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A federal judge has granted Donald Trump’s request to appoint a “special supervisor” to review documents seized by the FBI from his Mar-a-Lago estate that are the subject of privilege protections in an investigation into the unauthorized holding of government secrets could.
The order of US District Court Judge Aileen Cannon, a Trump appointee, also temporarily barred the Justice Department from reviewing documents for its criminal investigation until the special foreman completes his work, a decision that marked a trial victory for the former president represented.
However, Cannon wrote in her 24-page ruling that the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) could continue to review the seized materials for its separate investigation into whether Trump’s keeping of documents with classified markings at Mar-a-Lago was risky to national security .
Cannon gave Trump’s legal team and the DoJ until Friday to submit a proposed list of special master’s candidates.
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Will the DoJ appeal? Yes, it would likely appeal the decision to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit, officials said, although in the meantime it will almost certainly delay investigations into possible violations of the Espionage Act and possible obstruction of justice.
“Fat Leonard”, contractor in the US Navy’s worst corruption scandal, flees house arrest
A Malaysian businessman who pleaded guilty to the worst US Navy corruption scandal has escaped house arrest in San Diego after cutting off his surveillance bracelet, federal authorities said.
Leonard Glenn Francis, known as Fat Leonard, who pleaded guilty in 2015 to offering $500,000 in bribes to naval officers, should be sentenced in weeks.
Deputy Superintendent U.S. Marshal Omar Castillo said Francis fled his home on Sunday morning, the San Diego Union-Tribune reported. Officers who arrived at the property found it empty but discovered pieces of his broken GPS tracker bracelet.
Francis, who ran a military company in Singapore, is accused of offering the services of sex workers and sumptuous meals costing thousands of dollars to gain inside information and influence. According to prosecutors, naval officers received luxuries such as wine, Cuban cigars and amounts of cash.
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When was he arrested? Francis was arrested in 2013 during a stabbing in a San Diego hotel room and pleaded guilty two years later. He has had various health problems, including kidney cancer, and has been held in private accommodation since 2018.
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Why did he flee now? It’s unclear since he was acting as a cooperating witness for a federal prosecutor, but he was due to be sentenced on September 22.
Boris Johnson gives farewell speech at Downing Street
Boris Johnson has left No 10 vowing the Government will bail out struggling Brits from rising energy bills in his latest speech and broadcast a final broadside about his resignation as Prime Minister.
He said the “baton will be passed”, adding that his premiership “unexpectedly turned out to be a relay race – they changed the rules halfway”.
Johnson said it was a “tough time for the economy, a tough time for families across the country. We can and we will get through this and we will come out of it stronger.
In a message to Conservative MPs, Johnson said it was “time the politics was over” and urged people to support Liz Truss. “That’s what the people in this country want, they need it and they deserve it.”
A large crowd of MPs and staffers watched Johnson’s departure, including outgoing culture secretary Nadine Dorries, Johnson loyalist Jacob Rees-Mogg and MPs from the 2019 intake, and Johnson’s sister Rachel.
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As did Johnson surrender to Truss? The outgoing Prime Minister flew to Balmoral to hand in his formal resignation to the Queen in the morning. Truss was received by the Queen after Johnson’s visit and formally asked to form a government, after which she became Prime Minister.
In other news…
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One of the suspects in the stabbing of 10 people in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan has been found dead, police said, but they warned that his accomplice remained at large. Damien Sanderson’s body was found with visible wounds on a lawn near a house.
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More than 80 million people in the eastern US were under flash flood surveillance yesterdaymarking even more extreme weather in a country hit by record heatwaves in some regions as the US increasingly feels the effects of the climate crisis.
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Joe Biden used a Labor Day speech in embattled Wisconsin to support union expansion and reiterated his campaign pledge to become the “most union president” in American history. Citing Franklin D. Roosevelt’s explicit support for unions during the New Deal, Biden said, “I encourage unions.”
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At least 35 civilians were killed and 37 injured when a convoy carrying aid supplies hit an improvised explosive device in jihadist-hit northern Burkina Faso, the governor of the Sahel region said. The landlocked African country is in the grips of a seven-year insurgency that has claimed the lives of more than 2,000 people.
Instagram owner Meta has been fined €405m (£349m) by Irish data watchdogs for allowing teenagers to set up accounts where their phone numbers and email addresses were publicly displayed. The Data Protection Commission upheld the fine after a two-year investigation into possible breaches of the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). The penalty is the highest the warden has imposed on Meta, after being fined $225 million.
Don’t miss: David LaChapelle on vulnerability, moving to Hawaii and his mentor Andy Warhol
It comes full circle for photographer David LaChapelle, best known for his hyper-realistic, surrealistic portraits of pop stars. Fleeing the bullying he faced as a queer teenager in his native Connecticut, LaChapelle found an artistic path forward in 1980s New York and became an acolyte of Andy Warhol. Following in his mentor’s footsteps, he built an artistic career obsessed with the mysterious connection between consumerism and celebrity. The world-renowned photographer, known for taking portraits of Britney Spears, Eminem, Tupac and Angelina Jolie, talks about his long career ahead of a new retrospective.
…or something like, ‘I couldn’t date a climate change denier!’ The couples who connect — and break up — for love of the planet
As the climate crisis worsens, people around the world are making lifestyle changes to reduce their carbon footprint. From everyday decisions like driving a car or eating meat to larger decisions about whether to fly or have children, the crisis is increasingly affecting how people live – and who they love. From debates about plastic bags to the guilt of bringing children into the world, environmental issues are increasingly shaping our relationships.
Climate check: Large parts of Amazon may never recover, says major study
Environmental degradation in parts of the Amazon is so extensive that parts of the rainforest have reached a tipping point and may never recover, a major study led by scientists and indigenous organizations has found. “The turning point is not a future scenario, but a phase that is already happening in some areas of the region,” the report concludes. “Brazil and Bolivia together concentrate 90% of all deforestation and degradation. As a result, savannaization is already taking place in both countries.”
Last Thing: Chris Rock says Will Smith’s public apology was ‘a hostage video’
Chris Rock has called Will Smith’s attempts to apologize for beating him at the Oscars a “hostage video”. Speaking last about his joint appearances with fellow comic Dave Chappelle, Rock referenced Smith’s July YouTube post in which he offered remorse for his attack. “Fuck your hostage video,” said Rock, who also referred to the actor as “Suge Smith” — a comparison to infamous, currently imprisoned Death Row Records executive Suge Knight.
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