Category: News

A new report from Yahoo! News alleges some shocking claims about how the U.S. government under former Donald J. Trump handled WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange. The journalist and activist was not well liked over his habit of making public oft-damning documents. And in 2017, two years before his arrest, and after a particularly egregious leak, both the CIA and high-up Trump officials allegedly plotted ways to off him — claims Trump himself has denied.

According to the report, the CIA toyed with ways to kidnap Assange, who spent over six years holed up in the Ecuadorian embassy in London after being granted asylum. What prompted them to take things next level? WikiLeaks’ publication of sensitive CIA tools, known as “Vault 7,” which was called “the largest data loss in CIA history.”

Some talked of kidnapping. Others went further:

Some senior officials inside the CIA and the Trump administration even discussed killing Assange, going so far as to request “sketches” or “options” for how to assassinate him. Discussions over kidnapping or killing Assange occurred “at the highest levels” of the Trump administration, said a former senior counterintelligence official. “There seemed to be no boundaries.”

That didn’t happen. But they had other methods, including, as per Yahoo!, “extensive spying on WikiLeaks associates, sowing discord among the group’s members, and stealing their electronic devices.

Among those out for blood was former CIA director Mike Pompeo, who was among those “seeing red” over the Vault 7 leaks. But Trump claims he was never on board.

“It’s totally false, it never happened,” Trump told Yahoo! News. “In fact, I think he’s been treated very badly.”

Assange had sought asylum at the Ecuador embassy after an international arrest warrant was put out for him over claims of sexual misconduct. He wound up spending nearly seven years there before being arrested in April 2019. He currently resides in a London prison as courts decide whether to extradite him over his role in the Chelsea Manning affair.

(Via Yahoo! News)

Ghostface Killah’s last album came in 2019 with Ghostface Killahs, a 14-track effort with features from Method Man, Inspectah Deck, Cappadonna, and more. Now,the Wu-Tang rapper is ready to release his fourteenth album. He hopped into Reddit’s HipHopHeads forum and revealed who would handle production on his upcoming album, Supreme Clientele 2. “SUPREME CLIENTELE 2 IS EXECUTIVE PRODUCED BY: KANYE WEST, MIKE DEAN & PRODUCERPLUGUNI.COM, RELEASE DATE: FEB 2022,” he wrote in the post.

That means fans won’t have long to wait.

Ghostface has recently been looking backward, as well as forward. During an interview with Vulture, Ghostface spoke about Supreme Clientele and some of his intentions, or lack thereof, behind songs on the album.

“When I was rhyming on ‘Nutmeg’ and ‘One’ on Supreme Clientele, I made a style that I couldn’t even tell what it was,” he said. “I just wanted to use some words that sounded good with each other and everybody’s trying to decipher what I mean when, really, I don’t even know what it means because I had no beat.” He added, “But something said, ‘Make a record. Write a verse real quick just putting words together, whether they mean something or not. Just put them together.’”

The announcement comes months after Ghostface put on a show with Raekwon for a Verzuz battle back in February.

Sidney Powell is not exactly a reliable narrator. The disgraced lawyer, once described as the “Kraken” in Trump’s flailing attempts to overturn the 2020 election, has herself argued that “no reasonable person” would have believed her nonsense Dominion conspiracy theories. So take this with a quarry of salt: In a new interview, Powell seemed to suggest the Jan. 6 Capitol riot was an attempt to buy time so they could stop Joe Biden’s win. Oh, and she had some help.

As per Raw Story, Powell went on The Stew Peters Show, where she claimed that, while Trump was revving up his base to descend upon the nation’s capital, she and others were filing a “12th Amendment constitutional challenge to the process the Congress was about to use.” They alleged that they wanted to sue then-vice president Mike Pence to follow that amendment, not the Electoral College Act.

Powell also claimed she had some inside help. One was Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito, who she said was “our circuit justice for that.” Then she implicated Minority Whip Steve Scalise and House Minority Leader Kevin. McCarthy, who she said tried to stall Nancy Pelosi from reconvening Congress. But that didn’t work.

“She got notice when we made our filing,” Powell claimed. “She wanted to file an amicus brief, and then everything broke loose, and she had to speed up reconvening Congress to get the vote going before Justice Alito might have issued an injunction to stop it all, which is what should have happened.”

In other words, Powell and her co-conspirators, she claimed, were hoping to buy time so that Alito could help flip the election Trump’s way. And it all would have worked out had it not been for that meddling Nancy Pelosi. Ron Filipkowski, who shared a clip of the interview on social media, went even further, saying Powell was suggesting “that the purpose of the insurrection was to DELAY the electoral college certification to give [Justice Samuel Alito] time to intervene on this legal challenge. But, Powell says they didn’t anticipate Pelosi reconvening Congress that day.”

Again, Powell is not exactly a reliable source. But it is possible that she said the quiet part loud, as many die hard Trump people tend to do. That’s how some on social media saw it.

Powell is one of a number of Trump loyalists who are being sued by Dominion Voting Systems over false claims linking them to a byzantine plot to steal last year’s election. It was also reported last week that Trump insiders knew those claims were bull.

You can watch Powell’s interview below.

(Via Raw Story)

Two legends and future Hall of Famers met for, possibly, the final time on Sunday in Seattle as the Storm played host to the Phoenix Mercury in the second round of the WNBA Playoffs. Sue Bird and Diana Taurasi played pivotal roles in what became an overtime thriller, with Taurasi burying some key buckets in overtime to lift Phoenix to a semifinal series.

The two teams traded leads and big shots in the fourth quarter, headlined by Sue Bird who was sensational for the Storm in the fourth, refusing to let her team bow out whenever Phoenix gave them a punch. Bird had 16 points and five assists on the afternoon, coming alive down the stretch.

On the other side, it was Britney Griner who was a force down the stretch inside, simply dominating anytime the Storm dared to send single coverage her way. Griner finished the game with 23 points and 16 rebounds to lead Phoenix in both categories.

The final minute of the game wasn’t exactly an offensive clinic from either team, with stagnant sets, missed free throws, and questionable isolation play that saw the game get sent to overtime on this Mercedes Russell block of Skylar Diggins-Smith.

In overtime, the Storm went up early on a three and were looking to extend it, but Brianna Turner got a massive block that led to a Taurasi three to tie it up, as she got going when the Mercury needed it the most.

Taurasi would hit a baseline jumper after that to give Phoenix a lead, one they wouldn’t relinquish again as they held on through the foul game at the end for an 85-80 win. They’ll have to wait for the Lynx and Sky game to conclude to know which of the Sun or Aces they’ll play next in a five-game series, but have had it rolling with a balanced offensive attack thus far, as Skylar Diggins-Smith had another 20-point outing (with seven rebounds and six assists), and Brianna Turner added 12 points and 12 rebounds.

For the Storm, it’s possibly the end of an era as Sue Bird will contemplate retirement. She and Taurasi did an emotional on-court interview afterwards reflecting on their battles over the years, followed by a jersey swap between a pair of all-time legends.

We’ll find out later whether this will indeed be it for Bird, but if nothing else she and Taurasi gave us one final incredible showdown after giving the game of basketball so much for two decades.

Drake’s Certified Lover Boy is one of the most popular albums of the year, but the rapper originally intended for it to arrive much earlier. He originally said it would arrive in January, but he was forced to delay it following knee surgery and rehab. Sure enough, it’s been dominating the charts.

Certified Lover Boy lands its third consecutive week at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart dated October 2, thanks to 171,000 album units sold, a number comprised of 165,000 streaming equivalent album units thanks to 222.16 million on-demand streams of the album’s 21 tracks. The album also earned 4,000 pure album sales this past week. With its third week at atop the album chart, Certified Lover Boy has now spent the most weeks at No. 1 for a hip-hop/R&B project since Lil Baby’s My Turn tallied five nonconsecutive weeks at No. 1 in 2020.

On top of that, Drake now has the third-most weeks spent at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 since 2010. That also means he’s earned his 30th overall week atop the albums chart, putting him behind Adele, who has 34, and Taylor Swift, who leads the way with 42.

Another highlight on this week’s chart comes with Lil Nas X checking in at No. 2 with Montero. The singer’s debut tallied 126,000 album units in its first week on the chart.

It’s been almost two months since Meghan McCain left The View, the morning chat-a-thon in which she often got into loggerheads with her more progressive co-hosts. The conservative commentator (and John McCain daughter) may not exactly have been missed, but she chose her television comeback wisely: On Sunday she went on Meet the Press, the long-running show in which elected officials are supposed to answer to the public. And people were pissed.

McCain, who has a degree in art history and once interned at SNL, weighed in on Joe Biden’s administration, including his Build Back Better agenda, which includes a $3.5 trillion reconciliation package that may not pass thanks to Democrats like Kyrsten Sinema. McCain is no fan.

“I will say that President Biden ran on being a moderate,” McCain said. “He ran and won with the help of independent, centrists, Trump-wary Republicans and he’s not governing as one.”

She singled out his latest piece of legislation. “The Build Back Better agenda is the most progressive modern agenda of all time,” she averred. “And it’s not polling well. So I think I’m just confused why they’re doubling down on something that is cratering in the polls.”

Thing is, it’s not cratering in the polls. A new poll finds a whopping 66% of Americans, including 61% of registered Independents, support it. Many on social media were happy to point out that McCain was going on a major news show to spread misinformation.

McCain herself later responded to one of her critics…by addressing a completely different subject: Biden’s own polling, which has sunk in recent weeks.

Others wondered what a former host of The View was doing on what’s purportedly a serious news program.

Many laid the blame at Meet the Press Chuck Todd and anyone who greenlit McCain.

You can watch McCain’s full segment in the video above.

Vaccination efforts in the United States continue to lag. Meanwhile more than 2,000 people are dying largely preventable deaths due to the ongoing pandemic. While anti-vaccination rail, federal officials are likely to authorize the vaccine for a wide group of children in the coming weeks. The Boston Globe reported Sunday that Pfizer will deliver vaccine testing data for children 5-11 in a matter of “days” and authorization is widely assumed coming after that. But vaccine hesitancy among some parents existed well before COVID-19, which only amplified and exacerbated fears amid a wave of misinformation on social media and Fox News.

That’s why an old Penn and Teller clip went viral among those in favor of vaccination this weekend. The clip runs for exactly 90 seconds but tells a very clear story about the incredible benefits of the wide array of vaccines that have helped prevent child illness and death for more than a century now. The segment comes from the pair of magicians’ Showtime series, Penn + Teller: Bulls*it!, which ran from 2003 to 2010.

The video is simple: On the ground are two sets of 110 plastic bowling pins, representing children. A plastic shield is put up on one side labeled “vaccines.” The other has nothing to protect it. Jillette discusses an older strain of virulent anti-vaccination: the unproven fear that they cause autism in children, which averages a single case out of 110 American children.

The two then start throwing plastic bowling balls at the piles that represent various diseases humans have limited due to vaccines. Mumps, measles, polio, rubella, and strains of the flu are all represented, slowly taking down pins on the unvaccinated side while the vaccine shield keeps the other side upright and healthy. The point is clear: without an array of vaccines already widely accepted by most people in society, many more children would die from many more diseases each year.

“Which side do you want your child to stand on?” Jillette asks. “So even if vaccinations did cause autism — WHICH IT FU*KING DOESN’T — anti-vaccination would still be bulls*it.”

The clip’s brevity, as well as its stark visuals, makes for instantly-sharable content in the modern internet age, which is why it appeared all over social media over the weekend. While too many parents and other anti-vaxx Americans will remain unswayed by yet another example of vaccine efface, well, actually I can’t really think of a silver lining as bodies continue to pile up for no reason other than ignorance and maybe even outright malice.

[via Digg]

Justin Tucker is quite possibly the greatest kicker to ever play in the NFL, and on Sunday he cemented his status as a legend by taking down an all-time record.

The Baltimore Ravens trailed 17-16 in Detroit after the Lions marched to a go-ahead field goal with just over a minute to play, as they sought out their first win of the season. The first three downs of Baltimore’s ensuing drive couldn’t have gone worse, as they lost nine yards with Lamar Jackson finding himself under immense pressure, setting up a 4th-and-19 that (after a questionable Lions timeout) they converted to just across midfield.

After not being able to pick up anymore yards, they trotted Tucker out in search of a miracle from 66 yards. Considering earlier in the day we’d seen a 68-yarder from Matt Prater come up short in Jacksonville and get returned for a touchdown, this seemed like pretty low odds. But Tucker is the rare potential Hall of Famer as a kicker for a reason, and he absolutely boomed this kick down the middle and just far enough to get the friendly bounce off the crossbar.

The reverse angle shows the ball travel just to the back half of the crossbar, bound straight up into the air, and through for the improbable, record-setting three points (and a Ravens win).

It was a wild scene in Detroit, as the Lions and their fans were left in stunned silence while the Ravens ran around the field in pandemonium, not quite sure how that just happened. Employing the best kicker in the league has its benefits, for sure.

The Indiana Pacers made a bold pivot last year, swapping out Nate McMillan for Nate Bjorkgren. The Pacers made the play-in tournament, but fired Bjorkgren at season’s end due to reports of internal strife. They also moved on from Victor Oladipo last season, adjusting their core slightly to bring in Caris LeVert as a replacement. All in all, the season was a small step back for a team that prides itself on consistency.

Roster:

Malcolm Brogdon
Myles Turner
Domantas Sabonis
Caris LeVert
T.J. Warren
T.J. McConnell
Jeremy Lamb
Justin Holiday
Chris Duarte
Goga Bitadze
Isaiah Jackson
Torrey Craig
Edmond Sumner
Kelan Martin
Oshae Brissett
Duane Washington (two-way)
DeJon Jarreau (two-way)

Projected Vegas Win Total: 43.5

Biggest Addition: Rick Carlisle

Carlisle is the big addition for Indiana. He is demanding, but he’s a proven NBA winner and tactician. He absolutely should get the most out of this team, although they are possibly without T.J. Warren to start the year as he comes back from injury, which will be a difficult hurdle to clear.

Biggest Loss: Doug McDermott

Letting McDermott walk makes some sense. The team drafted Chris Duarte and signed Torrey Craig. But McDermott provided needed spacing that will be hard to replace. Carlisle will likely find a way to scheme around it, but for a team built around a frontcourt duo, spacing is extremely important and they now have less of it.

Biggest Question: Can the Pacers crack the East’s top-6?

On paper, the Eastern Conference should be better this year. There are more than six teams with hopes of being top-6 teams and, unlike the Pacers, several of those teams made significant offseason moves. The Celtics, for instance, brought back Al Horford, signed Dennis Schroder, and nabbed Josh Richardson in a trade. The Heat, last year’s six-seed, brought in Kyle Lowry and P.J. Tucker. The Bulls spent big to make a push to leap in the standings, too.

Indiana, meanwhile, is basically running it back. There should be a Carlisle bump and LeVert should be more settled after his arrival was stalled by a health scare. But there are no real upgrades that would seem to promise improvement. Is that enough to avoid the play-in tournament?

What Makes This Season A Success: Making the playoffs. As noted, the East is better on paper. It’s going to be competitive in the middle of the conference as the non-Brooklyn, non-Milwaukee teams jostle for positioning. A lot of it may come down to health and luck.

For the Pacers, success would be making the playoffs and perhaps making a push to get out of the first round. This is a franchise that prides itself on being competitive year in and year out. Even if they fall in the 7-10 range and have to navigate the play-in tournament to get to the playoffs, that is what the team is usually going for. Getting there and having a shot at something more is the goal.

What Makes This Season A Failure: Missing the playoffs altogether. With Carlisle as head coach and a core of Sabonis (25 years old), Turner (25), Brogdon (27), Warren (28) and Brogdon (29), the time is now for the Pacers to make the playoffs. The window to be a solid playoff team is going to be slammed shut if this year goes poorly, but it’s clearly not the plan. These are all players in or around their primes. If they miss the playoffs and end up with a late lottery pick, that doesn’t really help them in the short term and doesn’t give them a young talent good enough to change the trajectory of the team. If the Pacers miss the playoffs, it’s remaining stuck in the middle with nothing to show for it.

Krysten Sinema may be a Democrat but she’s more controversial than many Republicans. The Arizona senator has made a name for herself by not toeing the party line. She opposes eliminating the filibuster. She’s against raising the minimum wage. Right now she’s refusing to vote for the $3.5 trillion reconciliation package, which is the centerpiece of President Joe Biden’s domestic legislation. She’s earned no shortage of condemnation over the last year or so, and now she might have to pay for it.

According to The Daily Beast, Sinema’s undying devotion to what some have called a perversion of “bipartisanship” has earned the ire of her colleagues in the Arizona Democratic Party State Committee. The group released a statement pointing out that a whopping 91% of their members support scotching the filibuster, which they call a “Jim Crow relic.” They also warned that if Sinema “continues to delay, disrupt, or vote to gut the Reconciliation Package of its necessary funding,” they will “go officially on record and will give Senator Sinema a vote of NO CONFIDENCE.”

Kai Newkirk, a Democratic organizer in Arizona, elaborated to The Daily Beast:

“The Arizonans who did the work to elect Sinema have had enough of her betraying the voters who put her in office. It’s time for her to show the bare minimum of accountability and stop obstructing the agenda that Democrats, including her, campaigned on and were elected to deliver. Sinema is setting her political future on fire. If she doesn’t change course drastically and soon, it will be too late.”

Will Sinema realize the error of her ways? Or will she simply post another trolling brunch photo? Whatever happens, perhaps the Democrats in West Virginia ought to do something similar with Joe Manchin.

(Via The Daily Beast)