Donald Trump sues Deutsche Bank, Capital One in 'long shot' attempt to block congressional subpoenas - USA TODAY
Donald Trump sues Deutsche Bank, Capital One in 'long shot' attempt to block congressional subpoenas - USA TODAY |
- Donald Trump sues Deutsche Bank, Capital One in 'long shot' attempt to block congressional subpoenas - USA TODAY
- Twitter expanding video programming and working with NFL, MTV, Univision and others - USA TODAY
- Bye, bye Sinemia: MoviePass competitor calls it quits, abruptly shuts down US operation - USA TODAY
- Venezuelan President Maduro often uses 'colectivos' rather than military to maintain order - USA TODAY
| Posted: 29 Apr 2019 09:15 PM PDT CLOSE  In an attempt to block banks from handing over financial records to Congress, the Trump family is suing the financial outfits. Buzz60 In a second lawsuit responding to a U.S. House investigation, President Donald Trump and three of his children have sued a pair of banks to prevent them from providing Trump family financial records to Congress pursuant to subpoenas. While Democrats cast the lawsuit as another effort to thwart investigations of Trump's activities, the president's private attorneys said they are seeking to protect the "privacy rights" of the president and his family. Democratic subpoenas "seek information going back decades from anyone with even a tangential connection to the President, including children, minors and spouses," said the statement from Trump attorneys Will Consovoy, Patrick Strawbridge and Marc L. Mukasey. Trump and three children – Ivanka, Eric and Donald, Jr. – are suing Deutsche Bank and Capital One. In the lawsuit filed late Monday in New York City, Trump asked the court to declare the subpoenas invalid and prevent the banks from complying with the congressional orders. The complaint is the latest in a series of disputes between the White House and congressional Democrats over investigations targeting the president. Trump filed a federal lawsuit last week to block the Democratic-controlled House from obtaining financial records from his business' longtime accountant. 'All the subpoenas': Congress and Trump prepare to battle over wide-ranging probes Complaint: President Trump and his businesses ask a court to block Congress from obtaining accounting records "The subpoenas were issued to harass President Donald J. Trump, to rummage through every aspect of his personal finances, his businesses, and the private information of the President and his family, and to ferret about for any material that might be used to cause him political damage," the lawsuit states. The chairs of the House Financial Services and Intelligence committees, Reps. Maxine Waters and Adam Schiff, respectively, said in a joint statement that the lawsuit was "meritless." "This lawsuit is not designed to succeed; it is only designed to put off meaningful accountability as long as possible," they said. At least six congressional committees are investigating Trump's personal finances, his inauguration committee, his business practices before he took office and his conduct since assuming the presidency for evidence of corruption or abuse. Want news from USA TODAY on WhatsApp?Click this link on your mobile device to get started Trump has told reporters he will resist every subpoena. He has refused to provide his tax returns, breaking from more than 40 years of tradition by presidents and nominees. "We're fighting all the subpoenas. These aren't like impartial people. The Democrats are trying to win 2020," Trump said last week. "The only way they can luck out is by constantly going after me on nonsense." House Democrats are particularly interested in Deutsche Bank, a longtime lender to Trump and his company even after a series of defaults and bankruptcies by the real estate mogul. Congress is seeking a long list of records related to the bank's support of Trump and his family, loans that some critics believe may have been used to launder money from Russia and Eastern Europe. Deustche Bank has said it plans to comply with the subpoenas. Trump's lawyer described the subpoenas as "unlawful and illegitimate," and "every citizen should be concerned about this sweeping, lawless, invasion of privacy. We look forward to vindicating our clients' rights in this matter." Democratic lawmakers are also seeking documents from Mazars USA, the president's longtime accounting firm. Last week, Trump filed a lawsuit to prevent Mazars from providing records subpoenaed by the House Oversight and Reform Committee. Legal analysts noted that during his business career, Trump often filed lawsuits as a way to drag out disputes, seeking to exhaust his opponents. Stephen I. Vladeck, a professor at the University of Texas School of Law, said the lawsuit against the banks is "such a long shot on the merits" that it's hard to imagine Trump's lawyers think they can win. "It may be that the purpose is to try to delay these third parties from complying with the subpoenas, perhaps until after the 2020 elections," he said. Vladeck added, however, that such a long delay "seems unlikely." Contributing: David Jackson, USA TODAY
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| Twitter expanding video programming and working with NFL, MTV, Univision and others - USA TODAY Posted: 29 Apr 2019 05:51 PM PDT CLOSE What is the proper way to cut a bagel: in half horizontally or like a loaf of bread? USA TODAY Twitter is expanding its lineup of live and on-demand premium video programming across sports, gaming, entertainment and news. The company announced new collaborations and renewals of existing partnerships during its "Digital Content NewFronts" presentation Monday in New York. "Together with our partners, we developed this new slate of programming specifically for our audiences, and designed the content to fuel even more robust conversation on Twitter," said Kay Madati, Twitter global vice president and head of content partnerships, in a statement. Some of the new programming is with companies and sports leagues that Twitter has worked with in the past, including the NFL, Viacom, Live Nation and ESPN. "Millions of people use Twitter every day to follow their favorite teams and players and participate in conversations about the NFL," said Blake Stuchin, NFL vice president of digital media business development, in the football league's statement. "We expect these new live shows to be among the most popular programs on Twitter, while serving to drive awareness and tune-in of our biggest tentpole events of the year." Spotify just hit a new milestone: 100 million paid subscribers Amazon changing the delivery game: Company looking to shift to one-day Prime shipping and delivering orders wherever you want The biggest announcementsHere are the details on a handful of the partnerships: Univision: Twitter said in a statement that is launching a partnership with Univision "for Spanish-language audiences in the U.S. to better serve the Hispanic community, which will span Twitter's most dynamic sports, news and entertainment audiences." Some of the coverage will be includes 2020 election analysis. NFL: Twitter and the NFL have collaborated since 2013 and will continue to have video highlights, breaking news and analysis, and six new live shows "around some of the NFL's biggest events, including NFL Kickoff, the Thanksgiving games, the Conference Championships, the Super Bowl, the Scouting Combine and the NFL Draft," the NFL said in a statement. There also will be new live pregame Q&As, new NFL Twitter Moments, custom NFL Twitter votes and the best touchdowns and best touchdown celebrations highlight reels. ESPN: The extension of shows will be called "ESPN Onsite" and there will be ESPN live shows from location, "which offers fans more of what they expect from ESPN on Twitter: Access," Twitter's statement said. Over the next year, "Onsite" will include the existing ESPN franchises on Twitter like The College Football Show, Hoop Streams, Ariel Helwani's MMA Show, and MLS Countdown Live. Viacom: MTV is launching the "VMA Stan Cam" for its Video Music Awards show this year, giving "fans the power to create their livestream, their way," on Twitter. There will be a series of short livestreams where fans will decide which audience member they'd like to watch on a live reaction cam or follow backstage and behind-the-scenes with. Viacom also will be bringing back red-carpet coverage of BET, CMT and other MTV events. Time: For the first time, for the magazine's Person of the Year and the Time 100, there will be "content exclusive to Twitter to bring exclusive insight into the discussion around Person of the Year and TIME 100, including live streams, Moments and more," according to Twitter's statement. Follow USA TODAY reporter Kelly Tyko on Twitter: @KellyTyko
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| Bye, bye Sinemia: MoviePass competitor calls it quits, abruptly shuts down US operation - USA TODAY Posted: 27 Apr 2019 12:00 AM PDT As moviegoers rush to the theaters in record numbers to find out which Marvel heroes will be resurrected from the dead in "Avengers: Endgame," the movie subscription service Sinemia announced that it's game over for the company's U.S. operations – effective immediately. The MoviePass competitor announced on its website Thursday that it's calling it quits just as the latest Avengers movie began breaking box office records on its first day. "Today, with a heavy heart, we're announcing that Sinemia is closing its doors and ending operations in the US," a notice on the company's website reads. "We want to sincerely thank our customers that believed in us and helped us along the way." Why the sudden shutdown?Sinemia, which billed itself as a sustainable cinema subscription service, cited "unexpected legal proceedings" and a lack of "funds required to continue operations." The movie-subscription company has been beleaguered by lawsuits in the past year, including a class-action suit from customers saying they were the victims of a "bait-and-switch" scheme involving hidden processing fees. MoviePass: Ticketing app restores its $9.95 unlimited subscription plan for a limited time Avengers: Endgame' tix:Presale crashes AMC Theatres site, creates long Fandango waits Sinemia also faces a lawsuit from rival MoviePass, which accused the Turkish company of stealing patented features in its app. "We are all witnessing that the future of moviegoing is evolving through movie ticket subscriptions," Sinemia said in a statement on its website. "However, we didn't see a path to sustainability as an independent movie ticket subscription service in the face of competition from movie theaters as they build their own subscriptions." What are my other options?CLOSE  PreShow, the new venture from the co-founder of MoviePass, is designed to get you free movie tickets just by watching an ad. Sandy Hooper, USA TODAY As movie lovers look for thrifty ways to save money on cinema tickets, theater chains have smelled blood in the water, devising their own cash-saving subscription plans to please customers. Cinemark Movie Club, for instance, costs $8.99 per month and provides 20 percent off concessions, rollover and companion tickets, reserved seating and no online fees. AMC continues to gain traction with its multiplex subscription service AMC Stubs A-List, which gives film lovers a way to see three screenings a week for roughly $20 a month. Meanwhile, MoviePass has experimented with a range of subscription schemes in the past year. Most recently it rolled out an "uncapped" movie-per-day plan that costs $9.95 a month if you pay for 12 months upfront. Ok, so can I get my money back?Sinemia's announcement does not say whether customers who paid for yearly plans up front would get partial refunds. However, a Reddit thread says some users who paid annual memberships are receiving pro-rated refunds from Chase. Still, you may not get your money back directly from Sinemia for the time being, seeing as though the company has just filed for bankruptcy in Delaware. In the filing, Sinemia listed $1.2 million in assets and $158,000 in liabilities (as well as the pending cases). USA TODAY reached out to the company to get more information about refunds. This story will be updated accordingly. What's next for Sinemia?An earlier report by Bloomberg suggested that shutting down the service allows Sinemia to focus their business on helping existing theater chains build subscription plans. For now, Sinemia still operates in Canada, Australia and the U.K. It's not immediately clear what the company's plans are for those other countries. Follow Dalvin Brown on Twitter: @Dalvin _Brown. Read or Share this story: https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2019/04/28/wheres-my-refund-moviepass-competitor-sinemia-abruptly-shuts-down/3609969002/  |
| Posted: 30 Apr 2019 10:58 AM PDT When rolling blackouts once again left millions without water and electricity recently in Venezuela, President Nicolás Maduro called not on his military but loyal armed groups "to defend the peace of every neighborhood" and "every block." The groups – widely known as colectivos – took up the call with zeal. As conditions in Venezuela have gone from dire to unliveable, Maduro has increasingly relied upon colectivos to quash discontent and maintain social order. Since Jan. 23, when opposition leader Juan Guiadó invoked the constitution to declare himself interim president, embattled Maduro has faced regular large-scale protests over widespread shortages of food, medicine and water. Anti-government protests are routinely broken up by masked motorcyclists who open fire into crowds, sending protesters running for their lives, and journalists are persistently detained and threatened for covering the disturbances. The Latest: Officials for Venezuela President Maduro say government fighting 'coup' as opposition calls for uprising "They are vital as a defense mechanism in breaking up protests and generating fear in the civil population," says defense analyst Rocío San Miguel, who points out that 2019 is notable for the growing public links between Maduro and the gangs. "They are the operating arm of the state." But working-class communities in Caracas and across the country fear taking to the streets could cost them their food handouts or even their lives. That's because colectivos run entire apartment blocks and neighborhoods as criminal empires. In some areas, de facto authorities levy tolls for those entering or leaving neighborhoods and control the distribution of food and medicine, says the Latin American investigative unit Insight Crime. The government increasingly relies on the unwavering loyalty of these irregular paramilitary groups to deal with the public heavy-handedly rather than the military, which could potentially disobey uncomfortable orders and cause a government-military rupture. Experts say estimates of members of colectivos run from as low as 5,000 to anywhere as high as 100,000. Maduro's supporters claim the members of colectivos are peaceful defendants of the revolution, but Guaidó has said that all those who do not impede the actions of the "paramilitary colectivos are complicit in crimes against humanity." U.S. Senator Marco Rubio wants them added alongside guerrillas and drug traffickers to the U.S. list of Foreign Terror Organizations. Yet, these groups often operate with impunity and are sometimes trained by the state in return for securing votes and oppressing political opposition. Colectivos were not always armed gangs defending the government through violence and fear — they evolved from groups established in 2001 by the revolution's architect and Maduro's predecessor — Hugo Chávez Frías. "The colectivos first appeared in the early years of the Chávez administration to inform people of social policies," explains Margarita López Maya, a Venezuelan historian and political analyst at El Rosario University in Bogotá. "The idea was to organize people and inform them of what the government was doing." Then known as círculos Bolivarianos, or Bolivarian circles, they carried out activities ranging from workshops explaining the new constitution drawn up by Chávez to literacy support for the illiterate and social gatherings for women and youth. Like the Committees in Defense of the Revolution, or CDRs, founded in 1960s Cuba by Fidel Castro, Chávez's close ally and friend, these groups operated as a neighborhood watch tasked with getting the urban poor on Chávez's side while keeping close tabs on them. But as national oil strikes and protests rocked Venezuela and confrontation heated up, Chávez, increasingly threatened by the opposition, looked to the groups' other potential capacities to save the revolution. Maya traces the origin of the colectivos we know today to a private meeting held weeks ahead of the April 2002 failed coup in which the military overthrew the ex-president only for him to be reinstated, fueled by public support, 48 hours later. High-ranking military figures were reportedly shocked and confused to see civilians present in the meeting room for the first time alongside Chávez — and even more so by his unprecedented request that they be armed, according to Maya. "This may be the beginning of the colectivos," Maya says, "when a threatened Chávez started to use civilian groups as armed tools to defend his government." Chávez successfully rode out the failed coup attempt — which he perceived as a U.S.-backed capitalist siege — and armed civilians of the Bolivarian circles were identified as being among those who shot at anti-government demonstrators on the day of the coup. At least eighteen were killed in the bloodshed as government-loyal groups fired upon protesters. In Caracas, Chávez permitted mayors to begin arming groups with local funds, not only to defend the government but to send a message to the military that he did not trust them and would survive — with or without them. By 2005, Chávez consolidated the role of the colectivos as the country transitioned from a participatory democracy toward a socialist dictatorship. Fearing not just internal aggression, but a U.S.-led invasion to eradicate socialism from Latin America, defense forces were no longer just professional troops but also bands of armed civilians. "They were preparing for 'a prolonged, asymmetrical war like Vietnam,' and like Vietnam, they thought an army that is the people could fight and defeat the United States," Maya says. That war never came. But in 2013, Chávez died from cancer, leaving the future of the revolution uncertain. His appointee, Maduro, inherited control of the country and its mass oil revenues which financed the revolution. But with none of Chávez' military connections, nor his charisma and popularity as president-cum-TV celebrity, what remained was money. Maduro set out to buy loyalties, say historians and analysts, by granting both the army and the colectivos unprecedented powers and business opportunities while siphoning off funds for their operations through corruption. When oil revenues plummeted in 2016 and the country saw the worst economic crisis in its history, that money was lost too, and the colectivos' pots began to dry up. Some colectivos still operate as peaceful, grassroots community groups, but many now earn money mainly through lucrative criminal activities including drug trafficking, extortion, protecting illegal mines, systematic kidnapping and theft. "Today's colectivos are unrecognizable from those originally founded by Chávez," says Venezuelan political scientist, María Puerta-Riera, who has studied the groups extensively. "They may say they have an ideology but we know they do not; they are just mercenaries." The true identity of colectivo members are murky: Their covered faces and unlicensed plates help obscure them. Their links with the police and the military further complicate matters. In some cases, colectivos are alleged to be trained by the military or the police, and a recruitment merry-go-round between the colectivos, police, the military and security forces keep them rotating uniforms, depending on what is needed of them. "Some receive military training and are then sent to do the dirty work the military cannot afford to," says Puerta-Riera, who believes their control over the country will likely grow as essential resources like water become more scarce. But should state resources continue to dwindle for the colectivos, their loyalties may wane, says Maya, who believes some are already beginning to turn on Maduro. "They're there for the money and the weapons, once that's gone, what's left? Maduro has already abandoned all socialist principles to cling to power — what remains 'is how much are you going to pay me?'" Collectivos today remain the most ardent defenders of the revolution and are the most-feared groups in the country. In late February, when opposition activists attempted — and failed — to push aid into Venezuela through the Colombian border, their presence and power was front and center. "It's not the National Guard I'm scared of, it's the colectivos," said Luis, a young Venezuelan who had tried to push the aid across the border. "They're the ones who will shoot you." Luis declined to share his last name out of fear of retribution. At the Colombian side of the border, masked gangs threw rocks and occasionally opened fire during clashes that left around 300 injured. The result was bloody melees, burning trucks and chaos. Tons of food and medical supplies were lost. Opposition leader Guaidó had hoped Maduro's orders to block much-needed aid would be a test for national security forces that would lead to mass defections and government collapse. Venezuelan state security forces stood resolutely behind their riot shields, repelling crowds of volunteers with persistent volleys of tear gas, but colectivos proved essential in fighting off what Maduro deemed a pretext for foreign invasion. During the aid standoff, colectivos in Venezuelan border towns roved the streets on motorcycles dressed in balaclavas, forcing people to take shelter in their homes for fear of being labeled as protesters. Those who were spotted taking part in demonstrations against the regime had their houses spray-painted in an ominous marker of potential repercussions. Wendy Ortiz, 27, says the colectivos identified her at the border as an opposition activist and passed the information on to Maduro's right-hand man, Diosdado Cabello, vice president of the United Socialist Party of Venezuela. Ortiz says Cabello singled her out on television as a "terrorist" and banned her from entering the country. On another occasion, they physically detained her while she was filming demonstrations. Before protesters were able to force her free she feared they would sexually assault and then imprison her. "It was like watching a film of my life and knowing it has a terrible ending. When a colectivo catches you one of two things happen: Either you die from a bullet or you go to prison where you suffer every form of torture that exists," Ortiz says. Read other world news at PRI or subscribe to The Scan and get news from PRI's The World in your inbox every day. Want more news? Download the USA TODAY app
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