Trump lashes out after lawyers meet with DOJ special counsel Smith on classified docs case – National & International News – TUE 6Jun2023

Trump lashes out after lawyers meet with DOJ on classified docs case.

Mom of boy, 6, who shot teacher faces new federal gun, marijuana charges.

Ukraine: Thousands flee after dam near nuclear plant bursts.

NATIONAL NEWS

Trump lashes out after lawyers meet with DOJ on classified docs case

Justice Department special counsel Jack Smith is currently running two investigations of former President Donald Trump: one into his involvement in efforts to overturn the 2020 elections and another into his unlawful retention of classified documents after his presidency. 

Two weeks ago, Trump’s attorneys wrote to Attorney General Merrick Garland demanding a meeting “to discuss the ongoing injustice that is being perpetrated by [special counsel Jack Smith] and his prosecutors” in the classified documents case. Garland appointed Smith, who has led prosecutions of both Democrat and Republican politicians in the past, to oversee the cases to avoid any appearance of impropriety, as Garland himself is a political appointee of President Biden. Garland, appropriately, did not choose to meet with them. 

However, Trump’s attorneys did meet with Smith, apparently to air concerns about the integrity of the investigation and likely to discourage Smith from bringing charges. 

Shortly after this meeting, Trump took to social media shortly to post an all-caps tirade against the DOJ and Smith. “HOW CAN DOJ POSSIBLY CHARGE ME, WHO DID NOTHING WRONG, WHEN NO OTHER PRESIDENT’S WERE CHARGED, WHEN JOE BIDEN WON’T BE CHARGED FOR ANYTHING,” Trump wrote. “ONLY TRUMP – THE GREATEST WITCH HUNT OF ALL TIME!” 

It seems the meeting with Smith might not have gone well for the Trump camp. Many analysts believe charges in the classified documents are likely, with some saying they could come any day now. This timeline is uncertain since the grand jury is still speaking to witnesses.

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Mom of boy, 6, who shot teacher faces new federal gun, marijuana charges

The mother of a six-year-old Newport News, VA, boy who brought a gun to school and shot his teacher in the chest will plead guilty to two newly filed federal charges against her, her lawyer said. Deja Taylor, 26, is already facing state felony charges of neglecting and endangering a child.

The two new federal charges are for illegally using drugs while in possession of a handgun and making a false statement while buying the gun. When purchasing her gun, she answered “no” to a questionnaire asking whether the purchaser used illegal substances, despite being a marijuana user. Although Virginia recently legalized marijuana for recreational use, the drug remains a prohibited substance under federal law.

Ms. Taylor faces about 6 years for the state charges while the federal charges carry a maximum penalty of 25 years. However, her attorney James Ellenson says Taylor will plead guilty on the federal charges and will probably receive a much lighter sentence.

The teacher who was shot, Abigail Zwerner, has sued the Newport News school district for failing to act when supervisors learned the boy had a gun at school. The boy, who has not been named, will not be charged due to his age.

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INTERNATIONAL NEWS

Ukraine: Thousands flee after dam near nuclear plant bursts

The Nova Kakhova dam in the Kherson region has breached, sending millions of gallons of water flooding downstream towards major cities and endangering thousands of people. Ukraine’s government have urged people in the region to “do everything you can to save your lives”. Both Kyiv and Moscow have labeled the destruction of the dam an act of terrorism and each has blamed the other for sabotaging the dam.

Not only is the dam breach posing a disastrous flood risk, the dam is critical to sensitive infrastructure in the region. The hydroelectric dam supplies water and power to much of southeastern Ukraine as well as Russian-occupied Crimea. The loss of this dam could make much of the area uninhabitable.

To make matters worse, the nearby Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, Europe’s largest nuclear power facility, also depends on water from the reservoir to cool its reactors. Zaporizhzhia has been occupied by Russian troops since not long after last year’s invasion. Many of its buildings and facilities have already been endangered by shelling. The plant is largely shut down, but the reactors must be kept cool to avoid a meltdown.

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