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New York Attorney General Letitia James pleaded not guilty on Friday to federal charges accusing her of lying on mortgage papers to secure favourable loan terms in a case pushed by President Donald Trump. James' first court appearance in Virginia sets the stage for a high-stakes legal battle between the Republican administration and a Democratic longtime Trump adversary who angered him with a major civil fraud case she brought against him. James was indicted this month after the top federal prosecutor who had been overseeing the investigation was pushed out by the Trump administration and the president publicly called on the Justice Department to take action against James and other political foes. She faces bank fraud and false-statements charges in connection with a 2020 home purchase in Norfolk, Virginia. James, who has sued Trump and his administration dozens of times, has consistently denied wrongdoing and decried the indictment as nothing more than a continuation of the ...
New York's attorney general on Monday proposed regulations for its crackdown on addictive social media feeds for children, including rules for verifying a user's age. The Stop Addictive Feeds Exploitation (SAFE) for Kids Act, passed last year, prohibits social media companies from showing feeds personalised by algorithms to users under 18 unless they have a parent's consent. Instead, feeds on apps like TikTok and Instagram would be limited to posts from accounts young users follow. The law also bars companies from sending notifications to users under 18 between midnight and 6 am. The proposed rules for implementing the provisions include standards for determining a user's age and parental consent. "Companies may confirm a user's age using a number of existing methods, as long as the methods are shown to be effective and protect users' data," Attorney General Letitia James' office said. Options for confirming a user is at least 18, for example, include requesting an uploaded image
Attorney General Pam Bondi is facing Democratic calls to testify before Congress following a newspaper's revelation that she told President Donald Trump that his name appeared in the files of the Jeffrey Epstein sex-trafficking investigation. The Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday that Bondi told Trump his name was among many high-profile figures mentioned in the files, which the Justice Department this month said it would not be releasing despite a clamor from online sleuths, conspiracy theorists and members of Trump's base. Trump's personal ties to Epstein are well-established and his name is already known to have been included in records related to the wealthy financier, who killed himself in jail in 2019 as he awaited trial on sex trafficking charges. Sen. Adam Schiff, a California Democrat, responded to the report by calling on Bondi and FBI Director Kash Patel to appear before the Senate Judiciary Committee. We need to bring Bondi and Patel into the Judiciary Committee to
Democratic attorneys general in several states vowed Thursday to file a lawsuit to stop Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency's from accessing federal payment systems containing Americans' sensitive personal information. A dozen attorneys general, including New York's Letitia James, said in a statement that they were taking action in defense of our Constitution, our right to privacy, and the essential funding that individuals and communities nationwide are counting on." As the richest man in the world, Elon Musk is not used to being told no,' but in our country, no one is above the law," the statement said. "The President does not have the power to give away our private information to anyone he chooses, and he cannot cut federal payments approved by Congress. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment Thursday afternoon. Government officials and labor unions have been among those raising concerns about DOGE's involvement with the payment system f
Donald Trump's pick to lead the Justice Department, Pam Bondi, is set to face questions on Capitol Hill on Wednesday over her loyalty to the Republican president-elect, who has vowed to use the agency to pursue revenge on his perceived political enemies. The former Florida attorney general and corporate lobbyist would be one of the most closely scrutinized members of Trump's Cabinet if she's confirmed to lead the department that prosecuted the once and future president in two separate criminal cases that never went to trial. Here's what to know about Bondi ahead of her confirmation hearing: ___ She's a close Trump ally and long-time defender Bondi has been a fixture in Trump's orbit for years, and a regular defender of the president-elect on news programs amid his legal woes. She's likely to face many questions over her public statements criticizing the criminal cases against Trump, given his threats to seek retribution against those he believes have wronged him. The Department o
Pam Bondi, the former Florida attorney general, was chosen by Donald Trump to serve as US attorney general hours after his first choice, Matt Gaetz, withdrew from consideration after a federal sex trafficking investigation and ethics probe made his ability to be confirmed dubious. The 59-year-old has long been in Trump's orbit and her name had been floated during his first term as a potential candidate for the nation's highest law enforcement role. Trump announced his plans to nominate Bondi Thursday in a social media post. If confirmed by the Republican-led Senate, Bondi would instantly become one of the most closely watched members of Trump's Cabinet given the Republican's threat to pursue retribution against perceived adversaries and concern among Democrats that he will look to bend the Justice Department to his will. Here's a few things to know about Bondi: She's long been a fixture in Trump's world Bondi has been a longtime and early ally. In March 2016, on the eve of the ...
Donald Trump's choice of Matt Gaetz to be attorney general has many Justice Department employees reeling, worried not only about their own jobs but the future of the agency that the Trump loyalist has railed against. The president-elect's pick of the Florida Republican sent a shock throughout the Cabinet department, considering Gaetz's lack of experience in law enforcement and the fact that he was once the subject of a federal sex trafficking investigation. The names of well-regarded veteran lawyers had circulated as possible contenders for the job but Gaetz's selection was broadly interpreted as an indication of the premium that Trump places on personal loyalty and Trump's desire to have a disruptor lead a department that for years investigated and ultimately indicted him. Career lawyers at the department interviewed by AP, all of whom spoke on the condition of anonymity, described a widespread sense of being stunned by the nomination -- even outrage. They spoke of being flooded wit
After his victory over Democratic candidate Kamala Harris in the 2024 US presidential election, President-elect Donal Trump on Wednesday nominated Congressman Matt Gaetz to be the Attorney General of the United States.In addition, Trump announced other key appointments for his 2024 administration, including Senator Marco Rubio of Florida as Secretary of State and former Congresswoman Lieutenant Colonel Tulsi Gabbard as Director of National Intelligence (DNI)."It is my Great Honor to announce that Congressman Matt Gaetz, of Florida, is hereby nominated to be The Attorney General of the United States. Matt is a deeply gifted and tenacious attorney, trained at the William & Mary College of Law, who has distinguished himself in Congress through his focus on achieving desperately needed reform at the Department of Justice," Trump said in a statement."Few issues in America are more important than ending the partisan Weaponization of our Justice System. Matt will end the Weaponized ...
The Supreme Court has sought the assistance of Attorney General R Venkataramani in deciding a plea seeking a direction that a time limit be fixed for the Centre to notify the appointment of judges recommended by the apex court collegium. The plea came up for hearing on Friday before a bench comprising Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and Justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra. "A copy of the petition be served on the office of the Attorney General for India. We request the Attorney General to assist the court," the bench said and posted the matter for hearing on September 8. The apex court was hearing a plea filed by advocate Harsh Vibhore Singhal. "The instant writ petition does not in any way challenge the Supreme Court Collegium (SCC) system for the appointment of judges. Rather, it seeks to further cohere and strengthen the SCC for greater judicial independence," it said. It has sought a direction to plug the 'zone of twilight' of there being no time for notifying the collegium's
Attorney General R Venkataramani has written to the Centre on setting up a committee of experts to examine the prevalent mode of execution of death row convicts by hanging in the country, the Supreme Court was apprised on Tuesday. A bench comprising Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and Justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra was told by senior advocate Sonia Mathur, appearing for the Centre, that a letter has been written by the attorney general for India to the Union Ministry of Home Affairs on setting up of the panel and seeking its suggestions to be submitted in the court on the issue. Mathur also said that the topmost law officer was unavailable and travelling and hence the hearing may be deferred. List it on a Friday after two weeks, the CJI said. Earlier, the top court was apprised by the Centre that it was considering setting up a committee of experts to examine the prevalent mode of execution of death row convicts by hanging. The attorney general had said there were processes