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JUST IN - Judge rules Maricopa County must provide 2.1 million ballots from 2020 election to #Arizona Senate for audit under subpoenas.
Statement from Senate Republicans on judge's ruling allowing access to election equipment, ballots in #Arizona.
https://twitter.com/disclosetv/status/1365366588044677120
Andrew Desiderio
@AndrewDesiderio
NEWS: The Biden administration is sanctioning Saudi Arabia’s ex-deputy intel chief but NOT the crown prince, after releasing a long-secret intel report concluding MBS approved Khashoggi’s murder. Lawmakers are already pushing for a more aggressive response
https://twitter.com/AndrewDesiderio/status/1365371251288657922
Intel report finds Saudi prince approved Khashoggi murder
The White House is expected to follow with additional sanctions on Riyadh.
The Biden administration on Friday released a long-secret intelligence report concluding that Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman had approved the killing of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
"We assess that Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Muhammad bin Salman approved an operation in Istanbul, Turkey to capture or kill Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi," the report reads.
The report was finally released more than a year after it was first completed by the intelligence community under former President Donald Trump and briefed to the relevant congressional committees, officials said on Thursday.
“We’ve made it clear that this administration will not sweep anything under the rug, and that President Biden will follow the law,” a senior administration official said ahead of the report’s release. The official added that the release was “in honor of Jamal and this horrific crime.”
“Our aim going forward is to make sure nothing like this ever happens again,” the official said.
https://www.politico.com/news/2021/02/26/intel-report-finds-saudi-prince-tktk-khashoggi-471756
Preaching to the choir
Merkel says vaccine passport has unanimous support within EU
Angela Merkel says "everyone agreed" that vaccination documents are needed, and the requirement could be implemented by summer.
erman Chancellor Angela Merkel says European leaders agree on the concept of a COVID vaccination passport that would allow people to travel more freely through the region amid the ongoing pandemic and continuing health-safety restrictions.
"Everyone agreed that we need a digital vaccination certificate," Merkel said Wednesday after a meeting with European leaders.
She also said such a travel vaccination-certificate could be implemented by as early as summer but that such a program "does not mean that only those who have a vaccination passport are allowed to travel,” according to the German broadcaster DW.
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Dig In
German Chancellor Angela Merkel says European leaders agree on the concept of a COVID vaccination passport that would allow people to travel more freely through the region amid the ongoing pandemic and continuing health-safety restrictions.
"Everyone agreed that we need a digital vaccination certificate," Merkel said Wednesday after a meeting with European leaders.
She also said such a travel vaccination-certificate could be implemented by as early as summer but that such a program "does not mean that only those who have a vaccination passport are allowed to travel,” according to the German broadcaster DW.
Israel recently implemented a "Green Pass" system used to track vaccination history of those traveling, attending concerts and going to the gym. And the E.U. Commission President Ursula von der Leyen praised the new requirement.
Von der Leyen said the commission is working to create a “gateway for interoperability between nations." amid concerns about discrimination in such a program.
France has expressed concerns over the lack of evidence of the vaccinations preventing the spread and transmission of the virus.
Meanwhile, only 8 percent of the E.U. population has been vaccinated, while former E.U. member Britain has been able to vaccinate about 30% of its population, amid ever-changing supplies.
Southern European countries such as Greece, Italy and Spain have been pushing for the implementation of a travel pass.
https://justthenews.com/world/europe/german-chancellor-merkel-says-vaccine-passport-has-unanimous-support-within-european
Maricopa County judge finds GOP Senate subpoenas of election materials are 'legal and enforceable
The Superior Court of Maricopa County, Arizona, found that the state's Senate Republicans' subpoenas of election materials and equipment are "legal and enforceable."
"The Court finds that Subpoenas are legal and enforceable. There is no question that the Senators have the power to issue legislative subpoenas," Judge Timothy Thomason said Friday in a readout following a Thursday hearing on the issue.
"The Subpoenas comply with the statutory requirements for legislative subpoenas. The Senate also has broad constitutional power to oversee elections," the court's conclusion added.
The GOP-backed county board requested Thomason to nullify the subpoena issued by the Senate. They argued that the ballots are sealed under laws the Legislature passed and the Senate does not have a right to access them, claiming it would be illegal.
"The Arizona legislature clearly has the power to investigate and examine election reform matters. Accordingly, the Senators have the power to subpoena material as part of an inquiry into election reform measures," the judge said in his review.
The Senate's subpoenas did not violate the separation of powers principle, and subpoenaed materials would not violate confidentiality laws, Thomason added.
"Indeed, if that were the case, it would be illegal for any County official to 'see' any ballot after it was prepared for voting. It is apparent that the word 'person,' as used in this statute, does not refer to government officials," Thomason said.
Arizona state Senate President Karen Fann announced in December 2020 that two subpoenas were served to the county's election board.
One subpoena calls for a scanned ballot audit in order to collect an electronic ballot image cast for all mail-in ballots counted in the county's November 2020 general election. The second subpoena calls for a full forensic audit of ballot tabulation equipment, the software for that equipment, and the election management system used in the 2020 general election.
County board supervisors already have provided much of what the subpoenas requested, from voter data to election logs, but not the ballots or access to the machines.
The results of the county's independent audit released Tuesday found that the votes were counted correctly, the machines worked properly, and the machines were not hacked or connected to the internet during the election.
The Senate wants another audit of ballots and a check of voter information, while the county has contended that its multiple audits have been sufficient and said the ballots must remain sealed under state law.
The court's decision does not consider whether to enforce the subpoenas, but whether the subpoenas are legal and can be enforced.
Senate leaders have said they are unsatisfied with the county's audits, including the latest audit performed this month by two independent firms that inspected the county's voting machines.
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/maricopa-county-court-arizona-republicans-election-trump
Article recommended by Kelli Ward -
Arizona Republican Party
@AZGOP
In today's update, Chairwoman Kelli Ward announces that a judge has ruled that the Arizona State Senate's subpoenas issued to the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors are legal and enforceable. https://rb.gy/htaumn @kelliwardaz
https://twitter.com/AZGOP/status/1365373441566670849