Federal Court rubberstamps Blackstone takeover of Crown, James Packer to get $3.36b payday

The Federal Court has approved US private equity giant Blackstone's $8.9 billion takeover of troubled casino operator Crown Resorts.

Key points:

Today's Federal Court's decision was widely expected

It means Crown will go private after the takeover

The deal between Crown and Blackstone will be sealed next week

The acquisition is set to deliver billionaire James Packer a $3.36 billion payday in exchange for his 37 per cent stake in the company, which he has been involved with since 1999.

The court's decision was the final hurdle in the approvals process, following Blackstone getting the green light from state governments in Western Australia, New South Wales and Victoria.

The deal will mean Crown Resorts will become a private company and no longer be required to report to the ASX.

The deal will be finalised on June 24 when the money between Blackstone and Crown will change hands.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-06-15/federal-court-approves-blackstone-takeover-of-crown-casino/101153420

Australian State Media

https://www.abc.net.au/news/science/2022-06-15/google-ai-chatbot-not-sentient-how-do-we-know-intelligence/101150090

Israeli politician wishes for Palestinians to ‘disappear’

Lawmaker Matan Kahana told a group of West Bank students he would like to be able to “push a button” to deport all Arabs

A member of Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett’s ruling political party has stirred uproar by wishing out loud that he could make all Palestinian Arabs vanish from the Jewish state.

“If there was a sort of button you could push that would make all the Arabs disappear, send them on an express train to Switzerland, I would press that button,” Knesset member Matan Kahana said on Monday in remarks to a group of West Bank high-school students.

Kahana, a member of Bennett’s nationalist Yamina party who serves as deputy religious services minister, appeared to be making the point that despite their differences, Israelis and Palestinians have no choice but to find ways to co-exist. “But what can you do?” he continued. “There is no such button. Therefore it seems we were meant to exist [together] on this land in some way.”

The lawmaker’s incendiary comments were caught on video, and the footage was exposed on Tuesday by Israeli public broadcaster Kann. Kahana made his remarks on the first anniversary of Bennett sweeping to power by allying Yamina with seven other parties.

https://twitter.com/kann_news/status/1536558295824994306

https://www.rt.com/news/557166-israel-lawmaker-wishes-arabs-disappear/

https://twitter.com/kann_news/status/1536558295824994306

Israel will defend citizens ‘anywhere in world,’ Bennett vows amid Istanbul jitters

Authorities reportedly investigating after man in Turkey says he was nearly kidnapped before fighting off attacker; IDF orders all soldiers to leave country immediately

==Israel will not hesitate to act on foreign soil to protect its citizens, Prime Minister Naftali Bennett said Tuesday, amid swirling warnings of an imminent Iranian plot against Israelis.

One Israeli man in the city reportedly told authorities that he had nearly been kidnapped but managed to escape, but others defiantly said they would remain in the popular tourist hotspot or refused to cancel plans to travel there.

“In recent days, we have witnessed attempts to harm Israelis in various destinations abroad,” Bennett said during a memorial ceremony for the victims of the First Lebanon War, in his first comments on the alleged attack plot.

Israeli authorities on Monday urged citizens to leave Istanbul immediately, and reconsider non-essential travel to other parts of Turkey, warning that Iranian agents were ready to kidnap or kill Israelis there as Tehran seeks revenge for the slayings of officers blamed on Israel.

“The State of Israel’s security forces are doing everything [in their power] to thwart these attacks and to neutralize the attackers and their operators,” the prime minister said. “We will not hesitate to use the power of the State of Israel anywhere in the world, for the protection of our citizens.”

Bennett spoke hours after the IDF issued a directive ordering all soldiers in Turkey to leave immediately. The army has also canceled any future permits allowing soldiers to visit or even take a connecting flight via one of Turkey’s airports.

Channel 12 reported that Israeli authorities were looking into a report from a citizen who said he was almost kidnapped while in Turkey. The kidnapper made physical contact with the person before he managed to flee at the last minute.

The claim is being investigated by both Israeli and Turkish authorities, who are already hunting for Iranian agents operating in the country, the network said Tuesday.

Israeli authorities have issued warnings to roughly 1,000 Israelis who were currently in Iran, asking them to leave immediately.

There was significant concern among the security establishment over the fact that some Israelis were still refusing to leave the country, Channel 12 said, without citing a source.

https://www.timesofisrael.com/israel-will-defend-citizens-anywhere-in-world-bennett-vows-amid-istanbul-jitters/

Synagogue led by ‘rabbi-rouser’ sues Florida over abortion ban

Lawsuit filed by L’Dor Va-Dor congregation says law violates Jewish teachings which require abortions to protect women; Governor’s office says law will ‘withstand’ challenge

A new Florida law prohibiting abortion after 15 weeks with some exceptions violates the religious freedom rights of Jews in addition to the state constitution’s privacy protections, a synagogue claims in a lawsuit.

The lawsuit filed by the Congregation L’Dor Va-Dor of Boynton Beach contends the law that takes effect July 1 violates Jewish teachings, which state abortion “is required if necessary to protect the health, mental or physical well-being of the woman” and for other reasons.

“As such, the act prohibits Jewish women from practicing their faith free of government intrusion and this violates their privacy rights and religious freedom,” says the lawsuit, filed last week in Leon County Circuit Court.

The lawsuit adds that people who “do not share the religious views reflected in the act will suffer” and that it “threatens the Jewish people by imposing the laws of other religions upon Jews.”

The lawsuit is the second challenge to the 15-week abortion ban enacted earlier this year by the Legislature and signed into law by Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. Planned Parenthood and other reproductive health providers also sued earlier this month to block the law from taking effect.

In a previous statement, DeSantis’ office said it “is confident that this law will ultimately withstand all legal challenges.”

https://www.timesofisrael.com/synagogue-led-by-rabbi-rouser-sues-florida-over-abortion-ban/

Jim Banks Presses Biden DOJ for Answers After BLM Rioter’s Arson Charges Dropped

Rep. Jim Banks (R-IN) pressed President Joe Biden’s Department of Justice (DOJ) for answers after the agency dropped arson charges against a leftwing rioter, according to a letter exclusively obtained by Breitbart News.

Law enforcement officials arrested and charged then-19 year-old Victor Sanchez-Santa in federal court with arson charges in June 2020, shortly after he allegedly ignited a fire that burned an NYPD vehicle during the aftermath of the George Floyd riots.

According to the federal complaint filed against Sanchez-Santa:

On June 9, 2020, at approximately 1:20 a.m., SANCHEZ-SANTA stopped his car beside a marked NYPD vehicle on West 42nd Street in Manhattan. He got out of his car, took a cloth glove in his hand and held the glove to a flame until it ignited. He then put the burning glove underneath the NYPD vehicle, and got back into his car, leaving the glove burning beneath the police car.

After his arrest, United States Attorney Geoffrey S. Berman praised federal and local law enforcement officials for their quick response and help in identifying the defendant.

Although arson carries a mandatory minimum sentence of five years in prison and a maximum 20-year sentence, Biden’s DOJ tossed out the case in November 2021.

United States Attorney T. Josiah Pertz wrote:

Based on a review of the evidence in the case and information pertaining to this defendant acquired subsequent to the filing of the Indictment, the Government has concluded that further prosecution of VICTOR SANCHEZ-SANTA would not be in the interests of justice.

The DOJ also determined that “deferring prosecution” would be in the best interests of the defendant and the United States.

Instead of prison time, prosecutors let Sanchez-Santa off with nine months of probation and mandatory anger management classes.

Banks requested Attorney General Merrick Garland send his office “all evidence in the case and information pertaining to this defendant acquired subsequent to the filing of the Indictment” that contributed to the DOJ’s decision to drop charges by June 24.

https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2022/06/14/exclusive-jim-banks-presses-biden-doj-for-answers-after-blm-rioters-arson-charges-dropped/

Biden Climate Adviser Gina McCarthy Calls on Big Tech to Censor Opposers of Biden’s Climate Agenda

Big Tech should step in and censor individuals who oppose President Biden’s climate change agenda, National Climate Adviser Gina McCarthy told Axios’s Alexi McCammond in an interview last week.

“And so the challenges now that we’re moving from denial to actually just trying to, to disengage the public from understanding the values of solar energy, the values of wind energy, the benefits of clean energy. We have to get tighter, we have to get better at communicating,” McCarthy said during an appearance at Axios’s The Infodemic Age event on Thursday.

Further, McCarthy said Big Tech should step in and “stop allowing” people to spread what the administration considers to be “misinformation” regarding Biden’s climate change agenda.

“And frankly, the tech companies have to stop allowing specific individuals over and over again to spread disinformation. That’s what the fossil fuel companies pay for,” McCarthy asserted.

“That’s what folks who make money out of fossil fuels and don’t make money and don’t care about saving consumers cost. That’s what they do. We have to be smarter than that, and we need the tech companies to really jump in,” she added:

During that same interview, McCarthy claimed that fossil fuel companies and climate change pose “a significant threat to public health.”

“Fossil fuels have actually created significant health challenges on our country, not just climate change, but we’re talking about pollution that’s impacting people’s lives,” she claimed.

Notably, McCarthy asserted last year that it would be “ridiculous” to ask Americans to “sacrifice” for the climate due to the ramifications of the Chinese coronavirus pandemic. But her recent blame on oil and gas companies comes as gas prices reach yet another record high, hitting $5.016 per gallon.

Her remarks also follow the controversy over Biden’s attempts to establish a disinformation board. According to Department of Homeland Security (DHS) documents obtained by Sens. Josh Hawley (R-MO) and Chuck Grassley (R-IA), “DHS had plans for its Disinformation Governance Board (DGB) to partner with Big Tech companies to monitor domestic speech about topics including election security and COVID-19,” as Breitbart News detailed.

“As it turns out, Tucker, the people that the Biden administration thinks are the real threat to America,” he said. “It’s not the drug cartels. It’s not foreign threats. It’s you. It’s the American people,” Hawley said during an appearance on Tucker Carlson Tonight.

“If you have questions about COVID, if you have questions about COVID masks, if you have questions about the COVID vaccine, this administration wanted you to be monitored. This Disinformation Board was set up to go after you,” he added. “That’s what the documents say.”

https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2022/06/14/biden-climate-adviser-gina-mccarthy-calls-on-big-tech-to-censor-opposers-of-bidens-climate-agenda/

FDA Advisers Unanimously Recommend Moderna’s Covid-19 Vaccine for Ages 6-17 Despite Data Showing High Risks of Heart Inflammation

Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine may have a higher risk of heart inflammation than the Pfizer shot based on recent data, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Tuesday.

On Tuesday, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration met with its Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee (VRBPAC) to discuss Moderna’s EUA request for a COVID-19 vaccine for children 6 through 17 years of age.

The same expert panel will meet again on Wednesday to discuss shots from Moderna and Pfizer for the kids under 5.

According to the CDC data, the incidence of heart inflammation was 4.41 excess per 100,000 who received the Pfizer/BioNTech for males aged 18-39 versus 6.27 excess cases per 100,000 for Moderna, Reuters reported.

Daniel Horowitz, the senior editor at The Blaze, tweeted on Monday regarding the side effects of the Moderna vaccine.

“Holy Moly! one-quarter of the kids in Moderna’s trial reported Grade 3 side effects, meaning they couldn’t go to school https://fda.gov/media/159189/download… So many had flu-like symptoms! Even the original strain of covid mainly did this to kids. Yet, we are giving them these symptoms upfront,” Horowitz tweeted.

The FDA called on speakers about their views on authorizing the Moderna vaccine for children ages 6 to 17. Some of the invited speakers were not in favor of the vaccine due to its life-threatening risks that completely ruined their lives.

Robyn Handsman was one of the speakers invited to share her first-hand experience with the experimental Moderna vaccine. Mrs. Handsman got her first Moderna shot on September 15, 2021. The following day, she woke up and her hands and arms were completely numb and tingly. Her blood pressure was also extremely high. After five days, her doctor informed her that she has protein in her urine. She was diagnosed also with permanent kidney damage.

https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2022/06/update-fda-advisers-unanimously-recommend-modernas-covid-19-vaccine-ages-6-17-despite-data-showing-high-risks-heart-inflammation/