politicnewsbusterinsiderpostreview: Putin invades Ukraine

Thursday 24 February 2022

Putin invades Ukraine

Image of explosion provided by Ukrainian president's office, shown on CNN with ''breaking news'' chyron.

By Liza Hearon

Thursday, Feb. 24

PUTIN ORDERS INVASION OF UKRAINE Many Ukrainians began to flee city centers or took refuge in subway tunnels as air sirens sounded across Kyiv after Russian President Vladimir Putin announced an invasion. "President Putin has chosen a premeditated war that will bring a catastrophic loss of life and human suffering," U.S. President Joe Biden said. Russia's Defense Ministry claimed it targeted Ukraine's airbases and rendered them and other military infrastucture "inoperable." Ukraine reported several dozen casualties. [HuffPost]

AS UKRAINE SHUDDERS, TRUMP KEEPS GOING WITH BIG LIE On Fox News, former President Donald Trump traced Putin's decision to invade Ukraine back to the 2020 presidential election. "He sees the weakness and stupidity of this administration," Trump said of the Russian president. "As an American, I am angry and saddened. It happened because of a rigged election." At an event at his Mar-a-Lago resort, he later said Putin was "pretty smart" for sparking the conflict. [HuffPost]

UKRAINE PRESIDENT WARNS PUTIN IN EMOTIONALLY POWERFUL SPEECH Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy rejected Moscow's claims that his country poses a threat to Russia in an emotional overnight address to his nation. "The people of Ukraine and the government of Ukraine want peace," he said, in Russian. "But if we come under attack, if we face an attempt to take away our country, our freedom, our lives and lives of our children, we will defend ourselves. When you attack us, you will see our faces, not our backs." [AP]

STOCKS PLUNGE, OIL SOARS Stock markets in Europe and Asia tumbled and oil prices surged to more than $100 a barrel over fears about possible disruption of Russian oil supplies due to Russia's military action in Ukraine. Investors already were uneasy about the possible impact of the Federal Reserve's plans to cool inflation by withdrawing super-low interest rates. [AP ]

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IVANKA TRUMP IN TALKS TO COOPERATE WITH JAN. 6 PROBE A spokesperson for Ivanka Trump, who was a White House senior adviser at the time of the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol, said she was "in discussions with the committee to voluntarily appear for an interview." The House committee appears to be closing in on the former president's inner circle and family. [HuffPost]

NEO-NAZIS PLEAD GUILTY IN PLOT TO ATTACK U.S. POWER GRIDS Three neo-Nazis have pleaded guilty to domestic terrorism charges related to a plot to attack power grids across the U.S. The plan involved damaging power grids in different regions across the country using rifles. Jonathan Frost, 24, Christopher Cook, 20, and Jackson Sawall, 22, believed the plan "would cost the cost the government millions of dollars and cause unrest for Americans in the region," the Justice Department said. [HuffPost]

SAN FRANCISCO TO STOP USING VICTIMS' DNA TO LINK THEM TO CRIMES After a national uproar, the San Francisco Police Department will stop its practice of using victims' DNA to link them to unrelated crimes. Last week, San Francisco District Attorney Chesa Boudin expressed concerns that the practice could dissuade sexual assault survivors from coming forward. [HuffPost ]

PROSECUTORS LEADING NEW YORK INVESTIGATION INTO TRUMP BUSINESS RESIGN Two prosecutors submitted their resignations after the Manhattan district attorney, Alvin Bragg, expressed doubts about moving forward with a case examining allegations of tax evasion and fraud related to the Trump Organization's business practices. New York Attorney General Letitia James is continuing a civil investigation into the Trump Organization's business practices. [HuffPost]

TEXAS GOV DIRECTS STATE AGENCY TO INVESTIGATE TRANS THERAPY AS 'CHILD ABUSE' Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, a purported small-government Republican, wants parents to be investigated for "child abuse" if their sons or daughters are trans. He has instructed the state's child welfare agency to conduct a "prompt and thorough" investigation into "'sex change' procedures" for minors in the state, the latest in a right-wing frenzy about transgender children. [HuffPost]