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Border group leader inured in New Mexico jail altercation

Authorities say the leader of a civilian group that has detained asylum-speaking migrants along the U.S.-Mexico border was injured while he was jailed in New Mexico, after being arrested on federal weapons charges.

The Dona Ana County Sheriff's Office said Wednesday in a statement that 69-year-old Larry Hopkins was transferred Tuesday out of the county jail after suffering non-life threatening injuries Monday night.

The statement did not provide specifics on the "alleged battery" in which Hopkins was injured in Las Cruces, but Hopkins' lawyer, Kelly O'Connell, told the Albuquerque Journal that his client was hospitalized for rib injuries following an altercation.

The FBI arrested Hopkins on a federal complaint accusing him of being a felon in illegal possession of firearms and ammunition.

O'Connell has said Hopkins will plead not guilty.

Source: Fox News National

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Bank of America drops ‘Merrill Lynch’ name in rebranding effort

A Bank of America logo is pictured in the Manhattan borough of New York City
A Bank of America logo is pictured in the Manhattan borough of New York City, New York, U.S., January 30, 2019. REUTERS/Carlo Allegri

February 25, 2019

By Imani Moise

(Reuters) – Bank of America Corp is dropping the “Merrill Lynch” name from some of its businesses, phasing out a brand with a long history on Wall Street as part of a multi-year marketing effort, the lender said on Monday.

The investment bank and capital markets business is ditching the 104-year old name to become BofA Securities and its wealth management businesses will collectively be called “Merrill,” without the Lynch.

The individual units, Merrill Lynch Wealth Management, Merrill Edge and Merrill Guided Investing will keep their names.

U.S. Trust, Bank of America’s private bank which caters to ultra-high net worth clients, will become Bank of America Private bank, and Merrill Lynch Private Banking & Investment Group will become Merrill Private Wealth Management, dropping the “Lynch.”

In the past, rebranding has faced some opposition. The average age of financial advisers is in the mid- to late-50s, and many feel fierce loyalty to the brand of the firm where they have worked for years.

Before it was bought in 2009 in the throes of the financial crisis, Merrill Lynch was known for its powerful investment bank and “thundering herd” of financial advisers. The brand survived over the last decade, unlike other iconic firms like Lehman Brothers and Bear Stearns whose names faded away once they were acquired.

Under the new “Merrill” umbrella, the firm will launch a new marketing campaign featuring the “Merrill bull front and center,” the company told Reuters in a statement.

The change comes as Bank of America is working to boost morale in its investment bank after a year of declining market share and revenue and a string of departures by senior leaders.

(Reporting By Aparajita Saxena in Bengaluru; Editing by Sai Sachin Ravikumar and Tom Brown)

Source: OANN

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White House aide believes Trump had no advance knowledge of Assange arrest

FILE PHOTO: WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange arrives at the Westminster Magistrates Court, after he was arrested in London
FILE PHOTO: WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange arrives at the Westminster Magistrates Court, after he was arrested in London, Britain April 11, 2019. REUTERS/Hannah McKay/File Photo

April 14, 2019

By Humeyra Pamuk

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – White House adviser Kellyanne Conway On Sunday said she did not believe President Donald Trump had advance knowledge that WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange was going to be arrested by the British police and charged by U.S. prosecutors.

“Not to my knowledge,” Conway told NBC’s “Meet the Press” show, when asked if Trump knew ahead of time about Assange, who last Thursday was hauled out of the Ecuador’s embassy in London where he had taken refuge since 2012 to avoid extradition.

U.S. prosecutors subsequently announced charges on Thursday and accused Assange of conspiring with former Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning to gain access to a government computer as part of one of the largest compromises of classified information in U.S. history.

The Justice Department said Assange was arrested under an extradition treaty between the United States and Britain.

Lawyers for Assange said he may risk torture and his life would be in danger if he were to be extradited to the United States. They have also suggested the charges could chill press freedom.

Conway said she believed Trump did not have any knowledge of what was going to happen to Assange but added that based on her numerous conversations with him on the issue, he is against releasing such classified information.

“The President believes that those who publish classified information should not do that,” she said. “…So anybody who’s publishing classified information, in our view, should think thrice before they do that because you can imperil folks.”

Trump in 2016 said “I love WikiLeaks” after the website released emails that U.S. authorities have said were hacked by Russia to harm his election opponent Hillary Clinton. On Friday, he told reporters he had no opinion on the charges against Assange. “I know nothing about WikiLeaks. It’s not my thing,” Trump said.

Assange’s U.S. indictment arose from a long-running criminal investigation dating back to the administration of President Barack Obama.

It was triggered in part by WikiLeaks’ publication in 2010 of U.S. military reports about the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and the diplomatic communications – disclosures that embarrassed the United States and strained relations with allies.

(Reporting by Humeyra Pamuk; Editing by Nick Zieminski)

Source: OANN

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At least 14 lined up and killed after gunmen ambush bus in Pakistan, officials say

At least 14 people were lined up and executed in southwestern Pakistan after gunmen ambushed a bus and forced the passengers onto a highway early Thursday, officials said.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack. Prime Minister Imran Khan has condemned the attack in restive Baluchistan province as "an act of terror."

The attack took place as the bus was traveling on the Makran coastal highway between the port city of Karachi and the Gwadar port in the southwest, local official Jehangir Dashti told The Associated Press. He said that the passengers targeted in the attack were killed after the assailants checked their identity cards.

US OFFICIALS SEEK EXTRADITION OF MURDER SUSPECT IN PAKISTAN

"In this tragic incident, 14 passengers were forced off the bus, they were lined up in a nearby open area and killed by the terrorists," Dashti said. The identities of the slain were not immediately clear.

Security forces from the nearby town of Buzi Top were dispatched and had reached the area, about 375 miles from the provincial capital, Quetta, he added.

In his statement, Prime Minister Imran Khan ordered authorities "to make every possible effort to identify and to bring the perpetrators of the barbaric act to justice."

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Separatists have for years waged a low-level insurgency in oil-rich Baluchistan, complaining of discrimination and demanding a fairer share of the province's resources and wealth.

Other militant groups also operate in Baluchistan. Last Friday, a suicide bomber targeted an open-air market in Quetta, killing 20 people in an attack claimed by the Islamic State group.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Source: Fox News World

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Tucker Mocks CNN’s Don Lemon For Playing ‘Holy Victim’ Over Smollett

Fox News host Tucker Carlson mocked CNN host Don Lemon for playing a “holy victim” in an epic rant on the Smollett case Thursday night.

TUCKER CARLSON: Well, before he claimed that white supremacists beat him up on the street, most people had never heard of Jussie Smollett. And after he became a victim everybody wanted to be his friend. Here’s Don Lemon over on CNN bragging how he texts his new pal Jussie every single day. He’s his cell number. That’s how close they are. Really tight.

DON LEMON (on Red Table Talk): My concern is for him.

(…)

LEMON: And for his well-being. [Transition] Every day I say I know you think I’m annoying. I can show you the text. “I know you think I’m annoying you, but I just want to know how you’re doing. That you’re okay. If you need somebody, you can talk to me because there is not a lot of us out there.” And sometimes he responds. Sometimes he doesn’t. He responds and says, “you are not annoying”.

CARLSON: “You can talk to me”, Don Lemon says, “because there is not a lot of us out there.” Well, here’s the translation. “Us” means people who’ve been oppressed in the ways Jussie Smollett has been oppressed. Lemon is letting you know he’s in that group too. Yes, he’s a highly paid news anchor with his own TV show. And yet, like Jussie Smollett Don Lemon is a holy victim.


It’s clear the “Jussie Smollett hoax” benefits the globalists’ false flag agenda. Alex calls in from the road to expose those that actually want to divide America.

So, there’s a mad scramble over who’s the victim here. Who is the victim? Well, there is one. What Smollett did is not a victimless crime. There’s no such thing as that. An entire group of people did get slandered by this hoax. Regular people from outside the coastal cities. People with the wrong political beliefs and the wrong skin color. Smollett and his many defenders savagely attacked these people and not apologizing for doing it.

Instead, they are telling you, and hearing it everywhere, that the real losers here are the authentic victims of hate crimes who won’t be believed the next time. Okay. That’s fine. But what about the innocent Americans they just poured venom on for two weeks because it matched some bigoted stereotypes they had about middle America? What about them? There’s no mention of them.

Don Lemon would very much like to keep up those attacks on those people. Attacking them allows him to feel oppressed. That is why, when Smollett was finally caught, Lemon reacted in a puzzling way. He didn’t seem especially concerned that his buddy had lied to further divide the country to hurt America, which he did. No, that wasn’t the real problem. The real problem, according to Don Lemon is that Smollett’s arrest might discredit the cult of victimhood.

LEMON: This is playing out every single moment in cable news. Sean Hannity is going to eat Jussie Smollett’s lunch every single second. Tucker Carlson is going to eat Jussie Smollett’s lunch every single second.

CARLSON: Yeah, because when you tell the truth about a hate hoax you’re the real hater.

With spicy hot takes like these, it’s hard to believe Carlson’s still allowed on TV!

Source: InfoWars

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Venezuela National Assembly approves expansion to PDVSA ad-hoc board

FILE PHOTO: FILE PHOTO: Cutouts depicting images of oil operations are seen outside a building of Venezuela's state oil company PDVSA in Caracas
FILE PHOTO: Cutouts depicting images of oil operations are seen outside a building of Venezuela's state oil company PDVSA in Caracas, Venezuela January 28, 2019. REUTERS/Carlos Garcia Rawlins/File Photo

April 9, 2019

CARACAS (Reuters) – Venezuela’s opposition-controlled National Assembly on Tuesday approved an expansion of the ad hoc board of state-run oil company Petroleos de Venezuela to nine members from the current five, and also allowed it to negotiate foreign debt.

The board’s new head will be former PDVSA executive Luis Pacheco, said lawmaker Elias Matta, head of the assembly’s energy commission. The expanded board would also be able to represent the company overseas, Matta said in congress.

(Reporting by Luc Cohen, Corina Pons and Marianna Parraga; editing by Jonathan Oatis)

Source: OANN

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Horseracing: Frost riding the risk as she gears up to conquer Cheltenham

FILE PHOTO: Horse Racing - Cheltenham Festival
FILE PHOTO: Horse Racing - Cheltenham Festival - Cheltenham Racecourse, Cheltenham, Britain - March 16, 2018 General view during the 14.50 Albert Bartlett Novices' Hurdle Action Images via Reuters/Andrew Boyers/File Photo

March 8, 2019

By Ellie Kelly

LONDON (Reuters) – British jump jockey Bryony Frost is gearing up for what could be the most exciting week of her career at next week’s Cheltenham Festival but the 23-year-old is well aware that she is always potentially one fall away from ending it – or worse.

Frost already has a CV littered with injuries, including one horrific experience in July where she fractured multiple bones in her back. Yet like her bone-smashed family before her, she treats such setbacks as a mere occupational hazard.

“I take falls, shake it off and get on with it,” Frost told Reuters. “I’ve grown up watching my brother and dad take hits. I know how to get over it and move on. If your body’s not broken, your next horse could be your next winner, it’s just your mentality.”

Her mentality is admired by one of the sport’s most successful National Hunt trainers, Paul Nicholls, who employs Frost as a full time stable jockey and lets her use some of his best horses.

Frost’s brother Hadden was a successful jump jockey before turning to show-jumping whilst her father is Jimmy Frost, a former jockey who won the Grand National in 1981. Now a trainer, he still plays a big part in his daughter’s life.

“Dad’s my rock. I would be lost without him,” she says.

“Dad let me ride my first racehorse at nine and gave me a mobile phone at four so I could go out riding on my own. It only had his number on it.”

Racing is overwhelmingly high risk, with an average of one fall in every 16 rides. Frost shows no fear, despite the fact both her brother and her father broke their backs racing and her cousin Sarah Gaisford was paralyzed in a fall.

Frost herself has sustained multiple injuries, including one when a fall damaged her kidneys so badly that, after a brush with death, she underwent 12 operations and two months in hospital.

“Then I had a fall last summer and sustained a lacerated pancreas and liver, an aneurism, a cracked sternum and I fractured T8 and T7 (bones) in my back,” she says unperturbed.

‘REBUILT MY BODY’

Frost spent five weeks in Oaksey House, a rehab center owned by the Injured Jockeys Fund. “I owe my career to those guys,” she adds. “They rebuilt my body and channeled my mind. You can feel so lost when you’re injured because your body is not keeping up with your mind.

“People have said to me ‘is it worth it?’ But horses and racing is my reason for living, I spend every waking hour thinking about it. There is nothing like it, that partnership you can have with a horse.

“They can’t talk but you connect with them by observing and feeling, through their body and breathing. They are all completely different and the quicker you work them out and become their friend, the more they are going to do with you.”

Frodon, the horse she won three out of four races with this season, may give Frost her first experience of The Gold Cup – the race they all want to win. The line-up will officially be announced on the day of the race next Friday.

“Frodon is the warrior you want to go to war with,” she says.

“It will be a massive moment for me to partner him. He gives me everything just as I give my everything to him.”

After recent good form for Nicholls and trainer Neil King, Frost is likely to have a handful of rides at The Festival but refuses to discuss her chances.

“I don’t set goals or say, I’m going to beat this person or win that race,” she says.

“It’s The Festival and such a rare thing to win. If you look at the top of the mountain, it’s a long way up but if you take it step by step then you will keep going up. If you only make it half way, well you’ve still done well and if you get to the top, only then you can take in the view.”

Great British Racing are showcasing extraordinary women in racing for International Women’s Day at The Cheltenham Festival from 12-15 March. For more information visit gbraci.ng/IWD

(Reporting by Ellie Kelly, editing by Christian Radnedge)

Source: OANN

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U.S. President Trump departs for travel to Indianapolis from the White House in Washington
U.S. President Donald Trump talks to reporters as he departs for travel to Indianapolis, Indiana from the White House in Washington, U.S., April 26, 2019. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst

April 26, 2019

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday said trade talks with China are going very well, as the world’s two largest economies seek to end talks with a trade agreement to defuse tensions.

Trump said on Thursday he would soon host China’s President Xi Jinping at the White House.

Earlier this week, the White House said that Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer would travel to Beijing for more talks on a trade dispute marked by tit-for-tat tariffs between the two countries.

(Reporting by Jeff Mason; Writing by Makini Brice; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)

Source: OANN

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Representatives of Russian Transneft, Ukranian Ukrtransnafta, Polish Pern and Belarusian Belneftekhim gather to hold talks on fixing tainted oil supplies to Europe, in Minsk
Representatives of Russian Transneft, Ukranian Ukrtransnafta, Polish Pern and Belarusian Belneftekhim gather to hold talks on fixing tainted oil supplies to Europe, in Minsk, Belarus April 26, 2019. REUTERS/Vasily Fedosenko

April 26, 2019

By Katya Golubkova and Andrei Makhovsky

MOSCOW/MINSK (Reuters) – Russia is confident it can soon resolve a problem of polluted Russian oil contaminating a major pipeline serving Europe and affecting supplies as far west as Germany, a senior official said on Friday at talks with importers about the issue.

Russian Deputy Energy Minister Pavel Sorokin did not give a precise timeframe but Moscow has previously said it would pump clean oil to the border with Belarus from April 29, seeking to end a crisis hitting the world’s second-largest crude exporter.

Sorokin was speaking at talks with officials from Belarus, Poland and Ukraine in Minsk on the issue. Belarus said the issue had cost it $100 million, while analysts say alternative supply routes for refiners cannot fully fill the gap.

Poland, Germany, Ukraine and Slovakia have suspended imports of Russian oil via the Druzhba pipeline. Halting those supplies has knock-on effects further along the network.

The problem arose last week when an unidentified Russian producer contaminated oil with high levels of organic chloride used to boost oil output but which must be separated before shipment as it can destroy refining equipment.

Russia’s Energy Ministry said pipeline monopoly Transneft and other Russian companies had a plan to mitigate the effects of the contaminated oil. It did not give details.

Russian officials have said contaminated oil has already been pumped into storage in Russia and Friday’s talks would focus on how to partially withdraw the tainted crude from the Druzhba pipeline running via other countries.

The suspension cuts off a major supply route for Polish refineries owned by Poland’s PKN Orlen and Grupa Lotos, as well as plants in Germany owned by Total, Shell, Eni and Rosneft.

Some refiners have outlined plans for alternative supplies, but analysts say other routes cannot meet the shortfall.

OIL PRICES

Ukraine’s Ukrtransnafta suspended the transit of oil through the pipeline on Thursday, closing supplies via Druzhba’s southern route to Slovakia, the Czech Republic and Hungary.

The pipeline issue, which has supported global oil prices, lifted Russian Urals crude differentials to an all-time high on Thursday.

With pipeline supplies to Europe shut, Russia faces a challenge of how to divert about 1 million barrels per day (bpd) that was meant to be shipped through the network to other destinations at the time when export capacity is at its limits.

State-run Russian Railways held talks with energy firms on using up to 5,000 rail tankers to transport crude, RIA news agency reported on Friday.

Concerns about the quality of Urals crude also caused delays in loadings at the Baltic port of Ust-Luga, when buyers refused to lift cargoes, resulting in a brief shutdown of the port on Wednesday and Thursday. An Ust-Luga official and traders said on Friday loadings had resumed.

Russian loading plans indicate it aims to boost Urals exports in May before the expiry of a deal on output cuts agreed with the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies, Reuters calculations and Energy Ministry data show.

The provisional loading plan for Russia’s Baltic Sea ports and Novorossiisk in May show exports rising to 10.7 million tonnes, the highest level in half a decade.

Minsk estimated its loss from lower oil product exports due to contaminated Russian oil at around $100 million, Russia’s Interfax news agency reported on Thursday, citing Belarusian state oil company Belneftekhim.

Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Kozak, in charge of government energy policy, said this week that those found responsible for contaminating the oil could be fined. He did not provide names.

(Reporting by Agnieszka Barteczko in WARSAW, Sandor Peto in BUDAPEST, Jason Hovet in PRAGUE, Matthias Williams and Natalia Zinets in KIEV, Katya Golubkova, Olesya Astakhova, Gleb Gorodyankin, Olga Yagova and Maxim Rodionov in MOSCOW, Andrei Makhovsky in MINSK; writing by Katya Golubkova; editing by Michael Perry and Edmund Blair)

Source: OANN

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FILE PHOTO - A worker sits on a ship carrying containers at Mundra Port in the western Indian state of Gujarat
FILE PHOTO: A worker sits on a ship carrying containers at Mundra Port in the western Indian state of Gujarat April 1, 2014. REUTERS/Amit Dave/File Photo

April 26, 2019

(Reuters) – India has once again delayed the implementation of higher tariffs on some goods imported from the United States to May 15, a government official said on Friday.

The new tariff structure was to come into force from May 2, the spokeswoman said without citing reasons for the delay.

Angered by Washington’s refusal to exempt it from new steel and aluminum tariffs, New Delhi decided in June last year to raise the import tax from Aug. 4 on some U.S. products including almonds, walnuts and apples.

But since then, New Delhi has repeatedly delayed the implementation of the new tariff.

Trade friction between India and the U.S. has escalated after U.S. President Donald Trump announced plans earlier this year to end preferential trade treatment for India that allows duty-free entry for up to $5.6 billion worth of its exports to the United States.

In a further blow, U.S. on Monday demanded buyers of Iranian oil stop purchases by May or face sanctions, ending six months of waivers which allowed Iran’s eight biggest buyers including India to continue importing limited volumes.

(Reporting by Manoj Kumar in New Delhi and Kanishka Singh in Bengaluru; Editing by Anil D’Silva and Raissa Kasolowsky)

Source: OANN

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One of Joe Biden’s newly-hired senior advisers has seemingly had a very recent change of heart.

Symone Sanders, a prominent Democratic strategist and Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., staffer in 2016, was announced as one of the big-name members of Team Biden on Thursday.

But Sanders, who has also served as a CNN contributor, is seen in resurfaced footage from November 2016 expressing her opposition to a white person leading her party after Donald Trump’s election.

“In my opinion, we don’t need white people leading the Democratic party right now,” Sanders told host Brianna Keilar during a discussion on Howard Dean potentially becoming DNC chairman.

BIDEN HIRES FORMER BERNIE SANDERS’ SPOKESPERSON AS SENIOR ADVISER

“The Democratic party is diverse, and it should be reflected as so in leadership and throughout the staff, at the highest levels. From the vice chairs to the secretaries all the way down to the people working in the offices at the DNC,” she said.

Sanders wrapped up her remarks by saying: “I want to hear more from everybody. I want to hear from the millennials and the brown folks.”

Footage of the interview was resurfaced by RealClearPolitics.

After news of her hiring broke on Thursday, Sanders backed her new boss on Twitter.

TRUMP ASSESSES 2020 DEMS; TAKES SWIPES AT BIDEN, SANDERS; DISMISSES HARRIS, O’ROURKE; SAYS HE’S ROOTING FOR BUTTIGIEG

“@JoeBiden & @DrBiden are a class act. Over the course of this campaign, Vice President Biden is going to make his case to the American ppl. He won’t always be perfect, but I believe he will get it right,” she wrote.

The hiring of Sanders has been viewed as another indication of the expected tough fight that Biden and Sanders are in for as the two frontrunners battle a deep Democratic field.

While Sanders himself didn’t torch Biden as he jumped into the race, it’s clear that many of his progressive supporters view the former vice president as a threat.

Biden’s entry into the race – at least in the early going – sets up a battle between himself and Sanders, who thanks to his fierce fight with eventual nominee Hillary Clinton for the 2016 Democratic nomination, enjoys name ID on the level of the former vice president.

BIDEN VOWS THAT ‘AMERICA IS COMING BACK,’ SPARKING ‘MAGA’ COMPARISONS

Justice Democrats — who also called Biden “out-of-touch” – is an increasingly influential group among the left of the party. They’ve championed progressive Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York as well as Sanders. The group was founded by members of Sanders 2016 presidential campaign.

Biden has pushed back against the perception that he’s a moderate in a party that’s increasingly moving to the left. Earlier this month he described himself as an “Obama-Biden Democrat.”

And Biden said he’d stack his record against “anybody who has run or who is running now or who will run.”

Former Democratic National Committee chair Donna Brazile – a Fox News contributor – highlighted that “Joe Biden can occupy his own lane in large part because he’s earned it. He’s earned the right to call himself whatever.”

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But she emphasized that “elections are not about the past, they’re about the future…I do believe he has the right ingredients. The question is can he find enough people to help him stir the pot.”

Fox News Andrew O’Reilly contributed to this report.

Source: Fox News Politics

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Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh, who is facing increased calls for her immediate resignation, remains in poor health and is not “lucid” enough to decide whether to step down, her attorney told reporters late Thursday.

Steve Silverman, speaking outside one of Pugh’s residences which was raided by the FBI and IRS earlier in the day, said the embattled city leader could make a decision as early as next week.

“She is leaning toward making the best decision in the best interest in the citizens of Baltimore City,” he said, adding that Pugh has “several options” to consider.

“She just needs to be physically and mentally sound and lucid enough to make appropriate decisions.”

BALTIMORE MAYOR CATHERINE PUGH, ON LEAVE AMID BOOK PROBE, HAS HOMES AND CITY HALL OFFICE RAIDED BY FEDS

Silverman said Pugh met with a doctor at home Thursday and plans to do so again Friday, the Baltimore Sun reported.

In the latest image-tarnishing scandal for struggling Baltimore, the first-term Democratic mayor faces accusations that she used children’s book deals to cover up kickbacks for favorable treatment as a state lawmaker and city leader that earned her roughly $800,000 over several years.

BALTIMORE’S ACTING MAYOR SAYS HE ‘WOULD HATE TO SEE’ EMBATTLED MAYOR RETURN AFTER BOOK SCANDALS

As a state senator, 69-year-old Pugh sold $500,000 worth of her self-published “Healthy Holly” illustrated paperbacks to the University of Maryland Medical System, a major state employer whose board she sat on for nearly 20 years.

Baltimore police officers stand outside the house of Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh in Baltimore, MD., Thursday, April 25, 2019. Agents with the FBI and IRS are gathering evidence inside the two homes of Pugh and also in City Hall. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)

Baltimore police officers stand outside the house of Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh in Baltimore, MD., Thursday, April 25, 2019. Agents with the FBI and IRS are gathering evidence inside the two homes of Pugh and also in City Hall. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)

UMMS reportedly paid Pugh for 100,000 copies of her books between 2011 and 2018 with the stated intention of distributing the books to schools and day care centers. But some 50,000 copies remain unaccounted for and officials are probing if they were even printed.

Pugh also made $300,000 in bulk sales to other customers including health carriers that did business with the city of Baltimore.

BALTIMORE CITY COUNCIL CALLS ON EMBATTLED MAYOR CATHERINE PUGH TO RESIGN IMMEDIATELY

The politically isolated Pugh slipped out of sight on April 1 after a hastily organized press conference where she called her no-contract book deals a “regrettable mistake.” That same day, Maryland’s governor called on the state prosecutor to investigate allegations of “self-dealing.”

Pugh took an indefinite leave of absence, citing her health deteriorating intensely after a bout with pneumonia.

Federal agents arrive at the Maryland Center for Adult Training in Baltimore. MD, Thursday, April 25, 2019. Agents with the FBI and IRS are gathering evidence inside the two homes of Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh and in City Hall, as well as the office of her lawyer and the home of a top aide.

Federal agents arrive at the Maryland Center for Adult Training in Baltimore. MD, Thursday, April 25, 2019. Agents with the FBI and IRS are gathering evidence inside the two homes of Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh and in City Hall, as well as the office of her lawyer and the home of a top aide. (Loyd Fox/Baltimore Sun via AP)

On Thursday morning, agents with the FBI and IRS searched her two Baltimore homes, her City Hall offices, and a nonprofit organization she once led. The home of at least one of Pugh’s aides was also scoured.

Silverman said federal agents also served a subpoena at his law firm, retrieving Pugh’s original financial records. They did not seek any attorney-client privileged communications, he said.

Pugh’s attorney said she was “emotionally extremely distraught” following the searches by FBI and IRS agents.

“There was nothing incriminating that came out of her home,” Silverman said.

UMMS spokesman Michael Schwartzberg told reporters that the medical system received a grand jury witness subpoena seeking documents and information related to Pugh.

Other probes against Pugh include a review by the city ethics board and the Maryland Insurance Administration.

BALTIMORE MAYOR’S $500G DEAL FOR ‘HEALTHY HOLLY’ CHILDREN’S BOOKS DRAWS SCRUTINY

In recent weeks, the calls for Pugh’s resignation have intensified with the strongest voice coming from Republican Gov. Larry Hogan, who did not mince words after Thursday’s early morning raids.

“Now more than ever, Baltimore City needs strong and responsible leadership. Mayor Pugh has lost the public trust,” he said. “She is clearly not fit to lead. For the good of the city, Mayor Pugh must resign.”

Federal Bureau of Investigation, and Internal Revenue Service agents search the home of Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh in Baltimore, MD., Thursday, April 25, 2019. Agents with the FBI and IRS are gathering evidence inside the two homes of Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh and in City Hall.

Federal Bureau of Investigation, and Internal Revenue Service agents search the home of Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh in Baltimore, MD., Thursday, April 25, 2019. Agents with the FBI and IRS are gathering evidence inside the two homes of Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh and in City Hall. (Jerry Jackson/Baltimore Sun via AP)

Many of her fellow Democrats, including those on Baltimore’s demoralized City Council and state lawmakers, are also insisting that Pugh put the citizens’ interests above any attempt to preserve her political career.

City Council member Brandon Scott called the Thursday raids “an embarrassment to the city.”

However, only a conviction can trigger a mayor’s removal from office, according to the city solicitor. Baltimore’s mayor-friendly City Charter currently provides no options for ousting its executive.

Six of Pugh’s staffers joined her on paid leave earlier this month; three of them were fired this week by the acting mayor.

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Pugh came to office in late 2016 after edging out ex-Mayor Sheila Dixon, who had spent much of her tenure fighting corruption charges before being forced to depart office in 2010 as part of a plea deal connected to the misappropriation of about $500 in gift cards meant for needy families.

She would certainly face a bruising 2020 Democratic primary if she were to return and run for reelection. Veteran City Council leader Bernard “Jack” Young, who is serving as acting mayor, said as she went on leave that he would merely be a placeholder. But this week, before the raids, he said “it could be devastating for her” if she tried to return.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Source: Fox News National

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