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WASHINGTON D.C — The Office of Inspector General (OIG) revealed that U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has insufficient information on whether nonimmigrant visa holders have been interviewed by the Department of State (DoS).
A recent OIG report shows that between 2020 and 2023, the DoS granted approximately 7.1 million nonimmigrant visas without conducting in-person consular interviews. During the same period, fingerprints were not collected for an undisclosed number of visa applicants.
In December 2023, DoS and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) agreed to expand the categories of visas and applicants eligible for interview waivers starting January 1, 2024. The fingerprint waiver program concluded in December 2023. Click here to read more.
WASHINGTON, D.C. - The federal government engaged in a stunning deception by secretly shaping a medical association’s transgender policy for political aims — then arguing in court that red states were not allowed to diverge from that policy, because it would be putting politics over scientific expertise.
The findings could deal a crippling blow to the Biden administration’s efforts to stop Republican-led states from banning the genital mutilation of children, and prove embarrassing for the judges — including an appointee of Donald Trump — who appeared to accept the argument that medical associations are above politics and should be deferred to by red-state politicians.
The Biden administration sued states including Tennessee, Alabama, and Kentucky, with transgender guidance from the World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH) as its key piece of evidence. But the documents obtained via discovery in an Alabama lawsuit show that, in fact, the WPATH guidance was crafted in close collaboration with the Biden administration specifically with an eye to influence such lawsuits and block legislation. Click here to read more.
LANSING, Mich - Gov. Gretchen Whitmer made a national name for herself in the early days of the Covid-19 pandemic by issuing some of the strictest lockdown policies in the country. She forced a larger share of businesses to close than any other state. Her edicts were shocking in scope but also a shocking display of unilateral and centralized executive power.
Whitmer has not shown an interest in formally reviewing the effectiveness of her unprecedented pandemic policies. But her counterpart in New York — Gov. Kathy Hochul — has, and a new, independent report puts the Empire State’s pandemic response under a microscope. Whitmer deployed a similar strategy to Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s, New York’s governor at the beginning of the Covid pandemic.
One similarity was that both Whitmer and Cuomo ignored the pandemic response plans their states had developed for these situations. Like Michigan, New York had “a sophisticated preparedness structure, mandated under state law, and implemented by professional emergency managers,” according to the report. The existing pandemic response plans called for a coordinated response led by public health officials at both the state and local levels. Click here to read more.
WASHINGTON D.C. - The Supreme Court on Friday ruled that the Justice Department went too far in slapping obstruction charges on hundreds of January 6 defendants.
The court voted 6-3 in favor of defendant Joseph Fischer, a former police officer seeking to dismiss his charge of obstructing an official proceeding, Congress’ certification of President Joe Biden’s election victory.
However, the court ruled that an obstruction charge may be filed if prosecutors are able to prove that a protester was trying to stop the arrival of certificates used to count electoral votes to certify the election results, not just force their way into the Capitol Building.
The decision could have implications for former President Donald Trump, who is also charged with obstruction, although special counsel Jack Smith has argued that Trump’s obstruction of Congress’ certification was much broader than the protesters’ actions.
It could also force prosecutors to reopen at least some of the January 6 cases. Click here to read more.
At 83 years old, Daniel Greco says he feels like he’s been given a second chance. The Long Island man returned to the place where he collapsed back in April but he remembers very little.
"Absolutely nothing. I see it and I still don’t believe it. I don’t have a heart condition and had no heart problems," Greco told NBC New York Thursday.
Heart problems he wasn’t aware of — he even had gotten a clean bill of health from his doctors. Then on April 30, while standing at an ATM in Melville, he suddenly crashed to the floor.
Greco watched the security video from that day. He was standing in front of the ATM when he suddenly crashed to the floor. A woman with her son saw him on the floor and she runs for help.
"To this day I still see Mr. Greco, something I will carry with me forever," said Kalie Kerschbaumer, a process improvement engineer at Northwell NetworkCare.
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