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Trump, who said the Fifth Amendment is for guilty mobsters, invoked the Fifth Amendment.
Two days after his Florida resort and home estate was searched by FBI agents, former president Donald Trump met with New York state investigators probing his business dealings, but said he invoked his Fifth Amendment rights and declined to answer their questions under oath.
Under the Fifth Amendment protection against self-incrimination, individuals may refuse to give answers to questions in civil or criminal proceedings that might incriminate them in future criminal proceedings.
The civil investigation led by New York state — which is separate from the federal criminal probe into alleged violations of the Presidential Records Act that is said to have led to the Mar-a-Lago search on Monday — involves allegations that the Trump Organization committed financial fraud and misstated the value of assets such as skyscrapers and golf courses to tax authorities.
And in addition to these investigations:
Trump has been fined more than $100,000 and was held in contempt of court in May for refusing to comply with a subpoena.
The Trump Organization is the subject of a probe by the Manhattan district attorney general, which appeared to sputter out earlier this year.
The Trump Organization is also the subject of yet another probe in Westchester County related to a golf course.
Trump is being investigated by authorities in Georgia for potential criminal election interference.
At the federal level, Trump faces the possibility of consequences over the Capitol riot and his alleged election interference.
Special force attack on a Russian military base
- Ukrainian special forces bombed a major Russian air base in Crimea. A Ukraine official told the Washington Post this information on the condition of anonymity. It's possible that this is the biggest single-day loss Russia's air force has experienced in the war so far.
- Russia annexed Crimea from Ukraine in 2014. The two countries have been in conflict over whom the territory belongs to ever since.
- At least one person was killed and multiple people were injured, CNN reported.
Snapshots
A former Twitter employee was found guilty of spying for Saudi Arabia. Ahmad Abouammo passed information about accounts critical of the Saudi government in exchange for over $300,000 and a gold watch, according to the federal government’s case.
A beluga whale that was stuck in the Seine River in France died while being transported to a saltwater pool. During transportation on Wednesday, scientists discovered that it was having respiratory issues and decided to euthanize the beluga to end its suffering.
Seventeen celebrities received warning letters from a consumer watchdog group about shilling NFTs. The Federal Trade Commission requires people to disclose when they make money from something they post about on social media. (Also lol, this celebrity list is hilarious.)
Let’s talk about monkeypox and queer dance parties.
For the uninitiated, a circuit party is like a rave for queer men where attendees are typically shirtless and dancing — and, in many cases, doing a little more than dancing — in close quarters for hours on end. In short, it’s a good place for a virus to spread.
In fact, experts believe the current monkeypox outbreak can be traced to two circuit parties in Spain and Belgium. In the US, monkeypox began local transmission in the Dallas area after the Daddyland Festival in late June and early July, which included a number of big parties. Currently, the World Health Organization has said men who have sex with men have made up more than 98% of known cases in the current outbreak.
If you do choose to attend a circuit party, there are a few things you can do to reduce your risk, including wearing clothing that covers a lot of skin and minimizing the number of people you touch, especially those with visible rashes.
And while public health experts BuzzFeed News spoke to don't recommend shutting down circuit parties entirely, “there is a level of responsibility I feel that party promoters need to demonstrate about risk stratification and management," said gastroenterologist Carlton Thomas. "Provide more space and less crowding, and education about risk factors and the fact that you need to give time to allow vaccines to become effective.”
Indian Matchmaking didn't need a second season.
If you want a pleasant romp spent sympathizing with people over the complications of dating, Indian Matchmaking Season 2 delivers. But the show's middling second season points to the main crack in the Indian Matchmaking’s formula: namely, that Sima doesn’t actually appear to have much success as a matchmaker, writes Meha Razdan.
Most of the series’ successful couples aren’t actually matched by Sima; rather, clients find partners themselves, outside of the show’s purview. The dates that Sima does facilitate have mixed results, but the overwhelming response from this season’s clients is that they don’t feel any chemistry. At times, this plays out in wincingly memorable ways — I was watching with my fingers covering my eyes as one woman pointedly asked her date why he doesn’t look like his biodata pictures — but on the whole, it’s just awkward. The only thing less enjoyable than being on an underwhelming first date is watching a series of other people’s underwhelming first dates.
If Indian Matchmaking does have a main character, it is perhaps the institution of the arranged marriage itself. We see how arranged marriage functions in the modern world; it seems less like a terrible burden imposed on unwilling participants, and more like a systematic way for people to take their futures into their own hands.
Still reading, eh? Seems like you might want to get this in your inbox. No pressure though. Just some food for thought.