Tag: Attorney General

State Attorney Generals Launch Investigation into Instagram’s Effects on Kids

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Young person on Instagram

A bipartisan coalition of state attorneys general launched a probe into Instagram on Thursday to examine whether the company violated state-level consumer protection laws.

The states are investigating whether Meta (formerly known as Facebook), which owns Instagram, promoted the image-sharing platform “to children and young adults” despite being aware of its negative effects, according to statements from the attorneys general. The probe cites internal Facebook communications and research leaked by former Facebook employee Frances Haugen and published by The Wall Street Journal showing Meta was aware that use of Instagram could contribute to body image and mental health issues among teens.

“When social media platforms treat our children as mere commodities to manipulate for longer screen time engagement and data extraction, it becomes imperative for state attorneys general to engage our investigative authority under our consumer protection laws,” Republican Nebraska Attorney General Doug Peterson said in a statement.

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TIME’S UP CEO Resigns over Ties to Cuomo Investigation

Minnesota Sun Staff
Tina Tchen

The second TIME’S UP co-founder has resigned from her position following backlash over reports that she worked against Democratic New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s accusers.

“Now is the time for Time’s Up to evolve and move forward as there is so much more work to do for women,” TIME’S UP co-founder Tina Tchen said in a statement, according to The Washington Post. “It is clear that I am not the leader who can accomplish that in this moment.”

“I am especially aware that my position at the helm of Time’s Up has become a painful and divisive focal point, where those very women and other activists who should be working together to fight for change are instead battling each other in harmful ways,” she added.

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Former State Attorney General Adam Laxalt Launches Senate Bid in Nevada

Minnesota Sun Staff
Adam Laxalt

Former Nevada Attorney General Adam Laxalt launched a long-expected Senate bid Tuesday, becoming the highest-profile Republican to take on Democratic Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto.

“The radical left, rich elites, woke corporations, academia and the media, they’re taking over America,” Laxalt said in an announcement video likening them to Star Wars’ Galactic Empire.

Laxalt served as attorney general from 2015-2019. In 2018 he lost his bid for governor to Democratic Gov. Steve Sisolak.

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Commentary: Letters from a D.C. Jail

Minnesota Sun Staff

This week, five Republican senators sent a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland regarding his office’s handling of January 6 protesters. The letter revealed the senators are aware that several Capitol defendants charged with mostly nonviolent crimes are being held in solitary confinement conditions in a D.C. jail used exclusively to house Capitol detainees.

Joe Biden’s Justice Department routinely requests—and partisan Beltway federal judges routinely approve—pre-trial detention for Americans arrested for their involvement in the January 6 protest. This includes everyone from an 18-year-old high school senior from Georgia to a 70-year-old Virginia farmer with no criminal record.

It is important to emphasize that the accused have languished for months in prison before their trials even have begun. Judges are keeping defendants behind bars largely based on clips selectively produced by the government from a trove of video footage under protective seal and unavailable to defense lawyers and the public—and for the thoughtcrime of doubting the legitimacy of the 2020 presidential election.

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Second Republican Enters Race to Challenge Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison

Minnesota Sun Staff
Dennis Smith

Dennis Smith, an attorney and former Republican state legislator, announced his campaign for attorney general last week.

“I’m running for Attorney General to build a future Minnesotans deserve,” Smith said in a press release. “For too long, the office of Attorney General has been used for politics, and that must end!”

The position is currently occupied by Democrat Keith Ellison, whose office led the successful prosecution of former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin.

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Vanita Gupta, Former Obama DOJ Official and Civil Rights Lawyer, Narrowly Confirmed as Associate Attorney General

Minnesota Sun Staff
Vanita Gupta

The Senate confirmed civil rights lawyer Vanita Gupta to be the Associate Attorney General Wednesday.

Gupta, who will be the third-ranking official at the Department of Justice, was confirmed 51-49, with Alaska Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski joining all 50 Democrats voting in favor.

“I have looked at her record, I have had an extensive sit down with her,” Murkowski said before the vote. “I am impressed with her credentials … and the passion that she carries with her with the work that she performs.”

Murkowski acknowledged Gupta’s confirmation was contentious, but said her passion was “impactful.”

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Biden to Pick Merrick Garland for Attorney General

Minnesota Sun Staff

Joe Biden will nominate federal appeals court judge Merrick Garland to serve as attorney general, according to Politico.

Biden’s decision comes after Democrats appear in striking distance of taking control of the Senate following runoff elections in Georgia on Tuesday. Raphael Warnock is projected to defeat Republican incumbent Kelly Loeffler. Democratic candidate Jon Ossoff is currently leading David Perdue, a Republican incumbent who holds the other seat in Georgia.

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Biden Is Reportedly Considering Andrew Cuomo for Attorney General

Minnesota Sun Staff

Joe Biden has added New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s name to his short list of candidates to serve as attorney general, according to reports.

Biden is considering three other potential nominees to lead the Department of Justice: Alabama Sen. Doug Jones, former Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates and federal appeals court judge Merrick Garland.

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Supreme Court Declines to Hear Tennessee’s Challenge to Federal Refugee Resettlement Program

Jason M. Reynolds

The U.S. Supreme Court said this week it will not hear Tennessee’s challenge of the federal refugee resettlement program, which claimed it violated the 10th Amendment.

Tennessee’s Republican-led government had asked for the review, The Associated Press reported. The court filed its denial earlier, letting a lower court ruling stand.

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‘Stunning’: William Barr Hits Establishment Media for ‘Bovine Silence’ on Collapsed Russiagate Narrative

Minnesota Sun Staff

Attorney General William Barr hit the establishment media in an interview aired Sunday for what he called its “bovine silence” regarding the debunked narrative of collusion between the Trump campaign and Russian government.

In an interview on “Fox Sunday Futures,” Barr also asserted that the various government investigations into the Trump campaign’s possible ties to Kremlin were the “closest we have come to an organized effort to push a president out of office” since the assassination of Abraham Lincoln.

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AG Barr Says Regional Joint Terrorism Task Forces Directed to Locate, Apprehend Antifa Leaders, Other ‘Radical Agitators’

Anthony Gockowski

U.S. Attorney General William Barr said in a Sunday statement that the regional Joint Terrorism Task Forces of the FBI  have been directed to locate and apprehend Antifa leaders.

His statement was issued after President Donald Trump announced that the U.S. would be declaring Antifa a domestic terrorist organization for its alleged involvement in the terrorizing of major cities after the death of George Floyd.

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Michigan, Minnesota Attorneys General Join Lawsuit to Stop Reform of Illegal Immigrant Family Units

Jason M. Reynolds

Minnesota and Michigan’s Attorneys General are part of a group of 20 Democratic-led states suing the Trump Administration over its plan to lengthen its detention of illegal immigrant family units to ensure they are held until their cases have been handled.

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Keith Ellison Sued for Allegedly Illegal ‘Embedding’ of Bloomberg-Linked Lawyers in Attorney General’s Office

Anthony Gockowski

Attorney General Keith Ellison is being sued for declining to hand over documents related to his office’s hiring of a lawyer connected to Michael Bloomberg’s State Energy and Environmental Impact Center.

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Ohio and Minnesota Join Lawsuit Against ‘Corporate Drug Cartel’

Anthony Gockowski

  Attorneys General from 44 different states announced their participation Monday in a lawsuit against 20 of the nation’s leading generic drug manufactures. Both Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost and Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison have joined the lawsuit, highlighting the bipartisan nature of the issue. “Ohioans who need medicine…

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DOJ: The Long-Awaited Mueller Report Will Be Released Thursday Morning

Minnesota Sun Staff

by Chuck Ross   Attorney General William Barr plans to release a redacted version of the special counsel’s Russia report on Thursday morning, a Justice Department official told reporters. The report is expected to contain redactions for classified information as well as information provided to a grand jury that special…

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Mark Meadows Expects Criminal Referrals In DOJ Inspector General’s Report

Minnesota Sun Staff

by Chuck Ross   North Carolina Republican Rep. Mark Meadows said Sunday that he expects the Justice Department’s inspector general to issue criminal referrals as part of an investigation into the FBI’s possible abuse of the surveillance courts during the Trump-Russia probe. “We’re fully anticipating that the [inspector general’s] report…

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Keith Ellison Joins Multi State Lawsuit Against Trump National Emergency Declaration

Anthony Gockowski

Attorney General Keith Ellison announced Monday night that he would be joining a multi-state lawsuit against President Donald Trump’s national emergency declaration. “President Trump, who has been unable to persuade Congress and the country that a wall is necessary, is forcing a constitutional crisis that harms the people of Minnesota.…

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Confirmed: William Barr Is Now the Attorney General of the United States

Minnesota Sun Staff

by Kevin Daley   The Senate confirmed William Barr as the new attorney general Thursday afternoon, returning Barr for a second tour atop the Department of Justice. The confirmation vote largely followed party lines — GOP Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky voted against confirmation given Barr’s views on domestic surveillance…

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Commentary: The Real Reason Democrats Have Postponed Barr’s Confirmation Is All About ‘Russia’

Minnesota Sun Staff

by Julie Kelly   After what seemed to be a done deal following a relatively smooth public hearing last week, the Senate Judiciary Committee now has delayed until February 7 the vote to confirm William Barr, President Trump’s nominee for attorney general. The reason, according to news reports, is lingering concerns…

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Supreme Court Turns Down Challenge To Matthew Whitaker’s Appointment As Acting AG

Minnesota Sun Staff

by Kevin Daley   The Supreme Court rejected an unusual challenge to Matthew Whitaker’s appointment as acting Attorney General on Monday. The challenge arose in the context of a Second Amendment case from Nevada, where an independent political activist named Barry Michaels challenged a provision of the Federal Gun Control…

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Commentary: Double Standards Galore in the Attorney General Fracas

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by John C. Eastman   So let me get this straight. In his November 8 New York Times op-ed (“Trump’s Appointment of the Acting Attorney General Is Unconstitutional,” co-authored be George Conway), Neal Katyal writes that President Trump’s designation of Matthew Whitaker as acting attorney general is unconstitutional because the…

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Trump Forces Out Attorney General Jeff Sessions

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Trumo FBI with Docs

by Maswood Farivar   President Donald Trump forced his controversial Attorney General Jeff Sessions to resign on Wednesday, setting the stage for a potential showdown with newly energized Congressional Democrats over the investigation of Russia’s involvement in the 2016 presidential election. Sessions, in a letter to Trump, wrote that he…

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Three GOP Gubernatorial Candidates Say Uphold the Constitution, But Tennessee Attorney General Disagrees and Randy Boyd Is Silent

Chris Alto
Bill Lee, Diane Black, Herbert Slatery

This past May, seven states, led by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, sued the federal government to stop Obama’s unconstitutional DACA administrative amnesty program once and for all. To date, Tennessee’s Attorney General Herbert Slatery has not joined the lawsuit. In fact, it appears that Slatery has done an about…

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Diane Black is Only Gubernatorial Candidate Willing to Change Attorney General Selection Process, Victor Ashe Says

Jason M. Reynolds
Diane Black Would Veto in-state tuition benefits for illegal immigrant students

Victor Ashe noted in his weekly column that Diane Black is the only gubernatorial candidate who supports bringing more transparency to the attorney general selection process. The Black campaign touted Ashe’s column in a press release. The former Knoxville mayor wrote in the Knoxville News-Sentinel that Democratic candidates Craig Fitzhugh…

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