‘Time is up’: US intensifies effort to break Huawei supply chains

President Trump’s administration unveiled new regulations to limit Huawei’s ability to purchase critical technology from foreign companies. “The Trump Administration sees Huawei for what it is — an arm of the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP’s) surveillance state — and we have taken action accordingly,” Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Monday. “The United States has provided ample time for affected companies and persons — primarily Huawei customers — to identify and shift to other sources of equipment, software, and technology and wind-down their operations. Now that time is up.” Pompeo issued that statement in conjunction with a new decision from the Commerce Department, which barred 38 Huawei affiliates from doing business with foreign companies that use U.S. technology. The restrictions could deprive the company of key resources in a race to build 5G wireless telecommunications infrastructure for other countries, which U.S. officials say would allow Chinese intelligence agencies to control Western data. “We will not tolerate efforts by the CCP to undermine the privacy of our citizens, our businesses’ intellectual property, or the integrity of next-generation networks worldwide,” Pompeo said. “We are backing up our words with actions across the U.S. Government.”

The new actions come as the Democratic convention kicks off on Monday. Which candidate, Trump or Joe Biden, is toughest on China is likely to be a major issue in the campaign. Some China hawks doubt the efficacy of such pronouncements based on the Commerce Department’s history of providing waivers that softened the impact of the restrictions. The Commerce Department hinted at providing such regulatory relief in the future “by making a limited permanent authorization for the Huawei entities” to continue doing business that involves “ongoing security research critical to maintaining the integrity and reliability of existing and currently ‘fully operational networks’ and equipment.” The new rules also require companies to apply for licenses that could draw scrutiny from Commerce Department officials, but the significance of that switch depends on whether the applications for major deals are denied. “And the license process is secret,” the American Enterprise Institute’s Derek Scissors said. “All that's been done is to jam Huawei transactions into a black box.”

Pompeo sounded more confident on the strictness of the crackdown. “The Department of State has engaged in vigorous diplomacy for more than a year to share what we know about Huawei and other untrustworthy vendors with allies and partners around the world,” he said. “The United States will continue to restrict most U.S. exports to Huawei and its affiliates on the Entity List for activities that threaten U.S. national security and international stability. We urge our allies and partners to join us.”

https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/policy/defense-national-security/time-is-up-us-intensifies-effort-to-break-huawei-supply-chains

Masks protecting criminals from coronavirus — and cops

The widespread use of face masks across the country has made it more challenging for police officers to identify suspects, solve crimes, and make arrests, according to law enforcement officials. "It does impact our jobs, but the safety of the people in this world with this pandemic has got to be above that," Charleston Police Department's Office of Community-Oriented Policing Capt. Dustin Thompson said. The South Carolina official described masks as just another hurdle that police are accustomed to having to overcome to solve crimes. "We’re used to working cases where people are wearing masks and the video's grainy or something is covering their face," said Thompson, who previously led the violent crimes unit in the South Carolina city. "We’re really good at going off other clues: their clothing, their shoes, what they're wearing, their vehicle, tattoos — using other means to identify people who commit crimes." San Antonio Police Department spokeswoman Alisia Pruneda acknowledged the issue but said it isn't the first time criminals have disguised themselves, and officers and detectives who investigate crimes "work diligently and tirelessly to bring suspects to justice" regardless of challenges. "Anytime a suspect has their face covered during a crime … it does make it more difficult to identify," a spokesperson for the Los Angeles Police Department acknowledged in an email. "However, we are not seeing any trends or patterns with mask wearing that make us unable to solve cases."

Brenna Angel, spokeswoman for the Lexington Police Department in Kentucky, said the agency has seen "some cases recently involving suspects wearing masks that appeared to be COVID-related masks." Thompson said detectives can use cameras to trace someone's steps, possibly to a spot where they may have taken off the mask. "You might see them coming out of a convenience store taking off their mask," Thompson said. The city of Charleston, like most mid-size and large U.S. cities, has software that is able to scan images from video footage against a database to see if they match images in the system.

However, facial recognition software cannot work on someone wearing a mask, making other clues about a person's description or tracing their movement before or after an incident important. "When a suspect is wearing a mask, the software cannot be used," Detroit Police Sgt. Nicole Kirkwood wrote in an email. "When this occurs, investigators will have to rely on valuable evidence to assist them in identifying suspects such as victims and witness statements, clothing and vehicle descriptions, direction of travel, video footage from other sources, etc." Beverly Hills, California, Police Sgt. Max Subin said he was not aware of any major issues the masks have had for his department. "If you have a crime where a suspect is wearing a mask regardless of if it's a paper mask or cloth mask, yes, identification would be harder, but that one thing is not affecting law enforcement," said Subin. Oklahoma City Police Capt. Larry Withrow said he was unaware of instances where officers or investigators had difficulty solving cases due to the mask mandates.

https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/masks-protecting-criminals-from-coronavirus-and-cops

Two controversial Catholic leaders to offer prayers at DNC

Two controversial Catholic leaders will lead the Democratic National Convention in prayer before and after former Vice President Joe Biden speaks on Thursday. The speakers, Rev. James Martin and Sister Simone Campbell, will pray for national unity under a Biden administration with a series of other faith leaders addressing the convention this week, according to a press release from the Democratic National Committee. The DNC announced the roster before a Sunday event during which members of many faith traditions called for social justice, greater care for the Earth, and a focus on racial healing. Martin said in a statement that his prayer will focus on "respect for the sanctity of all human life and for a nation in which all are welcome." Martin, a Jesuit priest and frequent critic of President Trump, is controversial within the Catholic Church for his open attitude toward homosexuality, which has drawn criticism from more conservative members of the church hierarchy. Throughout the 2019 Democratic primary, Martin offered praise for then-South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg, who is gay, for articulating "the connection between his faith and his love." Martin joined Buttigieg to speak at an awards ceremony for religious gay leaders, drawing criticism from many Catholics.

Martin later that year rose to Biden's defense after a priest in South Carolina denied the former vice president Holy Communion on the basis of his support for abortion. Martin cautioned that the act, which drew a flurry of media attention over Biden's Catholic faith, was "a bad idea and bad pastoral practice." "If you deny the sacrament to those who support abortion, then you must also deny it to those who support the death penalty, which is also a life issue," Martin wrote in a Facebook post. "How about those who don't support programs to help the poor? Or refuse to help refugees and migrants? How about those who don't support "Laudato Si," which is, after all, an encyclical? Where does it end?" Martin added that in the words of Pope Francis, the Holy Eucharist is "a powerful medicine and nourishment for the weak." Biden has also defended his ability to receive Communion despite his support for abortion, which the church condemns, on the ground that Francis had given it to him on multiple occasions.

Campbell, a social justice activist leading the "Nuns on a Bus" campaign, is also controversial among Catholics for her attitude toward abortion. Campbell, who has appeared with Biden at many events, said in 2016 that she didn't think it was "good policy" to outlaw abortion. Instead, she said, it was better to focus on "economic development for women and economic opportunity" to drive down abortion rates. Campbell was an early supporter of the Affordable Care Act, which many Catholic bishops preached against, and attended the ceremony during which President Barack Obama signed it into law. Campbell was a subject in an investigation of nuns conducted by the Church during Pope Benedict XVI's papacy. The DNC's announcements come as the Trump campaign hammers hard against Biden for his faith, alleging that because of his positions on abortion, as well as a slew of other issues, his faith is not genuine. That accusation was compounded last week when the Biden campaign chose as his running mate California Sen. Kamala Harris, who in 2018 spoke against the Catholic men's group the Knights of Columbus.

https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/two-controversial-catholic-leaders-to-offer-prayers-at-dnc

Due to coronavirus, do you think it is a good idea or a bad idea to have people return to work?

Among Democrats:

Good idea 33%

Bad idea 53%

.

Among Republicans:

Good idea 84%

Bad idea 11%

.

Among Independents:

Good idea 56%

Bad idea 31%

@maristpoll

/@NPR

/@NewsHour

8/3-11

Due to coronavirus, do you think it is a good idea or a bad idea to have people return to work?

Good idea 58% (+27)

Bad idea 31%

https://twitter.com/Politics_Polls/status/1294346880902729741

Postmaster general agrees to testify before House Oversight Committee

Postmaster General Louis DeJoy has agreed to testify in front of the House Oversight Committee. New York Rep. Carolyn Maloney, the chairwoman of the committee, announced on Monday that DeJoy agreed to appear in front of the committee on Aug. 24. He is expected to face questions about what actions he's taken to help the U.S. Postal Service handle the upcoming presidential election, which will likely see a dramatic increase in mail-in voting due to the coronavirus pandemic. “I’m pleased that the Postmaster General will testify voluntarily before the Oversight Committee on Monday about the sweeping operational and organizational changes he has been making to the Postal Service," the Democrat said in a statement. "I also look forward to receiving his production of documents and other information by this Friday in response to the detailed request I made last week with Speaker [Nancy] Pelosi, Leader [Chuck] Schumer, Chairperson [Zoe] Lofgren, and Senate Ranking Members [Gary] Peters and [Amy] Klobuchar," Maloney added. "The American people want their mail, medicines, and mail-in ballots delivered in a timely way, and they certainly do not want drastic changes and delays in the midst of a global pandemic just months before the election.”

Robert Duncan, the chairman of the Postal Service's board of governors, also agreed to testify next Monday. The board of governors “directs the exercise of the powers of the Postal Service, directs and controls its expenditures, reviews its practices, conducts long-range planning, approves officer compensation and sets policies on all postal matters," Maloney's statement said. Democrats have accused President Trump and DeJoy of removing mail sorting equipment and mailboxes in an effort to squelch mail-in voting ahead of the November election. Republicans, including Trump, have raised concerns that mass mail-in voting will lead to widespread voter fraud.

https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/postmaster-general-agrees-to-testify-before-house-oversight-committee

>>10320143

>>10320246

Indeed, thinking that everyday that goes by, this number continues to grow.