North Carolina Rep. Madison Cawthorn is seen on video calling Zelenskyy a ‘thug’ and Ukraine’s government ‘evil’
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — U.S. Rep. Madison Cawthorn called Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy a “thug,” according to video posted by Raleigh station WRAL-TV.
The comment was first reported in an opinion article by Karl Rove that was published in The Wall Street Journal on Wednesday. Rove, who was a senior adviser to former President George W. Bush, said Cawthorn made the comments Saturday at a town hall in Asheville, N.C. A video clip of the remarks was published by WRAL on Thursday morning. The News & Observer has not yet obtained a copy of the video.
“Remember that Zelenskyy is a thug. Remember the Ukrainian government is incredibly corrupt and it is incredibly evil and it has been pushing woke ideologies,” Cawthorn, a North Carolina Republican, says in the brief clip.
After the comments surfaced, Cawthorn tweeted: “Propaganda is being used to entice America into another war. I do not want Americans dying because emotions pushed us into a conflict.”
“The actions of Putin and Russia are disgusting,” he added. “But leaders, including Zelenskyy, should NOT push misinformation on America. I am praying for Ukraine and the Ukrainian people. Pray also we are not drawn into conflict based on foreign leaders pushing misinformation.”
—The Charlotte Observer
Defense lawyer pitches virtual reality as the next dimension of expert testimony
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — A Broward County, Florida, jury may be among the first in the country to experience a new dimension in expert testimony, if a former prosecutor has his way.
Ken Padowitz, the defense lawyer representing a Coconut Creek man accused of trying to kill his neighbor by running over him with a Dodge Viper, wants to put jurors in the driver’s seat through the use of the latest in technology — virtual reality goggles that promise to give them a look at the alleged crime from the perspective of the defendant.
Padowitz filed a motion last week asking Broward Circuit Judge Ernest Kollra to allow the jury that will decide his client’s case to use virtual reality goggles to immerse themselves in the testimony of an expert witness in accident reconstruction.
It hasn’t been done in Broward before. Padowitz is fairly certain it hasn’t been done anywhere in the Unites States. It wouldn’t be the first time Padowitz was on the leading edge of introducing computer animation in the courtroom.
—South Florida Sun Sentinel
Trump asks supporters to pay for new plane after emergency landing
NEW YORK — Even a blown plane engine is a fundraising opportunity for the former president.
Ex-President Donald Trump is asking his loyal army of supporters to help him buy a new plane after a private plane was forced to make an emergency landing last weekend after one of its four engines malfunctioned.
“My team is building a BRAND NEW Trump Force One,” screamed a mass email sent by Trump’s Save America PAC. “I can’t wait to unveil it for everyone to see.”
“The construction of this plane has been under wraps,” Trump teased. “Not even the fake news media knows about it — and I can’t wait to unveil it for everyone to see.
The email reminded the MAGA faithful about Trump’s glory days when he jetted to campaign events in his personal Trump-branded Boeing 757.
It included a GIF video of a plane taking off and a poll purportedly asking potential donors if they want to receive updates on construction.
—New York Daily News
Russia devises plan to seize firms abandoned in foreigner exodus
Russia’s government moved closer to seizing and even nationalizing foreign-owned companies that are leaving the market over the invasion of Ukraine while planning measures to coax others into staying.
In the first explicit response to the exodus of foreign businesses from Ikea to McDonald’s Corp., the Economy Ministry has outlined new policies to take temporary control of departing companies where foreign ownership exceeds 25%.
Under the proposals, a Moscow court would consider requests from board members and others to bring in external managers. The court could then freeze shares of foreign-owned companies as part of an effort to preserve property and employees.
External management could include state development bank VEB.RF, according to a ministry statement. Owners would have five days to resume activity or resort to other options such as selling their stake.
“The Russian government is already working on measures that include bankruptcy and nationalization of the property” of foreign companies forced into exiting, former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said in a statement posted Thursday on the VKontakte social media site.
—Bloomberg News
