Tag Archives: Trump administration

Russian Hackers Hit Agency That Handles US Nukes

Bloomberg News reports: The U.S. nuclear weapons agency and at least three states were hacked as part of a suspected Russian cyber-attack that struck several federal government agencies. The Energy Department and its National Nuclear Security Administration, which maintains America’s nuclear stockpile, were targeted as part of a larger attack by suspected Russian hackers. In an advisory Thursday that signaled …

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Pfizer Press Release: We Have Millions Of Vaccine Doses In Our Warehouse But Have No Shipping Instructions

Via press release from Pfizer: Pfizer Inc. today released the following statement to address public comments that allege there are issues in the production and distribution of the company’s COVID-19 vaccine: Pfizer is not having any production issues with our COVID-19 vaccine, and no shipments containing the vaccine are on hold or delayed. This week, we successfully shipped all 2.9 …

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Interior Sec. David Bernhardt Tests COVID Positive

The Washington Post reports: Interior Department Secretary David Bernhardt, 51, tested positive for the coronavirus Wednesday. Bernhardt was tested for the virus that causes covid-19 before President Trump held a Cabinet meeting Wednesday. As a result, the secretary did not attend the session. “He is currently asymptomatic and will continue to work on behalf of the American people while in …

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Pompeo In Quarantine After Contact With Infected

The Hill reports: Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is entering quarantine after he came into contact with someone who tested positive for COVID-19, the State Department announced Wednesday. A State Department spokesperson said that Pompeo has since tested negative for the coronavirus but will quarantine “in accordance with [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention] guidelines.” “He is being closely monitored …

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Hundreds Skip Pompeo’s “Superspreader” Xmas Party

The Washington Post reports: Only a tiny fraction of the more than 900 guests invited to an indoor holiday party hosted by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and his wife Susan showed up on Tuesday following an outcry from public health officials and U.S. lawmakers warning that the reception bore all the hallmarks of a superspreader event, said two U.S. …

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Pence Likely To Get COVID Vax On Camera By Friday

CNN reports: Vice President Mike Pence is likely to receive the coronavirus vaccine by Friday, two sources familiar with the plans tell CNN. It’s unclear if he will receive it before President Donald Trump. Tentative plans are being made for Pence to receive it on camera. Earlier Tuesday, White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany repeated that Trump would be open …

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Russian Hackers Also Hit Pentagon And State Dept

The New York Times reports: The scope of a hack engineered by one of Russia’s premier intelligence agencies became clearer on Monday, when some Trump administration officials acknowledged that other federal agencies — the State Department, the Department of Homeland Security and parts of the Pentagon — had been compromised. Investigators were struggling to determine the extent to which the …

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Melania Breaks Face Mask Rule At Children’s Hospital

CNN reports: First lady Melania Trump broke stated mask policy at Children’s National Hospital Tuesday when she removed her mask to read a holiday book to children. Trump, who has visited children at the hospital each year during her time as first lady, continued the tradition despite the coronavirus pandemic and record cases in Washington, DC. The first lady arrived …

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Trump Admin Further Guts Endangered Species Act

Burning it all down on the way out: The Trump administration on Tuesday narrowed habitat protections for endangered species, finalizing its second major rollback to the Endangered Species Act. The latest rule narrows the definition of habitat to areas that can currently support a species, a move environmentalists say ignores the changing climate or efforts that could be made to …

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BREAKING: Attorney General Bill Barr Resigns

The Associated Press reports: President Donald Trump on Monday tweeted that Attorney General William Barr is resigning. Barr’s resignation will be in effect “just before Christmas,” according to the president’s tweet. Trump tweeted that Deputy Attorney General Jeff Rosen will serve as Acting Attorney General. Richard Donoghue will take over duties of the Deputy Attorney General. Trump also tweeted what …

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Russian Hackers Also Penetrated Homeland Security

Reuters reports: A team of sophisticated hackers believed to be working for the Russian government won access to internal communications at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, according to people familiar with the matter. The breach was part of the campaign reported Sunday that penetrated the U.S. departments of Treasury and Commerce. DHS is a massive bureaucracy responsible for border …

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Russian Spies Hack Into US Treasury, US Commerce

The Washington Post reports: The Russian government hackers who breached a top cybersecurity firm are behind a global espionage campaign that also compromised the Treasury and Commerce departments and other government agencies, according to people familiar with the matter, who requested anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter. The FBI is investigating the campaign by a hacking group working …

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US Moves To Buy 100M More Moderna Vax Doses

Via press release from Moderna: Moderna, Inc., a biotechnology company pioneering messenger RNA (mRNA) therapeutics and vaccines to create a new generation of transformative medicines for patients, today announced that the U.S. government has exercised its option to purchase an additional 100 million doses of mRNA-1273, Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine candidate, bringing its confirmed order commitment to 200 million doses. Of …

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CDC Director Told Staff To Delete Email From Trump Flack Seeking To Water Down Reports On COVID Deaths

Politico reports: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Robert Redfield instructed staff to delete an email from a Trump political appointee seeking control over the agency’s scientific reports on the pandemic, a senior CDC official told congressional investigators this week. An Aug. 8 email was sent by Paul Alexander, who was then the scientific adviser to Health and Human …

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US Could Face Vax Shortages Amid Global Competition

Politico reports: The United States could be heading for a vaccine cliff this spring, with shortages forcing hundreds of millions of Americans to wait for shots amid intense global competition for limited doses. The Trump administration has bought 100 million doses each of vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna, but the U.S. is unlikely to get additional doses anytime soon because …

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WH To Be “Thoroughly Disinfected” When Trump Goes

Politico reports: The team only plans to have a skeleton staff working on campus at first, with most continuing to work remotely from home. They also plan to have the building — which has seen numerous virus outbreaks among staffers and top officials this year— meticulously sanitized. A team deployed by the General Services Administration will go over every part …

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US Again Breaks Daily Record For COVID Deaths

The New York Times reports: Just one week after the United States broke a daily record for coronavirus deaths, it did so again on Wednesday, when officials across the country reported at least 3,011 new fatalities. Last week’s record — 2,885 deaths reported in a single day — was a milestone because not since the pandemic’s first peak, in spring, …

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Conway Cashes In With Major Book Deal Advance

The Daily Mail reports: Members of Donald Trump’s inner circle are ‘quaking in their boots’ after learning Kellyanne Conway sealed a multi-million dollar deal to write a blockbuster memoir about her time in the White House, DailyMail.com can exclusively reveal. The outgoing President’s once-closest advisor will deliver the most ‘unvarnished’ account to date of Trump’s four tumultuous years in power, …

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Trump Admin Rejected Offers To Buy More Pfizer Vax

The Hill reports: Former Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Scott Gottlieb [photo], now a member of the Pfizer board of directors, said Tuesday that the pharmaceutical giant offered the Trump administration the chance to buy additional doses of its coronavirus vaccine multiple times, but that officials turned down the offers. The comments from Gottlieb confirm a report in The New …

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Labor Dept Rule Allows Anti-LGBTQ Discrimination By Federal Contractors On The Basis Of “Religious Liberty”

Slate reports: On Monday, the Trump administration finalized a sweeping new regulation that allows federal contractors to discriminate against racial and religious minorities, women, and especially LGBTQ people in the name of protecting “religious liberty.” It effectively abolishes critical workplace protections for these contractors that have been in place for decades, reframing religious freedom as a near-limitless license to discriminate. …

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