Bannon sentenced to 4 months in prison for contempt of Congress
Steve Bannon, a longtime adviser to former President Donald Trump who aided in the effort to overturn the 2020 election, was sentenced Friday to four months in prison for disobeying a subpoena from the House committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol. Bannon, 68, was found guilty of two counts of contempt of Congress this summer after Judge Carl Nichols rejected an array of arguments offered by Bannon’s defense team, including that he was protected by executive privilege from being compelled to testify. “Others must be deterred from committing similar crimes,” said Nichols, who imposed a $6,500 fine on Bannon. He will remain free pending his appeal.
Appeals court halts Biden’s student debt cancellation
A federal appeals court Friday temporarily halted President Joe Biden’s student debt relief plan, preventing the government from moving forward with the debt cancellation it had said could start as early as next week. The 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals granted a temporary stay in response to an appeal filed by six attorneys general from Republican-led states after a district court judge dismissed their case Thursday for lack of standing. The action puts any debt cancellation on hold until the court can rule on the states’ request for an injunction preventing the government from discharging debts.
Biden administration offers plan to get addiction-fighting medicine to pregnant women
The Biden administration will use federal courts and health programs to expand the use of medication to treat substance use disorders in pregnant women, according to a report by the White House released Friday. The plan is part of the administration’s broader effort to combat a drug crisis that now kills more than 100,000 Americans annually. Under the new initiative, the Justice Department, the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Indian Health Service will be responsible for improving women’s access to medicines such as buprenorphine and methadone. These treatments have been controversial but are increasingly being embraced as a scientifically proven way to reduce dependency and save lives.
Teenager to plead guilty to terrorism and murder in Michigan school shooting
The student accused of waging a deadly attack last year in a Michigan high school, killing four students and injuring seven other people, is expected to plead guilty Monday to a number of felony charges, including murder and terrorism, the prosecutor in the case said Friday. Ethan Crumbley, now 16, is accused of using a 9 mm handgun that was purchased for him as a present by his parents, who face involuntary manslaughter charges in connection with the Nov. 30 rampage at Oxford High School in Oxford, Michigan. If Crumbley pleads guilty, he would be the first suspect in a U.S. school shooting to be found guilty of terrorism.
Johnson is on list to replace Truss
No sooner had Prime Minister Liz Truss of Britain announced her sudden resignation Thursday than a familiar name surfaced as a candidate to succeed her: Boris Johnson, the prime minister she replaced a mere 45 days ago. Johnson has said nothing publicly about a bid for his old job. But the prospect of Boris redux has riveted Conservative Party lawmakers. Among those who are keeping tallies of the voting intentions of lawmakers, Johnson is only slightly behind his chief rival, Rishi Sunak. Penny Mordaunt, now a senior minister, became the first to publicly declare her candidacy Friday.
Ukrainian forces bombard river crossing; Kherson a fortress
Ukrainian forces are bombarding Russian positions in the occupied and illegally annexed southern Kherson region. The targets include resupply routes across a river. The Ukrainian military is inching closer to a full assault on Kherson, one of the first urban areas Russia captured after invading the country. Russian-installed officials were reported desperately trying to turn Kherson into a fortress. The city is a prime target for both sides because of its key industries and major river port. They’re also attempting to evacuate tens of thousands of residents. The Kremlin poured as many as 2,000 draftees into Kherson. Officials say Ukrainian shelling of a river crossing killed two TV journalists. At least two other people were reported killed and 13 wounded.
West and Russia clash over probe of drones in Ukraine
The U.S. and key Western allies are accusing Russia of using Iranian drones to attack civilians and power plants in Ukraine in violation of a 2015 U.N. Security Council resolution and international humanitarian law. Russia has countered by accusing Ukraine of attacking infrastructure and civilians for eight years in the eastern separatist regions of Donetsk and Luhansk, which Russian President Vladimir Putin illegally annexed earlier this year. The U.S., France, Germany and Britain support Ukraine’s call for a U.N. investigation of the drones. Russia says the drones are Russian and an investigation would violate the U.N. Charter.
By wire sources