“China is mobilizing an armada of civilian ships that could help in an invasion of Taiwan – a mission that could surpass the Second World War’s Normandy landings. Reuters used ship tracking data and satellite images to monitor the role civilian vessels played in Chinese maritime exercises this summer. The drills revealed that China is devising concrete invasion plans, naval warfare experts say, and rehearsing new techniques aimed at speeding up beach landings of troops and equipment in a bid to overwhelm Taiwan’s defenders.” (11/20/25)
“William Lonergan Hill, co-founder and chief technology officer of Samourai Wallet, was sentenced Wednesday to four years in federal prison for operating an unlicensed money transmitting business tied to the privacy-focused bitcoin service. … Prosecutors argued Hill and co-founder Keonne Rodriguez positioned Samourai Wallet’s privacy tools — particularly Whirlpool and Ricochet — as attractive to criminal users, contributing to as much as $237 million in illicit-linked transactions moving through the platform.” (11/19/25)
“Rep. Al Green [D-TX] announced that he would submit articles of impeachment against President Donald Trump on Thursday morning, framing the vote as a sort of litmus test for his party on its opposition to the administration. ‘There will be articles of impeachment filed before the Christmas break. This, I pledge,’ Green said. ‘We have to participate. This is a participatory democracy. The impeachment requires the hands and the guidance of all of us.’ He confirmed he would introduce the motion as privileged, a status that forces its consideration within two legislative days. The motion can be tabled before the impeachment itself comes to a vote.” (11/20/25)
“Colombian president Gustavo Petro has publicly released his bank records in an effort to demonstrate he has no ties to drug trafficking, an unsubstantiated claim made by U.S. President Donald Trump. Colombia’s Financial Information and Analysis Unit this week began releasing the president’s bank statements to the press from 2022 to June of this year after the president ordered their release on Monday. … The released accounts have so far shown no sign of suspicious transactions but have revealed payments for a house mortgage, purchases at stores like Gucci and Ralph Lauren, and a transaction at a strip club. This has led to criticism from the local press.” (11/19/25)
“A former Olympic snowboarder, who officials say runs one of the most violent drug-trafficking organizations in the world, faces new charges related to the murder of a federal witness in the case against him. Officials said Ryan James Wedding ‘placed a bounty’ on the witness’[s] head ‘in the erroneous belief that the victim’s death would result in the dismissal of criminal charges against him and his international drug trafficking ring.’ … The witness was fatally shot at a restaurant before he could testify against Wedding. In an indictment unsealed Wednesday, Wedding was charged with murder, witness tampering and intimidation, money laundering and drug trafficking. … The State Department increased its reward from $10 million to $15 million for information that leads to the arrest and/or conviction of Wedding, who is on the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list.” (11/19/25)
“Fire disrupted United Nations climate talks on Thursday, forcing evacuations of several buildings with just two scheduled days left and negotiators yet to announce any major agreements. Officials said no one was hurt. The fire was reported in an area of pavilions where sideline events are held during the annual talks, known this year as COP30. Organizers soon announced that the fire was under control, but fire officials ordered the entire site evacuated for safety checks and it wasn’t clear when conference business would resume. A few hours before the fire, U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres urged countries to compromise and ‘show willingness and flexibility to deliver results,’ even if they fall short of the strongest measures some nations want.” (11/20/25)
“The Paris public prosecutor’s office will investigate allegations that Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence platform made antisemitic comments. … Last July, French prosecutors opened a criminal investigation into X, over allegations that the company manipulated its algorithms for the purposes of ‘foreign interference.’ ‘The Holocaust denial comments relayed by the artificial intelligence Grok on X have been included in the ongoing investigation conducted by the cybercrime division of the Paris public prosecutor’s office, and the functioning of the AI will be analyzed in this context,’ the Paris public prosecutor’s office told POLITICO, confirming a report from AFP. The League for Human Rights, or LDH, also announced Wednesday that it was filing a complaint against the AI model. The messages posted on X by Grok are a ‘denial of crimes against humanity,’ according to the human rights organization.” (11/19/25)
“The White House is floating an executive order to override state AI laws by launching legal challenges and conditioning federal grants after President Trump publicly backed a federal regulation standard, per a copy of the draft seen by Axios. … The ‘Eliminating State Law Obstruction of National AI Policy’ executive order calls on government agencies to move aggressively to end a patchwork of state laws in favor of a ‘minimally burdensome national standard.'” [editor’s note: How about NO government-created, government enforced “standard?” – TLK] (11/19/25)
“Senior Pentagon officials have arrived in Ukraine to ‘discuss efforts to end the war’ with Russia, the US military has said. The team, led by US Army Secretary Dan Driscoll, is expected to meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv on Thursday. Reports began surfacing on Wednesday that the US and Russia had prepared a new framework peace plan, requiring significant concessions from Ukraine including giving up territory it still controls and dramatically cutting the size of its military. Neither Washington nor Moscow has officially confirmed the plan, drafted by President Donald Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff and Russian special envoy Kirill Dmitriev.” (11/20/25)
“The U.S. Justice Department will release files from its investigation into the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein within 30 days, Attorney General Pam Bondi said on Wednesday, after Congress voted nearly unanimously to force President Donald Trump’s administration to make them public. The material could shed more light on the activities of Epstein, who socialized with Trump and other notable figures before his 2008 conviction on charges of soliciting a minor for prostitution. The scandal has been a thorn in Trump’s side for months, partly because he amplified conspiracy theories about Epstein to his own supporters. Many Trump voters believe his administration has covered up Epstein’s ties to powerful figures and obscured details surrounding his death, which was ruled a suicide, in a Manhattan jail in 2019 as he faced federal sex trafficking charges.” (11/19/25)
