Good morning, and welcome to The Epoch Times News Brief for Thursday, May 16, 2024. I’m Bill Thomas, and today, we’re bringing some really interesting stories, from the upcoming presidential debates to voter roll purges in Ohio. We’re also taking a close look at a sharp increase in malaria cases at the southern U.S. border.
Biden and Trump to Meet for June, September Debates
CNN says that it will host the first presidential debate in the 2024 election coming up in about six weeks on June 27.The announcement came just hours after former President Donald Trump accepted an invitation from President Joe Biden yesterday for two debates: one in June and another in September.
The first meeting takes place in Atlanta, Georgia, with no audience present, which allows the candidates more time to speak. President Biden posted on X that he had accepted CNN’s invitation, and he also wrote: “Over to you, Donald. As you said: anywhere, any time, any place.”
President Trump replied on Truth Social and said that it was his “great honor to accept the CNN Debate against Crooked Joe Biden, the WORST PRESIDENT in the History of the United States and a true Threat to Democracy.”
The candidates have also agreed to a second debate on ABC News, scheduled for Sept. 10.
Participation in these debates requires candidates to meet several criteria, including constitutional eligibility, FEC registration, adequate representation on state ballots, adherence to debate rules, and meeting specific polling thresholds that are set by CNN.
Independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has been excluded from these debates, who said he’s frustrated over what he calls the perceived sidelining of viable third-party candidates.
In addition to the debates already scheduled, the Trump campaign has proposed two additional debates, suggesting a monthly schedule from June to September, arguing that American voters deserve more opportunities to hear directly from the candidates, especially in light of current national issues.
Carrying American Flag at the Capitol on Jan. 6 was a Crime, DOJ Says
In a recent statement, federal prosecutors have indicated that carrying the Red, White, and Blue in the U.S. Capitol to express support for certain political views, including “free elections, fair elections, and President Trump,” can be considered a criminal offense, which could lead to a punishment of up to six months in prison.According to the U.S. Department of Justice, such actions fall under a specific law that prohibits parading, demonstrating, or picketing within Capitol buildings. This statute, however, exempts members of Congress, their employees, and certain other government workers.
This has become a key point in the charges against William Alexander Pope, who is currently challenging the constitutionality of the application of this law. Mr. Pope argues that carrying the American flag should not be deemed a criminal act and suggests that the charges might be politically motivated.
During the events of Jan. 6, 2021, various flags were displayed in the Capitol, including those supporting President Trump and those critical of President Biden. Security footage from the day shows Mr. Pope moving through the Capitol, waving his American flag in different areas.
Mr. Pope is also concerned about the broader implications of this law, and he said, “This is overly broad, vague, and un-American.” He emphasized that the Capitol has traditionally been a place for Americans to express diverse political perspectives.
He also says that his Sixth Amendment rights have been infringed upon due to delays in the prosecution providing necessary evidence for his defense and he has requested a trial delay to address these issues.
Judge Rejects DOJ’s Request for Warrant to Search Jan. 6 Defendant’s Phone
In a recent turn of events, a federal judge has blocked a move by prosecutors to search the phone of Isabella DeLuca, a social media influencer charged with participating in the Jan. 6 U.S. Capitol breach. The judge denied the prosecutors not because of the content or context of the evidence, but rather due to the approach taken by prosecutors, a tactic the judge labeled as “judge shopping.”Here’s what happened: After another judge in California, Judge Autumn Spaeth, initially rejected the request to search Ms. DeLuca’s phone citing a lack of probable cause, the phone was moved to Washington. Prosecutors then tried again, this time approaching U.S. Magistrate Judge Michael Harvey with a new warrant request. Judge Harvey criticized this strategy, saying prosecutors were trying to get a different ruling by switching judges instead of appealing the original decision or asking for reconsideration from Judge Spaeth.
Ms. DeLuca, who has entered a plea of not guilty to multiple charges including theft of government property and disorderly conduct, and her lawyer argued that the repeated attempts to search her phone were part of an effort to pin additional charges on her. As it stands, the judge’s decision to deny the search warrant rests squarely on preventing misuse of the judicial process, with no comment from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia on this particular matter.
Ohio Orders Purge of Ineligible Voters From State Voter Rolls After Finding 137 ‘Non-Citizens’ Registered to Vote
Ohio’s Secretary of State Frank LaRose has intensified efforts to maintain the integrity of the state’s voter rolls by ordering the removal of ineligible voters. This decision came after an investigation uncovered 137 voter registrations tied to individuals not permitted to vote in U.S. elections.Earlier this week, Mr. LaRose directed Ohio’s county boards of elections to begin a detailed confirmation and removal process to clear the rolls of these ineligible entries. He made it clear that this action is part of his legal duty to ensure that only eligible citizens are registered and voting.
Additionally, his office is taking proactive measures to review the statewide voter registration database on a regular basis. They have also requested that the Biden administration provide them access to various citizenship data sources to aid in this verification.
The process will include cross-referencing voter registration data with other databases, including federal ones, to ensure accuracy and up-to-date voter information.
It will focus on several criteria, including changes of address, overdue removals, and discrepancies with Bureau of Motor Vehicles records. Any registrations flagged for removal will be made available for public review prior to being deleted.
These actions are part of a broader initiative to fortify election integrity, a priority that has gained attention following the controversies surrounding the 2020 election.
Southern US Border Sees 143 Percent Jump in Imported Malaria: CDC
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has reported a significant rise in imported malaria cases across three southern border jurisdictions in the United States. In 2023, there were a total of 68 cases identified in Pima, Arizona; San Diego, California; and El Paso, Texas, marking a 143 percent increase from the number of cases reported in 2022. This uptick has been linked primarily to the arrival of asylum seekers and other migrants through the southern land border, with the majority of these cases occurring among newly arrived individuals.Health care providers are being told to be on the lookout for malaria symptoms in patients who have recently traveled from regions where the disease is common, and to initiate prompt testing and treatment. Fortunately, there have been no reported deaths.
Malaria was eradicated as a leading cause of death in the United States during the 1950s, and most cases are currently imported. Symptoms of malaria include fever, chills, headache, muscle aches, nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. Despite the low risk of malaria in the United States, it’s crucial for those experiencing symptoms or who have recently traveled to endemic areas to seek medical attention immediately.
On a global scale, malaria continues to be a major health challenge, with an estimated 249 million cases and 608,000 deaths in 2022 alone, predominantly in the African region.
Time is just screaming by today, so let’s make that one our final story on this, the Thursday edition of The Epoch Times News Brief.
Kathy writes in to say that she enjoys The Epoch Times news articles and all the information in the News Brief. She also liked the comment we made on this program yesterday encouraging people to read a great American novel or perhaps even write one. Reading is a joy and writing is actually very easy. The hard part is changing the typewriter ribbon, and it’s messy too!
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Now, as we do each and every day on this program, we wrap things up with a very “notable” quote.
The late tech guru Steve Jobs said: “If you really look closely, most overnight successes took a long time.”
Steve Jobs was a pioneer of the personal computer revolution of the 1970s and 1980s, along with his early business partner and fellow Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak. Also in 2022, Mr. Jobs was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom. He was an interesting, creative, and inventive guy.
For all of us here at The Epoch Times News Brief, I’m Bill Thomas, thanks for sharing a portion of your day with us, and we’ll see you right back here tomorrow for the Friday edition of The Epoch Times News Brief. Have a remarkable day today.
