The <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/cia" target="_blank" rel="noopener">CIA</a> said on Saturday that it now assesses that a lab leak from communist China was responsible for the COVID-19 pandemic that upended the world several years ago.
The announcement came after CIA Director John Ratcliffe was overwhelmingly confirmed by the U.S. Senate this week.
&#8220;CIA assesses with low confidence that a research-related origin of the COVID-19 pandemic is more likely than a neutral origin based on the available body of reporting,&#8221; the agency said in a statement. &#8220;CIA continues to assess that both research-related and natural origin scenarios of the COVID-19 pandemic remain plausible.&#8221;
&#8220;We have low confidence in this judgement and will continue to evaluate any available credible new intelligence reporting or open-source information that could change CIA&#8217;s assessment,&#8221; the statement added.
The New York Times reported that the decision to reassess the origins of the pandemic came after the Biden administration &#8220;ordered a new classified review of the pandemic’s origin&#8221; during the administration&#8217;s final weeks in office.
Ratcliffe simply declassified and released the results of the assessment, thus dispelling insinuations that he politicized intelligence.
The report said that the new analysis comes after the agency took a closer look at the conditions inside high security labs in Wuhan before the outbreak.
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The Wall Street Journal reported late last year that the Biden administration suppressed information from U.S. intelligence agencies that indicated a lab leak in communist China was the origin of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The FBI was the only government agency that assessed that a lab leak was the likely source of the pandemic, and had “moderate confidence” in their evaluation. Four other government departments said they believed the pandemic had a zoonotic origin — meaning that it came from animals — but they said they had “low confidence” in their assessment, according to The Wall Street Journal.
When National Intelligence Director Avril Haines briefed Biden in August 2021, three months after Biden ordered a 90-day review to determine where the pandemic came from, the FBI was not asked to attend the meeting.
Jason Bannan, who has a Ph.D. in microbiology, joined the FBI after the 9/11 attacks to bolster its expertise in matters related to biological weapons, chemical weapons, and more.
“Being the only agency that assessed that a laboratory origin was more likely, and the agency that expressed the highest level of confidence in its analysis of the source of the pandemic, we anticipated the FBI would be asked to attend the briefing,” Bannan told The Wall Street Journal. “I find it surprising that the White House didn’t ask.”
The Wall Street Journal investigation found that officials in the Biden administration sought to keep certain information from becoming public about the lab leak theory, and that the FBI was not the only agency that thought the pandemic originated in a Chinese lab.
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/biden-admin-suppressed-info-from-intel-agencies-that-blamed-lab-leak-for-covid-19-pandemic?fbclid=IwY2xjawICJ79leHRuA2FlbQIxMAABHfYqpb8faFYISrCbu8EPdkibKpSIvH9IJKNtMSzQ7kh1Z9dtv9ZIErsn7w_aem_wqZibq2ln1O3VS02dDEVqA">Biden Admin Suppressed Info From Intel Agencies That Blamed ‘Lab Leak’ For COVID-19 Pandemic</a>

John Ratcliffe

CIA Assesses Chinese Lab Leak Responsible For Coronavirus Pandemic

Communist China

COVID

World

On Thursday, the GOP-led <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/u-s-senate" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Senate</a> confirmed the nomination of <a href="https://x.com/CraigCaplan/status/1881476717325558114" target="_blank" rel="noopener">John Ratcliffe</a> to become <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/cia" target="_blank" rel="noopener">CIA</a> director in President <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/donald-trump" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Donald Trump</a>&#8216;s second term.
The final tally was <a href="https://x.com/SenateCloakroom/status/1882509868520927345" target="_blank" rel="noopener">74-25</a>, with many Democrats joining with Republicans in voting for Ratcliffe, who is the second Trump Cabinet nominee to be confirmed after Secretary of State Marco Rubio was approved unanimously earlier this week. A simple majority was needed for confirmation.
Ratcliffe is a former House Republican from Texas who served as director of national intelligence at the end of the first Trump administration.
During his confirmation hearing last week, Ratcliffe testified that he demonstrated his &#8220;record in terms of speaking truth to power and defending the intelligence community and its good work&#8221; when he stood firm against efforts to discredit the Hunter Biden laptop story.
&#8220;In 2020, when a chairman of an intelligence committee misrepresented that a laptop owned by then-candidate [Joe] Biden&#8217;s son was somehow a Russian intelligence operation and 51 former intelligence officials used the imprimatur of IC authority to go along with that, I stood in the breach. I stood alone and told the American people the truth about that,&#8221; he said.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">
CIA Director Nominee <a href="https://twitter.com/JohnRatcliffe?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@JohnRatcliffe</a>: &#8220;In 2020, when a chairman of an intelligence committee misrepresented that a laptop owned by then candidate Biden&#8217;s son was somehow a Russian intelligence operation&#8230; I stood in the breach. I stood alone and told the American people the truth… <a href="https://t.co/5d75IK13BG">pic.twitter.com/5d75IK13BG</a>
— Trump War Room (@TrumpWarRoom) <a href="https://twitter.com/TrumpWarRoom/status/1879559506243285015?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 15, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
The Senate Intelligence Committee advanced Ratcliffe&#8217;s nomination by a 14-3 vote with bipartisan support. However, earlier this week, Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT) <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/senate-republicans-erupt-over-dem-stalling-of-trump-nominees" target="_blank" rel="noopener">objected</a> to a so-called <a href="https://x.com/AndrewDesiderio/status/1881841277626671515" target="_blank" rel="noopener">time agreement</a> that would have allowed a final confirmation vote to have taken place on Tuesday.
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Murphy <a href="https://www.c-span.org/event/us-senate/us-senate/430291" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> he wanted a &#8220;full&#8221; debate that lasted a couple of more days while insisting that some members had &#8220;serious concerns&#8221; that the CIA pick would not be able to &#8220;distance himself from the political interests of President Trump.&#8221; Intelligence Chairman Tom Cotton (R-AR) rejected Murphy&#8217;s claim about Democrats needing more time and surmised that &#8220;what this is really about is trying to drag out all of these nominations to play procedural games, as we&#8217;re about to, with Pete Hegseth&#8217;s nomination to try to deny President Trump his Cabinet in a prompt and timely fashion.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">
My message to obstructionist Democrats:
Don’t make plans this weekend. We’re going to get President Trump’s nominees confirmed the easy collegial way, or apparently the hard way. <a href="https://t.co/DJrA09bTqk">pic.twitter.com/DJrA09bTqk</a>
— Tom Cotton (@SenTomCotton) <a href="https://twitter.com/SenTomCotton/status/1881851088980279482?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 21, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
&nbsp;
The Senate could hold a confirmation vote on Hegseth, who is the nominee to become defense secretary, as early as Friday after GOP leadership took procedural steps to set it up in the face of Democrat resistance to speed up consideration of Trump&#8217;s Cabinet picks. South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem, who is Trump&#8217;s nominee to become Secretary of Homeland Security, may be next with a <a href="https://x.com/DISivak/status/1882201777631805941" target="_blank" rel="noopener">final vote</a> over the weekend.
&nbsp;
Senate Majority Leader <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/john-thune" target="_blank" rel="noopener">John Thune</a> (R-SD) <a href="https://x.com/LeaderJohnThune/status/1881880780319944809" target="_blank" rel="noopener">warned</a> Democrats against slowing down efforts to confirm Trump&#8217;s nominees, saying on X: &#8220;As I’ve repeatedly said, Senate Republicans are ready to work as long as needed to confirm President Trump’s nominees. Nights. Weekends. Recesses.&#8221;
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Senate Confirms John Ratcliffe As Trump’s CIA Director

Cabinet

Donald Trump

General

National Security

Politics

Presidential nomination

U.S. Senate

Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) warned Senate Democrats on Tuesday night that Senate Republicans will confirm President Donald Trump&#8217;s nominees to their chosen roles, with or without their help.
Cotton made the remarks during a speech on the Senate floor after Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT) blocked a vote to confirm former Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe to become the next director of the CIA.
&#8220;I don’t really understand the objection to Mr. Ratcliffe,&#8221; Cotton said. &#8220;He was confirmed by the Senate to be the director of National Intelligence. He was fully vetted through the bipartisan process on the Senate Intelligence Committee. We voted him out yesterday, on a 14 to 3 vote. Senator Schumer stood here yesterday and talked about how we’re going to cooperate on highly qualified capable nominees with integrity, which John Ratcliffe is.&#8221;
Cotton noted that the intentional delay meant that on Tuesday, only Secretary of State Marco Rubio was confirmed to his role, and there would be no more votes on Wednesday.
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&#8220;I hope nobody’s making any plans for the weekend or the evenings cause we’re going to get these nominees confirmed,&#8221; Cotton said. &#8220;Starting with Mr. Ratcliffe and then moving on to Mr. Hegseth and moving on to [Mrs.] Noem. The easy way or the hard way. We tried to cooperate with the Democrats. The cooperation has not been forthcoming, so I guess it’s going to be the hard way. Starting on Thursday.&#8221;
Cotton said that Democrats were &#8220;trying to drag out all of these nominations to play procedural games, as we’re about to with Pete Hegseth’s nomination, to try to deny President Trump his cabinet in a prompt and timely fashion, just like the Democrats did in 2017.&#8221;
WATCH:
<iframe loading="lazy" title="Tom Cotton Issues Warning To Democrats After They Block Vote On CIA Director Nominee John Ratcliffe" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/jo7GiFo1Ivk?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Donald Trump Meets With Republican Senators At The NRSC

‘The Easy Way Or The Hard Way’: Tom Cotton Warns Dems About Delaying Confirming Trump Nominees

Congress

Tom Cotton

Leading <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/u-s-senate" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Senate</a> Republicans have been delivering fiery rebukes as their Democrat colleagues slowed down the process of confirming President <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/donald-trump" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Donald Trump</a>&#8216;s Cabinet nominees for his nascent second term in the White House.
After Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT) objected to a so-called <a href="https://x.com/AndrewDesiderio/status/1881841277626671515" target="_blank" rel="noopener">time agreement</a> that would have allowed a final vote on <a href="https://x.com/CraigCaplan/status/1881476717325558114" target="_blank" rel="noopener">John Ratcliffe</a>&#8216;s nomination to become CIA director on Tuesday, Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) voiced his dismay in <a href="https://www.c-span.org/event/us-senate/us-senate/430291" target="_blank" rel="noopener">remarks</a> on the Senate floor while stressing that the upper chamber would press ahead with Trump&#8217;s picks.
&#8220;We&#8217;ve now wasted a whole day where we could have been acting on that nomination,&#8221; Thune said, adding that the question before the Senate was &#8220;do we want a vote on these folks on Tuesday or vote on them on Friday, Saturday and Sunday? Because that&#8217;s what we&#8217;re going to do. This can be easy or this can be hard.&#8221;
Thune highlighted that Ratcliffe, a former House Republican from Texas who served as director of national intelligence at the end of Trump&#8217;s first term, sailed through the Senate Intelligence Committee by a 14-3 vote with bipartisan support.
&#8220;This is about America&#8217;s national security interests. And we&#8217;re stalling,&#8221; Thune continued. &#8220;So that&#8217;s not going to happen. We&#8217;re going to file cloture on them. You can force us to stay here, staying around here. And we can vote on these things Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday. But we&#8217;re going to vote on them.&#8221;
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
As I’ve repeatedly said, Senate Republicans are ready to work as long as needed to confirm President Trump’s nominees. Nights. Weekends. Recesses. <a href="https://t.co/yLl2hIo0pc">pic.twitter.com/yLl2hIo0pc</a>
&mdash; Leader John Thune (@LeaderJohnThune) <a href="https://twitter.com/LeaderJohnThune/status/1881880780319944809?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 22, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Thune also took procedural steps that will pave the way to final confirmation votes in the coming days for Ratcliffe&#8217;s nomination, as well as South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem&#8217;s nomination to become Homeland Security secretary and Pete Hegseth&#8217;s nomination to become Defense secretary — both of whom have advanced out of committee, too.
With a post to X featuring a video of his remarks, Thune suggested there could even be recess appointments. Trump has <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/this-is-how-recess-appointments-work-and-how-they-could-help-trump-fill-his-cabinet" target="_blank" rel="noopener">advocated</a> for installing his own nominees in such a manner, during a recess, if the Senate fails to confirm them in a &#8220;timely manner.&#8221;
In rejecting the Senate Republicans&#8217; bid to proceed more swiftly with a confirmation vote on Ratcliffe&#8217;s nomination, Murphy <a href="https://www.c-span.org/event/us-senate/us-senate/430291" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> he wanted a &#8220;full&#8221; debate that lasted a couple more days while insisting that some members had &#8220;serious concerns&#8221; that the CIA pick would not be able to &#8220;distance himself from the political interests of President Trump.&#8221;
But Senate Intelligence Chairman Tom Cotton (R-AR) wasn&#8217;t buying it. He rejected Murphy&#8217;s claim about Democrats needing more time to discuss Ratcliffe&#8217;s nomination and surmised that &#8220;what this is really about is trying to drag out all of these nominations to play procedural games, as we&#8217;re about to, with Pete Hegseth&#8217;s nomination to try to deny President Trump his Cabinet in a prompt and timely fashion.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
My message to obstructionist Democrats:
Don’t make plans this weekend. We’re going to get President Trump’s nominees confirmed the easy collegial way, or apparently the hard way. <a href="https://t.co/DJrA09bTqk">pic.twitter.com/DJrA09bTqk</a>
&mdash; Tom Cotton (@SenTomCotton) <a href="https://twitter.com/SenTomCotton/status/1881851088980279482?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 21, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
So far, the GOP-led Senate has approved just one of Trump&#8217;s Cabinet nominees: now-former senator from Florida, Marco Rubio, who on Tuesday was <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/marco-rubio-sworn-in-says-war-in-ukraine-must-end" target="_blank" rel="noopener">sworn in</a> to office as U.S. Secretary of State after being confirmed by a unanimous vote on Monday.
While some delays may be <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/politics/confirmation-delays-stack-up-trump-nominees-paperwork-lags-federal-offices" target="_blank" rel="noopener">due to paperwork</a>, the Senate Judiciary Committee <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/senate-democrats-put-arbitrary-hold-on-pam-bondi-nomination" target="_blank" rel="noopener">announced</a> that Democrats pushed back a meeting to vote on advancing the nomination of <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/pam-bondi" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Pam Bondi</a> to become U.S. attorney general by a week with a hold allowed under the rules.

John Thune

Senate Republicans Erupt Over Dem ‘Stalling’ Of Trump Nominees

Chris Murphy

Kristi Noem

Pam Bondi

Pete Hegseth

Senate Democrats

President-elect <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/donald-trump" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Donald Trump</a> announced on Tuesday that he is selecting John Ratcliffe, the former Director of National Intelligence, to lead the Central Intelligence Agency.
Trump <a href="https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/113472422495973695" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> in a statement that Ratcliffe &#8220;will be a fearless fighter for the Constitutional Rights of all Americans, while ensuring the Highest Levels of National Security, and PEACE THROUGH STRENGTH.&#8221; Ratcliffe, a former congressman representing Texas&#8217; 4th District, was awarded the National Security Medal by Trump in 2020 after he spoke out against the FBI and Robert Mueller’s special counsel investigation into the spurious claims of Trump’s ties to Russia.
Shortly before the 2020 election, Ratcliffe declassified information about the 2016 election that suggested Hillary Clinton’s campaign approved a plan to “stir up a scandal” against Trump that tied him to the Russians.
&#8220;From exposing fake Russian collusion to be a Clinton campaign operation, to catching the FBI&#8217;s abuse of Civil Liberties at the FISA Court, John Ratcliffe has always been a warrior for Truth and Honesty with the American Public,&#8221; Trump added.
Before his time in Congress, Ratcliffe served as the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Texas. He was a congressman for five years before he was tapped by Trump to become the Director of National Intelligence in 2020. Ratcliffe was also <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/here-are-the-names-being-floated-for-trumps-ag-pick" target="_blank" rel="noopener">floated</a> as a potential pick for Trump&#8217;s attorney general.
<a href="https://www.amiracist.com/?_gl=1*jtghwp*_gcl_au*ODQ1NjYzNTg2LjE3Mjg5MDk3OTE.*_ga*MTc2NzM0NDQ2NS4xNzI4OTA5Nzkx*_ga_CZKR9ZYKJP*MTczMDEyMDgwOS40OS4xLjE3MzAxMjA4MzkuMzAuMC4w">MATT WALSH’S ‘AM I RACIST?’ NOW STREAMING ON DAILYWIRE+</a>
The new Trump administration is quickly taking shape as the president named people for multiple positions this week, including former Rep. <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/we-will-restore-american-energy-dominance-trump-taps-lee-zeldin-to-lead-epa" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Lee Zeldin</a> (R-NY) to lead the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Rep. <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/stefanik-aims-to-restore-america-first-peace-through-strength-as-trumps-u-n-ambassador" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Elise Stefanik</a> (R-NY) as the U.S. ambassador to the U.N., and former Arkansas Republican Gov. <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/mike-huckabee-nominated-for-u-s-ambassador-to-israel" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Mike Huckabee</a> as the U.S. ambassador to Israel.

Trump Names Next CIA Director

Executive

Trump Administration

As President-elect Donald Trump continues to build his Cabinet, Americans are waiting for him to appoint someone to one of the most important positions in the administration: attorney general.
Trump&#8217;s pick for attorney general will be one of the most talked about appointments heading into his second term. In his first term, Trump appointed Jeff Sessions, who served as AG for two years, and then appointed Bill Barr, who served during the final two years of Trump&#8217;s time in the White House.
Multiple names are being floated for potential replacements for President Joe Biden&#8217;s Attorney General Merrick Garland.
<h3>Mark Paoletta</h3>
Attorney Mark Paoletta served in the Trump administration as chief counsel and assistant to Vice President Mike Pence before moving to general counsel of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). Paoletta is a close friend of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas and his wife Ginni, and he played an important <a href="https://www.heritage.org/courts/commentary/the-real-clarence-thomas" target="_blank" rel="noopener">role</a> in Thomas&#8217; confirmation to the High Court.
From 1997 to 2007, Paoletta served as Chief Counsel for Oversight and Investigations for the House Energy and Commerce Committee. He now serves on Trump&#8217;s transition team and is helping craft Justice Department policy for the second Trump administration, according to <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/politics/whos-who-trumps-short-list-attorney-general" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Fox News</a>. In an X <a href="https://x.com/MarkPaoletta/status/1855977334106390915" target="_blank" rel="noopener">post</a> on Monday, Paoletta told &#8220;career DOJ employees&#8221; who &#8220;won’t implement President Trump’s program in good faith&#8221; to step down.
&#8220;Those employees who engage in so-called &#8216;resistance&#8217; against the duly-elected President’s lawful agenda would be subverting American democracy,&#8221; he added. &#8220;Finally, those that take such actions would be subject to disciplinary measures, including termination. I look forward to President Trump’s team Making America Great Again, especially at the Department of Justice and the FBI.&#8221;
<h3>John Ratcliffe</h3>
John Ratcliffe served as Trump&#8217;s Director of National Intelligence for a year at the end of the president&#8217;s first term. Before taking that role, Ratcliffe served as the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Texas, and was elected to Congress in 2015, where he served for five years as the House representative from Texas&#8217;s 4th District.
Ratcliffe was <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/new-spy-chief-pick-ratcliffe-made-his-name-during-the-trump-inquiries-by-backing-the-president/2019/07/28/f92658ce-b185-11e9-951e-de024209545d_story.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">outspoken</a> in his criticism of the FBI and Robert Mueller&#8217;s special counsel investigation into the spurious claims of Trump&#8217;s ties to Russia. Shortly before the 2020 election, Ratcliffe declassified information about the 2016 election that suggested Hillary Clinton&#8217;s campaign approved a plan to “stir up a scandal” against Trump that tied him to the Russians, The New York Times <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/29/us/politics/john-ratcliffe-russian-disinformation.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a>.
Ratcliffe has remained quiet on the rumors surrounding a potential AG appointment.
<h3>Sen. Mike Lee</h3>
Utah Senator Mike Lee has been one of the most conservative lawmakers in Washington, D.C., for over a decade. Lee has an extensive legal background, serving as a clerk for the U.S. District Court for the District of Utah, clerking for Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito, and working as an assistant U.S. attorney for the District of Utah. He served as Utah Governor Jon Huntsman Jr.&#8217;s general counsel before his election to the Senate in 2010.
Lee won his third term in office in 2022. He was a strong critic of Trump in 2016, <a href="https://apnews.com/general-news-bde9ab70ff2a41ef8e779b565421876e" target="_blank" rel="noopener">voting</a> for independent presidential candidate Evan McMullin. Lee, however, quickly became a staunch Trump ally of Trump. Six years later, Trump backed Lee&#8217;s re-election bid when McMullin challenged him for the Senate in an election that Lee won by over 10 points.
Lee <a href="https://thedispatch.com/article/mike-lees-journey-from-trump-critic-to-trump-supporter/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told</a> The Dispatch earlier this year that after Trump started governing in 2017, Lee saw that &#8220;he aligned a lot more with Republican ideals than I expected. In some areas, I was particularly surprised how well things went.&#8221;
Asked about a possible role in the Trump administration last week, Lee <a href="https://www.deseret.com/politics/2024/11/07/sen-mike-lee-trump-administration/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told</a> Deseret News, &#8220;I have the job I want.&#8221;
&#8220;And I look forward to working in the next Congress and with President Trump and his team to implement his agenda and the reform agenda that Republicans have offered and campaigned on, and it’s going to be an exciting time,&#8221; he added. &#8220;We’ve got a lot of work to do.&#8221;
<h3>Judge Aileen Cannon</h3>
ABC News <a href="https://abcnews.go.com/US/judge-tossed-trumps-classified-docs-case-list-proposed/story?id=114997807" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a> last month that District Court Judge Aileen Cannon, who threw out the classified documents case against Trump earlier this year, appeared on a Trump ream document as a potential attorney general pick. The document was reportedly written by Trump&#8217;s top advisers. Cannon <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/judge-dismisses-trump-classified-documents-case" target="_blank" rel="noopener">dismissed</a> the classified documents case against Trump in July, ruling that &#8220;Special Counsel Smith’s appointment violates the Appointments Clause of the U.S. Constitution.&#8221;
Cannon, whom Trump appointed in 2020, was born in Colombia and grew up in Miami. From 2008 to 2009, she clerked for Steven Colloton, a judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit in Iowa. Cannon was then an assistant United States <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2022/08/28/trump-special-master-fbi/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">attorney</a> for the Southern District of Florida from 2013 to 2020.
Cannon also presided over the case of Ryan Routh, who was charged with attempting to assassinate Trump at his West Palm Beach, Florida, golf course in September. Routh&#8217;s lawyers have <a href="https://www.msnbc.com/deadline-white-house/deadline-legal-blog/aileen-cannon-attorney-general-trump-report-rcna176787" target="_blank" rel="noopener">asked</a> Cannon to recuse herself from the case, citing her potential appointment to a higher position in the second Trump administration.
<h3>Matthew Whitaker</h3>
A candidate who already has some experience in the position is former Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker, whom Trump tapped to fill the position for a short time between the stints of Jeff Sessions and Bill Barr.
Whitaker served as the United States Attorney for the Southern District of Iowa from 2004 until 2009. He then worked as a managing partner of a general practice law firm in Des Moines, Iowa, from 2009 to 2017. Former Attorney General Jeff Sessions appointed Whitaker to serve as his chief of staff in 2017. After Sessions resigned in November 2018, Whitaker was tapped by Trump to serve as Acting Attorney General, a position he held until February 2019 when Barr took over.
<a href="https://www.amiracist.com/?_gl=1*jtghwp*_gcl_au*ODQ1NjYzNTg2LjE3Mjg5MDk3OTE.*_ga*MTc2NzM0NDQ2NS4xNzI4OTA5Nzkx*_ga_CZKR9ZYKJP*MTczMDEyMDgwOS40OS4xLjE3MzAxMjA4MzkuMzAuMC4w">MATT WALSH’S ‘AM I RACIST?’ NOW STREAMING ON DAILYWIRE+</a>
Whitaker did not tell <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/politics/whos-who-trumps-short-list-attorney-general" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Fox News</a> whether he was interested in the position in the second Trump administration, saying, &#8220;[Trump&#8217;s] going to want someone who he knows, likes and trusts. He&#8217;s going to want someone who was there from the beginning.&#8221;
<h3>Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey</h3>
Another name floated for AG is the recently appointed Missouri Attorney General, Andrew Bailey. Missouri Gov. Mike Parson appointed Bailey after former Missouri AG Eric Schmitt ran for Senate and won in 2022. As the state&#8217;s chief law enforcement officer, Bailey has challenged the Biden administration in dozens of lawsuits including <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/missouri-accuses-biden-admin-of-diversion-tactics-hiding-info-about-illegal-migrants-in-lawsuit" target="_blank" rel="noopener">accusing</a> the federal government of &#8220;hid[ing] information from Americans&#8221; about &#8220;flying of illegal immigrants into Missouri.&#8221;
Bailey served as general counsel of the Missouri Department of Corrections and as general counsel for Parson. As attorney general, Bailey has also gone after the abortion drug <a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2024/10/22/missouri-mifepristone-lawsuit-andrew-bailey-teen-pregnancy/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">mifepristone</a>, arguing that it is too dangerous and seeking to ensure “long-standing safety requirements” are put in place for the drug.
In 2023, Bailey announced new restrictions on gender procedures for adults and children. The new rules required people to undergo 18 months of therapy before receiving gender treatments.
As Trump continues to announce cabinet positions following his election victory, the attorney general pick could come at any time. Trump&#8217;s pick then must be confirmed by a majority of the Senate, which will be under Republican control beginning in January.

Here Are The Names Being Floated For Trump’s AG Pick

Here Are The Names Being Floated For Trump's AG Pick

Attorney General

Mike Lee

A &#8220;deeper investigation&#8221; is needed for looking into the infamous <a href="https://www.politico.com/f/?id=00000175-4393-d7aa-af77-579f9b330000" target="_blank" rel="noopener">letter</a> used to discredit the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/hunter-biden" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Hunter Biden</a> laptop story weeks before the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/2020-election" target="_blank" rel="noopener">2020 presidential election</a> as crimes may have been committed, a top official from the Trump administration said on Sunday.
Former Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe, who was joined by former House Intelligence Chairman Devin Nunes (R-CA), <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/video/6356055594112" target="_blank" rel="noopener">spoke to &#8220;Sunday Morning Futures&#8221;</a> host Maria Bartiromo on Fox News about the <a href="https://judiciary.house.gov/sites/evo-subsites/republicans-judiciary.house.gov/files/evo-media-document/2024-06-25%20The%20Intelligence%20Community%2051%20-%20How%20CIA%20Contractors%20Colluded%20with%20the%20Biden%20Campaign%20to%20Mislead%20American%20Voters.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">revelation</a> last week that some of the former  officials who signed the letter were on the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/cia" target="_blank" rel="noopener">CIA</a>&#8216;s payroll at the time.
&#8220;The CIA is supposed to be apolitical and is charged by law under the Hatch Act and other restrictions from engaging in political activity,&#8221; he said. &#8220;What made this letter OK from one perspective early on was all of the assertions that these were former officials acting in their private capacity.&#8221;
Ratcliffe continued, &#8220;Now the CIA has admitted, and there&#8217;s testimony here, that at least some of these individuals were under contract with the CIA, which means Hatch Act violations and perhaps more serious criminal violations under Title 18 for election interference.&#8221;
House investigators <a href="https://judiciary.house.gov/sites/evo-subsites/republicans-judiciary.house.gov/files/evo-media-document/2024-06-25%20The%20Intelligence%20Community%2051%20-%20How%20CIA%20Contractors%20Colluded%20with%20the%20Biden%20Campaign%20to%20Mislead%20American%20Voters.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">found</a> that two of the 51 signatories — former Deputy CIA Director Michael Morell and former CIA Inspector General David Buckley — were actively working for the CIA as contractors when the statement was published.
The &#8220;revelation raises concerns that these officials may have abused their positions to expedite the statement&#8217;s approval and may have been earning taxpayer dollars while they did it,&#8221; the Weaponization of the Federal Government panel <a href="https://judiciary.house.gov/media/press-releases/new-information-shows-cia-contractors-colluded-biden-campaign-discredit-hunter#:~:text=This%20revelation%20raises%20concerns%20that,and%20would%20hurt%20the%20Agency.">said</a> in a report.
In response to the findings, a CIA spokesperson insisted that the former officials were &#8220;not speaking for&#8221; the agency. And the report noted that Hatch Act political restrictions do not apply to contractors in the same way they do to CIA employees, though it proposed that lawmakers consider whether to extend the prohibition to contractors.
Ratcliffe said the House &#8220;has done some good work here&#8221; but added that the laptop controversy &#8220;really requires a deeper investigation, one that the Biden administration won&#8217;t undertake.&#8221; He went on to suggest his former boss, Donald Trump, could make that happen if he wins a second term in November.
&#8220;What has to happen here, Maria, is that when President Trump is sworn into office, a new CIA director, a new CIA inspector general, and a new attorney general for a Trump administration need a deeper investigation and potential criminal referrals here,&#8221; he explained.
&#8220;And the other thing I would say is, regardless of how all of this plays out, all of those former officials and current officials that were involved in orchestrating this should be irrevocably and permanently stripped of any security clearances or affiliation with the intelligence community,&#8221; Ratcliffe said.
He added, &#8220;Look, you know, Maria, that we have what&#8217;s called a debarment list where we put companies and individuals that defraud the government on a list and say, &#8216;You&#8217;re a bad actor, you can&#8217;t be affiliated or do business with the government anymore.&#8217; That needs to take place with these officials so this kind of political interference can&#8217;t occur anymore.&#8221;

John Ratcliffe, former director of National Intelligence

John Ratcliffe Calls For ‘Deeper Investigation’ Into Hunter Biden Letter After CIA Contractor Revelation

John Ratcliffe Calls For 'Deeper Investigation' Into Hunter Biden Letter After CIA Contractor Revelation

2020 Election

Director of National Intelligence

Hunter Biden

Joe Biden

U.S.

The classified documents case against former President <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/donald-trump" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Donald Trump</a> &#8220;reeks&#8221; of the FBI&#8217;s infamous Russia collusion investigation, a top official in his administration said on Sunday.
Former Director of National Intelligence <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/john-ratcliffe" target="_blank" rel="noopener">John Ratcliffe</a> made the comparison to Crossfire Hurricane while speaking to Fox News anchor Maria Bartiromo.
Alluding to special counsel Jack Smith&#8217;s team <a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2024/05/03/mar-a-lago-trump-classified-documents-00156124" target="_blank" rel="noopener">conceding</a> last week that documents seized by the FBI may have become jumbled despite previously saying otherwise, Ratcliffe suggested there was evidence tampering.
&#8220;What Jack Smith admitted in court this week was that, in his words, they mishandled the classified documents and misrepresented those to the court,&#8221; Ratcliffe said during his <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/video/6352366664112" target="_blank" rel="noopener">&#8220;Sunday Morning Futures&#8221; appearance</a>.
Ratcliffe contended that prosecutors got &#8220;caught&#8221; when Trump&#8217;s lawyers and the other co-defendants raised the issue of scanned copies not matching up with the records of when they were taken from Mar-a-Lago in 2022.
Smith has &#8220;absolutely blown the chain of custody,&#8221; Ratcliffe emphasized.
Ratcliffe went on to say the classified documents case &#8220;reeks of Crossfire Hurricane, when the Obama-Biden administration fabricated evidence before the FISA court, lied to the court about it to pursue Donald Trump.&#8221;
He was referring to the FBI&#8217;s use of an unverified dossier that raised allegations of collusion between Trump and Russia to obtain the authority to wiretap Carter Page, who served as an aide to Trumps&#8217; 2016 campaign.
&#8220;And now we&#8217;re seeing it again in this classified documents case. The judge could dismiss this case at any point in time, Maria,&#8221; Ratcliffe said.
He surmised the judge has not done so yet in order to let the public &#8220;see just how this case is being prosecuted, how unfairly Donald Trump has been persecuted in this matter by Joe Biden&#8217;s Department of Justice.&#8221;
Trump, who has pleaded not guilty to the charges in the documents cases and three other criminal matters as he seeks re-election, similarly reacted to Smith&#8217;s filing in Florida by claiming there was evidence tampering.
&#8220;These deeply Illegal actions by the Politicized &#8216;Persecutors&#8217; mandate that this whole Witch Hunt be DROPPED IMMEDIATELY. END THE &#8216;BOXES HOAXES.&#8217; MAGA2024!&#8221; he said in a <a href="https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/112379718145784478" target="_blank" rel="noopener">post</a> to his Truth Social platform.

Trump Docs Case ‘Reeks’ Of Russia Collusion Probe, Ratcliffe Says

Trump Docs Case 'Reeks' Of Russia Collusion Probe, Ratcliffe Says

Jack Smith

Former Director of National Intelligence <a href="http://John Ratcliffe dailywire.com https://www.dailywire.com › topic › john-ratcliffe" target="_blank" rel="noopener">John Ratcliffe</a> said Sunday that the Biden administration has given <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/iran" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Iran</a>, which reportedly greenlit Saturday’s Hamas invasion of Israel, far more than $6 billion worth of favors for the terrorist regime.
Ratcliffe, who served as national intelligence director under the Trump administration, appeared on Fox News on Sunday as experts and official claims appeared to tie Iran to the Hamas invasion, which led to the deadliest day for Jews since the Holocaust. Tehran helped Hamas plan the invasion and gave final approval on the Monday before the attack was launched, according to <a href="https://www.wsj.com/world/middle-east/iran-israel-hamas-strike-planning-bbe07b25" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Wall Street Journal</a>.
President Joe Biden came under fire over the weekend for a controversial hostage deal that saw the United States providing Iran access to $6 billion and five prisoners in exchange for five American hostages held by Iran.
“Look, it’s not even just this $6 billion, which clearly is going to further enrich Iran,” Ratcliffe said. “It’s closer to $60 billion. If you look at what the Biden administration has done to help this Islamic terrorist regime in Iran by [stopping enforcement of] sanctions, by lifting restrictions, by allowing Iranian oil to increase by 650% over the last year from 400,000 barrels of oil a day to 3 million barrels of oil a day – all of this has strengthened” the Iranian regime.
Ratcliffe said that the “real problem” in the Biden administration’s foreign policy in the Middle East is the “daylight” now perceived between the U.S. and Israel.
“The relationship has changed in the last two years,” Ratcliffe said of the U.S. and Israel. “The Biden administration wouldn’t even meet with the Israeli prime minister, but at the same time they were courting, at times begging, this Iranian regime to do everything from restarting nuclear talks to engaging in these kinds of, ultimately, ransom payments.&#8221;
“Ultimately, everyone sees that in the Middle East, and that is really what is playing out here before us right now,” the former head of national intelligence said.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Former Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe details how Biden strengthened the Iranian regime: 
&quot;It&#39;s not even just this $6 billion which clearly is going to further enrich Iran, it&#39;s closer to $60 billion.&quot; <a href="https://t.co/yr0qYXyVCS">pic.twitter.com/yr0qYXyVCS</a>
&mdash; Citizen Free Press (@CitizenFreePres) <a href="https://twitter.com/CitizenFreePres/status/1711043732282200209?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 8, 2023</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
The Biden administration has attempted to cool U.S.-Iran relations since Biden took office. One of the president&#8217;s chief Middle East goals has been resurrecting the Iran nuclear deal, originally negotiated under for President Barack Obama and heavily criticized by Republicans and Israel as providing insufficient oversight.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken said over the weekend that the Biden administrations hostage swap with Iran and the $6 billion account Iran was given access to do not play a part in the Hamas investigation. He said that the money is only available for humanitarian purposes and that, in response to counters that money is fungible, Iran has always devoted resources to terrorism.
“Iran has always used and focused its funds on supporting terrorism, on supporting groups like Hamas. And it’s done that when there’s been sanctions, it’s done that when there haven’t been sanctions, and it’s always prioritized that,” Blinken said.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
&quot;What do you say about the argument that money is fungible — so Iran may have known this money is coming and used other funds to help fund this attack?&quot;
Secretary of State Antony Blinken: &quot;Iran has unfortunately always used and focused its funds on supporting terrorism&quot; <a href="https://t.co/t8kyDqOHk9">pic.twitter.com/t8kyDqOHk9</a>
&mdash; RNC Research (@RNCResearch) <a href="https://twitter.com/RNCResearch/status/1711026361932911037?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 8, 2023</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Trump Intelligence Chief Says Biden Has Given Iran ‘Closer To $60 Billion’ In Favors

Iran

Israel

Former Director of National Intelligence <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/john-ratcliffe">John Ratcliffe</a> said there should be &#8220;more transparency&#8221; following a congressional hearing on unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAP), popularly known as <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/ufo">UFOs</a>.
The Biden administration &#8220;made the decision to really not reveal much and now you end up with House Republicans having to have these public hearings,&#8221; Ratcliffe said during an interview with Fox host Maria Bartiromo on &#8220;Sunday Morning Futures.&#8221;
&#8220;I believe there should be more transparency on this issue, but not full transparency,&#8221; Ratcliffe added. &#8220;The primary role of the federal government is to provide for the common defense and you know we don&#8217;t share all of the national security information with the American people, but the government should have done a better job.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Former Director of National Intelligence, <a href="https://twitter.com/JohnRatcliffe?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@JohnRatcliffe</a> was asked about David Grusch’s claims. He doesn’t deny them.
 “I’ve gone to the edge of talking about information that’s classified. I can’t go over that line. I just think they (Gov)could have put more information out…” <a href="https://t.co/o8J3ZBKR8h">pic.twitter.com/o8J3ZBKR8h</a>
&mdash; UAP News (@HighPeaks77) <a href="https://twitter.com/HighPeaks77/status/1685669297308282881?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 30, 2023</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
A House Oversight subcommittee <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/the-ufo-hearing-is-over-whats-next">held a UAP hearing</a> on Wednesday with testimony from David Grusch, a former U.S. military and intelligence official who has gone public with whistleblower <a href="https://thedebrief.org/intelligence-officials-say-u-s-has-retrieved-non-human-craft/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">allegations</a> about <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/whistleblower-testifies-he-knows-exact-locations-of-ufos">crafts of non-human origin</a> being retrieved and kept from <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/congress" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Congress</a>, and two Navy veterans who have come forward with claims about mysterious flying objects that appear to defy the laws of physics and could threaten national security.
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The Department of Defense released a statement <a href="https://twitter.com/GadiNBC/status/1684294693428027395">insisting</a> that its All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO), which has been tasked with investigating UFOs, &#8220;has not discovered any verifiable information to substantiate claims that any programs regarding the possession or reverse-engineering of extraterrestrial materials have existed in the past or exist currently.&#8221; In addition, AARO Director Sean Kirkpatrick said the hearing was <a href="https://apnews.com/article/congress-ufos-uaps-pentagon-aliens-631ad4d174ee9559580935ec11afcf3f">&#8220;insulting&#8221;</a> to members of his team.
Ratcliffe, a former U.S. congressman who served as the final <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/director-of-national-intelligence">director of national intelligence</a> during the Trump administration, has <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/former-national-intelligence-director-john-ratcliffe-sounds-alarm-over-new-ufo-report">spoken out periodically</a> about UAP since leaving government.
In March 2021, Ratcliffe said <a href="https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/former-intelligence-chief-quite-a-few-more-ufos-detected-than-public-knows">&#8220;multiple sensors&#8221;</a> were picking up on mysterious flying objects with strange properties. He also claimed there were &#8220;a lot more sightings than have been made public.&#8221; Since that time, the federal government has stepped up efforts to investigate UAP sightings and <a href="https://defensescoop.com/2023/04/19/pentagons-uap-office-now-investigating-more-than-650-cases/">release some information</a> about hundreds of encounters, but Ratcliffe contended that the effort has been poorly managed by the Biden administration.
&#8220;Had the government managed this a little bit better, it wouldn&#8217;t be as controversial,&#8221; Ratcliffe said on Sunday.
&#8220;There&#8217;s a lot of things that are unexplained,&#8221; Ratcliffe said. “I’ve gone to the edge of talking about information that’s classified. I can’t go over that line. This current administration would love nothing more than for me to trip over a classified-information line. I just think we could have put more information out to talk about all of that.&#8221;

Ratcliffe Faults Biden Administration For Lack Of UFO Transparency

Former Trump Spy Chief Wants 'More Transparency' After UFO Hearing

Air &amp; Space

Whistleblowers

Leaked details about <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/donald-trump" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Donald Trump</a>&#8216;s indictment are grounds for criminal charges, a top official from the former president&#8217;s administration said on Sunday.
<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/ratcliffe-shoots-down-claim-that-three-chinese-balloons-crossed-over-u-s-under-trump" target="_blank" rel="noopener">John Ratcliffe</a>, a former U.S. congressman and federal prosecutor who served as Trump&#8217;s final director of national intelligence, reacted to reports that Trump faces around 30 counts related to business fraud as part of the investigation led by Manhattan District Attorney <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/alvin-bragg" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Alvin Bragg</a>.
&#8220;The only felony of which we can be certain to come out of this Alvin Bragg prosecution in New York is the felony committed either by DA Bragg himself or someone on the grand jury that he&#8217;s using for this perversion of our justice system,&#8221; Ratcliffe told &#8220;Sunday Morning Futures&#8221; anchor Maria Bartiromo.
&#8220;The accused, Donald Trump, and his lawyers, don&#8217;t know what&#8217;s in this sealed indictment. But for the past, what? Seventy-two hours, the American public has been discussing supposedly 30 or 34 felony counts,&#8221; he added. &#8220;Leaking grand jury information is a felony. And so the only people capable of that would be Alvin Bragg&#8217;s team or members of the grand jury itself.&#8221;
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DNI John Ratcliffe says that Alvin Bragg may have committed a felony. 
Leaking grand jury information is a felony and so the only people capable of that would be Alvin Bragg’s team or members of the grand jury itself.” 
Ready for the boomerang? <a href="https://t.co/kshBZVG0rA">pic.twitter.com/kshBZVG0rA</a>
&mdash; vanhoa (@vanhoa2272) <a href="https://twitter.com/vanhoa2272/status/1642545972546011138?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 2, 2023</a></blockquote>
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<a href="https://www.cnn.com/2023/03/30/politics/donald-trump-indictment/index.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">CNN</a> and <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2024-election/trump-arrested-news-updates-indictment-counts-new-york-rcna77595" target="_blank" rel="noopener">NBC News</a> each cited &#8220;two sources familiar&#8221; with the matter in reporting that Trump faces about 30 charges following the revelation on Thursday that Trump became the first former president to face criminal charges.
Though exact details about the indictment remain unclear, Trump&#8217;s attorney Joe Tacopina <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-attorney-says-he-doesnt-know-how-arraignment-will-go" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told ABC News</a> on Sunday he was certain they &#8220;revolved around&#8221; the documentation of hush money payments to adult film actress Stormy Daniels during the 2016 election cycle.
Ratcliffe isn&#8217;t the only person saying there could have been criminal leaks. Harvard Law professor emeritus Alan Dershowitz shared a similar view during an appearance on OANN, noting that such a <a href="https://casetext.com/statute/consolidated-laws-of-new-york/chapter-penal/part-3-specific-offenses/title-l-offenses-against-public-administration/article-215-other-offenses-relating-to-judicial-and-other-proceedings/section-21570-unlawful-grand-jury-disclosure" target="_blank" rel="noopener">violation of New York penal law</a> could warrant up to five years behind bars.
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There is a crime — illegal grand jury leaks from Bragg’s office! <a href="https://t.co/qHw20yK3s9">pic.twitter.com/qHw20yK3s9</a>
&mdash; Liz Harrington (@realLizUSA) <a href="https://twitter.com/realLizUSA/status/1641958897840709634?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 1, 2023</a></blockquote>
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Trump, who is months into his third campaign for president, claims he is the target of <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-to-deliver-mar-a-lago-speech-after-arraignment" target="_blank" rel="noopener">“political persecution”</a> and denies any wrongdoing.
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Republicans in Congress have <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/house-republicans-launch-probe-into-manhattan-das-unprecedented-abuse-of-office-to-target-trump" target="_blank" rel="noopener">opened an investigation</a> seeking documents and testimony from Bragg&#8217;s team. Bragg, a Democrat, responded by <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/bragg-accuses-gop-of-unlawful-political-interference-following-trump-indictment" target="_blank" rel="noopener">urging the GOP lawmakers</a> to back off and &#8220;let the criminal justice process proceed without unlawful political interference.&#8221;
Bragg&#8217;s office also <a href="https://twitter.com/ManhattanDA/status/1641579988360019968" target="_blank" rel="noopener">issued a brief statement</a> on Thursday saying the prosecutor&#8217;s team had been in contact with Trump&#8217;s legal counsel to coordinate about surrendering following the indictment.
The arraignment is set for Tuesday in New York. Trump&#8217;s <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-to-deliver-mar-a-lago-speech-after-arraignment" target="_blank" rel="noopener">re-election campaign announced</a> on Sunday the former president would deliver a public address from his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida on Tuesday night.

Trump Spy Chief John Ratcliffe Flips Script, Says Indictment Leak Is A Crime

Trump Spy Chief Flips Script, Says Indictment Leak Is A Crime

Alvin Bragg

Crime

Former Director of National Intelligence <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/john-ratcliffe" target="_blank" rel="noopener">John Ratcliffe</a> rejected the claim that three Chinese spy balloons &#8220;transited&#8221; the United States during Donald Trump&#8217;s presidency.
The suspected Chinese balloon that traversed across the lower 48 states before being shot down off the coast of the Carolinas on Saturday represented an &#8220;unprecedented national security blunder of incalculable damage,&#8221; Ratcliffe said during <a href="https://rumble.com/v28fmmk-john-ratcliffe-the-biden-administration-committed-an-unprecedented-blunder-.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">a Fox News interview</a> on Sunday.
Anchor Maria Bartiromo then asked Ratcliffe to respond to what she said was the Department of Defense claiming three Chinese spy balloons entered U.S. airspace during the Trump administration, they were not shot down, and they were not disclosed.
&#8220;It&#8217;s not true. I can refute it,&#8221; Ratcliffe responded. He said his view is backed by other Trump administration officials, including <a href="https://www.cnn.com/politics/live-news/suspected-chinese-balloon-over-us-02-04-23/h_1f1e4d057e1aa906e5ef3b686e63527b" target="_blank" rel="noopener">former Defense Secretary Mark Esper</a>, who said he does not recall Chinese surveillance balloons traversing the skies over the United States.
On Saturday, a <a href="https://www.cnn.com/politics/live-news/suspected-chinese-balloon-over-us-02-04-23/h_1f1e4d057e1aa906e5ef3b686e63527b" target="_blank" rel="noopener">senior U.S. defense official</a> said Chinese government surveillance balloons &#8220;transited the continental United States briefly at least three times during the prior administration and once that we know of at the beginning of this administration, but never for this duration of time,&#8221; according to CNN.
Ratcliffe insisted the American people can refute the Biden administration&#8217;s claim for themselves.
&#8220;Do you remember during the Trump administration when photographers on the ground and commercial airline pilots were talking about a spy balloon over the United States that people could look up and see even with the naked eye and that the media that hated Donald Trump wasn&#8217;t reporting? I don&#8217;t remember that either because it didn&#8217;t happen,&#8221; he said.
Trump himself <a href="https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/109812699029727017" target="_blank" rel="noopener">issued a denial</a> on his social media platform on Sunday.
&#8220;The Chinese Balloon situation is a disgrace, just like the Afghanistan horror show, and everything else surrounding the grossly incompetent Biden Administration,&#8221; Trump posted to Truth Social. &#8220;They are only good at cheating in elections, and disinformation — and now they are putting out that a Balloon was put up by China during the Trump Administration, in order to take the &#8216;heat&#8217; off the slow moving Biden fools. China had too much respect for &#8216;TRUMP&#8217; for this to have happened, and it NEVER did. JUST FAKE DISINFORMATION!&#8221;
The U.S. government first publicly <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/chinese-spy-balloon-hovering-over-united-states-report" target="_blank" rel="noopener">acknowledged a suspected reconnaissance balloon</a> on Thursday as it was spotted over Billings, Montana, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/what-we-know-about-the-suspected-chinese-spy-balloon-flying-over-united-states" target="_blank" rel="noopener">near a military base</a> that houses 150 Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missiles after it traveled above the Aleutian Islands and through Canada.
While China&#8217;s government claimed the balloon was a &#8220;civilian airship used for research, mainly meteorological purposes&#8221; and essentially got blown off course, the Pentagon rejected that explanation on Friday, calling it a &#8220;<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/suspected-chinese-spy-balloon-is-maneuverable-has-changed-direction-at-60000-feet-pentagon" target="_blank" rel="noopener">maneuverable</a>&#8221; surveillance balloon. The Pentagon also expressed concern that shooting the balloon down over land could create a debris field that would endanger people below.
The balloon was destroyed off the coast of South Carolina on Saturday, a moment caught on video. An F-22 Raptor shot down the balloon with one air-to-air A9X sidewinder missile, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/new-video-emerges-of-chinese-spy-balloon-being-shot-down" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according to a senior U.S. military official</a>. The Pentagon said a <a href="https://www.defense.gov/News/Transcripts/Transcript/Article/3288618/senior-defense-official-and-senior-military-official-hold-an-off-camera-on-back/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">recovery operation would follow</a>. China&#8217;s foreign ministry <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/02/04/us/politics/chinese-spy-balloon-shot-down.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">responded by condemning</a> the United States for &#8220;an excessive reaction that seriously violates international convention&#8221; and warned that Beijing &#8220;retains the right to respond further.&#8221;
Ratcliffe, a former U.S. congressman who served as the nation&#8217;s spy chief from May 2020 until the end of Trump&#8217;s administration in January 2021, called it an &#8220;incredibly successful intelligence operation&#8221; for China. He also said other foreign adversaries such as Iran, Russia, and North Korea are watching and likely &#8220;thrilled&#8221; by the possibilities this scenario presents them.

Ratcliffe Shoots Down Claim That Three Chinese Balloons Crossed Over U.S. Under Trump

Balloon

China

Global Politics

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