The director of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Media Lab stepped down on Saturday after a New Yorker magazine article revealed the lab tried to conceal donations from disgraced late financier Jeffrey Epstein, the university said.

"This afternoon, Joi Ito submitted his resignation as Director of the Media Lab and as a professor and employee of the Institute," MIT President Rafael Reif said in a letter posted online.

Ito could not be reached for immediate comment. The New York Times and New Yorker reported he said in an internal email, "After giving the matter a great deal of thought over the past several days and weeks, I think that it is best that I resign as director of the media lab and as a professor and employee of the Institute, effective immediately."

Last month, Reif said the elite university would review its process for accepting donations after taking about $800,000 from foundations controlled by Epstein, who committed suicide while in jail awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges.

The New Yorker article uncovered deeper fundraising ties between the Media Lab and Epstein and said the institution had actively tried to conceal the extent of its connections with the disgraced financier.

On Saturday, Reif described the acceptance of contributions from Epstein as a "mistake of judgment" and said he had instructed MIT’s general counsel to bring in a prominent law firm to investigate the matter.

"Because the accusations in the (New Yorker) story are extremely serious, they demand an immediate, thorough and independent investigation," Reif said.

Ito previously apologized for having accepted donations from Epstein and had said he would raise an amount equivalent to the donations the lab received from foundations controlled by Epstein and "direct those funds to non-profits that focus on supporting survivors of trafficking."

The New Yorker said Ito disclosed this week he received a further $1.2 million from Epstein for investment funds under Ito’s control and $525,000 for the lab. Epstein also secured $7.5 million in donations for the lab from other wealthy individuals.

On Saturday, Ito also resigned from the board of directors of The New York Times Co and of PureTech, a biotechnology firm, according to statements from the two companies.

Click Here: camiseta river plate

Donald Trump on Saturday confirmed that Hamza bin Laden, the son of former al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden, was killed in a US counter-terrorism operation in the Afghanistan-Pakistan region.

Click Here: New Zealand rugby store

The White House released a statement in the US president’s name announcing the death but provided no other details, such as when he was killed or how he had died.  

The younger bin Laden had been playing an increasingly prominent role in the terrorist organisation but had not been heard from since March 2018. 

US media reported his death over the summer and Mark Esper, the Defense Secretary, appeared to confirm it in an interview in August. But Mr Trump’s statement makes it official. 

“The loss of Hamza bin Ladin not only deprives al-Qaida of important leadership skills and the symbolic connection to his father, but undermines important operational activities of the group,” the statement read. 

“Hamza bin Ladin was responsible for planning and dealing with various terrorist groups.”

As al-Qaida’s leader, Osama bin Laden oversaw a string of attacks on American targets, most notoriously the September 11 2011 terrorist atrocity which killed 2,977 people. 

Hamza bin Laden is believed to have been born in 1989, the year of the Soviet withdrawal from Afghanistan, where his father became known among the mujahedeen fighters.

The US invasion of Afghanistan in 2001 which followed the 9/11 attack saw the bin Laden family separate as they went on the run to avoid capture. 

Hamza bin Ladin last saw his father aged 12, once writing of their split: “It was as if we pulled out our livers and left them there.”

In May 2011, a US Navy Seal team raided Abbottabad, killing Osama bin Laden and his son Khalid, as well as others. Hamza was not among the dead. 

He resurfaced in a video in August 2015 on jihadi websites in which Ayman al-Zawahri, the group’s leader, introduced him as "a lion from the den of al-Qaida". 

Since then, Hamza had been featured in al-Qaida messages, delivering speeches on everything from the war in Syria to Mr Trump’s visit to Saudi Arabia on his first foreign trip as president. But he had posted no message since March 2018. 

This February the US government offered $1 million for help tracking down Hamza bin Laden as part of the State Department’s Rewards for Justice program.

Pierre, 82, took out a piece of chalk and scrawled the number 307 on a blackboard.

Trucks honked their horns as a French flag and a yellow vest swayed atop a makeshift wooden shelter. The Alps offered a starkly scenic backdrop to the ugly peri-urban sprawl below.

In less than 60 days, Pierre and dozens of other ‘gilets jaunes’ like him will have occupied “their” roundabout some 20km outside Grenoble, southeastern France, for a full year.

Some thought that President Emmanuel Macron’s move to pump around €17bn (£15bn) in sweeteners for the poor, violent demonstrations in big cities, notably Paris, and a national “great debate” had put paid to the Gallic grassroots movement that sprung up in spontaneous…

To continue reading this article

Start a 30-day free trial for unlimited access to Premium articles

• Unlimited access to Premium articles 
• Subscriber-only events and experiences
• Cancel any time

Free for 30 days

then only £2 per week

Try Premium

Save 25% with an annual subscription

Just £75 per year

 

Save now

Register for free and access one Premium article per week

Register

Only subscribers have unlimited access to Premium articles.Register for free to continue reading this article
RegisterOr unlock all Premium articles.
Free for 30 days, then just £1 per week
Start trial
Save 40% when you pay annually.
View all subscription options  |
Already have an account? Login

Mary Trump, the niece of President TrumpDonald John TrumpSecret Service members who helped organize Pence Arizona trip test positive for COVID-19: report Trump administration planning pandemic office at the State Department: report Iran releases photo of damaged nuclear fuel production site: report MORE who is trying to release a tell-all book about their family, submitted an affidavit on Thursday in an attempt to remove a temporary restraining order against her over the memoir’s publication.

Earlier this week a judge granted the president’s brother, Robert Trump – Mary Trump’s other uncle – a temporary restraining order against Mary Trump and Simon & Schuster, the publisher releasing her book, “Too Much And Never Enough: How My Family Created the World’s Most Dangerous Man.”

A New York appeals court promptly threw the order out against the publisher, clearing the way for it to distribute the book, though the order still applies to Mary Trump. The book, which has been scheduled for release July 28, is at the top of Amazon’s best-seller list.

ADVERTISEMENT

In the affidavit, Mary Trump argues that she “never believed” a non-disclosure agreement she signed in the early 2000s regarding a dispute over her grandfather’s will “could possibly restrict me from telling the story of my life or publishing a book discussing anything contained in the Book, including the conduct and character of my uncle, the sitting President of the United States.”

She argued that the agreement should not hold up, asserting that when she signed it in 2001 she believed the asset amounts were accurate, but learned after a New York Times expose in 2018 that they were “fraudulent.”

Mary Trump added that the president and other members of the family have spoken publicly about the dispute before, but never “sought my permission to speak publicly about our family or their personal relationships with me, my brother Fred, or among each other.”

Click Here: cheap all stars rugby jersey

In an adjacent motion, Mary Trump’s lawyers evoked the First Amendment as reasoning that Robert Trump’s restraining order should be lifted against his niece.

“The First Amendment, ordinary rules of contract law, and bedrock equitable principles defeat Plaintiff’s extraordinary and unwarranted request for injunctive relief,” Mary Trump’s counsel wrote.

“The First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution forbids prior restraints against the publication of books, especially books comprising core political speech relating to a sitting president running for reelection.”

The generous expansion to unemployment insurance Congress passed to keep Americans afloat during the COVID-19 crisis is due to run out at the end of the month, potentially leaving millions of people struggling.

Unemployment levels remained at 11.1 percent in June, worse than they did at the height of the Great Recession in 2009, but Congress is far from agreeing on a path forward.

At the heart of the discussion is a federal policy that adds a flat $600 to every weekly unemployment check through the end of July.

ADVERTISEMENT

Democrats who champion the policy say it has been a crucial lifeline to the millions of Americans who were furloughed or lost jobs as a result of the pandemic.

“It would be unconscionable for Republicans to allow supercharged unemployment benefits to expire with the unemployment rate above 11 percent and 2.3 million new unemployment claims just this week,” Senate Finance Committee Ranking Member Ron WydenRonald (Ron) Lee WydenHillicon Valley: Senate panel advances bill targeting online child sexual abuse | Trump administration awards tech group contract to build ‘virtual’ wall | Advocacy groups urge Congress to ban facial recognition technologies Senate panel advances bill targeting online child sexual abuse The Hill’s 12:30 Report: Democratic proposal to extend 0 unemployment checks MORE (D-Ore.) said Thursday.

Republicans, however, argue the $600 top-up has at best outlived its usefulness, or at worst has been hampering the recovery all along.

“We have a real concern about creating an unintended incentive for people to stay on the sidelines in this economy. And that $600 plus-up in unemployment many believe has contributed to that,” Vice President Mike PenceMichael (Mike) Richard PenceSecret Service members who helped organize Pence Arizona trip test positive for COVID-19: report Overnight Health Care: Experts fear July 4 weekend will exacerbate coronavirus spread | Texas Gov. Abbott will require masks in most of the state | Fauci warns: ‘We are not going in the right direction’ Florida records over 10K COVID-19 cases, highest single-day increase MORE told CNBC on Thursday. 

The Democratic-controlled House passed the Heroes Act in May, which would extend the extra unemployment payment for another six months among a slew of other measures such as aid to state and local governments.

The GOP-controlled Senate, however, said the $3 trillion legislation overshot the mark, and that it would wait and see how economic conditions unfolded before deciding the scale of its version of the next COVID-19 relief package. The unexpectedly strong June jobs report, which saw a record one-month increase of 4.3 million jobs, may convince them less help is necessary.

Negotiations aren’t even set to begin until after the July 4th recess, leaving just four weeks for the two chambers to hammer out and pass an agreement.

ADVERTISEMENT

The debate over the $600 figure gets at the complexity of a patchwork system of unemployment benefits across all 50 states, but has been heightened by partisan and ideological rhetoric as November’s election draws close. It also highlights the vastly uncertain path that the economy will take in the coming months, a path that is closely linked to efforts to contain the coronavirus.

Congress settled on an extra $600 in unemployment benefits in the CARES Act passed in March because it filled the gap between the average weekly unemployment insurance payout across the country and the average salary, while allowing states to more quickly dole out the aid.

Most unemployment insurance is designed to cover just a fraction of a worker’s salary as an incentive for people to find new work quickly.

But the state-to-state variation in benefits varies widely, ranging from a low of $212 in Mississippi to a high of $557 in Massachusetts. The $600 addition isn’t adjusted for inflation or previous wage level, meaning that some people are earning more on unemployment than they were at work.

That sets up an uncomfortable dynamic, forcing workers to face a potential pay cut when they go back to work.

“Despite mounting evidence of the problems these extra payments are causing, the House passed a bill recently to extend them – not just for a month or two, but for another six months, through January 2021,” Senate Finance Committee Chairman Charles GrassleyCharles (Chuck) Ernest GrassleyUS, Mexico set for new post-NAFTA trade era Senators press IRS chief on stimulus check pitfalls GOP skeptical of polling on Trump MORE (R-Iowa) said at a contentious hearing on unemployment last month.

The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimated that if the policy were extended for six months, the overall economy would be better through the end of the year as unemployed people continued to use the money to buy food, pay rent, and spend at elevated levels. But the employment situation would be worse, as more people would refrain from taking jobs that effectively lowered their income.

By 2021, CBO estimated, both the economy and unemployment would be worse, as people separated from the labor market took longer to find jobs.

Conservative groups have amplified the message.
Click Here: Fjallraven Kanken Art Spring Landscape Backpacks“Although the unemployment rate is still high, the significant turnaround shows that Congress should focus on fostering the recovery that’s already underway and resist the temptation to rush toward another massive stimulus package,” Heritage Foundation expert Rachel Greszler said, calling for a strategy of wage replacement instead of a flat $600 addition.

But in the same hearing, Wyden said Congress had little choice for a better policy because of how unemployment is administered through 50 different state unemployment offices. A more precise policy that would block recipients from earning more than their previous salaries, he said, would be impossible to implement quickly.

Local unemployment offices contacted by The Hill said they might take as much as six to nine months to set up a wage replacement program.

A Grassley spokesperson on Thursday didn’t offer specific alternatives, but pointed to the strong June jobs report.

“The jobs report underscores why Congress should take a thoughtful approach and not rush to pass expensive legislation paid for with more debt before gaining a better understanding of the economic condition of the country,” the spokesperson said.

“Further coronavirus relief legislation would need to address any ongoing problems in an effective manner and encourage further job growth,” he added.

But economists say that the superlative jobs report also points to an extended unemployment crisis.

The Congressional Budget Office on Thursday projected that unemployment would remain above 10 percent by year’s end and wouldn’t fall back below 5 percent until 2025.

Shai Akabas, director of economic policy at the Bipartisan Policy Center, said the economy faced a long road to recovery.

“While we have made it through the initial employment shock from shutting down the economy, the rising levels of permanent job loss and long-term unemployment are troubling and signal a long tail of second order effects,” he said.

“Many businesses are gradually realizing that conditions won’t return to anything close to normal in the near future and are recalibrating their workforce accordingly,” he added.

Left-leaning economists are also warning that a steep shortfall in state and local budgets will lead to a tsunami of new layoffs in the new fiscal year, which for states began this week.

“Without massive additional federal aid, austerity is certainly on the horizon for state and local governments, because state and local tax revenues are plummeting,” wrote Elise Gould and Heidi Shierholz, economists at the Economic Policy Institute.

ADVERTISEMENT

“This means losses in public sector services, including cuts to school budgets at a time when schools are already struggling with the increased need for creative options for students,” they added.

One idea that Republicans may embrace is leaving some level of expanded unemployment in place, but letting people keep some of the extra benefits if they get a job.

“I think reemployment benefits probably will help fill the bill, and those too have to be targeted to the right people who are having trouble getting a job or competing with the unemployment benefit,” top White House economic advisor Larry KudlowLawrence (Larry) Alan KudlowMORE said on Bloomberg TV Thursday.

But with negotiations on hold, the final package remains far from certain.

“The shape of any kind of package is still very much up in the air,” he said.

House Democrats have scheduled a transcribed interview next week with ousted U.S. Attorney Geoffrey Berman, a powerful prosecutor for the Southern District of New York (SDNY) who was investigating President TrumpDonald John TrumpSecret Service members who helped organize Pence Arizona trip test positive for COVID-19: report Trump administration planning pandemic office at the State Department: report Iran releases photo of damaged nuclear fuel production site: report MORE‘s associates and family before his dismissal.

Berman is slated to appear for a closed-door interview next Thursday, multiple congressional sources tell The Hill.

Berman’s appearance comes after Democrats announced last month that they would be launching an investigation into the U.S. attorney’s ouster.

ADVERTISEMENT

Democrats are particularly motivated to examine his removal because Berman was spearheading probes on multiple fronts, including whether Trump’s personal attorney, former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, violated laws on lobbying for foreign interests as it relates to Ukraine.

Lawmakers have raised concerns that Trump is seeking to purge judiciary officials who he does not view as loyal, particularly in the SDNY, which is known for its independence.

Manhattan falls within the federal office’s jurisdiction, making the president’s businesses — which are headquartered in the Big Apple — also under its purview. 

“This is a bombshell. Was the attempted stealth removal of the US Attorney done by AG barr to protect donald trump or his associates from investigation or prosecution? We need to find out,” Rep. Bill PascrellWilliam (Bill) James PascrellOusted Manhattan US Attorney Berman to testify before House next week Pelosi throws cold water on impeaching Barr Judiciary Democrat calls for House to pursue impeachment of Barr MORE (D-N.J.) said last month in reaction to Berman’s ouster.

The circumstances of Berman’s removal last month were also opaque, with the White House pinning the blame on Attorney General William BarrBill BarrJustice Dept. considering replacing outgoing US attorney in Brooklyn with Barr deputy: report Ousted Manhattan US Attorney Berman to testify before House next week ACLU lawsuit calls on Barr to delay federal execution MORE and offering a muddled message.

Barr first announced Berman had stepped down, but the U.S. attorney then pushed back in a subsequent statement denying that he had resigned and stating that he did not have any intention of doing so.

ADVERTISEMENT

Not long after, Barr notified Berman in a letter that Trump had officially fired him. That same day, however, the president claimed he was “not involved” in the decision.

The White House then indicated Trump only signed off on the decision, but that the decision was Barr’s.

White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany told reporters at a briefing that the president had been involved only “in a sign-off capacity.”

“The attorney general was taking the lead on this matter. He did come to the president and report to him when Mr. Berman decided not to leave, and at that point is when the president agreed with the attorney general,” McEnany told reporters during a briefing in June.

Berman, who was first appointed to his post in 2018, will temporarily be replaced by his former deputy, Audrey Strauss, who is considered a well-respected career prosecutor who can pick up the baton with any such investigations.

Democrats began calling for Berman to testify last month, asking him to join other Justice Department (DOJ) whistleblowers and officials to testify about the politicization of the DOJ under Barr and Trump.

Click Here: Fjallraven Kanken Art Spring Landscape Backpacks

Tech billionaire Peter Thiel is distancing himself from the campaign of President TrumpDonald John TrumpSecret Service members who helped organize Pence Arizona trip test positive for COVID-19: report Trump administration planning pandemic office at the State Department: report Iran releases photo of damaged nuclear fuel production site: report MORE amid fears that he will not win reelection, The Wall Street Journal reports, citing people familiar with the matter.

Thiel, a vocal supporter of Trump in 2016, reportedly “soured” on the president’s reelection chances, with the Journal reporting that he said he thinks the economy will be in a major recession come November due to the pandemic and a challenger would face better odds against a sitting president.

The venture capitalist and co-founder of PayPal Holdings Inc. spoke at the 2016 Republican National Convention and donated $1.25 million that year to Trump’s campaign and other pro-Trump groups. Thiel is not scheduled to speak at this year’s convention. 

ADVERTISEMENT

Though he might vote for the president personally, sources told the Journal that Thiel has said Trump is vulnerable to a challenge from former Vice President Joe BidenJoe BidenThe Hill’s Campaign Report: Biden chips away at Trump’s fundraising advantage The Memo: Trump grows weak as clock ticks down Nina Turner addresses Biden’s search for a running mate MORE, the presumptive Democratic nominee. Thiel is not expected to publicly break with the president. 

Confidants of Thiel told the Journal he’s likely to shift his financial support of Trump to House and Senate races. His PAC, Free Forever, is supporting Kris Kobach’s campaign to fill the Kansas Senate seat left vacant by Republican Pat RobertsCharles (Pat) Patrick RobertsRepublicans fear backlash over Trump’s threatened veto on Confederate names Cook Political Report shifts Montana Senate race to ‘toss up’ McConnell plans to stay on as Senate GOP leader even if he loses majority MORE, who is retiring.

A spokesman for Thiel didn’t comment for the Journal story and the venture capitalist himself didn’t respond to the newspaper’s requests for comment. Trump campaign spokesman Tim Murtaugh told the Journal that Thiel remains a supporter of the president.

The Daily Beast reported earlier this year that people in Thiel’s orbit had said he had been critical of the president’s handling of the pandemic. Sources told the Journal for its story Friday that he has been more critical in his assessment of Trump’s reelection campaign and its core argument for voters.

Click Here: Cheap FIJI Rugby Jersey

Surgeon General Jerome Adams offered a Fourth of July message ahead of the holiday weekend, making the case that wearing a mask to Independence Day gatherings means “we will actually have more independence and more freedom” amid the coronavirus pandemic. 

Adams told NBC host Craig Melvin on “Today” that the most important thing a person who may be going to a public gathering can do is wear a face mask or covering.

“As we talk about Fourth of July and independence, it’s important to understand that if we all wear these, we will actually have more independence and more freedom because more places will be able to stay open. We’ll have less spread of the disease,” the surgeon general said. 

ADVERTISEMENT

Melvin asked Adams in the interview whether he would advise a loved one to attend either of the large gatherings that President Trump is set to host at Mount Rushmore in South Dakota and in Washington, D.C. Masks will not be required at either event.

Adams responded that people should consider individual factors that could put them at risk, such as whether someone is older or has some chronic medical condition, like diabetes or high blood pressure.

He added that people should also consider their “circumstances” before attending a large gathering, such as whether COVID-19 cases are increasing in their community or whether they could practice social distancing at the event. 

ADVERTISEMENT

“We know that large gatherings present the biggest risk right now,” Melvin responded, pressing the surgeon general on whether he would “advise someone to go to a large gathering, yes or no?” 

“It’s not a yes or no,” Adams said. “Every single person has to make up their own mind. There are going to be people on the beaches, going to barbecues, going to different environments, and they have to look at their individual risk.”

“As you mentioned, CDC says larger gatherings are a higher risk. You have to take that into account again with whether or not you’re at risk, whether you live with someone who is vulnerable, and then you have to take measures to stay safe,” Adams added.

Adams on Tuesday also implored Americans to wear masks, addressing some arguments that requiring face coverings is an infringement on personal freedoms.

Click Here: Cheap FIJI Rugby Jersey

“Wear a face covering when you go out in public. It is not an inconvenience. It is not a suppression of your freedom. It actually is a vehicle to achieve our goals,” Adams said during a briefing with members of the White House coronavirus task force. 

“It adds to your convenience and your freedom because it allows us to open up more places, and it allows those places to stay open,” he added. “This mask, this face covering, actually is an instrument of freedom for Americans if we all use it.”

The U.S. on Thursday set a record for daily new coronavirus cases, reporting 55,220 cases and surpassing Wednesday’s record of 52,789. Both Florida and Georgia on Thursday also broke their statewide record for new reported cases.

A strain of the coronavirus that was first seen in Italy is now the dominant strain of the virus, a group of scientists said Thursday.

In an article published by the peer-reviewed science journal Cell, researchers working with the Sheffield COVID-19 Genomics Group announced that the new strain “has become the most prevalent form in the global pandemic.”

The strain is different than what appeared in Wuhan, China, the city where the coronavirus is believed to have originated. 

ADVERTISEMENT

According to the science journal, tracking of the virus frequency revealed a prevalence of the dominant strain, labeled G614, that took over the prevalence of D614, the original strain.  

“Dynamic tracking of variant frequencies revealed a recurrent pattern of G614 increase at multiple geographic levels: national, regional and municipal. The shift occurred even in local epidemics where the original D614 form was well established prior to the introduction of the G614 variant,” the scientists wrote in their abstract, referring to the two strains.

“The consistency of this pattern was highly statistically significant, suggesting that the G614 variant may have a fitness advantage,” they continued.

However, scientists cannot agree on the reasoning for the new strain’s dominance — researchers with the study suggested that the newer strain may be more virulent, while others contended in comments included with the study that the dominance could be due to its spread in the U.S.

The United States has largely failed to blunt its surge of new coronavirus infections recently, and now it has more confirmed cases than any other country.

Researchers of the study added that while their findings may indicate that the newer virus strain has a higher transmission rate, there was no evidence yet to suggest that it was a more severe strain than the one thought to have originated late last year in Wuhan. 

ADVERTISEMENT

Click Here: Cheap France Rugby Jersey

“In infected individuals G614 is associated with lower RT-PCR cycle thresholds, suggestive of higher upper respiratory tract viral loads, although not with increased disease severity,” they wrote.

The U.S. now has more than 2.7 million confirmed cases of the virus, and on Thursday set another record for new coronavirus cases in a 24-hour period.

Italy, which was hit hard by the virus earlier this year, has largely seen its trend of new cases drop off and now reports under 200 per day across the country.

Sen. Tammy DuckworthLadda (Tammy) Tammy DuckworthDuckworth to block military confirmations until Esper proves Vindman will be promoted Liberal veterans group urges Biden to name Duckworth VP Trump faces bipartisan calls for answers on Russian-offered bounties MORE (D-Ill.) announced Thursday that she is blocking the Senate confirmation of 1,123 senior U.S. Armed Forces promotions until Defense Secretary Mark EsperMark EsperDuckworth to block military confirmations until Esper proves Vindman will be promoted House panel votes to limit Trump’s Germany withdrawal House panel votes to ban Confederate flag at Pentagon property MORE confirms that he is not going to block the promotion of Lt. Col. Alexander VindmanAlexander VindmanDuckworth to block military confirmations until Esper proves Vindman will be promoted Voters must strongly reject the president’s abuses by voting him out this November Trump pick for pandemic response watchdog pledges independence amid Democratic skepticism MORE to colonel.

Vindman, a decorated Iraq War veteran who served on the staff of the White House’s National Security Council, was a prominent witness in the impeachment inquiry into President TrumpDonald John TrumpSecret Service members who helped organize Pence Arizona trip test positive for COVID-19: report Trump administration planning pandemic office at the State Department: report Iran releases photo of damaged nuclear fuel production site: report MORE last year.

Trump removed Vindman from his position with the National Security Council after his testimony, but Duckworth is pushing to make sure that the administration does not deny him his expected promotion to colonel.

The Illinois Democrat, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, accused Trump in a statement Thursday of trying to “politicize the nation’s Armed Forces.” She is asking for Esper to provide written confirmation that Vindman will be promoted to colonel. 

“Our military is supposed to be the ultimate meritocracy,” Duckworth said. “It is simply unprecedented and wrong for any Commander in Chief to meddle in routine military matters at all, whether or not he has a personal vendetta against a Soldier who did his patriotic duty and told the truth—a Soldier who has been recommended for promotion by his superiors because of his performance.”

Click Here: Cheap France Rugby Jersey