EFTA00160705.pdf

From: "Buckley, Lawrence D. Jr. (DO) (FBI)" To: "Smith, James H. (INSD) (FBI)" <O>. Subject: FW: [EXTERNAL EMAIL] - FBI Public Affairs News Briefing Wednesday, August 05, 2020 Date: Wed, 05 Aug 2020 13:50:09 +0000 Importance: Normal From: Bulletin Intelligence <[email protected]> Sent: Wednesday, August 5, 2020 6:27 AM To: [email protected] Subject: [EXTERNAL EMAIL] - FBI Public Affairs News Briefing Wednesday, August 05, 2020 Mobile version and searchable archives available at fbl.bulletInIntelligence.aun. FBI News Briefing TO: THE DIRECTOR AND SENIOR STAFF DATE: WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 5, 2020 6:30 AM EDT TODAY'S TABLE OF CONTENTS LEADING THE NEWS • FBI Has Opened 300 Domestic Terror Investigations Since Floyd's Death. PROTESTS • Suspect In Salt Lake City Protest Arson Case Remains Jailed. • Tennessee Woman Is_S_econd To Face Protest Arson Charge% • Trump Touts His Efforts To Stop Portland Protests. • pence Sys Administration Will Increase Law Enforcement Funding, • Husband Of Los Angeles DA Charged With Pulling Gun On BLM Protesters. • Norton Demands Information From Secret Service After Mothers Held At Gunpoint. • PlYTimes Analysis: Crime Data Do Not Support De Blasio's Claims About Violenrecs • Minneapolis Records 42nd Homicide Of The Year. • Colorado Police Apologize For Detaining Innocent Black Family. • Baltimore Parks Employees Remove BLM Murals, Sparking Investigation. • Trump: People "Not Happy" With Athletes That Kneel During Anthem. • Illinois Lawmaker Calls For SoispenthjagAgaClesses, • WSJournal Urges Seattle To Condemn Protests Outside Police Chief's Home. • Ornithologists Call For Renaming Birds That Represent Racism And Inequality. COUNTER-TERRORISM • Prospect Of Second Boston Marathon Bombing Trial Brings Anguish. • aumpadys "Bomb Of Some Kind" Responsible For Deadly Beirut Blast • O'Brien Warns Against Foreign Military Involvement In Libya. • Analysts: PandPmir Other Issues Appear To Be Making Hezbollah More Crime-Reliant COUNTER-INTELLIGENCE • Inimp_Says Durham's Findings Will Be "Breathtaking " • Tensions Grow Over Republicans' Biden Investigation. EFTA00160705 • Russian Bankers Seek Christopher Steele's Testimony About His Dossier Sourreagor Danchenko. • Yates To Testify Before Senate Panel About Crossfire Hurricane Wednesday. • SSCI Approves Final Russia Report. • MauLthy Slow To Fill Opening On House Intelligpnre Committee Months After Ratcliffe Confirmation • Federal Program Offers New Cybersecurity Tool For Elections As Officials Warn Of Foreign Interferenre • ODNI Offers Recommendations To Address Lax Vetting Of Foreign Employees At US Agency For Global Media. • Qp-Ed: Telework Deployment For Secure Workfarces Should Still Be A Priority, • US Embassy In Moscow Says It Has No Information On Whelan's Whereabouts. • Abrams Tells Senators US Will Continue To Recognize Guaid6 As Venezuela's Interim President. • Marco Rubio Introduces The "Air America Act" To Provide Benefits To Air America Emplane& • The US Is At Risk Of Attacks In Space. CRIMINAL INVESTIGATIONS • FBI Meets With Activists To Discuss Breonna Taylor Probe. • juggeQaeEsdrieLkterjaarayeryQalleeing Idaho Children's Bodies, • FBI Assisting Chicago Police In Probe Of Fatal Shooting Attack. • Trump Raised Possibility That Epstein Was Killed In Custody. • Man Who Killed Somali Student At Kansas City Mosque Sentenced To Prison • FBI, Police Conduct Raids In Indianapolis. • FBI Continues Probe Of 2019 Dayton, Ohio Mass Shooting. • Texas Developer Facing Bribery Charges Is Placed On House Arrest. • Virginia Gang Member Pleads Guilty To Racketeering, Murder Conspiracy. • continuing Coverage: Michigan Man Indicted In Conned-ion To Death Of Susie Zhao • FBI Searching For Family Of Lost Toddler. • Pennsylvania Individuals Indicted In Connection To Prison Smuggling. • ContinuingCoverage' Connertidit Man Aroused Of Killing Minor • Virginia Man Indicted For Threatening Schools. • FBI Investigating Fatal Stabbing In Oklahoma. • Minnesota Man Charged In Connection To Armed Robberies. • 20-Year Manhunt For Michigan Sex Offender Ends In California. • Michigan I awmaker Files For Dismissal Of Charge& • North Dakota Native American Official Charged With Bribery. • Four Floridians Charged In Connection To Gas Station Skimming Scheme. • More Than 370 Pounds Of Illegal Drugs Seized In "Massive" Bust. • Drug Investigation Leads To 17 Arrests. • Daialling Involvement Leads To Federal Prison Sentences For Two Defendants. • Two Arrested In Connection With Meth Trafficking Probe. • Heroin Trafficking Case Defendant Gets 30-Month Prison Sentence. FINANCIAL CRIME & CORPORATE SCANDALS • FBI Raids Cleveland, Miami Offices "Tied To Ukrainian Oligarch." • Former Proove Biosrienres Fxerutives Pleads Guilty To Conspiring To Pay_Enysirians Kirkbacks • SEC Reportedly Investigating Announcement Of Loan To Kodak To Make Medicine In Factories. • ExLaep. Collins Seeks Another Delay In Reporting To Prison CYBER DIVISION • Florida Teen Charged In Twitter Hark Pleads Not Guilty, • Trump Makes "Unprecedented" Demand For US Slice Of A TikTok Deal. • US Charges California Man In Cyberstalking Case. • NSA Warns Celiphone Location Data Could Pose National-SecurityThreat • DHS Report Says Chinese Behind Malware Used In Attacks On US During Past Decade. • CISA, FBI And DOD Issue Alert On TAIDOOR - A New Chinese Malware Variant. • Federal IT Leaders At DHS NSA Highlight Election Security Efforts. • CISA Putting Skills Over Experience As It Rethinks Cyber Hiring Approach. • FBI Bulletin Sys Soria' Media And Search Platforms Linking Consumers To Fraudulent Sites. • Survey Finds Financial Firms' Cybersecurity Spending Jumps 15% This Year. • Qyber Chiefs Worry Staff Vulnerable To Burnout As Pandemic Rolls On. • Industrial Robots Vulnerable To Cyber Attacks. • Russian Hackers Stole Leaked Documents From UK Trade Secretary's Personal Email Account. LAW ENFORCEMENT SERVICES EFTA00160706 • Administration To Award More Than VISM In Grants To Organizations Supporting Trafficking Victims, OTHER FBI NEWS • Audit Finds Only Minor FBI Errors In FISA Agoliration% • FBI Warns Of Online Shopping Scams. OTHER WASHINGTON NEWS • Trump Says Administration Has Done "Incredible" Job On Coronavirus. • Azar Sa.y.sTherapeutics And Vaccines Are "Just Months Away." • Hahn Says Hydroxychloroquine Use Up To Physician And Patient. • Novavax Reports Positive Results For Vaccine Candidate. • Jul, Fli Lily Seeking Volunteers For Antibody Drug Trials., • State AGs Want US To Break Gilead Patent On Remdesivir. • Research On Plasma Infusions To Treat COVID Hampered By Demand, Government Program. • NYU Doctors Say Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy Could Be Effective COVID Treatment. • Poll Finds 59% Of Americans Support Mandatory National Shelter-At-Home Order. • poll Shows 65% Believe US Handling Coronavirus Worse Than Other Countries. • COVID Case Counts Rising In Midwest And South. • Six States Form Compact To Purchase Rapid-Detection Tests. • California Has First Weekly COVID Case Derline In 12 Weeks • NYC Health Commissioner Resigns, Citing "Deep Disappointment" With De Blasio. • White House Expresses Frustration Over Relief Measure But Negotiators See Progress. • Trump Says Economy Will Not Shut Down Again. • For-Profit Nursing Home Providers With Dubious Records Received "No Strings Attached" Relief Aid. • COVID Patient Billed Nearly$j .9M For 44-Day Hospital Stave • Rutgers Football Team Case Count Hits 28. • Trump Calls For Schools To Open, Says Young People Are "Virtually Immune" From Coronavirus. • Sanders: "Masks For All" Proposal Is Important Step In Addressing Pandemir, • Trump Signs Great American Outdoors Act Into Law. • Trump Says Border Wall Will Be 500 Miles LongBy Year's End. • Appeals Court Blocks Means Test For Immigrants In New York, Connecticut, Vermont. • Census Bureau Will End 2020 Data Collection One Month Early. • eliden Plan Would Reverse Much Of Trump's Immigration Policy, • WPost: ICE Detention Centers Are "Petri Dishes Of Contagion." • CDC Warns Of Potential Spike In "Polio-Like Condition" That Mostly Affects Children. • millions Left Without Power As Isaias Moves Up Northeast Spawning Tornadoes • Trump Withdraws O'Rielly Nomination For Term On FCC. • Dlumenthal Threatens To Oppose Military Nominations Unless Tata Is Removed From Post. • O'Brien Returns To White House After Mild Case Of Coronavirus. • NYTimes Analysis: At DHS, Wolf Is Helping Trump Advance His Political Ambitions. • State Department Rejects IG Report On Appointees' Handling Of "Workplace Violence" Claims. • Actions Of Trump's "Politically Connected" Ambassadors Drawing Scrutiny. • Trump: Housing Rule Was Destroying Families, "American Dream." • Tillalp2i2eeply Saddened" By Deadly Marine Training Accident In California • White House Sued Over Lack Of Sign Language Interpreters. • Iiiinpaays Florida Voting_System "Has Been Cleaned Up,alrges Backers To Vote By Mail. INTERNATIONAL NEWS • Iiimnp_Says US-China Relationship Has Been "Badly Hurt" By Pandemir • NYTimes Analysis: Lockdowns More Confusing, Contentious As Pandemic Wears On. • Analysis: Democrats "Gutted" Anti-Hezbollah Legislation Days Before Attack On Israel. • Israel I aunrhes Counteroffensive AgainstElarnas_ In Southern Sys Gaza • Family: Iran Abducted California Man While Visiting Dubai. • a( pgaLv m ric iAifflt i8wa gu ncLcasiumaysigi. • Trump: More Troops Will Leave Afghanistan Before US Election. • Pakistani Hindus Accept Islam To Avoid Persecution. • Azar To Lead First High-Level Delegation To Taiwan In 41 Years„ • Abrams Tells Senators US Will Continue To Recognize Guaid6 As Venezuela's Interim President. • WSJournal Al: Saudis Expand Nuclear Program With Chinese Assistance. • Unclear Where Juan Carlos Went After Leaving Spain. • Former US Diplomat: Trump Not Cause Of US-German Strains. THE BIG PICTURE EFTA00160707 • Headlines From Today's Front Page, WASHINGTON'S SCHEDULE • Today's Events In Washington, LEADING THE NEWS FBI Has Opened 300 Domestic Terror Investigations Since Floyd's Death. Fox News (8/4, Schultz, 27.59M) reports on its website that the FBI has opened "more than 300 domestic terrorism investigations since George Floyd's death in Minneapolis kicked off nationwide unrest and riots, a federal attorney revealed Tuesday in a hearing on Capitol Hill." Erin Nealy Cox, a US Attorney tapped by Attorney General Barr "to lead a task force on violent anti-government extremists, said the feds have opened hundreds of federal criminal investigations surrounding the violence and rioting since May 28." Cox testified before a Senate panel, "They have since May 28 [opened] over 300 domestic terrorist investigations. That does not include any potential civil rights investigations or violent crime associated with the riots." The Voice of America (8/5, Farivar, 48K) reports, "The task force, co-headed by Craig Carpenito, the U.S. attorney for the District of New Jersey and composed of prosecutors and FBI agents, is charged with developing 'detailed information about violent antigovernment extremist individuals, networks and movements. "Any group, regardless of their name, if they're violent and antigovernment, we will be looking at them,' Cox said during the hearing. 'If it is a white supremacist that is engaging in gang or drug activity, that would not fall under the purview of our task force." Federal Prosecutors Have Not Charged Antifa In Portland Protests. Reuters (8/4, Hosenball) reports that federal prosecutors "have produced no evidence linking dozens of people arrested in anti-racism protests in Portland, Oregon, to the antifa or anarchist movements, despite President Donald Trump's assertions they are fueling the unrest." Reuters adds, "A spokesman for the U.S. Attorney's office in Portland confirmed this in an email to Reuters on Tuesday. 'We have not alleged defendant affiliation with any specific groups or ideologies in our cases stemming from recent Portland protests,' said Kevin Sonoff, the spokesman. 'Our cases focus purely on the criminal conduct alleged." According to Reuters, "Trump and officials in his administration have applied the labels to the Portland protesters, who set fires around, and threw objects at, officers around a federal courthouse during long-running confrontations. 'I think there are anarchists and far-left groups involved in the violence in Portland,' Attorney General William Barr said in testimony before Congress last week. 'I think antifa is involved in Portland." PROTESTS Suspect In Salt Lake City Protest Arson Case Remains Jailed. KTVX-TV Salt Lake City (8/4) reports from Salt Lake City, "One of the three suspects federally indicted in the torching of a Salt Lake City Police vehicle will remain in jail, for now." KTVX-TV adds, "Photographic evidence against Christopher Isidro Rojas was presented in court Tuesday by federal prosecutors in an attempt to keep Rojas, who has been incarcerated since his arrest on July 17, behind bars during the trial. The photos show Rojas holding a white sheet and a lighter. Another photo shows the same man then lighting the sheet while another man with him is seen throwing it on the vehicle. FBI agents also showed the same suspect damaging the vehicle while wearing a pair of black and white shoes that are later photographed on Rojas at a local bar." US Magistrate Judge Jared C. Bennett "issued an order allowing Rojas a pretrial release with conditions but the government was quick to appeal and requested another review, halting Rojas from being released for the time being." KJZZ-TV Salt Lake City (8/4, Stauffer) also reports. Tennessee Woman Is Second To Face Protest Arson Charges. The Tennessean (8/4, Alund, 458K) reports, "A Nashville woman is now the second person facing federal arson charges in connection with a Nashville Historic Courthouse fire set during a May 30th EFTA00160708 protest and riot, prosecutors announced Tuesday." Shelby Ligons, 22, "is charged with malicious destruction of property using fire or explosives, according to U.S. Attorney Don Cochran for the Middle District of Tennessee and Assistant Attorney General for National Security John C. Demers. A peaceful 'I Will Breathe' rally to protest police brutality in Nashville that night erupted into pockets of violence and vandalism as marchers moved through downtown. By 8:15 p.m. flames could be seen shooting from a first-floor window of the historic courthouse and city hall. Multiple arrests were made in connection with the rioting." Wesley Somers, 25, of Hendersonville "was also charged on June 3 in connection the fire set there." Trump Touts His Efforts To Stop Portland Protests. President Trump said in an interview on Fox Business' Lou Dobbs Tonight (8/4, 49K), "You look at what's been going on in Portland. ... I sent a whole group of very tough, very talented people to protect, can you believe it, a courthouse, a major federal courthouse from being burned to the ground, torn down, decimated. And we've saved that very easily, frankly, and we've helped them beyond that. We could solve that problem totally very quickly and easily, but we're not doing that as of yet. It's been a big victory in Portland. It has been a big victory in Seattle." Trump tweeted, "THE WALL STREET JOURNAL 'Trump Wins in Portland"Something big has changed in Portland, Ore. After weeks of chaos and flames outside the city's federal courthouse, the past few days have seen the violence subside dramatically. What happened?' William McGurn @WSJ" Violent Protests Continue. The Washington Times (8/4, Dinan, 492K) reports federal agents have "curtailed their presence in Portland but violent protests have continued," with police declaring "a riot Monday night after demonstrators invaded the perimeter of a city office building." Rioters "punched and struck officers with batons, and used lasers and strobe lights to try to blind officers, who in turn used tear gas to try to disperse the unruly crowd." While it marked "the second time violence has erupted near the Penumbra Kelly Building," marches near the federal courthouse "have calmed down." Portland Man Arrested For Injuring US Marshal During Protest. Townhall (8/4, Pavlich, 177K) reports that a Portland man "who used a bomb to gain unlawful entry to the Mark O. Hatfield U.S. Courthouse has been arrested." Eighteen-year-old Isaiah Jason Maza Jr. "injured a U.S. Marshal after detonating an explosive device and has been charged accordingly with a series of federal crimes." Trump Said Antifa, Not Law Enforcement, Causing Problems In Cities. In continuing coverage of Trump's interview with Axios on HBO, the Washington Times (8/4, Sherfinski, 492K) reports that Trump said "that the anti-fascist group Antifa, not law enforcement, should be investigated over the recent clashes in cities like Portland, Oregon." Trump said, "It's Antifa and anarchists that are causing the problems - not law enforcement." Pence Says Administration Will Increase Law Enforcement Funding. Breitbart (8/4, Kraychik, 673K) reports Vice President Pence said in an interview with SiriusXM's Breitbart News Daily that the Administration "will increase funding for law enforcement," rejecting calls to "defund the police." Asked about violent protests in large cities, Pence said, "We've seen violence being quelled in that city, and the President has said no federal law enforcement officials are leaving until we know the courthouse is secure and the streets are secure. That's what leadership looks like." Husband Of Los Angeles DA Charged With Pulling Gun On BLM Protesters. The AE (8/4) reports that the husband of the Los Angeles district attorney "has been charged with pointing a gun at Black Lives Matter members who demonstrated outside the couple's home the day before the primary election in March." The attorney general filed "three misdemeanor charges Monday against David Lacey for assault with a firearm for the March 2 incident." District Attorney Jackie Lacey "offered a tearful apology at the time, saying she and her husband were awoken by the protest and were frightened." The CBS Evening NewsVi (8/4, story 10, 0:20, O'Donnell, EFTA00160709 4.14M) too said in a brief report that "Lacey apologized at the time and says her husband was just trying to protect her." Politico (8/4, Marinucci, 4.29M) reports the charges come as Lacey, "the county's first Black district attorney, faces a tough fight with George Gascon, a Latino who previously served as San Francisco DA, to retain her seat." Norton Demands Information From Secret Service After Mothers Held At Gunpoint. The Washington Post (8/4, Mettler, 14.2M) reports Rep. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) "sent a letter to the Department of Homeland Security and the Secret Service on Tuesday demanding information about an incident that played out last week near the Mall, where two mothers say uniformed federal officers held them at gunpoint and detained them without explanation." In a statement, Norton said, "Such an incident must not be tolerated anywhere - but it will not be tolerated in our nation's capital." NYTimes Analysis: Crime Data Do Not Support De Blasio's Claims About Violence. The New York Times (8/4, Feuer, 18.61M) reports in recent weeks, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio (D) and Police Commissioner Dermot F. Shea "have blamed the steep rise in shootings in New York City on a breakdown in the criminal justice system that they contend has allowed criminals back out on the streets." The two "have cited a range of causes that they have portrayed as outside their control: the pandemic and the George Floyd protests, as well as measures approved by the State Legislature, including one that eliminated cash bail for many defendants." However, a "confidential analysis of police data, conducted by city officials but not released to the public, offers little if any evidence to back up their claims." In fact, the analysis "suggests the state's new bail law and the mass release of inmates from city jails in recent months because of the coronavirus outbreak played almost no role in the spike in shootings." Minneapolis Records 42nd Homicide Of The Year. The Minneapolis Star Tribune (8/4, 1.04M) reports that a man was "fatally shot in Minneapolis Tuesday night, bringing the city's death toll to 42." The shooting comes "amid a violent trend in the city since the police killing of George Floyd on Memorial Day, with homicides doubling the pace of a year ago." Colorado Police Apologize For Detaining Innocent Black Family. ABC World News TonightVi (8/4, story 9, 0:15, Muir, 7.19M) reported briefly that police in Aurora, Colorado "are now apologizing to an innocent family of five that was detained, ordered to the ground. The family is Black. Even their children were on the ground. Police say they later realized they had mistaken their vehicle for a stolen motorcycle from another state." Joe Fryer reported on NBC Nightly NewsVi (8/4, story 9, 1:55, Holt, 6.1M) that a "viral video recorded by a witness shows four children crying, face down on the pavement, two of them in handcuffs being detained by police. The youngest is six years old." The Aurora Police Department "is already under scrutiny for its treatment of Black people following the 2019 death of Elijah McClain, which is under investigation." The Washington Post (8/4, Armus, 14.2M) reports Aurora's police chief "apologized on Monday night and launched an internal investigation after video of the incident quickly went viral." Baltimore Parks Employees Remove BLM Murals, Sparking Investigation. The Washington Post (8/4, Owens, 14.2M) reports, "City employees removed artwork aimed at spotlighting the Black Lives Matter movement in Baltimore, even though the community mural project received official approval for public display." Baltimore City Department of Recreation and Parks officials are "investigating the removals after two city park rangers took down several" murals in Patterson Park. Lester Davis, a spokesman for Mayor Bernard "Jack" Young, "confirmed to The Washington Post that the Recreation and Parks department has begun an investigation." EFTA00160710 Trump: People "Not Happy" With Athletes That Kneel During Anthem. President Trump on Tuesday tweeted "People are not happy that players are not standing for our National Anthem!" Illinois Lawmaker Calls For Suspending History Classes. The Washington Times (8/4, Chasmar, 492K) reports Illinois state Rep. La Shawn Ford (D) "on Sunday called on the state's Board of Education to temporarily suspend all history teaching in schools until a new curriculum can be developed that doesn't contribute to systemic racism and white privilege." At a press conference, Ford "said the current school curriculum in Illinois is 'miseducating' children and overlooks the contributions to society by women and people of color." Ford said, "Today, I'm calling for the abolishment of history classes in Illinois. ... We're concerned that current school history teachings lead to white privilege and a racist society." WSJournal Urges Seattle To Condemn Protests Outside Police Chief's Home. The Wall Street Journal (8/4, Subscription Publication, 7.57M) editorializes that last weekend, a group of what Seattle Police Chief Carmen Best characterized as "aggressive protesters" gathered outside her home. The Journal calls on Mayor Durkan to distinguish between upholding people's First Amendment rights and putting officials' families at risk. Ornithologists Call For Renaming Birds That Represent Racism And Inequality. Ornithologists Gabriel Foley and Jordan Rutter write in a Washington Post (8/4, 14.2M) op-ed, "When we name an animal species after the person who first made it known to science, we are effectively honoring that person's contribution. ... Yet these honorific names - known as eponyms - also cast long, dark shadows over our beloved birds and represent colonialism, racism and inequality. It is long overdue that we acknowledge the problem of such names, and it is long overdue that we should change them." COUNTER-TERRORISM Prospect Of Second Boston Marathon Bombing Trial Brings Anguish. The AP (8/4, Richer) reports from Boston, "After Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev was convicted in 2015, the family of the youngest victim urged prosecutors to abandon their bid for the death penalty, warning that years of appeals would only keep him in the spotlight and prolong their unthinkable suffering. Five years later, the prospect of a new trial to decide whether Tsarnaev should be executed after an appeals court tossed the 27-year-old's death sentence has brought anger and anguish to a community in many ways still healing from the April 15, 2013, attack." The AP adds, "Federal prosecutors will likely appeal Friday's ruling to the U.S. Supreme Court. But if the decision stands, prosecutors will face the difficult decision of asking victims to recount their trauma at another trial - where jurors could decide this time to reject the death penalty - or angering some by dropping their pursuit for capital punishment and agreeing to life in prison." Boston (8/4, Gartsbeyn, 586K) reports, "Several survivors of the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing have expressed shock and anger at a federal appeals court decision last week to toss the death sentence issued against Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, one of the two brothers behind the attack." Boston adds, "Among the most outspoken is Rebekah Gregory, who lost a leg in the bombing. She spoke with CNN's Brianna Keilar Monday afternoon after making impassioned statements on social media. 'We're having to relive this nightmare over again,' Gregory said. She pointed out that many victims of the bombing, like Bill and Denise Richard, didn't even want to seek the death penalty against Tsarnaev. The Richards' 8-year-old son Martin was killed in the bombing. 'This is exactly what they were afraid of, that it was going to be this ongoing process that we were never going to be able to end,' Gregory said." Trump Says "Bomb Of Some Kind" Responsible For Deadly Beirut Blast. EFTA00160711 ABC World News TonigntVi (8/4, story 4, 2:05, Muir, 7.19M) reported on Tuesday's "massive and deadly explosion" in Beirut that killed "at least 60 dead" and injured "more than 3,000. ... President Trump said this looked like a 'terrible attack,' in his words." ABC's Ian Pannell added that Lebanese officials, however, are "not suggesting that it was an attack. It's now pointing towards being just a tragic, terrible accident. The country's Interior Minister saying that highly explosive material may have been stored on the site, even pointing towards ammonium nitrate, which is highly combustible, often used in bombs and in sufficient quantities, capable of causing this level of massive destruction." USA Today (8/4, Woodyard, 10.31M) reports that "though the cause of the explosion has yet to be officially determined...Trump called it a 'terrible attack' based on the suspicions of U.S. generals he did not name." Speaking to reporters at the White House, Trump said, "It would seem like it based on the explosion. I've met with some of our great generals and they just feel it was. ... It was a bomb of some kind." The CBS Evening NewsVi (8/4, story 3, 1:20, O'Donnell, 4.14M) reported, "Trump said it was a bomb of some kind, without giving details," and the Washington Post (8/4, Dadouch, Loveluck, 14.2M) reports that while the President attributed his statement to "generals," US military officials "said they had yet to make a solid assessment of the explosion." NBC Nightly NewsVi (8/4, story 4, 0:15, Hoit, 6.1M) also briefly reported Trump's comments. The New York Post (8/4, Steinbuch, Fitz-Gibbon, 4.57M) reports the blast occurred "just days before a United Nations verdict is due on four alleged Hezbollah members accused of killing former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafic Hariri in 2005." Reuters (8/4, Nakhoul, Nader) reports that by Tuesday night, the death toll had risen to 78, with "nearly 4,000" injured, and "officials said they expected the death toll to rise further." Addressing the cause of the blast, Lebanese President Michel Aoun "said that 2,750 tonnes of ammonium nitrate had been stored for six years at the port without safety measures," calling it "unacceptable." Prime Minister Hassan Diab "told the nation there would be accountability for the deadly blast" at what he called a "dangerous warehouse." The Washington Examiner (8/4, Halaschak, 448K) says Diab "also appealed to the international community for assistance in dealing with the thousands of people hurt in the blast." The 8I2 (8/4, Mroue) reports Interior Minister Mohammed Fahmi "told a local TV station that it appeared the blast was caused by" the ammonium nitrate "that had been stored in a warehouse at the dock ever since it was confiscated from a cargo ship in 2014." However, "what caused the detonation was not immediately clear." NBC Nightly NewsVi (8/4, story 3, 1:55, Holt, 6.1M) reported officials say the "warehouse has for years been filled with dangerous explosive chemicals. Warnings about the dangers, they say, ignored. Beirut, so often a battleground in war, resembling a war zone tonight. This is a national disaster for Lebanon. Tomorrow, a day of national mourning, and of many questions: If this was a warehouse for dangerous chemicals, were the explosions accidental or sabotage?" O'Brien Warns Against Foreign Military Involvement In Libya. Reuters (8/4, Shalal) reports the on Tuesday "condemned all foreign military involvement in Libya, including the use of mercenaries and private military contractors, and said Libyans themselves must rebuild a unified country." In a statement, National Security Adviser O'Brien said President Trump had spoken with several world leaders about Libya in recent weeks, and it was clear there was "no winning side." He did not name the leaders. Analysts: Pandemic, Other Issues Appear To Be Making Hezbollah More Crime-Reliant. The Washington Post (8/4, Warrick, Mekhennet, 14.2M) reports, "Facing extreme financial pressures because of US sanctions, the coronavirus pandemic and Lebanon's economic collapse, Hezbollah appears to be growing increasingly reliant on criminal enterprises, including drug smuggling, to finance its operations," according to some US and Middle Eastern analysts. John Fernandez, "head of the US Drug Enforcement Administration's Counter-Narcoterrorism Operations EFTA00160712 Center, said in a recent briefing on Hezbollah" that it does not "care about sectarian differences or religious differences" when it comes to making money. Fernandez, who was speaking at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, added, "We've seen them working with Sunni criminals, Christian criminals — and even with Jewish crime syndicates." Op-Ed: Hezbollah A Key Factor In Lebanon's Economic Trouble. Foundation for Defense of Democracies Chief Executive Officer Mark Dubowitz and Jonathan Schanzer, that organization's senior vice president for research, argue in a Newsweek (8/4, 1.53M) op-ed that Lebanon has serious economic problems, partly due to "Hezbollah's political control." Because of that, according to the op-ed, "Lebanon's financial system is rife with corruption, money laundering, drug smuggling and other illicit finance." Acknowledging the difficultly in finding a long-term solution to this economic trouble, Dubowitz and Schanzer argue that the "United States, with the support of Israel, can offer a short-term bailout for Lebanon—but only on the condition that Hezbollah agrees to remove its arsenal of precision-guided missiles from the country." COUNTER-INTELLIGENCE Trump Says Durham's Findings Will Be "Breathtaking." President Trump was asked in an interview on Fox Business' Lou Dobbs Tonight (8/4, 49K) if he thinks US Attorney John Durham's investigation will result in charges before the election. Trump said, "So, we caught President Obama and Biden spying on the campaign. Biden was even saying using the Logan Act which is exactly what they used on Flynn. ... I caught them and we caught them spying, using the intelligence apparatus of our country to spy on an opponent or the opposing party's campaign both before and after the election. ... We caught them spying, now it's up to our Attorney General. ... I do hear it's breathtaking, what they've found. That's all I can say, breathtaking. And hopefully, it'll come out soon. But it's beyond what anybody ever thought even possible, how bad it is. How bad it is and how corrupt it is." Tensions Grow Over Republicans' Biden Investigation. The Hill (8/4, Carney, 2.98M) reports there are growing tensions over a Republican probe "into the Obama administration that focuses, in part," on Joe Biden's son, Hunter. Democrats, the Biden campaign, and outside groups "are increasingly going public with their concerns over the investigation, which they worry could spread Russian disinformation. They are targeting" Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI), who has been "spearheading the effort." While Johnson "has said repeatedly his investigation is not centered on the Bidens and is not being driven by the election," The Hill says "some of his requests for information have centered on Hunter Biden's travel records, contacts between Joe Biden and Ukraine and Hunter Biden's business associates." Judicial Watch Sues DHS For Hunter Biden Travel Records. The Washington TiMPc (8/4, Swoyer, 492K) reports that Judicial Watch has sued DHS "to obtain travel records for Hunter Biden while he had a Secret Service detail." The suit, filed on Friday in federal court in Washington, "calls for disclosure of the dates and locations of both domestic and international for former Vice President Joe Biden's son Hunter, who had a secret service detail for a time period. The conservative legal group has sought records dating back to 2001." Russian Bankers Seek Christopher Steele's Testimony About His Dossier Source, Igor Danchenko. The Daily Caller (8/4, 716K) reports lawyers for a group of Russian bankers "suing over the dossier want Christopher Steele to testify in a US court about his primary source, Igor Danchenko." The lawyers, who represent the owners of Alfa Bank, "say that Danchenko can provide information regarding the 'reliability' of the dossier." Danchenko "undermined several aspects of the dossier during interviews with the FBI in 2017." Lawyers for the bankers "said in the court filing that information from Steele regarding Danchenko is 'relevant to the reliability' of the dossier." It could also "show whether Fusion GPS knew that Danchenko was Steele's source, and EFTA00160713 whether information in the dossier regarding Alfa Bank was inaccurate before they shared it with journalists in 2016." Yates To Testify Before Senate Panel About Crossfire Hurricane Wednesday. The Washington Times (8/4, Mordock, 492K) reports former Deputy Attorney General will testify Wednesday before the Senate Judiciary Committee "investigation into the origins of Crossfire Hurricane, the code name for the FBI's search for collusion between the Trump campaign and the Kremlin's plans to interfere in the 2016 presidential election." The Times says Yates "will be in a tight spot...forced to square her 2017 testimony that Michael Flynn could be blackmailed by Russia with new revelations that the probe was an FBI setup targeting the Trump White House." SSCI Approves Final Russia Report. The Hill (8/4, Miller, 2.98M) reports the Senate Intelligence Committee on Tuesday "voted to adopt its fifth and final report on Russia's election interference efforts in 2016, with committee leaders vowing to keep working towards releasing a declassified version of the report to the public." The fifth report "covers counterintelligence findings, and was recently returned to the committee following a declassification review by the ODNI." Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Marco Rubio (R-FL) and Vice Chairman Mark Warner (D-VA) said in a joint statement Tuesday, "Today, the Senate Intelligence Committee voted to adopt the classified version of the final volume of the Committee's bipartisan Russia investigation. In the coming days, the Committee will work to incorporate any additional views, as well as work with the IC to formalize a properly redacted, declassified, publicly releasable version of the Volume 5 report. We want to thank the Committee's Russia investigative staff for their years of diligent, hard work on this critical matter." McCarthy Slow To Fill Opening On House Intelligence Committee Months After Ratcliffe Confirmation. Politico (8/4, Matishak, Zanona, 4.29M) reports House Republicans "aren't rushing to fill an empty seat on the high-profile House Intelligence Committee that has remained vacant for months, even as Congress grapples with potential foreign interference in the upcoming elections." House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy is "taking his time deciding who should replace former Rep. John Ratcliffe - now DNI - on the prestigious panel." McCarthy's selection will surely "create some sore feelings in the conference as dozens of House Republicans are vying for a spot on the panel." And McCarthy's choice "could signal whether he wants to reverse the partisanship that's wracked the panel in the era of Trump or continue down a more similar path." Democrats "contend that leaving the slot open this long is another symptom of the disregard Republicans have displayed for intelligence matters." Federal Program Offers New Cybersecurity Tool For Elections As Officials Warn Of Foreign Interference. The AP (8/4, Cassidy) reports state and local officials are "receiving additional tools from the federal government to help defend the nation's election systems from cyberthreats ahead of the November vote, as intelligence officials continue to warn about foreign efforts to interfere in the US election." Under a $2.2 million pilot program that began in March, DHS' cybersecurity agency "in partnership with the Center for Internet Security has been deploying software to election offices." Just a few weeks ago, Bill Evanina, director of the National Counterintelligence and Security Center, "released a statement noting foreign adversaries are seeking to compromise election infrastructure along with campaigns, candidates and other political targets." He "said the government continues to 'monitor malicious cyber actors trying to gain access to US state and federal networks, including those responsible for managing elections." ODNI Offers Recommendations To Address Lax Vetting Of Foreign Employees At US Agency For Global Media. EFTA00160714 The Washington TiMPi (8/4, Gertz, 492K) reports that, according to officials and internal documents from the US Agency for Global Media, foreign nationals from countries "such as China and Iran were granted security clearances by the US government agency in charge of broadcasting, jeopardizing national security." A senior USAGM official, speaking on background, said, "US national security is jeopardized any time there is even a single security violation. In this case, an entire agency with daily global reach was permitted to fully inculcate lax, or nonexistent, security procedures." The security lapses were "identified in an internal report last month from OPM, which found that the agency failed to take corrective action on 19 of 37 recommendations regarding personnel security shortcomings." The report described the "suggested security fixes, identified jointly by the ODNI, as 'critical recommendations' requiring 'immediate corrective action." Op-Ed: Telework Deployment For Secure Workforces Should Still Be A Priority. In a commentary in the Federal Times (8/4, 118K), Eric Jung, the CSfC program manager for Perspecta Labs, writes, "In what seemed like the blink of an eye, millions of federal employees across intelligence, defense and civilian agencies shifted to remote working environments because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Federal agencies aren't typically known for expansive telework policies, so the transition was quite dramatic, as well as intimidating for the IT teams facing this enormous challenge. NSA's Commercial Solutions for Classified program established stringent security requirements for end-user devices - laptops, tablets and smartphones - to connect to secure networks." He contends, "The CSfC security constructs are undoubtedly necessary to facilitating secure telework environments, but getting there can also be a complex process." He concludes, "Even as agencies begin bringing employees back to the office, with the threat of a second wave of coronavirus, IT leaders can't rest on achieving some telework successes." US Embassy In Moscow Says It Has No Information On Whelan's Whereabouts. The AP (8/4) reports the US Embassy in Moscow "said Tuesday it had no information on the whereabouts of" Paul Whelan, "an American convicted in June of espionage, despite reports that he is being transferred to a prison colony in central Russia." In a tweet Tuesday, Whelan's brother, David, said that he "appears to now be in Mordovia, on his way to prison camp IK-17." However, US Embassy spokeswoman Rebecca Ross tweeted, "We have not received official notification from Russian authorities of any such move, despite our repeated recent attempts to gain consular access to Paul." Abrams Tells Senators US Will Continue To Recognize Guaid6 As Venezuela's Interim President. The AP (8/4, Smith) reports that om testimony before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee Tuesday, the US's special representative to Venezuela, Elliott Abrams, "said...that the Trump Administration will continue recognizing lawmaker Juan Guaido as the nation's interim president even if President Nicolas Maduro's government ousts the opposition from control of congress - its last major stronghold." Abrams told the panel, "He will not change the legal status for many countries around the world - and especially for us. ... In our view the constitutional president of Venezuela today and after Jan. 5, 2021 is Juan Guaido." Reuters (8/4, Zengerle, Spetalnick) reports that Abrams "insisted the US 'will not recognize this fraudulent election' and said it was in discussions with the roughly 60 countries that have backed Guaido and they would stick with him." They withdrew recognition "for Maduro after his 2018 re-election, which they regarded as a sham." Abrams "said US deportations of Venezuelans have halted but court decisions have led to 'some reluctance' to grant 'temporary protected status." Some lawmakers have "called for giving them asylum." Marco Rubio Introduces The "Air America Act" To Provide Benefits To Air America Employees. EFTA00160715 Florida Daily. (8/4, Derby) reports Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) "unveiled a proposal to have Air America employees who served during the Cold War have federal benefits." Rubio introduced the 'Air America Act' "with more than a dozen cosponsors." Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA) "is the main cosponsor." Rubio said, "The brave men and women employed by Air America who conducted covert operations during the Cold War, Korean War, and Vietnam War were critical to US efforts. I'm proud to partner with Senator Warner, and our colleagues, to ensure that these Americans receive the long-overdue honor and recognition they deserve." Warner said, "I am proud to cosponsor this bill with Senator Rubio that will provide long-overdue recognition and retirement benefits to the brave men and women who flew for Air America." The US Is At Risk Of Attacks In Space. Axios (8/4, Kramer, 521K), reports other nations are "catching up to US capabilities in space, potentially putting American assets in orbit at risk." From GPS to imagery satellites and others "that can peer through clouds, space data is integral to American national security". Those same assets make "for appealing targets by bad actors, and experts are concerned weapons testing in orbit could lead to US satellites being attacked in the future." The US government has "taken notice of technological advances by commercial companies that could aid in national security." One possibility is that DOD "may host their own payloads on private spacecraft in order to distribute instruments more widely, making them harder to target." The newly established Space Force branch of the military "is tasked with helping to shore up national security interests in space, but experts aren't yet sure how it will accomplish that broad mandate." Op-Ed: US Becoming Sitting Target In Space For Russia's Anti-satellite Weapons. In an op-ed in The Hill (8/4, 2.98M), Gen. David A. Deptula (ret.), dean of the Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies, writes, "With Russia, China and other countries moving to weaponize it, space is now a warfighting domain. The US must ensure the organizations it recently stood up to deter and, if necessary, to defeat an adversary's hostile use of space - the US Space Force and USSPACECOM - have the necessary resources to fulfill their vital missions." He contends, "Unfortunately, as the space domain has grown increasingly contested, the US national security space enterprise has not kept pace. Many of the systems in use have designs dating to the Cold War, when requirements were driven by performance rather than resilience, resulting in systems that became increasingly complex, integrated and expensive." He concludes, "Action is required now. The adverse cost of waiting until Russia and China take offensive actions in space would prove utterly crippling to military and civilian interests." CRIMINAL INVESTIGATIONS FBI Meets With Activists To Discuss Breonna Taylor Probe. The Louisville (KY) Courier-Journal (8/4, Aulbach, 368K) reports, "The FBI Louisville branch is tight-lipped and guarded, but Christopher 2X and three others got a peek behind the curtain Tuesday morning as the agency continues to conduct its investigation into the police shooting of Breonna Taylor." The Courier-Journal adds, "After an hourlong meeting at the FBI Louisville Field Office, 2X told reporters that while it may take time to finish the investigation, the commitment agency officials locally and nationally have shown to the case is encouraging. 'What they reassured us today is that they're taking this as serious as they can take it as far as putting the top agents on this particular investigation,' the local anti-violence activist said. The FBI announced in May, about a week before protests erupted in Louisville and across the nation, that it would conduct its own investigation into the shooting, independent of the Louisville Metro Police Department's internal investigation." WHAS-TV Louisville, KY (8/4, 99K) reports, "A second round of conversations were held Tuesday between the FBI and a local activist group as the federal investigation into Breonna Taylor's death continues." WHAS-TV adds, "Christopher 2X and members of his Game Changers organization met with members of the FBI. He said the FBI investigation is looking into possible civil rights investigations, adding investigators are vowing a thorough investigation. 'This is not EFTA00160716 comfortable for them to investigate a law enforcement body. However, they told us unequivocally, and they told us to tell you all, that doesn't mean anything to them. This is a serious issue, and the chips are going to fall where they may as it relates to the Breonna Taylor shooting,' 2X said." Spectrum News 1 Louisville (KY) (8/4) reports, "The FBI's Louisville office, as explained to the delegation, is primarily focused on investigating any potential civil rights violations committed by Louisville Metro Police officers in acquiring and executing the now banned no-knock warrant on March 13." Christopher 2X, "a long-standing Louisville civil rights and anti-violence advocate, is representing Taylor's mother, Tamika Palmer. 2X said he has never before seen federal agents get involved in a Kentucky police shooting, and that he is confident the FBI is handling the case with sincerity and honesty after meeting for more than an hour. 'They said they don't wanna be a show horse in front of anybody about this situation,' he said to reporters in the parking lot of the FBI's Louisville headquarters. 'They wanna be the plow horse, to show the community; a plow horse to show the community that they are serious about civil rights being violated:" WLKY-TV Louisville, KY (8/4, 79K) reports, "Christopher 2x led the con