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Senate confirms key defense officials

WASHINGTON — The Senate on Thursday unanimously confirmed two key Defense Department officials, one for the Navy’s No. 2 civilian role and another to lead the office of acquisition and sustainment.Erik Raven, who has served as the majority clerk for the Senate’s defense appropriations subcommittee, will now serve as Undersecretary of the Navy. Bill LaPlante, the former Air Force acquisition chief from 2013 to 2015 who most recently has served as chief executive of Draper, will assume the role of the Pentagon’s top weapons buyer.Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Jack Reed, D‑R.I., told LaPlante during his confirmation hearing one of his top priorities must be “streamlining and expediting the acquisition process.”“We need to field equipment to our warfighters quickly while also ensuring acquisitions remain on budget,” said Reed. “Although some progress has been made in recent years, the Defense Department’s acquisitions process still remains on the Government Accountability Office’s ‘High Risk List.’”During his confirmation hearing, LaPlante advocated for an aggressive approach to hypersonics testing along with other emerging technologies like quantum sensing, artificial intelligence, autonom …

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Cyber Command reinforces Ukraine

WASHINGTON — U.S. Cyber Command has played a pivotal role in shielding networks and critical infrastructure stateside and abroad in the run up to and during Russia’s attack on Ukraine, its leader told Congress this week.Along with tasking teams with identifying cyber vulnerabilities and threats — operations that have since “bolstered the resilience of Ukraine” and others — the command has gleaned and shared intelligence, worked hand-in-glove with U.S. government and industry, and pursued extensive contingency planning, Gen. Paul Nakasone said April 5.“In conjunction with interagency, private sector and allied partners, we are collaborating to mitigate threats to domestic and overseas systems,” he continued in written testimony provided to the Senate Armed Services Committee.In Ukraine, specifically, Cyber Command has provided remote analytic support and conducted network defense activities, Nakasone testified. The general is also the director of the National Security Agency.Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Jack Reed and Sen. Mazie Hirono on Tuesday applauded Cyber Command’s ongoing efforts and its earlier exposure of Russian plans.“That was very helpful to enable all of us to be much better prepared for this sudden, terrible war that is happening in the Ukraine,” said Hirono, a Hawaii Democrat.Russia’s latest invasion of Ukraine, which began in earnest Feb. 24, was preceded by a flurry of cyber …

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Pollak: Boris, not Biden, Visits Kyiv

The visit Saturday of British Prime Minister Boris Johnson to Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine, was a sharp contrast with the refusal of U.S. President Joe Biden to visit last month, when he decided to confine a regional visit to neighboring Poland.

pic.twitter.com/QVzbG0Dn92
— Charlie Spiering (@charliespiering) April 9, 2022
At the time, as Breitbart News reported, Biden told reporters that “they” would not let him go to Ukraine on his Europe trip:
President Joe Biden expressed regret Friday that his handlers would not let him travel into Ukraine to see firsthand the damage done by Russia.
“Quite frankly, part of my disappointment is that I can’t see it firsthand, like I have in other places,” Biden said during a visit to Poland. “They will not let me, understandably; I guess it would cross the border — and take a look at what’s going on in Ukraine.”
Biden’s advisers hailed his speech in Warsaw as a moment of great courage, but it pales in comparison to Johnson’s visit.
There were mixed opinions in the U.S. as to whether Biden should visit Kyiv. Some considered it too risky for the President of the United States, nominally the leader of the free world, to visit a war zone. A Russian attack, even in error, could have force …

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Shanghai Residents: ‘We’re Starving to Death!’

When Sun Chunlan, a vice premier of the Chinese regime, recently visited Shanghai, where tens of millions were under COVID-19 lockdown, she was greeted by residents shouting from their apartment windows: “There’s no food left!” and “We’re starving to death!”Sun was accompanied by a swarm of local officials, cameramen, several vans with black tinted windows, and police vehicles. Yet, the streets were empty. The residents could only view the envoy from their apartments. Some were brave enough to shout from their windows or balconies. Someone called out to the officials, “Can you arrange some vegetables to be sent over?”
The officials, as seen in a video posted by residents in Jiading district, had no reaction whatsoever, as if they didn’t hear anything.
Sun, a former head of the United Front Work Department, was appointed vice premier in 2018. Out of the four vice premiers, she is the only female and t …

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Why Were Russians Digging Trenches at Chernobyl?

Russian Troops Dug Trenches At Chernobyl, Rising Radiation Levels – In a blatant disregard for their own lives as well as others, Russian troops dug trenches in the “Red Forrest” outside of Chernobyl, disturbing and spreading radioactive dust, while also taking radioactive material with them after their troops withdrew. Russian troops took the Chernobyl nuclear site on the first day of their invasion of Ukraine and promptly had their troops digging trenches in the Red Forrest. Chernobyl was the site of one of the worst nuclear disasters in history when an explosion in 1986 spread nuclear contamination across Europe, and the Red Forrest is considered one of the most radioactive places on earth. And Russian soldiers were digging in the earth, spreading radioactive dust on their boots and spreading it to the surrounding area.  According to the state-run nuclear energy company Energoatom, the soldiers sto …

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Clock ticks toward Russia default

Former Bush 43 Assistant Secretary of State Robert Charles argues economic sanctions against Russia could have consequences for the rest of Europe. Standard & Poor’s issued a downgrade of Russia’s foreign currency rating increasing the prospect of defaulting on external loans for the first time in more than a century. The credit rating agency issued the downgrade to “selective default” late Friday.GET FOX BUSINESS ON THE GO BY CLICKING HEREEarlier in the week, Russia arranged to make foreign bond payments in rubles when they were due in dollars.  S&P didn’t expect Russia to be able to convert the rubles into dollars within the 30-day grace period allowed. Russian President Vladimir Putin (Mikhail Klimentyev, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP) (AP / AP Images) The downgrade decision was based partly on its opinion that sanctions on Russia over its invasion of Ukraine will likely be further increased.A selective default rating is when a lender defaults on a specific payment but makes others on time, according to an S&P spokesperson.S&P CUTS RUSSIA’S RATING TO JUNK, MOODY’S ISSUES JUNK WARNINGThe U.S. Treasury blocked a transfer of a $649 million payment to holders of sovereign bonds, keeping Russia from using any of its frozen foreign currency reserves, according to Reuters. A picture shows the Vodovzvodnaya Tower of the Kremlin (L) and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia’s building. (Photo by NATALIA KOLESNIKOVA/AFP via Getty Images) ((Photo by NATALIA KOLESNIKOVA/AFP via Getty Images) / Getty Images)S&P and other ratings agencies had already downgraded Russia’s debt to “junk” status, deeming a default highly likely.CLICK HERE TO READ MORE ON FOX BUSINESSThe country has not defaulted on foreign debt since the Bolshevik Revolution in 1917, when the Soviet Union emerged. The Associated Press contributed to this report. …

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New Amazon unions could kill NYC

Just as the city starts to claw its way back from the pandemic, along come union agitators — oops, “organized labor” — to nip the rally in the bud.

Workers at both the big Amazon warehouse in Staten Island and at the giant “Roastery Reserve” Starbucks in Chelsea voted to unionize this week — the companies’ first two units in the city to be saddled with “collective bargaining.”  

The last thing the still-struggling Big Apple needs is more private-sector unions on top of the ones that already sap the motivation out of our municipal workers, i.e, everyone “from accountants to zookeepers,” according to a boast on District Council 37’s Web site.

Unions punish not only the companies burdened with them, but their customers, too.

As The New York Times reported, Amazon’s “ability to speed packages to consumers is built on a vast chain of manual labor that is monitored down to the second. No one knows what will happen if the newly organized workers try to change that model or disrupt operations.”

If?

Ever wonder why the Plaza Hotel’s landmarked Oak Room and Oak Bar are closed except for private events? Thank unaffordable contact terms imposed by Local 6 of the Hotel and Motel Trades Council.

Why are Broadway tickets so expensive? Musicians Local 802 has a historical stranglehold on orchestra staffing. There’s even a rule that every show must use a minimum number of performers based on a theater’s size, but not o …

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Dems Join Republicans in Pushback on Biden Decision to End Title 42

A bipartisan group of senators are seeking to pressure President Joe Biden into reversing his administration’s decision to scrap a Trump-era immigration policy allowing the U.S. to turn away migrants at its southern border.

Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (D‑AZ.) and Sen. James Lankford (R‑OK) led a group of five Democratic and six Republican senators in introducing a bill Thursday to block the Biden administration from ending Title 42, which allows border enforcement to turn away migrants at the southern border over COVID-19 concerns.

Lawmakers say that ending the policy, as the Biden administration plans to do in late May, will leave border communities unprotected, as well as result in a massive influx of migrants that the U.S. government is not prepared to manage.

“Arizona communities bear the brunt of the federal government’s failure at our border, so we’re stepping in and protecting border communities by ensuring the Administration works hand-in-hand with local leaders, law enforcement, and non-profits to put a comprehensive, workable plan in place before lifting Title 42,” Sinema said in a statement.

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Texas AG Responds After White House Shoots Down Migrant Busing Threat

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has thrown down a gauntlet of sorts after the Biden administration rejected Gov. Greg Abbott’s pledge last week to begin busing illegal migrants to Washington D.C. in protest over lax border enforcement policies.

The back and forth began when the Lone Star State’s GOP governor vowed during a press conference last week to start busing illegal immigrants to the nation’s capital as he laid out a series of additional steps to retake control of Texas’ border with Mexico. Abbott has long accused the Biden administration of failing to adequately enforce the nation’s laws against illegal immigration amid record numbers of encounters practically since President Biden took office.

Also, Abbott is part of a growing number of Republicans and Democrats upset with the administration’s decision to end Title 42, which authorized border and immigration agents to immediately deport illegal migrants as a means of slowing the spread of COVID-19. Dr. Rochelle Walensky, head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention — the agency that initially imposed the rule — has said it will end May 23.

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Psaki claims COVID exposed Harris wore mask inside before Jackson ceremony but video shows otherwise

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A video shared to President Biden’s Twitter account conflicts with Friday statements made by White House press secretary Jen Psaki that Vice President Kamala Harris, along with others, wore a face mask “before they went out” to the Rose Garden to celebrate the confirmation of Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court.“Yesterday, we witnessed a truly historic moment,” Biden wrote in the tweet, attaching a video that showed highlights from Friday’s events.
President Biden, along with others, including Vice President Kamala Harris and Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson, are seen maskless in the Oval Office.
(President Biden/Twitter @POTUS)Portions of the video show face masks being worn inside the White House, however, at one point, footage from inside the Oval Office shows Harris, First Lady Jill Biden, Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff, Jackson, and members of Jackson’s family gathered around Biden without face masks.PSAKI DEFENDS KAMALA HARRIS’ MASKLESS HUG WITH JUDGE JACKSON: ‘AN EMOTIONAL MOMENT’On Friday, Psaki defended Harris after she gave Jackson a hug without a face mask after coming into close contact with her communications director who had tested positive for COVID-19 this week. Contents from the video directly conflict Psaki’s claim that “the Vice President has been wearing a mask inside” and that “when there was a private greet, they were all wearing masks, before they went out.“Asked by Fox News White House correspondent Peter Doocy about the embrace between Harris and Jackson, which took place earlier on Friday at the White House ceremony, Psaki appeared to acknowledge the mistake, saying Harris “was socially distanced for 99.9% of the event today, and she had an emotional moment, which is understandable.”
Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson and Vice President Kamala Harris hug after the conclusion of an event on the South Lawn of the White House on April 08, 2022 in Washington, DC.
(Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)Doocy also reminded Psaki that Harris also ditched the use of a face …

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