Former Trump White House counsel Pat Cipollone subpoenaed by Jan. 6 committee

Former Trump White House counsel Pat Cipollone subpoenaed by Jan. 6 committee
Former Trump White House counsel Pat Cipollone subpoenaed by Jan. 6 committee
Erin Schaff-Pool/Getty Images, FILE

(WASHINGTON) — Donald Trump’s former White House counsel Pat Cipollone was subpoenaed Wednesday for a deposition by the House’s Jan. 6 committee.

“The Select Committee’s investigation has revealed evidence that Mr. Cipollone repeatedly raised legal and other concerns about President Trump’s activities on January 6th and in the days that preceded,” the committee’s chair and vice-chair, Mississippi Democrat Bennie Thompson and Wyoming Republican Liz Cheney, said in a statement.

Cipollone and former deputy White House counsel Pat Philbin met with committee investigators for an informal interview in April.

Cipollone had been considering some form of cooperation with the committee, under certain restrictions, ABC News previously reported.

The new subpoena comes one day after Cipollone was repeatedly mentioned during the testimony of Cassidy Hutchinson, who was a top aide to Trump’s chief of staff Mark Meadows before and during the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol.

Hutchinson told the committee during a Tuesday hearing that on the morning of Jan. 6, Cipollone was adamant that Trump shouldn’t accompany his supporters to the Capitol after addressing them at the Ellipse near the White House earlier that day.

“We’re going to get charged with every crime imaginable if we make that movement happen,” she recalled Cipollone telling her at the time.

A lawyer familiar with Cipollone’s deliberations told ABC News in response to the committee’s announcement: “Of course a subpoena was necessary before the former White House counsel could even consider transcribed testimony before the committee.”

“Now that a subpoena has been issued, it’ll be evaluated as to matters of privilege that might be appropriate,” the lawyer said.

The committee had written in a letter to Cipollone along with his subpoena that they “continued to obtain evidence about which you are uniquely positioned to testify; however, you have declined to cooperate with us further.”

Cipollone was one of the few aides who was with then-President Trump in the West Wing on Jan. 6. ABC News has reported that in the days following the attack on the Capitol, he advised Trump that Trump could potentially face civil liability in connection with his role encouraging supporters to march on the Capitol.

Sources have said there would be a number of circumstances that could serve to complicate any eventual appearance by Cipollone — including the issue of who questions him and for how long; whether there are any ongoing issues of privilege; and whether Trump would approve of his appearance.

Cipollone also made clear that his testimony would be restricted to the effort undertaken by former top Justice Department official Jeffrey Clark to use the powers of the DOJ to further Trump’s attempts to overturn the 2020 presidential race, sources familiar with the deliberations have said.

Both Cipollone and Philbin, his deputy, were part of a Jan. 3, 2021, Oval Office meeting where Trump insisted on replacing then-acting Attorney General Jeffrey Rosen with Clark, a Trump loyalist who had vowed to use the Department of Justice to investigate the election.

Cipollone and Philbin made it clear to Trump that they would resign if Clark were installed, according to a Senate committee report released last year that detailed instances where Trump and his allies sought to use the DOJ to overturn the election.

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Light the Torch premieres video for “Become the Martyr”

Light the Torch premieres video for “Become the Martyr”
Light the Torch premieres video for “Become the Martyr”
Nuclear Blast

Light the Torch has premiered the video for “Become the Martyr,” a track off the band’s latest album, You Will Be the Death of Me.

The clip finds Howard Jones and company delivering an intense performance while surrounded by burning TV sets.

“Not all relationships end with friends going separate ways,” Jones says of the “Become the Martyr” message. “Sometimes, peace can be found in taking all the blame.”

You can watch the video streaming now on YouTube.

You Will Be the Death of Me was released in June 2021. It also includes the single “Wilting in the Light.”

Light the Torch will hit the road on a North American tour with Avatar beginning July 6 in Toronto.

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Official Byrds photo book, featuring commentary from surviving members, to be released in September

Official Byrds photo book, featuring commentary from surviving members, to be released in September
Official Byrds photo book, featuring commentary from surviving members, to be released in September
BMG Books

An official release date has been announced for The Byrds: 1964-1967, a deluxe photo book focusing on influential rock band The Byrds‘ early years that features contributions from the group’s three surviving original members — Roger McGuinn, David Crosby and Chris Hillman.

The 400-page book, which will be published on September 30, features over 500 images taken by such acclaimed photographers as Henry Diltz, Jim Marshall, Linda McCartney and Barry Feinstein, as well as photos from Columbia Records’ archives and the personal archives of the band’s original manager.

The Byrds: 1964-1967 includes commentary from McGuinn, Crosby and Hillman, who share their recollections about the group, which pioneered folk rock, psychedelic rock and country rock.

The project marks the first time that McGuinn, Crosby and Hillman have all worked together since recording a few new songs for The Byrds’ 1990 retrospective box set.

Four versions of the book are available: a standard version, a deluxe limited edition, a super deluxe limited edition and a super deluxe limited edition that comes with a fine-art print.

Copies of the deluxe edition are signed by McGuinn and Hillman, and the super deluxe limited editions are signed by all three surviving Byrds members. The book can be preordered now at ByrdsBook.com.

“I loved being in The Byrds,” says Hillman. “And as crazy as we all were at times, when we were on our game, we soared, we flew high and mighty. I think we all shared a private belief and a strong faith that this was going to work. And it worked so well.”

Adds McGuinn, “Being in The Byrds was a detour to my dream of being a folk singer. It was a very special detour, and one I will always hold close to my heart.”

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Music notes: Taylor Swift, Ellie Goulding, Ingrid Michaelson, Sara Bareilles, Shawn Mendes and Joe Jonas

Music notes: Taylor Swift, Ellie Goulding, Ingrid Michaelson, Sara Bareilles, Shawn Mendes and Joe Jonas
Music notes: Taylor Swift, Ellie Goulding, Ingrid Michaelson, Sara Bareilles, Shawn Mendes and Joe Jonas

Will Taylor Swift finally get her first Academy Award nod? Her new song “Carolina,” which is for the movie Where the Crawdads Sing, is garnering serious Oscar buzz. Billboard points out she wasn’t nominated for The Hunger Games‘ “Safe and Sound” or 50 Shades of Grey‘s “I Don’t Wanna Live Forever.” We don’t talk about Cats 

Ellie Goulding says she has new music coming out “next month” and, on Twitter, said she has “a little gift coming this week.” She has since changed her profile image to a yellow circle, which fans believe is a hint of what her next album will be called.

Ingrid Michaelson‘s musical based on The Notebook has revealed its cast. “We have made something so magical and so human. I can not wait for the world to see,” she raved on Instagram. The musical, which Ingrid composed the music for, premieres at Chicago Shakespeare Theater on September 6.

Speaking of musicals, Sara Bareilles is officially on Broadway for Into The Woods. The show’s Instagram celebrated its opening night, and Sara shared the post to her stories, writing, “Off to the woods we go…” The show runs for eight weeks only.

Shawn Mendes felt nostalgic on Wednesday and re-created the cover of his album Illuminate, which he released six years ago. “Back in time,” he captioned the post. Illuminate came out September 23, 2016.

Joe Jonas has launched his own line of fizzy sangria, called Ohza. Joe told Forbes, “It is the first canned ‘sparkling’ sangria on the market, so I’m looking forward to getting it out there.” He hopes to take on those spiked seltzers that are uber popular right now. The sangria is made from Joe’s own “secret recipe.”

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Grateful Dead bassist Phil Lesh taking part in new edition of Rock Fantasy Camp

Grateful Dead bassist Phil Lesh taking part in new edition of Rock Fantasy Camp
Grateful Dead bassist Phil Lesh taking part in new edition of Rock Fantasy Camp
Mickey Bernal/Getty Images

A new jam band-theme edition of Rock ‘n’ Roll Fantasy Camp that will give attendees the once-in-a-lifetime chance to jam with founding Grateful Dead bassist Phil Lesh is scheduled to take place October 27 to October 30 in New York City.

The Relix Rock Camp event will feature four days of jamming, mentoring sessions, master classes, Q&A events and more, culminating with campers getting to play a concert in front of family and friends at New York venue The Cutting Room.

In addition to getting to jam with Lesh at a private studio, attendees will interact and play with a variety of other talented artists. They include acclaimed jazz guitarist John Scofield, slide-guitar whiz Robert Randolph, one-time Ted Nugent singer/guitarist Derek St. Holmes, Little Feat/ex-Gregg Allman Band guitarist Scott Sharrard, Little Feat drummer Tony Leone and former Hot Tuna guitarist Michael Falzarano.

A variety of packages for the Relix Rock Camp are available, including one that offers campers a full-day session at a recording studio overseen by veteran producer Jesse Lauter.

For full details about Relix Rock Camp and to book a package, visit RockCamp.com.

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New York governor to unveil new gun legislation in response to Supreme Court ruling

New York governor to unveil new gun legislation in response to Supreme Court ruling
New York governor to unveil new gun legislation in response to Supreme Court ruling
Spencer Platt/Getty Images, FILE

(ALBANY, N.Y.) — New York Gov. Kathy Hochul on Wednesday detailed what is in gun safety legislation she will propose during a special state legislative session scheduled for Thursday.Hochul is set to propose a slew of ideas in response to last week’s Supreme Court decision to strike down a state law that had limited the concealed carry of handguns in public to people who had “proper cause.”

“There’s more to do, this is a nationwide crisis. Too many lives are being lost here in New York, but I will not rest, as the governor of this state, until we have done everything in our power to end this gun epidemic once and for all,” Hochul said.

The legislation will define a number of “sensitive locations” where people will not be allowed to carry concealed guns, Hochul said.

Those locations include: federal, state, local government buildings; health and medical facilities; places where children gather like daycares, parks, zoos and playgrounds; public transportation like subways and buses; polling places; and educational institutions, Hochul said.

If the proposed bill is signed into law, all private businesses will be classified as “no open carry” areas by default, unless business owners post signage indicating that people are allowed to carry concealed weapons, Hochul said.

Hochul’s proposed legislation will also strengthen the list of disqualifying criteria, banning those with a history of dangerous behavior from being able to get a permit.

The laws will also add a vehicle requirement to existing safe storage laws, requiring gun owners to lock up their guns when they are traveling to cut down on gun thefts from cars.

Gun owners with children in their homes aged 18 or younger will have to get safe storage for their guns, keeping them locked up.

The laws will improve information sharing for state police background checks, Hochul said.

Gun owners will also be required to get over 15 hours of in-person training to receive a concealed carry permit, Hochul said.

Hochul said the laws will require a background check for all purchases of ammunition for guns that need a permit. Gun owners will have to show their permit at the time of purchase.

The special legislative session comes over a month after a gunman killed 10 Black people at a supermarket in Buffalo, New York, in an allegedly racially motivated attack.

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3.5 magnitude earthquake strikes South Carolina

3.5 magnitude earthquake strikes South Carolina
3.5 magnitude earthquake strikes South Carolina
Nine OK/Getty Images

(ELGIN, S.C.) — A 3.5 magnitude earthquake struck near Elgin, South Carolina, on Wednesday, the U.S. Geological Survey confirmed.

The latest quake comes after a 3.4 earthquake hit the area, 6.4 miles from Elgin, on Sunday.

More than 3,000 people reported feeling Wednesday’s quake, according to USGS. Due to the shallow nature of the earthquake, it could be felt in a wider area, the agency said.

South Carolina has been the site of a few earthquakes already this year.

In May, a 3.3 magnitude earthquake struck Columbia and was felt in Charlotte, North Carolina, and Augusta, Georgia, according to ABC News affiliate WPDE in Florence, South Carolina.

Elgin is 25 miles from Columbia.

While other states, such as California, often draw more attention for having earthquakes, South Carolina experiences between 10 and 15 earthquakes a year, the South Carolina Emergency Management Division said.

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Jamie Foxx, Tom Brady get Cameron Diaz to “unretire” for Netflix film ‘Back In Action’

Jamie Foxx, Tom Brady get Cameron Diaz to “unretire” for Netflix film ‘Back In Action’
Jamie Foxx, Tom Brady get Cameron Diaz to “unretire” for Netflix film ‘Back In Action’
Toni Anne Barson/FilmMagic; NBC/Mary Ellen Matthews

After reportedly retiring from Hollywood, Cameron Diaz is Back In Action, literally.

Jamie Foxx tapped an expert on “unretiring,” NFL legend Tom Brady, to help him convince the actress to co-star in a Netflix action comedy called Back In Action.

“Had to call in the GOAT to bring back another GOAT,” Foxx captioned the audio conversation posted on Instagram.

Asking his Annie co-star if he could add another caller to the phone call who can “help her through” her nerves about jumping back into the movie game, Diaz agreed.

“I was talking to Jamie, and he said you needed a few tips on how to unretire, and I am relatively successful at unretiring,” said Brady, who recently decided to rejoin the Tampa Bay Buccaneers following an announcement he was hanging up his jersey.

“Honestly, exactly what I need,” Diaz giggled.

Back In Action gets underway next year, Oscar winner Foxx explained to his Instagram followers.

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Ne-Yo says the pandemic shut down his creativity: “I wasn’t inspired to write because I was just terrified”

Ne-Yo says the pandemic shut down his creativity: “I wasn’t inspired to write because I was just terrified”
Ne-Yo says the pandemic shut down his creativity: “I wasn’t inspired to write because I was just terrified”
Rodin Eckenroth/FilmMagic

Ne-Yo is preparing to drop his eighth studio album, titled Self-Explanatory, on July 15, four years after Good Man. The three-time Grammy winner says a major reason his new project was delayed was the pandemic.

“I wasn’t inspired at all, no,” he tells Haute Living magazine. “I gained a little weight, weight that I’m still blaming on the quarantine and still trying to get off. I was three years vegan when COVID started, but I had to let go of that because I was like, ‘Listen, if I’m going to die tomorrow, I’m going to have a burger. Sorry, but leave me alone.’”

“I wasn’t inspired to write because I was just terrified,” Ne-Yo continues. “What’s going to happen to me, to my kids? I was in a dark place.”

The singer/composer/producer also says his six-year marriage was in trouble.

“My wife, Crystal Williams, and I weren’t in the best place, either,” Ne-Yo confides.

The “Sexy Love” singer says the pandemic caused them to confront and solve their differences. “We were forced to sit in each other’s faces and talk about things we wouldn’t have talked about otherwise, and really and truly figure out a way to navigate ourselves back to what it is we wanted to be together as a couple,” the 42-year-old entertainer says.

Ne-Yo is celebrating the Independence Day weekend by hosting a party Saturday for the Essence Festival in New Orleans, then performing Sunday at Drai’s Nightclub in Las Vegas.

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Mystery remains over deaths of 21 teenagers at South African nightclub

Mystery remains over deaths of 21 teenagers at South African nightclub
Mystery remains over deaths of 21 teenagers at South African nightclub
Peng Song/Getty Images

(LONDON and PRETORIA) — The mysterious deaths of 21 teenagers at a popular nightclub in South Africa has swirled speculation and left many unanswered questions.

The incident remains under investigation by South African authorities. Here’s what we know so far.

A grim scene

The South African Police Service said its officers were called to the Enyobeni Tavern in Scenery Park, a suburb on the edge of East London in Eastern Cape province, on Sunday morning at around 4 a.m. local time. Upon arrival, they discovered 17 teens dead inside the club. Four more died when they were hospitalized or being transported to hospitals.

Initial reports stated the death toll was 22.

The youngest victim was 13, according to police.

The local government, the Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipality, has offered burial assistance to the victims’ families. A mass funeral will be held next Wednesday.

Unclear circumstances

The circumstances surrounding the incident were unclear but are being investigated.

“We do not want to make any speculation at this stage as our investigations are continuing,” Brig. Tembinkosi Kinana, a spokesperson for the South African Police Service, told ABC News on Sunday.

The Daily Dispatch, a South African newspaper published in East London, reported that the teens were attending a party at the Enyobeni Tavern to celebrate the end of June school exams. Their bodies were reportedly found strewn across tables, chairs and the dance floor with no visible signs of injuries.

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa released a statement on Sunday expressing concern “about the reported circumstances under which such young people were gathered at a venue which, on the face of it, should be off limits to persons under the age of 18.”

Unknown causes

The causes of deaths have yet to be established.

Siyanda Manana, a spokesperson for the Eastern Cape Department of Health, told ABC News on Tuesday that the autopsies were completed and toxicology reports were pending. Of the 21 bodies, 19 have been identified while the other two — both boys — were still unidentified in the local mortuary, according to Manana.

The Daily Dispatch reported that there were rumors the teens died in a stampede after security guards at the Enyobeni Tavern discharged tear gas or pepper spray in an attempt to disperse patrons. But that theory has reportedly been ruled out.

News24, a South African online news publication, reported that carbon monoxide poisoning has emerged as a possible cause of death, citing “sources close to the probe.” Kinana, the police spokesperson, would not confirm the claim, telling ABC News on Wednesday: “The investigation into the incident is still ongoing. No report has been given out in this regard.”

Meanwhile, the South African Police Service’s commissioner for Eastern Cape province, Lt. Gen. Nomthetheleli Mene, released a statement on Wednesday expressing concern “about circulating rumours and media reports speculating on the cause of death.”

“As indicated earlier, at an appropriate time and when an official report has been made available by the experts, the family and members of the public will be informed by the relevant authority,” Mene said. “We urge people to refrain from making risky assumptions which do not assist our investigations.”

No suspects or arrests

No suspects have been named in connection with the investigation.

Kinana told ABC News on Tuesday that no arrests have been made.

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