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Donald Trump has reached out to his top allies on Capitol Hill to strategize how they can help defend him against potential criminal charges over his effort to overturn the 2020 election -- the latest example of Republicans racing behind the scenes to use their power and platforms to shield the former president without knowing details yet about the criminal investigation.

MLB Rumors: Grading a Yankees trade for Dylan CarlsonMark Powell of FanSided recently speculated an interesting trade for the St. Louis Cardinals and New York Yankees. In the trade, it would send veteran outfielder Dylan Carlson to the Yankees in exchange for right-handers Clayton Beeter and Yoend...

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis on Tuesday suggested that indicting former president Donald Trump for any crime stemming from his attempt to remain in office against the wishes of voters after losing the 2020 election would mean the Department of Justice is “criminalising political differences” and going after Mr Trump because prosecutors dislike him. Mr DeSantis, who currently trails Mr Trump in most polls of 2024 Republican primary voters, was speaking to CNN anchor Jake Tapper when he was asked about Mr Trump’s claim that he has received a letter from prosecutors informing him that he could soon be indicted a second time by a Washington, DC grand jury that has been investigating events leading up to the January 6 attack on the Capitol, when a riotous mob of the ex-president’s supporters tried to stop certification of his loss to Joe Biden. The Florida governor replied: “ So here's the problem. This country is going down the road of criminalising political differences, and I think that’s wrong”. Rather than address the possibility of charges against Mr Trump stemming from the January 6 investigation, Mr DeSantis instead pivoted to attack Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg, who earlier this year charged Mr Trump with multiple felony counts of having allegedly falsified business records relating to a 2016 hush money payment to adult film star Stormy Daniels. Mr DeSantis claimed that Mr Bragg “stretched” the statute under which he charged the ex-president in order to “target” him, and said “most people, even people on the left” have agreed that such a case wouldn’t have been brought had Mr Trump been “a normal civilian”. He also invoked the 2016-2018 Justice Department probe into Russia’s 2016 campaign of interference in that year’s presidential election as a “number one example” of both the DOJ and FBI being “weaponised against people they don’t like,” and called that investigation — which found that the Russian government’s efforts on Mr Trump’s behalf had been “sweeping and systematic” — “not a legitimate investigation” and alleged, falsely, that it had been opened to “drive Trump out of office”. Mr DeSantis then claimed his aim as president would be to “restore a single standard of justice” and “end weaponisation of these agencies” by firing FBI Director Christopher Wray, a Trump appointee who has become a conservative hate object for failing to protect Mr Trump while not acting to target the ex-president’s Democratic enemies. Asked whether he was advocating for ignoring evidence of criminality on Mr Trump’s part, he replied that what he was actually saying was that “going after somebody on the other side of the political spectrum” was “wrong”. “I think we've gone down the road in this country of trying to criminalise differences in politics rather than saying, okay, you don't like somebody then defeat them in the election, rather than trying to use the justice system,” he said. Read More Michigan charges 16 fake electors for Donald Trump with election law and forgery felonies DeSantis pushes AI-generated attack ad featuring fake Trump voice Matt Gaetz launches bill to defund Jack Smith probe as Trump asks Capitol allies help

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel has announced criminal charges against 16 people who signed certificates falsely declaring that Donald Trump won the 2020 presidential election, part of a nationwide scheme to upend the results in states that the former president lost to Joe Biden. The outcomes of presidential elections rest on slates of electors who decide their votes based on the outcome of their states’ popular vote. As then-President Trump sought a spurious legal effort to reject the outcome, his allies arranged slates of “alternate” electors in several states to cast their votes for him, despite his loss. Ms Nessel’s announcement arrived the same day that the former president said he has received a target letter from federal prosecutors indicating that he is the subject of an investigation into his efforts to overturn election results, suggesting that he could imminently be facing charges. The criminal charges in Michigan against the so-called “fake” electors appear to be the first. They each face eight felony counts, including election law forgery and conspiracy. Her office also has not ruled out charges against other potential defendants, she said. Those 16 people met in the basement of the state’s Republican Party headquarters and signed certificates falsely claiming that they were “the duly elected and qualified electors for president and vice president of the United States of America for the state of Michigan,” Ms Nessel said in prepared remarks on 18 July. “That was a lie,” she said. “They weren’t the duly elected and qualified electors, and each of the defendants knew it.” Those electors then attempted to deliver those documents to the state Senate and to the US Senate, where Vice President Mike Pence presided over the congressional certification of electoral college votes, and where Mr Trump and his allies allegedly pressured him to use those false slates of electors to overturn the election’s outcome and keep Mr Trump in office. “This plan – to reject the will of the voters and undermine democracy – was fraudulent and legally baseless,” Ms Nessel said. “The false electors’ actions undermine the public’s faith in the integrity of our election, and not only violate the spirt of the laws enshrining and defending our democracy, but, we believe, also plainly violated the laws by which we administer our elections in Michigan and peaceably transfer power in America.” Ms Nessel, an elected Democratic official, dismissed arguments that the prosecutions are politically motivated. “But where there is overwhelming evidence of guilt, in respect to multiple crimes, the most political act I can engage in as a prosecutor is to take no action at all,” she said. Ms Nessel’s office had previously referred the cases to the US Department of Justice but indicated earlier this year that she was reopening the “parallel investigation” into election crimes in the state, citing “clear evidence” for a prosecution. Prosecutors in Georgia have also indicated that fake electors from that state may also face criminal charges, as Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis pursues a separate investigation into the former president’s efforts to reject election results in that state. “Every serious challenge to the election had been denied, dismissed, or otherwise rejected by the time the false electors convened. There was no legitimate legal avenue or plausible use of such a document or an alternative slate of electors,” Ms Nessel said in a statement accompanying the announcement of charges. “There was only the desperate effort of these defendants, who we have charged with deliberately attempting to interfere with and overturn our free and fair election process, and along with it, the will of millions of Michigan voters,” she added. “That the effort failed and democracy prevailed does not erase the crimes of those who enacted the false electors plot.” Justice Department special counsel Jack Smith has focused his office’s attention in several states, including interviews with the office of Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, who provided a tranche of documents that included communications between the state’s election officials and Mr Trump’s former lawyers and members of his campaign as the former president’s allies targeted the critical battleground state. Mr Smith is investigating an array of schemes pursued by Mr Trump and his allies to reject 2020 results, including the fake electors plot. This is a developing story Read More Trump news – live: Trump could be indicted for a third time as soon as this week in Jan 6 probe Trump says he is about to be arrested again after letter confirms he’s target of Jan 6 grand jury

Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds said on Tuesday that plans are in progress to appeal a temporary block on the state's new, restrictive abortion law, previewing a likely emotional court battle that could take months to resolve. Reynolds told reporters at the Iowa Capitol that her staff is working with lawyers in Attorney General Brenna Bird's office to work out the details, so “it's just a matter of time,” she said. The Republican-controlled Legislature approved the measure to ban most abortions after about six weeks of pregnancy during a special session last week, and it went into effect Friday, immediately after Reynolds signed it. The ACLU of Iowa, Planned Parenthood North Central States and the Emma Goldman Clinic launched a legal challenge and on Monday, Judge Joseph Seidlin granted their request to pause the law as the courts assess its constitutionality. Abortion providers said they scrambled to fit in as many appointments as possible before the governor signed the bill, making hundreds of calls to prepare patients for the uncertainty and keeping clinics open late. After the ruling, providers at Planned Parenthood and the Emma Goldman Clinic indicated they were relieved but conscious of the long legal fight ahead. “I think the bill that we passed is constitutional, especially with the changes that we’ve seen," said Reynolds, who alluded to the Iowa Supreme Court and the U.S. Supreme Court reversing previous rulings that affirmed a woman's fundamental right to abortion. “We passed it, it went into law, and for three days we were saving babies,” she said. “I think the right to life is the most important right that we have.” Read More Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide

As the former president says he expects to be indicted, we explain what the possible counts could be.

AT&T said on Tuesday it does not intend to immediately remove lead cables from Lake Tahoe pending further

Google is working to fix false contact information for some major airlines on Google Maps after a Twitter user found a phone number actually connected callers to scammers.

It's unclear if the San Diego Padres will sell at the trade deadline, but if they do, expect them to receive some calls about Juan Soto from the Cardinals.Juan Soto was acquired from the Washington Nationals just last season, but he's expected to test free agency after next season. Wit...

Billionaire banker Jaime Gilinski ramped up his bid to take control of Colombian grocery store chain Almacenes Exito,

An attorney representing the families of two women whose bodies were found along the shoreline in Gilgo Beach more than a decade ago has shared his suspicions that newly-arrested suspect Rex Heuermann may have had a female accomplice. A string of murders stumped police in the gated Long Island community of Gilgo Beach for more than a decade. It began in 2010 when 24-year-old Shannan Gilbert vanished after leaving a client’s house and an investigation into her disappearance led authorities to a trail of young women’s remains. Ten bodies, also including an Asian male and a 10-month-old baby, were recovered along a stretch of a remote highway, prompting fears of a serial killer. The case went cold until last year, when Suffolk County police reopened a probe into the grim murders. Last week, an interagency task force arrested 59-year-old Manhattan architect Mr Heuermann, reigniting hopes that the victims’ families might finally be able to obtain justice. Mr Heuermann is only facing charges for the murders of three of the Gilgo Beach murder victims — Amber Costello, Megan Waterman and Melissa Barthelemy. But authorities have revealed they’re confident further charges over the murder of Maureen Brainard-Barnes will stick and haven’t ruled out the possibility that the disgraced architect could become the prime suspect in the other slayings. Attorney John Ray represents the families of Gilbert and Jessica Taylor, whose remains were among those found during the 2010 probe. Mr Ray told The Independent on Tuesday that he has long suspected that a woman may have helped the killer lure the victims. “We have a number of reasons to think a woman may have been involved. Nothing is certain here, [I want] to emphasise that, but there was some evidence that a woman was involved,” Mr Ray said. The attorney said that some of the evidence that could suggest a woman was involved in the killings is the way a “baby Doe’s” body was found. The child’s mother, dubbed “Peaches” for a tattoo on her torso, was found in Nassau County in 1997. Additional remains and those of her child were found years later, and the murders have been linked to the Gilgo Beach case. “The baby was wrapped in a blanket of some kind. And that’s something, you know, if you’re a depraved murderer, as a man ... Would you take the time to do that?” Mr Ray said. “But a mother might do that. That’s just one I use that as one of several reasons why we think that, but we don’t have any dispositive evidence that it was so.” Gilbert’s body was found in December 2011. Suffolk County authorities have previously said that they don’t believe Gilbert was a victim of the Gilgo Beach serial killer, or even that she was a victim of homicide. However, an independent autopsy commissioned by her family ruled that she died by strangulation and her mother believes she was murdered. “We’ve insisted that she was murdered. We have overwhelming evidence that that is true,” Mr Ray said. “The police had taken bizarre position that she died of natural causes.” He added: “We’re hoping now with the new task force with these great guys and new brains and excellent work of the District Attorney and the new Police Commissioner Rodney Harrison. “We’re hoping that they’re going to give it a look, a new look at the evidence with Shannan and investigate it as a murder.” Mr Ray said his clients have welcomed news of the arrest and now hope their loved ones’ killer or killers will also face the criminal system. “Both families are very happy that this man was caught and they’re happy for the other family members of the other victims,” Mr Ray said. “But the murderer of their loved ones has not been found. And even if it turns out to be this Tyrannosaurus Rex monster, there’s no solace in the end. Justice is an idea, but it’s not a feeling in a sense, and their feelings and their senses are still hurt and this resurrected those feelings. So it’s a bittersweet condition.” Mr Ray said that his law firm is joining efforts with the Suffolk County Police Department’s investigating team. Commissioner Harris has said in the aftermath that they’re probing any links Mr Heuermann may have with the Gilgo Beach bodies. On Tuesday, Former NYPD Chief of Detectives Robert Boyce told ABC’s Good Morning America that Mr Heuermann is being looked at in connection to missing persons cases and murders far beyond the shores of Long Island – across the tri-state area of New York, New Jersey and Connecticut and even nationwide. Mr Tay also told The Independent that although he had a tip that a breakthrough development would be announced in the case, he was not familiar with Mr Heuermann. “His whole background and purpose and so forth, his lifestyle were all quite surprising,” Mr Ray said. “Much more needs to be known about that now, because here’s a fella who purports to be a successful architect. I doubt very much that he was.” Mr Heuermann is the president of the architecture firm RH Consultants & Associates. On his company website, he boasted about working with the likes of Catholic Charities, NYC-DEP Sewerage Treatment and American Airlines and other major tenants at the JFK International Airport. However, court records obtained by CNN show that Mr Heuermann, who lives in the same modest home where he was brought up in Massapequa Park, has a history of filing personal injury lawsuits claiming to have been hit by vehicles. He also reportedly owes more than $200,000 in taxes to the IRS. “He maintained some kind of an office in Manhattan, you know, dipping in Manhattan doesn’t make you rich,” Mr Ray added. “But here he is an architect and yet his house is filthy and broken down and held up by two-by-fours on the front porch. It’s a striking contrast between, you know, the guy in the suit and tie you see in the picture and his circumstances.” An NYPD official told ABC News that the married father-of-two’s DNA has been entered into a statewide database and that his alleged MO is being compared to other cases across New York state – including those during the period he was allegedly active in Gilgo Beach. Mr Heuermann lived close to Gilgo Beach in Massapequa Park, Long Island, but worked in the heart of Midtown Manhattan where he runs an architecture firm. Some of the victims were last seen alive in the city. Read More Gilgo Beach murders - live: Rex Heuermann lawyer claims police are ignoring ‘stronger’ serial killer suspects JonBenét Ramsey’s brother says he believes her killer has ‘same bio’ as Gilgo Beach murders suspect Gilgo Beach serial killer suspect had one chilling question for officials after his arrest

Rep Matt Gaetz of Florida said on his podcast Tuesday morning that he will in the coming days introduce a bill to defund Special Counsel Jack Smith’s investigation into former President Donald Trump. “In the coming hours, the coming days, I will be introducing legislation under my name, in the House of Representatives, as a freestanding bill, to defund the Jack Smith investigation,” Mr Gaetz said. “And one reason why is the election interference feature. Another reason why: the lack of transparency.” Mr Gaetz’s announcement comes just hours after Mr Trump said he’s recieved a letter from Mr Smith’s investigation into the events of January 6 informing him that he is the target of a grand jury investigation in Washington, DC. “Deranged Jack Smith, the prosecutor with Joe Biden’s DOJ, sent a letter (again, it was Sunday night!) stating that I am a TARGET of the January 6th Grand Jury investigation, and giving me a very short 4 days to report to the grand Jury, which almost always means an Arrest and indictment,” Mr Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social. It is as of now unclear what charges Mr Trump may face, though he’s already been indicted for allegedly mishandling classified documents in Florida and allegedly participating in a hush money payment scheme in New York. But if Mr Trump is indicted again for his participation in efforts to overturn the result of the 2020 presidential election and subvert American democracy, it could dampen his odds of being returned to office in next year’s election — a prospect he and his supporters are arguing amounts to election interference. Mr Trump has in recent weeks repeatedly attacked Mr Smith, who was appointed as special counsel by Attorney General Merrick Garland last year. Mr Smith has been charged with overseeing two Department of Justice investigations into the former president, one regarding January 6 and the other regarding his handling of classified material. Read More Democratic lawmaker screams at ‘exhausting’ Matt Gaetz on House floor House Ethics Committee revives ‘misconduct’ probe into rep Matt Gaetz Christopher Wray hits back at Gaetz after Republican presses him on trust in the FBI