Day: June 29, 2024
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New in SpyWeek: Assange and More
Not With a Bang But a Whimper: The swift resolution of the case against Julian Assange was a legal surrender by the U.S. government, but it was much more: an outcome dictated by the competing and overlapping pressures of diplomacy, national security, and military strategy.
Assange’s return to his native Australia as a free man Wednesday followed years of quiet but strategic diplomacy by Australian leaders who seized upon a new strategic partnership with Washington and London to make the case for Assange’s release.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said he personally raised the issue with President Biden at a 2022 NATO summit in Madrid as the two leaders strengthened their ties through the AUKUS partnership forged the previous year. Under AUKUS, the United States and the United Kingdom committed to helping Australia build a fleet of nuclear-powered submarines to counter China’s rise as a global superpower.
AUKUS was the sort of deal full of secrets—such as highly classified efforts to develop unspecified “advanced capabilities”—that the 52-year-old WikiLeaks founder would have loved to spill. But as Assange lingered for five years in a high-security British prison battling the U.S. government’s efforts to extradite him, he became one of AUKUS’ beneficiaries.
Many Americans didn’t know what to expect leading up to the CNN Presidential Debate last Thursday. However, after the debate concluded, both Republicans and Democrats seemed to focus primarily on one concern: President Biden’s performance. Though former President Trump also received backlash for lying and straying away from questions asked, President Biden’s raspy voice, and freezing and meandering answers left Americans worried, regardless of their politics. FOX News contributor and former speechwriter for President George W. Bush, Marc Thiessen, and former Biden Campaign Surrogate Kevin Walling discuss the stand-out moments from debate night, how much a debate can impact an election, and the likelihood of Democrats potentially replacing President Biden as the presidential nominee.
Several important opinions from the Supreme Court were released this week as the country anxiously awaits the high court’s ruling on presidential immunity. On Friday, the court overturned the 1984 Chevron decision allowing the federal government to regulate workplace safety and consumer protections. In addition, the Justices made it harder to charge Capitol riot defendants with obstruction, a charge also brought against former President Donald Trump. John Yoo is a law professor at UC Berkley, a nonresident senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, and a visiting fellow at the Hoover Institution. He joins to break down this week’s opinions and preview the immunity decision expected early next week.
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A dad’s offer to be a stand-in parent for LGBTQ couples has grown into a global network of allies. A family of Taekwondo athletes sprang into action to save a woman from being assaulted. In Missouri, a small-town fire department’s bank account was running out, until a 91-year-old man gave them a game-changing donation. Visitors with disabilities can explore the Great Smoky Mountains in new ways. Plus, what are the best US towns to visit this summer? We’ll share some of CNN Travel’s top 10.
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