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Robert Menendez: US senator vows he will be cleared in bribery case
Robert Menendez: US senator vows he will be cleared in bribery case
The Democratic senator says he kept nearly half a million dollars in cash at home for "emergencies".
2023-09-26 01:57
How two US senators ended up in the crosshairs of a Georgia grand jury
How two US senators ended up in the crosshairs of a Georgia grand jury
Several current and former elected officials – including Georgia’s two former Republican senators – are on a list of prominent Donald Trump allies who narrowly avoided criminal charges in the state’s sweeping racketeering case against him. The unsealed report from a special purpose grand jury tasked with investigating Trumpworld attempts to overturn the state’s 2020 election results revealed a much wider picture of the subsequent criminal case against the former president and his 18 co-defendants. That report – the product of an eight-month investigation separate from an Atlanta grand jury’s indictment – revealed that grand jurors recommend criminal charges against 39 people for nearly 160 counts of violations against more than a dozen state laws. The list includes Georgia’s two former Republican US senators David Perdue and Kelly Loeffler, but neither of them were charged by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis in a sweeping racketeering indictment. How did Mr Perdue and Ms Loeffler – who were sitting members of Congress during the time of the alleged crimes – end up in the crosshairs of the sprawling investigation? Mr Perdue was first elected to office in 2014 and lost his bid for re-election in a closely watched runoff against Democratic candidate Jon Ossoff in the smoldering aftermath of the 2020 election. Ms Loeffler – who was appointed to the seat in 2019 following the retirement of her predecessor – lost a runoff election to Democratic candidate Raphael Warnock. Following Mr Trump’s election loss, all eyes were on Georgia for two races that would determine the balance of party power in Congress – high-stakes elections in which the GOP campaigns were intertwined with Mr Trump’s spurious attempts to claim victory in a state he decisively lost. On the campaign trail leading up to the runoff election day on 5 January, 2021, both candidates promoted their Trump links, refused to acknowledge Joe Biden’s victory, and called for the resignation of Georgia’s Republican Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, who was baselessly accused of election “failures” following Mr Trump’s loss in the state. One week after the 2020 election, Governor Brian Kemp issued a joint statement with Lt Governor Geoff Duncan and the state’s House Speaker David Ralston – all Republicans – declaring that any effort to reverse the results through the legislature would lead to “endless litigation.” At a fundraiser on 3 December 2020, Mr Perdue urged the governor to summon lawmakers back to the state Capitol for a special session to overturn Mr Trump’s loss. Two days later, then-President Trump called on Mr Kemp to order a special legislative session among state lawmakers to invalidate the election’s outcome. Mr Kemp refused. At a Georgia rally for the senate candidates that night, Mr Trump baselessly alleged the outcome was manipulated and stolen from him. The governor said that Mr Trump asked him to order an audit of signatures on mail-in ballot envelopes; audits and full hand recounts of the state’s election results repeatedly confirmed Mr Biden’s victory, which also was affirmed and defended by the state’s Republican election officials. “Your people are refusing to do what you ask,” Mr Trump said on Twitter at the time, addressing Mr Kemp. “What are they hiding? At least immediately ask for a Special Session of the Legislature. That you can easily, and immediately, do.” Mr Perdue allegedly spoke daily with Mr Trump before the special election, listening to him unload his gripes, frustrations and bogus allegations surrounding Georgia’s election results and Mr Raffensperger’s refusals to engage Mr Trump. On 2 January, 2021, Mr Trump spoke with Mr Raffensperger on an hour-long conference call in which then-President Trump urged Georgia’s top elections official to “find” enough votes to overturn his loss. That call is central to the indictment facing Mr Trump and his co-defendants in Georgia, as well as a separate indictment from the US Department of Justice surrounding the former president’s attempts to subvert the election’s outcome. Mr Perdue’s term in Congress ended the next day, leaving his seat vacant three days before Congress convened to certify the presidential election results. “Senator Perdue still owes my wife an apology for all the death threats she got after he asked for my resignation,” Mr Raffensperger told Fox News at the time. “I have not heard one peep from that man since. If he wants to call me, face-to-face, man-to-man, I’ll talk to him, off the record, but he hasn’t done that.” Ms Loeffler initially supported efforts among GOP lawmakers to reject the election’s outcome during the joint session of Congress on 6 January, 2021, but she reversed her decision after a mob of then-President Trump’s supporters broke into the US Capitol and stormed the halls in an effort to stop the certification of Mr Biden’s victory. The special grand jury report indicates that then-Senator Perdue was involved with the “persistent, repeated communications directed to multiple Georgia officials and employees” between November 2020 and January 2021. Sixteen jurors voted to indict him on a charge of filing false documents, with one juror voting against and one abstaining. The special grand jury also implicated Mr Perdue and Ms Loeffler under Georgia’s Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act and the national scheme to overturn 2020 election results, “focused on efforts in Georgia, Arizona, Wisconsin, Michigan, Pennsylvania” and Washington DC, according to the report. Seventeen jurors voted to support a RICO indictment against Mr Perdue, with four jurors voting against charges. In the case of Ms Loeffler, 14 jurors supported the charge, while six voted against and one abstained. A footnote in the report notes that one of the dissenting jurors voting against recommending indictments against the senators on the RICO charge “believes that their statements following the November 2020 election, while pandering to their political base, do not give rise to their being guilty of a criminal conspiracy.” In a statement following the release of the special grand jury report, Ms Loeffler said she was “giving voice to millions of Americans who felt disenfranchised in 2020” and that she would not be “intimidated by a two-tiered system of justice that seeks to systematically destroy conservatives across this country.” In 2022, Mr Perdue was enlisted and endorsed by Mr Trump to run for governor of the state against incumbent Mr Kemp. Mr Perdue lost that race as well. Read More Trump’s access to classified documents restricted by Mar-a-Lago case judge in lead up to trial – live Trump waives right to speedy trial as Georgia prosecutor seeks to try him with 18 others next month How did Lindsey Graham, Michael Flynn and others dodge charges in Fulton County indictment? Trump could face an extensive list of trials next year. Here are all the court dates
2023-09-14 03:50
US military wins 'unimpeded' access to Papua New Guinea bases
US military wins 'unimpeded' access to Papua New Guinea bases
The US military can develop and operate out of bases in Papua New Guinea, according to a landmark security pact underpinning Washington's efforts to outflank...
2023-06-15 16:16
Iran accuses Israel of supplying potentially exploding parts for ballistic missile program
Iran accuses Israel of supplying potentially exploding parts for ballistic missile program
Iran has accused Israel of trying to sabotage its ballistic missile program through faulty foreign parts that could explode, damaging or destroying the weapons before they could be used
2023-08-31 22:15
Who is the creator of 'Swiftball'? Fantasy football-style game takes Taylor Swift fans by storm
Who is the creator of 'Swiftball'? Fantasy football-style game takes Taylor Swift fans by storm
'Swiftball' engages Swifties from around the world in a friendly competition revolving around Taylor Swift's ongoing The Eras Tour, which began in March
2023-08-13 21:26
Russia Latest: Wagner Leader Prigozhin Vows He Won’t Surrender
Russia Latest: Wagner Leader Prigozhin Vows He Won’t Surrender
President Vladimir Putin said Russia was facing “treachery” as Wagner militia group leader Yevgeny Prigozhin started an “attempt
2023-06-24 20:53
Hawaii's rumbling Kīlauea volcano produces over 320 earthquakes in 24 hours, officials say
Hawaii's rumbling Kīlauea volcano produces over 320 earthquakes in 24 hours, officials say
Increased seismic activity from one of Hawaii's -- and Earth's -- most active volcanoes led to roughly 320 earthquakes in 24 hours, according to the United States Geological Survey's Hawaiian Volcano Observatory.
2023-10-07 08:22
'The most gorgeous brides': Robin Roberts and Amber Laign's breathtaking wedding snaps leave fans gasping for breath
'The most gorgeous brides': Robin Roberts and Amber Laign's breathtaking wedding snaps leave fans gasping for breath
'GMA' host Robin Roberts and Amber Laign who dated for over two decades tied the knot on September 8 in an intimate wedding ceremony
2023-09-11 11:29
Ron DeSantis news – live: Florida governor slams NAACP ‘stunt’ travel advisory as 2024 campaign launch nears
Ron DeSantis news – live: Florida governor slams NAACP ‘stunt’ travel advisory as 2024 campaign launch nears
Ron DeSantis is expected to officially enter the 2024 presidential race this week following months of speculation. The Florida governor is tipped to file formal paperwork with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) on Thursday 25 May, coinciding with his candidacy declaration after a donor meeting in Miami, Reuters reported last week. This comes just days after the NAACP issued an advisory warning travelers that Florida is “openly hostile” towards Black people, people of colour and LGBT+ people following a series of laws implemented by the governor in recent months. Mr DeSantis, 44, is seen as Donald Trump’s biggest rival for the Republican vote and has been expected to throw his hat into the ring for some time. Following the GOP party’s disappoining midterms – where the “red wave” failed to appear and Mr Trump-endorsed candidates fell flat – several Republican lawmakers and right-wing media have rallied behind Mr DeSantis. However, the latest polls show Mr DeSantis trailing Mr Trump, with the RealClearPolitics polling average giving the former president a 36-point lead. Mr DeSantis will join an already crowded race, with Nikki Haley, Asa Hutchinson, Vivek Ramaswamy, Larry Elder and Tim Scott already announcing bids. Read More College student who tracked Elon Musk’s private jet is now following Ron DeSantis Who is Casey DeSantis? What we know about Florida governor Ron’s wife who could become America’s first lady DeSantis responds to NAACP call for tourists to boycott Florida
2023-05-23 13:58
Maine shooting manhunt: River trawled in search for suspect
Maine shooting manhunt: River trawled in search for suspect
Investigators have reportedly found a suicide note from the suspect addressed to his son.
2023-10-28 02:28
Violent crime is rising in the nation's capital. DC seeks solutions as Congress keeps close watch
Violent crime is rising in the nation's capital. DC seeks solutions as Congress keeps close watch
Veteran law enforcer Pamela Smith is taking over as police chief in the nation's capital at a precarious time
2023-07-29 22:24
Novarc Technologies Completes Series A Fundraising Round With Caterpillar Venture Capital
Novarc Technologies Completes Series A Fundraising Round With Caterpillar Venture Capital
VANCOUVER, British Columbia--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug 14, 2023--
2023-08-14 21:20