Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., said in a letter to the White House that the military has "exceeded" the parameters of President Donald Trump's orders in striking alleged drug-smuggling vessels as a part of its counternarcotics operation. Kaine, who wrote to Trump that he had reviewed a so-called "execute order" signed by the president, which includes targeting criteria for the boat strikes, said the strikes on vessels in the Pacific and Caribbean, which began last September, have likely "killed individuals who are not involved in narcotrafficking."
In Middletown and Bridgeport, police officials have pushed to contract a first-responder drone program they praise as a potentially life-saving tool. But residents of both cities took to their city halls this year to oppose the proposed drones, made by the technology company Flock Safety, raising concerns over data privacy and surveillance in meetings, public forums and letters to council members.
Nick Adams' Foundation for Liberty and American Greatness has brought in millions in donations and helped him land a State Department appointment, but records show there is almost no indication FLAG was spending that money on its stated mission. read more
President Trump called Iran's leadership "unbelievably duplicitous" Monday after Iran said hours earlier it had no plans to hold direct talks with Washington, despite the U.S. leader's claim that negotiations would start today.
Wrote and published malware during tests, which is apparently OK because leaky test environments were the real problem read more
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How Iran is widening its pressure campaign to force US concessions
www.reuters.com
... Iran is betting it can outlast Washington by turning the Middle East's trade routes, shipping lanes and energy infrastructure into pressure points that steadily raise the cost of confrontation, according to Gulf officials and analysts.
Rather than seeking a decisive military victory, Tehran is pursuing a strategy of calibrated escalation aimed at widening the conflict without triggering full-scale war.
The goal, they say, is to convince the United States and its allies that containing the crisis is more costly than accommodating Iran's demands over the Strait of Hormuz.
The message from Tehran is that unless Washington accepts a new status quo that gives Iran a greater role in Hormuz, the conflict could spread beyond the Gulf.
By putting multiple maritime chokepoints and energy assets at risk, Iran believes it can strengthen its hand in any future negotiations.
"Iran, from the beginning, has tried to out-escalate the United States by stretching out its escalation options so that it always has something new to bring every week -- a new geography, a new type of weapon, a new type of target," Michael Knights of the Washington Institute told Reuters. ...
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BaFin to Deepen Deutsche Bank Money Laundering Investigation (Feb 2019)
www.financemagnates.com
...Deutsche Bank released a statement on Friday saying that BaFin, the German financial regulator, has extended the remit of an independent auditor examining the lender's role in the Danske Bank money laundering scandal.[emphasis mine]
The case stems from an ongoing investigation into the Danish bank's Estonian division.
After a whistle-blower sounded the alarm about the activity of certain customers, most of whom were from Russia and the former Soviet Union, in late 2018, it became apparent that Danske Bank's Tallinn-based operations were doing business with some less than scrupulous individuals.
It is alleged that the bank laundered around $225 billion from 2007 to 2014. If that is the case, it would potentially be the largest instance of money laundering ever uncovered.
Deutsche Bank falls into the mix as it acted as Danske Bank's main correspondent bank. According to the Financial Times, the German bank was responsible for facilitating $180 billion in suspicious transactions....
Deutsche Bank Offices Are Raided In Money Laundering Probe (Nov 2018)
www.npr.org
...In recent years, Deutsche Bank has been in the news not only for its prominence in the Panama Papers, but also for its ties to President Trump, in a tumultuous relationship that goes back some 20 years.[emphasis mine]
Trump and the bank once sued each other after he failed to repay a $300 million loan. And the author and reporter Luke Harding has described a "shuffle of money" between the bank's dealings with figures in Russia and its business with Trump. ...
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