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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Sunday, March 22, 2020

Justice Department Files Its First Enforcement Action Against COVID-19 Fraud

Federal Court Issues Temporary Restraining Order Against Website Offering Fraudulent Coronavirus Vaccine

The Department of Justice announced today that it has taken its first action in federal court to combat fraud related to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. The enforcement action filed today in Austin against operators of a fraudulent website follows Attorney General William Barr’s recent direction for the department to prioritize the detection, investigation, and prosecution of illegal conduct related to the pandemic.

As detailed in the civil complaint and accompanying court papers filed on Saturday, March 21, 2020, the operators of the website “coronavirusmedicalkit.com” are engaging in a wire fraud scheme seeking to profit from the confusion and widespread fear surrounding COVID-19. Information published on the website claimed to offer consumers access to World Health Organization (WHO) vaccine kits in exchange for a shipping charge of $4.95, which consumers would pay by entering their credit card information on the website. In fact, there are currently no legitimate COVID-19 vaccines and the WHO is not distributing any such vaccine. In response to the department’s request, U.S. District Judge Robert Pitman issued a temporary restraining order requiring that the registrar of the fraudulent website immediately take action to block public access to it.

“The Department of Justice will not tolerate criminal exploitation of this national emergency for personal gain,” said Assistant Attorney General Jody Hunt of the Department of Justice’s Civil Division. “We will use every resource at the government’s disposal to act quickly to shut down these most despicable of scammers, whether they are defrauding consumers, committing identity theft, or delivering malware.”

“Attorney General Barr has directed the department to prioritize fraud schemes arising out of the coronavirus emergency,” said U.S. Attorney John F. Bash of the Western District of Texas. “We therefore moved very quickly to shut down this scam. We hope in the future that responsible web domain registrars will quickly and effectively shut down websites designed to facilitate these scams. My office will continue to be aggressive in targeting these sorts of despicable frauds for the duration of this emergency.”

“At a time when we face such unprecedented challenges with the COVID-19 crisis, Americans are understandably desperate to find solutions to keep their families safe and healthy,” said Special Agent in Charge Christopher Combs of the FBI’s San Antonio Field Office. “Fraudsters who seek to profit from their fear and uncertainty, by selling bogus vaccines or cures, not only steal limited resources from our communities, they pose an even greater danger by spreading misinformation and creating confusion. During this difficult time, protecting our communities from these reprehensible fraud schemes will remain one of the FBI’s highest priorities."

The United States filed today’s announced action to shutter the website immediately while an investigation of the website and its operators continues. In so doing, the government is employing a federal statute that permits federal courts to issue injunctions to prevent harm to potential victims of fraudulent schemes.

The Department of Justice recommends that Americans to take the following precautionary measures to protect themselves from known and emerging scams related to COVID-19:

Independently verify the identity of any company, charity, or individual that contacts you regarding COVID-19.

Check the websites and email addresses offering information, products, or services related to COVID-19. Be aware that scammers often employ addresses that differ only slightly from those belonging to the entities they are impersonating. For example, they might use “cdc.com” or “cdc.org” instead of “cdc.gov.”

Be wary of unsolicited emails offering information, supplies, or treatment for COVID-19 or requesting your personal information for medical purposes. Legitimate health authorities will not contact the general public this way.

Do not click on links or open email attachments from unknown or unverified sources. Doing so could download a virus onto your computer or device.

Make sure the anti-malware and anti-virus software on your computer is operating and up to date.

Ignore offers for a COVID-19 vaccine, cure, or treatment. Remember, if a vaccine becomes available, you won’t hear about it for the first time through an email, online ad, or unsolicited sales pitch.

Check online reviews of any company offering COVID-19 products or supplies. Avoid companies whose customers have complained about not receiving items.

https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/justice-department-files-its-first-enforcement-action-against-covid-19-fraud

Tuesday, March 24, 2020

The Justice Department and the Federal Trade Commission Announce Expedited Antitrust Procedure and Guidance for Coronavirus Public Health Efforts

anons we can find and send in fraudulent websites to their hotline below, we can help on this way

The U.S. Department of Justice Antitrust Division and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) today issued a joint statement detailing an expedited antitrust procedure and providing guidance for collaborations of businesses working to protect the health and safety of Americans during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The expedited procedure notes, for example, that health care facilities may need to work together in providing resources and services to assist patients, consumers, and communities affected by the pandemic and its aftermath. Other businesses may need to temporarily combine production, distribution, or service networks to facilitate production and distribution of COVID-19-related supplies.

Under the expedited procedure for COVID-19 public health projects, the agencies will respond to all COVID-19-related requests, and resolve those addressing public health and safety, within seven calendar days of receiving all information necessary to vet these proposals. The statement sets out the instructions for businesses wishing to take advantage of this procedure.

The expedited COVID-19 procedure offers quicker review than existing FTC and Justice Department programs that are designed to provide guidance to businesses concerned about the legality of proposed conduct under the antitrust laws. The FTC’s “Staff Advisory Opinion” procedure and DOJ’s “Business Review Letter” procedure allow any firm, individual, or group of firms or individuals to submit a proposal to the agencies and to receive a statement advising whether the agencies would challenge the proposed activity under the antitrust laws.

“The Antitrust Division recognizes the importance of providing expeditious clarity on any antitrust obligations in this challenging time,” said Assistant Attorney General Makan Delrahim of the Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division. “Our expedited Business Review Letter procedure will help facilitate businesses that want to work quickly to address the urgent public health and economic needs associated with COVID 19.”

“Under these extraordinary circumstances, we understand that businesses collaborating on public health initiatives may need an expedited response from U.S. antitrust authorities,” said FTC Chairman Joe Simons. “We are committed to doing everything we can to help with these efforts, while continuing to aggressively enforce the antitrust laws.”

The antitrust laws accommodate procompetitive collaborations among competitors. In their joint statement, the FTC and the Department of Justice listed several types of collaborative activities designed to improve the health and safety response to the pandemic that would likely be consistent with the antitrust laws.

At the same time, the agencies also stressed that they will not hesitate to hold accountable those who try to use the pandemic to engage in antitrust violations. In addition, the Department of Justice will criminally prosecute conduct such as price-fixing, bid-rigging, or market allocation.

The expedited procedure requires that an applicant provide the FTC or Justice Department a written description of the proposal, including the parties that would be involved in the effort or activity, and the name and contact information of a person from whom the agencies could obtain additional information. This expedited procedure is for use solely for coronavirus-related public health efforts and may be invoked at the option of the requestor, in lieu of the agencies’ standard procedures for handling requests for advice.

The agencies also committed to expedite requests under the National Cooperative Research and Production Act for flexible treatment of certain standard development organizations and joint ventures.

The statement also notes that the FTC and the Justice Department are addressing actions by individuals and businesses to take advantage of COVID-19 through other fraudulent and illegal schemes. Anyone with information or concerns about this sort of conduct, or other COVID-19-related complaints, should contact the FTC’s Consumer Response Center at 1-877-382-4357 or the National Center for Disaster Fraud Hotline (1-866-720-5721) or e-mail (disaster@leo.gov). More information on the FTC’s guidance on potential fraud, deceptive practices, and scams is available here, and to report a complaint go to www.ftc.gov/complaint.

https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/justice-department-and-federal-trade-commission-announce-expedited-antitrust-procedure-and

NEWSChinese Virus Playbook for Dem Politicians Based on Activist “Science” Group’s Extreme Projection

https://bigleaguepolitics.com/chinese-virus-playbook-for-dem-politicians-based-on-activist-science-groups-extreme-projection/

Dem Rep. Shalala: ‘Dangerous and Immoral’ for Trump to Talk about Reopening Economy on

These tools are really sick, how is it immoral to get people back to work to support their families and pay their bills. I think this event is really the great awakening to what the Dems will do to us

During an interview on MSNBC on Tuesday, Rep. and former HHS Secretary Donna Shalala (D-FL) stated that what President Trump “has been saying about getting back at Easter time is both dangerous and immoral.”

Shalala said, “I think that what the president has been saying about getting back at Easter time is both dangerous and immoral. And let me say that I know of no — he defies ethical standards. No American believes that we should choose the economy over human life, and that’s what’s at stake here. And the president is putting human life at risk because he wants the economy to get back, and he simply — it’s literally immoral for him to do that.”

And that witch is unholy

https://www.breitbart.com/clips/2020/03/24/dem-rep-shalala-dangerous-and-immoral-for-trump-to-talk-about-reopening-economy-on-easter/

Kek, Kek, kek

IT’S SCIENCE. Why Democrat Women Tend To Be Butt Ugly

Posted at 12:45 pm on January 11, 2017 by streiff

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Hillary Clinton. Barbara Mikulski. Dianne Feinstein. Nancy Pelosi. Samantha Power. Janet Reno. Donna Shalala**. Debbie Wasserman Schultz. Barbara Boxer. What do all of these women have in common? They are Democrats. And they are butt ugly. Mere statistics alone would suggest if you got a dozen or so Democrat women politicians together there would be some glimmer of attractiveness, no matter how dim, somewhere. But you would be wrong. However, now, thanks to SCIENCE, we know why:

Research has found that being attractive influences many things in a person’s life — their salary, their popularity and grades in school, even the prison sentences they receive. So why not their politics?

A recently published study in the Journal of Public Economics concludes that the attractiveness of a candidate does correlate with their politics. They find that politicians on the right are more good looking in Europe, the United States and Australia.

The study shows correlation, not causation, but the researchers float a simple economic explanation for why this might happen. Numerous studies have shown that good-looking people are likely to earn more, and that people who earn more are typically more opposed to redistributive policies, like the progressive taxes and welfare programs favored by the left.

The researchers also offer a more general psychological explanation for the trend: That good-looking people are often treated better than others, and thus see the world as a more just place. Past studies have found that the more attractive people believe themselves to be, the lower their preference for egalitarianism, a value typically associated with the political left.

And this might be the first time the “Hot-Or-Not” method has been used to develop data for an article in a peer reviewed journal

In their first experiment, the researchers showed respondents photographs of political candidates in Finnish municipal and parliamentary elections, members of the European Parliament, U.S. candidates for Senate and governor, and candidates for Australia’s House of Representatives. They asked participants to rate the photographs on a five-point scale. The results suggested that politicians on the right are more beautiful on all three continents.

Nothing is 100%, of course. And always remember, that we are speaking in relative terms because politics is Hollywood for ugly people. Though I focus on women (not being gay I feel more comfortable with making judgments of attractiveness on the opposite sex, though even if I were gay there is nothing wrong with that), the rule applies to men, too. Al “Rubber Face” Franken, One-eyed Harry Reid. Anthony “Weiner” Weiner, are all proof that the rule transcends sex.

**I date the beginning of my decline from having perfect vision to the day in 1997 when I encountered Donna Shalala in tennis whites in Montrose Park in Washington, DC.

https://www.redstate.com/streiff/2017/01/11/science.-democrat-women-tend-butt-ugly