New York investigators have seized dozens of artifacts worth more than $13 million from the Metropolitan Museum of Art over the last six months, alleging they had been looted from around the world, according to the New York Times.
Why it matters: The seizures indicate that the Manhattan district attorney’s office is stepping up efforts to close backlogged repatriation cases and crack down on the theft, looting and illicit trafficking of cultural property.
Former Attorney General William Barr on Friday said in an appearance on Fox News that there is no "legitimate reason" for why former President Trump had boxes of classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate.
Why it matters: Barr's comments cast doubt on Trump's claims that he had a "standing order" deeming documents taken from the Oval Office to his residence "declassified the moment he removed them."
A federal judge on Friday unsealed a detailed inventory of the items seized during the FBI's execution of a search warrant at former President Trump's Mar-a-Lago residence. It includes dozens of empty folders with "classified" banners.
Why it matters: The inventory, unsealed by U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon, a Trump appointee, reveals that documents with "top secret" and "confidential" markings were stored in the same boxes as personal items, including magazines and news articles, CNN notes.
Gina McCarthy, President Biden's domestic climate adviser, said she is leaving the administration in mid-September, according to a source familiar with the plans.
Why it matters: McCarthy, who led the Obama-era EPA, has played a central role in making climate change a government-wide priority.
The White House on Friday asked Congress for $47 billion in emergency funding to assist the administration's efforts in fighting COVID-19 and monkeypox, supporting Ukraine and responding to natural disasters.
Why it matters: The request comes as lawmakers on Capitol Hill face a September deadline to fund the government, carrying with it the risk of a government shutdown just before midterm elections, per the Washington Post.
Former White House counsel Pat Cipollone appeared Friday to testify before a federal grand jury investigating the Jan. 6 Capitol riot and efforts to overturn 2020 election results, Reuters reports.
Why it matters: Cipollone, with his deputy Pat Philbin, who is also expected to appear before the grand jury, are among the two highest-profile witnesses to testify in the Department of Justice's criminal investigation into the riot, Reuters notes.
Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis are two of the biggest names in Republican politics. But they're taking markedly different approaches toward campaigning in the midterms — and perhaps to 2024.
The big picture: Youngkin is bypassing MAGA-oriented gubernatorial candidates in favor of pragmatists running tough races in blue states. DeSantis has leaned into some of the party's most controversial nominees.
Iran's negotiators sent another written response to European Union's draft nuclear deal Thursday night local time, which was met with disappointment by the Biden administration.
Why it matters: It is now unlikely that a deal will be signed in the coming days. The back and forth written exchanges are expected to continue and could lead to the Biden administration deciding not to sign the deal before the November midterm election.
Argentina's Vice President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner had a gun pointed at her as she greeted supporters outside her Buenos Aires home late Thursday in what some officials described as an "assassination attempt."
Details: President Alberto Fernández said in a national broadcast that the "homicide attempt" occurred when a "man pointed a firearm at her head and pulled the trigger," per AP, which reports that authorities have detained a suspect over the attack on Kirchner, who previously served as Argentina's president.
