August 5, 2023 - Your Daily Digest

Trump battles in Court, missiles fired from Belarus, Wagner arrives in Niger, and more

Today is August 5, 2023, and here are five stories that you need to know about. If you enjoy my newsletter, please consider a monthly subscription to support my work, get access to exclusive content, and more.

1) Trump Battles In Court

Donald Trump is facing his first major legal battle in Washington, D.C., where he is facing four criminal charges associated with his actions on January 6, 2021. Late last night, the Special Counsel’s team notified the Court of Donald Trump’s recent statement, which many read to be a threat against the Special Counsel’s team. The post can be seen here:

In response, the Special Counsel asked the Court to issue a protective order in the case. The Special Counsel has concerns that Donald Trump will publicly share confidential evidence and/ or grand jury transcripts (which are all secret). As a result, the proposed protective order would allow the Special Counsel to begin sharing evidence with Trump and his defense team. In response, Judge Tanya Chutkan issued a scheduling order, requiring Trump’s team to respond, in writing, to the proposed protective order by Monday, August 7th.

While protective orders are common in most federal criminal cases, the attorneys here will debate over the scope of the protective order, specifically which pieces of evidence would be subject to the order and who, if anyone, can have access to the evidence int he case. Trump’s team, this morning, filed a request to extend the time to respond to the Special Counsel’s proposed order by three days. Within hours of this request, the Special Counsel’s team asked the Court to deny this extension request stating, among other things: “The Government stands ready to press send on a discovery production. The defendant is standing in the way.” Read the entire filing for yourself here. It remains to be seen whether the extension request will be granted, but it is highly likely the Special Counsel’s protective order will be entered in full, especially in light of Trump’s latest public statements.

2) Ukraine Faces Another Major Missile Attack

This morning, Russia launched a significant missile attack, targeting critical infrastructure across Ukraine. While missile strikes have become common, what made this strike significant is that some missiles were launched from Belarus. If the Belarusian military was responsible for these missiles, it could signal Belarus’ entry into the war. However, as many have noted, there are Russian military members stationed in Belarus, and Russia has previously fired Iskander missiles from Belarusian territory into Ukraine. We do not know who fired the missiles from Belarus’ territory just yet, and I will provide you with updates as we learn them.

3) Ukraine Orders Mandatory Evacuations

Ukraine has ordered the mandatory evacuations of children in several villages and settlements in Eastern Ukraine. Ukrainian officials have ordered these evacuations "due to the difficult security situation and hostile shelling." These latest evacuation ordered affect the following villages in the Eastern Donetsky region: Yampil, Zarichne, Torske, Orihuvatka, Nykonorivka, Malynivka, Tykhonivka, Vasiutynske and Rai-Oleksandrivka. In total, the order applies to about 130 children.

4) Wagner Arrives in Niger

Just when you thought the Wagner Group was done, Wagner advisors and trainers are back in the news again as they have arrived in the Capital of Niger. As many of you know, Wagner has played a significant role in Africa, and these latest members arrived in Niger from Mali. This comes about one week after a coup in Niger deposed of the democratically elected President. Meanwhile, countries around Niger are preparing for possible military intervention in the country. But, in a blow to this effort, Nigeria’s Senate rejected the army’s military intervention in Niger under the ECOWAS mandate. Stay tuned for more as the situation likely will get worse.

5) O’Shae Sibley Murder Suspect Charged

New York prosecutors have officially charged the 17-year-old suspect, who fatally stabbed O’Shae Sibley, with murder as a hate crime and criminal possession of a weapon. Sibley was a 28-year-old professional dance who was stabbed to death in Brooklyn, New York while dancing to a Beyoncé song last weekend. Sibley should be alive today. I will keep you updated as this case moves through the New York courts.