Prosecutors will not pursue a second trial against FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried. 

The Associated Press reports:

A second trial of FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried on charges not in the cryptocurrency fraud case presented to a jury that convicted him in November is not necessary, prosecutors told a judge Friday.

Background

This comes after a jury convicted the 31-year-old Brankman-Fried, in early November, of several crimes.

CNBC reports:

Bankman-Fried, the 31-year old son of two Stanford legal scholars and graduate of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, was convicted of wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud against FTX customers and against Alameda Research lenders, conspiracy to commit securities fraud and conspiracy to commit commodities fraud against FTX investors, and conspiracy to commit money laundering.

This followed the collapse of FTX and Alameda.

Next up is the sentencing phase of the case. Bankman-Fried is facing more than 100 years of imprisonment.

Second trial?

In the meantime, a question that has arisen is whether or not the prosecution would pursue a second case against Bankman-Fried.

The Associate Press explains why a second trial was being considered, writing, "Last spring, prosecutors withdrew some charges they had brought against Bankman-Fried because the charges had not been approved as part of his extradition from the Bahamas in December 2022. They said the charges could be brought at a second trial to occur sometime in 2024."

The outlet goes on to report that "the charges that were temporarily dropped included conspiracy to make unlawful campaign contributions, conspiracy to bribe foreign officials, and two other conspiracy counts. He also was charged with securities fraud and commodities fraud."

The prosecution, however, has now decided not to pursue this second trial.

Here's why:

It appears that, essentially, the prosecution is not pursuing a second trial because they do not have a lot of new evidence to present to the court.

CNBC reports:

In a note to Judge Lewis Kaplan on Friday, the U.S. government explained that the decision to forego a second set of proceedings had to do with the fact that much of the evidence that would have been presented in a second trial had already been submitted to the Court during Bankman-Fried’s first criminal trial.

Instead, the prosecution has asked Kaplan to consider the evidence that would have been presented at the second trial when deciding what sentence to impose on Bankman-Fried.

Kaplan is currently scheduled to sentence Bankman-Fried on Mach 28, 2024.

New York City is asking a judge to dismiss a wrongful arrest lawsuit that has been filed by an ex-bodega clerk who was formerly accused of murder by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg (D). 

The ex-bodega clerk, according to Fox News, is 61-year-old Jose Alba.

There is a chance that you may be familiar with Alba and the reason why he faced murder charges.

The incident happened back in July 2022.

Murder?

The incident involved Alba, a customer - Austin Simon - and his girlfriend, Tina Lee.

The New York Post reports, "Alba, 61, was thrust into the spotlight in July 2022 when customer Austin Simon angrily confronted him and pulled him up by the collar, demanding an apology after the clerk denied Simon’s girlfriend chips for her daughter."

The outlet continues, "The clerk grabbed a knife and killed Smith, 35, and was put in jail on a second-degree murder charge that was later dropped following an outpouring of support, including from Mayor [Eric] Adams [D] who declared “this hard-working New Yorker was doing his job, and someone aggressively went behind the counter to attack him.”

It was Bragg's office that decided to dismiss the charges - but not until Alba spent nearly a week in jail at Rikers Island.

The matter, however, did not end there. Rather, Alba decided to file a wrongful arrest lawsuit against New York City, Bragg, and New York Police Department (NYPD) Detective William Garcia.

The latest

It is this wrongful arrest lawsuit that New York City is now trying to get dismissed.

Fox News reports, "lawyers for the city claimed, in a Friday court filing, that they had reason to charge Alba based on the available evidence, which includes testimony from Simon's girlfriend, witness testimony, and surveillance video of the incident."

The idea, of course, is that, if the city "had reason to charge Alba," then the wrongful arrest lawsuit has no basis.

It is unclear whether the city will be successful in getting the case dismissed. Alba's lawyer - Richard Cardinale - has called the dismissal motion "outrageous." Cardinale explained to Fox News why, saying:

The city’s lawyers mischaracterized the incident and lawsuit brought forth by Jose Alba by misstating in their motion to dismiss, that Jose Alba was the bad guy and the aggressor. Part of the city's motion to dismiss right now in the civil case says Austin Simon’s girlfriend, Tina Lee, corroborated a series of events to support Alba’s arrest.

According to Cardinale, no such corroboration exists.

Both the worlds of sports and politics lost a notable figure this week in Herb Kohl. 

According to Fox News, Kohl, former owner of the NBA's Milwaukee Bucks and a Wisconsin Democratic senator, died at 88. He's also the founder of Kohl's department stores.

The news was confirmed by his philanthropic organization, Herb Kohl Philanthropies. The company released a statement honoring its founder.

Other notable figures, such as Hillary Clinton, released statements regarding his death, especially as she worked with him during her time in the Senate.

Statement released

"More than anything, Herb loved Milwaukee and Wisconsin, and that is where he chose to live out his days," his organization said in a statement.

It added, "He touched an incalculable number of lives, and those who love him would remark that he is among the most decent people to ever walk the earth."

Tributes to the late senator and NBA owner streamed in across social media, and even out of the White House as President Joe Biden said words in the wake of his passing.

"Herb Kohl was one of the finest people I’ve served with – a kind and principled man of integrity and character, one of Wisconsin’s greatest-ever advocates, and a dear friend," Biden's statement read. 

Yesterday, we lost a Wisconsin giant with a heart of gold. Learn more about Senator Herb Kohl—he was nobody’s senator but ours. pic.twitter.com/ycef7cKZSR

— Wisconsin Democrats (@WisDems) December 28, 2023

Fox News noted:

Kohl got into politics in the 1970s when he served as the chair of the state Democratic Party from 1975 to 1977. He was the chair of the Special Committee on Aging and was the vice chairman on the Committee on the Judiciary. He won four elections during his career as a politician.

Governor's statement

Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers also released a statement regarding Kohl's passing.

"Sen. Kohl was deeply committed to community, kindness, and service to others," Evers wrote. "Wisconsin’s seniors, students, teachers, and schools, and farmers and rural areas, among so many others, are better off because of his life and legacy, the impacts of which will last for generations."

Notably, Kohls never married. He believed that he could better focus on serving his state and running his team that way.

Tributes to Kohl continued to be posted across social media this week, from former colleagues to NBA players.

An investigation has been started into threats made against public officials in the state of Colorado in recent days.

Threats made against the justices of the Colorado Supreme Court are being investigated by federal and local criminal enforcement authorities. News has been filtering in that the justices have received backlash from their recent decision, as CPR reported.

This comes after the justices narrowly disqualified former President Trump from appearing on the Republican primary ballot in Colorado last week.

As part of its investigation of incidents that have been aimed at some justices, the Denver Police Department has increased the number of patrols that are conducted around their residences.

Officers On Scene

The department also stated that it will offer additional security help if it is required.

On Thursday evening, officers arrived to the residence of one justice; however, the situation looked to be a "hoax report," according to the responding officers. According to the authorities, likewise, the investigation into the case is still ongoing.

There is a lack of clarity regarding the nature of the other threats, and the department has not been entirely forthcoming with any additional information, due to the fact that investigations are still ongoing.

The FBI office in the area issued a statement in which it stated that it is collaborating with local law enforcement in their efforts.

“We will vigorously pursue investigations of any threat or use of violence committed by someone who uses extremist views to justify their actions regardless of motivation,” said public affairs officer Vikki Migoya in a statement regarding the challenging turn of events taking place in Colorado.

The Decision

In a decision that was handed down last week, the highest court in Colorado concluded by a vote of 4-3 that President Trump had committed insurrection and is therefore prohibited by the Constitution from running for public office again.

This was due to an interpretation of the 14th Amendment's qualifications for a public office holder.

Because this ruling is currently being challenged to the Supreme Court of the United States, Trump may still be on the ballot for the Republican nomination for president on March 5.

By January 5th, the Secretary of State of Colorado must certify the ballot for that primary election. If the United States Supreme Court allows an appeal to be heard by January 4, the Secretary of State is obligated to proceed with including Trump's name.

Nevertheless, if he is ultimately disqualified, any vote that was cast for him will not be tallied.

Wednesday, Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) expressed his belief that his liberal colleagues are plotting his demise via another blood embolism.

“What I have found out over the last couple years is that the right, and now the left, are hoping that I die. There are ones that are rooting for another blood clot. They have both now been wishing that I die,” Fetterman said in the interview with the New York Times, as The Daily Caller reported.

These statements are in continuation of Fetterman's public dispute with Democrats over support for Israel, his calls for more stringent border security measures in light of the ongoing crisis, and his requests for the resignation of Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ) subsequent to his indictment.

Previous Remarks

As reported by NBC, Fetterman stated earlier in December that he is "not a progressive" in response to a question regarding his differences with Democrats on contentious issues.

“I’m not a progressive,” Fetterman told NBC News. “I just think I’m a Democrat that is very committed to choice and other things. But with Israel, I’m going to be on the right side of that. And immigration is something near and dear to me, and I think we do have to effectively address it as well.”

Fetterman maintains his pro-Israel stance in the aftermath of the October 7th terrorist attacks by Hamas, despite growing opposition to the Gaza conflict and calls for an end to the Palestinian rights movement on the party's left flank.

While he believes it is "not ideal" to link such assistance with immigration policy, the senator told NBC News that a dialogue is necessary to reduce the number of border crossings.

Fetterman told NBC News, “Progressives better do that because we can’t leave Israel — we can’t sell them out, and we can’t sell Ukraine out, and we have to deliver on this. I just would very much like to get a deal to deliver this critical aid.”

Regarding His Fellow of Lawmakers

Likewise, his stance towards his fellow legislators has remained steadfast. Menendez's resignation has been called upon by the senator in light of the calamitous indictment that has befallen the New Jersey lawmaker.

Late in September, following Menendez's indictment on charges of bribery, fraud, and extortion related to the acceptance of gifts in exchange for influence in the upper chamber, Fetterman was the first senator to request his resignation.

Although Menendez declined these invitations, he did temporarily resign as chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

Santos was expelled two weeks subsequent to the revelation of "substantial evidence" by the House Ethics Committee that implicated the congressman in a violation of the law.

“He needs to go. I don’t understand why he can be here, having expelled Santos,” Fetterman told NBC News.

“But I’m sure there might be a very innocent explanation of having gold bars in your mattress and overstuffed envelopes of cash," he added.

New reporting reveals that the administration of President Joe Biden attempted to hide the Chinese spy balloon situation from the American public. 

The report comes from NBC News.

It is titled, "The secret U.S. effort to track, hide, and surveil the Chinese spy balloon." 

Background

This is the same Chinese spy balloon situation that took place toward the end of January 2023.

It is the spy balloon that Biden allowed to float all the way across the United States - including over sensitive military sites - before Biden decided to allow the U.S. military to shoot the balloon down over the Atlantic Ocean - no doubt, long after the Chinese got what they were looking for.

An unreported phone call

NBC's report details a previously unreported telephone call that took place, last January, between Gen. Glen VanHerck - the Air Force commander in charge of defending American airspace from foreign intruders - and Gen. Mark Milley - Biden's top military adviser.

NBC reports:

U.S. intelligence officials had just notified the general that for roughly 10 days they had been tracking a mysterious — and enormous — object flying over the Asia-Pacific, VanHerck told Milley. The object had crossed into U.S. airspace over Alaska and VanHerck said he planned to dispatch military jets to fly alongside it and assess what it was.

This phone call, according to the outlet, "set off an eight-day scramble inside the Biden administration."

"Hope to conceal"

NBC goes on to report:

Administration officials at first hoped to conceal the balloon’s existence from the public, and from Congress, according to multiple former and current administration and congressional officials.

The outlet further reveals that - despite what Biden and his administration claimed at the time - Biden knew that the spy balloon had "a large payload of surveillance equipment" soon after VanHerck's call with Milley.

Biden is said to have known about the ballon three days after the phone call. And, at this point, it was in his and the Pentagon's hands to determine whether or not to shoot it down. We know how this played out.

It's still happening

Another revelation made by NBC comes from the outlet's interview with VanHerck. He told the outlet that the Chinese spy balloon program continues and that the U.S. has failed to develop the means necessary to detect the balloons.

"Time is the opportunity to create deterrence options or, if required, defeat options," VanHerck said.

He added that the U.S. is still "not where we need to be."

USA Today is the latest outlet to publish a list of individuals whom former President Donald Trump might choose to be his 2024 running mate. 

The speculation largely stems from the fact that Trump continues to dominate 2024 Republican Party presidential primary polls.

According to Real Clear Politics, Trump currently leads his next closest Republican rival - Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) - by an overwhelming 52.2 percentage points.

For this reason, it has become somewhat of a foregone conclusion that Trump will win the upcoming Republican primary, and this is why there has been - and continues to be - so much speculation about whom Trump will choose to be his running mate.

USA Today's "potential contenders" list

The outlet puts forth nine possible running mates for Trump.

The list includes U.S. Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC), former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley (R-SC), South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem (R), Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders (R), former Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson, U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), U.S. Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY), former Arizona gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake (R), and Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy.

Many of these names - such as Noem, Sanders, Stefanik, and Lake - are no surprise. These individuals tend to be included in just about every speculative report about Trump's running mates, such as this one from Axios.

Some of the other names, however, are a surprise. Perhaps, the biggest surprise of all is Haley being on the list. What makes this so surprising is the bad blood that appears to exist between Trump and Haley, not to mention the fact that Haley is not exactly a "MAGA Republican."

But, USA Today's argument for Haley to be Trump's running mate is that she might be able to attract, for example, independent voters who otherwise would not vote for Trump.

Trump squashes running mate gossip

Trump, in recent months, has not really said much about potential running mates.

In fact, during the interview that he did, in September, with NBC, Trump said that he really has not put much thought into whom his running mate is going to be.

Trump, however, did say that he "likes the concept" of choosing a woman to be his number two and that he is "going to choose the best person" for the job.

For now, however, Trump's campaign says that the former president is focused on winning the Republican primary.

In a statement to USA Today, Trump's campaign said:

Second term policy priorities and staffing decisions will not - in no uncertain terms - be led by anonymous or thinly sourced speculation in mainstream media news stories. President Trump is solely focused on winning the Republican nomination for president.

The Daily Mail just revealed part of the reason why Michael LaRosa - First Lady Jill Biden's former press secretary - resigned from the Biden White House during the summer of 2022. 

According to the outlet, it is because LaRosa was caught on multiple occasions bringing dates to his room, which was on the secure floor of the same hotel where the president was staying.

The problem, of course, is that, in doing so, LaRosa was jeopardizing the security of the president and first lady.

The Daily Mail claims that this is part of the reason why the Biden administration and LaRosa parted ways. But, as we will see, there may be more to the story.

The allegation

The Daily Mail cites a "senior White House staffer" for its report.

This individual is quoted by the outlet as saying that LaRosa "was caught by Secret Service not once, but twice bringing dates to a secure floor, obviously putting the First Lady's safety at risk because you're not supposed to bring people in who are not fully vetted."

This is reported to have taken place in June 2022, when LaRosa accompanied Jill Biden to the NATO Summit that was held in Madrid, Spain. This took place roughly a month before LaRosa's resignation from the Biden administration.

The Daily Mail reports, "A Secret Service source confirmed the incident and claimed that it happened twice on the same trip."

The Daily Mail claims, based on its sources, that this is part of the reason why LaRosa left the Biden administration.

Departed on "good terms"?

At the time that LaRosa resigned, both he and the White House tried to make it seem as though LaRosa was departing on good terms, and LaRosa is sticking to this narrative.

The Daily Mail reports:

Asked about the incident, LaRosa, who is openly gay, told DailyMail.com that he had only tried to bring one person up to his room, a male staffer from another country's delegation he said he met at the conference. He also insisted that he left the White House on good terms to take a job in the private sector.

But, it turns out that there might be more to this story - other than sneaking dates onto the president's secure hotel floor.

The Daily Mail reports:

When he left, White House officials publicly feted him for his 18 months of service in the East Wing. But privately, sources tell DailyMail.com, colleagues were anxious to see him gone with no fuss. "There was a long line of chaotic behavior, outbursts, unreliability, unpredictability, and lack of judgment that went into his last six months before his departure," one official said.

As for why these sources are speaking out now - more than a year after LaRosa's departure - they told the Daily Mail that it is because LaRosa recently started publicly criticizing the Biden White House.

A former U.S. attorney general just told the U.S. Supreme Court that the Biden administration's appointment of Jack Smith as special counsel is unconstitutional. 

Fox News reports that former U.S. Attorney General Edwin Meese and two constitutional law scholars did so in an amicus curiae brief that they submitted to the Supreme Court on Wednesday.

The outlet reports:

Meese, along with law professors Steven G. Calabresi and Gary S. Lawson, filed a friend-of-the-court brief Wednesday to present the case that Attorney General Merrick Garland’s appointment of Smith – a private citizen - is in violation of the Appointments Clause of the Constitution.

Accordingly, Meese, Calabresi, and Lawson argue that the justices ought to reject any requests Smith makes.

Background

Smith is the man whom President Joe Biden's Department of Justice (DOJ) has chosen to target former President Donald Trump.

Smith has brought two criminal cases against Trump: one in Florida - in which Smith alleges that Trump mishandled classified documents when he left the White House - and one in Washington, D.C. - in which Smith alleges that Trump interfered with Congress's certification of the 2020 presidential election's electoral college results.

Trump has maintained his innocence, and the former president insists that Smith's motivation is political - that Biden is essentially using Smith to try to derail Trump's presidential campaign. Trump is currently the overwhelming favorite to face off against Biden in 2024.

Smith has been helping Trump to make the argument that Smith's prosecution of the former president is political. Smith, for example, has been attempting to make the cases go as fast as possible in the hope of convicting Trump before the 2024 presidential election.

To this end, Smith recently petitioned the Supreme Court to decide whether or not Trump's claim of presidential immunity ought to be allowed. It is this petition that Meese, Calabresi, and Lawson argue that the justices ought to reject.

Smith is a "naked emperor"

The reason Meese, Calabresi, and Lawson believe the Supreme Court ought to reject Smith's petition is that, in their view, Garland's appointment of him as special counsel is unconstitutional.

"Not clothed in the authority of the federal government, Smith is a modern example of the naked emperor," they wrote.

They added, "Improperly appointed, he has no more authority to represent the United States in this Court than Bryce Harper, Taylor Swift, or Jeff Bezos."

Meese, Calabresi, and Lawson go on to argue that none of the statutes cited by Garland for Smith's appointment - or any other statutory or constitutional provision - "authorized the appointment by the Attorney General of a private citizen to receive extraordinary criminal law enforcement power under the title of Special Counsel."

The Supreme Court, on Thursday, did reject Smith's petition. It is unclear whether or not Meese, Calabresi, and Lawson's brief played any role in the rejection.

Interestingly, Hunter Biden travels aboard Air Force One and Marine One, but the White House doesn't include his name on the flight manifest shared with reporters. 

According to the Washington Examiner, the White House recently defended its decision to exclude President Joe Biden's son from any passenger lists for presidential aircraft.

Critics demand that such information be made public, as taxpayer money is used to fund flights aboard Air Force One and Marine One.

While a president's family, including children, have traditionally flown aboard both aircraft, it's a matter of Hunter Biden's current legal situation that has many concerned.

White House defends

During a press briefing on Tuesday, press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre was asked why Hunter Biden is being kept off of passenger lists.

The latest instance came as the family flew back to Delaware "to mark the anniversary of the 1972 car crash that killed Biden's first wife, Neilia, and their then-1-year-old daughter Naomi."

"That's something that we've never done," Jean-Pierre told reporters when asked about Hunter traveling aboard Marine One.

She added, "This is the family. The family gets to travel with the president, and that's been the case with every other president. And so it's not something that we've done or we would be doing moving forward."

The White House is defending its apparent decision to omit first son Hunter Biden from the Marine One and Air Force One flight manifests it made available to reporters, according to reports.https://t.co/M8G4j838K2 https://t.co/TtjI578OWg

— NEWSMAX (@NEWSMAX) December 20, 2023

Doubling down

When pressed on the matter, Jean-Pierre, once again, dodged the question.

"As it relates to the past couple of days, as I just stated to your colleague, is that the president and [his] family were obviously, it was a somber anniversary that they were recognizing," Jean-Pierre said. "So you can imagine what that is like for them."

Hunter Biden has generated several headlines over the past weeks, including a round of indictments out of California and for his bizarre, impromptu press conference outside of the Capitol last week while he was defying a congressional subpoena.

Both Hunter Biden and the White House have worked overtime to dodge his legal hang-ups by playing the victim card as it relates to his recovery from drugs and alcohol.

With the White House refusing to say why it's leaving him off the flight lists, it's no wonder the American public continues to have questions.

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