Thursday, June 16 top stories
It is Thursday, June 16. Here are today’s top stories.
Highlights of Jan. 6 committee’s third hearing
Today the Jan 6. House Committee held its third hearing. The focus today was on how former President Donald Trump pressured his Vice President Mike Pence to intervene in Congress’ counting and certification of electoral votes on January 6.
The committee showed that Trump latched on his attorney John Eastman’s theory that Pence could unilaterally block certification of the election. Multiple people on Pence’s team said this idea was illegal and impossible, but Trump and Eastman wouldn’t budge.
A former White House attorney, Eric Herschmann, testified in a video that he told Eastman that he was “out of his f— mind” that Pence could unilaterally decide who wins the election.
The committee called on two men close to Pence, one a former counsel to him and the other a former federal judge, to testify in person. They said they advised Pence that the idea of him blocking the electoral college certification was illegal and unconstitutional.
Both said Pence agreed with them and that it was his instinct that the Constitution never intended for the vice president to have this much power to overturn an election.
But Trump would put an enormous amount of pressure on Pence. Trump’s daughter and former White House advisor, Ivanka Trump, testified in a video that she overheard Trump on the phone with Pence calling him a “wimp.” Others testified that Trump called Pence the “P-word.”
The committee showed video clips of Trump and Eastman giving a speech on January 6 in front of the White House. Trump said in the speech that “Mike Pence is going to have to come through for us, and if he doesn’t, that will be a sad day for our country.”
The committee showed video clips of angry rioters marching after they found out Pence wouldn’t block the counting of the votes. The rioters shouted “Pence betrayed us” and “Bring him out!” and “Hang Mike Pence!”
Shortly after the rioters broke into the Capitol, Trump tweeted a negative message about Pence, despite knowing that Pence was inside of the building.
The committee showed that parts of the mob was only 40 feet away from Pence but that he was able to evacuate to a secure area. Pence wouldn’t leave the Capitol grounds out of a sense of duty to his job to preside over the certification of the votes.
At the end of today’s testimony, it was revealed that Eastman sought a pardon after the riot.
Top European leaders visit Ukraine
The leaders of France, Italy, and Germany traveled together in a train from Poland to Kyiv, Ukraine to meet with Ukrainian President Zelenskyy and show their support.
The president of Romania took a separate train to meet the group of leaders.
News analysts said in recent days, Ukraine’s government has criticized some European countries for being slow with supplying additional military aid. So this meeting is aimed at resolving these tensions.
Another big topic is Ukraine’s membership into the European Union. All four visiting leaders said they support this idea. The Italian prime minister said this process cannot be delayed.
In separate but related news, the Biden administration announced on Wednesday it would provide an additional $1 billion in military aid to Ukraine.
News reports said there are hundreds of Ukrainian civilians trapped in the Azot chemical plant in Severodonetsk while there is heavy fighting and shelling outside. Most of the civilians are employees of the chemical plant, their families, and some local residents who have been hiding from the very beginning in bomb shelters.
A top Ukrainian official said they are losing between 200 to 1,000 soldiers each day in the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine as it battles against Russian advances.
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Fauci infected with Covid-19
Dr. Anthony Fauci tested positive for the coronavirus on Wednesday. He has mild symptoms. He is 81 years old and has been one of the top leaders of the U.S. response to the pandemic. It’s the first time that Fauci tested positive.
Fauci has received four Covid-19 vaccines so far, a full vaccination and two boosters. He is now taking an antiviral treatment called Paxlovid.
ABC News said Fauci recently visited a college in Massachusetts where he was honored with a science center named after him. He gave a speech in a crowded hall and was treated like a celebrity. Photographs showed him with and without a mask.
Fauci is now isolating and will continue to work from home.
Juror in Depp-Heard trial said jurors didn’t believe Heard
One of the jurors in the Johnny Depp vs Amber Heard defamation trial said in an interview with ABC News that the jurors did not believe that Heard’s testimony was sincere. The juror said the jury felt very uncomfortable when she stared at them and that her crying and facial expressions changed often so they felt like she had “crocodile tears.”
The juror said he felt that the couple were both abusive to each other but that it did not rise to the level of abuse that Heard was claiming because there was enough or any evidence that really supported what she was saying.
Depp won $15 million in damages from defamation but Heard also won $2 million in damages in countersuits. Heard plans to appeal.
Buffalo shooting suspect updates
The suspect in the Buffalo supermarket mass shooting that killed 10 Black individuals last month, Payton S. Gendron, received 26 new federal charges, including hate crime charges.
Federal prosecutors said in court documents that “Gendron’s motive for the mass shooting was to prevent Black people from replacing white people and eliminating the white race, and to inspire others to commit similar attacks.”
Three of Gendron’s charges has the death penalty as the maximum penalty, but the Biden administration has imposed a temporary hold on federal executions.
The U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland visited a memorial adjacent to the supermarket on Wednesday. Garland laid 10 roses to honor each person killed.
That is all the top stories for today. See you tomorrow and stay with the light.
https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/live-updates/jan6-hearings-live-updates/?id=85414571
https://www.foxnews.com/world/ukraine-france-germany-italy-leaders-kyiv-meet-zelesnkyy
https://www.cnn.com/2022/06/15/politics/biden-admin-ukraine-military-aid/index.html
https://www.axios.com/2022/06/15/ukraine-1000-casualties-day-donbas-arakhamia
https://abcnews.go.com/Health/dr-anthony-fauci-tests-positive-covid/story?id=85416368
https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/juror-johnny-depp-defamation-trial-133640722.html