They pulled a Newsom…

Two of Angela Merkel’s MPs resign in Covid face mask scandal

Two MPs in Germany’s ruling CDU party were forced to resign over the weekend after it emerged that they personally profited from various government deals to secure coronavirus face masks.

It comes ahead of two regional elections on Sunday in the western states of Baden-Württemberg and Rhineland-Palatinate, which are considered vital by many to assess support for Angela Merkel’s successor Armin Laschet who was voted leader of the CDU in January.

Nikolas Löbel announced on Sunday that he was retiring from politics altogether after a company he owned was found to have made €250,000 (£214,305) by brokering procurement deals of face coverings for local authorities in Baden-Württemberg.

He released a statement to say he was leaving the CDU/CSU parliamentary group with “immediate effect”, and that he would not run again for parliament elections.

“To be a member of the German Bundestag and be able to represent my home town Mannheim is a great honour and an especially moral obligation,” he wrote in a statement. “With my actions I have failed to live up to these standards. For that I would like to apologise to everyone in this country.”

Mr Laschet, the CDU leader, swiftly called for Mr Löbel to leave parliament completely.

“All of us – politicians on the federal, regional and municipal level – are doing all we can at the moment to bring this country through the crisis and protect people,” he told German broadcaster ARD on Sunday.

“And whoever does business with this protection, and who personally enriches himself from that, is no representative of the people. And he must leave parliament at once.”

Another conservative member of parliament, the CSU’s Georg Nuesslein, resigned on Friday from his post as one of the deputy leaders of current chancellor Ms Merkel’s parliamentary group, over similar allegations. The CSU is the CDU’s Bavarian sister party.

more

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/angela-merkel-cdu-face-mask-scandal-b1814018.html

The Eff Bee Eye lied? Gasp. KEK

IBR coming?

An FBI official told Congress the bureau can't monitor Americans' social media. That's not true.

WASHINGTON — A senator had a simple question for the FBI's counterterrorism chief at a hearing last week about the Capitol riot.

Didn't the FBI see all those postings by extremists on social media before the event, she asked Wednesday, including promises to "occupy the Capitol" and bring "revolution" to Washington?

"To my knowledge, no, ma'am," the counterterrorism chief, Jill Sanborn, responded, going on to explain that the FBI can't monitor "First Amendment-protected activities" without a tip or an open investigation that directs agents to a specific post.

The senator, Kyrsten Sinema, D-Ariz., kept pressing. "So the FBI does not monitor publicly available social media conversations?"

"Correct, ma'am," Sanborn replied. "It's not within our authorities."

Fact check: false. FBI agents have said in court records that they monitor public social media, and the bureau recently signed a $14 million contract with a "threat intelligence" company called ZeroFox "to proactively identify threats to the United States and its interests" on the internet. For years, the FBI has had a similar arrangement with DataMinr, which can flag social media postings of interest to its clients.

In a statement to NBC News, the FBI acknowledged that it can and does look at public social media information. An FBI official said Sanborn understood Sinema's question to be referring to "whether the FBI persistently and passively examines internet traffic and social media conversations, to include direct messages between two users." In fact, her question referred to comments made on public-facing social media services.

"The FBI may observe and collect information from open sources as long as the FBI activities are done for a valid law enforcement or national security purpose and in a manner that does not unduly infringe upon the speaker or author's ability to deliver his or her message," an FBI official said. "The authorized purpose must specifically be tied to federal criminal or national security purposes, usually to further an FBI assessment or … investigation."

Current and former FBI officials and legal experts said Sanborn's misstatement points to a culture of caution — and confusion — within the FBI about the rules of the road regarding FBI monitoring of Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and other social media platforms. They say the bureau's scandalous history of domestic political spying under J. Edgar Hoover has left the FBI in a defensive crouch about any appearance that it is snooping on law-abiding Americans.

more

https://www.yahoo.com/news/fbi-official-told-congress-bureau-093012587.html

>>13170795

3.11?

KEK

>>13170810

FLASH BACK. [ROASTED]

Is Meghan Markle a U.S. Sleeper Agent? Paul Bettany Has a Theory . . .

With this weekend’s royal wedding fast approaching, it was only natural that Jimmy Fallon would ask his British Tonight Show guest, Paul Bettany, about the event on Thursday’s Tonight Show. But as the comedian soon discovered, there was one small problem: Bettany has no plans to watch the festivities. As the actor told his flabbergasted host, “I’m sure they’re lovely kids and everything, but I’m sort of bored of the medieval procession that costs 40 million dollars [from] taxpayers. And by the way, you got rid of it in 1776—so you’re sitting here from this lovely Republic going, ‘Isn’t it cute?’ It’s not cute; it’s 40 million dollars!” If that wasn’t reason enough, Bettany shared an even more compelling theory: he’s pretty sure Meghan Markle is not what she seems.

“I think that Meghan Markle might be a sleeper agent for the U.S. government,” Bettany joked. His evidence? “The dad doing the photos thing, it’s like a false-flag event,” he said. “I think the C.I.A.’s involved—everybody. I think Piers Morgan’s involved.”

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https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2018/05/meghan-markle-royal-wedding-prince-harry-paul-bettany-fallon

>>13170823

He forgot the Immigration Fraud, & her Brosband

Woman Faces Possible Hate Crimes After Using Racial Slurs, Spitting on Asians Mountain View

The Mountain View Police Department (MVPD) arrested a 39-year-old woman connected to a string of anti-Asian hate crimes last month, where she made racially-charged comments and spat on one of the Asian victims. Karen Inman was arrested around 11 a.m. on March 5 for attempting to steal candy and ice cream from a Smart and Final in East El Camino Real, according to Mountain View Police. Investigators also discovered her connection to two anti-Asian incidents last month

Authorities accuse Inman of trying to steal merchandise from a market in Castro Street on Feb. 13. She allegedly took food and clothing and refused to pay for them because of the victim's Asian ethnicity. She was detained minutes later, but while interviewing her, they were told of another call about an incident with the perpetrator matching Inman’s description. The woman was allegedly connected to a battery incident at a downtown restaurant that same day. Inman allegedly yelled at and made racial comments at two patrons, one of whom was Asian. She was also accused of spitting at the male victim. “At the time our officers interviewed both the victims of the theft and of the battery, neither party desire prosecution,” Mountain View Police said. “Because neither crime was witnessed by our officers, Inman was released.” Even after her release, the MVPD continued with its investigation. Officials at the District Attorney’s Office reviewed the case and concluded Inman could face hate crime charges. The police report also stated there was no indication Inman made racially charged comments during the recent theft. She is currently being held at the Santa Clara County Jail on suspicion of petty theft, robbery, and two counts of violation of civil rights by force or threat. “This case is both disheartening and disturbing. Mountain View is a vibrant community in many ways thanks to the diversity that exists here,” Chief Chris Hsiung said in a statement. “Hate crimes have not and will not be tolerated in Mountain View and as this case demonstrates, we take these crimes seriously and will investigate them to the fullest extent.”

https://www.yahoo.com/news/woman-faces-possible-hate-crimes-165555617.html

>>13170964

Wonder if MAP also stands for Mind Altering Programs.

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