(WASHINGTON) — President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden will attend the White House Correspondents’ Dinner next weekend in Washington, the association announced Wednesday on Twitter, the first time a sitting president has attended since 2016.
The event was canceled in 2020 and 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and former President Donald Trump snubbed the dinners during his presidency.
In April 2019, Trump told reporters on his way to California that he was skipping for a third year “because the dinner is so boring and so negative that we’re going to hold a very positive rally.”
Typically held the last Saturday in April, the annual gala returns after two years next Saturday, April 30, at the Washington Hilton. Comedian Trevor Noah is set to host.
Some theorize that the 2011 Correspondents’ Dinner may have pushed Trump to run for president — as well as pushed his disdain for the dinners — after then-President Barack Obama made him the target of his jokes for five full minutes. Trump, present in the room, was listening but not smiling.
“No one is prouder to put this birth certificate matter to rest than the Donald,” Obama said at the time. “And that’s because he can finally get back to the issues that matter, like, did we fake the moon landing? What really happened in Roswell? And where are Biggie and Tupac?”
This year’s gala is expected to draw hundreds of power players to Washington and follows the Washington Gridiron Club dinner earlier this month that resulted in at least 80 COVID cases, including some administration officials and members of Congress.
It coincides with concerns over a rise of the BA.2 variant, particularly as the Biden administration’s transportation mask mandate was struck down this week.
All attendees will have to show proof of a negative test the day of the event, and there is a vaccine requirement.
“This year’s dinner will be the WHCA’s first since 2019 and offer the first opportunity since 2016 for the press and the president to share a few laughs for a good cause,” the association said in a press release.
Held for the first time in 1921, the event is intended to honor the First Amendment and raise money for journalism programs.
(WASHINGTON) — The Department of Justice announced Tuesday night it would appeal the recent ruling that voided the federal mask mandate on public transit if the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention deems it necessary.
The question now is whether the CDC still thinks the mandate on public transit is an important public health tool, a decision it stood behind just last week when it extended the mandate until May 3 to monitor an uptick in cases from the BA.2 variant, a more transmissible strain of omicron. And if the CDC does move to reimpose the mandate, it’s unclear whether action from the Justice Department will lead to change before the mandate was set to expire anyway.
“The Department of Justice and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) disagree with the district court’s decision and will appeal, subject to CDC’s conclusion that the order remains necessary for public health,” the Justice Department said in a statement Tuesday.
“If CDC concludes that a mandatory order remains necessary for the public’s health after that assessment, the Department of Justice will appeal the district court’s decision,” the DOJ said.
The CDC, for its part, responded later Tuesday night and said that it was still assessing the need for a mask requirement.
“CDC continues to recommend that people wear masks in all indoor public transportation settings. We will continue to assess the need for a mask requirement in those settings, based on several factors, including the U.S. COVID-19 community levels, risk of circulating and novel variants, and trends in cases and disease severity,” the CDC said.
The decision on Monday made by a Florida judge appointed by former President Donald Trump struck down a federal mask mandate that applied to public transportation, effectively lifting the requirement on planes, trains and buses, as well as inside airports across the United States.
In the ruling, U.S. District Court Judge Kathryn Mizelle said the mandate, established by the CDC, exceeds “statutory authority and violates the procedures required for agency rulemaking under the [Administrative Procedure Act].”
The judge’s decision was effective immediately. Though the federal government was expected to appeal the decision, neither President Joe Biden nor White House press secretary Jen Psaki indicated which way the DOJ was leaning until the announcement on Tuesday evening.
The issue of masking is a political lightning rod ahead of the midterm elections and one the administration has not sought to aggressively fight since mask mandates have already been lifted in much of the country.
Late Monday night, an administration official said only that the Transportation Security Administration would no longer enforce the requirement to wear masks on public transportation but that the CDC continued to recommend them.
The fallout of the court decision left Americans with a patchwork of rules: fly without a mask in and out of New York’s LaGuardia and Kennedy airports but put one on while walking through the airports, for example.
Meanwhile, Amtrak and ride-share services like Uber and Lyft have dropped their mask rules, but several major cities, including New York, Chicago, Los Angeles and San Francisco still require them on some public transportation.
Last month, CEOs of all the major U.S. airlines wrote to the Biden administration asking for an end to the mask requirements on planes.
“It makes no sense that people are still required to wear masks on airplanes, yet are allowed to congregate in crowded restaurants, schools and at sporting events without masks, despite none of these venues having the protective air filtration system that aircraft do,” the business executives wrote.
The group said the burden of enforcing the mask mandate has fallen on their employees. “This is not a function they are trained to perform and subjects them to daily challenges by frustrated customers. This in turn takes a toll on their own well-being.”
There have been 1,150 reports of unruly passengers on flights this year — 744 of which involved face coverings, according to the Federal Aviation Administration.
(WASHINGTON) — President Joe Biden gave his first public reaction to a federal judge striking down the government’s transportation mask mandate, telling reporters on Tuesday that Americans should make their own decisions on wearing masks on planes — further muddying White House and administration messaging on pandemic mitigation efforts.
“That’s up to them,” Biden said, after a reporter asked, “Should people continue to wear masks on planes?”
When asked then if his administration would appeal the judge’s ruling, Biden only said, “I haven’t spoken to the CDC yet,” referring to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Later, when asked again whether his administration would appeal, Biden reiterated that he hasn’t received a briefing from the CDC and said he does not yet know what he plans to do.
“Follow the science,” Biden told reporters.
Biden boarded Air Force One earlier Tuesday wearing his face mask, traveling to Portsmouth, New Hampshire, to tout the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. The White House said that masking would be required for those traveling with the president, adding it’s “in line with CDC guidance.” But on the way back to Washington, Biden opted not to wear one as he, once again, boarded Air Force One.
While Biden did not take the chance Tuesday to strongly defend the CDC mandate, after a Florida judge characterized it as CDC overreach, White House press secretary Jen Psaki delivered a different message to reporters not even an hour ahead of Biden, saying the White House continues to encourage people to mask up while traveling.
Despite the mandate no longer being enforced, but some localities still requiring face masks, Psaki said the White House disputes “the notion that people are confused” over the ruling and next steps.
“We’re continuing to encourage people to wear masks in public transit. They’ll make that decision because it’s obviously not being implemented at this moment in time, but we’ll continue to abide by CDC guidance,” she said.
But Psaki did signal the administration might appeal, saying, “Typically, yeah. It typically takes a couple of days to review and make an assessment.”
U.S. District Court Judge Kathryn Mizelle struck down the mask mandate on public transportation Monday — effectively voiding the requirement on planes, trains and buses as well as inside airports across the country, writing in her decision that the mandate “exceeds the CDC’s statutory authority and violates the procedures required for agency rulemaking under the [Administrative Procedure Act].”
Psaki called it a “disappointing decision” at her briefing Monday as the White House had just learned of the ruling, and hours later an administration official said the order was no longer in effect as agencies evaluated what to do next.
A spokesperson from the Department of Justice told ABC News it was “reviewing the decision.”
ABC News Contributor Dr. John Brownstein, a professor at Harvard Medical School and chief innovation officer of Boston Children’s Hospital, told ABC News Live on Tuesday that the decision “sets a really tough precedent for public policy.”
“Everybody wants to remove the masks, but we are going to see an increased spread — and it’s not really up to a single judge to set public health policy for the entire country,” he said. “It’s going to put a lot of people at risk.”
Addressing how some local requirements will still be in effect, Brownstein said, “It’s going to be confusing for people to fully understand what they’re required to do and what is optional at this point.”
Last week, the Transportation Security Administration extended the mask mandate until May 3, citing a rise in COVID cases across the country with the new BA.2 variant. It’s unclear whether the administration would have continued it beyond that point.
White House COVID response coordinator Dr. Ashish Jha weighed in with his first public comment Tuesday afternoon, calling the decision “deeply disappointing” and suggesting people continue to mask up on planes — as he says he will.
“CDC scientists had asked for 15 days to make a more data-driven durable decision,” Jha tweeted. “We should have given it to them”.
(ATLANTA) — A federal judge has allowed a legal challenge by a group of Georgia voters to move forward as they seek to disqualify GOP Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene from running for reelection, citing her alleged role in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol.
As a result of Judge Amy Totenberg’s ruling, the Georgia voters will have their challenge heard before a state administrative law judge in Atlanta on Friday, where Greene will be called to testify, making her the first member of Congress to be questioned under oath about the events surrounding Jan. 6.
An avid supporter of former President Donald Trump, Greene has denied any involvement in the attack.
The judge, an Obama appointee, in denying Greene’s request to stop the lawsuit, said the case “involves a whirlpool of colliding constitutional interests of public import.”
The voters argue a provision of the Constitution’s 14th Amendment know as the “Disqualification Clause” prevents Greene from holding federal office.
Enacted after the Civil War, the Disqualification Clause bars any person from holding federal office who has previously taken an oath to protect the Constitution — including a member of Congress — who has “engaged in insurrection” against the United States or “given aid or comfort” to its “enemies.”
Mike Rasbury, one of the voters challenging Greene’s eligibility to run for reelection, said in a statement that “Rep. Greene took an oath of office to protect democracy from all enemies foreign and domestic……However, she has flippantly ignored this oath and, based on her role in the January 6 insurrection, is disqualified under Section 3 of the 14th Amendment to the US Constitution from holding any future public office.”
Ron Fein, a lawyer representing the voters and legal director of Free Speech For People, told ABC News in an email that the Georgia “voters who filed this lawsuit have a right to have their challenge heard.”
“At the hearing on Friday, we look forward to questioning Greene under oath about her involvement in the events of Jan. 6, and to demonstrating how her facilitation of the insurrection disqualifies her from public office under the United States Constitution.”
James Bopp, Greene’s attorney, told ABC News that the challenge is “absurd” and that it shouldn’t be up to judges to decide who represents Georgia’s 14th Congressional District.
Bopp also represents GOP Rep. Madison Cawthorn, who is facing a similar challenge against his reelection from a group of voters in North Carolina.
Cawthorn’s lawsuit to dismiss the challenge to his reelection is set to have oral arguments May 3 before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit in Richmond, Virginia, after a federal district judge in North Carolina blocked the voters’ case, citing Cawthorn’s argument the that Amnesty Act of 1872 overrode the Disqualification Clause.
Speaking on Fox News Monday night, Greene told host Tucker Carlson that Democrats are trying to keep her name off the ballot, maintaining she had nothing to do with the attack on the Capitol.
“I have to go to court on Friday and actually be questioned about something I’ve never been charged with and something I was completely against,” said Greene.
The challenges against Greene and Cawthorn are part of a larger legal effort to prevent anyone allegedly involved in the events surrounding Jan. 6 or who supported it from running for reelection.
Similar challenges are being brought against GOP Reps. Paul Gosar and Andy Biggs of Arizona and theoretically could be brought against Trump if he decides to run for office again in 2024.
As of now, nine challenges have been filed against candidates across the country and more are expected to be filed in the coming months.
Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images
(WASHINGTON) — Vice President Kamala Harris announced Monday night that the Biden administration is setting a self-imposed ban on anti-satellite missile testing with the goal of making it an “international norm for responsible behavior in space.”
The U.S., China, India and Russia have all carried out such tests, which generate dangerous space debris. The U.S. is the first to impose such a ban.
“Simply put, these tests are dangerous, and we will not conduct them,” Harris said during remarks at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California.
The vice president said the U.S. hopes other nations will follow suit.
The U.S. has identified and tracks over 1,600 pieces of debris that Russia created when it used a missile to destroy a satellite in November and more than 2,800 that China generated when it carried out its own test in 2007, Harris said. Russia’s direct-ascent anti-satellite missile test created a field of debris that threatened the International Space Station.
“This debris presents a risk to the safety of our astronauts, our satellites and our growing commercial presence,” she said. “A piece of space debris the size of a basketball, which travels at thousands of miles per hour, would destroy a satellite. Even a piece of debris as small as a grain of sand could cause serious damage.”
“These weapons are intended to deny the United States our ability to use our space capabilities by destructing, destroying our satellites, satellites which are critical to our national security,” Harris said. “These tests, to be sure, are reckless, and they are irresponsible. These tests also put in danger so much of what we do in space.”
Ahead of her remarks, the vice president met with members of the United States Space Force and United States Space Command, receiving briefings on their work advancing U.S. national security.
(WASHINGTON) — It’s a “hoppy” day at the White House — as the Easter Egg Roll returns Monday.
Following a two-year hiatus due to the pandemic, President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden continue the tradition of welcoming families to the South Lawn for the famed Easter Egg Roll on Monday, although COVID cases are, once again, on the rise with the BA.2 variant.
Jill Biden, a longtime educator who has continued her job teaching community college while serving as first lady, created and curated this year’s theme: “EGGucation!” Her husband is scheduled to give remarks at 10:15 a.m.
The White House said the public will see the South Lawn “transformed into a school community” — with plenty of events to entertain the thousands of kids expected to attend. The day will feature a reading nook, talent show, farm station and an obstacle course, among other activities.
The tradition of inviting families to the South Lawn to hunt for colorful eggs and roll them on wooden spoons dates to 1878 — but its return after two years risks being overshadowed by the very reason it was paused. It’s unclear if all those attending are required to submit a negative COVID test, but it is expected that children under five — still unauthorized to receive the vaccine — will be on-site in scores.
The White House said 30,000 people were invited to take part in this year’s outdoor event “including thousands of military families, and the crew members and families from the U.S.S. DELAWARE, the U.S. Naval Submarine, for which the First Lady is the sponsor.”
An online public lottery was also held to distribute tickets to families across the country as it’s set to be the largest event held at the White House since Biden took office.
The White House said special guests include Jimmy Fallon, Ciara, Kristin Chenoweth, 2021 National Teacher of the Year, Juliana Urtubey, an elementary teacher in Las Vegas. Sports fans can expect to see the Philadelphia Eagles, Washington Commanders and the Washington Spirit. And costumed characters will be roaming the grounds, including Disney’s Doc McStuffins, Dr. Seuss’ Cat in the Hat, Sonic the Hedgehog, Snoopy and Charlie Brown, Cookie Monster, The Minions and the Washington Nationals’ Racing Presidents.
Announcing the theme on Twitter last week, the first lady said, “As a teacher, my heart is always in the classroom.”
To mitigate crowds, Monday’s event will be broken into five sessions starting at 7:30 a.m. and ending at 6:30 p.m. Still, it comes amid concerns the president himself could catch COVID as some in his circles in Washington, including House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, have tested positive in recent weeks. The White House has shifted its messaging to acknowledge the president could get COVID but argued the concern for illness is lessened since he’s vaccinated and double boosted.
Former President Donald Trump’s White House canceled the event in 2020 “out of an abundance of caution,” and Biden canceled it last year when vaccines weren’t yet widely available. The tradition dating back to Rutherford B. Hayes’ White House has also been canceled in its 144-year history in wartime and inclement weather.
(NEW YORK) — Days after the subway shooting in Brooklyn, New York City Mayor Eric Adams told ABC “This Week” Anchor George Stephanopoulos that the recent increase in crime extends beyond his city, calling it a “national issue.”
“You know, I say over and over again, there are many rivers that feed the sea of violence. This is a national issue,” Adams said when pressed by Stephanopoulos on the rise in major crimes within New York City this year. “It’s not a red state, blue state. In fact, red states are experiencing a higher murder rate than blue states.”
Frank James, 62, was charged with committing a terrorist act on a mass transportation vehicle after opening fire on a New York subway car Tuesday morning. Ten people were shot, and the shooting launched a 30-hour manhunt for James before he called Crime Stoppers on himself.
New York City Police Commissioner Keechant Sewell told Stephanopoulos during a joint interview with Adams she thought James’ call to the tip line indicated that “we were kind of closing in around him” before he turned himself in.
“We disseminated his picture… we had a number of people looking for him, hundreds of detectives looking for him,” Sewell said. “But I think one of the key factors also is our force multiplier, which are the eyes and ears of our incredible New Yorkers.”
Stephanopoulos said James seemed to be “hiding in plain sight” before the shooting, noting he had been arrested several times and had posted videos to YouTube “packed with hate and suggestions of violence.”
“Do we need a better way to track individuals like this before they take this violent action?” Stephanopoulos asked.
Adams said social media companies “must step up” when it comes to tracking people like James.
“There’s a corporate responsibility when we are watching hate brew online,” Adams said. “We can identify using artificial intelligence and other methods to identify those who are talking about violence.”
Despite last week’s attack and transit crime rising 68% this year compared to 2021, Sewell told Stephanopoulos that crime on the subways in New York City is actually down compared to the pre-COVID numbers. Still, she is trying to make police presence on the subways more visible.
“We recognize that people need to see a visible presence of police in the subway and we’re endeavoring to make sure that that happens,” Sewell said. “There’s also security measures that we don’t see, but we understand that that reassurance is required. And we’re putting multiple officers in the subways every single day.”
Adams, a former NYPD captain who took office on Jan. 1, ran as a tough-on-crime Democrat and has rejected progressive policies around crime and policing, like the “defund the police” movement.
Last week, former New York Police Commissioner Bill Bratton, who served under the Giuliani and de Blasio mayoral administrations, told a Bloomberg podcast, “The scales right now are tipped very heavily in favor of the reforms of the progressive left. Well-intended, some needed, but a bit too far.”
Bratton said the result is rising crime and fear of crime “as evidenced in almost every major American city.”
“Yes, I believe he is right,” Adams responded. “Major mistakes made throughout the years that destroyed the trust that the police commissioner is talking about. We have to rebuild that trust. But we can’t rebuild that trust by allowing those who are dangerous and that have — they have a repeated history of violence to continue to be on our streets.”
Sewell agreed, saying, “We cannot lose sight of the victims of crime. We believe the system has to be fair and balanced, but when we lose sight of the victims of crime, we are not doing what public safety is intended to do.”
(WASHINGTON) — The NAACP called on Attorney General Merrick Garland to investigate years of allegations of widespread fraud and misspending in Mississippi totaling a reported $96 million, according to a letter obtained exclusively by ABC News.
NAACP President Derrick Johnson called on the Department of Justice “to aggressively investigate and prosecute those responsible for the massive theft of federal funds that apparently took place in Mississippi in fiscal years 2017 through 2019.” He noted that “funds from these programs are to be used for the neediest and most vulnerable in our society.”
Mississippi State Auditor Shad White alleges that money set aside from the federal government for the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) programs were misappropriated under the leadership of John Davis, then-head of the Mississippi Department of Human Services, according to the letter.
The fraud allegations were first revealed in 2020 by state prosecutors in one of the largest cases involving embezzlement claims in state history. Six people have been indicted on state charges, including Davis.
Davis has pleaded not guilty, court records show. His trial, which was supposed to start last year, has been delayed several times. An attorney for Davis did not respond to ABC News’ request for comment.
The others indicted include Nancy New, the former owner of the Mississippi Community Education Center (MCEC); her son, Zach New, the assistant executive director of the MCEC; and former Department of Human Services employee Gregory “Latimer” Smith.
Attorneys for Nancy and Zach New did not respond to a request for comment from ABC News. Contact information for Smith was not immediately available.
Nancy New told the Clarion Ledger in 2020, “I just have to say that I think there’s a lot more information to come and we’re just waiting our turn.”
Several individuals in the case have accepted plea deals including former pro-wrestler Brett DiBiase who pleaded guilty in 2020 to a single count of making fraudulent statements for the purpose of defrauding the government.
Anne McGrew, an accountant for the MCEC, pleaded guilty in October 2021 to one charge of conspiracy to commit embezzlement.
Accounting firm CliftonLarsonAllen released a 175-page independent audit looking at fraud claims between Jan. 1, 2016, to Dec. 31, 2019.
White said in a 2020 press conference the case was the “most egregious misspending my staff have seen in their careers at the Office of the State Auditor.” He later added, “when you read this one-hundred-plus page audit, you will see that, if there was a way to misspend money, it seems DHS leadership or their grantees thought of it and tried it.”
White said in 2020 after the indictments, “this is an example of money going to or should have gone to folks who needed it through a federal program, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF). To those families, I say, I’m incredibly sorry that this money did not go to your benefit as it should have. But you need to know that you have advocates who are standing up for you, and this is not going to be allowed and it’s stopping right now.”
The questionable funds included $5 million for a lease agreement for a multi-purpose wellness center that would later become a volleyball stadium, $635,000 for a virtual reality lab that included individuals who weren’t identified as needy and $44,000 to retired professional football players for football camps that focused on student-athletes and did not address helping at-risk youth.
Most of the misappropriated funds are alleged to have been stolen through a now-dissolved anti-poverty program called Families First for Mississippi, co-operated by the Mississippi Community Education Center, according to the audit. The MCEC did not reply to a request for comment from ABC News.
The NAACP’s Johnson said in his letter, “these apparent crimes were ignored by DOJ under your predecessor Attorney General, and we are calling on you to take action that is long overdue.”
Johnson said Mississippi State Auditor’s findings were referred to the Justice Department, “however, nearly two years later, despite the overwhelming documentary evidence of fraud, forgery, and abuse in this matter, DOJ has not yet launched a criminal investigation.”
He said in the two-page letter to Attorney General Garland, that “failure to investigate may lead to the impression that DOJ is continuing the previous administration’s pattern of looking the other way when laws are broken by white state officials, especially when the wrongdoing disproportionately harms minorities.”
Johnson urged “in the strongest possible terms to take immediate action to investigate and prosecute those involved in this massive theft of federal funds.”
“The Department received the letter and will review it,” a spokesperson for the Justice Department told ABC News in a statement.
Craig Hudson for The Washington Post via Getty Images
(WASHINGTON) — A second group of asylum seekers arrived in Washington, D.C., Thursday on a charter bus after Texas Gov. Greg Abbott directed the Texas Division of Emergency Management to transport migrants from Texas to D.C.
This comes just one day after the first bus of undocumented migrants from Colombia, Cuba, Venezuela, and Nicaragua, was transported to the nation’s capital.
Abbott said the order is a direct response to President Joe Biden’s plans to end Title 42 expulsions on May 23. The controversial policy, which the Trump administration implemented during the COVID-19 pandemic, restricts migrants from coming into the country under the auspices of a public health emergency.
“Leaders in Congress have no idea about the chaos they have caused by the open border policies and they refuse to come down and see firsthand and talk to the people who are really they’re just dropping bombs of illegal immigrants from countries across the entire globe, leaving those local communities to have to grapple with it,” Abbott told reporters on Wednesday.
The Texas governor added, “there will be more that will be arriving whether by bus or plane so that Washington is going to have to respond and deal with the same challenges that we’re doing.”
Chris Magnus, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CPD) commissioner, expressed concerns over Abbott leading the operation without “adequate coordination with the federal government.”
“As individuals await the outcome of their immigration proceedings, they are legally obligated to report in for the next steps in their immigration process and permitted to travel elsewhere. CBP’s close partnerships with other government and non-governmental stakeholders are essential to this effort, and to ensuring fairness, order, and humanity in the process.” Magnus said in a statement. “Governor Abbott is taking actions to move migrants without adequately coordinating with the federal government and local border communities. CBP has always worked closely with and supported border communities in Texas, many of which CBP personnel call home.”
D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser’s press secretary Susana Castillo told ABC News in a statement on Wednesday, “Our Administration continues to work with NGOs [Non-Government Organizations] who are providing resources to the arriving individuals and families. Our partners were able to triage the first bus, which included individuals hoping to settle outside of the region.
Immigration advocacy groups and faith leaders held a joint press conference in front of Washington, D.C.,’s Union Station to welcome asylum seekers who arrived in Washington D.C. on Thursday.
Organizers from Welcome with Dignity, Carecen, and CASA, told reporters they plan to help asylum seekers as they connect with their family members in the United States, as well as, provide legal services if needed.
“Our community is ready to receive any immigrants that the governor of Texas wants to send here. We are an open city. We are a welcoming city. We will continue to be that. We have the support of the local government,” Abel Nunez, the executive director of Carecen, a Central American refugee nonprofit, said.
“I invite the governor of Texas, if he wants to continue to send immigrants to this region, to coordinate with us so that we can ensure that we can provide the best service and we can meet all their legal obligations, ” Nunez said.
During the presser, immigration advocates also called out Biden for the delays in passing immigration reform. Gustavo Torres, executive director of CASA, said federal legislation is the only long-term solution to address the ongoing crisis.
“I want to send a very clear message to the Biden administration: It is time to pass immigration reform. I remember when he was running for president, he promised that if he controlled the White House and Congress, they were going to pass immigration reform. We are still demanding that. That is the only real solution to this crisis that we are facing,” Torres said.
(WASHINGTON) — A federal judge in D.C. on Thursday delivered a scathing rebuke of former President Donald Trump and expressed dismay over the state of American politics just moments after a jury found a defendant charged in the Jan. 6 Capitol riot guilty on all charges.
“You know, I think our democracy is in trouble,” Judge Reggie Walton said at the conclusion of the third jury trial for a defendant charged in the Capitol assault. “Because unfortunately, we have charlatans like our former president, who doesn’t in my view really care about democracy, but only about power. And as a result of that, it’s tearing this country apart.”
Walton, an appointee of former President George W. Bush and one of the most senior judges on the D.C. court, said that he’s received letters from people around the country expressing concern the justice system isn’t confronting Jan. 6 — which he called an “insurgency,” with the seriousness it deserves.
“I have a concern that we have, unfortunately, American citizens who were so gullible that they were willing to accept what was being said without any proof that the allegations about the election had any merit whatsoever,” Walton said. “People are just outraged at how they feel our system is not taking seriously what happened on that day because of their fear of the future of this country.”
His remarks came after a jury delivered a guilty verdict for an Ohio man charged in the Jan. 6 assault on the U.S. Capitol who sought to defend himself by claiming he was following former Trump’s “orders.”
Dustin Thompson, 38, is the third defendant charged in connection with the Capitol attack to take their case before a jury. The six charges against him included one felony count of obstruction of Congress.
Rather than seeking to dispute the allegations against him — that he joined the pro-Trump mob in storming the Capitol and stole a bottle of bourbon and a coat rack from the Senate parliamentarian’s office, Thompson instead sought to place responsibility for his actions on Trump and his speech on the Ellipse where he urged his followers to march on the Capitol.
Dozens of others among the nearly 800 people charged thus far in the Justice Department’s Jan. 6 investigation have sought to make similar arguments, putting the onus on the former president and his allies who tricked them into believing baseless conspiracy theories about a stolen election.
That Thompson’s defense fell flat with a jury could have an influence on other alleged rioters holding out hopes they could adopt a similar strategy in their cases.
“Defense counsel wants you to focus so much on what President Trump said on the morning of Jan. 6, he wants you to forget what his client did on the afternoon of Jan. 6,” assistant US attorney Bill Dreher said in closing arguments Thursday. “Ladies and gentlemen, you don’t have to choose. This is not President Trump’s criminal trial.”
Speaking directly to the jury, Dreher said, “you can be mad about what happened that day, you can think what President Trump did was wrong, you can think that what he said that day led them to go do what they did.”
“That doesn’t matter,” he continued. “As long as you find — if you find, that Mr. Thompson knew that what he was doing was unlawful. He was 36 years old on Jan. 6 … an adult, not a child. President Trump didn’t hold his hand as he walked down to the Capitol to loot and defile the Senate Parliamentarian’s office.”
Dreher said that Thompson’s effort to put the blame on Trump’s words was not only irrelevant, but misleading — because it doesn’t appear based on data obtained from Thompson’s Uber account that he was even present at Trump’s Ellipse speech.
“It’s a story that is not true and that does not hold up,” Dreher said.
Following the reading of the verdict, Judge Walton ordered Thompson to remain in custody pending his sentencing and slammed him for his testimony in the trial, which Walton said he found “totally disingenuous” and “not truthful.”
“I just don’t think you can do what he did and what the other folks did if you’re convicted and expect to be free,” Walton said. “It’s a consequence — as my mother once told me, ‘you make your bed you gotta lie in it.'”
