Tuesday, June 13, 2023

6/13 WAKE-UP CALL: 'Radical Left' Is Politically Motivated


Former President Donald Trump arrived in Miami on Monday to face federal criminal charges, while a new Reuters/Ipsos poll found a vast majority of his fellow Republicans believe the case to be politically motivated.  Trump, the front-runner for the Republican nomination in the 2024 presidential election, is scheduled to be in a Miami federal courthouse on Tuesday at 3 p.m. EDT for an initial appearance in the case. Accused of unlawfully keeping U.S. national-security documents and lying to officials who tried to recover them, Trump has proclaimed his innocence and vowed to continue his campaign to regain the presidency in a November 2024 election.

➤BIDEN BRIBE TAPES SAID TO EXIST: The FBI source who reported President Biden’s alleged role in a bribery scheme said that a Ukrainian businessman claimed to keep as “insurance” 15 audio recordings of first son Hunter Biden and two of Joe Biden, a Republican senator revealed Monday. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) made the staggering claim in a Senate floor speech after FBI Director Christopher Wray last week allowed House Oversight Committee members to see a redacted informant file about the claim that Hunter and then-Vice President Joe Biden received $5 million apiece to serve the interests of Burisma Holdings owner Mykola Zlochevsky.

➤KJP VIOLATED HATCH ACT: White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre violated the Hatch Act when she when she repeatedly referred to 'mega MAGA Republicans' ahead of the 2022 midterm election, a watchdog federal agency found. The Office of Special Counsel found Jean-Pierre turn of phrase violated the law intended to prevent federal employees from using their office to influence elections. 'Because Ms. Jean‐Pierre made the statements while acting in her official capacity, she violated the Hatch Act prohibition against using her official authority or influence for the purpose of interfering with or affecting the result of an election,' Ana Galindo‐Marrone, who leads the agency's Hatch Act Unit, wrote in a June 7 letter. 


➤RUSSIA LAUNCHES MISSILES: Russia launched a "massive missile" attack overnight on the central Ukrainian city of Kryvyi Rih, killing at least three people and wounding 25 and damaging civilian infrastructure, Ukrainian officials said early on Tuesday.  Rescue operations were underway in a burning five-story apartment building and in a destroyed warehouse, Serhiy Lysak, governor of the Dnipropetrovsk region where Kryvyi Rih is located said on the Telegram messaging app. "There are still people under the rubble of a building. There was a fire there," Lysak said, giving the preliminary casualty figures, and posting a photograph of the apartment block with smoke pouring out of some of the blown out windows. 


City mayor Oleksandr Vilkul said at least seven people were believed to be trapped under the rubble, without providing more details.

✞ACTOR DIES IN ACCIDENT: Actor Treat Williams, whose nearly 50-year career included starring roles in the TV series “Everwood” and the movie “Hair,” died Monday after a motorcycle crash in Vermont, state police said. He was 71. Shortly before 5 p.m., a Honda SUV was turning left into a parking lot when it collided with Williams’ motorcycle in the town of Dorset, according to a statement from Vermont State Police.

➤SAN FRANCISCO'S SLOW DEATH: The operator of San Francisco's biggest shopping center, Westfield, has stopped making payments on a $558 million loan and is handing the building back to the lender. The decision is sparked in large part by the decision from Nordstrom, the anchor tenant, to close in August - Westfield blamed 'rampant criminal activity' for Nordstrom's closure. Nordstrom occupied 312,000 square feet in the mall: when it closes, Westfield San Francisco will only be 55 percent leased. Other Westfields are on average 93 percent leased. Whole Foods, Old Navy, Gap and Office Depot are just some of the stores in the same district to announce in recent months that they are closing.

San Francisco’s once thriving hotel market is suffering its worst stretch in at least 15 years, pummeled by the same forces that have emptied out the city’s office towers and closed many retail stores. Hotel owners in New York and Los Angeles are filling nearly as many rooms this year as they did in 2019, according to hotel-data firm STR. Their revenue per available room exceeds what it was before the pandemic. But in San Francisco, hotels are still struggling badly in both occupancy and room rates compared with before the pandemic. Revenue per available room was nearly 23% lower in April compared with the same month in 2019.  The city’s lodging business has been squeezed by crime and other quality-of-life issues that have kept many convention bookers away.


➤PHILLY FINDS A BODY: Officials recovered a body from the wreckage of the collapse of part of Interstate 95 that has snarled traffic in the Philadelphia region. A spokesperson with the Pennsylvania State Police on Monday said officials are trying to identify the person. Officials warned that fixing the highway after the Sunday collapse could take months. I-95 in the area remained closed in both directions, and traffic complicated Philadelphia commutes on Monday. The highway usually carries about 160,000 vehicles daily and is one of the main roadways for commuters and trucks traveling through Philadelphia. 

The driver of the tanker truck that caught fire and led to the collapse lost control of the vehicle on an off-ramp before it crashed and erupted into flames, state officials said.


➤EVEN BEARS LIKES THE BEACH: An “unusual” black bear sighting awed throngs of beachgoers in Florida over the weekend but state wildlife experts said Monday that cubs can sometimes take a swim in the Gulf of Mexico. A crowd of vacationers in Destin were shocked and delighted when they spotted a black bear cub casually taking a dip in the Gulf Sunday, according to footage captured of the odd moment. While the bear was swimming in the ocean, a woman could be heard saying off-camera, “I guess he’s on vacation, too!” But the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) said in a statement that during this time of year, young bears like the one spotted in Destin can leave the comfort of their mother’s home to explore “unexpected areas” in search of a new home.


🏀NBA NUGGETS ARE CHAMPIONS: Monday night, in front of a feverish home crowd, Nikola Jokic led Denver to a come-from-behind, championship-sealing 94-89 victory in Game 5 of the NBA Finals over the Miami Heat. The win marks the first title in the franchise’s 56-year history and cements the status of this one-time unknown as the best player in the sport.

⚾MLB D-BACKS 9 PHILLIES 8: Evan Longoria hit a three-run homer and the Arizona Diamondbacks withstood Philadelphia's J.T. Realmuto hitting for the cycle to beat the Phillies 9-8 on Monday night. Two of baseball's highest-scoring teams kicked off a four-game series by combining for 25 hits, including 10 for extra bases. Realmuto hit a solo homer in the first inning and a two-run triple in the third. He hit a double in the ninth inning to complete the cycle and scored on Bryson Stott's single to cut Arizona's lead to 9-8. 

⚾MLB ANGELS 9 RANGERS 6: Shohei Ohtani homered on the first pitch of the 12th inning, going deep for the second time in the game as the Los Angels Angels beat the AL West-leading Texas Rangers 9-6 on Monday night. Los Angeles was down 5-1 after three innings, but Ohtani´s solo homer in the seventh inning extended his hitting streak to nine games and tied it 5-5. The two-run shot in the 12th off Cole Ragans (2-3), the fifth Texas pitcher, was Ohtani´s 20th homer of the season. Chad Wallach also hit a two-run homer in the 12th off Ragans. The Angels have won six of their last seven games. Ohtani finished with four RBIs, pushing his season total to 50.

⚾MLB SCORES:

  • Athletics 4 Rays 3
  • Tigers 6  Braves 5
  • Rockies 4 Red Sox 3
  • Giants 4 Cardinals 3
  • Reds 5 Royals 4
  • Mariners 8 Marlins 1

⚾METS SIGN EX-YANKEES' SLUGGER: The New York Mets are bringing Luke Voit back to the big apple. Voit's primary attribute is his power, something he struggled to discover in Milwaukee. The veteran did not accept a demotion to the minor leagues, and thus was granted his release. With New York, he will likely start in Triple-A before receiving an MLB call-up should he find his power stroke.



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