(WASHINGTON) — In closed-door testimony to House investigators released on Friday, Dr. Bob Redfield, former head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said that throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, former President Donald Trump appointees repeatedly blocked his public health experts from briefing the American public.

Redfield described, in detail, efforts by the CDC to speak publicly on what it knew about COVID and how people could stay safe.

“They would not clear our briefings,” Redfield said, according to written excerpts of the interview. “This is one of my great disappointments. That HHS basically took over total clearance of briefings by CDC.”

Further, Redfield said he believed the consequences of CDC’s inability to provide information to the public during that period, impacted the trust of the American public on the agency.

He called his replacement, Dr. Rochelle Walensky, after she was picked for the job, and promised he would never jump on the evening television shows and criticize her.

“I called her when she got nominated. The one thing she wasn’t going to hear from me was public criticism. I got it every night from my predecessors on the nightly news. I said I’m not going to do that to you. That is tough job. I’m here to help. Call me if you can,” Redfield said.

Prior to Redfield’s comments, last week, the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a new report detailing accusations from staffers of political interference against the agencies within HHS, including the CDC, the Food and Drug Administration, the National Institutes of Health, and the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response.

Interviewees reported, through a confidential hotline, that they had witnessed instances of political interference occur, but did not report them for various reasons, including fear of retaliation, a lack of knowledge on how to report the issues, or a belief that their leaders were already aware of the issues.

Some respondents from the CDC and FDA said they felt that the potential political interference they observed, had resulted in the “alteration” or “suppression” of scientific findings. Other interviewees reported that they believed the potential political interference that they had witnessed, may have resulted in the “politically motivated alteration of public health guidance or delayed publication of COVID-19-related scientific findings.”

In one instance, in May 2020, a senior official from the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response claimed that HHS retaliated against him for disclosing “concerns about inappropriate political interference to make chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine available to the public as treatments for COVID-19,” GAO officials wrote in the report.

The report, which stated that the agencies had not reported any formal internal allegations of potential political interference from 2010 through 2021, found that the federal health agencies do not have appropriate procedures in place that “define political interference in scientific decision-making.” Although all four agencies train staff on some scientific-integrity-related topics, the NIH is the only agency that provides guidance on political interference.

According to GAO officials, who concluded their audit through April 2022, HHS concurred with the recommendations to develop procedures and training for reporting these allegations of political interference.

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(WASHINGTON) — Federal prosecutors on Friday secured a second guilty plea and cooperation deal with a member of the Oath Keepers militia group charged in the government’s seditious conspiracy case stemming from the Jan. 6 assault on the U.S. Capitol.

Brian Ulrich, of Guyton, Georgia, admitted on Friday that he was part of the group of Oath Keepers that was seen during the riot ascending the east steps of the Capitol in a military-style “stack” formation.

The 44-year-old pleaded guilty to two felony charges of seditious conspiracy and obstruction of an official proceeding, both of which carry maximum sentences of 20 years in prison and fines up to $250,000. As outlined in his plea, Ulrich’s estimated offense level carries a sentencing range between 63-78 months, though the government could recommend a lesser sentence based on the extent of his cooperation.

As part of his plea deal, Ulrich agreed to provide “substantial cooperation” to the government, including testifying before a grand jury and at trial, as well as sitting for additional interviews with the government if they request it.

As D.C. district judge Amit Mehta read off the terms of his plea, Ulrich became emotional, his voice cracking as Mehta described the potential time in prison he could face at sentencing.

Mehta at one point asked Ulrich if he wanted to take a break to compose himself.

“It’s not going to get any easier,” Ulrich responded.

He could be heard weeping over the teleconference line several times through the remainder of the hearing.

In a filing released Friday, Ulrich acknowledged using the Signal app to send private messages to other members of the Oath Keepers regarding their plans to prevent Joe Biden from becoming president in favor of then-President Donald Trump.

“I seriously wonder what it would take just to get every patriot marching around the capital armed?” Ulrich messaged on Dec. 5, 2020. “Just to show our government how powerless they are!”

Ulrich also admitted he traveled to Washington, D.C., on Jan. 4 with the knowledge that other members of the group had stored firearms at a hotel in Virginia, where prosecutors say a number of Oath Keepers were stationed on Jan. 6 as part of a heavily armed “Quick Reaction Force” in case the group wanted to transport weapons into the city.

Ahead of his trip, Ulrich said he purchased tactical gear and other equipment, including two-way radio receivers, which he carried with him inside the Capitol.

At the start of the assault on the Capitol, Ulrich said he and other Oath Keepers members were at the Mayflower Hotel in Washington. When they saw news reports of the mob breaching police lines, the group gathered their gear and raced to the Capitol on golf carts to join the attack.

In the days after Jan. 6, Ulrich continued to communicate with other Oath Keepers on Signal, saying in one message that he and Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes needed to “stay below the radar,” according to prosecutors.

Ulrich’s plea follows a similar agreement prosecutors reached last month with Joshua James, a member of the Oath Keepers’ Alabama chapter who admitted to providing security for former Trump adviser Roger Stone on the day before the riot.

There are nine remaining Oath Keepers members facing seditious conspiracy charges, including Rhodes — all of whom have pleaded not guilty and have vowed they will fight the charges at trial.

“Do you agree with that statement [in your plea agreement] that you agreed with Mr. Rhodes and others to oppose by force the lawful transfer of presidential power?” Mehta asked Ulrich Friday.

“Yes, your honor,” Ulrich answered.

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(WASHINGTON) — With power players flocking to a crowded Washington hotel ballroom for the White House Correspondents’ Dinner Saturday, many itching to mingle after a two-year COVID-induced hiatus, the virus appears to be creeping closer to the gala’s star guest — President Joe Biden — with a positive test for a top aide on Friday.

White House communications director Kate Bedingfield is the latest in Biden’s inner circle — following Vice President Kamala Harris — to test positive for COVID this week, tweeting on Friday that she last saw the president two days before in a “socially-distanced meeting while wearing an N-95 mask.”

This morning, I tested positive for COVID-19. I last saw the President Wednesday in a socially-distanced meeting while wearing an N-95 mask, and he is not considered a close contact as defined by the CDC.

— Kate Bedingfield (@WHCommsDir) April 29, 2022

Saturday’s event now coincides with concerns it could become a superspreader like the Gridiron Club Dinner, after which at least 72 attendees reported testing positive. Biden’s chief medical adviser, Dr. Anthony Fauci, dropped out of the dinner earlier this week — citing his individual assessment of his own personal risk CNN first reported — while White House COVID coordinator Dr. Ashish Jha has said it should go forward.

“These are the strategies we have learned over the last two years, and if we implement them, do I think it’s safe for people to gather together indoors? Absolutely,” Jha said earlier this month on “Fox News Sunday.”

White House press secretary Jen Psaki was asked Wednesday about the discrepancy between Biden and Fauci’s plans and whether there’s concern Biden would be considered as “not following the science.”

“Every individual will make their own decisions about whether they attend this event, other events, whether they wear a mask at it or not,” Psaki said, noting the COVID protocols in place for guests.

“He [Biden] has made the decision he wants to attend, in a safe way, the White House Correspondents’ Dinner to show his support,” she continued. “That does stand in stark contrast to his predecessor, who not only questioned the legitimacy of the press on a nearly daily basis, but also never attended the dinner, I don’t believe.”

Unlike former President Donald Trump, who notably skipped the event while in office, Psaki said Americans can have eyes on Biden for what she called “his roasting, where he will be on the menu, as he likes to say, when Trevor Noah is speaking.”

She also stressed that Biden, who is also slated to deliver a routine of his own, is taking extra precautions like skipping the dinner portion of the event. She said she expects he’ll be at the event “for about an hour or 90 minutes.”

“He’s not attending the dinner portion. He’s coming for the program. So and he will likely wear a mask when he’s not speaking,” Psaki said on Friday. “And then he’s of course sitting on the dias up in the front of the interaction and is not attending any of the receptions.”

She added that Biden tested negative on Thursday, “but I don’t have anything to predict in terms of the future,” she said.

Asked what to expect from his remarks, Psaki said, “The president has a very good sense of humor and is working hard on his own speech.”

In recent weeks, as the BA.2 subvariant has spread around Washington, the White House changed its messaging to say that Biden, like any other American, could test positive “at some point,” but stressed that he has the capacity to “run the country from anywhere” and is up-to-date on COVID boosters.

“Just like anything, it’s a risk assessment, and a decision he made on a personal basis,” Psaki said this week.

Comedian Trevor Noah is set to host Saturday’s dinner, for which guests are required to show proof of vaccination and a day-of negative COVID test. Drew Barrymore, Kim Kardashian and Pete Davidson are among celebrities planning to attend, according to a Deadline report.

Earlier this month, two Cabinet members and three lawmakers were among those who tested positive after attending the Gridiron Club Dinner. Speaker Nancy Pelosi also tested positive in early April, days after attending two events with Biden at the White House without a mask. Psaki and White House deputy press secretary Karine-Jean Pierre both tested positive in late March.

Despite the close cases — not deemed close contacts — the positive tests have not had any impact on the president’s plans to take part in large events. He attended the funeral of Madeleine Albright on Wednesday and is scheduled to also travel to Minnesota for the memorial of Walter Mondale on Sunday.

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(NEW YORK) — Former President Donald Trump, in a sworn affidavit, said Friday he possesses no documents subpoenaed by the New York Attorney General’s Office — but the judge overseeing the case declined to end his contempt finding and the $10,000 daily fine.

“To the best of my knowledge, (i) I do not have any of the documents requested in the subpoena dated December 1, 2021 in my personal possession; and (ii) if there are any documents responsive to the subpoena I believe they would be in the possession or custody of the Trump Organization,” Trump’s affidavit said.

“At all relevant times, I have authorized, and continue to authorize, the release of a responsive document to the Office of the Attorney General,” Trump said in the document.

The same document that contains the affidavit also contained a detailed review by Trump’s attorney of the steps taken to look for the documents in question.

But Judge Arthur Engoron remained unsatisfied, and denied Trump’s motion to purge the contempt finding and the fine that accompanies it.

“This Court has improperly held my client in contempt for a violation that he did not commit solely because the OAG declared it ‘insufficient’ without any basis,” Trump attorney Alina Habba said in response to the ruling. “We will zealously prosecute our appeal of the Court’s improper application of both law and fact.”

The subpoena was issued as part of the attorney general’s civil investigation into the way Trump valued his real estate empire.

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