All posts tagged: lawmakers

South Korean Defense Chief Sent Drones To Pyongyang To Spark Retaliation, Justify Martial Law: Lawmakers

South Korean Defense Chief Sent Drones To Pyongyang To Spark Retaliation, Justify Martial Law: Lawmakers

Former South Korean former defense chief Kim Yong-hyun ordered a swarm of drones to North Korea’s capital with hopes of provoking an attack that could be used to justify a declaration of martial law by President Yoon Suk Yeol, South Korean legislators have alleged. Meanwhile, ahead of an expected weekend impeachment vote, Yoon used an address to the nation to promise that he would fight “until the very last minute” against being removed from power.   Kim was arrested on Tuesday for his alleged role in aiding Yoon’s attempt to impose military rule, suspend civil liberties and remove checks and balances — and attempted suicide shortly after midnight on Wednesday. Previous reports pointed to Kim’s deployment of troops to prevent lawmakers from convening after Yoon’s shocking Dec. 3 declaration of martial law. If true, the sensational new allegation from Park Beom-kye of the opposition Democratic Party suggests an entirely different layer of dangerous complicity.      Former Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun has been accused of sending drones to North Korea’s capital to provoke a response that could be used …

Elon Musk Meets With Lawmakers About ‘DOGE’ Crusade Against Government Spending

Elon Musk Meets With Lawmakers About ‘DOGE’ Crusade Against Government Spending

WASHINGTON — Tech entrepreneurs Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy came to Capitol Hill Thursday to join Republicans in a celebration of the new initiative named the “Department of Government Efficiency,” or DOGE. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) proclaimed it a “new day in Washington and a new day in America” and said Thursday’s meeting marked “the beginning of a journey.” Just don’t ask where the journey’s going or what DOGE, whose name is a nod to both a meme and a digital currency, will actually do. “There won’t be a lot of detail for the press today — and that’s by design, because this is a brainstorming session,” Johnson told reporters, before ducking into a meeting with Musk, Ramaswamy and a bunch of Republican lawmakers. The two men, who have outsize influence in Trump’s forthcoming White House without being in Trump’s Cabinet, created a spectacle on the Hill. The Tesla CEO moved between meetings carrying one of his young children on his shoulders, flanked by an entourage. Neither he nor Ramaswamy responded to questions from …

US Lawmakers Accuse South Africa Of ‘Bullying’ Taiwan, Warn Of Consequences

US Lawmakers Accuse South Africa Of ‘Bullying’ Taiwan, Warn Of Consequences

Authored by Darren Taylor via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours), JOHANNESBURG—After the South African government requested Taiwan to move its official representative office out of the capital city Pretoria, some U.S. lawmakers are condemning the decision and calling for consequences. General view of Taiwan’s Liaison Office situated in Hatfield, Pretoria on Oct. 22, 2024. South Africa has ordered Taiwan’s representative office to relocate outside of the capital Pretoria. Phill Magakoe/AFP via Getty Images Chrispin Phiri, spokesman for South Africa’s Department of International Relations and Cooperation, confirmed to The Epoch Times that “The president has made it clear that the Taiwanese government must vacate its Pretoria premises by the end of October and relocate to Johannesburg or action will be taken to ensure that this happens.” On Oct. 21, Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) posted on the social media platform X that the United States “should not tolerate this behavior from South Africa.” Blackburn called on the Biden administration “to make it clear that there will be consequences if South Africa works with the CCP (Chinese Communist …

GOP Lawmakers Sound Alarm On EU’s New “Debilitating” Green Policy On US Firms 

GOP Lawmakers Sound Alarm On EU’s New “Debilitating” Green Policy On US Firms 

A group led by more than 60 US House and Senate Republicans urged Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen to postpone the implementation of the European Union’s Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (“CSDDD”). The new EU requirement would force companies to better track environmental impacts across supply chains, which the group claims would “hinder business growth and raise consumer costs.”  “Now, the EU is attempting to impose its debilitating regulatory agenda on American companies through its Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (also known as “CSDDD” or “CS3D”),” the group of US lawmakers wrote in a letter to Yellen, adding CSDDD is “neither practical nor realistic — nor does it genuinely constitute ‘due diligence,’ which is generally defined as review and analysis prior to actions being taken.”  The lawmakers continued, “American companies will be required to comply with [Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive] even though the US has not ratified many of the international conventions underlying the directive.” “We are deeply concerned that the Administration is surrendering its regulatory responsibilities to European officials, allowing them to dictate draconian social and climate policies to American …

FBI Director Wray faces questions from lawmakers over Trump rally shooting | Donald Trump News

FBI Director Wray faces questions from lawmakers over Trump rally shooting | Donald Trump News

FBI Director Christopher Wray has said the agency will leave “no stone unturned” as he faced questions from United States lawmakers about this month’s assassination attempt against former President Donald Trump. During his opening statement to the House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday, Wray said the shooting at Trump’s July 13 rally in Pennsylvania was “an attack on our democracy and our democratic process”. “We will not and do not tolerate political violence of any kind, especially a despicable account of this magnitude,” he said. “And I want to assure you and the American people that the men and women of the FBI will continue to work tirelessly to get to the bottom of what happened.” Wray’s testimony comes a day after US Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle resigned amid widespread criticism over the security protocols deployed for the Trump rally. The former president and current Republican Party presidential nominee was shot in the ear by a gunman who witnesses said had taken up a position on a rooftop with a direct line of sight to …

Did Canadian lawmakers wittingly conspire with foreign powers?

Did Canadian lawmakers wittingly conspire with foreign powers?

TORONTO — Canadian lawmakers “knowingly or through willful blindness” accepted money from foreign powers, colluded with foreign officials to “improperly” interfere in parliamentary business to “the advantage of the foreign state,” and gave information obtained in confidence to a foreign intelligence officer. Some were, “in the words of the intelligence services, ‘semi-witting or witting’ participants in efforts of foreign states to interfere in our politics.” These are among the explosive claims leveled in a new report made public by a committee of lawmakers that’s now rattling Parliament. In a country that’s grown used to reports of Chinese and other foreign meddling, this one from the all-party National Security and Intelligence Committee of Parliamentarians has landed this month like a bomb, raising familiar questions about how seriously the Liberal government of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is taking the threat. Adding to the anxiety is the committee’s decision to withhold the names of the individuals accused, how many there are and what they are alleged to have done — redactions that have had the effect of casting …

Swiss lawmakers reject climate ruling in favour of female climate elders | Switzerland

Swiss lawmakers reject climate ruling in favour of female climate elders | Switzerland

Swiss politicians have rejected a landmark climate ruling from the European court of human rights, raising fears that other polluting countries may follow suit. A panel of Strasbourg judges ruled in April that Switzerland had violated the human rights of older women through weak climate policies that leave them more vulnerable to heatwaves. Activists hailed the judgment as a breakthrough because it leaves all members of the Council of Europe exposed to legal challenges for sluggish efforts to clean up carbon-intensive economies. But the Swiss parliament’s lower house voted on Wednesday to disregard the ruling – with 111 votes in favour and 72 against – arguing that the judges had overstepped their bounds and that Switzerland had done enough. The declaration, which has been adopted by the upper house but does not bind the federal government, accused the court of “inadmissible and disproportionate judicial activism”. “This is terrible from a rule-of-law perspective,” said Corina Heri, a law researcher at the University of Zürich, adding that “the whole system would fall apart” if lots of states …

EU lawmakers step up efforts to combat AI and online disinformation

EU lawmakers step up efforts to combat AI and online disinformation

FIGHT AGAINST DISINFORMATION An EU task force is working with academics, journalists and technology firms to fight foreign information interference and manipulation. A key tool in their arsenal is the EUvsDisinfo – European Union versus Disinformation – website. The platform collects and counters what it calls examples of disinformation campaigns from Russia, regarded by the bloc as the major culprit. Moscow denies the charge. Since 2015, the database has compiled over 17,000 cases, with EU officials expecting pro-Kremlin activities to intensify whenever elections come around. The EU’s statistics office EUROSTAT is also offering data and fact-checking services for the first time this election season as part of a wider effort to fight misinformation. Officials cite potential threat posed by AI as another major concern. On their part, most EU political parties have signed a voluntary code of conduct, pledging not to produce or spread unlabelled deepfakes and other AI-generated content. Under the new Digital Services Act, the EU is also working with the biggest players in social media to monitor potential threats and ensure clear …

Top US lawmakers invite Israel’s Netanyahu to Congress amid Gaza war | Israel-Palestine conflict News

Top US lawmakers invite Israel’s Netanyahu to Congress amid Gaza war | Israel-Palestine conflict News

Israeli prime minister set to deliver address to Congress despite growing anger over his government’s abuses in Gaza. The top legislators in the United States have issued a formal invitation for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to deliver a speech to Congress in the latest show of support for Israel amid its war on Gaza. The invite by Republican and Democratic leaders in the Senate and House of Representatives on Friday came as the International Criminal Court considers issuing an arrest warrant for Netanyahu over alleged war crimes. “To build on our enduring relationship and to highlight America’s solidarity with Israel, we invite you to share the Israeli government’s vision for defending democracy, combatting terror, and establishing a just and lasting peace in the region,” the letter said. It did not specify a date for the speech. I am honored to invite Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu to address a joint meeting of Congress. pic.twitter.com/rYKx0Z1p93 — Speaker Mike Johnson (@SpeakerJohnson) May 31, 2024 The letter was signed by House Speaker Mike Johnson, Democratic House leader Hakeem …