Friday, April 14, 2023

4/14 WAKE-UP CALL: Alleged Leaker In Custody


FBI agents clad in body armor and carrying rifles swept across the Teixeira family residence in Dighton, Mass., on Thursday, arresting Teixeira and charging him with unauthorized removal of classified national defense information, Attorney General Merrick Garland said in brief remarks at the Justice Department. Video captured by news helicopters circling over the family home showed him at one point holding his hands behind his head under the watch of law enforcement personnel, before he was led away while wearing red athletic shorts and a T-shirt. Teixeira has been identified as the suspected leaker of hundreds of photographs of highly classified military documents that have proliferated across the internet over the past week, reports The Washington Post.

Teixeira, who used online handles that include “jackthedripper” and “excalibureffect,” posted the images to Discord, a chat platform popular with gamers, people familiar with the case said.

He will be charged with “unauthorized removal, retention and transmission of classified national defense information,” Attorney General Merrick Garland told reporters at a Washington press conference. The leaked trove of classified US documents on Ukraine is a mixture of true, false and outdated information, the country’s Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov said separately. The leak would clearly appear to benefit Russia and its supporters, he said. 

Patriotic zeal appeared common around Airman 1st Class Jack Teixeira, 21, who had followed in the footsteps of numerous family members to join the military. Teixeira, slim and boyish in photographs taken in his blue dress uniform, had been assigned to manage and troubleshoot computers and communications systems for the 102nd Intelligence Wing at Otis Air National Guard Base, according to the Air Force. Investigators now think there’s a more troubling, reckless side to Teixeira — and the fallout is only beginning.

➤BIDEN ADMIN HAS SOME 'SPLAININ' TO DO: The Biden administration is going to have a hard time explaining how the biggest US intelligence leak in a decade may have been committed by a 21-year-old airman whose role — “cyber transport systems journeyman” — required a high-school degree, a driver’s license and up to 18 months of on-the-job-training. As Pentagon jobs go, Teixeira’s was pretty junior. An Air Force job description says workers like him “keep our communications systems up and running and play an integral role in our continuing success.” 

That will raise the inevitable question: If a low-level Defense Department employee has access to such sensitive information, who doesn’t? “It’s outrageous that these kinds of documents would be shared with an insignificant national guard unit,” said Dennis Wilder, former senior editor of the President’s Daily Brief. “This is a real Pentagon problem.” While President Joe Biden sought to downplay the severity of the leak, experts and former officials said it was a massive exposure that highlighted not only up-to-the-minute assessments of the Ukraine war, but also how the US collects intelligence around the world.


➤TRUMP QUESTIONED FOR 7 HOURS: Former President Donald Trump was grilled for nearly seven hours Thursday during his second deposition in the $250 million civil case brought against him by New York Attorney General Letitia James. Trump, 76, was “not only willing but also eager to testify” during the meeting with James’ lawyers who questioned him about his company’s businesses practices, his attorney Alina Habba said as the Republican headed into the attorney general’s Manhattan office. “He remains resolute in his stance that he has nothing to conceal, and he looks forward to educating the Attorney General about the immense success of his multi-billion dollar company,” Habba said.

➤DeSANTIS SIGNS HEARTBEAT BILL: The Republican-dominated Florida Legislature on Thursday approved a ban on abortions after six weeks of pregnancy, a proposal signed into law later in the day by GOP Gov. Ron DeSantis as he prepares for an expected presidential run. The ban gives DeSantis a key political victory among Republican primary voters as he prepares to launch a presidential candidacy built on his national brand as a conservative standard bearer. The governor’s office said in a statement late Thursday that he had signed the legislation. The six-week ban will take effect only if the state’s current 15-week ban is upheld in an ongoing legal challenge that is before the state Supreme Court, which is controlled by conservatives.

➤DeSANTIS DOWN IN THE POLLS: Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and his allies are sharpening their message nationally and in early GOP primary states as he copes with a drop in his poll numbers and sustained attacks from Donald Trump. The former president has enjoyed a bump in GOP support since his indictment in New York on hush-money charges, as many Republicans rally to his side. But DeSantis is making an implicit argument within the party that Trump is incapable of winning a general election and trying to appeal to those tired of constant turmoil. The governor’s team is seeking to reassure Republican leaders and donors that there is a long campaign ahead, as the first primaries are still nine months away.

➤MOTHER OF 6-YEAR-OLD SHOOTER CHARGED: The mother of a six-year-old who shot his elementary school teacher has been charged with child neglect and endangering a child by reckless storage of a firearm. Deja Taylor was released on $5,000 bond after her indictment in Newport News, Virginia. The child will not be criminally charged. The teacher suffered gunshot wounds to her hand and chest but survived.

➤TECHIE ARRESTED IN FATAL STABBING: A tech executive was arrested on Thursday for the stabbing murder of Cash App founder Bob Lee in San Francisco, police said, stressing that the suspect knew the victim but declining to discuss a possible motive for the crime. Lee was found stumbling through the streets of San Francisco at around 2:30 a.m. Pacific Time on April 4 bleeding from a stab wound. Lee, 43, later died of his wounds at a hospital. Nima Momeni, the 38-year-old founder of software company Expand IT, was arrested on suspicion of murder in the Bay Area city of Emeryvile, where his company has offices, San Francisco Police Chief William Scott told an afternoon news conference. "We can confirm that Mr. Lee and Mr. Momeni knew each other," Scott said, although he declined to describe the nature of their relationship or why they were together that night.

🍺BUD LIGHT DIDN'T ANTICIPATE BACKLASH: Since the controversy emerged on April 1, Bud Light and Anheuser-Busch's main social media accounts have fallen silent, despite major sporting events of the kind the brand typically chimes in on. Aside from an initial terse statement, Anheuser-Busch has also ignored media requests on the issue. Last week, a Missouri distributor canceled an event featuring the famed Budweiser Clydesdales, citing safety concerns. 'They never expected the reaction that they got,' said Gareth Boyd, a marketing and PR expert with Forte Analytica , speaking to DailyMail.com on Thursday as an industry observer. 'Right now if they respond and they don't get it right, they're only going to further hurt themselves.'

➤BRINTON ORDERED TO PAY VICTIM: The non-binary former Energy Department official who was caught on video stealing luggage was ordered to pay $3,670 to the victim and given a suspended sentence of 180 days in prison after pleading 'no contest' to theft. Samuel Brinton, 35, who uses they/them pronouns was issued their sentence Wednesday in Las Vegas, Nevada, eight months after they grabbed a passenger's bags inside Harry Reid International Airport. Brinton was facing misdemeanor theft charges, which amount to less than $1,200 in stolen items. They had originally faced a felony theft charge since police said the amount stolen was $3,670. Brinton - who was responsible for nuclear fuel and radioactive waste - was also told by a judge to stay out of trouble, according to Las Vegas court records. A suspended sentence means the former Energy Department employee will not be forced immediately to serve a jail or prison term and may be required to complete probation.

🏈PRELIMINARY DEAL TO SELL COMMANDERS DISCLOSED: Dan Snyder has reached a preliminary agreement to sell the Washington Commanders, according to numerous reports. The buyers are hedge fund manager Josh Harris, who is already an owner of the Philadelphia 76ers, billionaire Mitchell Rales, and NBA Hall of Fame player Magic Johnson. The price tag is said to be $6 billion. That would be a record price for an NFL team.


⚾HOW HOT ARE THE TAMPA BAY RAYS? The Tampa Bay Rays defeated the Boston Red Sox 9-3 in St. Petersburg yesterday, extending their winning streak to 13 straight games. That’s a tie for the modern day record for consecutive wins to open the season. If they win against the Toronto Blue Jays tonight, the Rays will set a record unmatched by any big-league team currently in existence.For stats geeks: The record for consecutive wins to open a season was set in 1900 by the St. Louis Maroons and matched in 1982 by the Atlanta Braves, in 1987 by the Milwaukee Brewers and, now, by the Rays.

🏒JONATHAN TOEWS LEAVES THE BLACKHAWKS: Chicago Blackhawks Captain Jonathan Toews is leaving the team after spending his entire 15-year career with them. Toews has won three Stanley Cups for the Blackhawks as well as two Olympic gold medals for Canada. He just started playing again on April 1 after an extended bout with long-covid symptoms.

🎾DJOKOVIC KNOCKED OUT OF MONTE CARLO: The world’s number one tennis player, Novak Djokovic, was knocked out of the Monte Carlo Masters by 21st-ranked Lorenzo Musetti in three sets on Thursday. The score was 4-6, 7-5, 6-4. Musetti will move on to the quarterfinals where he will meet Jannik Sinner. Sinner defeated Hubert Hurkacz 3-6, 7-6 (8/6), 6-1.

🏀MARCH MADNESS’ MOST OUTSTANDING DECLARES FOR NBA: University of Connecticut’s Adama Sanogo, the Most Outstanding Player of the Final Four, has declared for the 2023 NBA Draft. Sanogo averaged 19.7 points per game during the NCAA tournament.

🏀NBA PLAYOFF SCHEDULE 2023: The Boston Celtics will play the Atlanta Hawks at TD Garden on Saturday afternoon for the first game of the first round of the 2023 NBA Playoffs.
  • CHECK IT OUT: Click here for the full NBA Playoffs schedule and start times.


☔SOUTH FLORIDA INUNDATED WITH RAIN: Parts of South Florida including Fort Lauderdale have been inundated with rain over the past two days, causing widespread flooding and trapping residents in their homes and cars. Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport, where 26 inches of rain fell in a few hours, may be able to reopen this morning. Hollywood got more than 18 inches of the rain and the ground floor of Fort Lauderdale’s City Hall was flooded. It is said to have been a 1-in-1,000-year rainfall event.

 

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