Texas Rapper Charged in Narcotics and Prescription Opioid Conspiracy
https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/texas-rapper-charged-narcotics-and-prescription-opioid-conspiracy
Ex-Trump aide Bannon pleads not guilty in border wall scheme
President Donald Trump’s former chief strategist, Steve Bannon, has pleaded not guilty to charges that he ripped off donors trying to fund a southern border wall
Ex-Trump aide Bannon pleads not guilty in border wall schemeBy LARRY NEUMEISTER, COLLEEN LONG and JILL COLVINAssociated PressThe Associated PressNEW YORK
NEW YORK (AP) — President Donald Trump’s former chief strategist, Steve Bannon, was pulled from a luxury yacht and arrested Thursday on allegations that he and three associates ripped off donors trying to fund a southern border wall, making him the latest in a long list of Trump allies to be charged with a crime.
The organizers of the “We Build The Wall” group portrayed themselves as eager to help the president build a “big beautiful” barrier along the U.S.-Mexico border, as he had promised during the 2016 campaign. They raised more than $25 million from thousands of donors and pledged that 100% of the money would be used for the project.
But according to the criminal charges unsealed Thursday, much of the money never made it to the wall. Instead, it was used to line the pockets of group members, including Bannon, who served in Trump’s White House and worked for his campaign. He allegedly took over $1 million, using some to secretly pay co-defendant Brian Kolfage, the founder of the project, and to cover hundreds of thousands of dollars in personal expenses.
Hours after his arrest, Bannon pleaded not guilty during an appearance in a Manhattan federal court. He is the latest addition to a startlingly long list of Trump associates who have been prosecuted, including his former campaign chair, Paul Manafort, whom Bannon replaced, his longtime lawyer, Michael Cohen, and his former national security adviser, Michael Flynn.
Trump has also made clear that he is willing to use his near-limitless pardon power to help political allies escape legal jeopardy, most recently commuting the sentence of longtime political adviser Roger Stone.
Bannon was taken into custody around 7 a.m. by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service on a 150-foot (45-meter) luxury yacht called Lady May, which was off the coast of Connecticut, authorities said. The boat is owned by exiled Chinese billionaire Guo Wengui and currently for sale for nearly $28 million. According to Marine Traffic, a commercial tracking service, the vessel’s transponder signal went dark on June 17, shortly after it departed a port in Connecticut en route to Miami, potentially indicating its beacon was inoperable or had been turned off.
https://www.breitbart.com/news/ex-trump-adviser-steve-bannon-charged-in-border-wall-scheme/
Calif. Dems’ Taxes on Millionaires Could Spell Disaster in Golden State
Progressive agenda could drive wealthy and businesses to flee, expert warns
Facing a massive coronavirus-induced deficit, Democrats in the California legislature are weighing a suite of new taxes on top earners, including a first-of-its-kind wealth tax and the highest top rates in the nation.
California is the most heavily taxed state in the union, but that did not stop legislators from floating an additional $60 billion in taxes by early June—before the wealth tax or income tax hike were proposed. Those latest plans would directly target the wealth of California millionaires, who already pay the lion's share of state taxes.
Assembly Democrats argue that more taxes are needed to stave off the threat of fiscal insolvency brought about by the state’s response to the coronavirus crisis. But California taxpayers and one tax expert tell the Washington Free Beacon that the threatened hikes could drive the state's wealthiest to flee. That would slow the recovery, as they take their wealth and connections with them, and further contribute to the outflow of many of California's most successful businesses.
Such an exodus would only add to the troubles of the state sometimes touted as a shining beacon of Democratic rule, whose governor, Gavin Newsom (D.), will speak in a much-coveted slot during the Democratic National Convention's final night on Thursday. Newsom will likely leave unaddressed the state's unstable balance between rich and poor—one resident described it to the Free Beacon as "a feudal society"—and the social upset that the new taxes could bring.
The two latest tax proposals, Assembly Bills 1253 and 2088, both explicitly target California's ultra-wealthy. A.B. 1253, released in late July, imposes an additional 1, 3, and 3.5 percent tax on earnings over $1, $2, and $5 million, respectively, applied retroactively to the first day of 2020. A.B. 2088 would impose a 0.4 percent tax on all personal wealth in excess of $15 million ($30 million for couples), including assets outside of California.
Both bills would hit many of the state's tech billionaires, such as Oracle CEO Larry Ellison (worth $59 billion), Mark Zuckerberg ($54.7 billion), and Democratic megadonor Laurene Powell Jobs ($16.4 billion). A.B. 2088 would be the first state wealth tax in the nation, mirroring the tax agendas of prominent progressives such as Sens. Bernie Sanders (I., Vt.) and Elizabeth Warren (D., Mass.).
Assemblyman Rob Bonta (D.), one of A.B. 2088's main sponsors, argued that the bill was necessary to fill the $50 billion budget hole left by the coronavirus crisis.
https://freebeacon.com/policy/calif-dems-taxes-on-millionaires-could-spell-disaster-in-golden-state/