retire, the speculation has also triggered a broader shift in judicial behavior across the conservative legal establishment, the Post is reporting.Legal experts warn that many conservative judges are now deliberately writing attention-grabbing opinions as a form of open "auditioning" for higher office — a phenomenon they attribute directly to Trump's well-documented preference for loyalty and grandiose personalities."Trump, and the people around Trump, are going to try to look for people that they have more confidence in even than the previous set of nominees, and that is going to require some kind of further signals of loyalty to the agenda," Daniel Epps, a law professor at Washington University who closely follows the Supreme Court told the Post. "That just increases the incentives to audition as much as possible."The trend has accelerated since Republicans eliminated the filibuster for Supreme Court nominees in 2017 when Democrats blocked Neil Gorsuch's nomination, allowing confirmations by simple majority instead of requiring a two-thirds vote.That rule change fundamentally altered the incentive structure for ambitious judges, making partisan grandstanding less risky and more rewarding.Even before the filibuster elimination, then-appeals court judge Neil Gorsuch demonstrated the effectiveness of the strategy. In 2016, he wrote both the majority opinion and a separate concurring opinion in a federal agency power case — a calculated approach that showcased his judicial philosophy before his eventual Supreme Court nomination.Mike Fragoso, an attorney at Torridon Law who served as chief counsel to then-Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, acknowledged the phenomenon while noting it can be difficult to distinguish between genuine judicial positioning and deliberate auditioning."But in the Trump era, writing buzzy opinions can't hurt a judge's Supreme Court prospects," Fragoso said.
It’s been three days since President Donald Trump visited Walter Reed Medical Center for his latest physical examination, and the White House has yet to release the results. As CNN reports, this break from the administration’s own previous practices will likely “fuel further questions about his health and fitness.”While Trump took to social media to declare his “perfect” health following the hourslong visit, and despite assurances that a report on the checkup would be made available in “the next day or so,” there is no evidence that the White House or the president’s physician plan on offering a public presentation. According to CNN, “The three-day silence marks a departure from the White House’s handling of Trump’s prior physical exams. After a visit to Walter Reed last April, personal physician Dr. Sean Barbabella summarized the results in a memo released two days later. When Trump returned for another exam in October, Barbabella’s declaration that he remained in “exceptional health” was published later the same day. This time, Trump has so far served as the only source of information about his own health just weeks out from his 80th birthday.”“It’s unimaginable to me that the White House would not release a statement about the president’s health — even the most basic statement,” Dr. Jonathan Reiner, professor at The George Washington School of Medicine & Health Sciences and longtime cardiologist for former Vice President Dick Cheney, told CNN. “It’s going to really spark concerns about the president’s fitness for office if the White House refuses to disclose his medical report.” Trump’s physical and mental fitness have become growing concerns among Americans over his second term, as he has visibly deteriorated and his behavior has become increasingly “erratic.” From his bruised hands, to his swollen ankles, to his tendency to doze off and repeat himself, doctors have pointed to many health concerns. While CNN notes that none of these conditions are theoretically all that alarming on their own, “the White House’s reluctance to provide fuller details only makes it more difficult to allay any bigger concerns.”“It would imply that there is information they don’t want the public to hear,” said Reiner. “It intensifies the distrust in their transparency.” In the face of his visible decline, Trump and his officials frequently tout his physical and cognitive capabilities. They claim that he is in outstanding physical condition thanks to golf and “incredible genes,” and dismiss and even mock suggestions of his infirmity. And Trump himself frequently brags about “acing” his repeated cognitive tests, but as many experts have pointed out, these tests are designed to be easy for anyone without dementia or some other form of cognitive impairment. "The president has long struggled to understand the point of these tests,” one analyst explained recently, “but that hasn’t stopped him from his obsessive boasts about being able to pass exams used to identify dementia, mental deterioration and neurodegenerative diseases." Despite Trump’s protestations, Americans have noticed his decline, and now 59 percent doubt his mental acuity to serve, while 55 percent doubt he is in physical shape for it. Even some from his own orbit have expressed concern. In April, after Trump threatened that “a whole civilization will die tonight” if Iran didn’t bend to his demands, Democrats weren’t alone in calling for the 25th Amendment. Even longtime Trump allies like Alex Jones, who had supported Trump’s political project from the beginning, said it was time for the president to be removed. “I think we’re dealing with the madness of King George III here,” said Jones at the time.And now, as the administration continues to drag its feet on releasing Trump’s latest health report, suspicions are sure to grow.“This White House just doesn’t seem to want to acknowledge any physical ailment, but older people develop medical issues, and the president is almost 80 years old,” said Reiner. “There just seems to be a lack of candor from the White House.”
The Department of Justice is demanding that an embattled Georgia judge be taken off its case seeking to grab voter rolls, according to reporting by Reuters.U.S. District Judge Eleanor Ross in Atlanta was in the headlines earlier this week after news outlets identified her as the unnamed judge reprimanded for having sex in her chambers within earshot of clerks. The DOJ is seeking her removal from the case because she attended a political campaign event for Fani Willis, who prosecuted Trump for alleged crimes related to the 2020 election, Reuters noted. "A judge who attended a party celebrating the election of a Democrat best known for prosecuting a Republican President for alleged election interference cannot then preside over a case concerning that President's efforts to ensure election integrity," DOJ lawyers wrote, according to Reuters. Ross is hearing the DOJ's lawsuit seeking to force Georgia to hand over its non-public voter registration list. The DOJ filed similar lawsuits in other states, though it's been defeated in some.