15 days ago
WASHINGTON (AP) — Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche confronted skeptical questioning at a Senate confirmation hearing Wednesday about the creation of a fund to compensate allies of President Donald Trump and a tax immunity deal for the president as he aimed to lock down the Republican support needed to advance his nomination.
Blanche insisted the $1.776 billion "Anti-Weaponization Fund," which was scrapped after fierce bipartisan backlash, was "not moving forward." But lawmakers, including Republican Sen. John Cornyn, raised concerns the Trump administration has yet to commit in writing that the fund is dead and it could therefore conceivably be resurrected.
"Just to be clear, the president of the United States, who's a plaintiff in this lawsuit, has not agreed in writing to delete the 'Anti-Weaponization Fund' and there's no guarantee that he won't raise it in the future?" Cornyn asked. Blanche replied that Trump has no power over the fund, which was to have been administered by the Justice Department but never launched.
Cornyn's questions were closely watched given that Blanche requires the support of all Republicans on the Judiciary Committee and the Texas senator has yet to commit to back him.
The hearing arrived at a tumultuous time for the Justice Department, with mass firings and resignations hollowing out the workforce and Democrats and other critics raising alarms that Blanche is still functioning as the president's personal lawyer. He has led the department on an interim basis since April, functioning as the public face of the maligned and later-withdrawn fund and accelerating investigations into perceived Trump adversaries
Blanche insisted the $1.776 billion "Anti-Weaponization Fund," which was scrapped after fierce bipartisan backlash, was "not moving forward." But lawmakers, including Republican Sen. John Cornyn, raised concerns the Trump administration has yet to commit in writing that the fund is dead and it could therefore conceivably be resurrected.
"Just to be clear, the president of the United States, who's a plaintiff in this lawsuit, has not agreed in writing to delete the 'Anti-Weaponization Fund' and there's no guarantee that he won't raise it in the future?" Cornyn asked. Blanche replied that Trump has no power over the fund, which was to have been administered by the Justice Department but never launched.
Cornyn's questions were closely watched given that Blanche requires the support of all Republicans on the Judiciary Committee and the Texas senator has yet to commit to back him.
The hearing arrived at a tumultuous time for the Justice Department, with mass firings and resignations hollowing out the workforce and Democrats and other critics raising alarms that Blanche is still functioning as the president's personal lawyer. He has led the department on an interim basis since April, functioning as the public face of the maligned and later-withdrawn fund and accelerating investigations into perceived Trump adversaries
15 days ago
Eighty percent of new Ebola cases in eastern Congo are emerging from unknown chains of transmission, the World Health Organization said Tuesday, a sign the outbreak is spreading faster than health officials can track despite an expanding response.
Congo has been battling an outbreak of a rare type of Ebola since May, with no approved treatment or vaccine. The Africa Centres for Disease Control says it is the fastest-growing Ebola outbreak on the continent.
"Perhaps the most alarming finding is that many of the newly reported deaths are people who died in their communities without ever reaching a health facility and without receiving care," Chikwe Ihekweazu said after returning from Bunia, in Ituri province, one of the worst-hit cities. "And as of today, 80% of new cases are outside our contact lists and so are coming to us from unknown chains of transmission."
People who die outside the health system cannot be isolated, treated or have their contacts traced promptly, increasing the risk of further transmission.
The outbreak, Ihekweazu said, "continues to outpace the response efforts."
Congo has been battling an outbreak of a rare type of Ebola since May, with no approved treatment or vaccine. The Africa Centres for Disease Control says it is the fastest-growing Ebola outbreak on the continent.
"Perhaps the most alarming finding is that many of the newly reported deaths are people who died in their communities without ever reaching a health facility and without receiving care," Chikwe Ihekweazu said after returning from Bunia, in Ituri province, one of the worst-hit cities. "And as of today, 80% of new cases are outside our contact lists and so are coming to us from unknown chains of transmission."
People who die outside the health system cannot be isolated, treated or have their contacts traced promptly, increasing the risk of further transmission.
The outbreak, Ihekweazu said, "continues to outpace the response efforts."
