A federal judge extended the decision to allow journalists from CNN, MS Now, and Politico to enter the White House, after ruling yesterday (Tuesday) that President Donald Trump likely violated the law when he tried to prevent them, in the latest court ruling against him, in a dispute related to freedom of the press.
District Court Judge Timothy Kelly issued a written order detailing his emergency order issued on September 24, which restored journalists' access.
Media organizations and groups defending press freedom have accused Trump of taking unconstitutional measures against journalists due to media coverage he does not like.
Kelly's order last month granted CNN, MS Now, and Politico journalists temporary access to the White House complex.
On Tuesday, US federal prosecutors announced the arrest of two people and the confiscation of more than 180 computers as part of the process of dismantling an alleged North Korean scheme aimed at making profits through remote work in the field of information technology.
The US Department of Justice stated, in a statement carried by Agence France-Presse, that it had searched “more than 40 sites suspected of being ‘laptop farms’ across the state of Texas,” sites that had earned Pyongyang more than $3 million by deceiving American employers into hiring North Korean citizens.
In addition to the two Americans who were arrested in Ohio and Pennsylvania on charges related to money laundering and identity theft, the authorities brought charges against 14 people as part of the “Lone Star Roundup” operation, including 10 residing in China.
“The North Korean regime uses its extensive programs to employ information technology personnel to raise revenue for illicit purposes, including developing weapons that may ultimately target the United States or its allies,” said John Eisenberg, Assistant Attorney General for National Security.
This incident is the latest in a series of law enforcement actions targeting “laptop farms” located in the United States, which are facilities that house multiple computers used to generate illicit revenue for the North Korean government.
In April, two Americans were sentenced to prison for setting up similar facilities to which individuals abroad, particularly in North Korea, could connect remotely by impersonating US-based IT professionals.
On Tuesday, 12 US senators, including 6 Republicans, denounced the agreement announced by President Donald Trump to purchase Russian diesel, describing it as a “betrayal of the Ukrainian people,” which increases pressure on Washington to back down from lifting the sanctions imposed on Moscow.
These lawmakers wrote in a public letter to Trump: “The agreement you concluded with President Vladimir Putin on October 9 will not lead to fair results, and will not benefit the Americans either,” according to what was reported by Agence France-Presse.
They considered that the expected lifting of US sanctions on Russian diesel exports “will only enable Putin to increase funding for his war machine.”
They added, “Giving Moscow the ability to freely sell Russian diesel on global markets harms American security interests and constitutes a betrayal of the Ukrainian people.”
They also recalled in their letter that Congress had recently approved a new package of sanctions against Russia, and thus they called on Trump to “exert economic pressure on Russia and on the main parties complicit in this war, especially China,” with the aim of strengthening the US president’s position in the negotiations aimed at “putting a quick end to this devastating conflict.”
Donald Trump's announcement, on Friday, of reaching an agreement with Moscow to lift some sanctions imposed on Russian diesel, came less than a month before the midterm elections that may cost the Republican billionaire his majority in Congress due to the issue of the cost of living, especially fuel prices.
