Good morning, and welcome to The Epoch Times News Brief for Friday, Sept. 27, 2024. I’m Bill Thomas, we’ve got some riveting stories to share with you right now, and here’s what’s going on.
The indictment against New York City’s mayor has been unsealed, a familiar face on morning TV is saying goodbye, and an appeals court in New York appears to be skeptical over the civil fraud case against former President Donald Trump.
Also, votes in Georgia will not count for two candidates who might still be on the November ballot, and the FDA says a couple of dog food products could make your pet terribly sick.
Federal Judge Unseals Indictment Against Mayor Eric Adams
The indictment against Mayor Eric Adams, which was unsealed yesterday, accuses him of taking bribes and illegal campaign contributions from foreign sources. He’s facing five criminal charges, including conspiracy to commit wire fraud. This is the first time that a sitting New York City mayor has been charged criminally.Prosecutors also say Adams is accused of accepting benefits from foreign businesspeople and a Turkish government official who officials said were trying to influence him.
The mayor is also accused of soliciting and demanding bribes, including heavily discounted and free travel benefits from that same Turkish official. Prosecutors say he was allegedly seeking Adams’s assistance in evading regulations to commission the Turkish consulate in Manhattan.
The indictment also alleges that he compounded his gains from the illegal contributions from foreign government and business officials by exploiting the city’s matching funds program, which offers a match for small-dollar donations during campaigns.
You should know that his campaign received more than $10 million in matching public funds as a result of the false certifications.
By the way, one of the prosecutors accused the mayor of running a corruption scheme dating back to 2016, saying that it lasted until at least 2021.
Interesting to note, Adams issued a video statement yesterday denying prosecutors’ claims. He says he’s not resigning, and described the allegations as biased, “entirely false,” and “based on lies.”
NBC’s Longtime ‘Today’ Show Host Announces Departure
Hoda Kotb, the longtime host of NBC’s “Today” show, says she’s leaving the morning program after nearly two decades.In an emotional statement made to her co-hosts and staff, Kotb said the “monumental moment” of turning 60 caused her to reflect on the next chapter of her life, and she went on to say that her 7-year-old daughter, Haley, and 5-year-old daughter, Hope, deserve more of her time.
If you’re not familiar with Kotb, she began her career with NBC as a news correspondent for “Dateline” in 1998, later joining the “Today” show in 2007. She went on to co-host the fourth hour of the “Today” show with Kathie Lee Gifford and later Jenna Bush Hager.
You should know that she’s co-hosted “Today” with Savannah Guthrie since 2018, taking over for Matt Lauer after he was fired for sexual harassment allegations amid the Me Too movement.
Her colleagues have nothing but nice things to say about her. Weatherman Al Roker says he’s never known anyone like her, while host Craig Melvin says she’s exactly what you see on TV, with a huge heart.
One final note: Kotb wrote of her “twenty-six-year adventure” with NBC in a statement to staff saying that so many of her professional relationships have become some of her most cherished friendships. She added that leaving the show is “the hardest thing in the world.”
Appeals Court Seems Skeptical of Letitia James’s Civil Fraud Suit Against Trump
Appeals judges in New York fielded multiple questions to Attorney General Letitia James’s office yesterday, indicating they were skeptical of its application of an anti-fraud law to Trump’s case.Those questions came during oral arguments over his claims that the state Supreme Court erred in handling the civil fraud case, which resulted in a $489 million penalty for the former president.
Some of the judges questioned whether the state was acting within the bounds of its authority or had a legitimate interest in bringing the suit.
In fact, Justice David Friedman pressed New York Deputy Solicitor General Judith Vale on whether there was any precedent for the attorney general suing over transactions where no one lost any money. He went on to say there was no damage to consumers or the marketplace and another justice also questioned the size of the penalty imposed on Trump.
For her part, Vale argued that there was a public impact and a public interest, and that “when risk is injected into the market, that does hurt the counterparties and it does hurt the market as a whole.”
So you know, Trump’s attorney told the five-judge panel in the court’s appellate division that the judge in his case and prosecutors flouted time limits on the claims involved and that James’s office pushed an overly broad interpretation of legally punishable fraud.
He also said Trump had not committed fraud in his dealing with banks and others.
Georgia Supreme Court Overrules Earlier Decision on Ballot Access
Votes in Georgia for third-party presidential candidates Cornel West, an independent, and Claudia De la Cruz, a socialist, will not count because of a Georgia Supreme Court ruling earlier this week.The state’s highest court overruled an earlier decision by Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger that had lowered the signature threshold needed in petitions for ballot access to 7,500.
You should know that Georgia—which then-presidential candidate Joe Biden won by fewer than 12,000 votes in 2020—is one of several states where Democrats have fought to keep third-party and independent candidates off the ballot. Their goal is to keep them from siphoning votes away from Vice President Kamala Harris in November.
In this latest case, Democrats argued that West and De la Cruz failed to qualify because their 16 presidential electors did not each submit a separate petition with the 7,500 signatures. Instead, only one petition per candidate was submitted, as specified by Georgia’s secretary of state. However, that decision was overturned by an appeals court and upheld this week by Georgia’s Supreme Court.
By the way, Democrats, Republicans, and Libertarians automatically qualify for elections in Georgia.
So you know, Georgia voters will have a choice of four presidential candidates in November: Harris, Republican former President Donald Trump, Libertarian Chase Oliver, and the Green Party’s Jill Stein.
Interesting to note that despite the court’s decision, a spokesman for West’s campaign is encouraging voters to choose him, saying his name still appears on the ballot.
FDA Issues Warning on Pet Food Products
The FDA says it is cautioning dog owners after samples of two Answers Pet Food products tested positive for salmonella, a third tested positive for listeria, and a fourth tested positive for both.Health officials say symptoms of salmonella in dogs include vomiting, fever, a loss of appetite, decreased activity, abdominal pain, and increased heart rate.
The products were sold in frozen four-pound, or half-gallon, cartons and have batches of Answers Pet Food Raw Beef Detailed Formula for Dogs, Answers Pet Food Raw Beef Straight Formula for Dogs, and Answers Pet Food Straight Chicken Formula for Dogs.
These products have been sold online and through various retailers across the country. The FDA says the affected products can be identified by a “Best Used By Date” sticker on the carton of the product.
At this time, it’s not clear if the FDA will take any action against the organization.
The company put out a statement on its website this week saying that it is voluntarily withdrawing specific lots of Answers products after samples collected by the FDA tested positive for both listeria and salmonella.
You should know that a market withdrawal is not the same thing as a recall. The FDA defines a voluntary withdrawal as “removal or correction of a distributed product” or “involves a minor violation that would not be subject to legal action by the FDA,” while a recall is a “marketed product that the FDA considers to be in violation of the laws it administers.”
By the way, Answers officials say no illnesses associated with the withdrawn lots have been confirmed. However, they say they will continue investigating the FDA report since their priority is to bring “healthy, safe, truly raw pet food products to market.”
And now, it looks like our time is just about up for today, so we’re going to call it a wrap for the Friday edition of The Epoch Times News Brief.
*(Don’t forget the News Brief Motto): We’re portable, affordable, and always on-demand.
And finally, as we do each and every day on this program, we wrap everything up with a very notable quote, and this one comes to us from movie star Pierce Brosnan, who said: “I love the ukulele. It’s got a beautiful, melodic tone to it. There’s something innocent and romantic, and it’s just a grand instrument to play.”
For all of us here at The Epoch Times News Brief, I’m Bill Thomas.
The Epoch Times News Brief program was written today by birthday celebrant Sharon Reardon.
Thank you for making us your one-stop source for a concise, accurate, and unbiased daily synopsis of many of the news stories you need to know about.
Enjoy the remainder of your Friday, and we’ll see you right back here next time for another edition of The Epoch Times News Brief. For now, let’s all continue to watch out for one another, and have an absolutely superb day today.
