Unanimous Supreme Court throws out ‘Bridgegate’ convictions
WASHINGTON — A unanimous Supreme Court on Thursday threw out the convictions of two political insiders involved in the “Bridgegate” scandal that ultimately derailed the 2016 president bid of their ally, then-New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie.
The justices said there was evidence of deception, corruption, and abuse of power in the political payback saga that involved four days of traffic jams on the world’s busiest motor-vehicle bridge, the George Washington Bridge spanning the Hudson River between New York and New Jersey. But “not every corrupt act by state or local officials is a federal crime,” Justice Elena Kagan wrote for the court.
In the end, the justices concluded that the government had overreached in prosecuting Bridget Kelly and Bill Baroni for their roles in the scheme. Kelly was a deputy chief of staff to Christie. Baroni was a top Christie appointee to the Port Authority, the bridge’s operator.
Biden uses virtual events to target battleground Florida
WASHINGTON — Joe Biden is back on the campaign trail, targeting the critical battleground state of Florida — but without actually leaving home.
The presumptive Democratic presidential nominee is staying in his Delaware house amid efforts to slow the spread of the coronavirus, which has shut down most aspects of American life, including the presidential campaign. But he held a virtual roundtable on Thursday with more than a dozen African American leaders in Jacksonville, including Rep. Al Lawson.
“It’s great to be in Jacksonville today,” Biden said, grinning. “I’m anxious to get down in person to campaign.”
Later, Biden was holding an online rally with voters in Tampa set to feature many of the fixtures of an in-person appearance.
His virtual stops marked one of the first times Biden has tried to emulate a traditional campaign swing through a key state since locking up the Democratic primary nearly a month ago. In previous weeks he used a makeshift studio in a rec room in his basement to hold online fundraisers and discussions with top Democrats, but he faces mounting pressures and concerns from Democrats wary about President Donald Trump’s dominant presence on social media and across traditional news outlets.
Justice Department dropping Flynn’s Trump-Russia case
WASHINGTON — The Justice Department on Thursday said it is dropping the criminal case against President Donald Trump’s first national security adviser, Michael Flynn, abandoning a prosecution that became a rallying cry for the president and his supporters in attacking the FBI’s Trump-Russia investigation.
The action was a stunning reversal for one of the signature cases brought by special counsel Robert Mueller. It comes even though prosecutors for the past three years have maintained that Flynn lied to the FBI in a January 2017 interview about his conversations with the Russian ambassador.
Flynn himself admitted as much, pleading guilty before later asking to withdraw the plea, and he became a key cooperator for Mueller as the special counsel investigated ties between Russia and Trump’s 2016 political campaign.
Thursday’s action was swiftly embraced by Trump, who has relentlessly tweeted about the “outrageous” case and last week pronounced Flynn “exonerated.” It could also newly energize Trump supporters who have taken up the retired Army lieutenant general as a cause.
Hundreds evacuated as wildfires rage in Florida Panhandle
MILTON, Fla. — Firefighters in the Florida Panhandle continued battling an erratic fire Thursday that had scorched thousands of acres of woods, razed dozens of homes and forced some 1,600 people to evacuate from their neighborhoods.
A stretch of Interstate 10, northern Florida’s main transportation artery, remained closed in both directions near Pensacola because of smoke.
Gov. Ron DeSantis met with emergency officials at a church parking lot in Milton, which was turned into staging area, in Santa Rosa County for an hour Thursday before returning to the state capital of Tallahassee, located about 180 miles east.
The fire was feeding on stands of pines in forests strewn with dry needles.
Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried said in a news conference Thursday afternoon that fire officials are working around the clock to contain the wildfires.
In Santa Rosa County, which is just east of Pensacola, a 2,000-acre fire resulted in 1,100 homes being evacuated Wednesday. Officials said a few of those residents, in areas south of Interstate 10 were allowed to return to their homes. The others were not yet being allowed to return.
In neighboring Walton County, a 575-acre fire prompted about 500 people to evacuate. Authorities there said multiple structures were lost in the fire, which was 65% contained Thursday morning. Officials said about 33 structures have been damaged so far.
