Photo: Science Photo Library RF
1 President Trump Signs Executive Order To Release JFK, RFK, And MLK Assassination Files
President Donald Trump executed another flurry of executive actions yesterday, but one stood out for a lot of people. “That’s a big one,” Trump said as he signed an order to declassify files related to the assassinations of John F. Kennedy, Robert F. Kennedy, and Dr. Martin Luther King. It’s not the first time Trump has made an effort to declassify assassination information, having released a large number of files on JFK in 2017, but quite a bit was left redacted on the advice of people from the CIA and FBI. The order signed yesterday says that President Trump has “now determined that the continued redaction and withholding of information is not consistent with the public interest and the release of these records is long overdue.” The order gives the attorney general and the director of national intelligence 15 days to present a plan to Trump for the “full and complete” release of the JFK records, and a 45-day time limit to present a plan for the RFK and MLK documents. After he signed the EO yesterday, Trump laid the pen on his desk and stared at it for a second, then handed it to his aide and told him “Give that to RFK Jr.” Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Trump’s nominee for secretary of Health and Human Services, is the son of RFK and the nephew of JFK.
2 More Than 50-Thousand Under Evacuation Orders Due To Hughes Fire In Los Angeles County
As of last night, the Hughes Fire in northern Los Angeles County had burned over 10-thousand acres and brought about evacuation orders for more than 50-thousand people. The Hughes Fire was 14-percent contained as of yesterday morning, with thousands of resources surged to the area to try to get the fire under control more quickly; the Palisades and Eaton Fires, which have killed 28 people so far and destroyed over 15-thousand structures, are still burning. At least 10 other small fires broke out yesterday in the region, but most have been kept small in size. For example, the Laguna Fire started yesterday morning and had burned about 50 acres total as of early yesterday afternoon. Gov. Gavin Newsom signed legislation yesterday afternoon to send $2.5-billion in relief to help with the wildfire response and recovery efforts in Los Angeles. During a press conference, Newsom said “We’re all in this together,” and said the funds would be available immediately. In another move to provide affected residents some relief, Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara issued a bulletin to insurance companies saying they must give advance payments on claims from policyholders who suffered a “total loss” in the wildfires. Lara cited legislation passed in California after the 2018 fires.
3 Senate Advances Nomination Of Pete Hegseth For Secretary Of Defense
Despite the controversy that’s surrounded him during his confirmation process, Pete Hegseth’s nomination to become Secretary of Defense was advanced yesterday in the Senate by a 51-49 vote. Two Republicans, Sens. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Susan Collins of Maine voted against the nomination moving forward. The chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, Sen. Roger Wicker of Mississippi, said “I am ironclad in my assessment that the nominee, Mr. Hegseth, is prepared to be the next secretary of defense.” A final confirmation vote on the nomination is expected today.