Fred Upton, Republican who voted to impeach Trump, retiring from House seat

By Kristin Wilson, CNN

Updated 10:33 AM ET, Tue April 5, 2022

(CNN)Rep. Fred Upton of Michigan, one of the 10 House Republicans to vote for impeachment against former President Donald Trump, announced on the House floor Tuesday that he was not running again for Congress.

"Even the best stories have a last chapter. This is it for me," he said. "I've done the zillions of airline miles back and forth. I've signed over a million letters, cast more votes while in the chamber here and accomplished what I set out to do with more unfinished work still yet to come."

Upton was on track to be forced into a Republican-on-Republican race due to state redistricting in Michigan.

This story is breaking and will be updated.

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Forgot sauce:

Fred Upton, Republican who voted to impeach Trump, retiring from House seat

By Kristin Wilson, CNN

Updated 10:33 AM ET, Tue April 5,

2022

https://www.cnn.com/2022/04/05/politics/fred-upton-retiring-impeachment-republicans/index.html

Markup of Various Measures, House Foreign Affairs Committee

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House Foreign Affairs Committee

7.97K subscribers

Full Committee

Chair Gregory W. Meeks

Measures:

H.R. —, To prohibit participation of the Russian Federation in the G7

H.R. —, Ukraine Invasion War Crimes Deterrence and Accountability Act

H.R. —, Countering Malign Russian Activities in Africa Act

H.R. 923, Georgia Support Act

H.Res. 833, Expressing support for Moldova's democracy, independence,

and territorial integrity and strengthening United States and Moldova

relations

The House Foreign Affairs Committee is responsible for oversight and legislation relating to:

• Foreign Assistance - including development assistance, Millennium Challenge Corporation, the Millennium Challenge Account, HIV/AIDS in foreign countries, security assistance, and Public Law 480 programs abroad

• National security developments affecting foreign policy

• Strategic planning and agreements

• War powers, treaties, executive agreements, and the deployment and use of United States Armed Forces

• Peacekeeping, peace enforcement, and enforcement of United Nations or other international sanctions

• Arms control and disarmament issues

• The International Development Finance Corporation, the United States Agency for International Development

• Activities and policies of the State, Commerce, and Defense Departments and other agencies related to the Arms Export Control Act and the Foreign Assistance Act, including export and licensing policy for munitions items and technology and dual-use equipment and technology

• International law

• Promotion of democracy

• International law enforcement issues, including narcotics control programs and activities

• International cyber issues

• U.S. Agency for Global Media

• Embassy security; international broadcasting

• Public diplomacy, including international communication and information policy, and international education and exchange programs; and all other matters not specifically assigned to a subcommittee.

• The Export Administration Act, including the export and licensing of dual-use equipment and technology and other matters related to international economic policy and trade not otherwise assigned to a subcommittee, and with respect to the United Nations, its affiliated agencies, and other international organizations, including assessed and voluntary contributions to such organizations.

https://youtu.be/qL304Im6BNQ

Germany Expels 40 Russian Diplomats With Suspected Spy-Agency Links

Germany, France, Italy among the countries kicking out staff

Berlin justifies step citing Russia’s “unbelievable brutality”

ByMichael Nienaber and Charles Daly

April 4, 2022, 11:00 AM CDTUpdated onApril 5, 2022, 6:28 AM CDT

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Numerous European Union countries expelled Russian diplomats following the apparent slaying of Ukrainian civilians in Bucha, a town near Kyiv that was among the first targets of invading Russian forces.

Germany said late Monday it was kicking out 40 staff members from the Russian embassy in Berlin with suspected links to spy agencies. France followed suit, saying it was telling 35 diplomats to leave. And on Tuesday, Italy confirmed the expulsion of 30 Russian officials, while Denmark said it was sending 15 diplomats home and Sweden expelled three. The Baltic nations, Bulgaria and Poland have announced similar moves.

The EU is working on further sanctions against Russia after the world reacted with horror and outrage to the apparent war crimes in Ukraine.

Images of the victims in Bucha show “the unbelievable brutality of the Russian leadership” and those who follow its propaganda, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said Monday. There’s a fear similar evidence might emerge from other areas in Ukraine occupied by Russian troops, she said.

“The federal government has therefore decided today to declare as persona non grata a significant number of members of the Russian Embassy who have worked every day against our freedom and against the cohesion of our society here in Germany,” Baerbock said.

The decision came after Bloomberg reported last week that Germany was mulling the expulsion of a large number of suspected Russian spies. Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko said Russia will respond to the expulsions, Interfax reported.

Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi described the Bucha scenes as “astonishing,” and said that “the cruelty of the massacre against innocent civilians is scary and intolerable.”

France, meanwhile, said the Russians are being expelled because they were conducting activities “contrary to our security interests,” according to a statement.

Sweden said it based its decision on its assessment that the three Russian diplomats conducted illegal intelligence gathering in breach of the Vienna Convention on diplomatic relations.

“We will see what reactions we get and take it further then if we need,” Foreign Minister Ann Linde said at a news conference in Stockholm.

Spain will expel some 25 diplomats and embassy staff, Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares said in a press conference Tuesday. The final list of names is being put together Tuesday, Albares said.

— With assistance by Kevin Whitelaw, Chiara Albanese, Samy Adghirni, Jonas Ekblom, and Clara Hernanz Lizarraga

(Updates with Spain announcement in last paragraph)

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-04-04/germany-expels-40-russian-diplomats-with-suspected-spy-links

U.S.-German operation shuts down world’s largest darknet marketplace

German investigators said they seized cryptocurrency worth about $25 million and said the site specialized in drug dealing.

April 5, 2022, 9:19 AM CDT

By Pete Williams

German authorities on Tuesday, in coordination with the U.S. Justice Department, shut down the Hydra market, a Russian-language site they described as the world’s largest and longest-running illegal marketplace on the dark web.

German investigators said they seized cryptocurrency worth about $25 million and said the site specialized in drug dealing. The site’s infrastructure was shut down in Germany, the result of an investigation that began eight months ago.

“Today the German Federal Criminal Police, in coordination with U.S. federal law enforcement, seized the servers of Hydra Market,” the Justice Department said in a brief statement. More details would be revealed later in the day, it said.

German authorities said the site had been active at least since 2015, offering illegal drugs, intercepted data and forged documents. They said it had more than 17 million customer accounts.

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/justice-department/us-german-operation-shuts-worlds-largest-darknet-marketplace-rcna23002