SmartNews

'It’s an affront': DC tour guide rips Trump's troop surge as a tourist 'spectacle'

A tour guide in Washington, D.C. blasted the Trump administration's decision to send National Guard troops into the city to address crime, calling it a "spectacle" for tourists seeking a new photo op.

Elijah Edwards wrote a letter to the Washington Post editors on Friday, calling it "fitting" that most federal agents and troops were clustered along the National Mall and near city monuments, rather than in crime-heavy neighborhoods.

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Major furniture retailers see stocks plummet after Trump's social media warning

President Donald Trump's warning that imported furniture will soon face tariffs sent stocks reeling for major retailers, according to a report.

On Friday, Trump said on his Truth Social platform that his administration was conducting a major tariff investigation into furniture imports. The administration plans to impose tariffs at a rate still to be determined once the probe is completed within the next 50 days.

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'Grateful': Wrongly deported migrant freed as lawyers blast 'vindictive attack'

Kilmar Abrego Garcia, the Salvadoran man whom the Trump administration wrongfully deported in violation of a judge's order earlier this year, was released from custody in Tennessee on Friday.

"Today, Kilmar Abrego Garcia is free," his attorney, Sean Hecker, said. "He is presently en route to his family in Maryland, after being unlawfully arrested and deported, and then imprisoned, all because of the government's vindictive attack on a man who had the courage to fight back against the administration's continuing assault on the rule of law. He is grateful that his access to American courts has provided meaningful due process."

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Trump's Pentagon ousts general who gave intelligence report he didn't like

On Friday, the Pentagon fired Air Force Lt. Gen. Jeffrey Kruse, who was leading the Defense Intelligence Agency.

ABC News noted that the Pentagon refused to answer any questions about whether he was forced out or why. However, Kruse oversaw the intelligence report that detailed the aftermath of Trump's bombing of Iran's nuclear sites. The sites were severely damaged, but they weren't entirely destroyed, CNN reported at the time, citing an intelligence report. Trump claimed everything was "obliterated."

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Trump called out after big Intel move: 'Literally communism'

President Donald Trump has wielded his insult machine at Democrats he claims are "socialists" and "communists," but the state purchase of Intel has many, including conservatives, questioning whether he's the real "big government" guy.

On Friday, computer chip manufacturer Intel agreed to allow the government to purchase 10% of its company, making the U.S. government the largest shareholder in the company, NPR reported.

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'Total baloney?' CNN host sparks testy exchange as he pushes back on GOP rep's claim

A Florida Republican got testy with a CNN anchor who corrected the record on the investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 election.

Rep. Carlos Gimenez (R-FL) joined CNN's Boris Sanchez on Friday to discuss the breaking news that the Justice Department handed over a trove of Jeffrey Epstein files to the House Oversight Committee, and separately, that the DOJ has released a transcript and audio of an interview between Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche and former Jeffrey Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell.

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Trump DOJ 'carefully' helped Ghislaine Maxwell get answers they wanted: legal expert

When Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche interviewed convicted Jeffrey Epstein sex trafficking accomplice, Ghislaine Maxwell, the transcript reveals how delicately he chose his words to avoid pushing her to implicate President Donald Trump in any way, MSNBC legal analyst Lisa Rubin explained.

"For those of you who are following along at home, this is in pages 104-109. This is Ghislaine Maxwell talking about Donald Trump," said anchor Alicia Menendez. "She says, 'As far as I'm concerned, President Trump was always very cordial and very kind to me. And I just want to say that I find I admire his extraordinary achievement in becoming the president now, and I like him, and I've always liked him. So that is the sum and substance of my entire relationship with him' ... what do you make of that mention?"

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'What is the point?' MSNBC flabbergasted by Ghislaine Maxwell's chat with Trump DOJ

MSNBC host Katy Tur was among those going through the transcript of the interview that President Donald Trump's former defense lawyer did with Jeffrey Epstein's accomplice, Ghislaine Maxwell. After what she read, she couldn't figure out the point of the interview.

"My larger point here, and this is what I was going to ask before: what is the point of this interview? What's the point of this interview?" she exclaimed.

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'She is a liar': CNN legal experts not buying Ghislaine Maxwell's testimony

Convicted Jeffrey Epstein sex trafficking associate Ghislaine Maxwell cannot be trusted in the testimony just released by the Justice Department, warned two of CNN's top legal experts, former Palm Beach County prosecutor Dave Aronberg and never-Trump conservative attorney George Conway.

"Your reaction to this news that they've released this transcript, the conversation between [Deputy Attorney General Todd] Blanche and Maxwell?" anchor Boris Sanchez asked Aronberg.

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6 key excerpts from Ghislaine Maxwell's interview with DOJ

An edited transcript of the Justice Department's interview with Ghislaine Maxwell was released on Friday, containing 22 references to President Donald Trump across two days.

Here are five noteworthy quotes from the documents.

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'Spin': Red state cities exposed for sending troops to DC while having higher crime rates

President Donald Trump has received support in his effort to take military control of law enforcement in Washington, D.C., with Republican governors sending hundreds of their own troops to patrol the streets of the nation's capital, all in the name of addressing crime. However, the actual number of arrests related to this initiative remains questionable.

A bigger issue, CNN analyst Marshall Cohen told anchor Boris Sanchez, is that most of the governors who are sending in troops have higher crime rates in their own cities.

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Ex-Trump aide mocks ‘rich’ irony of John Bolton raid

A former deputy press secretary in Donald Trump's first administration questioned why her former boss cares so much about classified information.

Speaking to MSNBC on Friday, Sarah Matthews noted that the raid on the home of former national security advisor John Bolton is purportedly related to national security issues.

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Trump's DOJ releases edited transcript of interview with Ghislaine Maxwell

President Donald Trump's former personal lawyer released an edited transcript and edited audio of the interview he had with Ghislaine Maxwell, the accomplice of alleged sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein.

The recordings are spliced into 16 clips, and the transcript is cut into four sections, with two files from the first day and two files for the second day interview.

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