1 US Launches Air Strikes Against Targets In Syria
The U.S. is taking aim at Iranian-backed forces in Syria. It was confirmed overnight that he U.S. military carried out an airstrike against a facility belonging to Iran-supported militia. President Biden approved the strike, which comes after recent rocket attacks against U.S. forces in Iraq. One of those strikes killed a contractor and left several Americans hurt. It's the first time Biden has taken military action since taking office last month. "President Biden will act to protect American and Coalition personnel,” Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said in a statement. “At the same time, we have acted in a deliberate manner that aims to de-escalate the overall situation in both eastern Syria and Iraq.”
2 Capitol Police Chief Warns: Extremists 'Want To Blow Up The Capitol'
As lawmakers continue to investigate what happened – and more, what went wrong – at the Capitol on January 6th, the acting Capitol Police chief says congressional security officials saw no intelligence about a credible threat of a massive attack that day. Yogananda Pittman testified in a House hearing and said police were simply unprepared for the scale of the attack. As the finger pointing continues, Acting House Sergeant-at-Arms Timothy Blodgett did allow "intelligence missteps" before the Capitol assault. Here’s the thing – it’s not though the damage has passed. As Pittman noted, President Biden’s upcoming address to a Joint Session of Congress remains a target. "We know that members of the militia groups that were present on January 6th have stated their desires that they want to blow up the Capitol,” she explained. “And kill as many members as possible with a direct nexus to the State of the Union, which we know that date has not been identified.”
3 Trump Taxes Reportedly Turned Over To New York Prosecutors
The thing that Donald Trump’s detractors have demanded for four years has finally happened: his tax records are finally turned over. Though not to the public, they’re in the hands of New York state prosecutors. This as SCOTUS rejected the ex-President's last-ditch appeal to keep the records under wraps. So what now? Depends whom you ask, but according to “Bloomberg” editor Tim O’Brien, Trump’s accountant may make a deal with prosecutors to save himself. That said, there’s been no verified report of what’s actually in Trump’s records. And again, the public isn’t about to get a gander of what’s in them as they’ll be sealed until the time that charges are ever filed – IF they’re ever filed. Trump’s fate now lies with a Grand Jury.