Joe Biden Blocking Probe Into Suspicious Hunter Biden Foreign Business Transactions Flagged by U.S. Banks
Senate Dems Caught Spending COVID Relief Money on Liberal Pet Projects
DonnyFerguson.com
Thursday, May 26, 2022
In this issue:
>>> Joe Biden Blocking Probe Into Suspicious Hunter Biden Foreign Business Transactions Flagged by US Banks
>>> Senate Dems Caught Spending COVID Relief Money on Liberal Pet Projects
>>> National Association for Gun Rights Statement on Uvalde, TX tragedy
>>> Nonpartisan report reveals Biden sending US debt to economy-collapsing $16 TRILLION
>>> Woman sues over unjustified body cavity search by TSA agent
>>> Biden not including Taiwan in new Indo-Pacific trade deal
>>> JOE BIDEN BLOCKING PROBE INTO SUSPICIOUS HUNTER BIDEN FOREIGN BUSINESS TRANSACTIONS FLAGGED BY US BANKS
House Committee on Oversight and Reform Ranking Member James Comer (R-Ky.) today wrote the Biden Administration and several banks and financial institutions about Hunter Biden and Biden family and associates’ suspicious foreign business transactions flagged by U.S. banks. According to recent media reports, more than 150 of Hunter Biden and the Biden network’s international business transactions have generated suspicious activity reports by U.S. banks for further review by the Treasury Department to determine if there is illegal activity or a threat to national security. The Treasury Department used to provide these reports to Congress, but the Biden Administration has restricted access to them, raising questions about a possible effort to hide the Biden network’s suspicious business dealings.
In a letter to Department of the Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, Ranking Member Comer requests all suspicious activity reports generated in connection with Hunter and James Biden, their associates, and their businesses and requests all documents and communications related to the Biden Administration’s decision to restrict Congress’ access to suspicious activity reports.
“Troubling reports have recently surfaced that numerous international business transactions tied to Hunter and James Biden, the President’s brother, were flagged to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) through Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs). At the same time, the Biden Administration is restricting Congress’ access to SARs. This reversal of longstanding policy raises serious questions about the motives behind the change, including whether it is intended to protect Hunter Biden,” wrote Ranking Member Comer to Secretary Yellen. “More than 150 international business transactions tied to Hunter or James Biden were flagged by U.S. banks in SARs filed with the U.S. Department of the Treasury. The sheer number of flagged transactions in this case is highly unusual and may be indicative of serious criminal activity or a national security threat. We are particularly concerned where those transactions may involve business with firms or entities, including those with direct ties to foreign governments, hostile to the United States’ interests.”
Ranking Member Comer continued, “Given Hunter Biden’s apparent ability to continue his international business dealings notwithstanding numerous SARs filed in relation to his business transactions, we must determine the full extent to which SARs were generated by various financial institutions in these cases, and if so, whether suspicious activities or any other SARs were ignored by law enforcement and bank regulators. It is imperative that we ensure that the Biden family was not selling access to the highest levels of government to America’s adversaries. We must also determine whether the current President is compromised from a national security perspective, especially considering evidence that President Biden and Hunter Biden comingled funds during the former’s vice presidency.”
In letters to several banks where Hunter Biden and Biden family members have accounts, Ranking Member Comer requests all financial records, documents, and communications related to suspicious activity reports generated for Hunter Biden, his business partners, and other members of the Biden family.
In letters to several banks, Ranking Member Comer wrote, “Committee Republicans are investigating potential influence peddling and threats to national security. Specifically, we are investigating whether the Biden family sold access to the highest levels of government to America’s adversaries. Since there is also evidence of comingling of funds between President Biden and Hunter Biden during the former’s vice presidency, Republicans must ask whether the current President is compromised from a national security perspective … Republicans must track the dollars to uncover whether the current President himself benefitted from these transactions and whether the payments were from nations opposed to U.S. interests…We are committed to following Hunter Biden’s money trail—consisting of many complex, international transactions worth millions of dollars—and providing answers to the American people. The American people deserve to know the President’s connections to his son’s business deals, which have occurred at the expense of American interests and may represent a national security threat.”
- House Oversight Committee
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>>> SENATE DEMS CAUGHT SPENDING COVID RELIEF MONEY ON LIBERAL PET PROJECTS
Senate Republicans warned about the dangers of passing trillions of dollars in spending without knowing exactly where it would go. But Senate Democrats still rammed through $1.9 trillion in so-called “COVID relief” money – and now Republicans’ warnings are turning into reality.
According to a new report, the Democrats’ American Rescue Plan (ARP) allocated money to liberal pet projects that have nothing to do with COVID relief like racial justice programs and developing an exhibit on Ancient Egypt.
Many of the nonprofits that received money from the Democrats’ ARP had already been given money through Senator Marco Rubio’s Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). Unlike the Democrats’ ARP that indiscriminately doles out millions of taxpayer dollars for projects unrelated to COVID relief, the Paycheck Protection Program was designed to keep Americans working during the height of the pandemic.
Voters should be able to trust their elected leaders to spend their tax dollars wisely. Senate Democrats’ liberal wish list, disguised as COVID relief, is an insult to hard-working Americans. They owe Americans an explanation on why so-called “COVID relief” money is going towards advancing Joe Biden’s unpopular agenda instead of helping people who are still struggling.
Senate Democrats like Mark Kelly, Raphael Warnock, Maggie Hassan, Catherine Cortez Masto, and Michael Bennet have no respect for American taxpayers. They said that the ARP’s $1.9 trillion would go towards COVID relief. But they didn’t want Americans to know where their money would really be spent, so they lied about it. Americans deserve Senators who don’t play political games with their tax dollars.
- NRSC
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>>> NATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR GUN RIGHTS STATEMENT ON UVALDE, TX TRAGEDY
Today, a horrific act of evil was carried out by a deranged murderer in Uvalde, TX. Innocent children and adults were left defenseless against a madman because we refuse to protect our children while at school.
Every day law-abiding citizens use firearms to protect themselves, their families, and their communities, yet we’ve passed laws which prevent teachers and responsible adults from protecting our children while they go to school.
The painful truth is that the Gun Free School Zones Act has equipped evil men to carry out their crimes against helpless people. Joe Biden and anti-gun politicians will desperately attack millions of law-abiding gun owners who live peaceful lives, not because they want to pass laws which will actually save children — but to expand their disastrous policies which enable the loss of innocent life.
The staff at the National Association for Gun Rights are praying for those impacted in Uvalde.
- NAGR
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>>> NONPARTISAN REPORT REVEALS BIDEN SENDING US DEBT TO ECONOMY-COLLAPSING $16 TRILLION
House Budget Committee Republican Leader Jason Smith (MO-08) issued the following statement after the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) released The Budget and Economic Outlook: 2022 to 2032:
“The update from CBO today is sobering. Under President Biden, America’s fiscal health is deteriorating right in front of our eyes. The latest CBO baseline projects $16 trillion of additional debt over the next 10 years, $5 trillion more compared to where CBO projected the debt would be when Biden took office – brought on by $72 trillion in spending over the next 10 years, an $11 trillion increase over their projections from February of 2021. Because of President Biden and Washington Democrats’ reckless spending and failed policies, the country’s budgetary and economic outlook is collapsing, and the American people are literally paying the price for it. Inflation is higher, interest rates are rising, the economy is underperforming – shrinking 1.4 percent in the most recent quarter – all the while federal spending and debt is going up and up.
“Had President Biden and Washington Democrats succeeded in getting their Build Back Broke agenda enacted into law, the nation’s budget and economic outlook would have taken an even bigger hit. Washington Democrats wrote that bill when they were either denying inflation was an issue or dismissing it as ‘temporary’ and ‘transitory.’ Now, they are trying to sell their scheme as the cure for America’s economic woes at the same time CBO has already confirmed the plan would only make America’s fiscal health worse with $5 trillion in new spending that will further fuel inflation and add $3 trillion to the national debt.
“The only silver lining in CBO’s report is the increase in revenues to the federal government thanks to the Republican-passed Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. Revenues are increasing way beyond expectations. After growing by 18 percent in 2021, the highest level in almost 50 years, tax revenue is growing by 39 percent so far this year – the largest growth since 1944. Revenues are far outpacing what CBO predicted back when the tax relief was enacted into law. The doom and gloom projections about a drastic drop in tax revenue has never materialized, and yet Democrats still want to repeal that tax relief and raise taxes on a weakened economy and Americans battling every day to make ends meet and provide for their families. Washington Democrats should see this latest report from CBO as the wake-up call it is and abandon their agenda of higher taxes and inflationary deficit spending.”
Key Points from CBO’s Budget and Economic Outlook:
$72 trillion in spending over ten years – $11 trillion higher than CBO’s February 2021 baseline projections.
$16 trillion debt increase by 2032, $5 trillion higher than CBO’s February 2021 baseline projections.
Inflation in 2022 and 2023 is projected to be 64 percent above CBO’s February 2021 baseline. This after last year’s inflation was more than triple CBO’s projections when Biden took office.
Inflation has risen 11 percent since Joe Biden became President.
110 percent debt-to-GDP ratio by 2032, surpassing the historic high of 1946 when debt-to-GDP was 106 percent following World War II.
Real GDP growth in the first quarter of this year is negative 1.4 percent, 4.3 percentage points less than CBO projected for this period when Biden took office.
Revenues total $56 trillion over ten years, averaging 18.1 percent of GDP.
Revenues are projected to be 19.6 percent of GDP in 2022, a figure exceeded only three times in American history.
Average interest rates will be 40% HIGHER the next 10 years compared to what CBO predicted when Biden took office.
CBO’s February 2021 baseline predicted interest rates would not rise until 2024.
$3.5 trillion in additional debt over the next 10 years due to higher interest rates.
Republican Leader Smith recently released a report on the dangerous impact of rising interest rates on the national debt.
- House Budget Committee
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>>> WOMAN SUES OVER UNJUSTIFIED BODY CAVITY SEARCH BY TSA AGENT
Does a woman subjected to an unjustified body cavity search by a Transportation Security Administration (TSA) agent have a means by which to assert her rights in court? Today, the Institute for Justice (IJ) filed an amicus brief in a case that aims to ensure that such victims of abusive searches have a remedy under a statute called the Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA) when their rights are violated by federal officers.
In 2019, Michele Leuthauser was flying out of Las Vegas. As she walked through the TSA line, she was informed she would need to go to a private room for additional screening. Leuthauser describes the “groin search” that ensued as a graphic invasion of her most intimate areas, wholly without justification. Leuthauser contacted the airport police about what had happened but was informed that TSA was outside of their jurisdiction.
Seeking justice in court, Leuthauser sued the officer who conducted the groin search and her employer, the United States of America. She filed a claim against the government under the FTCA and sought to recover against the TSA agent through what is known as a Bivens claim, named after the 1971 Supreme Court case Bivens v. Six Unknown Named Agents of Federal Bureau of Narcotics. A federal court dismissed both claims, leaving Leuthauser with no remedy in court.
“Far too often, individuals have rights under American law but no remedies in American courts,” said IJ Attorney Patrick Jaicomo. “This case is about ensuring that victims of abuse by federal officials, like TSA agents, can enforce their rights.”
Leuthauser is appealing the district court’s decision to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, asking that court to allow her claim to proceed under the FTCA.
“Ms. Leuthauser deserves to have her case heard on its merits and not simply thrown out because of a labyrinth of court-created immunities that is nearly impossible to escape,” said IJ Attorney Anya Bidwell.
IJ’s amicus brief points out that Congress was so determined to provide relief to victims of federal searches and seizures that it twice—in 1974 and then again in 1988—amended the FTCA to ensure that claims were available against federal officers like TSA agents, who “execute searches.” IJ’s brief also highlights how the district court’s ruling, denying Leuthauser any remedy at all, reveals the rights-without-remedies regime that exists today in the United States, especially when federal officers are accused of wrongdoing.
“This case isn’t just about TSA agents. It’s about the basic principle that when a federal agent violates a person’s rights, there must be a way to hold them accountable,” said IJ Attorney Jaba Tsitsuashvili.
As part of its Project on Immunity and Accountability, IJ has challenged various immunity doctrines, including qualified immunity and federal immunity. These doctrines prevent federal agents from being held accountable for egregious misconduct. In Byrd v. Lamb, a Department of Homeland Security agent was captured on video threatening to shoot Kevin Byrd in the head and pulling the trigger of a loaded gun, which thankfully jammed. Kevin did nothing wrong. Mohamud v. Weyker involves a teenage girl in Minnesota named Hamdi Mohamud, who was framed by a police officer and arrested for crimes she did not commit. Both cases are pending before the United States Supreme Court.
- IJ
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>>> BIDEN NOT INCLUDING TAIWAN IN NEW INDO-PACIFIC TRADE DEAL
U.S. Senator Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska) released the following statement in response to reports that Taiwanwill not be included in the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) that the Biden Administration is expected to unveil:
“I have been encouraging senior Biden Administration officials for months not to leave Taiwan out of the Indo-Pacific Trade Pact,” Senator Sullivan said. “This is a strategic mistake that signals to Beijing they can call the shots economically in the Indo-Pacific.
“It’s disturbing that the Biden Administration appears to be doing exactly what the Chinese Communist Party wants – economically isolating Taiwan. Instead of isolating Taiwan, the Biden Administration should be supporting this important island democracy as 52 Democrat and Republican senators recently urged the President to do.
“I have been supportive of many of the Biden Administration’s initiatives to strengthen and deepen our alliances in the Indo-Pacific, including the Quad, and the Australia-UK-U.S. agreement. But leaving Taiwan out of this American-led economic initiative is exactly the wrong message to be sending as the Chinese Communist Party continues its aggressive authoritarian actions toward Taiwan and other democratic allies in the region.”
BACKGROUND:
On May 18, 2022, 52 Senators submitted a bi-partisan letter to President Biden stressing the importance of including Taiwan in any Indo-Pacific trade agreement.
In a floor speech on May 5, 2022, Sullivan urged his Senate colleagues to tell the Biden administration to include Taiwan in any Indo-Pacific trade pact negotiations.
Sullivan visited Taipei, Taiwan in June 2021 along with Sens. Tammy Duckworth (D-IL.) and Chris Coons (D-Del.) in a joint effort to underscore U.S. support for Taiwan.
- Senator Dan Sullivan
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