cnbc--2020-07-02--Biden challenges Trump's sunny picture of the U.S. economy as coronavirus cases surge

WASHINGTON — In a sign that the 2020 presidential campaign is finally getting underway in earnest , former Vice President Joe Biden appeared on camera Thursday morning to offer an alternative picture of what President Donald Trump had , just hours before , called a `` spectacular '' and `` record-setting '' jobs report .
`` Make no mistake , we 're still in a deep , deep job hole because Donald Trump has so badly bungled the response to coronavirus , '' said Biden in prepared remarks that were carried live across cable news channels .
`` For everyone @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for everyone who does n't own stock , who ca n't get a sweetheart loan through connections , does this feel like a victory ? ''
said the presumptive Democratic nominee .
`` For parents who are worried that kids ca n't go back to school in the fall , do you feel like this is mission accomplished ?
For the people in states where Covid-19 is spiking , and we 're seeing record high numbers of infections , do you feel like this crisis is under control ?
Of course not .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ about their families and about their future . ''
`` Just like last month , President Trump has spiked the ball and made this about him , '' said Biden , referring to a traditional touchdown celebration .
`` He does n't seem to realize he 's not even on the 50-yard line . ''
Thursday 's June jobs report was unquestionably good news for the president , showing that 4.8 million jobs were added to the economy last month , a significant increase over analyst expectations .
Trump took that topline figure @ @ @ @ @ @ @ an appearance in the White House briefing room to tout what he called his administration 's achievement in both managing the coronavirus pandemic and `` rescuing '' the U.S. economy .
`` So these are numbers that are not numbers that other presidents would have .
They wo n't have it , '' Trump said after reading several of the statistics from Thursday 's report , and sprinkling them with other economic and market statistics from both before and after the start of the pandemic .
`` The only thing that can kill @ @ @ @ @ @ @ president that wants to raise taxes .
You want to raise taxes , this whole thing , your 401 ( k ) s will drop down to nothing and your stock market will drop down to nothing , '' Trump said .
`` This is not just luck , what 's happening .
This is a lot of talent .
All of this incredible news is the result of historic actions my administration has taken working with our partners in Congress to rescue the U.S. economy from a horrible event . ''
But @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the figures reported today were two weeks old .
Since mid-June , coronavirus infection rates have skyrocketed in states that started reopening .
This week , governors in several of the nation 's most populous states announced plans to roll back previous reopenings .
In California , Gov .
Gavin Newsom on Wednesday ordered businesses with indoor operations to close effective immediately in 19 counties .
The order applies to some of the state 's biggest counties : Los Angeles , Orange , San Bernardino and Santa Barbara .
Indoor businesses required to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ rooms , movie theaters , family entertainment centers , zoos , museums and cardrooms , Newsom said at a press briefing .
Arizona Republican Gov .
Doug Ducey rolled back the state 's reopening plan Monday , closing bars , gyms , movie theaters and water parks .
The state has since reported a surge in its positivity rate , or the percentage of total tests that are positive , from a low of 4.9 % in May to 20.1 % in June , he said when announcing the rollback .
`` We @ @ @ @ @ @ @ this virus is going to go away on its own .
Our expectation is that next week our numbers will be worse .
It will take several weeks for the mitigation that we have put in place and are putting in place to take effect , '' Ducey said .
On Wednesday , the United States saw the highest-ever recorded number of new cases : 50,600 .
Within that figure , the grim reality is that most of the states currently experiencing the largest spike in new cases , such as Florida , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that followed Trump 's advice earlier this year to reopen their economies as soon as possible .
Nonetheless , Trump lauded his own administration for implementing what he called `` an aggressive strategy to vanquish and kill the virus and protect Americans at the highest risk , while allowing those at lower risk to return safely to work . ''
`` That 's what 's happening , '' Trump said , adding , `` Our health experts continue to address the temporary hot spots in certain cities and counties , and we are @ @ @ @ @ @ @ But with record-setting new infection rates in dozens of states , `` temporary hot spots in certain cities and counties '' does not accurately describe what 's happening .
`` It did n't have to be like this , '' said Biden on Thursday .
`` America has more reported deaths and infections than anywhere else in the world .
Our health-care workers are still rationing personal protective equipment .
They still do n't have sufficient testing to allow people to return to work with confidence , '' he said .
`` President @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a political statement .
And yesterday , yesterday , he was once more claiming the coronavirus would , quote , just disappear , I hope , '' said Biden , accurately quoting Trump 's interview a day before .
Trump and Vice President Mike Pence have also said they do n't believe a nationwide mask mandate would be necessary .
Pence also said Thursday that the administration would keep pushing for the economy to reopen even as it supported governors ' decisions to pause their plans .
`` Quit hoping for the best @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with almost 15 million Americans still out of work because of the crisis .
Quit ignoring the reality of this pandemic and the horrifying loss of American life .
Act .
Lead .
Lead or get out of the way so others can , '' Biden concluded .
Biden 's remarks were the second time this week that he hammered the president over the administration 's failure to respond to the resurgence of coronavirus .
On Tuesday , Biden laid out his own five-point plan to address the pandemic , one of several @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The former vice president said he would provide free nationwide coronavirus testing , deploy 100,000 contact tracers , establish national standards for reopening , use the Defense Production Act to further increase protective equipment manufacturing , and provide additional federal support to the elderly and people of color , who have been especially hard-hit by the virus .

WASHINGTON — In a sign that the 2020 presidential campaign is finally getting underway in earnest, former Vice President Joe Biden appeared on camera Thursday morning to offer an alternative picture of what President Donald Trump had, just hours before, called a "spectacular" and "record-setting" jobs report.
"Make no mistake, we're still in a deep, deep job hole because Donald Trump has so badly bungled the response to coronavirus," said Biden in prepared remarks that were carried live across cable news channels.
"For everyone whose job hasn't come back, for everyone who doesn't own stock, who can't get a sweetheart loan through connections, does this feel like a victory?" said the presumptive Democratic nominee.
"For parents who are worried that kids can't go back to school in the fall, do you feel like this is mission accomplished? For the people in states where Covid-19 is spiking, and we're seeing record high numbers of infections, do you feel like this crisis is under control? Of course not. People are scared. They're worried about their families and about their future."
"Just like last month, President Trump has spiked the ball and made this about him," said Biden, referring to a traditional touchdown celebration. "He doesn't seem to realize he's not even on the 50-yard line."
Thursday's June jobs report was unquestionably good news for the president, showing that 4.8 million jobs were added to the economy last month, a significant increase over analyst expectations.
Trump took that topline figure and ran with it, hastily arranging an appearance in the White House briefing room to tout what he called his administration's achievement in both managing the coronavirus pandemic and "rescuing" the U.S. economy.
"So these are numbers that are not numbers that other presidents would have. They won't have it," Trump said after reading several of the statistics from Thursday's report, and sprinkling them with other economic and market statistics from both before and after the start of the pandemic.
"The only thing that can kill it is a bad president or a president that wants to raise taxes. You want to raise taxes, this whole thing, your 401(k)s will drop down to nothing and your stock market will drop down to nothing," Trump said. "This is not just luck, what's happening. This is a lot of talent. All of this incredible news is the result of historic actions my administration has taken working with our partners in Congress to rescue the U.S. economy from a horrible event."
But analysts were quick to point out that the figures reported today were two weeks old. Since mid-June, coronavirus infection rates have skyrocketed in states that started reopening. This week, governors in several of the nation's most populous states announced plans to roll back previous reopenings.
In California, Gov. Gavin Newsom on Wednesday ordered businesses with indoor operations to close effective immediately in 19 counties. The order applies to some of the state's biggest counties: Los Angeles, Orange, San Bernardino and Santa Barbara. Indoor businesses required to close include restaurants, wineries and tasting rooms, movie theaters, family entertainment centers, zoos, museums and cardrooms, Newsom said at a press briefing.
Arizona Republican Gov. Doug Ducey rolled back the state's reopening plan Monday, closing bars, gyms, movie theaters and water parks. The state has since reported a surge in its positivity rate, or the percentage of total tests that are positive, from a low of 4.9% in May to 20.1% in June, he said when announcing the rollback.
"We can't be under any illusion that this virus is going to go away on its own. Our expectation is that next week our numbers will be worse. It will take several weeks for the mitigation that we have put in place and are putting in place to take effect," Ducey said.
On Wednesday, the United States saw the highest-ever recorded number of new cases: 50,600. Within that figure, the grim reality is that most of the states currently experiencing the largest spike in new cases, such as Florida, Arizona and Texas, are Republican-led states that followed Trump's advice earlier this year to reopen their economies as soon as possible.
Nonetheless, Trump lauded his own administration for implementing what he called "an aggressive strategy to vanquish and kill the virus and protect Americans at the highest risk, while allowing those at lower risk to return safely to work."
"That's what's happening," Trump said, adding, "Our health experts continue to address the temporary hot spots in certain cities and counties, and we are working very hard on that."
But with record-setting new infection rates in dozens of states, "temporary hot spots in certain cities and counties" does not accurately describe what's happening.
"It didn't have to be like this," said Biden on Thursday. "America has more reported deaths and infections than anywhere else in the world. Our health-care workers are still rationing personal protective equipment. They still don't have sufficient testing to allow people to return to work with confidence," he said.
"President Trump has turned wearing a mask into a political statement. And yesterday, yesterday, he was once more claiming the coronavirus would, quote, just disappear, I hope," said Biden, accurately quoting Trump's interview a day before.
Trump and Vice President Mike Pence have also said they don't believe a nationwide mask mandate would be necessary. Pence also said Thursday that the administration would keep pushing for the economy to reopen even as it supported governors' decisions to pause their plans.
"Quit hoping for the best, Mr. President. Quit claiming victory with almost 15 million Americans still out of work because of the crisis. Quit ignoring the reality of this pandemic and the horrifying loss of American life. Act. Lead. Lead or get out of the way so others can," Biden concluded.
Biden's remarks were the second time this week that he hammered the president over the administration's failure to respond to the resurgence of coronavirus. On Tuesday, Biden laid out his own five-point plan to address the pandemic, one of several contrasts he drew between Trump and himself.
The former vice president said he would provide free nationwide coronavirus testing, deploy 100,000 contact tracers, establish national standards for reopening, use the Defense Production Act to further increase protective equipment manufacturing, and provide additional federal support to the elderly and people of color, who have been especially hard-hit by the virus.


cnbc--2020-07-02--Trump ambassadors sold stocks as president downplayed pandemic and virus was spreading

U.S. President Donald Trump listens during a roundtable discussion on `` America 's seniors '' in the Cabinet Room at the White House in Washington , June 15 , 2020 .
As the White House scrambled to respond to the spread of the virus , Ambassadors Lewis Eisenberg , Jamie McCourt , David Fischer and Kenneth George were seeing large gains from stock transactions , their filings show .
Italy and France have coronavirus death tolls that are close to or above 30,000 .
Morocco and Uruguay have combined for over 200 deaths .
More than 10.7 million people have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Johns Hopkins University tally .
Trump started publicly downplaying the severity of the pandemic earlier this year , including in late January during the World Economic Forum in Davos , Switzerland .
At that event , he told CNBC that the administration had it `` under control .
It 's going to be just fine . ''
Some of the ambassadors ' stock transactions were for companies involved with research or developing products that are linked to treating patients that have contracted the coronavirus , such as biopharmaceutical firms .
Ambassadors to Uruguay @ @ @ @ @ @ @ shares in transactions that could have made them millions of dollars , according to financial disclosure filings reviewed by CNBC .
Much of their sales were in January and continued throughout February , the records show .
Their transactions line up with a timeline of federal and congressional announcements as the virus started sweeping across the globe earlier this year .
Several U.S. ambassadors actively shed their stock holdings as President Donald Trump tried to downplay the coronavirus outbreak in its early stages .
A State Department spokesman said that ambassadors were briefed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of Mission Conference on the possible impacts the coronavirus could have on their operations but never were part of any other briefings this year .
The spokesman also said the stock sales and purchases were often based on guidance from financial advisors .
`` U.S. ambassadors were briefed on potential impacts of the Covid pandemic on State Department operations at the Global Chiefs of Mission Conference February 25-26 , 2020 , '' the spokesman said on Thursday .
`` Otherwise , Ambassadors received no briefing on Covid from any U.S. government officials .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ range of purchases and sales to adjust portfolios , often based on advice of financial advisors . ''
Democrats are already pouncing on the actions by the Trump diplomats , including Democratic super PAC American Bridge , which initially flagged some of the stock sales and purchases to CNBC .
`` Any official who dumped millions in stocks while the administration downplayed the threat has no business in a position of public trust and their actions warrant thorough investigation in order to prevent further abuses of power , '' Max Steele , a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a statement .
Their sales came as many investors were getting pummeled in the stock market .
The Dow Jones Industrial Average started to tank in late February and bottomed out the next month , hitting the lowest point it 's been at since Trump was sworn into office .
Many of these ambassadors have been longtime GOP donors , including those who gave to Trump 's 2016 campaign for president and his inaugural committee .
The discovery of their trades comes after Sens .
Richard Burr and Kelly Loeffler were under scrutiny @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the pandemic .
Burr is under investigation for those sales by the FBI .
Another member of the Trump administration , former chief of staff Mick Mulvaney , also dumped portions of his stock portfolio while the president tried to distance himself from the pandemic , The Daily Beast recently reported .
Fischer , who gave $ 275,000 to Trump 's inaugural committee and is currently the U.S. ambassador to Morocco , sold from close to $ 380,000 to up to just over $ 2 million in stocks between January and February @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The Office of Government Ethics asks government officials to give a range in value of how much federal employees are making from either buying or selling assets .
One of Fischer 's big sales , his filing says , came on Feb. 5 , the same day Democratic Sen. Chris Murphy said he left an administration briefing feeling as if White House officials `` are n't taking this seriously enough . ''
That day , Fischer 's filing shows that he sold between $ 2,000 and $ 30,000 worth of stock in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with developing coronavirus treatments , such as Biohaven Pharmaceuticals .
The pharmaceutical company announced on its website in April that it plans to `` study intranasal vazegepant , a third generation , high affinity , selective and structurally unique , small molecule CGRP receptor antagonist , in pulmonary complications of COVID-19 disease . ''
Fischer also sold stock in BioTelemetry , a heart monitoring company , which , according to its website is promoting a coronavirus monitoring program .
Both these companies ' stocks fell drastically over the course of a month from @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Biohaven , the stock was priced at just over $ 53 on Feb. 5 and a month later , would drop at least 8 % .
BioTelemetry was priced at close to $ 53 on that same day and then its share price dropped 20 % just over a month later .
In January , Fischer purchased and sold stock in Apple , Amazon and Alphabet .
In March , he sold between $ 15,000 and $ 50,000 in shares of Uber .
George , the U.S. ambassador to Uruguay , went on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ January and February .
Of the notable transactions , George invested between $ 5,000 and $ 75,000 in RedHill Biopharma .
In May , the company announced that it was approved by the Food and Drug Administration for a Covid-19 clinical study .
In March , George also bought and sold shares of Inovio Pharmaceuticals , a biotechnology company that recently started clinical trials for a potential coronavirus vaccine .
McCourt , the U.S. ambassador to France , sold her shares on Jan. 17 in what 's described on her financial disclosure as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Fund III . ''
She made anywhere between $ 1 million and $ 5 million on that divestiture alone , and up to an additional $ 10 million on other stock sales that same day .
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other U.S. government agencies , at the time , announced that they were enacting health screenings for those traveling from Wuhan , China , where the outbreak is believed to have begun .
That fund appears to be an investment vehicle through a portfolio of hotels and properties that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , also known as AJ Capital Partners .
On their website , the real estate firm promotes a portfolio of hotels titled `` Graduate Hotels , '' which was established in 2014 .
Through partnerships with universities , the firm started opening up hotels around universities across the country .
However , the pandemic forced many of the `` Graduate Hotels '' to temporarily shut down , and according to its website , has just started reopening .
Six of the 28 hotels listed reopened in June , while 11 others on the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ July .
The hotel industry in the first quarter of 2020 was pummeled in the wake of the pandemic .
Data from FactSet shows that many of the top hotel operators ranging from Marriott to Hilton saw their first-quarter financial performance drop by up to 64 % .
During the 2016 election , McCourt gave nearly $ 450,000 to the Trump Victory committee , a joint fundraising committee between Trump 's campaign and the Republican National Committee .
Since her confirmation in 2017 , she has given a six-figure check to the same @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ambassador to Italy , almost a week before the U.S. State Department issued a travel warning to people who were considering a trip to that country as it saw a wave of Covid-19 cases , made between $ 200,000 and $ 500,000 in stock sales .
Eisenberg 's filing describes the source of the funds , in part , as follows : `` AMLP - ALPS ETF TR ALERIAN MLP UNSOLICITED . ''
It appears to be an exchange-traded fund , which often hold groups of stocks , commodities or bonds and automatically @ @ @ @ @ @ @ gave $ 35,000 to the RNC in 2015 before Trump was officially the Republican nominee .
It 's unclear what stocks are within that fund .

U.S. President Donald Trump listens during a roundtable discussion on "America's seniors" in the Cabinet Room at the White House in Washington, June 15, 2020.
As the White House scrambled to respond to the spread of the virus, Ambassadors Lewis Eisenberg, Jamie McCourt, David Fischer and Kenneth George were seeing large gains from stock transactions , their filings show.
Italy and France have coronavirus death tolls that are close to or above 30,000. Morocco and Uruguay have combined for over 200 deaths. More than 10.7 million people have been infected worldwide, according to a Johns Hopkins University tally.
Trump started publicly downplaying the severity of the pandemic earlier this year, including in late January during the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. At that event, he told CNBC that the administration had it "under control. It's going to be just fine."
Some of the ambassadors' stock transactions were for companies involved with research or developing products that are linked to treating patients that have contracted the coronavirus, such as biopharmaceutical firms.
Ambassadors to Uruguay, France, Morocco and Italy sold shares in transactions that could have made them millions of dollars, according to financial disclosure filings reviewed by CNBC. Much of their sales were in January and continued throughout February, the records show. Their transactions line up with a timeline of federal and congressional announcements as the virus started sweeping across the globe earlier this year.
Several U.S. ambassadors actively shed their stock holdings as President Donald Trump tried to downplay the coronavirus outbreak in its early stages.
A State Department spokesman said that ambassadors were briefed in late February at the Global Chiefs of Mission Conference on the possible impacts the coronavirus could have on their operations but never were part of any other briefings this year. The spokesman also said the stock sales and purchases were often based on guidance from financial advisors.
"U.S. ambassadors were briefed on potential impacts of the Covid pandemic on State Department operations at the Global Chiefs of Mission Conference February 25-26, 2020," the spokesman said on Thursday. "Otherwise, Ambassadors received no briefing on Covid from any U.S. government officials. These financial decisions were among a wide range of purchases and sales to adjust portfolios, often based on advice of financial advisors."
Democrats are already pouncing on the actions by the Trump diplomats, including Democratic super PAC American Bridge, which initially flagged some of the stock sales and purchases to CNBC.
"Any official who dumped millions in stocks while the administration downplayed the threat has no business in a position of public trust and their actions warrant thorough investigation in order to prevent further abuses of power," Max Steele, a spokesman for the group, said in a statement.
Their sales came as many investors were getting pummeled in the stock market. The Dow Jones Industrial Average started to tank in late February and bottomed out the next month, hitting the lowest point it's been at since Trump was sworn into office.
Many of these ambassadors have been longtime GOP donors, including those who gave to Trump's 2016 campaign for president and his inaugural committee. The discovery of their trades comes after Sens. Richard Burr and Kelly Loeffler were under scrutiny for selling their securities at the start of the pandemic. Burr is under investigation for those sales by the FBI.
Another member of the Trump administration, former chief of staff Mick Mulvaney, also dumped portions of his stock portfolio while the president tried to distance himself from the pandemic, The Daily Beast recently reported.
Fischer, who gave $275,000 to Trump's inaugural committee and is currently the U.S. ambassador to Morocco, sold from close to $380,000 to up to just over $2 million in stocks between January and February, according to his financial disclosure report. The Office of Government Ethics asks government officials to give a range in value of how much federal employees are making from either buying or selling assets.
One of Fischer's big sales, his filing says, came on Feb. 5, the same day Democratic Sen. Chris Murphy said he left an administration briefing feeling as if White House officials "aren't taking this seriously enough."
Tweet:
That day, Fischer's filing shows that he sold between $2,000 and $30,000 worth of stock in at least two companies that are involved with developing coronavirus treatments, such as Biohaven Pharmaceuticals. The pharmaceutical company announced on its website in April that it plans to "study intranasal vazegepant, a third generation, high affinity, selective and structurally unique, small molecule CGRP receptor antagonist, in pulmonary complications of COVID-19 disease."
Fischer also sold stock in BioTelemetry, a heart monitoring company, which, according to its website is promoting a coronavirus monitoring program. Both these companies' stocks fell drastically over the course of a month from when Fischer sold his shares. For Biohaven, the stock was priced at just over $53 on Feb. 5 and a month later, would drop at least 8%. BioTelemetry was priced at close to $53 on that same day and then its share price dropped 20% just over a month later.
In January, Fischer purchased and sold stock in Apple, Amazon and Alphabet. In March, he sold between $15,000 and $50,000 in shares of Uber.
George, the U.S. ambassador to Uruguay, went on a stock buying and selling spree in January and February. Of the notable transactions, George invested between $5,000 and $75,000 in RedHill Biopharma. In May, the company announced that it was approved by the Food and Drug Administration for a Covid-19 clinical study.
In March, George also bought and sold shares of Inovio Pharmaceuticals, a biotechnology company that recently started clinical trials for a potential coronavirus vaccine.
McCourt, the U.S. ambassador to France, sold her shares on Jan. 17 in what's described on her financial disclosure as the "A.J. Capital Graduate Hotel Fund III." She made anywhere between $1 million and $5 million on that divestiture alone, and up to an additional $10 million on other stock sales that same day. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other U.S. government agencies, at the time, announced that they were enacting health screenings for those traveling from Wuhan, China, where the outbreak is believed to have begun.
That fund appears to be an investment vehicle through a portfolio of hotels and properties that's managed by Adventurous Journeys Capital Partners, also known as AJ Capital Partners. On their website, the real estate firm promotes a portfolio of hotels titled "Graduate Hotels," which was established in 2014.
Through partnerships with universities, the firm started opening up hotels around universities across the country. However, the pandemic forced many of the "Graduate Hotels" to temporarily shut down, and according to its website, has just started reopening. Six of the 28 hotels listed reopened in June, while 11 others on the website are scheduled to start opening in July.
The hotel industry in the first quarter of 2020 was pummeled in the wake of the pandemic. Data from FactSet shows that many of the top hotel operators ranging from Marriott to Hilton saw their first-quarter financial performance drop by up to 64%.
During the 2016 election, McCourt gave nearly $450,000 to the Trump Victory committee, a joint fundraising committee between Trump's campaign and the Republican National Committee. Since her confirmation in 2017, she has given a six-figure check to the same fundraising operation.
Eisenberg, the U.S. ambassador to Italy, almost a week before the U.S. State Department issued a travel warning to people who were considering a trip to that country as it saw a wave of Covid-19 cases, made between $200,000 and $500,000 in stock sales.
Eisenberg's filing describes the source of the funds, in part, as follows: "AMLP - ALPS ETF TR ALERIAN MLP UNSOLICITED." It appears to be an exchange-traded fund, which often hold groups of stocks, commodities or bonds and automatically makes trades according to schedules. He gave $35,000 to the RNC in 2015 before Trump was officially the Republican nominee.
It's unclear what stocks are within that fund.


cnbc--2020-07-02--Judge sends Ghislaine Maxwell to New York to face criminal child sex charges linked to Jeffrey Epste

Judge sends Ghislaine Maxwell to New York to face criminal child sex charges linked to Jeffrey Epstein

NEW YORK , NY - SEPTEMBER 20 : Ghislaine Maxwell attends day 1 of the 4th Annual WIE Symposium at Center 548 on September 20 , 2013 in New York City .
( Photo by Laura Cavanaugh/Getty Images ) A federal judge in New Hampshire on Thursday ordered Ghislaine Maxwell sent to New York City to face charges that she conspired with her longtime friend , the late investor Jeffrey Epstein , to sexually abuse underage girls in the mid-1990s .
Maxwell was ordered into the custody of the U.S .
Marshals Service to be transported to federal district court @ @ @ @ @ @ @ she should be granted bail pending the outcome of her case , in which she also is charged with perjury .
The order by Magistrate Judge Andrea Johnstone came during a so-called removal hearing , conducted remotely due to the coronavirus outbreak , in New Hampshire , where prosecutors had asked that Maxwell be detained without bail after her arrest Thursday morning in Bradford , New Hampshire .
Prosecutors had cited her risk of flight , her possession of multiple passports and her significant wealth in making that argument .
No court hearing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Manhattan .
Maxwell , 58 , was arrested at a 156-acre property in Bradford on a six-count indictment that was issued by a grand jury in Manhattan federal court .
The property had been purchased in December for $ 1 million by a limited liability corporation set up to conceal the actual buyer 's identity , according to prosecutors .
`` The defendant is waiving the right to have a detention hearing in this district , '' said Maxwell 's lawyer , Lawrence Vogelman .
Maxwell confirmed that she was waiving her right @ @ @ @ @ @ @ hearing , agreeing with her lawyer that she wanted the detention hearing held in Manhattan federal court .

Ghislaine Maxwell attends day 1 of the 4th Annual WIE Symposium at Center 548 on September 20, 2013 in New York City.
A federal judge in New Hampshire on Thursday ordered Ghislaine Maxwell sent to New York City to face charges that she conspired with her longtime friend, the late investor Jeffrey Epstein, to sexually abuse underage girls in the mid-1990s.
Maxwell was ordered into the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service to be transported to federal district court in Manhattan for a hearing on whether she should be granted bail pending the outcome of her case, in which she also is charged with perjury.
The order by Magistrate Judge Andrea Johnstone came during a so-called removal hearing, conducted remotely due to the coronavirus outbreak, in New Hampshire, where prosecutors had asked that Maxwell be detained without bail after her arrest Thursday morning in Bradford, New Hampshire.
Prosecutors had cited her risk of flight, her possession of multiple passports and her significant wealth in making that argument.
No court hearing has been set yet for Maxwell in Manhattan.
Maxwell, 58, was arrested at a 156-acre property in Bradford on a six-count indictment that was issued by a grand jury in Manhattan federal court.
The property had been purchased in December for $1 million by a limited liability corporation set up to conceal the actual buyer's identity, according to prosecutors.
"The defendant is waiving the right to have a detention hearing in this district," said Maxwell's lawyer, Lawrence Vogelman.
Maxwell confirmed that she was waiving her right to a detention hearing and an identity hearing, agreeing with her lawyer that she wanted the detention hearing held in Manhattan federal court.


cnbc--2020-07-02--U.S. military coronavirus cases surge as Pentagon lifts travel restrictions

A Paratrooper assigned to the 1st Brigade Combat Team , 82nd Airborne Division , prepares for a Airborne Operation at Fort Bragg , N.C. , on May 7 .
WASHINGTON — The number of U.S. active-duty military personnel infected with the coronavirus has more than doubled in the past three weeks , a revelation that comes as the Pentagon lifts travel restrictions and shelter-in-place orders .
On June 10 , the Pentagon reported 2,807 U.S. service members tested positive for coronavirus .
Twenty-two days later , that figure that has now spiked to 6,493 cases , according to figures published @ @ @ @ @ @ @ coronavirus emerged , the Pentagon has reported a total of 18,071 cases ; of those , 12,521 are active-duty military , 2,644 are civilians , 1,740 are dependents and 1,166 are contractors .
These figures include 8,683 recoveries and 38 deaths across the entire department .
The surge in new cases comes as the Pentagon lifts travel restrictions for Defense Department personnel in 48 states as well as eight host nations , including Germany , Japan , South Korea and the United Kingdom .
On Wednesday , the U.S. reported more than 50,600 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ increase since the beginning of the outbreak , according to Johns Hopkins University data .
The record-breaking spike in new coronavirus cases challenges the Trump administration 's push to reopen the U.S. economy .

A Paratrooper assigned to the 1st Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division, prepares for a Airborne Operation at Fort Bragg, N.C., on May 7.
WASHINGTON — The number of U.S. active-duty military personnel infected with the coronavirus has more than doubled in the past three weeks, a revelation that comes as the Pentagon lifts travel restrictions and shelter-in-place orders.
On June 10, the Pentagon reported 2,807 U.S. service members tested positive for coronavirus. Twenty-two days later, that figure that has now spiked to 6,493 cases, according to figures published by the Defense Department.
Since the coronavirus emerged, the Pentagon has reported a total of 18,071 cases; of those, 12,521 are active-duty military, 2,644 are civilians, 1,740 are dependents and 1,166 are contractors. These figures include 8,683 recoveries and 38 deaths across the entire department.
The surge in new cases comes as the Pentagon lifts travel restrictions for Defense Department personnel in 48 states as well as eight host nations, including Germany, Japan, South Korea and the United Kingdom.
On Wednesday, the U.S. reported more than 50,600 additional coronavirus cases, the largest single-day increase since the beginning of the outbreak, according to Johns Hopkins University data. The record-breaking spike in new coronavirus cases challenges the Trump administration's push to reopen the U.S. economy.


cnbc--2020-07-02--Supreme Court to decide whether House Democrats can get Mueller grand jury docs

Former Special Counsel Robert Mueller testifies before the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence on Capitol Hill on Wednesday July 24 , 2019 in Washington , DC .
The Supreme Court said Thursday it will hear the Trump administration 's appeal of a decision that would force the Justice Department to turn over to Congress grand jury materials produced in former special counsel Robert Mueller 's inquiry into Russian interference in the 2016 election .
The move , announced in an order with no noted dissents , effectively denies House Democrats the opportunity to review the documents before Election Day @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the nine-member panel are required to hear a case .
The case will likely be heard in the court 's term beginning in October , with a decision expected by the end of June .
President Donald Trump is facing reelection against presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden in November , meaning it is possible the case could be decided after Trump leaves office , or even dismissed as being no longer relevant .
The normally secretive documents were requested by the Democratic-led House Judiciary Committee , which has said it is pursuing an @ @ @ @ @ @ @ divided panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C .
Circuit ordered the Justice Department to turn over the records in March .
The Supreme Court temporarily halted the appeals court 's ruling in late May to consider the issue .
While grand jury materials are normally closely guarded , federal law allows for their disclosure in connection with a `` judicial proceeding . ''
House Democrats argue that an impeachment investigation qualifies as such a proceeding .
They have said that they are considering whether to impeach the president on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ could be relevant , despite Trump 's acquittal by the Senate in February on Ukraine-related impeachment charges .

Former Special Counsel Robert Mueller testifies before the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence on Capitol Hill on Wednesday July 24, 2019 in Washington, DC.
The Supreme Court said Thursday it will hear the Trump administration's appeal of a decision that would force the Justice Department to turn over to Congress grand jury materials produced in former special counsel Robert Mueller's inquiry into Russian interference in the 2016 election.
The move, announced in an order with no noted dissents, effectively denies House Democrats the opportunity to review the documents before Election Day. The votes of four justices on the nine-member panel are required to hear a case.
The case will likely be heard in the court's term beginning in October, with a decision expected by the end of June. President Donald Trump is facing reelection against presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden in November, meaning it is possible the case could be decided after Trump leaves office, or even dismissed as being no longer relevant.
The normally secretive documents were requested by the Democratic-led House Judiciary Committee, which has said it is pursuing an investigation into possible impeachable offenses.
A divided panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit ordered the Justice Department to turn over the records in March. The Supreme Court temporarily halted the appeals court's ruling in late May to consider the issue.
While grand jury materials are normally closely guarded, federal law allows for their disclosure in connection with a "judicial proceeding."
House Democrats argue that an impeachment investigation qualifies as such a proceeding. They have said that they are considering whether to impeach the president on new charges for which the Mueller materials could be relevant, despite Trump's acquittal by the Senate in February on Ukraine-related impeachment charges.


cnbc--2020-07-02--Jeffrey Epstein friend Ghislaine Maxwell arrested on child sex abuse conspiracy, perjury charges

The FBI arrested Jeffrey Epstein 's long-time friend Ghislaine Maxwell in New Hampshire on Thursday on federal charges of conspiring with him to sexually abuse children as young as 14 , and for lying about her alleged conduct as his procurer .
The arrest of the wealthy British socialite following a six-count criminal indictment issued Monday in Manhattan federal court comes just days before the first anniversary of the now-dead Epstein 's arrest on child sex trafficking charges .
A federal magistrate judge during a hearing Thursday afternoon ordered that Maxwell be sent to Manhattan in the custody of U.S. @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to have another judge deterimine whether to grant her bail .
Prosecutors are asking the 58-year-old Maxwell be held without bail , and also said they are continuing to investigate the case .
Maxwell is `` an extreme flight risk , '' who faces the prospect of serving `` many years in prison , '' prosecutors saidf in a court filing .
That filing also noted that Maxwell , the daughter of the late crooked media mogul Robert Maxwell , has extensive international connections , citizenship in Britain and France , passports from @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and large sums of money .
Lawrence Vogelman , Maxwell 's criminal defense lawyer , declined to comment on the charges .
Epstein , a 66-year-old financier and convicted sex offender who was a former friend of Presidents Donald Trump and Bill Clinton and of Britain 's Prince Andrew , killed himself in a federal jail in Manhattan last August after being denied bail , authorities have said .
If Maxwell also is denied bail , she could be housed in that same jail where Epstein died after being sent to New @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the first person charged in connection with Epstein 's alleged sexual abuse of underage girls other than him .
Epstein 's victims have called for Maxwell 's arrest ever since Epstein was charged last July .
A former girlfriend of Epstein , who was once paid to manage his properties , Maxwell has long been accused by victims of helping him to acquire a steady stream of young women to satisfy his compulsive obsession with receiving several `` massages '' each day .
She was arrested at around 8:30 a.m. in Bradford , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the United States at some point .
`` More recently we learned she had slithered away to a gorgeous property in New Hampshire , continuing to live a life of privilege while her victims live with the trauma inflicted upon them years ago , '' said William Sweeney , assistant director in charge of the FBI 's New York office , at the press conference .
The 156-acre property where Maxwell was caught was bought for $ 1 million in December by a limited liability corporation that was anonymized to hide the identity @ @ @ @ @ @ @ purchase , according to prosecutors .
The real estate agent who handled the sale for the seller told CNBC that she was unaware of the buyer 's actual identity because the buyer 's representatives would not disclose it .
Maxwell , who has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing , is charged in the indictment helping Epstein in the mid-1990s recruit and groom victims that were underage girls , at least one as young as 14 years old , so that he could sexually abuse them at his residences in New York City , Palm @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , New Mexico , as well as at Maxwell 's home in London .
The conduct charged in the case against Maxwell predates by a decade or more the conduct that Epstein was charged with last year .
`` In some instances , Maxwell was present for and participated in the sexual abuse of minor victims , '' the indictment says .
It also says that while under oath , she `` repeatedly lied when questioned about her conduct '' during a legal deposition in 2016 as part of a lawsuit .
Audrey @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Southern District of New York , which is prosecuting the case , said at a press conference that Maxwell had lied under oath about her conduct with the victims `` because the truth was almost unspeakable . ''
`` She pretended to be a woman [ the victims ] could trust , all the while they were setting them up to be abused by Epstein and in some cases by Maxwell herself , '' Strauss said .
Strauss also said her office `` would welcome '' Prince Andrew `` coming in and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ statement '' about his relationship with Epstein and Maxwell .
Andrew previously has denied a claim by one of Epstein 's victims that he had sex with her at the direction of Maxwell .
Straus , echoing the claims made in the indictment , said that Epstein and Maxwell had a `` method '' for luring young girls into their clutches , so that they could give `` sexualized massages '' to Epstein , which sometimes evolved into sex with Epstein and with Maxwell on ocassion .
That method involved Epstein and Maxwell @ @ @ @ @ @ @ them about their lives , '' taking them to movies , and `` treating them to shopping trips , '' Strauss said .
`` Maxwell encouraged girls to accept Epstein 's offers to pay for their travel and education ... making them feel indebted to Epstein , '' the prosecutor said .
To further groom the victims , `` Maxwell would discuss sexual topics with the victims , and undress in front of them and be present for sex acts , '' Strauss said .
`` Maxwell 's presence as an adult woman @ @ @ @ @ @ @ victims ] would put the girls at ease . ''
The top prosecutor and the FBI urged other people who may have been abused by Epstein to contact them .
In their motion seeking Maxwell 's detention without bail , prosecutors wrote that she `` has effectively been in hiding for approximately a year , since an indictment against Epstein was unsealed in July 2019 . ''
The filing say that Maxwell has 15 different bank accounts , and has `` made intentional efforts to avoid detection , including moving locations at least @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ( which she registered under the name `` G Max '' ) and email address , and ordering packages for delivery with a different person listed on the shipping label . ''
The motion also said that Epstein , between 2007 and 2011 , transferred more than $ 20 million from his own accounts to Maxwell , and that she later sent him back some of those funds .
One of Epstein 's accusers voiced relief about Maxwell 's arrest .
`` Today , my fellow Epstein survivors and I are able to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Maxwell 's arrest means some justice for survivors can exist , '' Jennifer Araoz , said in a statement .
`` For years , I feared Epstein and his ring .
Maxwell was the center of that sex trafficking ring .
Now that the ring has been taken down , I know that I ca n't be hurt anymore .
Day after day , I have waited for the news that Maxwell would be arrested and held accountable for her actions .
Her arrest is a step in that direction , and it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ n't forget about us . ''
Maxwell 's prosecution by the Southern District comes less than two weeks after the former head of the office , U.S. Attorney Geoffrey Berman , was fired by Trump.The office is now being led on a temporary basis , at least for now , by Berman 's former deputy , Strauss .
Berman in the months before his termination repeatedly said his office was investigating Epstein 's co-conspirators .
The indictment released Thursday , which was handed up by a federal grand jury in Manhattan , says @ @ @ @ @ @ @ `` in the sexual exploitation and abuse of multiple minor girls by Jeffrey Epstein . ''
`` In particular , from at least in and about 1994 , up to and including in or about 1997 , Maxwell assisted , facilitated , and contributed to Jeffrey Epstein 's abuse of minor girls by , among other things , helping Epstein to recruit , groom , and ultimately abused victims known to Maxwell and Epstein to be under the age of 18 , '' the indictment says .
`` The victims were as young @ @ @ @ @ @ @ groomed and abused by Maxwell and Epstein , both of whom knew that certain victims were in fact under the age of 18 . ''
The indictment includes photographs of the residences where Epstein allegedly abused his victims .
The indictment charges Maxwell with conspiracy to entice minors to travel to engage in illegal sex acts , enticement of a minor to travel to engage in illegal sexual acts , conspiracy to transport minors with intent to engage in criminal sexual activity , transportation of a minor with intent to engage in criminal @ @ @ @ @ @ @ perjury .
The charging document , in citing evidence for the perjury charges , notes that during an April 2016 deposition of Maxwell taken in New York as part of a lawsuit , she was asked , `` Did Jeffrey Epstein have a scheme to recruit underage girls for sexual massages ? ''
`` I do n't know what you 're talking about , '' Maxwell said .
During another deposition in July 2016 , Maxwell said , `` I was n't aware that he was having sexual activities with anyone when I @ @ @ @ @ @ @ '' One of Epstein 's accusers , Virginia Giuffre , has said in unsealed depositions that Maxwell directed her to have sex with Prince Andrew ; former Senate Majority Leader George Mitchell , a Maine Democrat ; former New Mexico Gov .
Bill Richardson ; hedge funder Glenn Dubin ; late MIT scientist Marvin Minsky ; modeling company founder Jean-Luc Brunel ; as well as with the owner of large hotel chain , and another prince .
`` There was , you know , another foreign president , I ca n't remember his @ @ @ @ @ @ @ deposition .
`` He was Spanish .
There 's a whole bunch of them that I just — it 's just so hard for me to remember all of them . ''
`` I was told to do something by these people constantly ... my whole life revolved around just pleasing these men and keeping Ghislaine and Jeffrey happy , '' Giuffre said in the deposition .
`` Their whole entire lives revolved around sex . ''
Richardson and Mitchell have denied ever meeting Guiffre , much less having sex with her .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ her , as did Dubin and Brunel .
The deposition excerpts released last year are part of a defamation lawsuit that Giuffre filed against Maxwell several years ago .
The suit accused Maxwell of calling Giuffre a liar for claiming that Maxwell and Epstein sexually abused her when she was underage .
Epstein was arrested last year at a northern New Jersey airport after flying from France .
An indictment accused him of sexully abusing dozens of underage girls from 2002 through 2005 at his luxurious residences on Manhattan 's Upper East Side @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
He was charged with child sex trafficking and conspiracy to commit child sex trafficking .
The indictment alleged that he was assisted by several unnamed conspirators .
Epstein previously pleaded guilty to state criminal charges in Florida , including paying an underage girl for sexual services .
He served just 13 months in jail , but was free much of that time on work release , a privilege that drew sharp criticism on the heels of his arrest 11 years later .
Epstein was a registered sex offender because of his plea @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as part of a highly controversial agreement with federal prosecutors in southern Florida not to charge him and several unidentified associates on federal criminal charges .
The controversy over Epstein 's treatment grew even larger in August 2019 , when he was found dead in his cell in the Metropolitan Correctional Center in Manhattan .
Authorities said Epstein hanged himself , but his lawyers and brothers have questioned that finding .
Two jail guards have been charged with trying to cover up their failure to monitor him and other inmates as required in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Epstein 's death came weeks after he was found semi-conscious and with marks on his neck on the floor of his jail cell .
Prince Andrew 's connections with Epstein and Maxwell received renewed attention last year , leading to his withdrawal from public duties .
Federal prosecutors in the SDNY have formally requested an interview with him , saying he has failed to cooperate as promised with their investigation .
But Andrew 's lawyers last month said the Duke of York has three times this year offered to assist the U.S. @ @ @ @ @ @ @

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The FBI arrested Jeffrey Epstein's long-time friend Ghislaine Maxwell in New Hampshire on Thursday on federal charges of conspiring with him to sexually abuse children as young as 14, and for lying about her alleged conduct as his procurer. The arrest of the wealthy British socialite following a six-count criminal indictment issued Monday in Manhattan federal court comes just days before the first anniversary of the now-dead Epstein's arrest on child sex trafficking charges. During a hearing Thursday afternoon, a federal magistrate judge ordered that Maxwell be sent to Manhattan in the custody of U.S. marshal to face the charges, and to have another judge determine whether to grant her bail. Prosecutors are asking for the 58-year-old Maxwell be held without bail, and also said they are continuing to investigate the case. Maxwell is "an extreme flight risk," who faces the prospect of serving "many years in prison," prosecutors said in a court filing. That filing also noted that Maxwell, the daughter of the late crooked media mogul Robert Maxwell, has extensive international connections, citizenship in Britain and France, passports from the U.S., United Kingdom and France, and large sums of money. Lawrence Vogelman, Maxwell's criminal defense lawyer, declined to comment on the charges. Epstein, a 66-year-old financier and convicted sex offender who was a former friend of Presidents Donald Trump and Bill Clinton, and of Britain's Prince Andrew, killed himself in a federal jail in Manhattan last August after being denied bail, authorities have said. If Maxwell also is denied bail, she could be housed in that same jail where Epstein died after being sent to New York to face charges.
Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell attend de Grisogono Sponsors The 2005 Wall Street Concert Series Benefitting Wall Street Rising, with a Performance by Rod Stewart at Cipriani Wall Street on March 15, 2005 in New York City. Joe Schildhorn | Patrick McMullan | Getty Images
Maxwell is the first person charged in connection with Epstein's alleged sexual abuse of underage girls other than him. Epstein's victims have called for Maxwell's arrest ever since Epstein was charged last July. A former girlfriend of Epstein, who was once paid to manage his properties, Maxwell has long been accused by victims of helping him to acquire a steady stream of young women to satisfy his compulsive obsession with receiving several "massages" each day. Maxwell was arrested at around 8:30 a.m. ET in Bradford, New Hampshire, after having returned to the United States at some point. "More recently, we learned she had slithered away to a gorgeous property in New Hampshire, continuing to live a life of privilege while her victims live with the trauma inflicted upon them years ago," William Sweeney, assistant director in charge of the FBI's New York office, said at the press conference. The 156-acre property where Maxwell was apprehended was bought for $1 million in December by a limited liability corporation that was anonymized to hide the identity of the person or persons behind the purchase, according to prosecutors. The real estate agent who handled the sale for the seller told CNBC that she was unaware of the buyer's actual identity because the buyer's representatives would not disclose it. Maxwell, who has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing, is charged in the indictment helping Epstein in the mid-1990s recruit and groom underage girls, at least one as young as 14 years old, so that he could sexually abuse them at his residences in New York City, Palm Beach, Florida, and Santa Fe, New Mexico, as well as at Maxwell's home in London. The conduct charged in the case against Maxwell predates by a decade or more the conduct that Epstein was charged with last year. "In some instances, Maxwell was present for and participated in the sexual abuse of minor victims," the indictment charged. It also said that while under oath, Maxwell "repeatedly lied when questioned about her conduct" during a legal deposition in 2016 as part of a lawsuit. Audrey Strauss, the acting U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, which is prosecuting the case, said at a press conference that Maxwell had lied under oath about her conduct with the victims "because the truth was almost unspeakable." "She pretended to be a woman [the victims] could trust, all the while they were setting them up to be abused by Epstein and in some cases by Maxwell herself," Strauss said. Strauss also said her office "would welcome" Prince Andrew "coming in and giving us an opportunity to hear his statement" about his relationship with Epstein and Maxwell. Prince Andrew previously has denied a claim by one of Epstein's victims that he had sex with her at the direction of Maxwell. Strauss, echoing the claims made in the indictment, said that Epstein and Maxwell had a "method" for luring young girls in order to give "sexualized massages" to Epstein, which sometimes evolved into sex with Epstein and with Maxwell on occasion. That method was said to involve Epstein and Maxwell befriending young girls "by asking them about their lives," taking them to movies, and "treating them to shopping trips," Strauss said. "Maxwell encouraged girls to accept Epstein's offers to pay for their travel and education ... making them feel indebted to Epstein," the prosecutor said. To further groom the victims, "Maxwell would discuss sexual topics with the victims, and undress in front of them and be present for sex acts," Strauss said. "Maxwell's presence as an adult woman [during massages of Epstein by the victims] would put the girls at ease." The top prosecutor and the FBI urged other people who may have been abused by Epstein to contact them. In their motion seeking Maxwell's detention without bail, prosecutors wrote that she "has effectively been in hiding for approximately a year, since an indictment against Epstein was unsealed in July 2019." The filing stated that Maxwell has 15 different bank accounts, and has "made intentional efforts to avoid detection, including moving locations at least twice, switching her primary phone number (which she registered under the name "G Max") and email address, and ordering packages for delivery with a different person listed on the shipping label." The motion also said that Epstein, between 2007 and 2011, transferred more than $20 million from his own accounts to Maxwell, and that she later sent him back some of those funds.
Audrey Strauss, Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York speaks at a news conference announcing charges against Ghislaine Maxwell for her role in the sexual exploitation and abuse of minor girls by Jeffrey Epstein in New York City, New York, U.S., July 2, 2020. Lucas Jackson | Reuters
One of Epstein's accusers voiced relief about Maxwell's arrest. "Today, my fellow Epstein survivors and I are able to take a breath of relief, as Maxwell's arrest means some justice for survivors can exist," Jennifer Araoz said in a statement. "For years, I feared Epstein and his ring. Maxwell was the center of that sex trafficking ring. Now that the ring has been taken down, I know that I can't be hurt anymore. Day after day, I have waited for the news that Maxwell would be arrested and held accountable for her actions. Her arrest is a step in that direction, and it truly means that the justice system didn't forget about us." Maxwell's prosecution by the Southern District of New York comes less than two weeks after the former head of the office, U.S. Attorney Geoffrey Berman, was fired by President Trump. The office is now being led on a temporary basis by Strauss, Berman's former deputy. Berman, in the months before his termination, repeatedly said his office was investigating Epstein's co-conspirators. The indictment released Thursday, which was handed up by a federal grand jury in Manhattan, said the charges stem from Maxwell's role "in the sexual exploitation and abuse of multiple minor girls by Jeffrey Epstein." "In particular, from at least in and about 1994, up to and including in or about 1997, Maxwell assisted, facilitated, and contributed to Jeffrey Epstein's abuse of minor girls by, among other things, helping Epstein to recruit, groom, and ultimately abused victims known to Maxwell and Epstein to be under the age of 18," the indictment said. "The victims were as young as 14 years old when they were groomed and abused by Maxwell and Epstein, both of whom knew that certain victims were in fact under the age of 18." The indictment includes photographs of the residences where Epstein allegedly abused his victims. The indictment charges Maxwell with conspiracy to entice minors to travel to engage in illegal sex acts, enticement of a minor to travel to engage in illegal sexual acts, conspiracy to transport minors with intent to engage in criminal sexual activity, transportation of a minor with intent to engage in criminal sexual activity, and two counts of perjury. The charging document, in citing evidence for the perjury charges, noted that during an April 2016 deposition of Maxwell taken in New York as part of a lawsuit, she was asked, "Did Jeffrey Epstein have a scheme to recruit underage girls for sexual massages?" "I don't know what you're talking about," Maxwell said. During another deposition in July 2016, Maxwell said, "I wasn't aware that he was having sexual activities with anyone when I was with him other than myself." One of Epstein's accusers, Virginia Giuffre, has said in unsealed depositions that Maxwell directed her to have sex with Prince Andrew; former Senate Majority Leader George Mitchell, a Maine Democrat; former New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson; hedge funder Glenn Dubin; late MIT scientist Marvin Minsky; modeling company founder Jean-Luc Brunel; as well as with the owner of a large hotel chain, and another prince. "There was, you know, another foreign president, I can't remember his name," Giuffre said in one deposition. "He was Spanish. There's a whole bunch of them that I just — it's just so hard for me to remember all of them." "I was told to do something by these people constantly ... my whole life revolved around just pleasing these men and keeping Ghislaine and Jeffrey happy," Giuffre said in the deposition. "Their whole entire lives revolved around sex." Richardson and Mitchell have denied ever meeting Guiffre, much less having sex with her. Prince Andrew last year denied having sex with her, as did Dubin and Brunel. The deposition excerpts released last year are part of a defamation lawsuit that Giuffre filed against Maxwell several years ago. The suit accused Maxwell of calling Giuffre a liar for claiming that Maxwell and Epstein sexually abused her when she was underage.
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cnbc--2020-07-02--Bipartisan Senate bill would punish retailers for refusing cash payments

Sens .
Bob Menendez , D-N.J. , and Kevin Cramer , R-N.D. , have introduced a bill prohibiting retailers from declining cash payments from customers , as businesses promote `` contactless '' digital payment as they grapple with the coronavirus pandemic .
Retailers and mall owners , including Nordstrom and Simon Malls , have encouraged the use of contactless transactions such as Apple Pay to minimize the risk of spread in their stores and properties .
But the senators warned that should any retailer ban cash entirely , it would be discriminatory at a time when many Americans are facing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ U.S. households have no or limited access to checking and savings accounts .
Of those households , about 6 % are `` unbanked , '' meaning they have no access at all .
Fourteen percent of unbanked Americans are Black , 11 % are Hispanic and 4 % are White .
And as weekly jobless claims grow by the millions , the number of Americans without access to bank accounts may rise .
`` While I fully understand that businesses have expanded their contactless payment options during the pandemic , refusing cash discriminates @ @ @ @ @ @ @ access to the same goods or services , '' said Menendez in a statement The Payment Choice Act targets businesses that refuse to accept cash as payment , post signs stating that cash will not be accepted or charge a higher price for cash over other forms of payment .
It proposes a maximum fine of $ 2,500 for the first offense and $ 5,000 for the second .
A similar bill was introduced in the House by Rep. Donald M. Payne Jr. , D-N.J. , last year .
State governments also have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ retailers and restaurants that were experimenting with ways to minimize cash before the pandemic .
Massachusetts already bans retail establishments from discrimination against cash buyers .
Companies have sought to speed up their operations and compete against the efficiency offered by technology giants like Amazon .
While credit cards often result in fees for businesses , cash can be more cumbersome and timely to manage .

Sens. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., and Kevin Cramer, R-N.D., have introduced a bill prohibiting retailers from declining cash payments from customers, as businesses promote "contactless" digital payment as they grapple with the coronavirus pandemic.
Retailers and mall owners, including Nordstrom and Simon Malls, have encouraged the use of contactless transactions such as Apple Pay to minimize the risk of spread in their stores and properties. But the senators warned that should any retailer ban cash entirely, it would be discriminatory at a time when many Americans are facing financial hardship.
About 20% of U.S. households have no or limited access to checking and savings accounts. Of those households, about 6% are "unbanked," meaning they have no access at all. Fourteen percent of unbanked Americans are Black, 11% are Hispanic and 4% are White.
And as weekly jobless claims grow by the millions, the number of Americans without access to bank accounts may rise.
"While I fully understand that businesses have expanded their contactless payment options during the pandemic, refusing cash discriminates against certain populations and denies people equal access to the same goods or services," said Menendez in a statement
The Payment Choice Act targets businesses that refuse to accept cash as payment, post signs stating that cash will not be accepted or charge a higher price for cash over other forms of payment. It proposes a maximum fine of $2,500 for the first offense and $5,000 for the second.
A similar bill was introduced in the House by Rep. Donald M. Payne Jr., D-N.J., last year.
State governments also have legislation prohibiting card-only policies, targeting the retailers and restaurants that were experimenting with ways to minimize cash before the pandemic. Massachusetts already bans retail establishments from discrimination against cash buyers.
Companies have sought to speed up their operations and compete against the efficiency offered by technology giants like Amazon. While credit cards often result in fees for businesses, cash can be more cumbersome and timely to manage.


cnbc--2020-07-02--Former GOP presidential candidate Herman Cain hospitalized with Covid-19

Herman Cain , the Godfather 's Pizza magnate who twice ran for president and was briefly considered as a potential Federal Reserve Board nominee under President Donald Trump , was hospitalized Wednesday and is being treated for the coronavirus .
Cain , 74 , was told Monday that he had tested positive for the disease , according to a statement posted to his official Twitter account .
By Wednesday , he `` had developed symptoms serious enough that he required hospitalization , '' the statement said .
Cain is currently being treated at an Atlanta-area hospital , the statement said @ @ @ @ @ @ @ '' and is `` awake and alert . ''
On Wednesday – two days after Cain was said to have tested positive – he tweeted his apparent support for South Dakota Gov .
Kristi Noem 's decision not to require mask-wearing or social distancing during Trump 's upcoming visit to Mount Rushmore .
`` Masks will not be mandatory for the event , which will be attended by President Trump , '' Cain tweeted .
`` PEOPLE ARE FED UP ! ''
Cain is not on a ventilator and is doing well , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ news outlet where Cain has worked as a contributor since April .
A spokeswoman for Cain could not immediately be reached for comment .
Last month , Cain attended Trump 's much-hyped rally in Tulsa , Oklahoma , the kickoff event for the president 's reelection bid after the coronavirus pandemic forced him off the campaign trail for months .
Critics , including local public health officials , had urged Trump to postpone the rally , warning that hosting a large gathering of people could spread the disease .
Cain posted a photograph @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sitting in close proximity to other attendees , none of whom appeared to be wearing masks , as many health officials currently advise .
Days later , Cain wrote in The Western Journal that `` the media worked very hard to scare people out of attending the Trump campaign rally last Saturday night in Tulsa . ''
Cain wrote that the rally was a success and disputed criticisms about underwhelming turnout at the event .
At least half a dozen members of Trump 's campaign staff who helped prepare the rally in Tulsa @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the event .
The campaign assured at the time that `` no COVID-positive staffers or anyone in immediate contact will be at today 's rally or near attendees and elected officials . ''
Trump campaign communications director Tim Murtaugh told NBC News in a statement that Cain `` did not meet with the President '' at the Tulsa rally .
In the Twitter statement Thursday , Cain 's staff wrote , `` There is no way of knowing for sure how or where Mr. Cain contracted the coronavirus , but we do know @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Stage 4 cancer . ''
`` With God 's help , we are confident he will make a quick and complete recovery , '' the statement said .
Cain had served in leadership roles at the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City between 1989 and 1996 .
He later became a player in Republican politics as an economic advisor to Bob Dole 's 1996 presidential campaign before briefly launching his own bid in 2000 .
In the 2012 GOP presidential primary season , Cain gained outsized media coverage with his catchy `` 9-9-9 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the federal tax code with a 9 % business transactions tax , a 9 % personal income tax and a 9 % sales tax .
Critics called the plan `` dubious '' and impractical .
Cain suspended that campaign in December 2011 following accusations of sexual harassment , which he denied .
Cain regained the media 's attention in April 2019 , when Trump announced that he was considering nominating Cain to the Federal Reserve Board .
Within a month , however , Trump tweeted that his `` truly wonderful '' friend had @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for a seat on the Federal Reserve Board . ''
Cain said at the time that `` people who hate me '' are `` already digging up the negative stuff that are in stories from eight years ago ...
I 'm not going to let the accusers run my life or determine my career . ''

Herman Cain, the Godfather's Pizza magnate who twice ran for president and was briefly considered as a potential Federal Reserve Board nominee under President Donald Trump, was hospitalized Wednesday and is being treated for the coronavirus.
Cain, 74, was told Monday that he had tested positive for the disease, according to a statement posted to his official Twitter account. By Wednesday, he "had developed symptoms serious enough that he required hospitalization," the statement said.
Cain is currently being treated at an Atlanta-area hospital, the statement said, where he is "resting comfortably" and is "awake and alert."
TWEET
On Wednesday – two days after Cain was said to have tested positive – he tweeted his apparent support for South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem's decision not to require mask-wearing or social distancing during Trump's upcoming visit to Mount Rushmore.
"Masks will not be mandatory for the event, which will be attended by President Trump," Cain tweeted. "PEOPLE ARE FED UP!"
Cain TWEET
Cain is not on a ventilator and is doing well, his staff told Newsmax, the conservative news outlet where Cain has worked as a contributor since April.
A spokeswoman for Cain could not immediately be reached for comment.
Last month, Cain attended Trump's much-hyped rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma, the kickoff event for the president's reelection bid after the coronavirus pandemic forced him off the campaign trail for months.
Critics, including local public health officials, had urged Trump to postpone the rally, warning that hosting a large gathering of people could spread the disease.
Cain posted a photograph of himself at the June 20 rally sitting in close proximity to other attendees, none of whom appeared to be wearing masks, as many health officials currently advise.
Cain TWEET
Days later, Cain wrote in The Western Journal that "the media worked very hard to scare people out of attending the Trump campaign rally last Saturday night in Tulsa." Cain wrote that the rally was a success and disputed criticisms about underwhelming turnout at the event.
At least half a dozen members of Trump's campaign staff who helped prepare the rally in Tulsa had tested positive for the coronavirus before the event. The campaign assured at the time that "no COVID-positive staffers or anyone in immediate contact will be at today's rally or near attendees and elected officials."
Trump campaign communications director Tim Murtaugh told NBC News in a statement that Cain "did not meet with the President" at the Tulsa rally.
In the Twitter statement Thursday, Cain's staff wrote, "There is no way of knowing for sure how or where Mr. Cain contracted the coronavirus, but we do know he is a fighter who has beaten Stage 4 cancer."
"With God's help, we are confident he will make a quick and complete recovery," the statement said.
Cain had served in leadership roles at the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City between 1989 and 1996. He later became a player in Republican politics as an economic advisor to Bob Dole's 1996 presidential campaign before briefly launching his own bid in 2000.
In the 2012 GOP presidential primary season, Cain gained outsized media coverage with his catchy "9-9-9" economic plan to replace much of the federal tax code with a 9% business transactions tax, a 9% personal income tax and a 9% sales tax. Critics called the plan "dubious" and impractical.
Cain suspended that campaign in December 2011 following accusations of sexual harassment, which he denied.
Cain regained the media's attention in April 2019, when Trump announced that he was considering nominating Cain to the Federal Reserve Board.
Within a month, however, Trump tweeted that his "truly wonderful" friend had "asked me not to nominate him for a seat on the Federal Reserve Board."
Cain said at the time that "people who hate me" are "already digging up the negative stuff that are in stories from eight years ago ... I'm not going to let the accusers run my life or determine my career."


cnbc--2020-07-02--Democratic bill would require dark money judicial groups to reveal donors

U.S. Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse ( D-RI ) ( L ) and ranking member Sen. Dianne Feinstein ( D-CA ) ( R ) speak to members of the media after Senate Judiciary Committee voted to approve , along party lines , the nomination of Judge Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court September 28 , 2018 at Dirksen Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill in Washington , DC .
Democratic lawmakers introduced a bill Thursday that would require `` dark money '' judicial groups to reveal their donors after playing an outside role during a recent run of Supreme Court confirmation hearings @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Whitehouse , both members of the Senate Judiciary Committee , filed the bill titled the `` Judicial Ads Act . ''
The bill , co-sponsored by eight other Democratic lawmakers , demands that groups which spend $ 50,000 in a calendar year on advertisements linked to federal judicial nominations to release the names of their donors who give over $ 5,000 .
These organizations have always kept their donors anonymous .
It would also require advertisements connected to judicial confirmations to disclose who is funding the spot and would ban foreign nationals from @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The bill comes after Senate Democrats published a report claiming President Donald Trump 's outside judicial advisor , Leonard Leo , and his vast network have helped rig the process through which the president has pushed through a large number of judicial appointments .
Leo responded to those claims in a text message to CNBC , suggesting that they should be more focused on responding to the coronavirus pandemic .
The Trump administration has nominated and confirmed at least 200 judges , including two Supreme Court justices , Brett Kavanaugh and Neil @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Court hearings , `` dark money '' groups , such as the conservative Judicial Crisis Network and the more progressive Demand Justice , unleashed ad campaigns arguing either for or against Trump 's nominees .
Those attempts to influence confirmation processes led to the crafting of the `` Judicial Ads Act , '' Feinstein said in a statement .
Democrats are the minority party in the Senate .
So far no Republicans have signed on to help sponsor the bill .
`` The American people have a right to know who is trying @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said .
`` Our bill would help shine light on the process , requiring major donors to these campaigns to be identified and removing the serious potential for undisclosed conflicts of interests . ''
Whitehouse said the outside effort by these groups comes down to corporate interests .
`` A decades-long effort by big corporations and partisan donors to rig the courts using dark money is working ; they 've won over 80 partisan , 5-4 decisions , '' Whitehouse said in a statement .
The bill is back by the Campaign Legal @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in Washington , the Project on Government Oversight , Public Citizen , Democracy 21 and End Citizens United .

U.S. Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) (L) and ranking member Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) (R) speak to members of the media after Senate Judiciary Committee voted to approve, along party lines, the nomination of Judge Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court September 28, 2018 at Dirksen Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC.
Democratic lawmakers introduced a bill Thursday that would require "dark money" judicial groups to reveal their donors after playing an outside role during a recent run of Supreme Court confirmation hearings.
Sens. Dianne Feinstein and Sheldon Whitehouse, both members of the Senate Judiciary Committee, filed the bill titled the "Judicial Ads Act."
The bill, co-sponsored by eight other Democratic lawmakers, demands that groups which spend $50,000 in a calendar year on advertisements linked to federal judicial nominations to release the names of their donors who give over $5,000. These organizations have always kept their donors anonymous.
It would also require advertisements connected to judicial confirmations to disclose who is funding the spot and would ban foreign nationals from funding advertisements related to a judicial nomination.
The bill comes after Senate Democrats published a report claiming President Donald Trump's outside judicial advisor, Leonard Leo, and his vast network have helped rig the process through which the president has pushed through a large number of judicial appointments.
Leo responded to those claims in a text message to CNBC, suggesting that they should be more focused on responding to the coronavirus pandemic.
The Trump administration has nominated and confirmed at least 200 judges, including two Supreme Court justices, Brett Kavanaugh and Neil Gorsuch.
Throughout both of the Supreme Court hearings, "dark money" groups, such as the conservative Judicial Crisis Network and the more progressive Demand Justice, unleashed ad campaigns arguing either for or against Trump's nominees.
Those attempts to influence confirmation processes led to the crafting of the "Judicial Ads Act," Feinstein said in a statement. Democrats are the minority party in the Senate. So far no Republicans have signed on to help sponsor the bill.
"The American people have a right to know who is trying to influence judicial nominations," Feinstein said. "Our bill would help shine light on the process, requiring major donors to these campaigns to be identified and removing the serious potential for undisclosed conflicts of interests."
Whitehouse said the outside effort by these groups comes down to corporate interests.
"A decades-long effort by big corporations and partisan donors to rig the courts using dark money is working; they've won over 80 partisan, 5-4 decisions," Whitehouse said in a statement.
The bill is back by the Campaign Legal Center, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, the Project on Government Oversight, Public Citizen, Democracy 21 and End Citizens United.


cnbc--2020-07-02--Trump says 'masks are good,' but doubts national mandate is needed as coronavirus cases rise

President Donald Trump looks on during a campaign rally in Battle Creek , Michigan .
President Donald Trump said Wednesday that he 's `` all for masks , '' but does n't think the U.S. needs a national mandate for people to wear them during the coronavirus pandemic .
`` I do n't know if you need mandatory , '' Trump said when asked in a Fox Business Network interview if he would support a national order for people to wear masks in public .
`` You have many places in the country where people stay very long distance , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 'm all for masks , I think masks are good , '' the president said , adding that he has been seen wearing one in situations where he was in a group of people .
`` Usually I 'm not in that position , '' said Trump , who noted that `` everyone gets tested [ for Covid-19 ] before they see me . ''
But `` I 'd have no problem , '' Trump said .
`` I had a mask on , I sort of liked the way i looked .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ lives by helping prevent the spread of the highly contagious disease , according to numerous health experts .
It might also have a financial benefit , according to a Goldman Sachs analyst who found that a mask mandate would substitute for national lockdowns that would otherwise subtract 5 % of GDP .
Trump told Fox Business that the U.S. economy is already heading for a `` V-shaped '' recovery – a sharp decline followed by a sharp gain – touting recent figures such as the month-to-month percentage gains in retail sales .
`` @ @ @ @ @ @ @ very good with the coronavirus , '' Trump said .
`` I think that at some point that 's going to sort of just disappear , I hope . ''
But the virus is not disappearing – In fact , cases are surging in numerous parts of the country .
Trump 's own White House health advisor , Dr. Anthony Fauci , warned Tuesday that the coronavirus outbreak is `` going to be very disturbing '' if it continues on its current trajectory .
`` I think we 're going to have a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Trump added in the interview .

President Donald Trump looks on during a campaign rally in Battle Creek, Michigan.
President Donald Trump said Wednesday that he's "all for masks," but doesn't think the U.S. needs a national mandate for people to wear them during the coronavirus pandemic.
"I don't know if you need mandatory," Trump said when asked in a Fox Business Network interview if he would support a national order for people to wear masks in public.
"You have many places in the country where people stay very long distance," Trump said.
"But I'm all for masks, I think masks are good," the president said, adding that he has been seen wearing one in situations where he was in a group of people.
"Usually I'm not in that position," said Trump, who noted that "everyone gets tested [for Covid-19] before they see me."
But "I'd have no problem," Trump said. "I had a mask on, I sort of liked the way i looked."
A national mask mandate could save lives by helping prevent the spread of the highly contagious disease, according to numerous health experts.
It might also have a financial benefit, according to a Goldman Sachs analyst who found that a mask mandate would substitute for national lockdowns that would otherwise subtract 5% of GDP.
Trump told Fox Business that the U.S. economy is already heading for a "V-shaped" recovery – a sharp decline followed by a sharp gain – touting recent figures such as the month-to-month percentage gains in retail sales.
"I think we're going to be very good with the coronavirus," Trump said. "I think that at some point that's going to sort of just disappear, I hope."
But the virus is not disappearing – In fact, cases are surging in numerous parts of the country. Trump's own White House health advisor, Dr. Anthony Fauci, warned Tuesday that the coronavirus outbreak is "going to be very disturbing" if it continues on its current trajectory.
"I think we're going to have a vaccine very soon, too," Trump added in the interview.


cnbc--2020-07-02--Russians give Putin the chance to stay in power until 2036 after historic vote

Members of a local electoral commission empty a ballot box at a polling station after a nationwide vote on constitutional reforms in Moscow on July 1 , 2020 .
Russians have overwhelmingly voted in favor of changes to the country 's constitution that enable President Vladimir Putin to potentially stay in power up to 2036 .
With all the votes counted , the electoral commission said Thursday morning that the final count showed 77.9 % of those who voted were in favor of amendments to the constitution of Russia and 21.2 % against , state news agency RIA Novosti reported @ @ @ @ @ @ @ % , the commission said .
The constitutional amendments covered a raft of issues ranging from the minimum wage and pensions , to giving Putin the right to run for two more six-year terms in office .
The 67-year old 's current term ends in 2024 .
The vote on constitutional amendments was billed as a referendum , but in reality the changes had already been passed by Russia 's parliament and the public vote was seen as a move to legitimize the amendments .
Putin has not yet explicitly stated that he @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the Kremlin say the vote was neither transparent nor conducted according to usual electoral standards ; ballot boxes were set in conventional polling stations but also on pavements , and in fields and parks .
Some voters — those in Moscow and the Nizhny Novgorod region — were able to vote online , and votes were cast from abroad too .
A Russian cosmonaut even voted from space as he is stationed at the International Space Station .
Controversially , incentives were also reportedly offered to voters , with reports of prizes @ @ @ @ @ @ @ electoral commission has rebuffed accusations of irregularities , however , saying on Twitter that it had received few complaints and had taken measures to prevent double voting , adding that voter lists would be checked and verified .

Members of a local electoral commission empty a ballot box at a polling station after a nationwide vote on constitutional reforms in Moscow on July 1, 2020.
Russians have overwhelmingly voted in favor of changes to the country's constitution that enable President Vladimir Putin to potentially stay in power up to 2036.
With all the votes counted, the electoral commission said Thursday morning that the final count showed 77.9% of those who voted were in favor of amendments to the constitution of Russia and 21.2% against, state news agency RIA Novosti reported. Data showed voter turnout was 65%, the commission said.
The constitutional amendments covered a raft of issues ranging from the minimum wage and pensions, to giving Putin the right to run for two more six-year terms in office. The 67-year old's current term ends in 2024.
The vote on constitutional amendments was billed as a referendum, but in reality the changes had already been passed by Russia's parliament and the public vote was seen as a move to legitimize the amendments. Putin has not yet explicitly stated that he will run for office again.
Critics of the Kremlin say the vote was neither transparent nor conducted according to usual electoral standards; ballot boxes were set in conventional polling stations but also on pavements, and in fields and parks.
Some voters — those in Moscow and the Nizhny Novgorod region — were able to vote online, and votes were cast from abroad too. A Russian cosmonaut even voted from space as he is stationed at the International Space Station. Controversially, incentives were also reportedly offered to voters, with reports of prizes being up for grabs.
Russia's electoral commission has rebuffed accusations of irregularities, however, saying on Twitter that it had received few complaints and had taken measures to prevent double voting, adding that voter lists would be checked and verified.


cnbc--2020-07-02--Judge orders Mary Trump to explain why her tell-all shouldn't be barred from publication

A Dutchess County , New York judge on Tuesday ordered attorneys for President Donald Trump 's niece to respond to a lawsuit filed by Robert Trump , the president 's brother , seeking to halt the publication of her forthcoming tell-all memoir .
Judge Hal Greenwald of the New York Supreme Court also issued an order prohibiting Simon & Schuster from publishing the book before the case is decided and scheduled a hearing in the matter as soon as July 10 .
The book , `` Too Much and Never Enough : How My Family Created the World 's Most @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is scheduled for release July 28 .
The book `` shines a bright light on the dark history of their family in order to explain how her uncle became the man who now threatens the world 's health , economic security , and social fabric , '' according to Simon & Schuster .
The order temporarily bars Mary Trump and Simon & Schuster from `` publishing , printing or distributing any book or any portions thereof '' that contain `` descriptions or accounts of Mary L. Trump 's relationship with Robert S. Trump @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Barry . ''
Maryanne Trump Barry , the president 's eldest sister , retired as a federal appeals court judge last year .
The publisher and an attorney for Mary Trump said they planned to appeal the order immediately .
Robert Trump challenged the publication of the book on the grounds that a nondisclosure agreement reached in connection with litigation over his father 's will prohibits those involved from from publishing anything `` concerning the litigation or their relationship with each other . ''
In a statement , Charles Harder , Robert Trump @ @ @ @ @ @ @ `` very pleased '' with the order .
`` We look forward to vigorously litigating this case , and will seek the maximum remedies available by law for the enormous damages caused by Mary Trump 's breach of contract and Simon & Schuster 's intentional interference with that contract , '' Harder said .
`` Short of corrective action to immediately cease their egregious conduct , we will pursue this case to the very end . ''
Harder has represented President Trump in high-profile cases , including in litigation against the adult film @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said that his niece is subject to a nondisclosure agreement and is `` not allowed '' to publish the book .
In a statement , Simon & Schuster said it was `` disappointed '' in the order .
`` We plan to immediately appeal this decision to the Appellate Division , and look forward to prevailing in this case based on well-established precedents regarding prior restraint , '' the publisher said .
Theodore Boutrous Jr. , an attorney for Mary Trump , said in a statement that the order `` is only temporary @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on core political speech that flatly violates the First Amendment . ''
`` We will immediately appeal .
This book , which addresses matters of great public concern and importance about a sitting president in an election year , should not be suppressed even for one day , '' Boutrous said .
An earlier effort by Robert Trump to halt publication of the book failed in Queens County Surrogate 's Court , a venue that typically hears cases involving wills , the administration of estates , and adoptions .

A Dutchess County, New York judge on Tuesday ordered attorneys for President Donald Trump's niece to respond to a lawsuit filed by Robert Trump, the president's brother, seeking to halt the publication of her forthcoming tell-all memoir.
Judge Hal Greenwald of the New York Supreme Court also issued an order prohibiting Simon & Schuster from publishing the book before the case is decided and scheduled a hearing in the matter as soon as July 10.
The book, "Too Much and Never Enough: How My Family Created the World's Most Dangerous Man" by Mary Trump, is scheduled for release July 28.
The book "shines a bright light on the dark history of their family in order to explain how her uncle became the man who now threatens the world's health, economic security, and social fabric," according to Simon & Schuster.
The order temporarily bars Mary Trump and Simon & Schuster from "publishing, printing or distributing any book or any portions thereof" that contain "descriptions or accounts of Mary L. Trump's relationship with Robert S. Trump, Donald Trump, or Maryanne Trump Barry."
Maryanne Trump Barry, the president's eldest sister, retired as a federal appeals court judge last year.
The publisher and an attorney for Mary Trump said they planned to appeal the order immediately.
Robert Trump challenged the publication of the book on the grounds that a nondisclosure agreement reached in connection with litigation over his father's will prohibits those involved from from publishing anything "concerning the litigation or their relationship with each other."
In a statement, Charles Harder, Robert Trump's attorney, said his client was "very pleased" with the order.
"We look forward to vigorously litigating this case, and will seek the maximum remedies available by law for the enormous damages caused by Mary Trump's breach of contract and Simon & Schuster's intentional interference with that contract," Harder said. "Short of corrective action to immediately cease their egregious conduct, we will pursue this case to the very end."
Harder has represented President Trump in high-profile cases, including in litigation against the adult film actress Stormy Daniels. The president has said that his niece is subject to a nondisclosure agreement and is "not allowed" to publish the book.
In a statement, Simon & Schuster said it was "disappointed" in the order.
"We plan to immediately appeal this decision to the Appellate Division, and look forward to prevailing in this case based on well-established precedents regarding prior restraint," the publisher said.
Theodore Boutrous Jr., an attorney for Mary Trump, said in a statement that the order "is only temporary but it still is a prior restraint on core political speech that flatly violates the First Amendment."
"We will immediately appeal. This book, which addresses matters of great public concern and importance about a sitting president in an election year, should not be suppressed even for one day," Boutrous said.
An earlier effort by Robert Trump to halt publication of the book failed in Queens County Surrogate's Court, a venue that typically hears cases involving wills, the administration of estates, and adoptions.