Attorney General Merrick Garland on Wednesday reiterated that "no person," not even a former president, was above the law amid calls from some congressional Democrats to charge Donald Trump after last year's Capitol riot.

During a press conference, a visibly animated Garland twice said that "no person" was above the law when pressed specifically about Trump, whom Democrats say incited the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection over his unfounded claims of widespread voter fraud in 2020. Democrats also cite Trump's larger, months-long campaign to try and reverse his election loss. (Trump insists he did nothing wrong.)

The Department of Justice has been prosecuting various cases related to the rioting last January.

"There is a lot of speculation about what the Justice Department is doing, what's it not doing, what our theories are and what our theories aren't, and there will continue to be that speculation," the attorney general said Wednesday. "That's because a central tenant of the way in which the Justice Department investigates and a central tenant of the rule of law is that we do not do our investigations in the public."

GLAMIS, Calif. — One of the five U.S. Marines killed when their Osprey aircraft crashed during a training flight near Glamis in Imperial County was identified on Friday as, Capt. John J. Sax, 33, of Placer, California, an MV-22B Pilot. Sax is also the the son of Steve Sax, 5x All Star, former Major League Baseball player for the Los Angeles Dodgers, New York Yankees, Chicago White Sox and Oakland A’s.

Steve Sax said in statement,

“It is with complete devastation that I announce that my precious son, Johnny was one of the five (5) US Marines that perished on Wednesday, June 8 in the Osprey Military crash near San Diego” said Sax. “For those of you that knew Johnny, you saw his huge smile, bright light, his love for his family, the Marines, the joy of flying airplanes and defending our country! He was my hero and the best man I know, there was no better person to defend our country.” said Sax.

“Johnny Sax knew he wanted to be a pilot since his young years and would tell his Dad what types of planes were flying overhead while playing little league baseball in the outfield. “There was never any doubt from a young age that Johnny would be a pilot and his passion was to fly! I am so proud of the man he became and so proud to call him my son!” said Sax. “This loss will change my life forever and is a loss to not only the Marines but this world!”

April 5, 2022, 7:06 PM PDT / Source: Associated Press
By Associated Press
PHOENIX — The Arizona Supreme Court declined Tuesday to consider a request by the Arizona Republican Party to eliminate the early voting system used by 90 percent of the state’s voters and require nearly all voters to cast ballots in person on Election Day.

The court ruled that the case did not meet the limited criteria for a lawsuit filed directly to the state’s high court but said the GOP could take its case to Superior Court.

The lawsuit filed in February argued absentee voting is unconstitutional and asked the justices to get rid of it or at least eliminate the no-excuse absentee balloting system Arizona adopted in 1991 and has steadily expanded ever since.

The lawsuit comes amid GOP efforts on many fronts to remake the system for casting and counting votes as former President Donald Trump repeats the lie that he lost the 2020 election because of fraud in Arizona and other battleground states. It was blasted by Democrats and voting rights advocates who said the argument was deeply flawed and aimed at undermining elections.

The U.S. has uncovered "credible information" that Russian forces "are creating lists of identified Ukrainians to be killed or sent to camps," and that Russian troops will "likely use lethal measures to disperse peaceful protests," according to a recent letter to a U.N. high commissioner, sent by a U.S. ambassador.

The undated letter—published by The Washington Post on Sunday and written by Ambassador Bathsheba Nell Crocker, U.S. representative to the Office of the United Nations, and addressed to U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet—warns of a potential "human rights catastrophe" in the coming days.

"I would like to bring to your attention disturbing information recently obtained by the United States that indicates that human rights violations and abuses in the aftermath of a further invasion are being planned," Crocker wrote. "These acts ... would likely target those who oppose Russian actions, including Russian and Belarusian dissidents in exile in Ukraine, journalists and anti-corruption activists, and vulnerable populations such as religious and ethnic minorities and LGBTQI+ persons

The Russian-held Kherson International Airport and Air Base near the southern Ukrainian port city has successfully been struck by Ukrainian forces, according to a number of satellite images.

The Ukrainian attack on Tuesday appears to have destroyed a number of Russian helicopters, with images obtained by Planet Labs PBC showing a cloud of thick, black smoke rising from burning helicopters.

The first image shown above—the one in color—was taken at 1:35 p.m. local time on March 15, 2022.

The satellite images appear to show at least three helicopters on fire, as well as several vehicles. At a pad further away, other helicopters appeared to have been damaged by an earlier strike.