Biden signs executive order to clamp down on border crossings – National & International News – TUE 4Jun2024

Biden signs executive order to clamp down on border.

Hunter Biden gun trial underway.

Days after Biden’s “Israeli” ceasefire proposal, unsure prospects and little clarity.

NATIONAL NEWS

Biden signs executive order to clamp down on border crossings

Today, President Biden signed an executive order that gives him the authority to temporarily shut down asylum requests at the border when the daily number of illegal crossing encounters averages over 2,500 over several days. The border would only reopen to asylum seekers once the number of encounters averages below 1,500 for several days.

Biden is using his own authority to enact one of the provisions in the foreign aid/border security legislation that was debated in Congress earlier this year. After the deal became public, former President Trump called on Republicans (some of whom had lobbied for the provisions in the first place) to reject the deal in order to help his election effort. The Republicans did so.

Since daily encounters at the border are currently averaging over 4,000 day, Biden make invoke the order to shut down the border immediately. However, when Trump attempted to enact a similar order during his presidency, it was struck down in the courts. The Biden administration and Department of Homeland Security chief Alejandro Mayorkas likewise expect legal challenges to this order. The question will be whether the courts will allow the order to go into effect while the legal case plays out.

Click here for the full story (opens in new tab).

Hunter Biden’s federal gun trial now underway

The jury heard opening arguments today in the much-anticipated federal trial of President Biden’s son, Hunter. Last year, Hunter Biden was to plead guilty to tax charges and a charge of purchasing and possessing a firearm while using illegal drugs. Had it gone through, Hunter would have paid a fine and spent no time in jail. That plea deal fell apart after a disagreement arose between Hunter’s defense team, federal prosecutors and the judge on the scope of the immunity Hunter was being offered in the plea.

This trial focuses on the charges which arise from Hunter’s purchase of a gun in Wilmington, DE, in 2018. Hunter’s own memoir stated that he was a user of crack cocaine at the time. The charges against him include lying to a federally licensed gun dealer, making a false claim on his application (claiming he was not using drugs), and illegally possessing the gun for 11 days. He faces up to 25 years in prison if convicted on all charges. His defense team claims that Hunter was in recovery at the time he purchased the gun, and that therefore the purchase was legal.

President Biden issued a statement today: “As the President, I don’t and won’t comment on pending federal cases, but as a Dad, I have boundless love for my son, confidence in him, and respect for his strength”. Previously, President Biden had commented publicly that he didn’t believe Hunter had done anything wrong. Many took issue with this since Hunter is being tried by members of the executive branch, which Biden commands.

If Hunter is convicted, since these charges are federal, it would be within President Biden’s power to pardon him. President Trump pardoned many of his political allies and paid little price for it. The Biden White House says that a pardon for Hunter is not, currently, under consideration.

Click here for the full story (opens in new tab).

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

Days after Biden announced “Israeli” ceasefire proposal, unsure prospects and little clarity

Last Friday, Biden presented what he said was a Gaza ceasefire proposal from Israeli negotiators. The proposal would, if implemented and adhered to by all sides, ultimately put a permanent end to hostilities. For months, Hamas has offered to return all Israeli hostages on the condition of a permanent ceasefire, a condition which Israel has refused over and over again.

Confusion took hold over the weekend after Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu stated that any proposal that would end the war before achieving all its military aims (including their increasingly dubious goal of “eradicating Hamas”) was a “non-starter“. The Israeli press reported that Biden’s presentation had left out key parts of a proposal from Israel. Then, an aide to Netanyahu further muddied the waters by saying that Israel had agreed in principle to the plan as Biden presented it, but that it was “not a good deal”.

The sticking point apparently was Biden’s insistence that the ceasefire between the first two phases would remain intact as long as negotiations continued to move from Phase 1 to Phase 2. Israeli media and officials insisted that they had not agreed to this. But, yesterday an Axios reporter who covers the White House released what he said was the text of the most controversial clause, clause 14. It does indeed reflect Biden’s characterization that the ceasefire would remain in place as long as negotiations were progressing.

What’s going on and what happens next?

It seems that Israel did indeed make the offer so they could make a show of negotiating in good faith. Now, they are apparently seeking to raise doubts about the guarantees in the deal in hopes that Hamas will reject it. The truth may not be revealed for some time.

However, the White House is still pressing for Hamas (and Israel) to accept the deal, as are many of Israel’s allies in Europe, particularly France and the UK.

Some of the ultra-right contingent in Netanyahu’s government have threatened to leave the governing coalition if the deal is implemented. This includes the parties of Finance Minister Bezalael Smotrich and Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, both of whom have openly advocated for building illegal Israel settlements in Gaza. Their anger over the deal may be the best confirmation that it does indeed create a path to a permanent ceasefire. 

Meanwhile, Benny Gantz, another coalition partner, has threatened to withdraw if there is not a post-war plan for Gaza by June 8. The departure of any of these coalition partners could put Netanyahu in danger of having to dissolve his government and call elections.

As Biden recently told Time Magazine, there’s “every reason” to believe that Netanyahu is prolonging this war for political gain (and to keep himself out of prison). With one coalition partner saying they’ll leave if there is a peace deal, and another saying they’ll leave if there isn’t one, Netanyahu is between the devil and the deep blue sea.

Click here for the full story (opens in new tab).