June 12th, 2019

The city of Reno has announced some downtown street closures as NASA resumes a series of drone tests in high-density urban settings. Beginning Friday, Lake Street will be closed from 1st to 2nd streets from 6 a.m. to 3 p.m. through June 20, and again June 23-25. Chism Street also will be closed from Dickerson to 2nd Street from June 14-July 2. It's part of the final stage of a four-year effort to develop a national drone traffic management system. NASA and the Nevada Institute for Autonomous Systems conducted initial tests last month, flying drones for the first time above Reno streets beyond the operator's line of sight.

...an average of more than one every other day... systematic witness intimidation, paired with a code of silence in the country’s socio-economically weak immigrant areas, has made this type of crime difficult for the Swedish legal system to tackle.. How has the Swedish government responded? By launching an elaborate PR campaign for foreign audiences that plays down the challenges - especially those in the immigrant areas.

Waskom, Texas, which borders Louisiana 20 miles west of Shreveport, claims to be the first city in the nation to become a "Sanctuary City for the Unborn" by way of a resolution and ordinance unanimously passed by five members of the city council Tuesday night. The ordinance makes organizations that perform abortions or assist in obtaining them "criminal organizations," such as Planned Parenthood, NARAL Pro-Choice Texas, and others like them.

A collection of 190 transcripts of speeches on ICE’s website was deleted ... according to research by the Sunlight Foundation... Statements made by high-ranking ICE officials regarding controversial immigration topics such as sanctuary cities, E-Verify, treatment of detainees, and other issues were included in the reported deletions.

The Oversight and Government Reform Committee, led by Democrats, voted along party lines to hold Barr and Ross in contempt for refusing to turn over documents related to the decision making that led to including a question of citizenship in the 2020 Census. Moments before the vote was to take place both the Departments of Justice and Commerce informed Cummings that Trump has exerted executive privilege over the documents, which is a move aimed at helping the administration protect the material in a likely court fight. The Oversight panel subpoenaed those documents in April after both the Justice and Commerce Departments refused to turn them over.

On Monday, agents working at the Falfurrias checkpoint boarded a commercial passenger bus to conduct immigration inspections on all the occupants. During the inspection, a Border Patrol K-9 alerted to an unclaimed bag located underneath in the luggage compartment. Agents searched the bag and discovered more than 15 pounds of methamphetamine worth an estimated $512K. Border Patrol turned the narcotics over to the Brooks County Sheriff’s Office.

This morning, agents working near Rio Grande City, Texas, observed several subjects carrying bundles of narcotics walking north from the Rio Grande into an open field. Upon arrival, agents searched the immediate area and discovered five bundles of marijuana in an abandoned trailer, weighing over 200 pounds and worth an estimated $162K. Shortly thereafter, agents observed a group of people jump into the Rio Grande and return to Mexico.

2/ New OIG report on DOJ’s use of immigration sponsorship activities found some immigration sponsorships expired or were not renewed in a timely manner, and 62 foreign nationals absconding from DOJ supervision. https://t.co/6vAXMsJVTn

— Justice OIG (@JusticeOIG) June 12, 2019

Facebook Inc emails appear to show Chief Executive Officer Mark Zuckerberg’s involvement in discussions about its much criticized privacy practices, the Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday, citing people familiar with the matter... The company’s move to reach a speedy settlement of the FTC investigation is in part because of the emails, according to the WSJ report. The Journal said it could not determine what emails the FTC has requested and how many of them relate to Zuckerberg... The company has previously said it is preparing to pay as much as $5 billion in a settlement with U.S. regulators.

Le Pen shared the gruesome images in December 2015, a few weeks after IS jihadists killed 130 people in attacks in Paris. A judge in the western Paris suburb of Nanterre ordered that the National Rally leader stand trial on charges of circulating "violent messages that incite terrorism or pornography or seriously harm human dignity" and that can be viewed by a minor. The charges carry a maximum sentence of three years in prison and a fine of 75,000 euros ($85,000).

India imported 105.8 tons of gold in May. That compares with just 77.6 tons a year earlier. Combined shipments of gold into the country during April and May came in at 226.6 tons. That was up about 74% from the same period in 2018. According to Yahoo Finance, “Higher gold imports by India - the world’s second-biggest consumer of the yellow metal - could support global prices further.”...

John Vandemoer walked out of Boston federal court a free man, having gotten credit for already serving his single day in jail. The father of two young children was visibly relieved. Prosecutors were seeking a 13 month sentence for the former Stanford sailing coach, who had agreed to accept more than $600,000 from Rick Singer, the alleged mastermind of the college admissions scandal. But Vandemoer never pocketed any of that money, using it instead to buy boats and gear for the sailing program.

Pinterest insider, who was fired for exposing censorship of pro-life/christian material, goes public: "This is the watershed moment... pro-lifers who exist within big tech companies, there's a lot of us, they need to come to Project Veritas." Support Eric: https://t.co/FLBzuLE65R pic.twitter.com/LZeWl6ZROY

— James O'Keefe (@JamesOKeefeIII) June 13, 2019

Investigators want to talk with at least one senior counterintelligence official and a senior C.I.A. analyst, the people said. Both officials were involved in the agency’s work on understanding the Russian campaign to sabotage the election in 2016... The Justice Department has not submitted formal written requests to talk to the C.I.A. officers, but law enforcement officials have told intelligence officials that Mr. Durham will seek the interviews, two of the people said. Communications officers for both the C.I.A. and the Justice Department declined to comment.

Hicks will be the first former Trump aide to go before the committee investigating whether Trump tried to obstruct a probe into Russian interference in the 2016 election. But Hicks might not answer many of the panel’s questions, citing the president’s assertion of executive privilege on events that occurred inside the White House.

The president said Poland will provide “basing and infrastructure” to support the military presence of about 1,000 American troops in the country. “The Polish government will build these projects at no cost to the United States,” Trump said in the Rose Garden of the White House. “The Polish government will pay for this”... Polish leaders have lobbied for additional forces for months and had hoped for a permanent U.S. base they said could be called "Fort Trump."

Trump Jr. met for around three hours with the committee, which has investigated Russian interference in the 2016 presidential campaign. Democrats have suggested that Trump Jr. gave false testimony during his first committee appearance.

Trump Jr. dismissed those concerns following Wednesday’s interview, saying “there was nothing to change” from his previous testimony. “If there needed to be clarification because Michael Cohen, let’s not forget is serving time right now for lying to these very investigative bodies. I’m happy to do that,” Trump Jr. told reporters. “I don’t think I changed anything of what I said because there was nothing to change. I’m glad that this is finally over we’re able to put some final clarity on that. And I think the committee understands that.”

Richard Weekley, a Houston real estate developer and veteran Republican campaign contributor, is spearheading the new group, dubbed Engage Texas. According to GOP sources, the organization was set up as a 501(c)4, political nonprofit organization and plans to raise and spend $25 million by Election Day next year. Engage Texas has garnered the support of top Republicans in the state and appears to have the support of party insiders in Washington...

“He is and will continue to cooperate with the government in all aspects,” Powell told SaraACarter.com. “He and his family truly appreciate all the cards and letters of support from countless people and the contributions to the defense fund which are even more important now.” Powell noted that Flynn’s case file, “is massive” and “it will take me at least 90 days to review it.”

Presumably, it's a sign that companies aren't waiting around to see if Trump and Xi manage to come to an amicable solution in Japan later this month. Many are already assuming the trade spat between the world's two largest economies will persist for months, if not years, and that the US will eventually slap tariffs on the rest of the roughly $300 billion in Chinese imports that haven't already been impacted...