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Wednesday Afternoon Update: Federal Judge Kneecaps Censorship Efforts, Coke At White House , And More
This article is adapted from today’s Morning Wire Afternoon Update. To listen to the podcast version, click here.
Federal Judge Kneecaps Censorship Efforts
On Tuesday, Independence Day, a federal judge issued an injunction that bans numerous top Biden administration officials and agencies from communicating and meeting with social media companies.
The injunction came in response to a lawsuit brought by two Republican attorneys general. According to Judge Terry Dougherty, it “produced evidence of a massive effort by Defendants, from the White House to federal agencies, to suppress speech based on its content.” The lawsuit, filed by Missouri and Louisiana, accused the Biden administration of pushing social media companies to censor content related to the coronavirus pandemic.
The judge, a Trump nominee, did allow for some exceptions for Biden officials to have contact with social media companies, including informing them of posts involving “criminal activity or criminal conspiracies,” “national security threats, extortion, or other threats,” and crimes related to U.S. elections.
A gunman shot and killed five people in the Kingsessing neighborhood of Philadelphia on Monday night. Witnesses say the gunman appeared to be shooting at random with a rifle and was wearing a bulletproof vest. Authorities later identified the shooter as a male who posted photos of himself dressed in women’s attire on multiple occasions and had a history of threatening social media posts.
The shooter’s motive has not been established, but Facebook posts indicate that the shooter was fixated on guns, as well as historic crimes against black people in America. That incident started around 8:30 p.m. Monday night, and the officers who stopped it were praised by Philadelphia Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw:
The unknown powdery substance that forced a brief evacuation of the White House Sunday night has been confirmed by authorities to be cocaine. Officials said the white powdery substance was found in the White House’s West Wing. The New York Post reports that first son Hunter Biden, “who has acknowledged a prior addiction to crack cocaine, was on the White House grounds Friday before heading off to Camp David with his father for the holiday weekend.” We’ll have the latest on that story tomorrow morning.
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Shocking Jewelry Theft In California
Authorities in La Verne, California, are still searching for suspects after a gang of thieves brazenly rammed their vehicle into a local jewelry store storefront and made off with more than a quarter of a million dollars worth of valuables. Four men were seen hopping out of the vehicle, smashing open display cases with hammers, and driving off. The theft happened in broad daylight on Saturday at noon.
French Riots Cause $1 Billion In Damages
The violent riots that rocked France over the last week have cost businesses over $1 billion, according to a new report.
Medef, a French business association, came up with the estimate after the country faced widespread looting and arson following the police shooting of a 17-year-old boy of Algerian descent during an attempted traffic stop.
Police have arrested thousands in an attempt to quell the violence, as more than 200 businesses have been looted, as well as 250 tobacco stores and 300 banks destroyed.
The Barbie movie has been banned in Vietnam due to its featuring of a map of the South China Sea which shows China’s “nine-dash-line” and Beijing’s maritime border extending into areas claimed by other governments and encompassing most of the South China Sea. The issue is sensitive in the region as the Chinese Communist Party has repeatedly butted heads with countries like Vietnam over border disputes.
US Navy Claims It Blocked Iran From Taking Oil Tanker
The U.S. Navy said Wednesday that it blocked Iran from seizing two commercial tankers in the Gulf of Oman. The Navy said the first attempted seizure took place around 1:00 a.m. local time and involved an oil tanker with Marshall Islands flags.
A U.S. guided-missile destroyer arrived on the scene and stopped the action. The second attack was more aggressive, with the Iranian navy firing on a crude carrier managed by Chevron. The company says all of the ship’s crew are safe.
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