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Akron Beacon Journal Editorial Board

The Ohio Redistricting Commission has done a wonderful job of guarding taxpayer dollars, carrying out the wishes of the majority of voters and ensuring fairness, transparency and a chicken in every pot.

April fool! Oh, excuse us, please.

A lot of tricks have been played, but when it comes to the Redistricting Commission, not one isfunny.

Chaos is the best word to describe the results of the Redistricting Commission made up of five Republicans and two Democrats.

By now, we should be heading toward a May 3 primary with key dates circled in red (for example, the deadline to register to vote is Monday). But take a look at the Summit County Board of Elections website and you are warned: the offices of the state House and Senate and State Central Committee will not be on the May 3 ballot.

Also, Ohioans will be voting for congressional candidates (maybe) in the May 3 primary, unless lawmakers or the courts intervene. The U.S. House maps are in the midst of a court challenge, and nothing will be decided until late May.

As for the state legislative maps, the commission has until Monday to respond to lawsuits or face contempt of court. The commission has admitted, according to the Ohio League of Women Voters and other petitioners, that the maps approved last Monday are the same maps already rejected by the Ohio Supreme Court with only minor changes.

This last action by Republicans on the Commission would be almost funny if it were not so consequential and nakedly partisan, former U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder, head of the Democrat-aligned National Redistricting Action Fund, said in a statement last week. Ohio runs the risk of becoming a punchline to a bad joke."

It seems the Republicans in charge are the ones taking thingslightly. Surely, commission members Senate President Matt Huffman and House Speaker Bob Cupp must feel untouchable, or none of this would be happening.

They're clearly more worried about protecting their incumbents' jobs than listening to the people of Ohio.

They must feel its highly unlikely they will be cited or removed from office for contempt of court;otherwise, they would not have led the commission down this path.

Why should they fear consequences? Look at the bribery scandal involving FirstEnergy Corp. and former House Speaker Larry Householder. Fellow Republican lawmakers dragged their feet and waited a year to expel him after his arrest on racketeeringcharges.

FirstEnergy has admitted it paid Householder, and youd think lawmakers would keep their distance, but as recently as February, Householder was texting state lawmakers, urging them to kill a data privacy bill. A USA TODAY Network Ohio Bureau report shows at least one representative sounding grateful for Householders nudges, saying he simply didnt know what to think about some of these guys.

Householder is no longer in office, but this ongoing mess called redistricting shows some of the same unwillingness in Columbus to threaten the power structure. House Bill 6, a $1 billion utility bailout, still hasnt been repealed, despite the taint of federal investigations. Fortunately, there have been two separate injunctions that halt decoupling charges and nuclear plant subsidiesthat would have cost FirstEnergy customers $2 billion.

But in a similar, stubborn manner, the Redistricting Commission has flaunted the Ohio Supreme Court. Its never felt responsible to the Ohio voters who in 2015 (congressional) and 2018 (state legislative) voted by 70% or more to rewrite the Ohio Constitution in a bid to end gerrymandering. The new process was supposed to take place in the open, with consideration for voters'statewide preferences.

The result of this underhandedness can be counted in taxpayer dollars: Asecond primary is expected to cost taxpayers an additional $20 million to $25 million; and it has cost more than $1.1 million to drawmaps and defendthem in court.

Most recently, maps produced by two independent consultants were rejected at the last minute. The two, who were paid $450 perhour, produced maps with a 54-45 GOP advantage in the House and an 18-15 GOP advantage in the Senate. Republicans rejected them, and hastily submitted the slightly tweaked maps now at issue.

The out-of-control partisans who don't like Ohio Supreme Court Justice Maureen OConnor's rulings have tried to smear her reputation and talk about impeaching her.

One might question whether Democrats would make similar moves if in power. It's hard to say, since Republicans have completely dominated Ohio politics for 24 of 30 years, holding the governor's office and both chambers of the legislature. Still, advocates say some 46% of Ohioans vote Democratic, and especially in urban areas like Akron, they would like their voices heard.

That's why we are urging lawmakers to take democracy seriously.

More here:
Not funny: Jokers in Columbus make mess of redistricting, cause confusion and waste money - Akron Beacon Journal

Since Nipsey Hussle was tragically gunned down in front of his clothing store on Slauson Ave and Crenshaw Blvd three years ago, at least four well-known rappers have been killed in the Los Angeles area, making the region one of the most deadly for rap artists, according to an analysis of data compiled by L.A. TACO.

Less than a year after fans lost Hussle, Pop Smoke, the 20-year-old Brooklyn rapper who emerged from the New York City drill scene as one of the most promising east coast talents in years, was allegedly shot and killed by a 15-year-old over a Rolex watch that was ultimately sold for just $2,000.

Then late last year, one month after paying tribute to his friend Young Dolph, rapper Slim 400 was shot to death in Inglewood. Surveillance video footage shows an assailant ambush the rapper while he sits in a vehicle.

Less than two weeks later, Drakeo The Ruler, the South L.A. underdog who spent three years in an L.A. County jail cell before famously beating a possible life sentence, was jumped and stabbed to death shortly before taking the stage at an L.A. music festival. The back-to-back killings, long-standing beef between YGs camp and Drakeos Stinc Mob as well as a searing eye-witness testimony from LA Magazine reporter Jeff Weis, fueled speculation that the murders were connected.

Four days after Drakeo was killed, Early Swavey, the Bompton protege of the late ASAP Yams, tweeted about the murder. Im mad niggas kilt drakeo (sic) now it aint nothing funny to watch Ona gram (laughing emoji). Ironically it was his final post on the social media platform. Three weeks later, 26-year-old Swavey was fatally shot near the University of Southern California (USC) after reportedly opening fire on five people at a party, sending them to the hospital, according to police and the medical examiner.

As of earlier this year, no suspects have been identified or arrested in the killings of Swavey, Drakeo, or Slim 400, according to the LAPD. The suspects accused of killing Nipsey Hussle and Pop Smoke have all pleaded not guilty and are awaiting trial.

Within a month, the city lost three promising young artists. The recent homicides have made Los Angeles one of the deadliest cities for rappers while illuminating a perplexing phenomenon in rap music: most rappers get killed in their own city. Out of the four rappers killed in Los Angeles since Nipsey Hussle was murdered, all were from the Los Angeles area with the exception of Pop Smoke.

According to data compiled by L.A. TACO for the first time, the trend of rappers being killed in the cities that they represent tracks nationally. An L.A. TACO analysis found that out of more than 90 deaths, at least three-fourths of rappers killed since 1987, died in the cities where they grew to be stars.

At least eight rappers have been killed in Los Angeles since the mid-1980s and when you include the cities of Compton and Inglewood, that total jumps up to at least 11. More than a third of those deaths occurred within the last three years.

Why are so many rappers killed in the cities that birth their careers? As the old school adage goes, no prophet is accepted in his hometown.

In the case of Nipsey Hussle, Eric Holder, the man who killed Hussle and wounded two others, was an acquaintance and fellow member of the Rollin 60s, the Crenshaw-area gang that Hussle was affiliated with. Both Holder and Hussle rapped, although Hussle was the only one ever to win a Grammy, much less find success in the music industry.

Minutes before Hussle was killed in the parking lot of the strip mall that he co-owned, he and Holder had a conversation according to witnesses, during which Hussle warned Holder that he was gaining a reputation for being a snitch.

Following the encounter, which appeared to be peaceful by all accounts, Holder returned to a friends car. After taking a couple of bites of some chili cheese fries, Holder retrieved a pistol and loaded it with ammunition. Moments later, when he faced Hussle again for a final time he reportedly said, youre through, before firing at him at least 10 times with a pistol in one hand and a revolver in the other, before fleeing. Holder was arrested days later and has pleaded not guilty to murder charges.

The death of Nipsey Hussle rocked the city and came at a time when Hussle was working diligently to regain ownership of the community that he grew up in, or buy back the block, as he described it. Following his death, thousands lined the streets of Crenshaw in honor of the late rapper. Nipsey loved Los Angeles and L.A. loved him back. So why would someone like Holderan acquaintance who repped the same ganginterfere with his mission and take his life?

Lil Boosie, a Louisiana-born platinum-selling rapper who ran into trouble, got acquitted, and has since fled his hometown, first brought attention to the frequency of rappers being killed in their own city, during a famous 2016 DJ Vlad interview that recirculates like clockwork every time another rapper is killed.

During the interview, Boosie discusses why he left Baton Rouge, Louisiana for Atlanta, Georgia when he began making money. I had haters out there and its always like that, wherever youre from you will get hated the most. Most rappers die in their own city, its a fact, Boosie said six years ago. I advise everybody once they get money, get out they city (sic), because thats when the hatred gun come.

For young artists like Earl Swavey, Slim 400, and Drakeo, they arguably never saw their careers get to the point where they had a chance to make that decision.

When Swavey came home in February of last year after serving a multi-year bid that put his career on hold, he had just lost his best friend, Nebula. Within a year, Swavey suffered the same fate as his childhood friend, just one month after turning 26.

Hes the third family member to die since losing his father at a young age. Words cannot begin to describe the loss that our family has endured, a family member wrote on a GoFundMe page raising money for funeral expenses.

Its crazy getting used to it, Joe Remedy, a former manager of Swaveys told L.A. TACO during an interview.

Although Remedy only lived in L.A. for about five years and his career in the music industry was brief, hes already seen a handful of people that hes crossed paths with die. Even though Im not working in the music industry anymore, Im still getting updates and news from people in the hood about people getting shot.

Its always been a worry of mine working with Earl, Remedy says. For example, he says he couldnt just call a shared Uber or Lyft for Swavey for fear that he might end up in a rival neighborhood.

Swavey also had to be mindful of the cops. Remedy recalls an instance in which the rapper was briefly detained due to a gang injunction that barred him from hanging out with certain friends.

Swaveys life was about more than the streets though. He enjoyed skateboarding and acting as well. Remedy remembers Swavey as a character. A talented young kid that was just brought up in bullshit.Boosie and others believe envy is behind the killings. It be the guys that once dapped you down when you had one song out. And they develop envy because they go home, they get out the car with their other patna, he listening to your music. They walk into the house, they girl listening to your music. They go downstairs, the kids doing the dance to your music. Now they are hypnotized with hatred.

In January, Jim Jones, the Harlem rapper and Dipset affiliate, spoke to the Breakfast Club about the recent killings of rappers. The violence thats going on in hip hop is crazy. Like when we be coming up we were protected as artiststheres no protection for artists anymore, were just straight targets. And I stand on what I saidbeing a rapper is the most dangerous job in the world.

In 2020, Jones sparked a polarizing debate when he stated during an interview with Fat Joe, that being a rapper is the most dangerous job in the world. During the interview with the Breakfast Club Jones took it a step further. Since Ive said that comment, I would like someone to actually count the deaths of rappers.

In total, we identified more than 90 prominent rappers who have been killed since the mid-1980s. The rappers listed in this dataset are only the most notable, however. This is by no means a complete database. There are no doubt many more independent and emerging artists that have been killed that dont necessarily make mainstream headlines. We encourage readers to highlight those cases in the comments.

But based on the best data that we currently have available, we know that more than three-fourths of all rappers killed since the late-1980s died in the cities that they repped. Almost all of the killings involved young men who were shot to death. And many of the cases have gone unsolved.

New York ranks as the deadliest city for rappers, followed closely by Los Angeles, Chicago, New Orleans, and Atlanta.

The number of rap murders per year has increased in recent years. Just last month, Baby Chino, a Miami-based rapper, was fatally shot minutes after walking out of a South Florida jail. In the past six years, more rappers have been killed than in the previous decade and a half. The spike in recent rap murders in cities like Los Angeles, New York, and other major metropolitan areas, mirrors a significant increase in homicides amongst the general public since the pandemic.

The exact reason behind the increase in killings is unclear.

Link:
L.A. Ranks As One Of The Deadliest Cities For Rappers, According to Data Analysis - L.A. TACO

I don't remember his input. I remember Richard Drooyan and Miriam Krinsky.

Mr. Deixler will be supported by lawyers experienced in conducting internal investigations for major corporations and other entities for some of Los Angeles most prominent law firms, including Bart Williams and Susan L. Gutierrez of Proskauer; Anthony Pacheco of Vedder Price and former member of the LA Police Commission;Naeun Rim of Manatt, Phelps & Phillips andCarolyn Kubota ofCovington.

Wait, that last one sounds familiar.

Ms. Kubota works as a white-collar defense gal with Dan Shallman and the firm that houses among others, the great Eric Holder. That firm is familiar because it's the same firm investigating contracting fraud at the county following the Mark Ridley-Thomas fiasco, wherein he's facing federal charges for squeezing USC to hook his son Sebastian up with a lucrative professorship in exchange for

See, each of the County Supervisors is like a big mob boss.

Each supervisorial district is like a local regional gang. There are little capos they fund, like Alan Hostrup of the YMCA of Greater Metropolitan Los Angeles. He knows what to do.

Mark Ridley-Thomas was the big boss for many years and so understandably became a little mad with power. He became so dedicated to doing whatever it was that he wanted to do, that he lost sight of the parallel wisdom that Denzel Washington reminded Will Smith of before his disturbing Oscar blunder,"At your highest moment, be careful, that's also when thefedsmight come for you."

When the feds came for Deron Williams of CD10, this column explored how Herbert J. Wesson and Holly Wolcott jumped into gear with the rats -in-the-ceiling-oh-my initiative.

City Hallers sensed the rat story was fake news, but we didn't exactly know why at the time. How, Angelenos wondered could anyone be taking Elizabeth Greenwood's story at face value? The LACERS rep was bit by a flea, that got away without a trace?

Nobody ever found a single flea... hmmm. Fishy.

Public comment was brief and the council were not paying attention on Wednesday, even as speakers pleaded for the council to meet in front of the public: "The Pandemic Should Not be Used as a Pretext to muffle the Voices of the Inconvenient Public

The local critic who was hoping to remind the public and encourage Herb Wesson to recuse himself on the flavored tobacco ordinance, since he took money from Juul, and also he might want to recuse himself on the Deputy City Attorney Anthony Koutris harassment lawsuit settlement of $1M vote, I wrote about the casehere.

Mr. Koutris wrote that he was personally aware thatDeputy City Attorney Elizabeth Greenwood,who may have "contracted Typhus" in Herb Wesson's office during the period when Deron Wiliams was worried about rats in the ceiling (and elsewhere.)

Koutris mentioned in his moving papers that Greenwood's "doctor prohibited her from driving," and offered her a transfer.He got bupkis.

Maybe Herb Wesson might feel too close to Greenwood, the speaker who was not heard wondered.

This was the woman with whom Wesson splashed onto KCAL, causing a major redirect...during the Huizar/Englander...oh my!

I was never called to speak.

I did send a note to the big lawyers at the county and the supervisorsabout the County's Oversight Panel Launching into a Full-Scale Investigation into Deputy Gangs. Code:"Get the Sheriff"

Dear Jennifer,Hope all is well. Hello, Brian!

"Round up the usual customers"

Can you please provide the letter of agreement with Covington & Burling that I'm sure you reviewed before bringing in Mr. Ridley-Thomas's county fraud crackdown team?

On a Motion by Solis/Hahh, the board sought to hire a law firm to poke around the contracting fraud, andCovington & Burlinggot the nod.

Carolyn Kubota, who hangs her hat there, is already under contract with LA county, and Dawyn Harrison of county counselhas already located documents responsive to my request to understand the scope of work (that along with Dan Shallman) is to be performed. However, the County made an erroneous and high-handed determination that those records are exempt from disclosure and are protected by numerous privileges/doctrines.

The Board of Supervisors should waive any privilege...

Since the COC is an independent organization proud of delivering transparency and accountability, how is it that Kubota is in there getting paid an invisible sum to do something...while also pro bono to track down some gangs?

The public is entitled to see and understand the game plan:how many hours and at what rate to do what?

You do realize that Kubota is a white-collar defense attorney. Deixler, who is leading Huntsman's dream team, is an entertainment lawyer.

Kindly confirm receipt, and provide the agreement(s) for Kubota and Shallman and all of the pro bono attorneys Deixler has enlisted, including Deixler's agreement.

Eric Preven

This side down:

It's fun to watch City Council meetings backwards. Kevin Deleon's moving birthday tribute and fundraiser forLeah Hertzberg, awoman who has given so much to the Valley democratic clubs and party.

Stuart Waldman must have been shvitzing because DeLeon was giving the impression that Hertzberg was more of a "Jim Clyburn of the Valley" than Waldman, who heads the Valley Industry Commerce Association, and has been fashioning himself as the valley's most influential mayor picker.

DeLeon was relentless as if the stage manager was giving him a thumbs up to keep talking. Callers seemed to be responding, was this a telethon, I thought?

Blumenfield practically did a round-off back handspring over Koretz to praise this 100-year-old democratic party icon, who was born when Warren Harding was President, and practically nursed a young Eric Bauman into the prodigious fundraiser and harasser he became.

DeLeon is famous for saying, "we don't need any more studies..." but maybe we do need one more.

Why are these presentations never agendized? And if we had a list of names mentioned, we could see who is naughty and who is nice and who gives the maximum, and on what date.

By the way, Bauman has his own podcast or radio show which he finds quite entertaining, so check it out.

Before I move on, one of theElected At-Large Executive Board Members of DP/SFV is Karo Torossian, so to retroactively celebrate Purim which was March 16 this year, I am going to recite the story of Areen Ibranossian and Paul Krekorian to the children of CD2. These two braves Angelenos refused to debate their very appealing CD2 challenger at all one year -- while evading capture for taking public matching fund money.

The young lad from CD2ville thought he had cornered them with the Ethics rule requiring that they debate. The failsafe backup plan: no politician can say no to the YMCA Youth in government.

Except,Adrin Nazarian and Paul Krekorian.

There would be no Youth in Government debate... even though, at the time I was a longtime member of the Y and community.

Instead of discussing our local issues at the YMCA, when invited by me, the YMCA booked them to serve as keynote speakers, the day after Krekorian defeated me without ever facing me other than in a public comment.

It all started at the giant state building out on Van Nuys boulevard not far from Valley City Hall. Nury Martinez town.... dissolve:

Production Values:

I found the lengthy DWP video about the crews of DWP workers who went to help the Navajo nation get power, very effective.

And my only complaint about the lengthy LAPD Chief Bea Girmala video, which was very good -- was there was too much masking.

Anyone who thinks the public wants to see a speech from beneath a mask is wrong.

On Wednesday, O'Farrell's presentation had more visibility. And the masks came off... revealing a half-mustache,for which even he deserves a pass.

O'Farrell outed John Szabo, the twentieth City Librarian of Los Angeles, and played a video in honor of Trans visibility day. PaulKoretz, who had said he felt like he'd known Leah Hertzberg for the full 100 years, also said he was doing cool "Trans" stuff before it was cool, like 16 or 17 years ago.No disrespect was intended to latecomers to the party, just a firm recognition of his greatness... and age.

Buscaino busted a move to commemorate, Betty Day, but not with a day named after her, as that would be terribly confusing, but rather, a pocket park opposite her residence. Nice.

Ms. Day was a dedicated supporter of Watts Towers and had 8 children, served on theWatts gang task force. Buscaino saidshe was a woman who "embraced, a tough yet loving and joyful" way of life. Tough love is code for something...

Gilbert Cedillo, who has a very cool CD1 challenger, Eunisses Hernandez, is a major name-dropper and on Wednesday he seemed a little off of his game.

The day before Mr. DeLeon had practically made a sloppy pass at Cedillo, calling out his youthful appearance at (68), "I don't know what you're doing man..." but wow.Cedillo blushed. Martinez blushed. Rodriguez blushed. Koretz blushed.

On Wednesday the names were falling out of Cedillo's mouth, like particulate matter from the Oil well adjacent to his street.

Cedillo described meetings, gatherings, and protests that Jorge "gorgeous" Gonzalez would attend together back in the day, "now we are not activists, but the sage adults."

Point of order! "Sir, you're disrupting the meeting."

"Carol Sobel... Jose Calderon..." Cedillorepeated Father Boyle of Homeboy Industries' name several times.

There are other people named Jorge, Cedillo said, but only one "the gorgeous" who he called the"consummate chicano lawyer."

He named many other "people's lawyers" who were "constantly suing us, when we don't do our jobs."

At one point, some folks thought Strefan Fauble, the deputy city attorney who, like a fussy proctor, guides people back to their agenda item, might interrupt Cedillo and guide him back to the adjournment.

"Gorgeous" had agigantic smile and a personality.

"Even Black lives matter," he said, was their lawyer. It was not Cedillo's best work. Still, RIP "Gorgeous"

There was no corrective action plan on the Juan Gomez matter that settled without discussion for $265,000.

A sworn member of LAPD, Officer Juan Gomez was subjected to a pattern of discrimination and harassment based on his Hispanic Heritage and Mexican national origin. On his first day of work at Topanga division, the lawsuit alleges, as he was walking in, an Officer Graybill drove his vehicle, blocked Gomez's pathway, and asked, "Are you lost?" "Do you work here?" "Do you have an ID?" "What are you doing here?"

Graybill's discriminatory comments were aimed at questioning Plaintiff Gomez's legal status on his Mexican origin and appearance. Other times Graybill would ask if anyone could translate. Again, discriminating against Gomez on the basis of his Spanish accent. Eventually, Gomez left with acute stress disorder.

(Eric Preven is a longtime community activist and is a contributor to CityWatch. The opinions expressed by Eric Preven are solely his and not the opinions of CityWatch)

See more here:
Code: Get the Sheriff. An Investigation into Deputy Gangs - City Watch

WASHINGTON Immediately after Merrick Garland was sworn in as attorney general in March of last year, he summoned top Justice Department officials and the FBI director to his office. He wanted a detailed briefing on the case that will, in all likelihood, come to define his legacy: the Jan. 6 assault on the Capitol.

Even though hundreds of people had already been charged, Garland asked to go over the indictments in detail, according to two people familiar with the meeting. What were the charges? What evidence did they have? How had they built such a sprawling investigation, involving all 50 states, so fast? What was the plan now?

The attorney generals deliberative approach has come to frustrate Democratic allies of the White House and, at times, President Joe Biden himself. As recently as late last year, Biden confided to his inner circle that he believed former President Donald Trump was a threat to democracy and should be prosecuted, according to two people familiar with his comments. And while the president has never communicated his frustrations directly to Garland, he has said privately that he wanted Garland to act less like a ponderous judge and more like a prosecutor who is willing to take decisive action over the events of Jan. 6, 2021.

Speaking to reporters Friday, Garland said that he and the career prosecutors working on the case felt only the pressure to do the right thing, which meant that they follow the facts and the law wherever they may lead.

Still, Democrats increasingly urgent calls for the Justice Department to take more aggressive action highlight the tension between the frenetic demands of politics and the methodical pace of one of the biggest prosecutions in the departments history.

The Department of Justice must move swiftly, Rep. Elaine Luria, D-Va., a member of the House committee investigating the riot, said this past week. She and others on the panel want the department to charge Trump allies with contempt for refusing to comply with the committees subpoenas.

Attorney General Garland, Luria said during a committee hearing, do your job so that we can do ours.

This article is based on interviews with more than a dozen people, including officials in the Biden administration and people with knowledge of the presidents thinking, all of whom asked for anonymity to discuss private conversations.

In a statement, Andrew Bates, a White House spokesperson, said the president believed that Garland had decisively restored the independence of the Justice Department.

President Biden is immensely proud of the attorney generals service in this administration and has no role in investigative priorities or decisions, Bates said.

A Justice Department spokesperson declined to comment.

The Jan. 6 investigation is a test not just for Garland, but for Biden as well. Both men came into office promising to restore the independence and reputation of a Justice Department that Trump had tried to weaponize for political gain.

For Biden, keeping that promise means inviting the ire of supporters who say they will hold the president to the remarks he made on the anniversary of the assault on the Capitol, when he vowed to make sure the past isnt buried and said that the people who planned the siege held a dagger at the throat of America.

Complicating matters for Biden is the fact that his two children are entangled in federal investigations, making it all the more important that he stay out of the Justice Departments affairs or risk being seen as interfering for his own familys gain.

The department is investigating whether Ashley Biden was the victim of pro-Trump political operatives who obtained her diary at a critical moment in the 2020 presidential campaign, and Hunter Biden is under federal investigation for tax avoidance and his international business dealings. Hunter Biden has not been charged with a crime and has said he handled his affairs appropriately.

Justice Department officials do not keep the president abreast of any investigation, including those involving his children, several people familiar with the situation said. The cases involving Hunter Biden and Ashley Biden are worked on by career officials, and people close to the president, including White House counsel Dana Remus, have no visibility into them, those people said.

Still, the situation crystallizes the delicate ground that Biden and Garland are navigating.

When it comes to Jan. 6, Justice Department officials emphasize that their investigation has produced substantial results already, including more than 775 arrests and a charge of seditious conspiracy against the leader of a far-right militia. More than 280 people have been charged with obstructing Congress duty to certify the election results.

And federal prosecutors have widened the investigation to include a broad range of figures associated with Trumps attempts to cling to power. According to people familiar with the inquiry, it now encompasses planning for pro-Trump rallies before the riot and the push by some Trump allies to promote slates of fake electors.

The Justice Department has given no public indication about its timeline or whether prosecutors might be considering a case against Trump.

The House committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack can send criminal referrals to the Justice Department, but only the department can bring charges. The panel is working with a sense of urgency to build its case before this years midterm elections, when Republicans could retake the House and dissolve the committee.

Biden, a longtime creature of the Senate, is aghast that people close to Trump have defied congressional subpoenas and has told people close to him that he does not understand how they think they can do so, according to two people familiar with his thinking.

Garland has not changed his approach to criminal prosecutions in order to placate his critics, according to several Justice Department officials who have discussed the matter with him. He is regularly briefed on the Jan. 6 investigation, but he has remained reticent in public.

The best way to undermine an investigation is to say things out of court, Garland said Friday.

Even in private, he relies on a stock phrase: Rule of law, he says, means there not be one rule for friends and another for foes.

He did seem to acknowledge Democrats frustrations in a speech in January, when he reiterated that the department remains committed to holding all Jan. 6 perpetrators, at any level, accountable under law.

Quiet and reserved, Garland is well known for the job he was denied: a seat on the Supreme Court. President Barack Obama nominated him in March 2016 after the death of Justice Antonin Scalia, but Senate Republicans blockaded the nomination.

Garlands peers regard him as a formidable legal mind and a political centrist. After graduating from Harvard Law School, he clerked for a federal appeals court judge and Justice William Brennan Jr. of the Supreme Court before becoming a top official in the Justice Department under Attorney General Janet Reno. There, he prosecuted domestic terrorism cases and supervised the federal investigation into the Oklahoma City bombing.

His critics say that his subsequent years as an appeals court judge made him slow and overly deliberative. But his defenders say that he has always carefully considered legal issues, particularly if the stakes were high a trait that most likely helped the Justice Department secure a conviction against Timothy McVeigh two years after the Oklahoma City attack.

During the presidential transition after the 2020 election, Biden took his time mulling over candidates to be attorney general, according to a senior member of the transition team. He had promised the American people that he would reestablish the department as an independent arbiter within the government, not the presidents partisan brawler.

In meetings, the incoming president and his aides discussed potential models at length: Did Biden want a strong personality in the job, like Eric Holder, who held the post under Obama? The relatively quick consensus was no.

Did he want someone who would be seen as a political ally? Some in his circle suggested that might be a good model to follow, which is why then-Sen. Doug Jones of Alabama, a longtime friend of Bidens, was once on his shortlist.

But in the end, Biden went with Garland, who had a reputation for being evenhanded and independent.

Despite Bidens private frustrations with the attorney general, several people who speak regularly to the president said he had praised Garland as among the most thoughtful, moral and intelligent people he had dealt with in his career.

The two men did not know each other well when Biden selected him for the job. Garland had a closer relationship with Ron Klain, Bidens chief of staff, than he did with the incoming president.

Officials inside the White House and the Justice Department acknowledge that the two men have less contact than some previous presidents and attorneys general, particularly Trump and his last attorney general, William Barr.

Some officials see their limited interactions as an overcorrection on the part of Garland and argue that he does not need to color so scrupulously within the lines. But it may be the only logical position for Garland to take, particularly given that both of Bidens children are involved in active investigations by the Justice Department.

The distance between the two men is a sharp departure from the previous administration, when Trump would often call Barr to complain about decisions related to his political allies and enemies. Such calls were a clear violation of the longtime norms governing contact between the White House and the Justice Department.

Biden, a former chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, came to his job as president with a classical, post-Watergate view of the department: that it was not there to be a political appendage.

Still, there is unrelenting pressure from Democrats to hold Trump and his allies accountable for the violence that unfolded at the Capitol on Jan. 6. While there is no indication that federal prosecutors are close to charging the former president, Biden and those closest to him understand the legal calculations. What Garland is confronting is anything but a normal problem, with enormous political stakes before the next presidential election.

Federal prosecutors would have no room for error in building a criminal case against Trump, experts say, given the high burden of proof they must meet and the likelihood of any decision being appealed.

A criminal investigation in New York that examined Trumps business dealings imploded this year, underscoring the risks and challenges that come with trying to indict the former president. The new district attorney there, Alvin Bragg, would not let his prosecutors present a grand jury with evidence that they felt proved Trump knowingly falsified the value of his assets for undue financial gain.

One of the outside lawyers who oversaw the case and resigned in protest wrote in a letter to Bragg that his decision was a grave failure of justice, even if he feared that the district attorneys office could lose.

At times, Biden cannot help but get drawn into the discourse over the Justice Department, despite his stated commitment to stay away.

In October, he told reporters that he thought those who defied subpoenas from the House committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack should be prosecuted.

I hope that the committee goes after them and holds them accountable criminally, Biden said. When asked whether the Justice Department should prosecute them, he replied, I do, yes.

The presidents words prompted a swift statement from the agency: The Department of Justice will make its own independent decisions in all prosecutions based solely on the facts and the law. Period. Full stop.

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Garland faces growing pressure as Jan. 6 investigation widens - Walla Walla Union-Bulletin

The House will vote on ending permanent normalized trade relations with Russia and Belarus on Thursday, a move that would allow the U.S. to impose higher tariffs on Russian goods and take other actions.

The bill will use an expedited process requiring the support of two-thirds of lawmakers for passage.

I urge my colleagues on both sides to join in voting to hold them accountable, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) said in a tweet.

The legislation has bipartisan support and will come to the floor one day after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy asked Congress for additional sanctions on Russia.

Revoking the status, which in the U.S. requires legislation, would put Russia in the same category as other states viewed by Washington as pariahs, including North Korea and Cuba.

The bill also includes an expansion of the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act. That would enable the Biden administration to impose further sanctions on Russian officials for human rights violations. The House included Magnitsky language in legislation to ban Russian oil that passed that chamber last week. However, attaching it to the trade legislation may move it through the Senate and to President Joe Bidens desk sooner, though no timetable has been set.

The president last week announced the U.S., along with other G-7 and European Union countries, would revoke the trade status in response to the invasion of Ukraine.

Negotiations briefly stalled in the House while Democrats and Republicans were divided over just how much power Biden should have to reinstate Russias status and what Moscow would have to do to regain the standing, lawmakers involved in the talks said. Rep. Kevin Brady (Texas), the senior Republican on the House Ways and Means Committee, said both parties and the White House reached a compromise that allows for both Congress and the president to be involved in re-establishing a U.S. trade relationship with Russia. Read more from Laura Davison and Billy House.

Photo by ARIS MESSINIS/AFP via Getty Images)

Smoke rises after explosions in Kyiv on Wednesday.

MORE ON THE WAR IN UKRAINE:

CONGRESSIONAL SCHEDULE:

Jerome Powell won bipartisan support from a Senate panel for another term as Federal Reserve chair on Wednesday evening while Bidens other remaining nominees to join the central bank also advanced. The Senate Banking Committee approved Powell in a 23-1 vote. The panel also backed sending the nominations of Lael Brainard as vice chair and Philip Jefferson as Fed governors to the full Senate. The committee, evenly split between Democrats and Republicans, deadlocked 12-12 on Lisa Cooks nomination to the board of governors, which will require another vote on the Senate floor. Olivia Rockeman and Steven T. Dennis have more.

House Democrats want to slap big oil companies with a new windfall tax and return the money to consumers via a monthly rebate, the latest step by Democrats to try and tie gas prices to top fossil fuel producers. Transportation and Infrastructure Chair Peter DeFazio (D-Ore.) on Wednesday introduced legislation that would establish a re-distributive tax on oil companies like Exxon Mobil and Chevron to fund rebates structured similarly to the stimulus payments that Congress authorized during the pandemic. Its similar to a bill floated last week by Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and others, Colin Wilhelm reports.

Senate Banking Chairman Sherrod Brown asked Treasury and the National Association of Insurance Commissioners to study the growing role of private equity firms in managing retirement insurance products. These risky companies have a track record of undermining pension and retirement programs, Brown (D-Ohio) said in a letter. He asked for a report to Congress by May 31 from Steven Seitz, director of the Treasury Departments Federal Insurance Office; and Dean Cameron, director of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, Alisa Parenti reports.

Employers hoping to offer apprenticeship programs to aid workforce development in a tight labor market would get some funding help under a House bill to be introduced Thursday. The legislation comes at a time when the workforce is continuing to recover from the peak of the global Covid-19 pandemic and jobless rates are at a record low in some places. Reps. Lori Trahan (D-Mass.), Joseph Morelle (D-N.Y.), and Jason Crow (D-Colo.) plan to introduce their Apprenticeship Support for Small Employers and Teams, or ASSET Act, Thursday. Read more from Paige Smith.

A House committee will spotlight an FDA process thats been criticized as putting some of the costliest drugs on the market with limited evidence. The House Energy and Commerce Committee Health Subcommittee will tackle 22 pieces of legislation at a hearing on Thursday about the future of medicine. The hearing comes as Congress considers legislation to reauthorize user fees, which the Food and Drug Administration takes from drug and device-makers to fund its operations. Read more from Jeannie Baumann and Celine Castronuovo.

A key senator reiterated that Chinese companies must comply fully with U.S. rules if they want to keep trading on New York exchanges. Americans are investing money in companies which dont have the transparency that you would expect from other investments, virtually from any company from virtually any part of the world, Sens. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) said, as U.S.-listed Chinese stocks soared Wednesday. Rubio was discussing a law passed in 2020 that could lead to Chinese companies being booted off exchanges as soon as 2024 if regulators arent able to inspect their corporate audits. Read more from Steven Dennis.

As the end of redistricting approaches, former Attorney General Eric Holder is more hopeful about Democrats competitive positioning over the next decade, but just as disheartened by the overall state of U.S. elections. Holder has focused as chairman of the National Democratic Redistricting Committee on leveling the playing field after the GOP dominated the previous round of district line-drawing. In an interview with BGOV reporters, Holder said Democrats stopped Republicans from drawing their way into a permanent majority in Congress. Read more from Emily Wilkins and Greg Giroux.

Celebrity physician Mehmet Oz said he will renounce his Turkish citizenship if hes elected to the Senate from Pennsylvania after Republican rival David McCormick made it an issue in their GOP primary and questioned whether he could have conflicting loyalties. McCormick, the former Bridgewater Associates CEO, criticized Oz for his dual citizenship. His campaign had questioned why Oz served in the Turkish military rather than the U.S. military and held a call Wednesday with Sen. Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska), who cast doubt on Ozs ability to receive classified briefings if he were a Turkish citizen. Read more from Mark Niquette.

BIDENS SCHEDULE:

Irish Prime Minister Micheal Martin tested positive while in D.C. for St. Patricks Day celebrations, according to news reports. The Press Association reported Martins positive test Wednesday. Martin left the Ireland Funds Gala in Downtown Washington after learning of the result, according to CBS News. A White House spokesman said Biden spoke at the event but he was not in close contact with Martin. Jordan Fabian has more.

Bidens crypto executive order put the nations two federal consumer protection regulators front and center in regulating digital currency. The Federal Trade Commission and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau have largely taken a back seat to other financial regulators when it comes to crypto. But Bidens order on March 9 directed the CFPB and FTC to analyze how they can police crypto transactions for fraud and abuse. Theyve taken the position that crypto is not a consumer product, but as of [March 9] that position is done, one former CFPB attorney said. Evan Weinberger has more.

States and companies cant keep using Trump-era formulas to estimate social costs of greenhouse gas emissions for future energy and infrastructure projects while they battle over Biden administration calculations that are roughly twice as costly. The federal appeals court in New Orleans on Wednesday granted the White Houses request to temporarily let federal agencies use Bidens new cost-benefit analysis rules, which seek to slow climate change by making activities that emit greenhouse gases far more expensive. Read more from Laurel Brubaker Calkins.

The U.S. wants to broaden efforts to boost the energy sectors cybersecurity defenses, shoring up the U.S. supply chain of power equipment to spot vulnerabilities more quickly amid rising concerns from Russia and China. The Department of Energys four-year-old cybersecurity office, with an 18% bump in funding approved by Congress this month, is stepping up coordination with other agencies and private industry, Puesh Kumar, director of the Office of Cybersecurity, Energy Security, and Emergency Response, told Bloomberg Law. Read more from Daniel Moore.

Ketanji Brown Jacksons work on the U.S. Sentencing Commission led her and members of different ideologies to reach consensus on hot-button issues. Consensus in contentious matters on the Supreme Court can be more elusive, but Jacksons experience on the sentencing commission at a pivotal moment in its history will help her and the court if shes confirmed, according to lawyers with commission experience and scholars whove studied the organization. Jackson, Bidens choice to succeed retiring Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer, will begin nomination hearings in the Senate next week. Read more from Jordan S. Rubin.

To contact the reporters on this story: Giuseppe Macri in Washington at gmacri@bgov.com; Brandon Lee in Washington at blee@bgov.com;

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Loren Duggan at lduggan@bgov.com; Michaela Ross at mross@bgov.com

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What to Know in Washington: House to Vote on Russia Trade Status | Bloomberg Government - Bloomberg Government