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Former ABC News Anchor Suggests Replacement For Ousted National Security Official

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By The White House - https://www.flickr.com/photos/202101414@N05/54325633746/, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=159707159

Former ABC News journalist Mark Halperin suggested a replacement for President Trump’s National Security Council after Thursday’s shakeup.

Halperin said Trump special envoy Steve Witkoff was Waltz’s likely replacement.

Trump administration National Security Advisor Mike Waltz and other staffers are out at the National Security Council, sources confirmed to Fox News.

Watch:

Fox News confirmed Waltz and his deputy Alex Wong were purged Thursday. 

Waltz, who previously served as a Florida congressman, has come under fire from Democrats and critics since March, when the Atlantic magazine’s editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg published a firsthand account of getting added to a Signal group chat with top national security leaders, including Waltz, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and CIA Director John Ratcliffe, while they discussed strikes against Yemen terrorists. 

Waltz took responsibility for the inclusion of a journalist in the group chat in April, telling Fox News’ Laura Ingraham: “I take full responsibility. I built the group. … It’s embarrassing. We’re going to get to the bottom of it.”

Alex Wong served as Waltz’s principal deputy national security advisor, who was detailed in the Signal chat leak earlier this year as the staffer charged with “pulling together a tiger team” in Waltz’s initial message sent to the Signal group chat in March, the Atlantic reported at the time. 

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told Fox News Digital earlier Monday when asked about reports claiming Waltz and other would be shown the door: “We are not going to respond to reporting from anonymous sources.”

President Donald Trump held a meeting with members of his Cabinet Wednesday, following his 100th day back in office on Tuesday, with Waltz attending the meeting. 

Trump Fined In Civil Fraud Trial

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Gavel via Wikimedia Commons Image

Former President Trump was fined $10,000 for violating the gag order in his $250 million New York business fraud trial.

Manhattan Supreme Court Judge Arthur Engoron ordered Trump to the witness stand and questioned him about comments he made outside of the courtroom.

The surprise calling of Trump to the witness stand came amid the second day of testimony from Michael Cohen, Trump’s former attorney and fixer, who faced a barrage of attacks about his credibility as a witness.

CNBC has more:

Trump doubled down Wednesday during a mid-morning break, saying Cohen “went to jail for lying” and branding him “a totally discredited witness.”

Trump, who stared down Cohen in court on Tuesday, repeatedly attacked his former lawyer in between the proceedings. He called Cohen a “proven liar,” a “felon” and a “disgrace” outside the courtroom.

He launched more attacks on social media, writing Tuesday evening that Cohen “was a complete and total disaster” in the trial.

“Lie after lie, and getting caught each time,” claimed Trump.

New York Attorney General Letitia James’ civil case accuses Trump, his two adult sons, the Trump Organization and top executives of falsely inflating the values of Trump’s real estate properties and other assets in order to get tax benefits and better loan terms.

James seeks around $250 million in damages, and she wants to bar Trump and his co-defendants from running another business in New Yo

This is a breaking news story. Click refresh for the latest updates.

Senator Leaves Democrat Party, Registers As Independent

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West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin has announced his departure from the Democrat Party and has registered as an Independent.

In a statement, Manchin, who is not running for re-election, said he switched his party affiliation at the West Virginia State Capitol. 

“From my first day in public service in 1982, I have always focused on doing what’s best for my state and my country, without regard to party or politics. Throughout my days in elected office, I have always been proud of my commitment to common sense, bipartisanship and my desire to bring people together. It’s who I am. It’s who I will always be. I have never seen America through a partisan lens,” Manchin said. 

“However, since becoming a United States Senator in 2010, I have seen both the Democrat and Republican parties leave West Virginia and our country behind for partisan extremism while jeopardizing our democracy. Today, our national politics are broken and neither party is willing to compromise to find common ground. To stay true to myself and remain committed to put country before party, I have decided to register as an independent with no party affiliation and continue to fight for America’s sensible majority.”

“My commitment to do everything I can to bring our country together has led me to register as an independent with no party affiliation,” Manchin wrote on X.

In a statement Friday, Manchin said partisanship on both sides has jeopardized democracy.

“To stay true to myself and remain committed to put country before party, I have decided to register as an independent with no party affiliation and continue to fight for America’s sensible majority,” he said.

This is a breaking news story. Please check back for updates.

NYC Mayor Ditches Democrats – Announces Re-election Bid As An Independent

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via Wikimedia Commons

Shaking things up…

New York City Mayor Eric Adams announced his re-election campaign but with a big caveat: he’s running as an Independent.

Adams told Politico on Monday that he wants to “mount a real independent campaign,” saying that the federal bribery charges, which have been dismissed, “handcuffed him.” The New York City Mayor said he’d be “uninhibited” while campaigning.

“I’m in the race to the end. I’m not running on the Democratic line. It’s just not realistic to turn around my numbers and to run a good campaign (from) where we are right now,” Adams said. “It hurts like hell.”

Adams faces an uphill battle in his re-election campaign. Former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced on March 1 that he’d be running for New York City mayor.

U.S. District Judge Dale E. Ho on Wednesday dismissed federal charges against Adams, which alleged he used his position to receive luxury travel and illegal campaign contributions from Turkish foreign nationals.

Adams has maintained his innocence and argued that the case was politically motivated by his criticism of the Biden administration’s immigration policy. 

Quinnipac University survey that was conducted just before and just after Cuomo announced his run for mayor found the former governor enjoying 31% support among New York City Democrats, while Adams garnered 11%.

During the interview, the incumbent New York City Mayor slammed Cuomo for signing bail reform measures into law which he says led to a rise in crime during the coronavirus era.

“Look at bail reform — that’s Andrew,” Adams said. “He can’t say, ‘I’m going to save the city from the far left’ when he surrendered to the far left.”

Adams told the outlet that he would submit the required 3,750 signatures on May 27, which would put him on the ballot for November’s election.

“Now I need this runway until November to redefine and remind people: This is why you elected me in the first place,” Adams said.

Florida Judge Responds to Trump Team Request

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Gavel via Wikimedia Commons Image

Florida Judge Aileen Cannon declined to issue a ruling after hearing arguments from Donald Trump and the Department of Justice regarding whether a special master should be appointed to independently review the documents recovered in the FBI’s August 8 raid of Mar-a-Lago.

The Hill reported that Judge Cannon said a written ruling will come “in due course.”

On Sunday, Judge Cannon said she was inclined to grant Trump’s request for a special master to independently review the seized materials due to the “exceptional circumstances presented” by the events at Mar-a-Lago.

Cannon’s remarks triggered a harsh response from the Department of Justice in a Wednesday filing. In the filing, the DOJ picked apart Trump’s request a special master be appointed, calling the move “unnecessary” and even released photos of the recovered documents. (RELATED: Justice Department Responds to Trump’s Special Master Request)

“Furthermore, appointment of a special master would impede the government’s ongoing criminal investigation and—if the special master were tasked with reviewing classified documents—would impede the Intelligence Community from conducting its ongoing review of the national security risk that improper storage of these highly sensitive materials may have caused and from identifying measures to rectify or mitigate any damage that improper storage caused,” the filing said. “Lastly, this case does not involve any of the types of circumstances that have warranted appointment of a special master to review materials potentially subject to attorney-client privilege.” 

The DOJ also criticized Trump’s claim that the seized materials were protected by executive privilege.

“The former President cites no case—and the government is aware of none—in which executive privilege has been successfully invoked to prohibit the sharing of documents within the Executive Branch,” it said. 

Wednesday night, Trump’s legal team filed a last-minute response to the DOJ. Throughout the filing, Trump’s team argues the National Archives should have expected to find classified material among the documents Trump delivered in January from Mar-a-Lago because they were presidential records. This serves as a definite acknowledgment from Trump that he was in possession of classified material and also torpedoed his previous argument he “declassified everything.”

Read the late-night filing from Trump below.

Report: Hunter Biden To Plead Guilty To Tax, Gun Crimes

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President Joe Biden hugs his family during the 59th Presidential Inauguration ceremony in Washington, Jan. 20, 2021. President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris took the oath of office on the West Front of the U.S. Capitol. (DOD Photo by Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Carlos M. Vazquez II)

President Joe Biden’s son Hunter has reportedly reached a plea agreement in the federal investigation into tax-related issues.

Hunter is expected to plead guilty to two federal misdemeanor counts of failing to pay his taxes.

On Tuesday, two sources familiar with the agreement told NBC News that it includes a provision in which the U.S. attorney has agreed to recommend probation for Biden for his tax violations.

Chris Clark, attorney for Hunter Biden, told NBC News in a statement: “With the announcement of two agreements between my client, Hunter Biden, and the Unites States Attorney’s Office for the District of Delaware, it is my understanding that the five-year investigation into Hunter is resolved.

“Hunter will take responsibility for two instances of misdemeanor failure to file tax payments when due pursuant to a plea agreement. A firearm charge, which will be subject to a pretrial diversion agreement and will not be the subject of the plea agreement, will also be filed by the Government. I know Hunter believes it is important to take responsibility for these mistakes he made during a period of turmoil and addiction in his life. He looks forward to continuing his recovery and moving forward.”

Biden is also facing a separate gun possession charge that will likely be dismissed if he meets certain conditions, according to court documents filed on Tuesday.

Hillary Clinton Warns Trump Will Withdraw from NATO

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Hillary Clinton via Gage Skidmore Flickr

Former Democrat presidential candidate and avid Trump critic Hillary Clinton warned that if elected Donald Trump will make good on his threat to withdraw the U.S. from NATO.

Over the weekend, Clinton made the claim during remarks at the Munich Security Conference in Germany, telling U.S. allies that they should take Trump’s claims to heart after the former president warned NATO countries to contribute their fair share.

“We have a long struggle ahead of us, and the obvious point to make about Donald Trump is take him literally and seriously,” she said. “He means what he says. People did not take him literally and seriously in 2016. Now he is telling us what he intends to do, and people who try to wish it away, brush it away, are living in an alternative reality.”

“He will do everything he can to become an absolute authoritarian leader if given the opportunity to do so. And he will pull us out of NATO even though the Congress passed a resolution saying that he couldn’t without congressional support, because he will just not fund our obligations,” she said.

Clinton seemed to direct her message to NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, who has brushed off Trump’s recent comments.

The Republican presidential frontrunner has repeatedly claimed that member countries should not receive protection if they do not pay their share toward NATO’s budget.

“The whole idea of NATO is that an attack on one ally will trigger a response from the whole alliance and as long as we stand behind that message together, we prevent any military attack on any ally,” Stoltenberg said.

“Any suggestion that we are not standing up for each other, that we are not going to protect each other, that does undermine the security of all of us.”

According to Fox News, the NATO chief announced that 18 of the alliance’s 31 members are on track to meet their pledges of contributing 2% of GDP to the group. European states are on track to contribute $380 billion this year, and Germany will meet its 2% pledge for the first time since the Cold War.

Guatemalan Officials Blame Biden for Border Crisis, Warn of Migrant Caravans Heading for Border Ahead of Midterms

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Joe Biden via Gage Skidmore Flickr

Top Guatemalan officials are calling on President Joe Biden to reinforce the border before it’s too late.

Guatemalan President Alejandro Giammattei accused Biden of rejecting his country’s proposal to help end the crisis at the border.

According to The Washington Examiner, President Giammattei said he approached Administration officials with a plan for the United States to deport people heading north from Guatemala before they reach the U.S.-Mexico border but was rejected. Biden tapped Vice President Kamala Harris to handle efforts to secure the border but she has largely seemed to ignore the role and has notably never visited the border.

“Having all of these people in the United States costs the U.S. government millions and millions of dollars. We have suggested that they should keep the airplanes here, so that we ourselves can deport them back to their countries of origin, be it Haiti or be it whatever the country,” Giammattei said in an interview in Guatemala City. “Otherwise, why wait until the people reach U.S. soil to then spend millions and millions of dollars to then send them back?”

Guatemala is only returning Honduran citizens south of its border, but Giammattei is willing to fly or bus people back to other countries. The move could deter others from making the journey through Guatemala to the U.S., knowing that they would be returned.

Giammattei said the U.S. turned down his idea of allowing Guatemala to use American planes to return people to their countries of origin on the basis that the “laws don’t allow it.”

The U.S. has a history of donating vehicles and resources to the country. Just last week, the U.S. gave Guatemala 95 vehicles to boost its border security.

Since President Biden took office nearly 4 million people have been encountered attempting to enter the U.S. illegally, a record-shattering number that doesn’t include the number of migrants that managed to evade arrest.

However, despite the record-breaking number of migrants flooding the border the Biden administration seems to lack any urgency to address the ongoing crisis. With less than two weeks until Election Day, Guatemalan Interior Minister Napoleon Barrientos is sounding the alarm on a rapid influx of migrant caravan planning to flood the border before the Midterms.

During an interview with The Daily Caller News Foundation, Barrientos shared that an uptick in caravans are making their way to the border now out of anticipation that Republicans will retake Congress and tighten restrictions at the border.

“We have information that caravans will be coming in the next few weeks, particularly before the date of November 8. So we’re doing operations in our borders to stop the flow migration,” Barrientos said.

“The information that these migrant caravans have is that after that date, policies will be hardened,” he said.

In preparation of the caravans’ arrivals, Guatemala is staging military drills with its partners in Mexico, Barrientos explained. But the country hasn’t had as much luck at its southern border with Honduras, where illegal migrants continue to cross and where bi-lateral cooperation has been difficult.

“For that reason, Guatemala plans different actions, up until that date, to keep our borders secure, and to stop irregular migration,” he said.

Report: Biden Selling Off Border Wall Parts Before Trump Takes Office

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Construction continues on new border wall system project near Yuma, AZ. Recently constructed border wall near Yuma, Arizona on June 3, 2020. CBP photo by Jerry Glaser.

The Biden administration will do anything to keep the border open…

According to an investigation by The Daily Wire, the Biden administration is reportedly attempting to delay construction of the Southern border wall by hauling a massive amount of border wall materials away to be sold off in a government auction.

Videos obtained exclusively by The Daily Wire from a U.S. Customs and Border Patrol agent show unused sections of the wall being hauled away on the back of flatbed trucks from a section of the border just south of Tucson, a hotspot for illegal crossings during the Biden administration.

The agent estimates that up to half a mile per day of unused border wall is being moved.

“They are taking it from three stations: Nogales, Tucson, and Three Points,” the border patrol agent, who was granted anonymity to speak freely, told The Daily Wire. “The goal is to move all of it off the border before Christmas.”

Watch:

The Daily Wire reports:

The government contractor, DP Trucking LLC, is transporting the pieces of the wall north on Interstate 19 to Pinal Airpark in Marana, Arizona, where it is being auctioned through GovPlanet, a surplus government equipment auction marketplace.

“They just started taking all the wall that was not used, which is still totally good and usable, and they started taking it northbound,” the agent said. “They’re pulling it all off the border.”

Harold Lambeth, the owner of the trucking company, confirmed to The Daily Wire in a phone call that his company is transporting the unused border wall sections north away from the construction sites. He said he is unable to disclose further information about the work.

The auction website shows that sales occurred as recently as December 4 for the same types of materials being taken off the border. GovPlanet has online auctions set for Dec. 11 and Dec. 18 for more of the border wall material, which is listed on the company’s website as “32.91’ X 7.91’ Steel Bollard Wall Sections w/Grout.”

The bidding for each section of wall panels is set to begin at only $5.00, according to the website.

Trump is expected to use an executive order to unlock funds to restart construction of the border wall potentially on day one of his presidency.

Arizona Rep. Eli Crane (R), called the last-minute fire sale by the Biden administration is “a direct affront to the will of the people.”

“The American people gave President Trump a mandate in November, which included the fulfillment of his plans to secure the border,” Crane said. “Any last-ditch attempt to obstruct this mandate by the Biden Administration would be a direct affront to the will of the people.”

Read It: Cannon Permits Release Of Special Counsel Report On Trump Election Interference

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This article has been updated.

On Monday, U.S. District Court Judge Aileen Cannon allowed the release of the volume of special counsel Jack Smith’s report dealing with President-elect Trump’s efforts to block the peaceful transfer of power.

The Hill reports:

In a five-page ruling, Cannon denied an effort by Trump and his two co-defendants in the Mar-a-Lago documents case to block the release of both volumes of the report, noting that prosecutors argued the election inference report has little to do with the ongoing trial against the two men.

“Based on these representations, the Court sees an insufficient basis to grant emergency injunctive relief as to Volume I,” Cannon wrote.

However, Cannon ordered a Jan. 17 hearing on whether to release the Mar-a-Lago report, something Attorney General Merrick Garland said he planned to keep sealed from the public given the ongoing prosecution into valet Walt Nauta and property manager Carlos de Oliveira.

Read the full report below: