(NEW YORK) — The Securities and Exchange Commission on Thursday sought to force Elon Musk to sit for a deposition as part of an ongoing investigation about his purchase of Twitter, now known as X.
The SEC said Musk failed to appear for testimony as required by a May subpoena despite agreeing to show up last month at the SEC’s office in San Francisco.
Musk waited until two days before the scheduled date to notify the SEC he would not appear, regulators said. They’re now seeking a court order to force Musk to comply.
Musk acquired the social media site in October 2022 for roughly $44 billion.
The testimony subpoena involves an ongoing investigation by the SEC into “potential violations of various provisions of the federal securities laws” regarding Musk’s purchase, as well as statements he made last year and SEC filings related to Twitter, the SEC said in a press release.
“[The] SEC seeks Musk’s testimony to obtain information not already in the SEC’s possession that is relevant to its legitimate and lawful investigation,” the press release said, noting the SEC staff to date have not determined that any person or entity has violated federal securities laws.
In response to a post on X about the SEC’s court order and other government investigations into his companies, Musk said a “comprehensive overhaul of these agencies is sorely needed, along with a commission to take punitive action against those individuals who have abused their regulatory power for personal and political gain.”
(WASHINGTON) — Progressive activist Cornel West switched parties for the second time as he wages a third-party presidential campaign.
West is planning to run as an independent for president, ditching the Green Party, which has a more formalized infrastructure to gain access to the ballot, shifting the calculus of how much of a threat he poses to snatch votes away from President Joe Biden next year.
Meanwhile, GOP rabble-rouser Rep. Matt Gaetz, Fla., hinted he intends to stay in the House for the while.
Here’s what you need to know from the campaign trail.
Third ticket’s the charm
West, a left-wing academic with a broad following on the Democratic Party’s fringe, said he would run as an independent Thursday rather than compete for the Green Party’s nomination.
West’s campaign explained the switch by pointing to the process for winning the party nod rather than just running as an independent and gaining access to ballots on his own.
“Democracy means more choices, not backroom deals; it means freedom to vote your conscience without being shamed or bullied. As Dr. West’s campaign for president grows, he believes the best way to challenge the entrenched system is by focusing 100% on the people, not on the intricacies of internal party dynamics,” West’s campaign said in a statement.
West had previously been running for the nomination of the relatively unknown People’s Party before moving over to the Green Party, a shift he attributed at least in part to the Green Party’s more robust ballot access infrastructure.
Switching to campaign as an independent, though, would appear to run counter to that thinking, given that the Green Party would offer West an easier path to earning a place on several states’ ballots, while running as an independent means he would have to go through the process of qualifying for the ballot in every state and territory on his own.
However, the move is likely welcome news for Democrats, who are biting their nails over whether a third-party bid by someone with West’s name recognition could peel off liberal voters from Biden next year.
Gaetz not moving out of the House
Gaetz, who earned the enmity of many of his GOP colleagues by engineering the ouster of former Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., this week, swatted away speculation that he has his eyes set on the governor’s mansion in Florida in 2026.
“I’m not running for governor,” he told CBS News Miami. “I’m exactly where I’m supposed to be. I’m doing exactly what I’m supposed to be doing.”
To be sure, lawmakers often say they’re not running for offices that they end up competing for, and there’s a long time for Gaetz to possibly change his mind. But Gaetz’s comments come as speculation reaches a boiling point that his offensive against McCarthy was intended in part to raise his name recognition in an effort to move his office from Washington to Tallahassee.
Current Gov. Ron DeSantis, who is seeking the Republican presidential nomination, would be barred from running for reelection in 2026 due to term limits.
GOP candidates migrate to new attack line
Republican presidential candidates launched political attacks on the White House after it was announced that the Biden administration would waive 26 federal laws to allow border wall construction in Starr County, Texas.
“I will await his apology!” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.
“Well, isn’t that interesting?” DeSantis asked an Iowa radio host Thursday before touting his own plan for mass-deportations of undocumented immigrants.
Biden has lambasted a border wall and maintained Thursday that he had no choice but to approve the border wall construction after funds for it were appropriated by Congress.
Pence reaches for 20% — in spending
Former Vice President Mike Pence, who is polling in the single digits in the GOP presidential primary, announced Thursday he would work to pass a constitutional amendment limiting spending to one-fifth of the economy.
Under Pence’s proposal, the amendment could only be waived by a declaration of war or by a two-thirds congressional vote.
“Because of Bidenomics, American families are forced to tighten their purse strings. It’s not too much to ask our federal government to do the same,” Pence said in a statement. “As President, I will break this relentless break-the-bank cycle and usher in a new era of fiscal responsibility in our nation’s capital. I will work with Congress to set a cap on federal spending at one-fifth of our nation’s economy. No more runaway spending and no more fiscal freefall.”
It is highly unlikely that the push would go anywhere if Pence ended up in the White House, but the plan appears to be part of an effort to bolster his conservative bona fides.
(NEW YORK) — More than 4 million Americans have been vaccinated with the newest COVID shot as of Thursday, according to the latest government data, putting the uptake about equal to that of the COVID vaccine rolled out in October of last year.
While vaccination rates remaining on par with last year’s rollout is positive news for public health experts, the shot has reached fewer than 2% of Americans.
There are about 8 million more shots on hand for distribution, according to the Department of Health and Human Services, and in total 12 million shots have been shipped to pharmacies, doctors offices and clinics over the last few weeks.
Public health officials rubber stamped the latest COVID shot in September, matching the shot to the currently-circulating strain of the virus and recommending it for everyone 6 months and older.
It’s the first time that the COVID vaccine distribution has shifted over to the commercial market as opposed to the government, which purchased and distributed COVID vaccines while the country was in an emergency phase of the pandemic.
“COVID-19 vaccine distribution, which has shifted to the private market, is a lot different than it was last year when the government was distributing them,” a Health and Human Services Department spokesperson said.
The transition from government-run logistics to a medley of private insurance companies working with pharmacy chains, doctors offices and public health centers has resulted in a bumpy rollout, at times riddled with confusion about the cost of the vaccines, which are intended to be free, and challenges in getting appointments, particularly for children.
Insurance companies are supposed to cover the cost of COVID vaccines, per a law enacted by Congress, and anyone without insurance should have access to free vaccines through a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention-run program.
Pediatric vaccines have also been slower to become available than adult vaccines. According to CDC Director Mandy Cohen, manufacturers distributed adult doses of the shot first, but pediatric doses are following suit.
“Manufacturers and distributors were getting out the adult vaccines first. So that was what was shipping in the first number of days,” Cohen said last week. “The supply is filling out, and make sure that you’re calling ahead to your pediatrician or your pharmacy to see if the vaccine is available, and if not, check back again.”
Insurance companies, pharmacies and the government have said they’ve addressed any initial issues with the rollout and continue to monitor for ways to improve access.
“Certainly we’re aware of what consumers have experienced, these unexpected issues of point of service,” White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Monday. “And so, this is certainly a top priority for this administration.”
But public health officials warn that access issues during the initial rollout could deter people from getting their shots. According to Walgreens, the busiest weeks for COVID-19 immunizations historically have been the first four weeks after a vaccine becomes available.
And there has historically been a waning interest in COVID shots — just 17% of Americans, or 56.5 million people, received the booster shot that was rolled out last fall, according to data released by the CDC in May. That’s compared to nearly 70% of Americans, or 231.6 million people, who got vaccinated with the first COVID series.
There is also less data surrounding vaccinations — as well as COVID cases — because states are no longer required to report data with the same timeliness or consistency as they were during the public health emergency, which ended in May.
The data that is available, however, shows that hospitalizations rose over the summer and hit a peak in mid-September. Hospital admissions have decreased by about 3% since last week.
The government also relaunched its free COVID test resource, COVIDTests.Gov, about two weeks ago, predicting a fall and winter rise in cases once again.
So far, 45 million tests have been ordered and over 10 million tests delivered, according to the Department of Health and Human Services.
Officials expect they’ll continue to have ample inventory to meet demand, a spokesperson for the department said.
(NEW YORK) — Nancy Marks, the former treasurer for embattled Rep. George Santos, R-N.Y., pleaded guilty Thursday to a federal conspiracy charge.
Marks allegedly filed the names of false donors to Santos’ congressional campaign. Federal prosecutors said she did so to inflate the amount of campaign donations Santos appeared to have amassed so he could qualify for national party support.
The names of Marks’ and Santos’ family members were among those falsely reported to have lent his campaign $500,000, despite not having the financial means to do so, prosecutors said.
“These reports were created to artificially inflate his funds to meet a threshold,” federal prosecutors said Marks told them.
Her attorney, Raymond Perini, said his client does not have a cooperation agreement with the government in place, but “if they subpoena her, she’ll do the right thing.”
“With today’s guilty plea, Marks has admitted that she conspired with a congressional candidate to lie to the FEC and, by extension, the public about the financial state of the candidate’s campaign for New York’s Third Congressional District, falsely inflating the campaign’s reported receipts with non-existent contributions and loans,” United States Attorney Breon Peace said in a statement.
Marks is scheduled to be sentenced next April.
Marks resigned from Santos’ team in January amid reports of multiple controversies revolving around his campaign finances.
Marks has been a fixture of Republican politics on Long Island for decades. She was a treasurer for Lee Zeldin’s unsuccessful campaign for governor and she worked for several political committees, including God, Guns, Life, Veterans for MAGA and Defend the Constitution.
Santos blamed Marks when questions were raised about the sources of his fundraising and his spending. The Republican congressman pleaded not guilty in May to a 13-count indictment accusing him of fraud, money laundering and theft of public funds.
(NEW YORK) — Major cities around the world have experienced alarming temperature increases in recent years, new research shows.
Average temperatures in several major cities in OECD countries have risen by more than 10% since 2019 alone, which could indicate amplified effects of climate change in the last decade, according to the Global Temperature Index report by Utility Bidder, a U.K.-based energy consulting firm.
The report found “exemplified changing weather patterns that are the prime example of global warming,” James Longley, managing director at Utility Bidder, said in an emailed statement to ABC News.
Ankara, Turkey, saw the highest change in average temperatures at 18.24%, the researchers found. In 2019, average temperatures in Ankara were 22.4 degrees Celsius, or 72.32 degrees Fahrenheit. But by 2023, average temperatures had jumped to 26.4 degrees Celsius, or 79.52 degrees Fahrenheit.
The urban areas in Ankara contribute “significantly” to air pollution levels, according to the study.
Tallinn, Estonia, saw a 15.8% rise in average temperatures; Helsinki, Finland, experienced a 14.93% increase in temperatures; and Seoul, South Korea, saw a 10.03% change in average temperatures, according to the study.
Also included in the 10 cities with the highest rise in average temperatures were Reykjavik, Iceland; Canberra, Australia; Athens, Greece; Tokyo, London and Madrid.
The last two decades have also shown significant increases in average temperatures in some cities, the study found. The city with the largest change in average temperatures since 2004 was Ottawa, Canada, increasing by 31.35%. Seoul has seen a 20% increase since 2014, according to the research.
Research shows that large cities around the world will bear the brunt of climate change, with increased heat being one of the biggest impacts, according to experts.
Abundance of concrete, lack of greenery and air pollution from heavy traffic all contribute to urban heat islands.
The year 2023 is on track to become the hottest year on record, especially following a record-breaking summer and several high-temperature anomalies that occurred in September, according to a report released Wednesday by Copernicus, Europe’s climate change service.
“Our research into global temperatures was inspired by alarming climate changes that were demonstrated in 2022, as the year went down as the sixth warmest on record,” Longley said. “Furthermore, 2023 has been no different, and much of Europe especially has seen extreme heat waves throughout the summer months.”
The Zombies are headed to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame for a very special screening of their recent documentary, Hung Up On a Dream.
Original band members Rod Argent and Colin Blunstone, who were inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2019, will take part in a Hall of Fame series interview and Q&A following the screening on October 21 at 2 p.m.
The event is happening the day after The Zombies’ October 20 show at Ludlow Garage in Cincinnati, Ohio. Their next concert is happening Thursday, October 5, in San Francisco. A complete list of tour dates can be found at thezombiesmusic.com.
Chris Rock is reportedly gearing up to direct and produce a new film about Martin Luther King Jr.
According to Variety, Rock is in the final stages of talks to board the project, with Steven Spielberg already on board as an executive producer.
The as-yet-untitled film from Universal Pictures will be based on Jonathan Eig’s biography King: A Life, which was released in May to critical acclaim. The comprehensive biography was described as “an intimate view of the courageous and often emotionally troubled human being who demanded peaceful protest for his movement but was rarely at peace with himself.”
Rock previously directed 2014’s Top Five, 2003’s Head of State and 2007’s I Think I Love My Wife.
(WASHINGTON) — Months after leaving the White House, former President Donald Trump allegedly discussed potentially sensitive information about U.S. nuclear submarines with a member of his Mar-a-Lago Club — an Australian billionaire who then allegedly shared the information with scores of others, including more than a dozen foreign officials, several of his own employees, and a handful of journalists, according to sources familiar with the matter.
The potential disclosure was reported to special counsel Jack Smith’s team as they investigated Trump’s alleged hoarding of classified documents at Mar-a-Lago, the sources told ABC News. The information could shed further light on Trump’s handling of sensitive government secrets.
Prosecutors and FBI agents have at least twice this year interviewed the Mar-a-Lago member, Anthony Pratt, who runs U.S.-based Pratt Industries, one of the world’s largest packaging companies.
In those interviews, Pratt described how — looking to make conversation with Trump during a meeting at Mar-a-Lago in April 2021 — he brought up the American submarine fleet, which the two had discussed before, the sources told ABC News.
According to Pratt’s account, as described by the sources, Pratt told Trump he believed Australia should start buying its submarines from the United States, to which an excited Trump — “leaning” toward Pratt as if to be discreet — then told Pratt two pieces of information about U.S. submarines: the supposed exact number of nuclear warheads they routinely carry, and exactly how close they supposedly can get to a Russian submarine without being detected.
In emails and conversations after meeting with Trump, Pratt described Trump’s remarks to at least 45 others, including six journalists, 11 of his company’s employees, 10 Australian officials, and three former Australian prime ministers, the sources told ABC News.
While Pratt told investigators he couldn’t tell if what Trump said about U.S. submarines was real or just bluster, investigators nevertheless asked Pratt not to repeat the numbers that Trump allegedly told him, suggesting the information could be too sensitive to relay further, ABC News was told.
It’s unclear if the information was accurate, but the episode was investigated by Smith’s team.
Sources said another witness, one of Trump’s former employees at Mar-a-Lago, told investigators that, within minutes of Pratt’s meeting with Trump, he heard Pratt relaying to someone else some of what Trump had just said.
According to the sources, the former Mar-a-Lago employee also told investigators he was “bothered” and “shocked” to hear that the former president had provided such seemingly sensitive information to a non-U.S. citizen.
Pratt told investigators Trump didn’t show him any government documents during their April 2021 meeting, nor at any other time they crossed paths at Mar-a-Lago, sources said.
According to the sources, Pratt insisted to investigators that he told others about his meeting with Trump to show them how he was advocating for Australia with the United States. Some of the Australian officials that sources said he told were, as reflected in news reports at the time, involved in then-ongoing negotiations with the Biden administration over a deal for Australia to purchase a number of nuclear-powered attack submarines from the United States.
The deal was ultimately secured earlier this year, with Australia agreeing to purchase at least three Virginia-class nuclear-powered submarines, though President Joe Biden has said that none of the submarines sold to Australia will be armed with nuclear weapons.
Special counsel Smith did not include any information about Trump’s alleged April 2021 conversation with Pratt in his June indictment against Trump, which charged the former president with 40 counts of unlawful retention of national defense information and obstruction-related offenses.
Last year, while needling the Biden administration for what he said was a weak response to Russia’s war on Ukraine, Trump said that if he were still president, he would make sure Russia understood that the United States is “a greater nuclear power” with “the greatest submarines in the world.”
“[They are] the most powerful machines ever built, and nobody knows where they are,” Trump said on the Fox Business network.
Shortly after Trump became president in 2017, Pratt joined Mar-a-Lago as a member and publicly pledged to invest another $2 billion in American manufacturing jobs.
Over the next few years, Pratt visited Mar-a-Lago about 10 times, interacting with Trump on several occasions, once even having dinner with Trump and a U.S. senator at another Trump-owned property nearby, Pratt told investigators, according to sources. Pratt also visited the White House in 2018, when Trump was meeting with Australia’s then-prime minister, according to online records.
In 2019, speaking at the opening of a Pratt Industries plant in Wapakoneta, Ohio, Trump called Pratt a “friend” and praised him for funding the plant.
“We’re here to celebrate a great opening and a great gentleman,” Trump said. “Anthony is one of the most successful men in the world — perhaps Australia’s most successful man.”
Standing beside Trump, Pratt then said he “would not have invested in this plant if it wasn’t for President Trump’s election, [which] has given us an incredible faith in investing in America.”
But in recent months, according to sources, Pratt told investigators that he now supports the current U.S. government, describing himself as someone who tends to just “side with the king.”
Representatives for Pratt did not respond to messages seeking comment from ABC News.
A spokesperson for Trump did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Record Store Day has unveiled the list of exclusive releases for its 2023 Black Friday event, which will take place at independent record stores on November 24.
The upcoming releases include Dierks Bentley‘s Up On The Ridge (10th Anniversary Edition), Willie Nelson‘s Shotgun Willie (50th Anniversary Deluxe Edition), Jerry Lee Lewis‘ At The Palomino Club and Billy Strings‘ two-track 12-inch LP release of “California Sober” featuring Willie Nelson and “Whiskey River (Live from Hollywood Bowl).”
For the full list of releases and participating stores, visit RecordStoreDay.com.
Despite rumors that the two are feuding, Francia Raísa showed up to support her friend Selena Gomez at Selena’s Wednesday night benefit gala for her Rare Impact Fund. Speaking to E!, she acknowledged that all the hateful comments she received as a result of the alleged feud were difficult to deal with.
“Obviously it got to me. I got some pretty crazy comments. I had to block some people,” she tells E! “And then people texting me, ‘Are you OK?’ And like, honestly, I wasn’t because we weren’t in a great place. But at the same time, we needed that time apart.”
Asked how important Selena’s friendship is to her, Francia told E!, “She has a piece of my body so it’s very important.” She added, “She’s my sis, and every relationship goes through its ups and downs. And I don’t know why the media started following me over the summer, but thank you so much because not only did it bring my friendship back together, but I got to share the new endeavors that I’m doing right now.”
She added that Selena has been supportive of one of those ventures: her own salsa line.
Francia also told Extrathat friendships “can get rocky and tricky” at times, adding, “Sometimes, I feel people need to spend time apart in order to grow.”
Rumors of the so-called feud between Selena and Francia, her kidney donor, date back to last November, when the two exchanged not-so-friendly comments online after Selena called Taylor Swift her only friend in the industry in a Rolling Stone story. But in March, Selena called Francia her best friend, then wished her a happy birthday in July. In August, Francia said on a podcast that there was no beef.
