Good morning, and welcome to the Epoch Times News Brief for Friday, March 22, 2024. I’m Bill Thomas.
DOJ Files Landmark Lawsuit Against Apple Over iPhone Monopoly
The Department of Justice (DOJ) and 16 states have filed a civil lawsuit against Apple Inc., accusing the company of illegally monopolizing the smartphone market. The suit alleges that Apple attempted to limit competition and harm consumers, small businesses, and app developers through its App Store and other features. It claims that Apple controls automotive services, news services, and digital wallets, and imposes restrictions on third-party apps. It also claims that the tech giant places controls on messages sent from iPhones to other phones in its default messaging service. The suit also accuses Apple of engaging in monopolistic behavior by making its Apple Watch only compatible with iPhones.Attorney General Merrick Garland stated that consumers should not have to pay higher prices due to antitrust violations and warned that Apple will continue to strengthen its smartphone monopoly if left unchallenged.
The lawsuit further accuses Apple of maintaining an illegal monopoly by imposing contractual restrictions and withholding critical access from developers. Apple has faced similar antitrust probes and orders in Europe, Japan, and Korea, as well as lawsuits from corporate rivals.
Apple defends its walled garden approach, saying it provides top-tier protection for users’ personal information and distinguishes the iPhone from devices running on Android.
The DOJ argues that Apple’s walled garden serves as a weapon to prevent competition, allowing the company to charge higher prices and stifle innovation.
Apple responded to the lawsuit, stating that it threatens their existence and sets a dangerous precedent for other businesses. The company believes the lawsuit is wrong on the facts and the law and will vigorously defend against it.
Earlier this year, Apple announced it would comply with a European Union law that will force the company and other smartphone makers to make adjustments to what app users can download. For the first time ever, Apple said in a release that users in the EU would be able to download apps from third-party stores—not just its App Store.
Court Orders NY Attorney General to Withdraw Letter Saying $464 Million Trump Bond Not ‘Impossible’
Shortly after New York Attorney General Letitia James filed a letter asking the New York Supreme Court to “not consider” that the $464 million bond former President Donald Trump needs to post to keep his assets from being seized is a “practical impossibility,” the court ordered her to remove it.The letter was attached to a request to file a surreply—a reply to a reply—which generally isn’t done unless the court grants express permission.
The defense argues that it was improperly filed. “The Court may draw its own conclusions about the propriety of this maneuver. In doing so, the Court is ‘not required to exhibit a naiveté from which ordinary citizens are free,’” the defense wrote, urging the court to deny the attorney general’s request.
In the original letter, Ms. James had asked the court not to accept the testimonies of a Trump attorney and broker who detailed the efforts they'd gone through in trying to obtain a $464 million bond, claiming they were unreliable sources. The defense faulted the state for not providing any “reason to doubt any of their assertions,” however, and only making a blanket statement.
The defense had sought a $464 million bond, but negotiations with surety companies were unsuccessful.
The sworn affidavits submitted revealed that the defense had sought out the large bond since before final judgment was entered—raising the fine from $250 million to more than $350 million during the last days of trial—and that negotiations by four brokers with 30-plus surety companies still resulted in no deal. One of the brokers provided additional context, saying a $100 million bond was considered large and a $464 million bond (which includes the ordered interest) is something few sureties have the ability to issue and would issue only for large publicly traded companies.
After these negotiations, the defense found that a $464 million bond would require about $557 million in cash, on top of any operating expenses to continue The Trump Organization, because sureties require about 120 percent as collateral, plus additional premiums.
This is at least $200 million more than the original judgment figure, which the defense could have put in an escrow account if the cash were available.
The attorney general had suggested that the defense be required to put up a total of $464 million through several “smaller” bonds of $100 million or $200 million apiece, and the defense argued that this doesn’t resolve the cash issue.
The judgment total is $363 million, with about $355 million of that specifically applying to President Trump, $4 million to be recovered from Eric Trump, $4 million to be recovered from Donald Trump Jr., and $1 million to be recovered from Allen Weisselberg.
With the applied 9 percent interest, court filings say the bond comes out to more than $464 million, with a little more than $10 million of that attributed to judgment on Eric Trump, Donald Trump Jr., and Allen Weisselberg.
The state had also argued that if the defense knew they couldn’t get a $464 million bond, they should have “at a minimum consented to have their real estate interests held by Supreme Court to satisfy the judgment.”
The defense argues that requiring the defendants to sell properties to satisfy the judgment would be unconstitutional and cause irreparable harm. The defense also suggests that the state has political motives.
The case indeed puts The Trump Organization in uncharted territory; the appeals court has put a temporary stay on the judgment orders that would prohibit Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr. from continuing to run the company, but it may lift the administrative stay after ruling on present motions. The trial court had also ordered monitorship of The Trump Organization to continue and the appointment of an additional risk officer.
New York Attorney General Takes Step to Potentially Seize Trump’s Assets
Attorney General James has taken initial steps to seize President Trump’s properties in Westchester County, following a $455 million fine ordered by a state judge in a civil fraud case.Several judgments were entered by Ms. James, a Democrat, with the Westchester County Clerk’s Office against the former president and his sons, Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump, on March 6. The three judgments filed in the county by the attorney general against President Trump amounted to $243,326,767.10, $20,421,141.98, and $63,580,273.97, totaling over $326 million.
The properties in question include the Seven Springs estate and the Trump National Golf Course Westchester. The judgments came about a week after Judge Arthur Engoron fined President Trump, his sons, and other Trump Organization officials, claiming they defrauded banks and insurance companies by inflating their properties’ values.
The former U.S. president faces a Monday deadline to post a bond covering a $454 million civil judgment against him for overstating his net worth and the value of his real estate properties to dupe investors and lenders, or risk state authorities seizing his assets while he appeals.
The registrations do not necessarily mean that seizures of the Westchester properties are imminent. But they are a procedural step that would be necessary should Ms. James seek to seize them in the future. The attorney general said in February that she would be prepared to seize the former president’s properties if he cannot pay the civil fraud debt.
The former president has denied wrongdoing, saying that the judge is a “political hack” who is working in concert with Democrats to undermine his Republican presidential candidacy.
Earlier this week, President Trump wrote on his social media platform Truth Social that he might be forced to sell his properties and assets at “fire sale prices” to post bond in the case or to appeal the judgment.
“Judge Engoron actually wants me to put up Hundreds of Millions of Dollars for the Right to Appeal his ridiculous decision. In other words, he is trying to take my Appellate Rights away from me,” President Trump wrote Tuesday. “Nobody has ever heard of anything like this before.”
The former president warned that he would be “forced to mortgage or sell Great Assets, perhaps at Fire Sale prices, and if and when I win the Appeal, they would be gone. Does that make sense?”
Meanwhile, the former president has to deal with balancing raising money for both his campaign and his legal expenses, which are likely to rise as he faces four upcoming criminal trials. He has pleaded not guilty in the criminal cases and has denied wrongdoing in all of the cases.
Trial of Arizona Rancher Accused of Shooting Mexican Border Crosser Begins
The trial of an Arizona rancher accused of murdering a Mexican national on his property near the U.S.–Mexico border in January 2023 gets underway with jury selection on Thursday after numerous delays.George Alan Kelly, 75, was arrested after the body of Gabriel Cuen-Buitmea, 48, was found on his property.
Mr. Kelly was initially charged with first-degree murder and held on $1 million bond for several weeks. The charges were later reduced to second-degree murder, and he was released.
After multiple delays related to witness testimony, Mr. Kelly rejected a plea deal in January that would have given him just over eight years in prison.
Mr. Kelly maintains that he did not shoot Mr. Cuen-Buitmea but only shot warning shots at a group of illegal immigrants walking on the property that included Mr. Cuen-Buitmea.
Prosecutors say Mr. Kelly fired his AK-47 recklessly toward the group of men and hit Mr. Cuen-Buitmea, killing him.
A witness is set to testify that he saw Mr. Kelly’s shot hit Mr. Cuen-Buitmea. Prosecutors may also call Mr. Kelly’s wife as a witness since she saw the men on their property and was sent into the house by her husband before the shots were fired.
When asked about her husband’s actions and informed that a dead body had been found on the property, Ms. Kelly allegedly said to police, “Well, if you knew the things that been goin’ on out there, you would have ... you wouldn’t be waitin’ around.”
Defense Attorney Brenna Larkin argued that one of the men pointed an AK-47 straight at Mr. Kelly before he fired the warning shots.
She also said that the drug cartels active on the border often “buy” testimony to get what they want.
“In this case, the benefit they’re getting is security for their smuggling route through Mr. Kelly’s property, and they’re sending a message to anybody else defending his or her own property that if you defend your property against us, you will be arrested and there will be witnesses who come to stand against you,” she argued.
The charges were nearly dropped in August due to the witness’s reluctance to testify, but that was resolved so the case could proceed.
There is no physical evidence that proves Mr. Kelly shot Mr. Cuen-Buitmea; no bullet was found at the scene or in Mr. Cuen-Buitmea’s body.
Mr. Cuen-Buitmea had a history of illegally crossing the border. U.S. court records show he was convicted of illegal entry and deported several times back to Mexico, with the last one being in 2016.
The trial is expected to last three weeks.
Influenza Vaccines Linked to Elevated Stroke Risk in Elderly: FDA Study
An analysis conducted by researchers at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) found that individuals who received a COVID-19 vaccine had a higher risk of stroke. However, this risk was found to be associated with the concurrent administration of an influenza vaccine.The study, based on Medicare data, revealed an increased risk of nonhemorrhagic stroke or transient ischemic attack among individuals aged 85 and older who received the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine and those aged 65 to 74 who received the Moderna vaccine.
“This finding suggests that the observed association between vaccination and stroke in the concomitant subgroup was likely driven by a high-dose or adjuvanted influenza vaccination,” Steven Anderson, director of the Office of Biostatistics and Epidemiology at the FDA, and the other researchers wrote.
The study also identified an increased risk of non-hemorrhagic stroke among individuals who received an influenza vaccine but did not receive a COVID-19 vaccine. Additional research is needed to further comprehend the association between high-dose or adjuvanted influenza vaccination and stroke.
Limitations include the exclusion of cases with COVID-19 in the 30 days prior to stroke as well as the restriction of the study to vaccinated people.
The findings were published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, with the study funded by the FDA.
That wraps up our news roundup for today.
Time is in short supply, but as we do each day on the News Brief, we celebrate you, if today is the day you were born.
Other notables celebrating birthdays today include William Shatner, Captain Kirk from Star Trek, who is 93 years young right now. Singer-guitarist George Benson is 81. News anchor Wolf Blitzer is 76, and composer Andrew Lloyd Webber is also 76 years old today.
We have received some feedback from our audience regarding our previous reports on the Texas immigration law and on the shocking decision on gun control for illegal immigrants.
Mr. Graul expressed his appreciation of our reporting on the topic, saying, “Your broadcaster was really great, adding voice inflections and commenting that various stories were really big news.” He said that he “liked it very much.” Thank you, Mr. Graul, for your encouragement.
We received yesterday a couple of emails commenting on our March 19 report on the shocking decision on gun control for illegal immigrants.
One of our audience members wrote: “This is so wrong-- they are not U.S. citizens. They have broken the law by being in the US.”
“Should NOT be allowed for illegals!! Ridiculous to interpret the original documents otherwise,” wrote Ms. Osborn.
As we wrap up today’s program, we invite you to share your thoughts and comments on today’s topics. Your insights enrich our conversations and help us cover the issues that matter most to you. Thank you for joining us today, and we look forward to hearing your perspectives.
For all of us here at the EpochCast News Briefs, I’m Bill Thomas. Have a great day.
