Tuesday, 27 May 2025
Key Events (11)
Trump pardoned former Virginia sheriff Scott Jenkins, who was convicted of accepting over $75,000 in bribes in exchange for appointing auxiliary deputy sheriffs. Trump also pardoned tax evader Paul Walczak after his mother attended a $1 million fundraising dinner and helped raise millions of dollars for the president.
The Trump administration ordered U.S. embassies to stop conducting student visa interviews, a directive that could severely delay visa processing and harm universities relying on foreign student enrollment and revenue.
Trump ordered federal agencies to cut all ties with Harvard University, canceling $100 million in federal contracts as part of his escalating campaign against elite universities. He also indicated consideration of taking an additional $3 billion in grant money from the institution.
NPR filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration over funding cuts, arguing that an executive order targeting the network violates the First Amendment by punishing NPR for news coverage the president views as biased.
RFK Jr. removed COVID-19 booster recommendations for healthy children and pregnant women from the CDC vaccine list, bypassing established agency norms and processes.
Trump indicated 'positive' progress in U.S.-EU trade negotiations, with the president commending the European bloc for calling to 'quickly establish meeting dates,' leading to early optimism on Wall Street. Markets also responded positively to a reported U.S. delay on proposed 50% tariffs against the EU.
Trump's media company, the operator of Truth Social, announced plans to raise $2.5 billion through a private investment placement to acquire Bitcoin, with approximately 50 investors contributing $1.5 billion in common shares.
Trump threatened to withhold federal funding from California over its policies allowing transgender athletes to compete in girls' and women's sports, calling it 'totally unfair.'
The White House lost confidence in Pentagon leak investigation that Defense Secretary Hegseth had cited to justify firing three top aides, with exclusive reporting revealing concerns about illegal wiretap claims raised during the inquiry.
A military parade planned for June 14 will include 28 Abrams tanks, 6,700 soldiers, 50 helicopters, 34 horses, two mules, and a dog, fulfilling Trump's longstanding desire for a major military parade that was not realized during his first term.
Trump pardoned Paul Walczak, a Florida health care executive convicted of withholding over $10.9 million in employee taxes, after Walczak's pardon application highlighted his mother Elizabeth Fago's political fundraising for Trump. Fago had raised millions for Trump's campaigns, attended a $1 million fundraising dinner, and had connections to an effort to publicise Ashley Biden's addiction diary to damage Joe Biden's 2020 campaign. Walczak had pleaded guilty to the tax crimes just days after the 2024 election.
Pardons & Commutations (4)
Crime: Conspiracy to commit bribery; honest services mail fraud; honest services wire fraud (three counts); bribery concerning programs receiving federal funds (seven counts)
Source ↗Crime: Owner of a network of Florida health care companies, including Palm Health Partners and Palm Health Partners Employment Services (PHPES), which employed over 600 people and paid over $24 million annually in payroll. For more than a decade, Walczak withheld Social Security, Medicare, and federal income taxes from employees' paychecks but kept the money instead of remitting it to the IRS. From 2016 to 2019, he withheld $7,432,223.80 in employee taxes while spending over $1 million on a yacht and making personal purchases at Bergdorf Goodman, Cartier, and Saks using business funds. He also failed to pay $3,480,111 of his companies' share of Social Security and Medicare taxes. From 2018 onwards, he stopped filing personal income tax returns despite receiving a $360,000 annual salary. In 2019, he created a new company (NextEra) using a family member as nominal 99% owner to continue shielding personal expenditures. In total, Walczak caused a tax loss to the IRS of $10,912,334.80.
Source ↗Crime: President of the International Union of Operating Engineers (IUOE) from 2012 to 2025, and AFL-CIO vice-president from 2012. Callahan began his career as an operating engineer in New York City in 1980, participated in recovery efforts at the World Trade Center following the September 11 attacks, and rose to become business manager and president of his local union in 2003 before leading the IUOE nationally. In January 2025, he pleaded guilty to knowingly filing false annual reports with the U.S. Department of Labor, admitting to improperly benefiting from kickbacks worth approximately $315,000 from an advertising firm retained by the IUOE. As part of his plea agreement, he agreed to resign as IUOE president.
Source ↗Crime: Bribery and fraud; accepted over $75,000 in exchange for appointing auxiliary deputy sheriffs
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