Russian Attacks Kill Three in Eastern Ukraine as Civilian Casualties Mount 
Taiwan Simulates Chinese Blockade and Invasion in Major Civil Defense Drill 
South Korea Warns Won Is Undervalued, Boosts FX Coordination With Japan 
US Appeals Court Limits ICE Detention Without Bond Hearings After 90 Days 
Ukraine War: Russian Drone Attack Sparks Hotel Fire in Central Kyiv 
France Battles Mediterranean Wildfires as Heatwave Fuels Fire Risk 
Khamenei Funeral Draws Thousands as Iran Stages Nationwide Week of Mourning 
Trump Administration Declines USMCA Renewal, Opens Talks on New Trade Changes 
DHS Investigates Cyber Breach in Homeland Security Information-Sharing Network 
US Ambassador Prioritizes Cook Islands Critical Minerals, Warns of China’s Pacific Influence 
US-Iran Doha Talks Show Limited Progress as Hormuz Shipping Remains Key Focus 
Russia’s Deadly Kyiv Missile and Drone Attack Kills 27 as Zelensky Urges Faster Air Defense Support 
EU Chip Industry Faces Growing Risks From China Export Controls and U.S. Technology Dependence: Report 
Amy Coney Barrett Faces Conservative Backlash After Key Supreme Court Rulings Against Trump 
US Resumes Dollar Shipments to Iraq After Months-Long Suspension 
UN Warns of Looming Human Rights Catastrophe in Sudan’s Al-Obeid 
Trump Dedicates Theodore Roosevelt Museum, Unveils New Air Force One Ahead of America’s 250th Anniversary 
One of the events that served as a catalyst for the impeachment trials against President Donald Trump was the since-debunked investigation onto former vice president Joe Biden’s son, Hunter Biden. Following the news of the Senate authorizing a subpoena onto the public relations firm in relation to Hunter Biden, the Biden campaign has criticized the panel in charge of attempting to smear the former vice president.
CNBC reports that the Biden campaign criticized Republican Senator Ron Johnson for pursuing a probe related to Hunter Biden, saying that this is the Republicans’ attempt to smear the Bidens and save Trump. Johnson, who serves as chairperson for the committee pursuing the probe, voted to authorize a subpoena towards Blue Star Strategies, the PR firm that worked with Burisma Holdings, where Hunter Biden served as a board member. The PR firm has since responded to Johnson saying why was there a need for a subpoena when they have willingly complied with submitting the necessary documents.
“We’re in the middle of the worst public health and economic crisis in a century, and what is Senator Johnson focused on? Running a political errand for Donald Trump by wasting Homeland Security Committee time and resources attempting to resurrect a craven, previously-debunked smear against Vice President Biden,” said Biden campaign spokesman Andrew Bates in an email. Bates then added that Johnson should be focused on the coronavirus response instead of trying to save face on behalf of Trump.
According to Johnson, the GOP Senators are investigating whether the PR firm tried to take advantage of Hunter Biden’s connections to Burisma while his father was still in office as vice president. The Democrats in the Senate have voted against issuing the subpoena and accused their Republican counterparts of ignoring the severity of the pandemic.
Meanwhile, Biden gains another win following the results of the Democratic primaries in Oregon. Biden won 69.1 percent of votes over Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, who gained 18.1 percent of the votes. Senator Elizabeth Warren came in third with nine percent. As Oregon has 61 pledged delegates, majority of those delegates will be awarded to Biden.
