How Michael Wolff Wrote His Bombshell White House Tell-All
The White House is demanding Michael Wolff not publish his upcoming tell-all "Fire and Fury." Axios' Alayna Treene joins Cheddar to break down the story that's turning the political and media worlds on their heads. She reveals whether she thinks the cease-and-desist letter counts as an admission that the contents of the book are true.
Next, we dive into the controversial media critic's background and history with the president. Despite critics complaints that Wolff's accounts are inaccurate, Axios reports he has dozens of hours of recordings to support claims made in his book. Despite shooting to number one on Amazon's top-sellers list, Treene discusses whether she thinks the White House's legal efforts will be successful in blocking the book's release.
Despite being attacked by President Trump, Steve Bannon is standing by his former boss. The Breitbart chairman had nothing but kind words to say about the president on his radio show, Thursday. Treene weighs the odds of whether Bannon will consider running for president in 2020.
Russian lawmakers have given President Vladimir Putin a military force authorization in Ukraine, and President Biden has described Putin's announcement declaring the independence of two provinces within Ukraine and his subsequent deployment of peacekeepers as tantamount to "invasion. David Tafuri, a former Obama campaign foreign policy advisor and Bush State Department official, joined Cheddar News to discuss. "The Ukrainian military occupies more than 70 percent of those provinces still," Tafuri said, noting Putin alleged having a responsibility to defend those regions. "This would put Ukrainian forces and Russian forces right at each other engaged. And that might be how the war starts."
The major indexes ended Tuesday's session sharply lower due to escalating tensions between Russia and Ukraine. Bill Stone, Chief Investment Officer at The Glenview Trust Company, joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell, where he reminds viewers that Wall Street doesn't like uncertainty, and more of the recent losses are due to geopolitics than inflation.
Karim Hijazi, CEO of Prevailion, joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell, where he says that crypto's decentralized nature will pose obstacles for the FBI's new crypto unit, but it will also make progress with items such as managing fraudulent exchanges.
The Retail Industry Leaders Association released a report alleging the safety risks, economic losses, and potential job losses they link to a surge in shoplifting crimes in the United States. Lisa LaBruno, senior EVP of retail operations at the trade organization, joined Cheddar News to discuss the impact of websites that allow for the resale of unverified goods and passing the INFORM Consumers Act to stamp it out. “We need to hold the online marketplaces accountable for being a favored venue for criminals to resell stolen product," LaBruno said. "And that is exactly what the INFORM Act is designed to do."
The East-West faceoff over Ukraine has escalated dramatically, with Russian lawmakers authorizing President Vladimir Putin to use military force outside his country and President Biden and European leaders responding by slapping sanctions on Russian oligarchs and banks.
Stocks closed broadly lower Tuesday after Russia sent forces into Ukraine’s eastern region and the U.S., European Union and U.K. responded with economic sanctions.
President Biden says he’s “convinced” that Russian President Vladimir Putin has decided to launch a further invasion of Ukraine, saying Friday he has “reason to believe” it will occur in the "coming days."
