Author: chicagoinquirer

by Eric Tucker, Jill Colvin, Alanna Durkin Richer and Lindsay Whitehurst MIAMI  — Donald Trump improperly stored in his Florida estate sensitive documents on nuclear capabilities, repeatedly enlisted aides and lawyers to help him hide records demanded by investigators and cavalierly showed off a Pentagon “plan of attack” and classified map, according to a sweeping felony indictment that paints a damning portrait of the former president’s treatment of national security information. The conduct alleged in the historic indictment — the first federal case against a former president — cuts to the heart of any president’s responsibility to safeguard the government’s most valuable secrets. Prosecutors…

by Felix Onuah ABUJA  -Nigeria’s President Bola Tinubu has suspended central bank Governor Godwin Emefiele with immediate effect, following ongoing investigation of his office and planned reforms in the financial sector, the head of the government said on Friday. Tinubu criticised Emefiele’s handling of the currency and monetary policy at his inauguration last week and called on the central bank to work towards a unified exchange rate. Emefiele’s suspension comes after a meeting with Tinubu last week. “President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has suspended the Central Bank Governor, Mr Godwin Emefiele, from office with immediate effect,” the government said in a…

by Eric Tucker, Jill Colvin and Michael Balsamo MIAMI — Donald Trump said Thursday that he has been indicted on charges of mishandling classified documents at his Florida estate, igniting a federal prosecution that is arguably the most perilous of multiple legal threats against the former president as he seeks to reclaim the White House. The Justice Department did not immediately publicly confirm the indictment. But two people familiar with the situation who were not authorized to discuss it publicly said that the indictment included seven criminal counts. One of those people said Trump’s lawyers were contacted by prosecutors shortly before he…

Close  by Mark Sherman WASHINGTON  — The Supreme Court on Thursday issued a surprising 5-4 ruling in favor of Black voters in a congressional redistricting case, ordering the creation of a second district with a large Black population. Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Brett Kavanaugh joined with the court’s liberals in affirming a lower-court ruling that found a likely violation of the Voting Rights Act in an Alabama congressional map with one majority Black seat out of seven congressional districts in a state where more than one in four residents is Black. The case had been closely watched for its potential…

by Ben Finley VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — Pat Robertson, a religious broadcaster who turned a tiny Virginia station into the global Christian Broadcasting Network, tried a run for president and helped make religion central to Republican Party politics in America through his Christian Coalition, has died. He was 93. Robertson’s death Thursday was announced by his broadcasting network. No cause was given. Robertson’s enterprises also included Regent University, an evangelical Christian school in Virginia Beach; the American Center for Law and Justice, which defends the First Amendment rights of religious people; and Operation Blessing, an international humanitarian organization. But for…

by Aaron Morrison and John Seewer Ben Crump, the Rev. Al Sharpton says, is “Black America’s attorney general.” In less than a decade, the Florida-based attorney has become the voice for the families of Trayvon Martin, Michael Brown, Breonna Taylor, George Floyd and Tyre Nichols — Black people whose deaths at the hands of police and vigilantes sparked a movement. He has won multimillion-dollar settlements in police brutality cases. He’s pushed cities to ban no-knock warrants. He has told a congressional committee that reform is needed because “it’s become painfully obvious we have two systems of justice; one for white…

by Tim Reynolds MIAMI  — Never had two players from the same team had 30-point triple-doubles in the same game. Never in the regular season. Never in the playoffs. Certainly never in the NBA Finals. Until now. Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray made history Wednesday night — and have the Denver Nuggets two wins away from making some real history as well. Jokic and Murray became the first teammates in NBA Finals history to both record triple-doubles, and the Nuggets reclaimed the lead in the series by beating the Miami Heat 109-94 in Game 3. “By far, their greatest…

by Agency Reports Americans will soon celebrate Juneteenth, marking the day when the last enslaved people in the United States learned they were free. For generations, Black Americans have recognized the end of one of the darkest chapters in U.S. history with joy, in the form of parades, street festivals, musical performances or cookouts. The U.S. government was slow to embrace the occasion — it was only in 2021 that President Joe Biden signed a bill passed by Congress to set aside Juneteenth, or June 19th, as a federal holiday. And just as many people learn what Juneteenth is all…

by Mark Sherman and Jessica Gresko WASHINGTON  — Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson disclosed Wednesday that she received a $1,200 congratulatory floral display from Oprah Winfrey and $6,580 in designer clothing for a magazine photo shoot in her first months as the first Black woman on the Supreme Court. The details of gifts given to Jackson were among the reports provided by most members of the court in their annual filings, which give a partial window onto their finances. The reports were released Wednesday. But the report that was most anticipated — that of Justice Clarence Thomas, who has been under…

by Tim Reynolds MIAMI  — Lionel Messi has pulled off his latest stunning feat: He is headed to Major League Soccer, and joining Inter Miami. After months — years, even — of speculation, Messi finally revealed his decision to join a Miami franchise that has been led by another global soccer icon, David Beckham, since its inception but has yet to make any real splashes on the field. That likely will soon change. One of Inter Miami’s owners, Jorge Mas, tweeted out a photo of a darkly silhouetted Messi jersey shortly before the Argentinian great revealed his decision in interviews…