The Full Belmonte, 8/19/2022
Judge May Release Affidavit in Trump Search, but Only After Redaction
The possibility emerged after news organizations sought to unseal the affidavit submitted in support of the search warrant. Any public version of the affidavit could be heavily redacted.
“WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — A federal judge ordered the government on Thursday to propose redactions to the highly sensitive affidavit that was used to justify a search warrant executed by the F.B.I. last week at former President Donald J. Trump’s private home and club, saying he was inclined to unseal parts of it.
Ruling from the bench, the judge, Bruce E. Reinhart, said it was ‘very important’ that the public have as ‘much information’ as it can about the historic search at Mar-a-Lago, Mr. Trump’s Florida residence. He noted later in a written order that the government ‘had not met its burden of showing that the entire affidavit should remain sealed.’
Judge Reinhart went on to say that he was leaning toward releasing portions of the document, adding that ‘whether those portions would be meaningful for the public or the media’ was not for him to decide. He also acknowledged that the redaction process could often be extensive and sometimes turned documents into ‘meaningless gibberish.’
In its fullest form, the affidavit supporting the warrant would reveal critical details of the broader investigation into Mr. Trump’s handling of sensitive documents, chief among them what led prosecutors to believe there was probable cause that evidence of a crime existed at Mar-a-Lago. Even a redacted version could shed light on aspects of the inquiry, such as the back-and-forth negotiations between Mr. Trump and federal prosecutors about returning the documents, a crucial step in showing that the former president may have willfully kept them in his possession.
Judge Reinhart’s decision in the closely scrutinized case appeared to strike a middle course between the Justice Department, which had wanted to keep the affidavit entirely under wraps as it continued to investigate Mr. Trump’s retention of classified documents, and a group of news organizations, which requested that it be released in full to the public.
As part of his ruling, Judge Reinhart ordered the government to send him under seal proposed redactions to the warrant affidavit by next Thursday at noon. He said he would review the suggestions and decide if he agreed with them. But he did not set a specific date for the affidavit to be released.” Read more at New York Times
Allen Weisselberg, a Top Trump Executive, Pleads Guilty in Tax Scheme
Mr. Weisselberg refused to cooperate in the Manhattan district attorney’s broader investigation into Donald J. Trump and his family business.
Allen Weisselberg, left, appeared in a Manhattan courtroom on Thursday to plead guilty to 15 felonies.Credit...Jefferson Siegel for The New York Times
“Allen H. Weisselberg, one of Donald J. Trump’s most trusted lieutenants, stood before a judge in a Lower Manhattan courtroom on Thursday and admitted that he had conspired with the former president’s company to commit numerous crimes.
Mr. Weisselberg’s guilty plea, which followed more than a year of the Manhattan district attorney’s office pressuring him to cooperate in a broader investigation of Mr. Trump, painted a damning picture of the beleaguered company, which now faces significant financial penalties if it loses its own trial on similar charges.
But for prosecutors who have long sought to indict Mr. Trump, Thursday’s hearing was something of a consolation prize. Mr. Weisselberg refused to turn on Mr. Trump himself, something prosecutors had hoped he would do since they charged him with 15 felonies last July.” Read more at New York Times
Last school year brought more gunfire, study finds
“No school year in the U.S. in nearly a decade saw as much gunfire as the 2021-2022 academic calendar, according to a report released by Everytown For Gun Safety, a non-partisan group advocating against gun violence. It shows the last school year, between Aug. 1 and May 31, saw 193 incidents of gunfire, more than doubling the total of the previous year. Authors of the report found most shootings were perpetrated by a student or former student at a school. Read more about the report.
What the numbers mean: School gun violence happens with a ‘distressing frequency,’ the report found, but many school shootings are preventable.
•Wearable protection: Bulletproof backpack sales are on the rise as parents send their kids back to school.
•Parents at the forefront: Meet one conservative group gaining traction in school board races nationwide.
•Gun advertisers are embracing a new culture of defense and personal protection.
•Uvalde update: School board to consider firing school district police Chief Pete Arredondo on Aug. 24.
•Analysis: What do we need from our teachers?” Read more at USA Today
A child learning how to use bulletproof backpack.Cassie Walton, @thewaltonfamily1 / Lifestylogy /TMX
Arizona judge to hear state request to enforce abortion ban under 1912 law
“An Arizona judge will hear arguments Friday on the state's request to allow prosecutors to enforce a near-total ban on abortions under a law that has been blocked for nearly 50 years under a now-overruled Supreme Court ruling. Abortion-rights advocates are fighting the request from Republican Attorney General Mark Brnovich, who wants prosecutors to be able to charge doctors who provide abortions, unless the mother’s life is in danger. That law was first enacted decades before Arizona was granted statehood in 1912 and blocked following the Supreme Court's 1973 Roe v. Wade decision that legalized abortion. Read more of our coverage on ongoing state abortion battles.
•Planned Parenthood to spend a record-breaking $50M in this year's midterm elections.
•A Florida teen who was denied an abortion for being too immature highlights hurdles to care, advocates say.
•Here's a look at how Roe's fall is making Illinois an abortion haven in the South and Midwest.
•Voices: I became a doctor as a single Black mom. The '‘pro-life'‘ movement didn't help me.” Read more at USA Today
Thousands of protesters march around the Arizona Capitol after the Supreme Court decision to overturn the landmark Roe v. Wade abortion decision Friday, June 24, 2022, in Phoenix.Ross D. Franklin, AP
Flash flooding closed roads in parts of Arizona earlier this week.
“Several parts of the Southwest US are bracing for potentially damaging flash floods today. Nearly 10 million people are under flood watches as excessive rainfall is expected dump 2 to 4 inches across Arizona, New Mexico, and southern Utah. Earlier this week, the Weather Prediction Center issued a rare "moderate risk" (Level 3 out of 4) for today in preparation for the surge of rain expected this weekend. The drought-plagued region is already dealing with a water crisis, so they need the rain, but it may not be as beneficial as you might think. One of the concerns with the upcoming downpours is that they might not surge far enough north or west where the water is needed most: California, Nevada, Oregon, and northern Utah. Roughly 70% of the West remains in some level of drought, down from 90% just three months ago.” Read more at CNN
Three Men Charged in Prison Killing of Whitey Bulger
The men were incarcerated alongside the notorious Boston crime boss when he was beaten to death in 2018.
“Three men were indicted in the death of the notorious gangster James (Whitey) Bulger, who was beaten to death four years ago in a West Virginia federal prison where he was serving a sentence for crimes that terrorized Boston in the 1970s and ’80s, prosecutors said on Thursday.
Fotios Geas, Paul J. DeCologero and Sean McKinnon were charged with conspiracy to commit first-degree murder by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of West Virginia.
All three men were incarcerated with Mr. Bulger in the Hazelton prison in Bruceton Mills, W.Va., where Mr. Bulger, 89, had been serving two life terms for his role in 11 murders committed when he controlled Boston’s underworld for several decades.” Read more at New York Times
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis speaks yesterday at the Broward County Courthouse in Fort Lauderdale. Photo: Amy Beth Bennett/South Florida Sun Sentinel via AP
“Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, a top potential '24 presidential candidate, announced that his Office of Election Crimes and Security, formed in April, was arresting 20 people for breaking Florida elections law.
The press release was headlined: ‘In Florida, if you commit an Elections Crime, you will do the time.’
Quick context: The charges mark the opening salvo from the Office of Election Crimes and Security, which from its conception drew widespread criticism from Democrats and voting rights groups who feared the unit would serve as a political tool for the governor, AP reports.
Photo: Anthony Man/South Florida Sun Sentinel via Getty Images
Above: These signs were distributed to the audience at DeSantis' presser, held in a Broward County courtroom.
Reality check: The 20 people were among more than 11 million Florida voters who cast ballots in the 2020 election. Voter fraud is rare and is generally detected.” Read more at Axios
Illustration: Annelise Capossela/Axios
“Prices are falling on a host of important products, and supply chains are starting to sort themselves out.
Why it matters: These are two very clear, undeniable pieces of good economic news. High prices and product bottlenecks aren't gone. But they're getting a lot better, Matt Phillips writes for Axios Markets.
Prices are going down, down, down:
Lumber: Soaring wood prices were on the leading edge of 2021's inflationary run-up, and even early this year they were still surging. They're now down about 60% since March.
Used cars: Prices are basically flat this year, with leading indicators suggesting a relatively sharp turndown in prices from July to August.
Oil topped out at over $120 a barrel in March, but is now down more than 25%.
Real estate: Going forward, the key price category to watch for inflation is housing, which accounts for a massive share of the Consumer Price Index. Even there, a pronounced downtrend in prices has started to emerge.
Zoom out: A handful of trustworthy indicators also show that supply chain bottlenecks — the backlogs, delays and general unpredictability of doing business amid the economic recovery from the pandemic — are improving.
One index, produced by the economics group at consulting firm RSM, suggests that supply chains are now functioning better than they have at any time since 2019.
Reality check: The N.Y. Fed's supply-chain index shows improvement — not that things are back to normal.
While inflation — the rate of price increases — is decelerating, the level of those prices remains painfully high for many.
The bottom line: Overall prices are still far higher than before the COVID-era inflation. And broadly speaking, prices aren't going back to the before times. Ever.” Read more at Axios
Data: NBC News/Generation Lab. Chart: Kavya Beheraj/Axios
“A poll by Cyrus Beschloss' Generation Lab for NBC News (1,077 rising college sophomores, Aug. 12-17) found political polarization/tribalism extends to dorm rooms:
46% said they would probably/definitely not room with someone who supported the opposing presidential candidate in 2020 (62% of Dems, 28% of GOP).
53% said they would probably/definitely not go on a date with someone who supported the other side in 2020.
63% said they would probably/definitely not marry someone who supported the other 2020 candidate.
73% of Democrats polled from the Class of '25 said President Biden shouldn't run again. 27% said he should.” (NBC News) Read more at Axios
“New video has emerged online showing Russian vehicles inside a turbine hall at a Ukrainian nuclear power plant, where intensified shelling has fueled fears of a nuclear disaster. Kyiv has repeatedly accused Russian forces of storing heavy weaponry inside the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, and using it as cover to launch attacks, knowing that Ukraine can't return fire without risking hitting one of the plant's reactors. Moscow, meanwhile, has claimed Ukrainian troops are targeting the site. According to Leon Cizelj, president of the European Nuclear Society, the fighting around the site is unlikely to cause a Chernobyl-sized disaster, but a radioactive problem would mostly affect Ukrainians that live nearby. ‘If we used past experience, Fukushima could be a comparison of the worst-case scenario,’ Cizelj said, referring to the serious but more localized meltdown at the Japanese plant in 2011.” Read more at CNN
A neighbor, Olga Rudneva, recovers an item yesterday for the elderly owner of a home destroyed by a rocket strike in Druzhkivka, eastern Ukraine. Photo: David Goldman/AP
“Russia's spies misread Ukraine and misled the Kremlin as war loomed, the WashPost reports in a five-part series examining the road to war:
‘Sensitive materials obtained by Ukrainian and other security services offer rare insight into the activities of Russia's Federal Security Service, which bears enormous responsibility for Moscow’s failed war plan and the hubris that propelled it.’” Read more at Axios
“Plastic pollution is a scourge in West African countries such as Ghana, once ranked as the world’s seventh messiest nation and now hailed as a success story because of a corporate-sponsored cleanup. But as Kit Chellel and Ekow Dontoh explain, the initiative backed by Coca-Cola, Unilever and Danone to re-use the waste is better at deflecting blame and avoiding regulation than actually recycling.” Read more at Bloomberg
A gutter choked with plastic under a bridge in Accra, Ghana, in July. Photographer: Nipah Dennis/Bloomberg
“Tourists hoping to scale Tanzania’s Mount Kilimanjaro will soon be able to completely document their journeys on Twitter, TikTok, and Instagram, thanks to new high-speed internet access up to 12,200 feetat the tourist hotspot. Authorities plan to extend these services to the mountain’s summit by the end of the year.” Read more at Foreign Policy
“If you own Apple devices, you should probably update them now. Apple is directing users of most of its devices to update their software after the company discovered a vulnerability that gives hackers the ability to take control of a device's operating system. In security updates posted online, Apple said the vulnerability affects iPhones dating back to the 6S model, iPad 5th generation and later, iPad Air 2 and later, iPad mini 4 and later, all iPad Pro models and the 7th generation iPod touch. The issue also extends to Mac computers running on the company's various operating systems, Apple said in a separate update. The US government's Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency has encouraged affected users to ‘apply the necessary updates as soon as possible.’” Read more at CNN
Photo: Alexandra Buxbaum/Sipa USA via Reuters
“A 20-year-old USC student — investing money raised from friends and family — made $110 million by selling a stake in meme-stock favorite Bed Bath & Beyond at exactly the right time, the Financial Times reports.
Jake Freeman, an applied mathematics and economics major, acquired about 5 million shares in July when the company's CEO was ousted following a dismal earnings report.
Freeman bought the shares at under $5.50, and sold them for more than $27 this week — just before billionaire investor Ryan Cohen cashed out his entire stake, sending the stock plummeting.” Read more at Axios
Photo: Leonard Ortiz/Orange County Register via Getty Images
“Dan Price, a former Seattle CEO who made headlines by raising his employees' salary to a minimum of $70,000, has been accused of assaulting multiple women — and now, the allegations include rape.
Why it matters: The allegations follow years of internet fame and media fanfare — where he gradually built an esteemed reputation as a poster child for corporate social responsibility.
He abruptly resigned this week as CEO of Gravity Payments, the credit-card processing company he founded with his brother in 2004.
The N.Y. Times yesterday published a bombshell report in which a woman accused Price of raping her while she was under the influence of drugs.
Price cultivated his social media presence with the help of a ghostwriter, The Times reports.” Read more at Axios
Texas School District Removes Bible and Anne Frank Adaptation in Back-to-School Sweep
The Keller Independent School District in North Texas reviewed dozens of challenged books during the last school year. It is taking them off the shelves as it reviews them again.
“One day before students returned to classrooms in North Texas, a school district ordered principals and librarians to remove books including the Bible and a graphic novel adaptation of Anne Frank’s ‘The Diary of a Young Girl’ from libraries and classrooms.
The Keller Independent School District reviewed the 41 challenged books during the previous school year, but a policy approved by the school district’s board of trustees last week requires staff to pull the books from shelves so that they can be reviewed again.
The last-minute book sweep is one of several changes in schools across the country that will restrict students’ access to books in the new school year. Parents, school board officials and lawmakers have recently challenged books at a pace not seen in years, with some of the most scrutinized books dealing with sexual and racial identity.” Read more at New York Times
Watson Suspended 11 Games and Fined $5 Million in Sexual Misconduct Case
The N.F.L. was seeking a yearlong suspension but reached a settlement with the quarterback after an arbitrator recommended a six-game penalty.
“Deshaun Watson, the Cleveland Browns quarterback, will be suspended for 11 games and pay a record $5 million fine after the N.F.L. appealed what many thought was a lenient six-game suspension for accusations by more than two dozen women of sexual misconduct in massage appointments.
The league announced Thursday that Watson must undergo evaluation by behavioral experts, followed by a treatment program. The fine, as well as an additional $1 million each from the league and the Browns, will be donated to groups that work to prevent sexual assault.
The penalties were the result of a settlement between Watson’s representatives from his legal team and the players’ union, and the N.F.L. They are among the most severe in league history, and come as the league faces heightened scrutiny over its treatment of women and after backlash to the initial suspension handed down by an arbitrator earlier this month, which some said wasn’t harsh enough to be a deterrent and did not address the scope of accusations against Watson.” Read more at New York Times
Topping $1 Billion a Year, Big Ten Signs Record TV Deal for College Conference
“The agreement splits the Big Ten’s sports among Fox, NBC and CBS, and is the richest annual deal for any college sports league.
“The Big Ten Conference has reached the richest-ever television agreement for a college athletic league, selling the rights to its competitions for an average of at least $1 billion a year.
The seven-year arrangement, announced Thursday and worth at least $7 billion over the life of the contract, cements the Big Ten as one of the nation’s pre-eminent college sports leagues. It also promises to fuel the intensifying debate over how universities should treat athletes who are not paid salaries.
The deal reflects television networks’ desire to capitalize on America’s enormous appetite for sports, and it comes at a time of extraordinary upheaval in college athletics.
The college sports industry has faced setbacks in statehouses and courtrooms, including one at the Supreme Court in 2021 that made it more vulnerable to antitrust challenges. And college sports’ diminished political influence has helped empower athletes to speak out against longstanding rules, like the ones that until last year had kept them from making money off their fame.
Elite leagues are still awash in money, though, and there has been more open talk, joined last month by Jim Harbaugh, Michigan’s football coach, about whether players should receive a cut. But conferences have made no move in that direction and have resisted calls to classify athletes as employees.
Now the Big Ten, unbothered by the prospect of a windfall inviting new pressure, is borrowing from a strategy that the N.F.L. has relied on to become North America’s wealthiest sports league. Starting with the 2023 season, it will split football games among three broadcast networks, with Fox, CBS and NBC each armed with sought-after time slots.
Beyond transforming the Big Ten into a powerhouse of football scheduling, the contract’s sheer value will give the league and its members a measure of stability in the years ahead. It also dwarfs the conference’s expiring agreement, which has been worth about $430 million annually.” Read more at New York Times
“Lives Lived: Norah Vincent was a 35-year-old journalist when she disguised herself and lived as a man, an 18-month experience she chronicled in a best-selling book. She died at 53.” Read more at New York Times