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Ex-Clinton Adviser: ABC Must Probe If Debate Was Rigged
A former advisor to both Bill and Hillary Clinton has urged ABC to conduct an internal investigation to determine if its news division tried to sway Tuesday’s presidential debate in favor of Vice President Kamala Harris.
Mark Penn, who served as a pollster and senior advisor to the Clintons from 1995-2008 and co-chairs the Harvard CAPS/Harris Poll, expressed his concerns on the “John Solomon Reports” podcast on Thursday. He emphasized that “suspicion is really quite high” and advocated for an independent review of ABC’s internal communications to uncover whether there was an effort to manipulate the debate’s results.
“I actually think they should do a full internal investigation, hire an outside law firm. I don’t know how much of this was planned in advance,” Penn remarked, as reported by Just the News. “I don’t know what they told the Harris campaign.”
He further elaborated, “I think the day after, suspicion here is really quite high, and I think a review of all their internal texts and emails really should be done by an independent party to find out to what extent they were planning on, in effect, you know, fact-checking just one candidate and in effect, rigging the outcome of this debate. I think the situation demands nothing less than that.”
Penn, alongside Andrew Stein, a former president of the New York City Council, co-wrote an editorial for The Wall Street Journal on Thursday. They pointed out that it seemed as though ABC News moderators, David Muir and Linsey Davis, had pre-determined to fact-check only Trump, while allowing Harris’ claims to go unchallenged.
“[Harris] enlisted every charge ever leveled against Mr. Trump, regardless of the truth,” they wrote. “That included, to name a few, the false claims that he favors a national abortion ban and opposes in vitro fertilization, that he called neo-Nazis in Charlottesville, Va., ‘very fine people,’ and that he threatened a ‘bloodbath’ if he loses the election. Each is untrue: Mr. Trump has made clear he opposes a national abortion ban. He favors IVF and has even said the government should pay for it. He condemned the Charlottesville neo-Nazis. And he predicted a financial ‘bloodbath’ for the auto industry if he loses and the Biden-Harris electric-vehicle mandates progress.”
The editorial further stated, “Had the moderators turned to Ms. Harris after her lies and said, ‘That has been debunked,’ we might be having a totally different conversation about the debate, given how she tends to react when challenged. We would be saying she was having a good night until she couldn’t help herself and went too far. Mr. Trump would have been freed from having to spend so much time defending himself against false charges, and the country would have gotten to hear more of his plans for America.”
On the podcast, Penn, who is also president and managing partner of The Stagwell Group, suggested the Trump campaign should send a questionnaire to every voter that the American Civil Liberties Union had asked Harris to fill out during her time as a senator. In the questionnaire, Harris indicated support for gender surgeries for undocumented immigrants and defunding the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
“It’s a 50-50 race,” Penn explained, according to Just the News. “He’s [Trump] got more obvious tools to get across the finish line than she does, and part of the thing here is that if the referees have their finger on the scale, it’s harder to, you know, break through, and overcome. And certainly, general media coverage has been fairly laughable.”
{Matzav.com}
The US Is Preparing Criminal Charges In Iran Hack Targeting Trump, Sources Say
Man Wearing Palestinian Pin Shot In Stomach After Charging Pro-Israel Protesters In Newton, Massachusetts
Israeli Police Release Footage of Elite Yamam Unit Detaining Wanted Palestinian in West Bank Hospital
Sen. Blumenthal: Forthcoming Report On Trump Assassination Attempt “Will Absolutely Shock The American People”
Acting Secret Service Director Ronald Rowe addressed members of both the House and Senate in private meetings on Thursday to provide updates on the July 13 attempt to assassinate former President Trump during a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.
Rowe informed the legislators about the agency’s ongoing review of security failures that allowed a shooter to scale a nearby building and fire at Trump just minutes into his rally. This session served to detail the progress of the investigation into how the incident occurred.
Rep. Jason Crow, D-Colo., the lead Democrat on the Trump Assassination Task Force, spoke to Fox News Digital after the briefing, calling it “a very lengthy and very candid discussion.”
“They went over the… mistakes that happened on that day and what has been done to address them, as well as the limitations in resources the Secret Service has been facing this election cycle,” Crow explained, referring to Rowe’s session with lawmakers. “He outlined their internal report and gave us an update on their internal mission evaluation, which is now complete.”
It was previously reported that the Secret Service’s larger investigation into the security breach is nearing completion and will be made public soon.
Crow shared that Rowe informed lawmakers that he reviewed “everything from the choice of venue and security planning; coordination between local police and the campaign team; communication—or lack thereof, in some instances—between the Secret Service and local authorities; the perimeter security, lines of sight, and how the shooter was able to exploit gaps.”
Crow, who had visited the rally site himself, commented that “the perimeter itself was too tight… and the fact that the shooter was positioned on a rooftop more than a hundred yards away from where the former president was standing, outside the secured area, is a serious concern.”
The Task Force has plans to hold its first public hearing later this month, focusing on the role of local law enforcement.
Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., spoke to reporters, stating that a forthcoming report “will absolutely shock the American people about the lapses and delays in protection that day, as well as the breakdown in communication and failure of responsibility.”
Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wisc., also addressed reporters, saying, “What’s critical here is that this is a bipartisan issue.” He added, “We believe the American people deserve the full truth, and confidence will only come if the investigation remains completely nonpartisan.”
Meanwhile, several high-ranking Secret Service officials, who had planned to retire soon, are being urged to accelerate their departures to avoid the heightened scrutiny from Congress in the coming months.
Fox News has learned that multiple senior Secret Service officials connected to the security incident in Butler, Pennsylvania, are planning their retirement. While these individuals were already eligible to retire, they have been encouraged to expedite the process to avoid being drawn into extended congressional inquiries and investigations.
Additionally, the FBI is conducting a separate investigation into the shooter, which remains ongoing.
{Matzav.com}
BROTHERS IN BLOOD: Sinwar Sends Letter To Nasrallah Thanking Him For Hezbollah’s Support
North Korea What Unveils Secret Uranium Enrichment Facility As Kim Calls For More Nukes
House Report: China Able To Spy On US With Intelligence-Gathering Devices On Seaport Cranes
A congressional report has revealed that a Chinese company installed intelligence-gathering devices on cranes operating at ports across the United States, potentially enabling China to spy on American activities and disrupt critical infrastructure.
The findings, from the Republican-led House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party and the House Homeland Security Committee, highlight that the Shanghai-based, state-owned ZPMC engineering company had pushed for remote access to its cranes, particularly targeting ports on the West Coast.
“If granted, this access could potentially be extended to other [People’s Republic of China] government entities, posing a significant risk due to the PRC’s national security laws that mandate cooperation with state intelligence agencies,” states the report, which followed a yearlong investigation.
The equipment installed on the cranes includes cellular modems that were “not requested by US ports or included in contracts … [and] constitute a significant backdoor security vulnerability that undermines the integrity of port operations,” according to the report.
“These unknown modems were believed to be installed under the auspices of collecting usage data for the equipment,” the report explained, citing contracts and comments from port authorities. “These modems – although not necessary for the operation of the cranes – created an obscure method to collect information, and bypass firewalls in a manner that could potentially disrupt port operations.”
In response to these findings, the committees are urging the Department of Homeland Security to “immediately issue guidance to all US ports to disassemble any connections of ZPMC cranes to cellular modems or any other method of connection to ZPMC,” except where contractual obligations prevent such action.
ZPMC controls about 80% of the cargo cranes used in American ports, placing the US maritime industry in a precarious position of dependence on Chinese-made technology, including “ship-to-shore cranes, container handling equipment, and various other critical maritime infrastructure components,” the committees warned.
Concerns over Chinese-made infrastructure have been prevalent in national security circles for some time, though the issue has gained broader attention only in recent years.
“This [ZPMC] dominance has been achieved through a complex system of state support, including financing from state banks, direct subsidies, preferential borrowing rates, state-backed fundraising, and other nonmarket advantages,” the report noted, adding that currently “there are no domestic manufacturing alternatives” for cranes in the US.
In February, the Harris-Biden administration committed $20 billion to enhance the cybersecurity of maritime infrastructure, with the specific aim of addressing vulnerabilities in the software and hardware of ZPMC cranes, according to the report.
Additionally, the White House outlined a plan to “phase out Chinese-made port equipment and fully return crane making to the United States to deal with 200 Chinese-made cranes at U.S. ports and facilities,” the report continued.
“This bipartisan chorus of concern regarding PRC economic influence — especially regarding transportation infrastructure — highlights the level of concern that this issue has reached within the American policymaking community,” the report emphasized.
However, the Republican authors of the report argued that further measures are needed to reduce American reliance on Chinese seaport technology. They called on the Department of Commerce to initiate a study on “building a US crane manufacturing base” and to develop plans for “the necessary expertise and market consumption.”
They also urged the department to evaluate the global competitiveness of US manufacturing, including port construction and shipbuilding, to bolster the American industry and lessen the dependence on Chinese maritime infrastructure.
In the meantime, the committees recommended legislation that would permit US ports to seek exemptions from “Buy America requirements for purchasing cranes from non-adversarial countries, using federal grant dollars” until the US crane manufacturing industry is sufficiently developed.
{Matzav.com}
DISTURBING: Trump’s NJ Golf Course Hosted And Awarded Virulent Neo-Nazi Who Targeted Lakewood Jews
Charges Coming in Alleged Iranian Hack-and-Leak Attack On Trump Campaign
Federal authorities are preparing to file criminal charges over Iran’s alleged hack and leak attack against Donald Trump’s presidential campaign, according to people familiar with the matter.
The FBI investigation has focused on an online persona named “Robert” who contacted American reporters, these people said, speaking on the condition of anonymity to describe details of an ongoing investigation. That persona shared campaign documents they falsely claimed to have obtained while working with the Trump campaign, the people said.
Investigators have said the person, or people, posing as Robert was acting on behalf of the Iranian government and offering data files stolen from Trump advisers’ email accounts to news organizations.
Criminal charges could be filed in a matter of days, these people said. Spokeswomen for the Justice Department and the FBI declined to comment.
Among the hacking targets was adviser Susie Wiles, one of the most senior officials on the Trump campaign. Others in Trump’s orbit were also compromised, including campaign advisers, the people familiar with the investigation said. The Trump campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
More details of the charges – and who specifically will be charged – were not immediately available. When foreign nations conduct cyberattacks on U.S. figures, the perpetrators often live in countries that will not extradite them to the United States, making it unlikely they will ever face trial.
However, in the last decade U.S. officials have launched “name and shame” campaigns against hackers in Russia, China, Iran, and North Korea in the hopes of deterring such conduct.
The FBI and U.S. intelligence agencies concluded last month that Iran was responsible for recent attempted hacks into both the Trump and the Biden-Harris presidential campaigns. People familiar with the investigation had previously said they did not see evidence that the Biden adviser accounts were compromised, though they continue to gather evidence.
Justice Department officials now believe they have enough evidence to file criminal charges, the people familiar with the matter said.
The evidence reviewed by investigators includes at least some of “Robert’s” emails with reporters, the people said. The persona offered files to reporters at The Washington Post and Politico.
It wasn’t immediately clear how authorities were able to obtain those messages. Spokespeople for the two publications said they did not cooperate with the government investigation.
As part of the scheme, campaign staffers received phishing emails that were designed to appear legitimate but could give an intruder access to the recipients’ communications, The Post has previously reported, citing people familiar with the matter who spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe a sensitive investigation.
Matthew Olsen, the head of the Justice Department’s National Security Division, warned Thursday in a speech in New York that foreign nations’ efforts to interfere in American elections “present a clear and present danger to our democracy.”
Speaking less than two months before Election Day, Olsen said Iran “is making a greater effort to influence this year’s election than it has in prior election cycles.”
“Iranian activity is growing increasingly aggressive as this election nears,” he said. “Iran perceives this year’s elections to be particularly consequential in impacting Iran’s national security interests, increasing Tehran’s inclination to try to shape the outcome.”
His comments echo warnings issued by the FBI earlier this summer that “the Iranians have through social engineering and other efforts sought access to individuals with direct access to the Presidential campaigns of both political parties.”
Such tactics are not new. U.S. intelligence officials have said that Iran’s efforts to stoke societal discord in the United States and undermine Trump’s bid to regain the White House are a repeat of the country’s efforts in 2020. Russia has also led similar cyberattacks.
“Iran and Russia have employed these tactics not only in the United States during this and prior federal election cycles but also in other countries around the world,” the FBI and U.S. intelligence agencies said in a joint statement this summer.
The FBI began its investigation into suspected Iranian hacking directed at the U.S. presidential campaigns in June, before President Joe Biden dropped out of the race and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris as the Democratic nominee.
FBI agents worked with Google and Microsoft, two major providers of email services, to examine what appeared to be a phishing effort targeting people associated with the presidential campaigns, people familiar with the investigation previously told The Post.
FBI and private computer security experts have said Iran was behind spear-phishing emails sent in June to Roger Stone, a longtime informal adviser to Trump. The ruse was successful, and hackers were able to take control of Stone’s email account and send messages with spear-phishing links to others, people familiar with the investigation said. Stone has acknowledged being contacted by the FBI and notified that his emails were hacked.
(c) 2024, The Washington Post · Josh Dawsey, Devlin Barrett
{Matzav.com}
It Took 50,000 Gallons Of Water To Put Out Tesla Semi Fire In California, NTSB Says
FOR SHAME: ‘State of Palestine’ Takes Seat In UN General Assembly Despite Lack Of Full Membership
This week, Palestinians were given a seat among the member states at the UN General Assembly, marking a new privilege granted to the Palestinian Authority’s delegation, even though they are not recognized as a full member.
Back in May, the General Assembly overwhelmingly declared that Palestinians should be granted full membership. However, the United States has blocked this move, stating along with Israel that Palestinian statehood should only be acknowledged through a peace agreement.
While the General Assembly’s decision provides the Palestinian delegation with certain new privileges, the resolution still denies them the right to vote or become a member of the Security Council.
As of the 79th General Assembly session, which started on Tuesday, the Palestinians now have the ability to submit proposals and amendments, alongside being seated with member states.
On Tuesday afternoon, Riyad Mansour, the Palestinian Authority’s representative to the UN, sat at a table labeled “State of Palestine” between the representatives of Sri Lanka and Sudan.
“This is not merely a procedural matter. This is a historic moment for us,” commented Egypt’s Ambassador, Osama Mahmoud Abdelkhalek Mahmoud.
Israel expressed strong opposition to the development, just as it had during the adoption of the resolution.
“Any decision and or action that improves the status of the Palestinians, either in the UN General Assembly or bilaterally, is currently a reward… for terrorism in general and the Hamas terrorists in particular,” stated Jonathan Miller, Israel’s deputy ambassador to the United Nations.
In April, during the ongoing Gaza conflict following Hamas’s October 7 attacks in southern Israel, the Palestinians — who have held “non-member observer state” status since 2012 — renewed their campaign for full membership.
Achieving full membership would require not only a General Assembly vote but also a recommendation from the Security Council.
On April 18, the United States, a close ally of Israel, vetoed a Security Council recommendation on the matter.
{Matzav.com}
Netanyahu And UTJ Chairman Reach Agreement On Charedi Draft Law, Aims To Pass Before Rosh Hashanah
IDF Says Hamas’s Rafah Brigade In Southern Gaza Has Been Fully Dismantled
Donald Trump Prevails Again In Georgia Criminal Case As Judge Orders 2 Charges Dismissed
A Georgia court has dropped two conspiracy charges against Donald Trump, which were part of a broader case accusing him of attempting to influence the state’s 2020 election outcome.
On Thursday, Judge Scott McAfee ruled that two of the 10 remaining charges against the former president, who is also the 2024 Republican candidate, should be dismissed. The reason given was that these specific allegations pertain to federal matters outside Georgia’s legal jurisdiction.
The counts that were dismissed involved accusations of conspiracy and the submission of false documents, referred to as counts 15 and 27.
These dropped charges were connected to claims that Trump and his co-defendants had assembled a group of fraudulent electors and later initiated a federal lawsuit based on false information, challenging the election results.
One of the charges alleged that Trump and others attempted to alter Joe Biden’s victory in Georgia by submitting a forged “Certificate of the Votes of the 2020 Electors from Georgia,” which falsely indicated that Trump had won.
The second dismissed charge was related to accusations that Trump and his co-conspirators provided false information and submitted fraudulent documents in an effort to convince Georgia legislators to disregard legitimate votes.
In addition, a charge of attempted falsification of documents was also dropped against Trump’s allies, attorney John Eastman and Georgia elector Sen. Shawn Still (R).
Despite these rulings, McAfee announced in a separate decision on Thursday that the racketeering charge against Trump and his co-defendants will proceed to trial.
Trump, along with 14 other defendants, has pleaded not guilty to racketeering and related charges tied to the alleged attempt to reverse his narrow loss to Biden, who was then Vice President.
Previously, three other charges against Trump were also dismissed. In March, McAfee ruled that these charges, which were linked to efforts to pressure Georgia officials to breach their oaths of office, lacked sufficient clarity.
The case has been delayed as Trump’s attorneys are seeking to have Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis removed from the case. Their argument stems from her prior relationship with special prosecutor Nathan Wade, who was later removed from the case.
The cases of Still and Eastman are proceeding, as they are not involved in the appeal concerning Willis.
The appeal arguments are expected to take place in December, meaning Trump’s trial will not begin until after the November 5 presidential election, where he is set to compete against Vice President Kamala Harris.
“President Trump and his legal team in Georgia have prevailed once again,” said Trump’s attorney, Steve Sadow, in a statement. “The trial court has decided that counts 15 and 17 in the indictment must be quashed/dismissed.”
{Matzav.com}
Boeing Machinists Vote To Strike After Rejecting Pay Increases Of 25% Over 4 Years
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