In our news wrap Tuesday, federal agents carried search warrants at childcare centers in Minnesota, a former advisor to Dr. Anthony Fauci at the National Institutes of Health has been indicted by a federal grand jury in Maryland for conspiring to hide records related to the pandemic and the State Department is reportedly finalizing plans to include President Trump’s image on new passports.
Geoff Bennett:
In Minnesota, federal agents carried out more than 20 search warrants as part of an ongoing fraud investigation by the Trump administration. Agents were seen entering childcare centers this morning like this one outside Minneapolis.
The White House has criticized Governor Tim Walz, a Democrat, over his handling of fraud in the state. But Walz welcomed the raids, posting on social media: “If you commit fraud in Minnesota, you’re going to get caught. Joint investigations work and securing justice depends on it.”
Officials say today’s operation was not related to a federal immigration crackdown that led to the deaths of two protesters earlier this year.
A former adviser to Dr. Anthony Fauci at the National Institutes of Health has been indicted by a federal grand jury in Maryland for conspiring to hide records related to the COVID pandemic. Dr. David Morens is accused of obstruction of justice and conspiracy for allegedly using a personal e-mail account to conceal research related to the origins of the disease. His lawyer declined to comment.
The indictment is seen as a win for the Trump administration, which has been critical of the nation’s research community over its handling of COVID’s origins. Dr. Fauci himself is not accused of wrongdoing in the case.
In Georgia, state officials say recent rainfall is helping efforts to tame two massive fires, but more work needs to be done to bring them under control. A statewide drought has led to an unprecedented fire season with more than 700 blazes in a 30-day period. Governor Brian Kemp toured the affected areas today and warned that Georgia isn’t, as he put it, out of the woods just yet.
Gov. Brian Kemp (R-GA):
I feel better today than I did Sunday. And the rain we got, especially on the Highway 82 Fire, was very helpful. We are doing everything that we can to try to get people where they can get back to their homes, make sure they’re protected. And as soon as we can do that, we will.
Geoff Bennett:
As Georgia welcomes the rain, other states are bracing for more of it. Severe thunderstorms threaten to bring hail and possibly tornadoes to parts of Texas, Mississippi and Tennessee that have already endured punishing storms in recent days.
The U.S. State Department is rolling out a new limited-edition passport that includes a picture of President Trump. The State Department posted what it called a sneak peek on social media. It shows the president’s image on the inside cover with his signature and gold lettering at the bottom.
The back cover shows a more traditional scene of the Declaration of Independence. The release is part of the commemorations marking the 250th anniversary of American independence. It’s also the latest effort to put Mr. Trump’s mark on the nation, which includes his images on government buildings, his name on what was the Kennedy Center, and a planned arch in Washington, among others.
Ukraine says it shot down more than 33,000 Russian drones in March. That’s the most in a single month since Russia’s invasion more than four years ago. Ukraine has been ramping up its drone capabilities in response to Russia’s relentless aerial attacks and increasingly taking the fight back across the border.
Officials said today Ukrainian forces can now strike much deeper inside Russia than they could at the start of the war. Earlier this month, Moscow accused European nations of expanding drone support to Kyiv, prompting a warning today from Russia’s defense minister.
Andrei Belousov, Russian Defense Minister (through interpreter):
This sort of action facilitates the sharp escalation of the military and political situation across the entire European continent and can have unpredictable consequences.
Geoff Bennett:
Just yesterday, Poland’s prime minister announced that his country will partner with Ukraine to manufacture what he described as a drone armada. Poland and Russia share a border. And Russia has violated Polish airspace on a number of occasions since the Ukraine war started.
On Wall Street today, stocks ended lower following that latest spike in oil prices. The Dow Jones industrial average gave back just 25 points on the day. The Nasdaq fell more than 200 points. The S&P 500 also closed in negative territory.
