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Joe Biden appoints Lady Gaga to co-chair of revived presidential committee

President Joe Biden has appointed Lady Gaga as the co-chair of a revived White House Committee on the Arts and the Humanities. Announced Thursday afternoon, the committee — disbanded during Donald Trump’s presidency — advises the president on cultural policy. “Over the past 40 years, PCAH has catalyzed federal programs and played a vital role in the advancement of arts and humanities education, cultural diplomacy, and the creative economy,” the White House said in a statement. Award-winning producer Bruce Cohen will serve as the other co-chairman on the council, which counts George Clooney, Ke...

‘Lying Loser Letitia’: Marjorie Taylor Greene insults N.Y. AG after Trump testifies

Donald Trump spent Thursday in a New York courtroom testifying in a civil fraud lawsuit, and although it’s not clear how it went from a legal standpoint, the former president at least got to rehearse a campaign talking point.

That’s according to Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.), who said in a Twitter post that she spoke with Trump after his second New York court appearance in as many weeks.

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Far-right MAGA anti-vaxxers are invading autism groups: report

During the COVID-19 pandemic, far-right MAGA conspiracy theorists and anti-vaxxers angrily railed against vaccines — falsely claiming, with zero evidence, that they were dangerous. President Joe Biden and Dr. Anthony Fauci, his top White House medical adviser, pushed back against their claims and assured Americans that the COVID-19 vaccines from Moderna, Pfizer and others were perfectly safe.

Even former President Donald Trump himself encouraged vaccination, maintaining his opposition to vaccine mandates. Some conspiracy theorists, including Infowars' Alex Jones, saw Trump's pro-vaccine stand as a betrayal.

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An ominous sign for Fox News: Media critic breaks down pre-trial hearings in Dominion defamation suit

This Monday, April 17, the trial in Dominion Voting Systems' $1.6 billion defamation lawsuit against Fox News is scheduled to begin. Defamation, thanks to the U.S. Supreme Court's unanimous ruling in New York Times v. Sullivan back in 1964, is extremely difficult to prove. And attorneys for Dominion have to show that Fox News acted with "actual malice" when, in late 2020 and early 2021, it promoted the bogus, repeatedly debunked conspiracy theory that Dominion's voting equipment was used to help now-President Joe Biden steal the election from then-President Donald Trump.

The very nature of defamation lawsuits, thanks to the late Chief Justice Earl Warren and his colleagues, gives Dominion an uphill climb. But Washington Post media critic Erik Wemple, in an April 13 column, lays out some reasons why he believes that pre-trial hearings in the case are an ominous sign for Fox News.

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'Blatant litmus test': Trump attorneys screen prospective jurors for 'political biases' in defamation case

No presidential candidate in U.S. history has had more legal problems than Donald Trump. The former president and 2024 GOP presidential frontrunner is not only facing a 34-count criminal prosecution from Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, Jr., but also, two federal criminal investigations from the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and special counsel Jack Smith and a state criminal investigation from Fulton County Georgia DA Fani Willis. And Trump has civil worries as well.

New York State Attorney General Letitia James has been conducting a civil probe of the Trump Organization's financial activities, and journalist/author E. Jean Carroll (a former Elle columnist) has filed two separate civil defamation lawsuits against Trump — who she alleges sexually assaulted her in Manhattan department store Bergdorf Goodman's dressing room during the 1990s. Trump and his attorneys have vehemently denied Carroll's allegations.

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Tim Scott’s 'weird' presidential committee got off to a 'grossly dishonest' start: conservative

On Wednesday, April 12, Sen. Tim Scott (R-South Carolina) announced that he had launched a presidential exploratory committee. Scott's admirers welcomed the announcement; they see him as a conservative Republican with a positive vision and a less divisive, less combative figure than former President Donald Trump or Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (who appears to be gearing up for a presidential run).

But Never Trump conservative Amanda Carpenter has a very different view of the South Carolina Republican. In a biting article published by The Bulwark on April 13, Carpenter argues that Scott is much more MAGA than his cheerleaders would have us believe.

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Florida executes 'ninja killer' over 1989 murders

The US state of Florida on Wednesday executed a man known as "the ninja killer," more than three decades after a split jury handed him a death sentence for the murder of a couple in 1989.

Louis Gaskin, 56, was put to death by lethal injection at 6:15 pm (2215 GMT), the Florida Department of Corrections said in a statement.

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Dominion v. Fox News: major defamation case heads to trial

A closely-watched civil trial that pits vote machine maker Dominion against Fox News and tests the extent of free speech rights for media in America -- even when broadcasting alleged election falsehoods -- is due to start Thursday with jury selection.

The proceedings could be one of the most consequential defamation cases ever heard in the United States and threaten financial and reputational damage for Rupert Murdoch's conservative TV network.

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Biden Irish tour moves to Dublin for parliamentary address, castle banquet

DUBLIN (Reuters) - U.S. President Joe Biden, a proud Irish-American, took his three-day tour of Ireland to Dublin on Thursday for an address to parliament and a banquet at Dublin Castle as his focus shifted from Northern Irish peace to celebrating his heritage. "It feels wonderful. It feels like I'm coming home," Biden told journalists on Wednesday afternoon as he toured Carlingford Castle, near the home of one of the Irish branches of his family. Biden will be guest of honour at a banquet at St Patrick's Hall in Dublin Castle on Thursday evening, an honour previously given to Queen Elizabeth ...

Jim Jordan freaks out over Hunter Biden shaking hands

United States Representative Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) melted down during a Fox News appearance on Wednesday afternoon because President Joe Biden's son Hunter accompanied him to Ireland and mingled with the crowd.

Host Martha MacCallum led with a question:

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Arnold Schwarzenegger films himself repairing 'pothole' — that actually wasn't a pothole

Actor and former California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger went viral with a video of himself going out of his way to fix a troublesome pothole in his neighborhood in Los Angeles, with him and a friend filling the gap with quick-drying cement and covering it with sand. Passing drivers could be seen thanking him as he went about his Good Samaritan act for the city.

"Schwarzenegger, a former two-term Republican governor of California, posted a video of the pair laboring to his 5.1 million Twitter followers," reported The Guardian. "'Today, after the whole neighborhood has been upset about this giant pothole that’s been screwing up cars and bicycles for weeks, I went out with my team and fixed it. I always say, let’s not complain, let’s do something about it. Here you go,' he wrote. In the clip, a driver stops to thank him for taking action, and the actor said: 'You have to do it yourself. This is crazy. For three weeks I’ve been waiting for this hole to be closed.'"

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'Security breach' reported during Biden’s Belfast visit after sensitive document found on street

Police in Northern Ireland have confirmed a security breach centered around President Joe Biden's visit to Belfast.

According to Telegraph, the president arrived at the Belfast International Airport on Tuesday, April 11, by way of Air Force One.

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California Democrat calls for Sen. Dianne Feinstein to resign

The calls for Dianne Feinstein to resign are growing, and they’re coming from within the Democratic party.

Feinstein has been absent from the Senate since contracting shingles in late February. She has since been released from the hospital, but her prolonged absence has resulted in her missing 58 votes as of Monday, The San Francisco Chronicle reports.

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