New York Mayor Eric Adams indicted for bribery – National & International News – THU 26Sep2024

New York Mayor Eric Adams indicted for bribery.

Hurricane Helene now category 4 as it nears Florida. 

Israel prepares to invade Lebanon. 

NATIONAL NEWS

New York Mayor Eric Adams indicted for bribery

Last night, the Department of Justice announced an indictment against New York City Mayor Eric Adams following a lengthy investigation. Adams, a Democrat, is now the first sitting New York City mayor to face federal indictment. The FBI also searched Gracie Mansion, Adams’ official mayoral residence, early this morning. It is not clear when Adams is expected to turn himself in.

Today, the DOJ unsealed the indictment. Adams is facing five federal charges related to bribery, wire fraud, conspiracy to commit wire fraud, and soliciting campaign contributions from foreign nationals. While campaign finance laws or notoriously permissive, a campaign accepting funds from foreign nationals and governments is strictly prohibited. 

Furthermore, The DOJ’s indictment presents evidence that Adams knew that the transactions were taking place, and knew that they were illegal, but decided to pursue them anyway. In text conversations between Adams and his staff, there are repeated reminders to delete any incriminating communications from their phones.

The indictment covers crimes that Adams is alleged to have committed going all the way back to 2014, when he was Brooklyn borough president. 

“For nearly a decade,” the indictment says, “Adams sought and accepted improper valuable benefits, such as luxury international travel, including from wealthy foreign businesspeople and at least one Turkish government official seeking to gain influence over him”. 

Adams has long had close ties to the Turkish government. The indictment alleges that a Turkish government official was funneling money to Adams’ campaign war chest, and also treated Adams and his cronies to luxury travel experiences in Turkey and other countries. Adams did not disclose these travel gifts as required for all New York city employees. Apparently as part of a quid pro quo, Adams leaned on the New York Fire Department to allow a Turkish consular building to open in the city, despite concerns about fire code violations. Adams also appointed someone handpicked by his Turkish contact to be part of his transition team after he won the mayoral race. This was in exchange for free upgrades on Turkish Airlines.

The DOJ is also investigating Adams’ ties to the governments of Israel, China, Qatar, South Korea, and Uzbekistan. 

A corrupt and dysfunctional administration

Adams’ tenure as mayor has been blighted with numerous scandals, some of which have to do with his conduct in previous positions he’s held. He has also been personally cited numerous times for poor management at some of his residential investment properties. 

In recent weeks, several high-profile members of Adam’s administration have resigned and are also under investigation. This includes two former New York Fire Department chiefs who were arrested earlier this month on corruption and bribery charges. New York City Police commissioner Edward Caban also resigned earlier this month after his phone was seized as part of an investigation. Caban’s twin brother was running a private company offering “help” to restaurants and clubs facing nightlife complaints, like noise violations. 

It is not clear whether these alleged crimes are connected to Adams’ charges or whether they are just symptomatic of an administration that tolerates blatant corruption in the conduct of public business.

Hurricane Helene now category 4 as it nears Florida 

Hurricane Helene hasn’t even made landfall, but its high winds, heavy rains and storm surges are already wreaking havoc.  Helene is expected to make landfall around 11pm ET this evening somewhere in Florida’s northwest coast. As of this writing, over 600,000 customers in Florida are already without power.

The storm was previously expected to make a direct hit on Tallahassee, but its trajectory has since moved East. Now it looks more likely to hit the less populated Big bend area. Storm surges of up to 20 ft are expected, which the National Weather Service office in Tallahassee warned would be “catastrophic and unsurvivable”. The office urged people to heed evacuation warnings. 

The Sheriff’s Office in Taylor County, in the heart of the Big bend, warned residents on Facebook not to return to the area prematurely after evacuating. The post also made a dire request of those who chose not to evacuate: “Please write your name, birthday, and important information on your arm or leg in a PERMANENT MARKER so that you can be identified and family notified.”

Helene’s accompanying storm system is already bringing heavy rains further inland in Georgia and North Carolina. Flash flood warnings are in effect throughout this region. As the hurricane advances north, forecasters predict that North Carolina may be in for the worst flooding it has seen in the past century. The National Weather Service is also warning that a dozen Georgia counties could see hurricane force winds over 110 mph. 

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INTERNATIONAL NEWS

Rejecting ceasefire calls from US, France and UK, Israel prepares to invade Lebanon 

Four days of intense bombing in Lebanon by Israel have so far killed at least 700 people, the vast majority of whom have been civilians. Yesterday, Israel Defense Force chief Herzl Halevi told troops that this bombing campaign was to prepare the way for them to “enter enemy territory“. His remarks came just after the IDF called up two reserve brigades for “operational missions in the northern area”. This is the clearest indication yet that, despite previous denials from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel is preparing for a ground invasion into Lebanon. 

The US, the UK, and France have called on Israel to allow a truce to make space for diplomacy. The White House even stated they believed Israel was “on board” for a truce plan. However, Netanyahu refuted this assertion and said that Israel “will not stop” its aggression against Lebanon. Netanyahu will address the UN general Assembly tomorrow in New York. He will likely deliver a speech similar to the one he gave before Congress in July. He may even seek to justify Israel’s military offensives using a new Orwellian mantra Israel has recently embraced: “de-escalation through escalation”.

French President Emmanuel Macron said today that the US should do more to pressure Netanyahu into accepting a ceasefire. The US is Israel’s chief weapons supplier, and yet President Biden has repeatedly rejected calls to halt weapons transfers to Israel. 

Macron said would be “a mistake” for Israel to continue its war on Lebanon. He said that Lebanon must not become “another Gaza”. However, repeated statements from Netanyahu and other Israeli leaders indicate that turning Lebanon into Gaza is exactly their plan, and has been for months. 

Way back in November, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant told troops “What we can do in Gaza, we can also do in Beirut”. In December, Netanyahu himself warned that if Hezbollah escalated, Israel would “single-handedly turn Beirut and South Lebanon, not far from here, into Gaza and Khan Yunis”. Netanyahu made similar threats in January. 

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