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1 Trump Bond Amount Lowered, Hush Money Trial Date Set
A day of big legal developments for former President Donald Trump yesterday. A New York appeals court lowered the amount of the bond he must post to appeal his $464-million civil fraud judgment from the full amount of the judgment down to $175-million. When asked when and how he would post the bond, Trump said he “has a lot of cash” but would like to spend it on his campaign. Then, New York Judge Juan Merchan set a tentative trial date of April 15th for the criminal case against Trump connected to a “hush money” payment allegedly made to Stormy Daniels before the 2016 election. Trump has pleaded not guilty, and called the prosecution a “witch hunt” and a “hoax” as he walked into the courtroom for yesterday’s hearing.
2 Top Boeing Executives Stepping Down
With a large number of negative stories in the news over the last few months, there are big changes coming to Boeing. It was announced yesterday that three senior executives of the aircraft manufacturer are stepping down, including CEO Dave Calhoun, who said he’ll be leaving the company at the end of the year. Also announced yesterday was the departure of Stan Deal, the CEO and president of Boeing Commercial Airplanes, who retired effectively immediately, and Larry Kellner, the chair of the company’s board of directors. In a letter to staff posted on the Boeing website, Calhoun said, “the Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 accident was a watershed moment for Boeing. We must continue to respond to this accident with humility and complete transparency,” and went on to say “The eyes of the world are on us.” Calhoun was appointed the CEO of the company in 2020 after two other air disasters that some experts blamed on failures at Boeing.
3 UN Security Council Adopts Gaza Cease-Fire Resolution
The United Nations Security Council voted yesterday to make a statement on the situation in Gaza, but the US chose not to participate. The resolution demanding an immediate humanitarian cease-fire in Gaza for the remaining days of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan passed 14-0, with the United States abstaining from the vote. A previous cease-fire resolution was vetoed by China and Russia on Friday, at least partly because they supported a cease-fire without the release of hostages. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu canceled a trip to Washington by an Israeli delegation, saying the US’s decision to abstain from the vote was a “clear retreat” from the consistent position it’s held on the Security Council. During yesterday’s White House press briefing, Admiral John Kirby said that the US position on wanting a cease-fire as part of a deal to free hostages has remained consistent, and answered a reporter’s question about the delegation not coming to Washington by calling it “perplexing.”