“Two police officers who defended the U.S. Capitol from rioters on January 6, 2021, filed a lawsuit on Wednesday seeking to halt President Donald Trump’s nearly $1.8 billion fund to compensate victims of political ‘weaponization.’ In a complaint filed in federal court in Washington, former Capitol Police officer Harry Dunn and Metropolitan Police Department officer Daniel Hodges alleged Trump has ‘created a $1.776 billion taxpayer-funded slush fund to finance the insurrectionists and paramilitary groups that commit violence in his name.’ The lawsuit seeks a court order blocking payments from the fund, calling it ‘the most brazen act of presidential corruption this century.’ Trump settled on Monday with the Internal Revenue Service, agreeing to drop his $10 billion lawsuit over the leak of his tax returns during his first term. As part of the settlement, the Justice Department created the fund to compensate victims of political ‘weaponization.'” (05/20/26)
“Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has said it coordinated the transit of 26 vessels through the Strait of Hormuz in the past 24 hours, as talks between Washington and Tehran over the resumption of traffic through the narrow waterway remain stalled. ‘Traffic through the Strait of Hormuz is being carried out with permission and in coordination with the IRGC Navy,’ the statement carried by Iran’s state-affiliated ISNA news agency said on Wednesday.” (05/20/26)
“A former Department of Justice prosecutor is facing felony charges after emailing herself a sealed Biden-era investigative report concerning Donald Trump and attempting to hide the documents as cake recipes, federal authorities said on Wednesday. Carmen Mercedes Lineberger, who worked as a managing assistant US attorney in Florida, is facing two counts of theft [sic] of government money or property in addition to charges related to her alleged alteration of the documents [by renaming them to obscure the emailing], according to the indictment. … Meanwhile, advocacy groups have sought to unseal the report through court appeals. It’s unclear why Lineberger sent the report to herself. She faces a maximum sentence of 25 years in prison if convicted of the charges.” [editor’s note: All DOJ reports are “public property” and “sealing” them is the crime – TLK] (05/20/26)
“French investigators are probing allegations of embezzlement involving high-profile presidential candidate Édouard Philippe over the allocation of a digital hub contract in the northern port city of Le Havre where he is mayor, prosecutors have said. The 55-year-old centrist, an ex-prime minister seen as one of the strongest contenders in next year’s election to replace President Emmanuel Macron, denies the accusations. Polls suggest that Philippe, a centrist with his Horizons party, could successfully take on the far right and win the vote. His team said that he took note of the probe and would ‘answer the questions put to him by the judiciary as he has always done in a very serene manner.'” (05/20/26)
“Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. fired the co-chairs of the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force last week. The move could open the task force up to more political influence. It comes as the administration prepares to vet new applicants to the committee, a process in which the chairs would typically be involved. The expert panel recommends which health services insurers must cover at no cost to patients under the Affordable Care Act. Kennedy sent letters dated May 11 to John Wong, a professor and primary care clinician at Tufts University, and Esa Davis, a professor and primary care clinician at University of Maryland, stating that their appointments as chairs would conclude effective immediately. Wong’s term was slated to last until mid-March 2027, and Davis’s term until mid-March 2028.” (05/20/26)
“Barney Frank, an outspoken Democrat who represented Massachusetts in Congress for 32 years, has died, the Associated Press reported, citing his former campaign manager and close friend. He was 86 years old. … he sought re-election in 1988 after publicly acknowledging his homosexuality, a rarity back then. His constituents affirmed their support in 1990 after a scandal involving his association with a male prostitute, which a House Ethics Committee investigation found included Frank fixing parking tickets and making misleading statements to prosecutors in criminal cases involving the prostitute. … Frank served as chairman of the House Financial Services Committee from 2007 to 2011 and he co-sponsored the 2010 Dodd-Frank Act, the financial reform law passed following the 2008 housing crash. He decided not to seek reelection in 2012, citing signficiant redistricting.” (05/20/26)
“Scientists have spotted two humpback whales that made separate, record-breaking crossings between Australia and Brazil. The whales were identified by their distinctive tail markings at the two locations about 9,000 miles (14,500 kilometers) apart. They traveled in opposite directions and journeyed farther than any humpback known so far. ‘It’s a very rare event, but it is a really wonderful demonstration of just how wide-ranging these animals are,’ said Phillip Clapham, former head of a NOAA whale research program who was not involved with the new findings. Humpback whales are known for roaming long distances across major oceans in predictable patterns, typically following migration routes learned from their mothers.” (05/20/26)
“Bolivia’s President Rodrigo Paz faces a deepening crisis as widespread protests and blockades leave the political capital under siege less than six months after he took office. Two weeks of road closures – spearheaded by the Bolivian Workers’ Central, COB, peasant unions and miners – have emptied markets in La Paz and depleted vital hospital oxygen reserves. The government reported that at least three people died after emergency vehicles were blocked from reaching medical centres. On Monday, supporters of Bolivia’s influential ex-president Evo Morales clashed with police in the capital city as they joined multiple sectors demanding the resignation of the president, who lacks both a legislative majority and a robust political party to anchor his administration.” (05/20/26)
“Samsung Electronics’ labor union said Wednesday it’ll hold off on launching a planned strike and put a tentative wage deal with management to a vote, alleviating immediate concerns about the operation of the world’s largest memory chip maker. The announcement was made after a last-minute government-mediated negotiation with management over how much bonus payouts must be provided to employees to reflect soaring profits fueled by the global boom in artificial intelligence. Union leader Choi Seung-ho told a televised briefing that the union agreed not to go ahead with an 18-day strike that he earlier said would start from Thursday. He said union members will vote on the tentative agreement from May 22-27.” (05/20/26)
“The days of going to college to secure a lucrative career are over, as skilled trade workers have seen a 30% wage bump in the past few years, the CEO of the world’s largest recruitment firm told CNBC. Sander van’t Noordende, CEO of Dutch staffing giant Randstad, recommended the skilled trades career track to young people in an interview on CNBC’s ‘Squawk Box Europe’ on Wednesday. … Specialized skilled trade roles are now offering salaries that compete with traditional office jobs, with wage growth up 30% in the U.S. in the past four years, up 21% in the Netherlands, 18% in Germany, and 9% in the U.K, according to Randstad’s latest data shared with CNBC.” (05/20/26)
