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1 Former Aide To Mark Meadows Testifies At January 6th Hearing
Cassidy Hutchinson, a former aide to Donald Trump’s White House chief of staff Mark Meadows, testified before the House select January 6th committee on Tuesday. She told the committee that she was “scared” when she learned about plans for Trump to go to the Capitol on January 6th. Hutchinson says that then-Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani asked her on January 2nd if she was “excited for the 6th?” and said, “It’s going to be a great day.” She says she asked what he meant, and he said Trump was going to the Capitol and “he’s going to look powerful.” When she returned to the West Wing, Hutchinson says she asked Meadows about the 6th, and he replied, “I don’t know, things might get real, real bad on January 6th.” Meadows initially gave the committee text messages, then refused to testify further in the investigation.
2 Ghislane Maxwell Sentenced To 20 Years In Prison For Sex Trafficking
Ghislaine Maxwell was sentenced to 20 years in federal prison on Tuesday for her part in a years-long scheme with Jeffrey Epstein to groom and sexually abuse underage girls. Maxwell didn’t testify in her own defense during the trial last year, which ended with her conviction on five counts that included sex trafficking of a minor. While she didn’t testify at her trial, Maxwell did speak at her sentencing, telling the victims, “Jeffrey Epstein should have been here before all of you. It is not about Epstein, ultimately. It is for me to be sentenced.” She went on to apologize, saying, “I am sorry for the pain that you’ve experienced. I hope my conviction…brings you closure.” Prosecutors had asked for a sentence of 30 to 55 years in prison, while Maxwell’s attorneys had requested a sentence between 4.25 and 5.25 years. Judge Alison Nathan said during the sentencing that “Miss Maxwell is not punished in place of Epstein, Miss Maxwell is being punished for the role that she played.” Her defense team says they plan to appeal the conviction; Maxwell will be taken to a federal prison in Danbury, Connecticut.
3 Turkey Lifts Its Objections To Finland And Sweden Joining NATO
Turkey agreed Tuesday to lift its opposition to Sweden and Finland joining NATO, ending a showdown that had loomed over a leaders’ summit in Madrid. Alliance Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg announced that “we now have an agreement that paves the way for Finland and Sweden to join NATO,” calling it “a historic decision.” Both countries have long held on to “non-aligned” status, but Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine prompted them to apply. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had threatened to block the countries from joining unless they changed their stance on Kurdish rebel groups that Turkey considers terrorists.