Georgia Judge Dismisses Several Counts In Trump Election Interference Case

 Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee dismissed six charges out of the 40-count indictment in the election interference case against former President Donald Trump and his co-defendants, including three of the counts against Trump.

The ruling, which is not linked to Fulton County DA Fani Willis's (D) relationship with a special prosecutor she hired on the case - however McAfee is expected to rule on that later this week as well.

The tossed charges do not impact the RICO charge that serves as the foundation for this unprecedented prosecution.

Each of the tossed charges related to alleged efforts by Trump and some of his co-defendants, including former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani and White House chief of staff Mark Meadows, to solicit Georgia officials to violate their oaths of office.

The judge ruled that while the charges do contain the “essential” elements of each crime, they fail to provide enough detail for the defendants to mount their defenses. Under the current charges, McAfee said, the defendants could have violated the law in “dozens, if not hundreds, of distinct ways.” -The Hill

"The Court’s concern is less that the State has failed to allege sufficient conduct of the Defendants – in fact it has alleged an abundance," McAfee wrote. "However, the lack of detail concerning an essential legal element is, in the undersigned’s opinion, fatal."

Judge Scott McAfee presides over a hearing regarding media access in the case against former US President Donald Trump and 18 co-defendents, at the Fulton County Courthouse in Atlanta, Georgia, on August 31, 2023.
Arvin Temkar | AFP | Getty Images

McAfee also emphasized that his ruling "does not mean the entire indictment is dismissed," and preserved Fulton County's ability to seek new indictments once they supplement the charges to his satisfaction.

He also gave the state a six-month extension to resubmit the charges to a grand jury, even if the statute of limitations expires, and that he would "likely grant" a request to appeal.

https://www.zerohedge.com/political/georgia-judge-dismisses-several-counts-trump-election-interference-case

US Urgently Deploys Elite Counterterror Marines To Haiti

 The Pentagon has confirmed it is urgently deploying an elite counter-terror task force to bolster the American embassy in Haiti after armed gangs have taken over much of the capital of Port-au-Prince and the long-simmering situation is now boiling over, with violence spreading, also in the wake of embattled Haitian Prime Minister Ariel Henry's resignation Tuesday. Further there's a threat of a "mass migration" wave potentially inundating US coastal communities in places like Florida as a result.

US Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) announced Wednesday that at the request of the State Department the elite Marine Fleet-Anti-terrorism Security Team (FAST) has been deployed to the destabilized country to assist in embassy security.

Already for months there has been rising concern for US citizens still in the country, who have been urged by the embassy to immediately depart the Caribbean island-nation, as an utter state of lawlessness reins overseen by criminal warlords. The past years have witnessed a handful of kidnappings targeting Americans, including aid workers, and other foreign citizens.

"U.S. Southern Command is prepared with a wide range of contingency plans to ensure the safety and security of U.S. Citizens in Haiti," SOUTHCOM said in its statement. Not only will the FAST team assist the Marine embassy guard already in place to better secure the embassy in a scenario where it could come under attack, but it will reportedly help in the evacuation of non-essential American personnel.

The US military statement continued, "This week, the Department of Defense doubled our funding for the Multinational Security Support (MSS) mission, and we are working with Haitian, Kenyan, and other partners to expedite its deployment to support the Haitian National Police and to restore security in Haiti."

The Haitian government recently approved the deployment of Kenyan peacekeeping troops as part of a UN-sponsored mission, but there are reports the plan is still stalled. This has been a long time in coming after the US and other countries refused to spearhead such an operation, given this have not gone well for US-led peacekeeping missions in Haiti in the recent past.

The FAST team deployment is typically the next logical step when an embassy comes under potential threat due to destabilizing and chaotic factors within a country. Warlords and rival gangs are not only fighting the police, but often each other as well, resulting in dangerous city 'no go zones' for the civilian population.

Interestingly, the State Department urgent request for the elite group comes immediately on the heels of a tense Congressional hearing wherein Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida grilled SOUTHCOM chief Gen, Laura Richardson yesterday.

Gaetz had asked Richardson whether the US government should "activate the authorities, anticipating a mass migration." She responded: "I think that we need to be postured appropriately for that. I have put in a request for increase capability to do exactly that. And we are ready if we need to deal with a mass migration."

However, if mass migratory throngs are unleashed and all hell breaks loose even further, the US government is going to need much more than a small detachment of security Marines to do the job.

Conditions in Haiti have been becoming increasingly dire in recent months due to widespread gang violence and civil unrest. Armed gangs now reportedly control around 80% of Port-au-Prince, and likely this is now growing by the day.

https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/elite-marine-counter-terror-unit-deployed-haiti-bolster-embassy-security-protect

Unemployment Rates Rose in 218 of the 389 Metropolitan Areas

 The BLS reports unemployment rates were up in 218 metro areas. Nonfarm employment only rose in 59 areas.

Graph from the BLS, 10 highest list added by Mish.

Please consider the BLS Metropolitan Area Employment and Unemployment report for January 2024.

Unemployment Rate Key Details

• Unemployment rates were higher in January than a year earlier in 218 of the 389 metropolitan areas, lower in 148 areas, and unchanged in 23 areas.
• A total of 62 areas had jobless rates of less than 3.0 percent and 13 areas had rates of at least 8.0 percent.
• Nonfarm payroll employment increased over the year in 59 metropolitan areas, decreased in 3 areas, and was essentially unchanged in 327 areas.
• The national unemployment rate in January was 4.1 percent, not seasonally adjusted, little changed from a year earlier.
• Of the 51 metropolitan areas with a 2010 Census population of 1 million or more, Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL, had the lowest jobless rate in January, 2.4 percent.
• Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA, and Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA, had the highest rates, 5.5 percent each.
• Thirty-three large areas had over-the-year unemployment rate increases, 11 had decreases, and 7 had no change.

Nonfarm Payrolls Key Details

• In January, nonfarm payroll employment increased over the year in 59 metropolitan areas, decreased in 3 areas, and was essentially unchanged in 327 areas.
• The largest over-the-year employment increases occurred in New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA (+160,100), Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX (+83,300), and Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL (+78,900).
• The largest over-the-year percentage gain in employment occurred in Madera, CA (+6.6 percent), followed by Ithaca, NY, and Yuba City, CA (+6.2 percent each).
• The over-the-year decreases in employment occurred in Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA (-23,600, or -1.9 percent), Memphis, TN-MS-AR (-12,600, or -1.9 percent), and Kahului Wailuku-Lahaina, HI (-5,400, or -7.1 percent).

Top 12 High Unemployment Rate States

1. California: 5.7
2. Washington: 5.4
3. Nevada 5.2
4. Alaska: 5.2
5. D.C.: 5.2
6. New Jersey: 5.2
7. Illinois: 5.1
8. Connecticut: 5.0
9. Oregon: 4.9
10. Kentucky: 4.8
11. West Virginia: 4.7
12. Rhode Island: 4.6

Top 12 Low Unemployment Rate States

1. South Dakota: 2.2
2. North Dakota: 2.5
3. New Hampshire: 2.6
4. Nebraska: 2.7
5. Vermont: 2.7
6. Virginia: 2.7
7. Kansas: 2.8
8. Maryland: 2.8
9. Wisconsin: 2.8
10. Utah: 3.0
11. Florida, Georgia, Hawaii: 3.1

Jobs Up 275,000 with 52,000 More Government Jobs, Employment Down 184,000

Payrolls and employment data from the BLS, chart by Mish

Payrolls vs Employment Gains Since March 2022

• Nonfarm Payrolls: 6,438,000
• Employment Level: +2,797,000
• Full Time Employment: +439,000

In the last 23 months, the economy added 6.4 million jobs, but full time employment only rose by 439,000.

For more discussion of the latest employment report, please see my detailed report Jobs with seven charts: Jobs Up 275,000 with 52,000 More Government Jobs, Employment Down 184,000

2024 is starting where 2023 ended. Job growth is soaring, but employment isn’t. Second, the number of jobs needed to take care of illegal immigration is a huge percentage of the increase in jobs.

Huge Percentage of Job Gains are Related to Taking Care of Immigrants

Data from the BLS, chart by Mish.

For more discussion of the above chart, please see Huge Percentage of Job Gains are Related to Taking Care of Immigrants

https://mishtalk.com/economics/unemployment-rates-rose-in-218-of-the-389-metropolitan-areas/

NeuroBo OKd to Continue With Its Phase 2a for MASH

 Blinded Safety Review Completed for the First 6 Months of the Phase 2a Clinical Trial Conduct; Recommending Trial Continue Without Modification

Full Data Readout Expected in the Second Half of 2024

NeuroBo Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: NRBO), a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on transforming cardiometabolic diseases, today announced receipt of Safety Review Committee (SRC) approval, recommending that the two-part Phase 2a trial of DA-1241, a novel G-Protein-Coupled Receptor 119 (GPR119) agonist for the treatment of metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH), continue without modification following a blinded safety review of the first six months of study conduct. The Phase 2a clinical trial is designed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of DA-1241, for the treatment of MASH. The company anticipates a full data readout from the trial in the second half of 2024.

Each of the two-parts of the Phase 2a trial of DA-1241 are designed to be 16-week, multicenter, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel clinical studies to evaluate the efficacy and safety of DA-1241 in subjects with presumed MASH. Part 1 is exploring the efficacy of DA-1241 versus placebo, and is expected to enroll 49 subjects, with a planned maximum of 55 subjects to account for early discontinuations. Subjects will be randomized in a 1:2:1 ratio into 3 treatment groups: DA-1241 50 mg, DA-1241 100 mg, or placebo. Part 2, which will explore the efficacy of DA-1241 in combination with sitagliptin versus placebo, is expected to enroll approximately 37 subjects who will be randomized in a 2:1 ratio into 2 treatment groups: DA-1241 100 mg/sitagliptin 100 mg or placebo.

For both Part 1 and Part 2, the primary endpoint is the change from baseline in alanine transaminase (ALT) levels at Week 16. Secondary efficacy endpoints include the proportion of subjects with normalization of ALT, absolute change in total cholesterol, low and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, triglycerides, and free fatty acids from baseline, among others. Safety will be evaluated by monitoring adverse events (AEs), serious adverse events (SAEs) and AEs leading to discontinuation and laboratory abnormalities.

https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/neurobo-pharmaceuticals-receives-safety-review-committee-approval-to-continue-with-its-phase-2a-clinical-trial-evaluating-da-1241-for-the-treatment-of-mash-302087594.html

Heron target upped to $5 from $4 by Needham

Keeps buy rating

https://finviz.com/quote.ashx?t=HRTX&p=d

Fractyl Effects of Single Dose Human GLP-1 Pancreatic Gene Therapy Transgene v. Semaglutide in Mouse Model

 Data provides first demonstration of glucose lowering and weight loss potency from pancreas-produced native human GLP-1, highlighting the capacity of pancreatic GLP-1 to provide metabolic control.

The human GLP-1 transgene sequence used in RJVA-001 was administered to eight-week-old db/db mice with established disease and resulted in up to 50% blood sugar lowering and 11% weight loss vs vehicle at four weeks after a single administration, compared to 32% glucose lowering and 2% weight loss vs vehicle with chronic semaglutide.

These results with a native, short half-life human GLP-1 sequence to be used in RJVA-001 build upon earlier results with a prototype transgene GLP-1 analogue.

https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2024/03/12/2844941/0/en/UPDATE-Fractyl-Health-Announces-New-Results-From-Its-Rejuva-Platform-Demonstrating-Potent-and-Durable-Effects-of-a-Single-Dose-of-a-Human-GLP-1-Pancreatic-Gene-Therapy-Transgene-Co.html

"Major Measles Outbreak" In US As Migrant Shelters Turn Infectious Disease Breeding Grounds

 The radical progressives in the Biden administration are responsible for the greatest migrant invasion this nation has ever seen but also an emerging public health crisis, as millions of unvaccinated and undocumented illegals (some with infectious diseases) are being piled into migrant shelters nationwide like cattle. 

Daily Mail reports the US is on the verge of a "major measles outbreak," with cases in the first two months of the year nearly eclipsing those in the previous year. 

" ... as doctors warn many young physicians have never even seen a patient infected with the virus. Hundreds of people are already feared to be infected in California and Arizona after cases were confirmed in people in the states who visited local hospitals," the media outlet said. 

It's important to recognize that migrant shelters are becoming breeding grounds for the spread of infectious diseases. Notably, it's the Democrats, often referred to as the 'party of science,' who are enabling this public health crisis to materialize while the pharma-industrial complex secretly cheers as the next crisis will need more vaccines. 

Earlier on Tuesday, Elon Musk responded to Fox News' Bill Melugin's post on X. The billionaire said "!" in response to a CNN report that a measles outbreak in a Chicago migrant shelter is quickly worsening. 

New data from the CDC shows 45 measles cases were recorded in the first two months across 17 states, nearly surpassing the 58 cases recorded in the full year of 2023. 

Source: Daily Mail 

Besides corporate media blaming a low vaccination rate, maybe - just maybe - overcrowded shelters with migrants from third-world countries are the most likely root cause of the public health crisis. None of these migrants were screened at the border for contagious diseases - and were able to walk right over - some were even flown in on airplanes, and others were bussed into sanctuary cities by a shadowy network of taxpayer-funded governmental organizations. Besides future Democrat voters, you'll never guess the reason why migrants were shipped in by the millions (that answer is found here: "Shadowy Network Of NGOs Supplies ..."). 

The open southern border is a major national security crisis that is quite literally a ticking time bomb about to go off. It's also quickly morphing into a public health crisis.  

Just wait until Democrats start pushing measles vaccines. 

Or Stephen Colbert gets another advertising deal from big pharma. 

https://www.zerohedge.com/medical/major-measles-outbreak-reported-us-migrant-shelters-become-infectious-disease-breeding