“Pizzagate” gunman dies in officer-involved shooting in North Carolina
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(CHARLOTTE, N.C.) — The man who in 2016 showed up to a popular pizza restaurant with a gun, claiming there were children being trafficked in the basement, died in an officer-involved shooting on Thursday outside of Charlotte, North Carolina, according to authorities.
Edgar Maddison Welch was armed when he tried to take action against “Pizzagate,” a conspiracy theory that spread during the election cycle of 2016.
It falsely claimed that the New York City Police Department had discovered a child sex trafficking ring in the basement of Comet Ping Pong Pizza in Washington, D.C. The conspiracy theory falsely claimed that the criminal ring was run by operatives from within the Democrat Party.
Welch fired three shots at the restaurant in an effort to “self investigate” the ring, which didn’t exist. He was sentenced to four years in prison.
An officer made a traffic stop on the vehicle after observing that it belonged to Welch, who had an outstanding warrant for his arrest, the statement said.
“A vehicle stop was made by the officer and during his interaction with the driver, the officer recognized the front seat passenger as the person with the outstanding warrant for arrest,” according to the KPD.
“The officer who initiated the traffic stop approached the passenger side of the vehicle and opened the front passenger’s door to arrest the individual,” according to Kannapolis Chief of Police Terry Spry.
During the traffic stop, it was discovered that Welch was armed. Officers called for him to drop his gun, but he “failed to comply,” according to the statement.
“When he opened the door, the front seat passenger pulled a handgun from his jacket and pointed it in the direction of the officer,” he said in the statement, referring to Welch by his position within the vehicle.
“That officer and a second officer who was standing at the rear passenger side of the Yukon gave commands for the passenger to drop the gun,” Spry said.
His statement continued: “After the passenger failed to comply with their repeated requests, both officers fired their duty weapon at the passenger, striking him.”
Welch died two days later at a nearby hospital, Spry said.
The incident is being investigated by an outside police agency to determine if there was any wrongdoing.
(WASHINGTON) — Four years ago, the idea of pardons for Jan. 6 rioters seemed unthinkable to most Republicans.
Even as President Donald Trump floated the idea of pardons, most Republicans stood firm on one thing: violent offenders should not be included in that list.
Here’s what Republican senators told ABC News on Tuesday after Trump issued pardons for or commuted the sentences of more than 1,500 people who rioted at the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021:
Sen. Tommy Tuberville claims he’s ‘never’ seen video of rioters beating police
“100 percent, I’m for the — pardon everyone. They’ve been there long enough. Most of them hadn’t been charged with anything,” Tuberville told us.
ABC News asked about those pardoned after attacking police — beating them with fire hydrants and metal batons. Among those pardoned: Devlyn Thompson, who hit a police officer with a metal baton, and Robert Palmer, who attacked police with a fire extinguisher, a wooden plank and a pole.
“I didn’t see that,” the Alabama senator said. When asked if that’s acceptable, Tuberville said “No, that’s not acceptable, but I didn’t see it.”
Tuberville went a step farther: “I don’t believe it because I didn’t see it. Now, if I see it, I would believe it, but I didn’t see in that video.”
Sen. Thom Tillis distances himself from the pardons: “Just can’t agree”
Of the Republican senators ABC News spoke to, only two were willing to fully distance themselves from Trump’s action.
Tillis, of North Carolina, has been outspoken on this issue, even using his time at Attorney General nominee Pam Bondi’s confirmation hearing to publicly press her on the prospect of pardons for the Jan. 6 rioters.
“I find it hard to believe the president or you would look at facts that were used to convict the violent people on Jan. 6 and say it was just an intemperate moment,” he said during that hearing.
When approached on Tuesday, he continued to say he “just can’t agree.”
“Anyone — What I’m trying to do is figure out there are some commutations to me, I just can’t agree,” he said. “I’m about to file two bills that will increase the penalties up to and including the death penalty for the murder of a police officer, and increasing the penalties and creating federal crimes for assaulting a police officer. That should give you everything you need to know about my position, like it is, it was surprising to me that it was a blanket pardon. Now I’m going through the details,” Tillis said.
Sen. Susan Collins “disagrees” with pardons for violent offenders
Collins, of Maine, was among the seven Republicans who, in 2021, voted to convict Trump in his second impeachment trial over Jan. 6. She said she “disagrees” with pardons for violent offenders who assaulted officers, broke windows, or performed other violent acts that day.
“I made very clear to you that I think that there’s a difference between violent crimes and non-violent crimes. I do not support the pardons if they were given, if they were given to people who committed violent crimes, including assaulting police officers or breaking windows to get into the Capitol or other violent acts, pepper spray, for example,” Collins said.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune insists he hasn’t seen the details
Thune was pressed several times in the hallway Monday. He first stated he didn’t have any comment and “hadn’t seen all the stuff.”
Later, when asked again, the South Dakota senator said, “As I’ve said before, we’re looking forward to the next four years, not the last four.”
Some Republicans called the pardons the president’s prerogative
When asked about the violent offenders being pardoned, Texas Sen. John Cornyn said, “That’s not the question. The question is who has the authority, and the president has the authority.”
Wisconsin Sen. Ron Johnson tried to split the difference, insisting the pardons were “absolutely justified” while also saying he didn’t want pardons for “violent actors.”
“I think they were absolutely justified,” he said. “Again, I don’t know all the cases. I certainly don’t want to pardon any violent actors, but there’s a real miscarriage of justice, so I’m totally supportive.”
When I pointed out Trump had pardoned violent offenders, Johnson said, “I haven’t seen the details, but I think a lot of those pardons are definitely well deserved.”
Sen. Kevin Cramer of North Dakota stated Biden and Trump’s pardons of both Jan. 6 select committee members and those charged with crimes from that day, should “clear the deck” for Americans to put the attack on the Capitol “behind us.”
When asked about Trump’s promise after the riot that those who broke the law “will pay,” Cramer said, “I think a lot of those, a lot of those who broke the law have paid it’s been four years.”
What about Biden’s pardons?
Several Republican senators brought up President Joe Biden’s 11th-hour pardons.
“Well, are we making a big deal about the pardons that Biden put in place? That’d be worse,” Sen. Markwayne Mullin of Oklahoma said when asked how he felt about Trump pardoning violent offenders. Mullin, who has previously said that those who committed violent crimes that day “need to pay for that,” continued to point back to Biden when asked if he changed his tune.
At least one Democrat seemed to understand that argument from Republicans. Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine said Trump’s pardons of Jan. 6 criminals were “harder to critique” because of Biden’s pardons for family members.
“I’m very disappointed in them,” Kaine said Tuesday about Biden’s actions.
“Because I think, look, I think we need to make a critique of some of the unjust pardons, like the January 6 pardon. And I think it’s harder to make a critique, to stand on the high ground and make a critique of the Trump pardons on January 6, when President Biden is pardoning family members,” the Virginia Democrat said.
(WASHINGTON) — President-elect Donald Trump, speaking at Mar-a-Lago on Tuesday, blasted President Joe Biden’s final actions before leaving office.
Trump accused the outgoing administration of not providing a “smooth transition.”
Trump kicked off the presser by announcing a $20 billion investment in the U.S. from DAMAC Properties, a Middle East-based company. He said the investments will focus on building new data centers across the Midwest and Sun Belt.
He quickly shifted focus, however, to criticizing the Biden’s recent moves — including a ban all future offshore oil and natural gas drilling off America’s East and West coasts.
“We are inheriting a difficult situation from the outgoing administration, and they’re trying everything they can to make it more difficult,” Trump said.
On Biden’s oil drilling ban, Trump vowed: “I will reverse it immediately. It’ll be done immediately. And we will drill baby drill.”
The president-elect also claimed he would rename the Gulf of Mexico to the “Gulf of America.”
“What a beautiful name. And it’s appropriate. It’s appropriate,” he said.
Trump also continued his public push for the U.S. to control the Panama Canal and Greenland. Asked by a reporter if he would commit to not using military force or economic coercion in his quest to acquire the territories, he flatly said no.
“No, I can assure you on either of those two. But I can say this, we need them for economic security,” Trump said.
The president-elect went on to criticize former President Jimmy Carter, whose remains are being transported to Washington on Tuesday for a state funeral, for ceding control of the critical waterway to the Central American nation.
“Giving the Panama Canal is why Jimmy Carter lost the election, in my opinion, more so maybe than the hostages,” Trump said, calling it a “very big mistake” on Carter’s part.
Trump, who last held a news conference in mid-December, is speaking to the press one day after his 2024 election victory was certified by Congress. The Monday ceremony, which marked a return to a peaceful transition, came exactly four years after a mob violently stormed the Capitol and disrupted the counting of President Biden’s electoral win.
Republicans are preparing for Trump to visit Washington on Wednesday, ABC News has learned. Currently, lawmakers are debating how best to fund Trump’s major policy initiatives once he is back in the White House.
This is Trump’s second news conference since becoming president-elect.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
(WASHINGTON) — The United States is going to ban Russian and Chinese software in vehicles, according to the Department of Commerce, due to national security concerns.
The final rule, posted on the federal register Tuesday morning, comes after the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security previewed the rule months ago.
During the rulemaking process, the Bureau of Industry and Security found that certain technologies originating from China or Russia present an undue and unacceptable risk to U.S. national security.
“Cars today aren’t just steel on wheels – they’re computers,” outgoing Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said in a news release Tuesday. “They have cameras, microphones, GPS tracking, and other technologies that are connected to the internet. Through this rule, the Commerce Department is taking a necessary step to safeguard U.S. national security and protect Americans’ privacy by keeping foreign adversaries from manipulating these technologies to access sensitive or personal information.”
The software bans will apply to Model 2027 cars, while the hardware bans will apply to Model 2030 vehicles.
The final rule, which only applies to passenger vehicles, establishes that hardware and software integrated into the Vehicle Connectivity System (VCS) and software integrated into the Automated Driving System (ADS), the systems in vehicles that allow for external connectivity and autonomous driving capabilities, present an undue and unacceptable risk to national security when designed, developed, manufactured, or supplied by persons with a sufficient nexus to the PRC or Russia, the department said.
The department says it will issue a separate rule addressing commercial vehicles in the near future.
A senior administration official told reporters on a conference call that the automotive industry largely agreed with these recommendations, which were based on national security concerns.
“Malicious access to these critical supply chains could allow our foreign adversaries to extract sensitive data, including personal information about vehicle drivers or owners, and remotely manipulate vehicles,” according to a release from the Commerce Department.
The rule also prohibits manufacturers with a sufficient nexus to the PRC or Russia from selling new connected vehicles that incorporate VCS hardware or software or ADS software in the United States, even if the vehicle was made in the United States.
Another senior administration official said that the dangers of Chinese and Russian software extend beyond the car. If mobile phones are connected to this software, it could give China an easy way to extract user data.
“Recent malicious cyber activity, particularly activity that they do that was volt typhoon has really heightened the urgency of preempting even more risk to our critical infrastructure, and we’ve seen not just volt typhoon, but really mounting evidence of the PRC pre-positioning malware in our critical infrastructure, solely for the purpose of sabotage and disruption,” a senior administration official said. “With potentially millions of connected vehicles coming on the road, you know, each with 10-to-15-year lifespans, the risk of sabotage really increases substantially. The second set of risks, as was alluded to as well, are this data security risk given the massive amount of sensitive personal data, including geo location data, audio, video recordings and other live data that’s collected connected by these vehicles.”
