Biden names Susan Rice for White House top job, Giuliani receives Trump COVID-19 drug cocktail
President-elect Joe Biden has tapped two former Obama staffers to join his White House team as investigations into his son roll on.
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US President-elect Joe Biden has named a further two members of his top political team.
Susan Rice, a seasoned diplomat and former staffer to President Barack Obama is set to become the director of the White House Domestic Policy Council.
A spokesperson for Mr Biden said Rice “knows the government inside and out” and will “turbocharge the effort to build back better”. Through the position, Rice will oversee all domestic issues, inclduing immigration, health care, and issues affecting rural Americans.
Under Obama, Rice served as the United States Ambassador to the United Nations and as a national security advisor.
Mr Biden also named Denis McDonough as secretary for Veterans Affairs.
Under the Obama administration, Mr McDonough served chief of staff to the National Security Council before being appointed to national security advisor, and ultimately becoming President Obama’s Chief of Staff from 2013 to 2017.
“When I received the call from President-elect Biden, I assured him that I will represent the voices of all veterans at every level, on every issue, every day,” Mr McDonough wrote in a statement posted to Twitter. “Those who have served this nation, their caregivers and survivors should expect nothing less.”
The news came as Trump’s personal attorney, Rudy Giuliani, left hospital after four days, where he was being treated for COVID-19.
The 76-year-old, who has been leading the charge of lawsuits attempting to reverse the US election outcome, was reportedly treated with the same cocktail of COVID-19 drugs Mr Trump received.
Giuliani called the treatment “miracles” and said, “There’s one that I took - by the next morning I felt like I was 10 years younger.”
Mr Giuliani repeatedly disregarded US public health advice and guidelines, failing to socially distance or wear a mask.
Earlier this week, another of Mr Trump’s attorneys, Jenna Ellis, confirmed she too had tested positive for COVID-19.
DIAMOND AT HEART OF BIDEN INVESTIGATION
A diamond given to Hunter Biden by a since-vanished Chinese energy tycoon is part of the ongoing tax fraud probe and a potentially broader probe into President-elect Joe Biden’s son, according to a report Thursday.
Investigators have examined the gift of the 2.8-carat gem Hunter Biden got from CEFE China Energy founder Ye Jianming in 2017, CNN reported, citing a source briefed on the matter.
It’s unclear whether the diamond, which has been estimated to be worth as much as $A105,000, remains a focus of the tax probe that Hunter and his father’s transition team unexpectedly revealed on Wednesday, according to CNN.
Last year, Hunter told the New Yorker that Ye gave him the diamond following an introductory dinner meeting in Miami amid his divorce from first wife Kathleen Buhle.
Hunter claimed he gave the sparkler to two unidentified associates who also attended the dinner, saying, “I knew it wasn’t a good idea to take it. I just felt like it was weird.”
He also disputed its estimated value, as claimed by his ex-wife, telling the New Yorker it was probably worth around $A13,000, the New York Post reported.
Emails recovered from the laptop that the FBI seized last year from a Delaware repair shop show that the diamond became an issue during Hunter’s divorce, The Post revealed in October.
In August 2017, Buhle’s lawyer demanded proof it was “in a safety deposit box — accessible only by both parties together” and threatened to seek an emergency injunction against Hunter “to enjoin his further dissipation of assets, including the diamond.”
It’s unclear how the dispute was resolved.
Meanwhile, federal prosecutors in Manhattan have also scrutinized Hunter’s finances and investigators in both Delaware and Washington, DC, were looking into potential money laundering by him as of early last year, according to Politico.
The securities fraud unit of the Southern District of New York began its review after a judge overturned the fraud conviction of Devon Archer, a former business partner of Hunter’s, in late 2018, Politico said, citing a source with firsthand knowledge of the investigation.
The Manhattan prosecutors ended their review after conferring with their counterparts in Delaware, where Hunter disclosed he’s under investigation, Politico said.
In addition to that probe, FBI agents have been asking questions about Joe Biden’s brother, James Biden, in connection with an investigation involving a bankrupt hospital company, Americore Health, a person with direct knowledge told Politico.
Meanwhile, although all 50 states have certified their election results and the Supreme Court swiftly rejected an emergency request from Pennsylvania Republicans to block election results in the commonwealth, the justices are now grappling with a new controversial bid from Texas, supported by President Donald Trump and 17 other Republican-led states.
They are asking the Supreme Court for an emergency order to invalidate the ballots of millions of voters in four battleground states, Georgia, Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania, even though there is no evidence of widespread fraud.
Critics of the President and his allies say the case reflects an audacious and legally dubious gambit to keep the lawsuits flowing in order to prolong baseless claims that President-elect Joe Biden’s victory was somehow illegitimate.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton filed the lawsuit Tuesday. The President filed a motion to intervene, basically a request to join the lawsuit, asking for the same result. Seventeen GOP states are backing the effort as well, CNN reported.
TRUMP COULD HAD OVER TO PENCE FOR PARDON
Donald Trump could resign to allow Mike Pence to be briefly sworn in as president and pardon him before Joe Biden’s inauguration next month.
New York Attorney-General Letitia James – who is conducting a civil investigation into Trump’s activities in New York – made the startling prediction.
It came amid growing speculation that Trump could move to pre-emptively pardon himself to cover the possibility of prosecution for federal crimes after he leaves office on January 20.
James said that the option would not be legally feasible before indicating that she believes Trump will ensure he is pardoned by enacting a scenario that would see Vice President Pence briefly serve as president, Newsweek reports.
“The vast majority of legal scholars have indicated that he cannot pardon himself,” the Democratic Attorney-General said.
“What he could do is step down and allow the vice president, Vice President Pence, to pardon him.”
The scenario outlined by James, in which Pence would take over to allow Trump to be pardoned, was laid out in a 1974 Department of Justice memo that stated former President Nixon ‘cannot pardon himself,’ according to The Hill.
“If under the Twenty-Fifth Amendment the President declared that he was temporarily unable to perform the duties of the office, the Vice President would become Acting President and as such could pardon the President,” the memo states.
“Thereafter the President could either resign or resume the duties of his office.”
In recent weeks, suggestions have also circled that Trump will offer presidential pardons for some of his friends and family.
“In all likelihood, I suspect that he will pardon his family members, his children, his son-in-law and individuals in his administration,” James added.
“As well as some of his close associates.”
Those who could potentially be pardoned include Rudy Giuliani, Jared Kushner and Ivanka, Eric and Donald Jr Trump, Politico reports.
“And then I suspect, at some point in time, he will step down and allow the vice president to pardon him,” James continued.
“It’s important to understand that he’s pardoned from federal crimes, but he’s not pardoned from state crimes.”
Senator Mike Braun said of reports that Trump may pardon himself, family or friends: “That’s charting new territory, I’m guessing. I don’t think that’s ever been attempted before”.
Three people close to the president said while Trump has not made any concrete decisions about pardons, he and his team have been considering the legal and political implications of such an unprecedented move.
It is thought Trump could want to pardon members of his team to save them from timely and costly legal processes in the future after what he describes as a number of “witch hunts” that he claims have been set out against he and his team.
Others reportedly touted for Trump to pardon Tiger King Joe Exotic, Trump’s former campaign manager Paul Manafort, and former White House adviser Steve Bannon, according to a New York Times report.
What is the president’s pardon power?
The pardon power comes from the US Constitution and is one of the broadest available to a president.
The nation’s founders saw the pardon power as a way to show mercy and serve the public good.
Pardons are typically given to people who have been prosecuted and can cover conduct that has not yet resulted in legal proceedings.
A pardon is not reviewable by other branches of government and the president does not have to give a reason for issuing one. It wipes out criminal convictions, only applying to federal crimes.
‘UNDER INVESTIGATION’
Hunter Biden, whose profitable dealings with foreign nations including China, Ukraine and Russia have drawn intense scrutiny, is under federal investigation over his tax affairs.
The son of President-elect Biden said he was co-operating fully with the probe.
“I learned yesterday for the first time that the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Delaware advised my legal counsel, also yesterday, that they are investigating my tax affairs,” Hunter said.
“I take this matter very seriously but I am confident that a professional and objective review of these matters will demonstrate that I handled my affairs legally and appropriately, including with the benefit of professional tax advisors.”
Biden Jnr’s business dealings almost derailed his father’s presidential campaign, when the New York Post unveiled the contents of a laptop purportedly owned by him that indicated he was involved in peddling influence with his powerful father.
The 50-year-old father of three has struggled for decades with substance abuse and through several scandals.
Revelations about his controversial role on the board of corrupt Ukraine energy Burisma, for which he was paid tens of millions of dollars over five years until 2019 despite having no relevant experience also threatened to up-end his father’s presidency.
Mr Biden was for part of this time responsible for US outreach with Ukraine, and Republicans have repeatedly accused the Bidens of corruption.
The Biden-Harris transition team said they became aware of the new investigation yesterday and offered a statement in support of Biden Jnr.
“President-elect Biden is deeply proud of his son, who has fought through difficult challenges, including the vicious personal attacks of recent months, only to emerge stronger,” the campaign said in a statement.
BIDEN MAKES HISTORIC APPOINTMENT
Joe Biden has named a retired army general as his secretary of defence, who – if confirmed – will become the first African-American to lead the Pentagon.
The President-elect’s pick, Lloyd Austin, is a “four-star general” and was the US commander in Iraq, then the head of the US Central Command covering the Middle East in 2010 to 2016, while Biden was vice president.
It’s a historic appointment for Austin, who was considered a surprise choice for secretary of defence has he bypassed the highly-qualified former senior Pentagon official, Michele Flournoy.
In a statement, Biden said: “Throughout his lifetime of dedicated service — and in the many hours we’ve spent together in the White House Situation Room and with our troops overseas — General Austin has demonstrated exemplary leadership, character, and command”.
“He is uniquely qualified to take on the challenges and crises we face in the current moment.”
By choosing Austin, Biden will have to persuade the US Senate to waive a law that says the US military must be led by a civilian or, if a former military official, someone who has been out of the service at least seven years.
The law has been waived only twice before, including in 2017, when former general Jim Mattis was made Defence Secretary under President Donald Trump.
The Biden campaign called Austin “a trusted and crisis-tested leader who has overseen some of the most complex and impactful operations in the history of the armed services,” citing the campaign against the Islamic State group and the withdrawal of nearly 150,000 military personnel from Iraq before that.
“I look forward to once again working closely with him as a trusted partner to lead our military with dignity and resolve, revitalise our alliances in the face of global threats, and ensure the safety and security of the American people,” Biden said in the statement.
‘BACK ON TRACK’
In a separate piece inThe Atlantic,Biden wrote of Austin: “I’ve sought his advice, seen his command, and admired his calm and his character”.
Biden acknowledged the issue of nominating someone recently in military service to helm the department of defence, and said he hoped Congress would grant a waiver and that his nomination would be quickly approved.
“Austin also knows that the secretary of defence has a different set of responsibilities than a general officer and that the civil-military dynamic has been under great stress these past four years,” Biden wrote.
“He will work tirelessly to get it back on track.” Austin spent four decades in the army, graduating from West Point Military Academy and following a career with a wide range of assignments, from leading platoons to running logistics groups and overseeing recruiting, to senior Pentagon jobs.
In March 2003, he was the assistant division commander of the 3rd Infantry Division when it marched from Kuwait into Baghdad in the US invasion of Iraq.
From late 2003 to 2005, he was in Afghanistan commanding the Combined Joint Task Force 180, the principle US-led operation seeking to stabilise the security situation in the country.
In 2010, he was made commanding general of US forces in Iraq, and two years later became the commander of the Central Command, in charge of all Pentagon operations in the Middle East and Afghanistan.
That put him in charge of the fight against the Islamic State as it captured large swathes of Iraq and Syria.
Since retiring, Austin has been on the board of one of the Pentagon’s largest weapons suppliers, Raytheon, as well as other companies.
He also was part of a small group of shareholders in an investment group, Pine Island Capital Partners, that included Biden’s pick for secretary of state, Antony Blinken, and his rival for the Pentagon job, Flournoy.
TRUMP’S SETBACK
The US Supreme Court has given incumbent President Donald Trump’s attempts to overturn the presidential election a massive blow, when it denied his appeal to block the certification of votes in Pennsylvania.
The nation’s highest court, which includes three Trump-appointed justices out of nine, did not explain its decision, the first on the election since the Republican president began baselessly contesting his loss to Biden.
It came as Texas filed its own a lawsuit against Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin in an attempt to back Trump, with the state opposing changes made to voting procedures due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
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