March of the Living in Hungary to remember Holocaust victims
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Fox News
an hour ago
- Fox News
Former Congressman George Santos delivers 'glamorous' farewell before going to prison: 'The curtain falls'
Former Rep. George Santos posted a theatrical farewell on social media Thursday night, just hours before he was to begin serving a federal prison sentence for fraud and identity theft. "Well, darlings… The curtain falls, the spotlight dims, and the rhinestones are packed," Santos wrote on X. "From the halls of Congress to the chaos of cable news what a ride it's been! Was it messy? Always. Glamorous? Occasionally. Honest? I tried… most days. To my supporters: You made this wild political cabaret worth it. To my critics: Thanks for the free press." The former New York congressman is expected to report to federal custody Friday to begin serving an 87-month sentence, just over seven years, after pleading guilty in 2024 to wire fraud and aggravated identity theft. Santos was assessed the maximum sentence in April by U.S. District Judge Joanna Seybert. He was also ordered to pay nearly $374,000 in restitution and forfeit more than $205,000 in fraud proceeds. His guilty plea followed a sweeping investigation into campaign finance fraud, donor identity theft and false COVID-era unemployment claims. "This prosecution speaks to the truth that my office is committed to aggressively rooting out public corruption," said U.S. Attorney John J. Durham, who called the sentence "judgment day" for Santos and justice for his victims. Nassau County District Attorney Anne T. Donnelly said Santos "traded in his integrity for designer clothes and a luxury lifestyle." Prosecutors shared how Santos and his campaign treasurer, Nancy Marks, doctored donor reports to qualify for national Republican party funding. They fabricated contributions from Santos' family and falsely reported a $500,000 loan from Santos, though he had under $8,000 in his accounts. He also stole credit card information from donors, including "victims he knew were elderly persons suffering from cognitive impairment or decline" and made unauthorized charges to fund both campaign and personal expenses, according to the DOJ. Santos also used a fake political fundraising company to solicit tens of thousands of dollars which he spent on "designer clothing." During the pandemic, Santos fraudulently claimed over $24,000 in unemployment benefits while employed at an investment firm. He also submitted false congressional financial disclosures to the House. Santos was elected in 2022 after flipping New York's 3rd District for the GOP. His résumé was easily debunked. He falsely claimed academic degrees, Wall Street jobs and family ties to the Holocaust and 9/11. He was expelled from Congress in December 2023 after a scathing ethics report, becoming just the sixth member ever removed from the People's House. Santos has remained publicly active after his sentencing, selling video messages on Cameo and making social media posts. His tweet concluded, "I may be leaving the stage (for now), but trust me legends never truly exit." Unless pardoned, Santos is expected to remain incarcerated until at least early 2032. He has reportedly appealed to President Donald Trump for clemency. The White House and Santos did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment.
New York Times
9 hours ago
- New York Times
Strong Views on Israel and Genocide
To the Editor: Re 'No, Israel Is Not Committing Genocide in Gaza,' by Bret Stephens (column, July 23): Mr. Stephens's leniency toward Israel's actions in Gaza gives rhetorical cover to policies causing immense human suffering and a huge number of civilian deaths. Whitewashing the genocidal nature of Israel's war is a serious moral failure — especially when urgent public clarity is needed to push for change. Mr. Stephens argues that if Israel intended genocide, its military could have caused far more deaths. But genocide is about intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a group. Dismissing genocide because a powerful state didn't maximize killing reduces it to a numbers game and ignores reality. Israel's imperfect judicial processes and institutional constraints, along with the Netanyahu government's awareness of legal consequences, have forced limits on its actions. But the result — nearly 60,000 deaths reported, when Israel was capable of killing many more — doesn't mean intent was missing. To the contrary, the disciplined destruction of entire towns and civil infrastructure, the tactic of pushing civilians into designated zones and killing those who do not 'move' are all indications of an intent to kill as many Palestinians as needed to make life for them in Gaza unattainable. Intent to destroy Palestinian life in Gaza is obvious. That's a genocide by definition. Tamir Aldema TshuvaRamat Hasharon, Israel To the Editor: Bret Stephens argues that casually invoking the term 'genocide' merely dilutes its meaning. However, the repercussions extend far beyond semantic erosion. Such inflammatory language ignites intense emotional reactions on both sides of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, potentially prolonging the violence and exacerbating human suffering. For Hamas and its supporters, accusations of genocide against Palestinians can bolster recruitment efforts and justify continued resistance, framing the struggle as an existential battle. Conversely, for Israelis, who carry the historical scars of the Holocaust, these claims may heighten fears for their survival, prompting a more resolute defense and diminishing prospects for compromise. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Forbes
11 hours ago
- Forbes
Safety Bodies Urge EU Not To Let US Vehicles Skirt Safety Rules
Independent European road safety bodies are concerned that the U.S. will skirt around the EU's ... More crash-safety regulations as part of any trade deal. Photo: Guido Kirchner/picture alliance via Getty Images. Europe's peak independent transport safety bodies have urged the European Union not to follow Japan's lead and allow U.S.-made vehicles to be sold to European customers without passing European safety regulations. The European Transport Safety Council (ETSC) has insisted that the EU should not allow American companies to sidestep EU safety regulations in the interests of lowered tariffs with the U.S. The Trump administration this week announced a trade deal with Japan, the centerpiece of which is a 15% reciprocal tariff on goods exported from Japan to the U.S. - which has American automakers concerned. But the fine print of the deal showed that American automakers would now be allowed to sell their vehicles into the Japanese market - without passing Japanese domestic crash or emissions regulations. News stories today hinted that the EU was preparing to sign a similar deal, allowing its automakers to export to the U.S. for a 15% tariff rather than building cars there, with the same circumvention of its crash-safety regulations, which are considered the toughest in the world. Autonomous emergency braking, ntelligent speed assistance and pedestrian protection are some ... More features mandated under EU law that are not mandatory in U.S. cars. Photo: Getty. In a statement released today, the ETSC expressed deep concern that the move could undermine years of crash-safety science and improvement and urged the EU to reject any such deal and insisted vehicle-safety standards were public protections, not trade barriers. 'We are deeply concerned by the trade deal reached this week by the governments of Japan and the United States, which reportedly removes domestic Japanese safety testing requirements for American-made vehicles exported to Japan,' the statement read. "This move sets a dangerous precedent - one that could undermine road safety in countries that have led the world in automotive safety regulation. 'Allowing vehicles to bypass proven national safety standards for the sake of trade expediency risks turning back the clock on decades of progress in reducing road deaths and serious injuries.' Signatories to the statement include the the Executive Director of the European Transport Safety Council (Antonio Avenoso), the Acting Director General of the FIA's Region 1 (Diogo Pinto), the Executive Director of Transport & Environment (William Todts) and the President of the International Federation of Pedestrians (Geert van Waeg). Others involved included leaders of the European Consumer Voice in Standardization, Cities and Regions for Transport Innovation and the European Cyclists' Federation. Leading the pushback were Michiel van Ratingen, the Secretary General of Euro NCAP (New Car Assessment Program) and the CEO of Global NCAP, Richard Woods. NCAP programs have been responsible for enormous steps forward in consumer awareness of vehicle crash safety and, more lately, in driver-assistance systems. 'Reports indicate that Japan will now allow U.S. vehicles to enter its market without being subject to Japan's specific crash testing or safety compliance requirements. We urge the European Union not to follow suit,' the statement continued. "Trade talks must not become a backdoor to regulatory weakening. Vehicle safety standards are not trade barriers; they are public protections backed by science and evidence. Weakening or bypassing them would lead to real and measurable harm - particularly to vulnerable road users such as pedestrians and cyclists. "The EU has consistently adopted some of the world's most effective vehicle safety regulations, culminating in the General Safety Regulation that is currently in force. These rules mandate technologies such as automated emergency braking, intelligent speed assistance, and pedestrian protection - none of which are currently required for vehicles sold in the U.S. 'We urge EU leaders to maintain this position, and to state clearly that no deal on vehicles will be accepted unless all products placed on the EU market meet existing European regulatory requirements in full.'While the Trump administration has insisted that its tariff war would bring jobs back to America, it was the Toyota Motor Corp whose shares boomed on the Japanese tariff announcement, rising 13% to a seven-month high yesterday. The Big Three U.S. automakers called for caution on the tariffs yesterday, with the head of the American Automotive Policy Council (which represents Ford, GM and Stellantis) insisting they would harm American manufacturers, rather than helping them. 'Any deal that charges a lower tariff for Japanese imports with virtually no U.S. content than the tariff imposed on North American built vehicles with high U.S. content is a bad deal for U.S. industry and U.S. auto workers,' the council's head, Matt Blunt, said in a statement. Auto Drive America, which represents automakers who sell imported vehicles in the U.S., had a different take, and urged Trump to reach similar deals with the EU, Mexico and South Korea. 'We share President Trump's vision to make the U.S. the worldwide center of automotive production, and our member companies need stability in order to create an environment where we can maintain our competitive edge both in the U.S. and on the global stage,' Auto Drive America said in a statement. The Trade War has been a collection of ups and downs that have driven automakers to despair, given that all U.S.-built cars contain at least 15% foreign-made parts. The irony is that American cars have been sold tariff-free in Japan for decades, but have failed to garner interest due to being too large and inefficient for Japanese tastes. Now, they'll be at least 15% more expensive to Japanese buyers.
