Arkansas AG warns Temu isn't like Amazon or Walmart: 'It's a theft business'

 You know the saying that when a store’s prices are unbeatable, they’re likely unbelievable?

That’s the same warning Arkansas’ attorney general is giving to Americans who shop on Chinese-based Temu, alleging "it’s a theft business."

"The threat from China is not new, and it is real," AG Jim Griffin said on "Varney & Co." Tuesday. "Temu is not an online marketplace like Amazon or Walmart. It's a data theft business that sells goods as a means to an end. So it is common for an online marketplace like Amazon, like Walmart, to collect certain consumer data as part of the normal course of business. I think we all know that that's not what's going on here."

Last week, Griffin took legal action against the Chinese fast-fashion retailer Temu over what he alleges are the company’s "deceptive tactics" that are harming consumers.

Arkansas' lawsuit targets Temu’s parent company, PDD Holdings. Shaun Rein, founder of the China Market Research Group, has described PDD Holdings as a "monster in Chinese e-commerce."

Griffin alleged that the company is using spyware and malware on its app to get more than just Americans’ consumer data.

"What Temu is doing is selling goods at a rock bottom price, not to make a profit off of those, but as a way to get into your phone, your device, and to collect your data," Griffin said. "Not just traditional consumer data, but using malware spyware to have complete access to your information. And [taking it] one step further, their code is written in such a way to evade detection."

These actions violate "several" of Arkansas’ state laws, according to the attorney general.

"We've got a violation of the Arkansas Personal Information Protection Act, and we have a violation of the Arkansas Deceptive Trade Practices Act," he noted.

"All of this against the backdrop of who owns the company, who operates the company, which are former Chinese communist officials," Griffin continued. "So there's a lot to unpack here that goes beyond a traditional online marketplace."

A spokesperson for Temu reportedly told FOX Business the company was "surprised and disappointed" by the lawsuit. The company accused the attorney general of filing the lawsuit "without any independent fact-finding."

"The allegations in the lawsuit are based on misinformation circulated online, primarily from a short-seller, and are totally unfounded. We categorically deny the allegations and will vigorously defend ourselves," the Temu spokesperson said.

Temu rose to household fame after spending nearly $3 billion on multiple Super Bowl ads in February, which cost roughly $7 million each – the going rate for 30-second ads during this year’s big game.

https://www.foxbusiness.com/media/arkansas-ag-warns-temu-isnt-like-amazon-walmart-its-theft-business

Former Hillary Aide Claims Debate Setup Was "Soft Coup" By Democrats To Replace Biden

 by Steve Watson via Modernity.news,

Sources close to the Democratic Party have claimed that the debate last week was purposefully setup for Biden to fail as part of a “soft coup,” by insiders who know he is incapable of winning or serving a second term.

A former Hillary Clinton aide told The Daily Mail that they wanted Biden to be exposed so he can be replaced by a more capable candidate.

“There has never been a debate this early before,” the source stated, adding Traditionally, the debates are held after the Republican and Democratic conventions, which are in July and August.”

“There is a growing belief this was a ‘soft coup’ because they know he isn’t fit to govern and have known for some time,” the aide further asserted.

“They wanted to test him against Trump early while there was still time to replace him if he failed to rise to the occasion. Which, of course, he did spectacularly,” the source added.

Another insider told the Mail that “Publicly, the Democratic leadership has been backing Biden because they can’t appear to be disloyal to the President. But privately, there have been discussions going on for a long time that he’s too old to beat Trump.”

“There were whispers for weeks that ‘Joe’s going down at the debate,’” the source further stated.

The Mail also claims that Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer “secretly” sent out an advance team to Washington DC weeks ago to prepare a snap presidential campaign.

The report claims “The team has been ‘on manoeuvres’ and meeting with Democratic officials,” with one source saying “Gretchen was the first to act. Now the floodgates have been opened.”

Despite these claims, prominent Democrats including the Clintons, Obama and Nancy Pelosi are still defending Biden and publicly stating he remain the nominee.

Pelosi told CNN Sunday that Biden “has the stamina (to continue)” and that “there are uh, uh, health care professionals, who think that uh, Trump has dementia. That his connection, his thoughts do not go together.”

Meanwhile, despite his public support for Biden, Obama is privately lobbying to get rid of him, telling insiders he cannot defeat Trump, according to another insider.

* * *

https://www.zerohedge.com/political/former-hillary-aide-claims-debate-setup-was-soft-coup-democrats-replace-biden

Trump Moves To Overturn Manhattan Conviction After Supreme Court Immunity Decision

 Hours after the US Supreme Court granted Donald Trump immunity for official acts committed in office, the former president began an effort to toss his recent conviction in Manhattan and postpone his upcoming sentencing over 34 felony counts related to his cover-up of a sex scandal leading up to the 2016 US election.

In a letter to judge Juan Merchan just hours after the Supreme Court ruling - and 10 days before he's set for sentencing, Trump's lawyers sought permission to file a motion to set aside the verdict while Merchan considers whether the Supreme Court ruling affects the conviction.

That said, Trump's attempt might be a long shot given the fact that the Manhattan case revolves around acts Trump took as a candidate, not as president.

As the NY Times notes, however, Trump's lawyers are likely to argue that prosecutors partially built their case using evidence from his time in office. Under the Supreme Court's new ruling, prosecutors may not charge a president for official acts, but also cannot cite evidence involving official acts that affect other accusations.

It is unclear how the Manhattan district attorney’s office, which brought the case, will respond, or whether the judge will delay the first sentencing of an American president. But Mr. Trump’s effort appeared to cause at least a brief interruption: The district attorney’s office did not on Monday make a sentencing recommendation to the judge about whether to imprison Mr. Trump, as was expected.

Merchan may also punt on the request, as the deadline for filing post-trial motions ended last month. Instead, Merchan may instruct Trump's attorneys to raise the issue when they appeal the conviction post-sentencing.

As the Times further notes, Merchan faces an 'unprecedented conundrum' with massive legal and political ramifications. Imprisoning Trump would drop-kick a hornet's nest, while sparing Trump from prison would immediately draw the wrath of vengeful Democrats who say he gave Trump special treatment.

While there's no requirement that Trump be sentenced to time behind bars, Merchan could sentence him to months or several years in prison - or he could be sentenced to home confinement or probation. He could also postpone any sentence until after the election, or after Trump serves another term in office, should be he reelected.

Meanwhile, Trump's other criminal cases have been largely derailed or otherwise postponed - including his trial in Washington DC, where he stands accused of mishandling classified information while still in office.

https://www.zerohedge.com/political/trump-moves-overturn-manhattan-conviction-after-supreme-court-immunity-decision

Mississippi judge denies drug maker’s and PhRMA’s request for preliminary injunction in 340B case

 A Mississippi judge July 1 denied Novartis Pharmaceuticals’ and PhRMA’s request for a preliminary injunction against enforcement of state law protecting 340B pricing for contract pharmacy arrangements. The AHA, along with 340B Health, the Mississippi Hospital Association and the Rural Hospital Alliance last month filed an amicus brief in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi defending the state's law. 

https://www.aha.org/news/headline/2024-07-01-mississippi-judge-denies-drug-makers-and-phrmas-request-preliminary-injunction-340b-case

Supreme Court to Hear Case Challenging FDA's Ban of Flavored Vapes

 In a case that will test the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's authority to approve or reject new vaping products, the U.S. Supreme Court said Tuesday it will weigh whether the agency was legally allowed to ban flavored e-cigarettes.

In recent years, the FDA has declined to approve flavored vapes, saying they pose a health risk because they encourage young people to use e-cigarettes. But they remain widely available on the U.S. market. 

Meanwhile, vaping companies claim the agency got it wrong, arguing that their products can be used to help people stop smoking traditional cigarettes.

E-cigarette makers have filed lawsuits around the country challenging the FDA's decisions, NBC News reported.

While the FDA has won most of those cases, it appealed to the Supreme Court after the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals issued a January ruling in favor of two vape companies seeking to have their products approved. 

That appeals court concluded that the FDA failed to correctly assess the companies' requests in violation of a federal law called the Administrative Procedure Act, NBC News reported.

"The Supreme Court should overturn the Fifth Circuit decision because it is misguided and, if left to stand, would cause significant harm to public health and especially to the health of our kids," Yolonda Richardson, president and CEO of Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, said in a statement. "This decision is also in direct conflict with the decisions of seven other federal courts of appeals that have upheld FDA marketing denial orders for flavored e-cigarettes."

The case the Supreme Court has agreed to hear was brought by Triton Distribution, which makes e-liquids for vape pens in such flavors as "Signature Series Mom's Pistachio" and "Suicide Bunny Mother's Milk and Cookies," and Vapestasia, which has sought approval for flavors including "Iced Pineapple Express" and "Killer Kustard Bluebery," NBC News reported.

Even as legal cases swirl around flavored vaping products, there has been a growth in teens using other nicotine-containing products.

"Youth e-cigarette use remains a serious public health problem in the United States," Richardson said. "According to the 2023 National Youth Tobacco Survey, 2.1 million kids use e-cigarettes and nearly 90% of them use flavored products, with the most-reported flavors including fruit, candy/desserts/other sweets, mint and menthol."

Despite that fact, the FDA recently approved menthol-flavored e-cigarettes for the first time and also rescinded its ban on Juul selling its vape products.

"The FDA’s decision today to authorize the sale of four menthol-flavored e-cigarettes made by NJOY -- the first time the agency has authorized the sale of any flavored e-cigarettes -- is deeply troubling given the extensive scientific evidence that menthol is a flavor that appeals to kids and the FDA’s repeated conclusions that flavored e-cigarettes, including menthol-flavored products, have driven youth e-cigarette use," Richardson said in a statement when the agency approved menthol vaping products.

https://www.usnews.com/news/health-news/articles/2024-07-02/supreme-court-to-hear-case-challenging-fdas-ban-of-flavored-vapes

US DOJ drops Viatris unit Mylan from industry-wide antitrust probe

 Viatris unit Mylan is no longer a subject of the U.S. Department of Justice's antitrust investigation into alleged price fixing in the generic drug industry, the parent company said on Tuesday.

Mylan and several major drugmakers such as Israel's Teva Pharmaceutical Industries and India's Sun Pharmaceutical Industries have been under the DOJ's scanner for more than eight years over alleged anticompetitive business practices in fixing prices of certain generic drugs.

Multiple states have also filed lawsuits against those companies for alleged antitrust behavior.

Formed by the merger of Mylan and Pfizer's Upjohn business in 2020, Viatris makes generic and branded drugs including erectile dysfunction treatment Viagra.

The investigation against Mylan was related to the pricing and marketing of its generic doxycycline antibiotic that is used to treat bacterial infections such as acne, pneumonia, lyme disease, chlamydia and syphilis.

There are many forms of doxycyline made by more than a dozen companies, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's database.

The DOJ has informed Viatris that it does not expect to take any further actions related to the pricing and sales of its generic drugs, the drugmaker said.

The statement from Viatris did not mention why Mylan was dropped from the probe.

The company said it would continue to defend itself against the remaining civil lawsuits related to the matter.

https://www.yahoo.com/news/us-doj-drops-viatris-unit-121703997.html

US FDA warns website Ozempen.com over unlawful sale of weight-loss drugs

 The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said on Tuesday it had warned a website called ozempen.com against unlawfully selling versions of Novo Nordisk's weight-loss drugs.

Surging demand has outpaced supply for Novo's Ozempic, Eli Lilly's Mounjaro and other GLP-1 drugs that promote weight loss, fueling a growing global market for counterfeit versions.

The FDA said the website was offering unapproved versions of obesity and diabetes drugs Ozempic and Wegovy.

"These products are only available pursuant to a prescription from a licensed practitioner," the health regulator said.

Last month, the World Health Organization issued warnings on fake drugs claiming to contain the active ingredient found in Ozempic and Wegovy.

Lilly and Novo have sued several entities to stop them from selling products claiming to contain the active ingredients tirzepatide and semaglutide that are used in their respective popular diabetes and weight-loss drugs.

https://www.yahoo.com/news/us-fda-warns-website-over-140511154.html