Former Florida Republican lawmaker Joseph Harding has pleaded guilty to federal felony charges related to COVID-19 relief fraud in Gainesville federal court. He had initially pleaded not guilty to the charges, but now pleads guilty to one count of each charge, cutting his potential punishment in half. Harding will pay $150,000 in restitution to the Small Business Administration and the sentencing hearing is scheduled for June 8.
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A U.S. District Judge has ruled that former President Donald Trump may have committed a crime through his attorneys, allowing prosecutors to sidestep protections afforded to Trump lawyer Evan Corcoran. The ruling is based on a federal grand jury subpoena issued to Corcoran, and could force him to appear before the grand jury to testify about notes and exchanges with his client. The ruling is not a judgement on Trump's guilt or innocence, but could have major implications for the investigation into Trump's handling of classified records.
California is taking a stand against caste discrimination with a new bill introduced in the state Senate on Wednesday. The bill, authored by state Sen. Aisha Wahab, would add caste as a protected class to California’s anti-discrimination laws, making it the first effort of its kind by a US state legislature to explicitly ban caste discrimination. If passed, it would be a major step forward in the fight for civil rights and human rights, helping to combat discrimination against Dalits, those born at the bottom of the caste hierarchy.
A federal appeals court has rejected an attempt by former President Donald Trump to block his attorney Evan Corcoran from testifying in the investigation led by special counsel Jack Smith. The US DC Circuit Court of Appeals said that Corcoran must provide additional testimony and turn over documents about the former president as part of the criminal investigation into possible mishandling of classified documents. The announcement from the appeals court adds momentum to the special counsel investigation as it seeks to secure evidence that could potentially incriminate the former president.
Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders has signed a bill into law that prohibits transgender students from using restrooms that do not align with the sex listed on their birth certificate. The bill applies to pre-K through 12th grade public and charter schools, and those who do not comply with the law can be fined a minimum of $1,000. This is part of a larger trend of GOP-led legislative efforts to restrict LGBTQ rights in schools, and the bill has been met with criticism from LGBTQ rights groups.
A Manhattan grand jury has been delayed and will not assemble Wednesday, as it was expected to bring historic charges against former President Donald Trump. The grand jury has been meeting to probe whether Trump falsified business records when he allegedly directed his then-lawyer to pay adult film star Stormy Daniels in exchange for her silence. The cancellation comes amid reports that the grand jury has been preparing to indict Trump, and the Supreme Court has ruled that Trump must turn over his tax returns and other financial records to the Manhattan District Attorney's office.
A new report released by the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee has revealed a concerning trend of worsening drug shortages in the United States, with new drug shortages increasing by nearly 30% from 2021 to 2022. The report identified three main causes of the shortages: economic drivers, reliance on foreign sources, and poor visibility of the pharmaceutical supply chain. The committee has called for more transparency in the pharmaceutical supply chain and for the government to take steps to address the underlying causes of the shortages.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (R) has recently made some rare criticism of former President Donald Trump, noting the importance of truth and character in a leader, and contrasting his potential rival with the character of the Founding Fathers. He also took swipes at Trump's leadership style and his legal woes surrounding a hush money payment to Stormy Daniels in 2016. As DeSantis continues to make his presidential ambitions known, it will be interesting to see how he further differentiates himself from the former president.