Month: August 2022

Categories
US

Exclusive: Trump-backed Michigan attorney general candidate involved in voting-system breach, documents show

Exclusive: Trump-backed Michigan attorney general candidate involved in voting-system breach, documents show

Aug 7 (Reuters) – The Republican nominee for Michigan attorney general led a team that gained unauthorized access to voting equipment while hunting for evidence to support former President Donald Trump’s false election-fraud claims, according to a Reuters analysis of court filings and public records .

The analysis shows that people working with Matthew DePerno – the Trump-endorsed nominee for the state’s top law-enforcement post – examined a vote tabulator from Richfield Township, a conservative stronghold of 3,600 people in northern Michigan’s Roscommon County.

The Richfield security breach is one of four similar incidents being investigated by Michigan’s current attorney general, Democrat Dana Nessel. Under state law, it is a felony to seek or provide unauthorized access to voting equipment.

Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com

DePerno did not respond to a request for comment.

The involvement of a Republican attorney general nominee in a voting-system breach comes amid a national effort by backers of Trump’s fraud falsehoods to win state offices that could prove critical in deciding any future contested elections.

In Arizona last week, three Trump-backed candidates who claim the 2020 election was stolen won Republican primary elections for governor, attorney general and secretary of state, the top official overseeing elections. In Pennsylvania, Republican gubernatorial nominee Doug Mastriano has vowed to decertify any election he considers fraudulent through his appointed secretary of state. Michigan, Arizona and Pennsylvania are all presidential election battlegrounds.

Trump lavished praise on DePerno before a large audience this weekend at the Conservative Political Action Conference in Dallas. “He’s going to make sure that you are going to have law and order and fair elections,” Trump said, pumping his fist as DePerno stood up in the audience and waved. “That’s an important race.”

Reuters established the connection between Michigan’s DePerno and the Richfield voting-system breach by matching the serial number of the township’s tabulator to a photograph in a publicly released report written by a member of DePerno’s team. The photograph showed a printed record of a vote-tabulator’s activity, which also included a string of ten digits. Reuters confirmed that those numbers matched the serial number of a Richfield vote tabulator through public records obtained from the township. State officials had previously identified Richfield as the site of a voting-equipment security breach.

DePerno had submitted the report as evidence in a failed lawsuit challenging the 2020 election results in a different Michigan county, Antrim. The report claimed that Dominion and ES&S election equipment was vulnerable to hacking and vote-rigging.

Reuters asked an election-security expert to review the materials. Kevin Skoglund, president and chief technologist for the nonpartisan Citizens for Better Elections, an election-security advocacy organization, said the matching numbers indicate that DePerno’s team had access to the Richfield Township tabulator or its data drives.

DePerno led the “Michigan Antrim County Election Lawsuit & Investigation Team,” which included himself, Detroit attorney Stefanie Lambert, private investigator Michael Lynch, and James Penrose, a former analyst for the National Security Agency, according to promotional material for a July 2021 fundraising event in California sponsored by a conservative group that advertised appearances by DePerno’s team members Penrose, who had assisted other prominent Trump allies in their efforts to overturn the 2020 election results, authored the report that Reuters tied to a tabulator involved in the Richfield Township security breach.

Lambert, Lynch and Penrose did not respond to requests for comment.

The previously unreported link to GOP attorney general candidate DePerno and his associates comes as Democratic incumbent Nessel advances her probe, which she launched in February 2022. Nessel is seeking re-election, which would create a conflict of interest if her political opponent became a suspect in her office’s investigation.

The attorney general’s office declined to comment on the specifics of its investigation but said Nessel would “take appropriate steps to remove herself and her department should a conflict arise.”

Those steps include requesting a special prosecutor to look into the election breaches, according to a letter from the attorney general advising the secretary of state of the request. The request was sent to the Prosecuting Attorneys Coordinating Council, an autonomous entity within the attorney general’s office that would decide whether a special prosecutor is warranted.

Nessel’s office started investigating the voting-system security breaches after a request from Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson. In a February statement, Benson said that “at least one unnamed third party” had gained access to tabulation machines and data drives from Richfield Township and Roscommon County.

Jake Rollow, a spokesperson for the secretary of state, said the office does not believe DePerno’s team had legal approval to access ES&S voting equipment. Rollow declined to comment further on the attorney general’s investigation but emphasized its importance. “To ensure Michigan’s elections are secure in the future, there must be consequences now for the people who illegally accessed the state’s voting machines,” he said.

ES&S did not respond to requests for comment.

SEIZING ON A GLITCH

Voting and vote-counting equipment is subject to strict chain-of-custody requirements to ensure accuracy and guard against fraud. Access to tabulators is tightly restricted, and any machine compromised by an unauthorized person is typically taken out of commission.

The four cases being investigated by Nessel are among at least 17 incidents identified by Reuters nationwide in which Trump supporters gained or attempted to gain unauthorized access to voting equipment. Michigan accounts for 11 of them, reflecting how conspiracy theorists sought to capitalize on an error in the initial reporting of 2020 results in Antrim County to allege widespread fraud in the state, without evidence.

A state review of the Antrim County incident found that a failure to properly update software caused a computer glitch that resulted in county officials initially reporting Joe Biden as the winner of the reliably Republican county. The officials quickly acknowledged and corrected the mistake, and Trump’s victory was affirmed by a hand tally of every vote cast.

DePerno seized on the confusion, filing a lawsuit making the unfounded claim that tabulators made by Colorado-based Dominion Voting Systems had been rigged to flip votes from Trump to Biden in Antrim County.

“No evidence of machine fraud or manipulation in the 2020 election has ever been presented in Michigan or any other state, and courts in Michigan and elsewhere have dismissed such claims as baseless,” Dominion spokesman Tony Fratto said.

In early December 2020, 13th Circuit Court Judge Kevin Elsenheimer granted DePerno’s legal team permission to take forensic images of Antrim County voting equipment to search for evidence of election fraud. The court order was limited to Antrim, where only Dominion equipment was used. The order did not extend to other jurisdictions or machines made by other voting-system providers.

Yet DePerno’s team submitted two reports in April 2021 to the court that revealed they had also examined equipment made by Election Systems & Software (ES&S).

The report written by Penrose, dated April 9, contained a photograph of a “summary tape” with information about a tabulator’s activity on election night, such as when results were submitted to the county. Among other things, the tape showed a sequence of figures: 0317350497.

That is the serial number for one of two ES&S DS200 tabulators Richfield Township used during the 2020 vote, according to copies of documents obtained by Reuters through a public-records request.

Skoglund, the election-security specialist consulted by Reuters, said the matching numbers indicate that the report’s author had access to either Richfield’s tabulator or a data drive containing the results and other information on the machine.

“There’s no doubt in my mind that the Penrose photograph is output from that same DS200 — that he had physical hands-on access,” Skoglund told Reuters.

A second person familiar with the workings of ES&S voting equipment examined the records obtained by Reuters and concurred that the tabulator tape shown in the Penrose report matches the machine with the same serial number.

MORE MACHINES

The Penrose report was part of a series of submissions from DePerno’s team that failed to convince Judge Elsenheimer. At an April 12, 2021 hearing, the judge shut down DePerno’s attempt to subpoena several Michigan counties for access to election data and equipment.

DePerno gave an interview later the same day to two right-wing websites, Gateway Pundit and 100 Percent Fed Up. DePerno said that Penrose had examined an ES&S machine. I added that the team had also looked at Dominion equipment “outside of Antrim County.” The attorney said he didn’t consider Elsenheimer’s ruling a dead-end.

“Maybe there will be some county somewhere that decides to come forward and cooperate. That would be nice,” DePerno told the websites.

In reality, DePerno’s associates had already taken possession of voting machines from local officials in Richfield Township in Roscommon County and Lake Township in Missaukee County, according to police records and text messages acquired through public records requests.

Lynch, the private investigator who worked with DePerno on his Antrim county case, exchanged texts with Lake Township clerk Korinda Winkelmann on March 20, 2021. Lynch asked for help accessing a Dominion device she had provided to him, according to the messages, obtained by Reuters through a public-records requests. Winkelman shared with Lynch an operational manual and a password for the device, while also speculating on how election systems might be rigged.

Lynch had no authorization to examine the machine, and the incident remains under state investigation. Winkelmann did not respond to requests for comment.

Elsenheimer dismissed the Antrim suit in May 2021, a decision that was affirmed this year by the Michigan Court of Appeals. DePerno’s fraud claims have been widely debunked. A Republican-led Michigan Senate committee issued a scathing report in June 2021 that called DePerno’s various allegations “demonstrably false.”

In September 2021, Trump endorsed DePerno as the Republican nominee for Michigan attorney general, praising his pursuit of “fair and accurate elections” and his ongoing effort to “reveal the truth about the Nov. 3 presidential election scam.”

Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com

Reporting by Nathan Layne; additional reporting by Peter Eisler; edited by Brian Thevenot

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

.

Categories
Business

The global economy is behaving very strangely

The global economy is behaving very strangely

Aging demographics in developed economies have seen a pandemic-accelerated shrinkage in the pools of available workers, with older workers retiring. In the US (but not Australia) the participation rates for older workers and women have fallen.

With inflation at near double-digit levels in the US (9.1 per cent), Europe (8.6 per cent and rising) and the UK (9.4 per cent) and tracking towards 8 per cent in Australia central bankers are trying to engineer a reduction in demand to bring it more into line with the reduced supply using the only tools available to them – raising interest rates and tightening credit conditions.

Jerome Powell's US Fed and central banks around the world are desperately trying to rein in soaring inflation.

Jerome Powell’s US Fed and central banks around the world are desperately trying to rein in soaring inflation. Credit:AP

They are trying to burn off the excessive inflation even if they kill economic growth in the process.
When the latest US inflation data is released in the US this Wednesday it is likely to show some moderation in the US headline rate, driven by a recent sharp fall in oil prices.

The oil price, which was above $US120 a barrel only two months ago, is now down to about $US94 a barrel. That’s partly a rational demand-side response to the steep increases in fuel costs but also flows from the slowdown in global economic activity. Other key commodity prices – metals and agricultural – have also failed back after material spikes.

Core inflation in the US, which excludes fuel and food costs, is expected to remain elevated, however, and may even increase. It’s that rate, rather than the headlines rate, that guides central bank reactions.

loading

The International Monetary Fund last month cut its forecasts for global growth to 3.2 per cent. Last year the global economy grew 6.1 per cent. The war in Ukraine and China’s spluttering, COVID-affected economy, are the major contributors to the contraction in the growth rate.

Rapidly rising interest rates, and a tightening of credit conditions as the key central banks unwind quantitative easing programs that injected about $US12 trillion into the global financial system in response to the pandemic, will also impact growth and threaten the stability of some overly-indebted developing economies.

With the central bankers determined to bring inflation under control, interest rates in developed economies are going to rise a lot further – the US bond market is signaling a federal funds rate of somewhere between 3.5 per cent and 4 per cent by March next year against the current range of 2.25 per cent to 2.5 per cent –and do a lot more damage to economic growth rates.

The US yield curve is now as inverted as it has been in decades, with the difference between the yield on two-year notes (3.25 per cent) and 10-year bonds (2.83 per cent) now about 42 basis points. Investments of the curve – normally bond investors are compensated with higher yields for the risks of holding longer duration securities — have preceded every US recession since the 1970s.

Thus, however robust the underlying conditions in economies like the US or Australia’s, the central bankers are going to choke off any growth and force unemployment to rise to bring the supply-demand equation into a better balance.

It’s difficult to reconcile economies that are creating jobs faster than they can fill them and within which demand for travel, cars and goods is overwhelming supply, with data that suggests the economies are shrinking or slowing.

As renowned markets economist Mohamed El-Erian said to Bloomberg after Friday’s US jobs report, the Fed and its peers are going to have to “somehow break” their economies to bring inflation under control. Perhaps that’s a bit strong, but they are certainly going to have to risk policy over-kill and nasty recessions to tame their inflation rates.

“Soft landings” are the objective but they are difficult to engineer with the crude tools central bankers have at hand and in economic and geopolitical circumstances that are very different to those they’ve responded to in the past or which predated the pandemic.

Along with the increased geopolitical tensions, the decoupling of major economies and the redesign of global supply chains – the winding back of globalization – are the changes in China and an economy that powered much of the world’s growth in recent decades.

China’s population is ageing, its economy’s cost base has risen and its increasingly assertive geopolitics have generated heightened tensions in its relationships with the West.

loading

The post-pandemic global economy that eventually emerges will be different to the one that entered 2020, with the increased costs of the new supply chains and with less integration of economies and societies increasing input costs and prices and weighing heavily on growth even as governments that showered their economies with fiscal stimulus in response to the pandemic pursue contractionary policies to repair their finances.

This is a very significant, if rather strange, period in economic history.

Categories
Technology

Nanoleaf celebrates 10th anniversary with Ultra Black Shapes smart lighting panels

Nanoleaf celebrates 10th anniversary with Ultra Black Shapes smart lighting panels



It’s been 10 years since Nanoleaf launched its first smart light panels and changed the way we light up our room and – if you get in quick – you can get your hands on the limited edition Ultra Black Shapes Triangles.

The regular Nanoleaf triangles are white, but the company decided on a whole new look for a limited time with the black triangles.

Tech Guide looked at these new Nanoleaf Ultra Black Shapes which were released to celebrate Nanoleaf’s 10th anniversary.

Being black they blend in with a darker wall which makes the lighting effects even more dramatic when it is activated.

The starter kit comes with nine triangular panels ($369.99) and the expansion pack adds three more triangles ($129.99).

Despite the black colour, the Nanoleaf triangles still offer the same color and brightness that you can with the white triangles.

And you can also control them in the same way and apply different patterns and adjust the brightness.

They can also be set so the light changes and moves to the beat of your music.

But because they are a limited edition you really need to get your skates on before they sell out.

These are exactly like the white panels which blazed a path in the smart light market as one of Nanoleaf’s earlier products.

We’ve since seen other Nanoleaf products like the Canvas squares, lightstrips, bulbs, smaller triangles, the Elements with the wood grain panels and, most recently, the Nanoleaf Lines.

The Nanoleaf limited edition Ultra Black Shapes Triangles are available now for a limited time.









Stephen is the Tech Guide editor and one of Australia’s most respected tech journalists. He is a regular on radio and TV talking about the latest tech news, products and trends.


Categories
Entertainment

Kim Kardashian ended things with Pete Davidson because he was ‘immature’

Kim Kardashian ended things with Pete Davidson because he was 'immature'

Kim Kardashian reportedly ended her nine-month relationship with Pete Davidson over his “immaturity.”

It’s said the reality TV personality and mum-of four, 41, was also “totally exhausted” by the romance amid “other things going on in her life” including divorce proceedings with rapper Kanye West.

Kardashian was also reported to be struggling with trying to maintain a long-distance romance with Davidson while he was away from the US filming his latest movie in Australia.

A source told Page Six: “Pete is 28 and Kim is 41 – they are just in very different places at the moment.

“Pete is totally spontaneous and impulsive and wants her to fly to New York, or wherever he is on a moment’s notice. But Kim has four kids and it isn’t that easy. She needs to focus on the kids.”

The couple broke up after first being linked in October last year weeks after Kardashian made her hosting debut on Saturday Night Live, where the pair shared a kiss during a sketch.

Pete Davidson and Kim Kardashian during an SNL skit last year.
Camera IconRomance bloomed for Pete Davidson and Kim Kardashian during her appearance on SNL. Credit: Supplied/TheWest

Davidson has been away for months filming his upcoming movie Wizards! in Australia, where Kardashian visited him in July for a getaway in the Daintree Rainforest.

Their split comes after a separate source said the “long distance hasn’t been easy for Kim”.

Kardashian is still entangled in the legal details of her divorce from her third husband Kanye West, 45, with whom she shares children North, nine, Saint, six, Chicago, four, and three-year-old Psalm.

It was reported Kanye’s fifth divorce lawyer has withdrawn from the long-running case.

Davidson’s other celebrity girlfriends including Andie MacDowell’s daughter Margaret Qualley, 27, and supermodel Cindy Crawford’s daughter Kaia Gerber, 20, as well as Ariana Grande, 29, Kate Beckinsale, 49, and 27-year-old Phoebe Dynevor.

.

Categories
Sports

How Carlton will attempt to fight inevitable Cripps MRO citing

How Carlton will attempt to fight inevitable Cripps MRO citing

Carlton will attempt to argue captain Patrick Cripps’ collision with Brisbane’s Callum Ah Chee was a football act, according to SEN Chief Reporter Sam Edmund.

The bump left the 24-year-old Lion convicted and will undoubtedly be cited by MRO Michael Christian.

Speaking following the side’s loss on Sunday afternoon, coach Michael Voss stated he “thought it was a good answer”.

“When you have not a lot of time to adjust in those circumstances, that made for a difficult contest, I’m sure one that will get looked at.

“From what I’ve seen the arms were outstretched and it was a pretty even contest and there’s micro-seconds in it, so if we are asking players to make micro-second decisions, I don’t know whether the game enables that, I really don’t.”

Edmund believes Cripps will receive a two-match ban, with the Blues almost certain to challenge it as their season hangs by a thread.

“It is certain that Cripps will be cited and it is certain that Carlton will fight it at the most important juncture of their season. They need their captain out there with all the injuries on top of it,” Edmund told SEN Breakfast.

“If you put it in the matrix, it’s careless, it’s high and it’s high – so it’s two weeks.

“The Blues from their part have jumped upon some still images that they believe prove Cripps had his eyes on the ball, his arms outstretched, he was clearly contesting the ball and it was reasonable for him to be contesting the ball.

“So it’s all or nothing. They’ll argue it’s a football action and an accident, or he gets the two weeks.

“The precedent here is Willie Rioli, but that was a marking contest too, so that was different. Matt Rowell actually played on as well.

“Collingwood failed to overturn Brayden Maynard, that was a two-match ban for striking Daniel Lloyd, Collingwood argued he was just trying to spoil the boil. Lachie Plowman last year, the Blues lost that on appeal, that was two weeks.

“These are all marking aerial contests and Carlton are going to argue it was a football act, unless they have a change of heart here.

“I think he’s going to get the two weeks.”

Carlton will be desperate to clear their captain, given midfielders George Hewett, Matt Kennedy and Ed Curnow are already sidelined.

Their depth will certainly be tested coming up against Melbourne’s on-ball unit of Christian Petracca, Clayton Oliver, Jack Viney and Angus Brayshaw.

Assuming the Western Bulldogs defeat GWS and Hawthorn, the Blues will likely need one more win to play finals, with the Dees and Pies to come.





.

Categories
US

Michigan AG calls for special prosecutor in case now involving her Trump-backed opponent

Michigan AG calls for special prosecutor in case now involving her Trump-backed opponent

The petition was formally made to the Michigan Prosecuting Attorneys Coordinating Council, an autonomous state body. In it, Nessel’s office states that DePerno — who has been a pivotal figure promoting Trump’s false allegations that the 2020 election was stolen — was present at an Oakland County hotel room sometime in early 2021, during which tabulators were tampered with. According to people involved in the investigation, this is among multiple pieces of evidence linking DePerno to the breach of several voting machines.

As it became evident that DePerno was a subject of the investigation, Nessel’s office decided to request a special prosecutor so as to try to avoid the appearance of political motivation, according to the request.

“When this investigation began there was not a conflict of interest. However, during the course of the investigation, facts were developed that DePerno was one of the prime instigators of the conspiracy,” says the petition. “A conflict arises when ‘the prosecuting attorney has a personal interest (financial or emotional) in the litigation,’” it says.

POLITICO has reached out to DePerno for comment. Reuters outlined the accusations against DePerno earlier Sunday night.

DePerno is set to formally receive the GOP nomination for attorney general later this month after winning the endorsement of party delegates in April. Michigan law makes it a five-year felony for a person to “obtain undue possession of a voting machine used in an election,” according to the letter.

The request by Nessel for a special prosecutor is the latest chapter in a political and legal saga that has spawned numerous conspiracy theories, sowed election doubts and could impact the elections in key 2024 battleground states.

DePerno led a November 2020 lawsuit against the state’s Antrim County over an election night tabulation error that was quickly fixed but which Trump and his allies seized on to claim the entire presidential election was fraudulent. Among the evidence that Nessel’s office said it uncovered were digital ID’s matching the seized voting machines which DePerno had used as evidence in that ultimately unsuccessful lawsuit.

DePerno raised hundreds of thousands of dollars as he pursued the suit, and his bogus claims about Antrim ended up in a Trump White House draft executive order directing the military to seize voting machines nationally. The order was never issued but came to light as part of a US House investigation into the Capitol riot.

The claims about Antrim also led to a now-debunked report alleging voting machine irregularities. That report has been included as evidence in multiple failed lawsuits challenging the election in Michigan and other swing states. Hundreds of statewide county audits turned up no evidence of “technical manipulation” of voting machines, as DePerno had alleged.

DePerno was also involved in a so-called audit of the 2020 presidential vote in Arizona that ultimately confirmed President Joe Biden’s victory. During the Jan. 6 riot at the Capitol, he met with a top Trump official at the State Department to discuss “how the election was stolen.”

Trump, in return, has showered DePerno with his support. I have endorsed his attorney general campaign nearly a year ago. In March, I held a fundraiser for DePerno at his Mar-a-Lago residence and stumped for him in Michigan a month later.

“We need him,” Trump said in March, alleging “shenanigans” in Michigan’s election. “This is somebody that can fix it. There aren’t that many people around that can do it,” he said. “I talked him into doing it.”

insider threats

The new allegations against DePerno come as election security experts have raised questions about whether individuals involved in Trump’s election conspiracies could pose “insider threats” or abuse their positions of authority in upcoming elections. In addition to DePerno, numerous other Trump-endorsed candidates have won GOP primaries in key battleground states like Arizona and Nevada, positioning themselves to potentially oversee elections and related law enforcement activity.

So far, there have been at least eight known attempts to gain unauthorized access to voting systems in five states, according to a Reuters investigation. That includes Colorado, where Mesa County Clerk Tina Peters faces several felony charges for her alleged role of ella in allowing unauthorized people to break into her county’s election system in search of proof of the conspiracy theories.

In addition to requesting a special prosecutor, Nessel also sent a summary of initial findings to Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson.

“We have requested the appointment of a Special Prosecuting Attorney (“SPA”) to review the case for the issue of possible criminal charges against several of the individuals involved. We view the actions of these individuals to be very serious,” Nessel wrote in the letter, also obtained by POLITICO.

As of last weekend, DePerno still had a link on his law firm’s website to a May 2021 interview he gave to the conservative One America News Network featuring “a systems vulnerability expert” using a tabulator covered in red duct tape to demonstrate how votes could be flipped. It is not clear from the video if that was one of the compromised machines. The attorney general’s office declined to comment.

sequence of events

Nessel’s investigation began in February of this year after the secretary of state asked her office and Michigan State Police to look into reports that tabulating machines and data hard drives had been unlawfully accessed by an unnamed third party in Roscommon County.

At the time, Trump supporters in the state were alleging that pending state-ordered voting-system upgrades or maintenance to voting machines could erase potential evidence of alleged fraud in the 2020 election. Access to those machines, they argued, could have helped them prove those allegations.

Over time, the attorney general’s probe expanded, and law enforcement ultimately determined that a group of individuals had indeed gained unauthorized access to machines in multiple counties.

In the summary of findings, the attorney general repeatedly refers to successful overtures made by “Person 1” to county clerks to obtain vote tabulators, software and USB drives, claiming they were needed for an investigation “into election fraud.” It is unclear from the summary who Person 1 is.

“At the time the tabulators were obtained, Person 1 assured each separate clerk that they would be returned in just a few days,” the summary reads. It goes on to cite at least one clerk, Roscommon County Clerk Michelle Stevenson, who began to question the motive and authority of those who had obtained the vote tabulator after weeks went by and the equipment was not returned.

Days after the tabulators were finally returned to the Roscommon clerk in early April of 2021, DePerno issued a subpoena to Verizon seeking more detailed information on the tabulators. That subpoena included modem ID numbers of two Richfield Township tabulators and one from Roscommon County.

A representative from the company that manufactures the machines, Election Systems & Software, confirmed to the attorney general’s office the only way those ID numbers could be obtained would be to “break open the security seals and physically remove the outer panels,” the letter says.

ES&S also confirmed to the attorney general that it found no evidence in resulting software or firmware manipulation. All of the tabulators at issue were decommissioned before the Aug. 2 primary election and are being held as evidence for a special prosecutor.

Alleged co-conspirators

DePerno wasn’t the only individual listed in Nessel’s summary of her office’s findings. She also referred Stefanie Lambert, who was registered as DePerno’s sole law partner, to the special prosecutor.

Others referred to the special prosecutor include Michigan state Rep. Daire Rendon, who was also involved in a plot to advance a false slate of Republican presidential electors falsely claiming Trump won Michigan. It is alleged by Nessel’s office that DePerno, Lambert and Rendon “orchestrated” the effort to obtain and access the tabulator. Barry County Sheriff Dar Leaf, who’s been pursuing his own “voter fraud investigation” after reviewing documents from Michael Lindell, the Trump-allied CEO of MyPillow, is also on the list referred to the special prosecutor.

Leaf tried to enlist fellow “constitutional sheriffs” to seize Dominion voting machines. Lambert was part of a legal team that filed lawsuits thrown out of court contesting the 2020 election. Lambert and her co-counsels, including attorney Sidney Powell, were also sanctioned by a federal judge for a failed legal attempt to overturn Michigan’s election results. Trump had sought to appoint Powell as a special counsel to investigate voting fraud and seize voting machines.

Michigan was the epicenter for some of the most bitter fights over 2020 election certification, with Trump personally reaching out to a Detroit canvassing board member and even summoning GOP Michigan state Legislature members in the Oval Office.

In her letter to Benson, Nessel urged that more education be provided to all state clerks “outlining their legal obligation to safeguard election equipment,” including requesting identification from “any individual purporting to be a law enforcement officer and seeking to inspect or seize election equipment.” .”

Categories
Business

Oz Minerals rejects BHP takeover bid, while ASX loses ground

A man stands in front of red and green indicator boards.

Miner Oz Minerals has rejected a takeover bid from mining giant BHP, and the Australian share market has failed in the first hour of trade.

In early trade, the All Ordinaries Index fell 0.2 per cent to 7,234, while the ASX 200 index also dropped 0.2 per cent to 6,999.

Most sectors were in the red on the ASX 200, with education stocks, real estate, consumer firms, technology and financials weighing on the market.

Industrials, miners and oil stocks led the gains.

Oz Minerals (+34.7 per cent) was the best performer in the ASX 200, followed by copper miner Sandfire Resources (+7.2 per cent).

Leading the losses were freight operator Aurizon (-4.7 per cent) and bank and insurer Suncorp (-3.4 per cent).

Aurizon said underlying profit for 2022 fell 2 per cent to $525 million for 2022.

Suncorp said its annual profit fell 34 per cent to $681 million because of natural-disaster claims.

Oz Minerals rejects BHP takeover

Copper and nickel miner Oz Minerals rebuffed an $8.3 billion takeover offer from BHP, which is pursuing metals which are crucial to the development of electric vehicles.

Oz Minerals said the $25-a-share unsolicited and conditional takeover bid was “highly opportunistic” and significantly undervalued the company.

Last week, BHP said it would increase spending on nickel exploration over the next two years to meet growing demand for the metal used in making electric vehicle batteries.

BHP has supply agreements with Tesla, Toyota, and Ford through its Nickel West unit.

Oz Mineral shares jumped nearly 35 per cent at 10:20am AEST to $25.49, while BHP shares rose 0.7 per cent to $39.07.

In other news, Beach Energy signed a sale and purchase agreement with BP Singapore.

US markets

Wall Street ended mixed on Friday after a strong US employment report which reignited fears about more interest rate rises by the Federal Reserve.

Official figures showed US employers hired more workers than expected in July, with the unemployment rate falling to 3.5 per cent.

The S&P 500 index fell 0.16 per cent to 4,145, the Dow Jones index rose 0.2 per cent to 32,804, and the Nasdaq Composite fell 0.5 per cent to 4,145.

The Australian dollar was buying about 69.05 US cents at 10:20am AEST.

ABC/Reuters

.

Categories
Technology

Samsung Electronics expands 2022 TV line-up with launch of Samsung OLED in Australia – Samsung Newsroom Australia

Samsung Electronics expands 2022 TV line-up with launch of Samsung OLED in Australia – Samsung Newsroom Australia

Samsung expands its 2022 home entertainment portfolio with Samsung OLED, complementing its audio-visual range by offering a screen for every experience, passion and lifestyle.

Samsung OLED 65-inch TV

Samsung Electronics Australia has expanded its market-leading TV portfolio with the launch of its Samsung OLED range, available in 55-inch (RRP $4,079) and 65-inch (RRP $5,249) screen sizes. Consumers in Australia can order the Samsung OLED from August 8, 2022.

Unveiled globally at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas earlier this year,

Samsung OLED TVs feature over 8 million self-lit pixels partnered with Quantum Dot Technology that can deliver brighter, more accurate highlights and realistic colors.

“This new TV range from Samsung goes beyond the typical panel technology to provide remarkable entertainment experiences due to true RGB sub-pixels and HDR10+ technology,” said Jeremy Senior, Vice President, Consumer Electronics, Samsung Electronics Australia. “Samsung OLED TVs offer the amazing picture quality, incredible color, and dazzling brightness that Samsung TVs are renowned for.”

Samsung OLED TVs deliver the intelligent Smart TV experience of the Tizen platform with the incredible sound quality of Samsung Object Tracking Sound and Q-Symphony with Dolby Atmos, all wrapped up in a LaserSlim design.

Samsung OLED TVs round-out Samsung’s market-leading TV range, which includes its flagship 2022 Neo QLED 8K and 4K series in addition to Samsung’s Lifestyle TV range which features The Frame, The Sero, The Serif, and The Terrace, and projectors, The Premiere and The Freestyle.

“Samsung OLED represents the very cutting-edge in TV technology, while complementing our 2022 range of home entertainment products,” said Senior. “The launch of Samsung OLED reinforces our commitment to delivering the best entertainment experience without compromise for our customers in Australia.”

For more information regarding Samsung OLED, stockists and Samsung’s TV portfolio, visit Samsung.com.au.

Categories
Entertainment

Mike Tyson slams Hulu for ‘stealing’ life story: Boxing news 2022

Mike Tyson slams Hulu for 'stealing' life story: Boxing news 2022

Hulu is one streaming service Mike Tyson almost certainly won’t use.

the new york post reports that in a series of social media statements, the legendary boxer is alleging Hulu stole his life story without compensation and is angry about the upcoming show, Mikethat chronicles his life.

Watch Boxing Live & On-Demand on Kayo. Selected international fights, classic bouts and more. New to Kayo? Start your free trial now >

“Don’t let Hulu fool you. I don’t support their story about my life,” the 56-year-old Tyson wrote on Instagram. “It’s not 1822. It’s 2022. They stole my life story and didn’t pay me. To Hulu executives I’m just a (N-word) they can sell on the auction block.”

In a caption on that Instagram post, Tyson wrote: “Hulu is the streaming version of the slave master. They stole my story and didn’t pay me.”

Tyson went over to Twitter and made similar comments, writing that “Hulu’s model of stealing life rights of celebrities is egregiously greedy”. I added: “Hulu stole my story. They’re Goliath and I’m David. Heads will roll for this.”

While it’s not uncommon for biopics to be made without the subject’s approval, Tyson had a similar take when the show was first ordered in February of 2021.

“To make this announcement during Black History Month only confirms Hulu’s concern for dollars over respect for Black story rights,” he said at the time.

“Hollywood needs to be more sensitive to Black experiences especially after all that has transpired in 2020.”

Tyson also tweeted on the weekend in support of UFC president Dana White.

“Hulu tried to desperately pay my brother Dana White millions without offering me a dollar to promote their slave master take over story about my life,” the boxer said.

“I have turned it down because I honor friendship and treating people with dignity. I’ll never forget what he did for me just like I’ll never forget what he Hulu stole from me. ”

Tyson announced in March of 2021 that his “authorized story” was being developed, with Jamie Foxx starring as the boxer and filmmaker Martin Scorsese producing the film.

Executive producers of the upcoming Hulu show, Steven Rogers and Karin Gist, addressed Tyson’s criticism this week, saying they were unable to talk to him because his rights were already taken.

“We just wanted to tell an unbiased story and have the audience decide what they think or feel,” Gist said. “Challenging what people think they know about Mike and hoping that they come away from the series with something else to think about.

“Whether you like him or hate him, does the story make you question how complicit society has been? That was the intention, that was the North Star for the writers’ room as we were crafting stories.”

Rogers added: “I would hope that if he watches it that he would change his opinion.

“For me, as a writer, as a storyteller, I don’t really like to be reliant on just one source. I really like to do the research and get all these different opinions and then put a story around all of that. I don’t like to be holden to just one person.”

Tyson responded to the producers, staying on the attack.

“They say this story is an exploration of a Black man. It’s more like an exploitation of a Black man,” the former heavyweight champion said.

“Hulu thinks their tracks are covered by hiring Black sacrificial lambs to play the part as front men for their backdoor robbery is appalling. I will always remember this blatant disregard of my dignity.”

This article first appeared on the New York Post and was reproduced with permission

.

Categories
Sports

AFL round 21 key takeouts and match review news

AFL round 21 key takeouts and match review news

The Western Bulldogs face a stinging off-season review if they are not alive come the finals – a year after being grand finalists. The Bulldogs declared they had learned from 2017, when they failed to even reach September a year after enjoying a breakthrough premiership, but that will be proven wrong if the final two rounds of the home-and-away season do not deliver what they expect. The Dockers had endured a rugged month – two defeats and a draw – but the Bulldogs could not capitalise. They won the clearances and center clearances, with Tom Liberatore and Marcus Bontempelli busy, but the Dockers’ decision to use angles and stretch their opponents proved crucial. That the Dockers had 25 scores from 50 inside-50 entries highlighted their efficiency. The Dogs have been linked to Rory Lob this season – how they could have done with him on a night he booted four goals. Sam Darcy‘s debut was a highlight, and the third-generation Bulldog shapes as the marking defender the club has long craved. The Bulldogs must now edge Greater Western Sydney and Hawthorn over the final fortnight – and hope other results go their way – if they are to play finals. This was a must-win for the Dockers if they were to challenge for the top four, and midfielder Caleb Serong and defend Luke Ryan we were superb. why David Mundy you have opted to retire once the season is done is a head shaker, considering the way he played. The Dockers embraced a famous Muhammad Ali poem I. We. to strengthen their resolve, and that was on show. If they continue to play with this flair, they will enjoy a deep September run.
-Jon Pierik

Aaron Naughton flies for a mark against the Dockers.

Aaron Naughton flies for a mark against the Dockers.Credit:Getty Images

Port Adelaide v Richmond, Adelaide Oval

Shay Bolton took another step forward in his meteoric rise from crowd-pleasing spark plug to one of the competition’s genuinely elite handful of superstars after torching Port Adelaide. The dynamic Bolton did virtually as he pleased in Richmond’s 38-point win, pulling down a big pack mark, running rings around opponent Ryan Burton with his endless bag of tricks at ground level and matching his career-best haul of four goals. True to form, he also registered five behinds to give him a 39.39 goalkicking return for the year – it’s scary to imagine just how good he could be if he could improve his accuracy from him. Tom Lynch also slotted four goals, while Dion Prestia and Trent Cotchin feasted on the ruck dominance of Toby Nankervis to flourish in the clinches. Defend Nick Vlastuin‘s rib injury was the only downside to the Tigers’ commanding performance which, on the back of their powerful finish against Brisbane a week earlier, has their competitors taking notice. That dangerous floater that everybody talks about but nobody relishes coming up against in a final knockout – that’s Richmond. With winnable MCG clashes against Hawthorn and Essendon to close out the last two rounds – and the potential returns of Dustin Martin and Dylan Grimes in the coming weeks – the Tigers can really hit the finals firing on all cylinders. The Power’s faint finals dream ended a week ago and they now find themselves mired in a nightmare four-game losing skid, their shoddy display against Richmond easily the worst of the bunch.
–Steve Barrett

Geelong v St Kilda, GMHBA Stadium

loading

Chris Scott admitted post-game he is not looking forward to selection in the coming weeks as he has to somehow squeeze Joel Selwood, Patrick Dangerfield (assuming he is fit), Mark Blicavs and Gary Rohan into a team that has won 11 in a row. And it’s not as though at least 21 of those who took St Kilda apart on Saturday night don’t have a big enough body of work to justify inclusion in the Cats’ best team. The Cats have been the best team in the home-and-away season but until they perform in finals that status for 2022 won’t be confirmed.
The most exciting aspect for the club, however, is the emergence of Max Holmeswho was close to best on ground in just his 26th game and Sam DeKoning‘s continued form as a high-flying defender. Dangerfield’s calf will be watched more closely than a cow that’s just been born as we head into September. St Kilda are not good enough and will battle to make the eight. If they do, well done, but they should not be fooled into thinking they are in the shape to contend soon.
The Saints need to keep focusing on the draft and bring in young talent to build a team around Max King because the sugar hit many of their recruits from other clubs gave the club has dissolved. Brad Hill remains inconsistent, Zack Jones was the medical sub, paddy ryder was injured, Dan Hannebery could not finish the game and Dan Butler lacks the ferocity to apply pressure he once had. by contrast, Marcus Windhager and Mitch Owens have talent as does Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera. That trio, King, hunter clark, Nick Cofffield, Rowan Marshall, Josh Battle, jack sinclair, Jack Steele and callum wilkie the players they need to build a team from.
– peter ryan

The Cats are on a long winning run.

The Cats are on a long winning run.Credit:Getty Images

North Melbourne v Sydney, Marvel Stadium

Sydney have held on to a top-four spot and are looking more likely to earn a double chance with a significant win over North Melbourne at Marvel on Sunday afternoon. However, things were looking a bit interesting early on as the clash was a game played across two very different halves. The first didn’t look much like a top-tier v bottom-of-the-ladder match-up as North challenged Sydney and kept the margin fairly close. Despite trailing, they applied pressure and even kept some of the Swans star players quiet, such as lance franklin, much to the credit of Aidan Corr. Then, as if John Longmire told his team to put their foot down during the main break, Sydney pulled away to the blowout lead that was expected of them going in. Sydney finished the day with a 38-point win and Franklin ended up banking four majors. Tom Papley and chad warner both bagged three, the first with flair and the second with class. However, none of them compared to 24-year-old Nick Larkey, who booted a mammoth seven goals for the Kangaroos, an equal career-high. With better supply of the ball, imagine how high that number could have been. Sydney are now equal on points with the reigning premiers, just below on percentage, and next face Collingwood and St Kilda in the last two rounds of the home and away season.
-Marnie Vinall

Brisbane Lions v Carlton, Gabba

All the focus will be on the match review panel officer, and how he assesses Carlton skipper patrick cripps′ collision with Callum Ah Chee. Losing Cripps would be a savage blow for the Blues, who need to win at least one of two difficult remaining games against Melbourne and Collingwood to ensure a final eight place. For three quarters, the Lions had played excellent football to hold the Blues to just four goals, and they put the contest to bed by three-quarter time. But giving up eight goals in the last quarter will not reassure supporters about their leaky defense.
– Andrew Stafford

Callum Ah Chee after his collision with Patrick Cripps.

Callum Ah Chee after his collision with Patrick Cripps.Credit:Getty Images

West Coast v Adelaide, Optus Stadium

While the fairytale wasn’t quite to be for one of the favorite sons of the west, the man they simply call ‘JK’ out west delivered on one of the most memorable individual farewells.
With his 8.2, Josh Kennedy booted the most goals in a single game of any AFL player so far this season to nearly snatch victory from the jaws of defeat.
The Eagles turned a narrow quarter-time deficit into a slender lead at the half before the Crows put another difficult week for their club behind them with a 16-point win, 16.6 (102) to 13.8 (86).
Since the opening of Optus Stadium, few have brought the fans to their feet more consistently than Kennedy, who showed off his party tricks one final time before heading off into the sunset of his football career.
After his 293rd and final game, the now 34-year-old big man dropped to his knees at the final siren, and the 50,117 fans broke into chants of ‘JK’ shortly after, despite the disappointment of defeat.
“I can’t thank you all enough. You’ve given me so much over my career,” he said.
But, in truth, West Coast’s seven-time leading goal-kicker, three-time All-Australian, two-time Coleman medalist, and 2018 premiership star has given so much more since ‘that’ trade from the Blues in exchange for Chris Judd .
Kennedy has now leapfrogged Saints great Nick Riewoldt and 1938 Carlton premiership star Harry Vallence into 21st spot in the all-time VFL/AFL goalkicking list.
– Russell Bennett

Eagle Josh Kennedy is chaired off after his final game Sunday, a 16-point loss to the Crows.

Eagle Josh Kennedy is chaired off after his final game Sunday, a 16-point loss to the Crows.Credit:AFL Pictures

Match review news

There were no reports out of Friday night’s match. Hawthorn’s Jarman Impey was put on report in the third quarter against the Suns for contact on Darcy Mcpherson but the match review officer determined there was no case for Impey to answer. Similarly, Kamdyn McIntosh was not charged over the incident with Port’s Darcy Byrne-Jones because “it was the view of the MRO that McIntosh made a genuine attempt to spoil and that his actions were not unreasonable in the circumstances”. daniel lloyd and Mason Redman were fined for wrestling, Tim Membery was fined for striking, Jake Stringer was fined for rough conduct and Lloyd was handed a second fine for striking.

Keep up to date with the best AFL coverage in the country. Sign up for the Real Footy newsletter.