Ohio Senate candidate: Reparations for white descendants of northern Civil War soldiers

 Bernie Moreno, a Republican looking to challenge US Sen. Sherrod Brown, suggested the white descendants of northern Civil War soldiers should be eligible for some form of compensation.

“We stand at the shoulders of giants, don’t we? We stand on shoulders of people like John Adams, James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, George Washington. That this group of people took on the largest empire in history. They said no, we will not stand for this. And won,” Moreno told supporters at a campaign event in the Buckeye State this week.

“That same group of people later, white people, died to free black people. It’s never happened in human history before, but it happened here in America. That’s not taught a lot in schools much is it?” he added.

“They make it sound like America is a racist, broken country. You name a country that did that: that freed slaves, died to do that. You know, they talk about reparations. Where are the reparations for the people in the North who died to save the lives of black people?”

Moreno is the second GOP candidate to jump into the race.

Twitter/@Heartland Signal

Moreno poses with former President Donald Trump.

Facebook/Bernie Moreno

Moreno is hoping to oust the incumbent senator.

AP

Moreno, a business owner, is the second GOP candidate to jump into the race and faces a primary from Ohio State Senator Matt Dolan. The 2024 Ohio Senate race is a top target for Republicans looking to reclaim the upper chamber.

Though Ohio has a long history as a battleground, it has trended red in recent years. Incumbent Brown is the last major elected statewide Democrat. Ohio strongly backed former president Trump in 2016 and 2020 and sent his preferred candidate, J.D. Vance, to the Senate last year.

https://nypost.com/2023/04/22/ohio-senate-candidate-floats-reparations-for-white-people/

Impeachment? Top GOP: IRS Whistleblower, China 'Collusion', Hunter Laptop Letter Hoax "Tip Of Iceberg"

 A Republican member of the House Oversight Committee thinks a flurry of recent corruption scandals could lead to the impeachment of President Joe Biden.

Between the revelation that the 'Hunter laptop letter hoax' signed by 51 current and former intelligence officials was created at the best of Antony Blinken during the 2020 US election, the obvious implications of CCP leverage over the Biden family, and information presented by an IRS whistleblower regarding the Hunter Biden probe, things may get interesting according to Rep. Tim Burchett (R-TN).

When asked about China's influence over the Biden family, Burchett told Fox News' Maria Bartiromo on Friday: "We know of at least eight Biden family members who have profited from dealings overseas," adding "I think if you delve into it deep enough, there's prostitution rings involved in this, human trafficking has been rumored to be part of some of this. These so-called companies that have allowed the Biden family to profit. It is gross, and it is disgusting."

"If I was those 51 people, I'd be lawyering up right now because they're going to be asked in public at some point what they knew and if they knew that all this other stuff was going on, because it is very damning Maria. This is just the very tip of the iceberg," he continued.

"This very brave IRS agent coming forward, I think, will just start it," Burchett said, referring to the senior agent in charge of the Hunter Biden investigation who came forward earlier this week in a letter to lawmakers, accusing the DOJ of 'mishandling' the Hunter Biden case, and that his client had information that would contradict sworn testimony from a senior political appointee.

When asked if that might lead to an impeachment, Burchett said: "If this coverup shows what's going on, what we assume is going on, and that the 51 folks were basically lied to and showed false documentation, how can you not..."

The lawyer for the whistleblower joined "Special Report with Bret Baier" Thursday night claiming his client is "not a political person" and does not have a "political agenda," but does have documents to support his allegations that he hopes to bring to both congressional Democrats and Republicans.

"If you delve into it deep enough, there's prostitution rings involved in this. Human trafficking has been rumored to be a part of some of these so-called companies that have allowed the Biden family to profit. It is gross and it is disgusting about what has been allowed to go on," Burchett said. -Fox News

"I cannot imagine how the Justice Department allowed this to go on, if not for corruption at the highest level. And they are in some serious trouble right now. I think they know it," Burchett continued.

When it comes to China, Burchett said: [China has] so much invested in this White House now, that their cover-up upon cover-ups will continue. But I can assure you that the American people understand what's going on," adding "And I can assure you that [Oversight] Chairman Comer and Chairman Jordan are steering this in the right direction. As I stated before, this is complete collusion with the communist Chinese. They bought and sold this White House."

https://www.zerohedge.com/political/biden-impeachment-house-oversight-republican-says-irs-whistleblower-chinese-collusion-and

Sen. Johnson Demands Answers From Government On COVID-19 Vaccine Injury Compensation

 by Zachary Stieber via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

A U.S. senator is demanding answers from U.S. officials on compensation to people who were injured by COVID-19 vaccines.

Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), ranking member of the Senate’s Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, asked for key details on the U.S. compensation scheme, including how much each person who has been compensated requested.

The government recently paid three people who were injured by the vaccines, marking the first time payments were rendered for the COVID vaccines. But the highest payout was just $2,019.

Johnson is also asking whether the government has advertised the Countermeasures Injury Compensation Program (CICP), the only venue for federal compensation; whether officials expect an increase in claims in light of how many injury reports have been logged with the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System, and how much money injured people are eligible for under the program.

The Republican outlined the requested information in a letter to Xavier Becerra, the secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), and Carole Johnson, the administrator of the Health and Resources Administration (HRSA).

HHS and HRSA did not respond to requests for comment.

“Although the government appears to be providing very limited compensation to individuals who have filed COVID-19 vaccine injury claims, the process by which HHS evaluates these claims or even advertises the existence of this compensation program remains opaque,” Johnson told The Epoch Times in an emailed statement.

“HHS owes the American people a complete explanation of its administration of the compensation program for individuals who have suffered COVID-19 vaccine injuries,” he added.

https://www.zerohedge.com/medical/senator-demands-answers-government-covid-19-vaccine-injury-compensation

Palantir to help Ukraine prosecute alleged Russian war crimes

 Ukraine plans to deploy software from U.S. data analytics provider Palantir Technologies Inc to help it prosecute alleged war crimes committed by Russia, the company told Reuters.

Palantir, which has supplied Ukraine systems that could help it target tanks and support refugees, is now working with the country's prosecutor general's office to let investigators across Europe pool and process data, the company said.

Its software will combine intelligence and satellite imagery to build a map of evidence, for instance establishing the proximity of Russian equipment to crime scenes or aggregating photographs that Ukrainians have uploaded to social media, Palantir said.

Andriy Kostin, Ukraine's prosecutor general, said in a statement provided by Palantir: "Analysing this amount of evidence would be virtually impossible without modern IT solutions".

The data that Palantir's software will process relates to claims of alleged killing, rape, torture and destruction, part of more than 78,000 crimes reported in Ukraine since Russia invaded more than a year ago.

Moscow has denied attacking civilians or perpetrating war crimes.

A successful prosecution would require Ukraine to navigate overlapping court jurisdictions and furnish evidence despite often restricted access to suspects or crime scenes. The country is embracing technology to address this task.

Palantir said its technology would allow investigators to access otherwise siloed data while working to prevent evidence tampering.

The Denver-based company, which two decades ago got its start aiding U.S. intelligence services, recently reported its first profitable quarter.

For now, Palantir is not charging for the war-crimes work, a spokesperson said.

Its partnership with Ukrainian prosecutors will centre on alleged crimes of aggression decided by Russia's leadership and on claims of systemic attacks on the Ukrainian people, Palantir said.

A U.N.-mandated investigative body last month faulted Russia for war crimes, though its chair said it had not found evidence of genocide, which is being investigated by Ukraine.

https://www.marketscreener.com/news/latest/Data-company-Palantir-to-help-Ukraine-prosecute-alleged-Russian-war-crimes--43607260/

Italy needs sovereign wealth fund to lure private savings - Meloni

 Italy needs a sovereign wealth fund to funnel its large private savings into the corporate sector and boost the economy, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni was quoted as telling the Milano Finanza newspaper.

"A national sovereign wealth fund, open to private contributions, could be the right instrument to relaunch investments, channelling Italy's enormous savings towards productive ends, for the nation's industrial and technological development," Meloni said in an interview published on Saturday.

Italy already has a state lender, Cassa Depositi e Prestiti (CDP), which lends money to local administrations and invests in projects deemed of national interest, but is less active in the corporate sector than a sovereign fund.

Meloni also said she was working with economy and finance minister Giancarlo Giorgetti to increase the share of Italians who invest in government debt but ruled out a tax cut on domestic government bonds.

The country, which has the highest debt to GDP ratio in the eurozone after Greece, should make its debt pile more sustainable by spurring economic growth, she said.

Meloni also spoke about the EU Stability and Growth Pact, a set of fiscal rules to limit government borrowing and safeguard the value of the euro currency.

Talks are underway for a reform of the pact due to large investment needs in some member states following the pandemic, and Meloni, who is the leader of far-right Brothers of Italy party, said austerity measures implemented to rein in public debt proved useless.

"The new stability pact will have to be growth-oriented, which does not mean a lessening of the focus on public accounts, but using resources appropriately and launching appropriate policies," she said. 

https://www.marketscreener.com/quote/stock/POSTE-ITALIANE-S-P-A-24446274/news/Italy-needs-sovereign-wealth-fund-to-lure-private-savings-Meloni-43607372/

China's push to hijack enemy satellites could be 'game over' for US

 A national security expert is sounding the alarm on China's developing cyber capabilities after a classified U.S. intelligence leak reportedly exposed their efforts to build weapons to overtake enemy satellites.John Hannah, former national security adviser for Vice President Cheney, issued a dire warning Friday on China's aggressive investments in technology, arguing that their strategy is intended disrupt, degrade and destroy U.S. space capabilities. 

"The future of warfare, one of the most contested domains, is going to be space. Space, in essence, is the new high ground. [The] country that controls space and the next battlefield is effectively, I think, got the best chance of actually winning the war," Hannah explained on "Cavuto: Coast to Coast."

"If China is able to knock out our ability to see what the enemy is doing, our ability to exert command and control and communications between our own forces, it's virtually game over for us on the battlefield here on Earth," he continued.

The revelations were included in classified U.S. intelligence allegedly leaked by 21-year-old Massachusetts Air National Guardsman Jack Teixeira, The Financial Times reported Friday.

The CIA report assessed China's plan to use cyber weapons to "deny, exploit or hijack" Western satellites used for wartime communication and surveillance.

China has increasingly invested in and enhanced their space programs in recent years, creating new threats to U.S. security. According to officials with the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA), the communist nation has been reorganizing and reforming their space forces, using the majority of its 541 satellites sent to space for reconnaissance or intelligence gathering. 

Hannah noted China's recent cyber-technology advancements have allowed them to not only disrupt U.S. satellites, but to "mimic" our frequencies.

"What we heard about it most recently in the leaks was this very advanced cyber capability that they have to not only disrupt our satellites and what they're able to see, but to actually have the same frequency and mimic our frequencies and actually communicate and take over our satellites," he said.

"We've known for a long time the Chinese have ground based anti-satellite missiles that they're working on. It's directed energy and lasers being used to blind our satellites. And it's satellites up in space that the Chinese are working on that would be able to actually attack our satellites in orbit around the Earth."

The former national security adviser concluded by issuing an urgent warning to the Biden administration.

"We've got to have more satellites, better protected, more resilient, cheaper, because these systems are very, very expensive. So we've got to meld industry and government, work on this, DOD, work on this together," Hannah concluded.

"It's going to take a whole of society approach to figure out, because the Chinese… are a genuine peer competitor. And in some areas, particularly on the offensive side of the equation, they're exceeding us right now."

https://www.foxbusiness.com/technology/chinas-push-hijack-enemy-satellites-game-over-us-national-security-expert-warns

US Homeland security chief creating artificial intelligence task force

 U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said Friday that the agency would create a task force to figure out how to use artificial intelligence to do everything from protecting critical infrastructure to screening cargo to ferret out products made with slave labor.

While artificial intelligence isn't new, the sudden popularity of OpenAI's ChatGPT in recent months has sent officials around the world scrambling to see how they can best use the technology for good and prevent it from turbocharging disinformation and criminal activity.

Mayorkas said the technology would "drastically alter the threat landscape," adding: "Our department will lead in the responsible use of AI to secure the homeland and in defending against the malicious use of this transformational technology."

Mayorkas said the Artificial Intelligence Task Force would also explore how AI could be used to do a better job of doing work like screening cargo coming into the country for illicit goods, like fentanyl or products made with slave labor.

Mayorkas also urged efforts to use AI to secure electric grids and water supply systems, both of which have been feared to be potential targets of adversaries.

"The rapid pace of technological change – the pivotal moment we are now in – requires that we also act today," he said.

Mayorkas said on Thursday the new task force may also investigate the potential for AI to be used for pernicious purposes, and find ways to defend against them. He said any move to regulate AI would have to find a "sweet spot" where the government could develop guardrails without stifling innovation.

Mayorkas said that artificial intelligence was still in "a nascent stage" and that it was too soon to say whether the harms will outweigh the good.

"The power is extraordinary," he said.

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/us-homeland-security-chief-creating-130438198.html