News of the World

[kyonides]

Trump attacks Jack Smith on Truth Social after indictment unsealed

Former President Donald Trump attacked Special Counsel Jack Smith after his unsealed indictment shows the ex-commander-in-chief was charged with 37 counts of criminal wrongdoing over his handling of classified documents, calling him a "deranged lunatic."

Posting a photo of Smith to his Truth Social app, Trump accused the prosecutor of being behind a 2013 controversy in which the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) was revealed to be targeting political groups, mainly those on the right, for increased auditing.

"This is the man who caused the Lois Lerner catastrophe with the IRS. He went after Evangelicals and Great Americans of Faith. The United States had to apologize, and pay major damages for what this deranged lunatic did," Trump wrote.

Lerner was a central figure in the IRS scandal, with lawmakers voting to hold her in contempt of Congress for what they said was insufficient testimony on the issue in 2014.

In his attack on Smith, Trump also cited the corruption case of ex-Virginia GOP governor Robert McDonnell. Smith successfully secured his conviction, though it was later overturned by the Supreme Court.
...
Trump was charged for improperly handling classified documents and obstructing justice. His aide Walt Nauta was also indicted on six obstruction and concealment-related charges.

Companies Reach $1.18 Billion Deal
to Resolve Claims From
‘Forever Chemicals’ Water Contamination

TRAVERSE CITY, Mich.—Three chemical companies said Friday they had reached a $1.18 billion deal to resolve complaints of polluting many U.S. drinking water systems with potentially harmful compounds known as PFAS.

DuPont de Nemours Inc., The Chemours Co., and Corteva Inc. said they would establish a fund to compensate water providers for contamination with the chemicals used widely in nonstick, water- and grease-resistant products, as well as some firefighting foams.

Described as “forever chemicals” because they don’t degrade naturally in the environment, PFAS have been linked to a variety of health problems, including liver and immune-system damage and some cancers.

The compounds have been detected at varying levels in drinking water around the nation. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in March proposed strict limits on two common types, PFOA and PFOS, and said it wanted to regulate four others. Water providers would be responsible for monitoring their systems for the chemicals.

The agreement would settle a case that was scheduled for trial Monday involving a claim by Stuart, Florida, one of about 300 communities that have filed similar suits since 2018 against companies that produced firefighting foam or the PFAS it contained.

They are pending in U.S. District Court in Charleston, South Carolina, where Judge Richard Gergel is overseeing thousands of complaints alleging PFAS damages. Among the plaintiffs are water providers, airports, and a number of states and private well owners.

Biden Energy Secretary Granholm admits
false testimony about owning stocks

Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm quietly acknowledged in a letter Friday that she made a false statement when she recently told lawmakers she didn't own any individual stocks.

While Granholm divested from a variety of stocks in 2021, she acknowledged in the letter — which was sent to Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee leadership — that she maintained shares of six companies. On April 20, however, Granholm testified under oath that she had sold all of her shares of individual companies.

"As you know, as part of the confirmation process before this Committee, in 2021 I divested from assets that could be in conflict with my official duties," Granholm wrote in the letter obtained by Fox News Digital. "I did, however, retain assets that were determined by Government ethics officials to not conflict with my official duties."

"I mistakenly told the Committee that I did not own any individual stocks, whereas I should have said that I did not own any conflicting stocks. In order to make my financial holdings consistent with my testimony, on May 18, 2023, I divested my remaining stock holdings which consisted of stock in six companies, even though these assets were deemed non-conflicting," she continued.

Granholm didn't say in the letter which companies she had owned shares of — and which she divested from on May 18 — but vowed to share that information in her Annual Public Financial Disclosure Report in mid-June.

In addition, Granholm said she discovered on May 13 that her husband Daniel Mulhern owned $2,457.89 worth of shares in Ford Motor Company. Those shares were then sold on May 15, a Monday, when the stock market opened.

Germany moves ahead with €4 billion purchase of Israel's Arrow-3

Germany plans to buy Israel's Arrow-3 missile defense system for almost 4 billion euros ($4.30 billion) in total and will ask lawmakers to release advance payments of up to 560 million euros next week, according to documents seen by Reuters on Friday.

The Arrow-3 is designed to intercept ballistic missiles outside of the Earth's atmosphere.

It is the top layer of Israel's missile defense array, which extends from Iron Dome that intercepts short-range rockets to Arrow-3's long-range missiles that destroy any non-conventional warheads at a safe altitude.

Berlin aims to strike a government-to-government deal with Israel on the purchase of the Arrow-3 system at the end of the year, said the finance ministry's procurement documents that were prepared for parliament.

Germany will lose part or all of its advance payments should the deal fail, according to the papers, as the money would be used to compensate Israel for costs incurred by then.

Turkey seizes $1 bln of counterfeit money headed for Africa

Turkish security forces seized $1 billion of counterfeit money in Istanbul and arrested six people involved in the operation, including one Ghanian and three Swedish nationals, the governor's office said on Friday.

Gendarmerie forces tracked the suspects to a storage space in Istanbul's Kagithane district, where they seized the fake $100 bills meant to be sent to African countries, the office said.

The suspects'homes were searched and their cash and jewelry confiscated. The Swedish and Ghanian consulates were notified.

Former British PM Boris Johnson is standing down from parliament

Former Prime Minister Boris Johnson quit as a member of British parliament on Friday in a furious protest against lawmakers investigating his conduct, reopening divisions in the ruling Conservative Party ahead of national elections next year.

Johnson had been fighting for his future with a parliamentary inquiry investigating whether he misled the House of Commons when he said all COVID-19 rules were followed even though parties were held in government buildings during national lockdowns.

Johnson said he was stepping down because it was "clear" that the committee was "determined to use the proceedings against me to drive me out of parliament."

He also chided current Conservative Prime Minister Rishi Sunak for his performance in power.

Parliament's privileges committee had the power to recommend Johnson be suspended from parliament for more than 10 days if they were to find he did mislead parliament recklessly or deliberately, potentially triggering an election for his seat.