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Donald Trump‘s longtime financial gatekeeper has been granted immunity in a federal probe involving the US president’s former lawyer, Michael Cohen, according to media reports in the United States.

The Wall Street Journal and NBC News cited anonymous sources on Friday claiming that Allen Weisselberg, Trump Organization finance chief, received immunity to speak to prosecutors in the investigation of hush money Cohen paid to two women, who claimed to have affairs with Trump.

Cohen had pleaded guilty to tax and campaign finance violations on Tuesday. 

He said Trump directed him to arrange the payments. Such payments could be considered illegal campaign contributions under federal election law, according to experts.

Though not named in the Cohen case, Weisselberg is believed to be one of two Trump executives mentioned in the suit who reimbursed Cohen and then covered up the payments by saying they were legal expenses.

Weisselberg has been a Trump confidant who started working for his family in the early 1970s.

It is not clear whether Weisselberg told government prosecutors that the president was aware of the payments.

Trump himself denied having knowledge of the payments at the time they were made.

In an interview with Al Jazeera, Bruce Fein, a former top US prosecutor, described the reports as significant amid questions over the culpability of Trump’s business in the payoff scheme, which Cohen had pleaded guilty to.

“First of all, it is an absolute crime for a corporation to make any contribution to a political campaign,” he said. “They can’t spend one cent providing that assistance directly to a candidate.”

It appears that “substantial sums were paid for the Trump corporation to pay off [the two women], or to reimburse Mr Cohen”, Fein said.

“So, that being a campaign contribution, and that is what basically Mr Cohen has already pleaded guilty to, the corporation is equally guilty, including those who operate the corporation,” he added.

Fein said that with Weisselberg being granted immunity, it is possible that the president himself could be incriminated “in an income tax crime”.

SOURCE: Al Jazeera and news agencies

Image: channel 4/netflix

About a month ago, I was talking to a friend about TV when she expressed her effusive love for Crashing. I was puzzled, but not unappreciative; I’ve watched both seasons of Pete Holmes’ cute comedy about comedy, and while it’s not something I rewatch intently, I respected her unlikely enthusiasm.

Except that she was talking about a different show entirely.

Crashing rang a bell because it also happens to be the title of a short-lived U.K. comedy from Fleabag‘s Phoebe Waller-Bridge. A day later, I had binged it all, and my friend was correct: This show is delightful.

As the title suggests, Crashing is about a group of people and their temporary living situation – in this case, an unused hospital. Waller-Bridge originally developed the story as two plays and stars in the pilot as Lulu, who upsets the eclectic status quo by showing up to surprise her best friend Anthony (Damien Molony) much to the dismay of his uptight fiancée Kate (Louise Ford).

While that sets up a classic love triangle and an equally classic pair of close friends who clearly haven’t explored their own chemistry, Crashing doesn’t let romantic tension dominate its six episodes in an overbearing way. We spend as much time with the rapscallion Sam (Jonathan Bailey) and his new friend Fred (Amit Shah), with French firecracker Melody (Julie Dray) and her divorcé muse Colin (Adrian Scarborough). 

What makes Crashing so special is that it is every bit about muddled twenty-somethings trying to figure things out, but the show opts to tell its stories through exclusively through unconventional and often confusing relationships. 

Sam and Fred meet in the first episode and forge a zero to 100 friendship that takes them both by surprise; Melody and Colin stand up for their unprecedented relationship while baffled by its volatility; Lulu and Kate experience the extremes of kinship and jealous enmity that make female friendships so rich on and off-screen. 

Waller-Bridge is effervescent as ever, commanding the screen with another comedy heroine who is unapologetically messy but undoubtedly soldiering on. She never gets out of a single awkward situation; she just enters into a newer, more mortifying one and redirects the heat. 

There is an unforgettable visual in one episode of Lulu, wine-drunk and down about Anthony but also trying to seduce Sam as she swims in the remains of a ruined dinner. Secondhand embarrassment doesn’t begin to cover it, but Waller-Bridge’s commitment to speaking her character’s truth makes this moment ultimately endearing.

Crashing will probably never get another season or mainstream success, especially with Waller-Bridge having moved on and grown more prolific for Fleabag and recently Killing Eve. But that’s okay, because this brief, beautiful gem of a show will live forever on streaming and still has so much insight to offer about how bizarre circumstances are not only valid, but formative.

Crashing is streaming on Netflix.

WASHINGTON – The Marine general who branded stories about sexual harassment at his command as “fake news” and joked at a town hall about his sex life defended his remarks as appropriate, according to a Marine Corps internal investigation obtained by USA TODAY.

In a town hall meeting in April, Brig. Gen. Kurt Stein disparaged articles in USA TODAY that had detailed complaints about the handling of sexual harassment complaints and the toxic work environment found at the Marine and Family Programs Division. His joke about the Navy chaplain who was caught on video having sex outside a pub in New Orleans was “getting more action” than him was an attempt at “self-deprecating humor,” he told investigators.

That attempt fell flat. Of the 117 people who attended his talk, “70 perceived some portion of Brigadier General Stein’s remarks as offensive, inappropriate, unprofessional or adverse to the morale of the Marine and Family Programs personnel,” Brig. Gen. William Bowers, the investigating officer, wrote in his report.

More: Marine Corps general fired for calling sexual harassment claims “fake news”

More: Marines suspend general who called allegations of sexual harassment ‘fake news’

The investigation includes Stein’s attempt to explain his remarks and the joke and Bower’s conclusion that Stein’s comments had undermined “internal and external confidence in his ability to lead an organization responsible for sexual harassment prevention and response, and cast doubt on the Marine Corps’ commitment to improve its culture.”

Marine Corps Commandant Robert Neller stripped Stein of his command and counseled him less than two weeks after his remarks were first reported by USA TODAY. 

The Marine Corps and Stein had no comment on the investigation, said Maj. Brian Block, a Marine spokesman.

Stein, in his interview with Bowers, defended his use of the term “fake news.” Stein said he was not referring to the investigations involving Sherry Yetter and Traci Sharpe, two civilian Marine employees who have accused Maj. David Cheek of making explicit sexual overtures to them. Cheek has denied their allegations. Neller ordered a new investigation, and Cheek will face a panel that could kick him out of the Marine Corps.

Rather, Stein said, he was referring to the series of stories in USA TODAY that had portrayed problems at his command dating to 2014, before he took charge. One article detailed sexual harassment, racism and a cash settlement to an official who was forced from her job at the division. The story was based on a 2015 internal report about the toxic work environment at the division.

Stein told Bowers that he didn’t think he had read the articles but was “aware of them.” His “fake news” remark was used to “counter the repeated negative portrayal” of his division by the paper and not as a comment on the complaints by the women, he said. 

“I don’t see how anyone could see the ‘fake news’ comments as an attack on an investigation or the complainants,” he told Bowers. “The reporter threw us under the bus and attacked my people – that was my understanding. I never mentioned the investigation, its closing, or re-opening, or the people involved.”

No political commentary intended

He also denied that his use of fake news was meant to echo President Donald Trump, who regularly uses the term in an attempt to diminish coverage he doesn’t like.

“Additionally, my reference to ‘fake news’ was not intended to invoke or refer in any way to the President of the United States,” he wrote in a statement to Bowers. “‘Fake news’ is now a common term used by many people regardless of political affiliation.”

Stein’s attempt at humor prompted one audience member to phone the Naval Criminal Investigative Service hotline and lodge a complaint that Stein had said, “It’s a shame that as an aviator I have to live vicariously through a Navy chaplain,” the report notes, “and that this chaplain was ‘getting more action’ than he was.”

Stein, a pilot, said he recalled using slightly different language. The chaplain, Navy Capt. Loften Thornton, was fired in March from his post in New Orleans with Marine Corps Forces Reserve.

“My intent was to use the joke referencing the chaplain to break the ice, build rapport and connect with my division using a little humor and levity,” he wrote in his statement.

One of Stein’s subordinates, whose name was redacted in the report, told investigators that Stein previously had been warned that some of the comments he had made during staff meetings and in the workplace were “inappropriate, describing them as ‘frat boy’ humor, amateurish, or unprofessional.”

Bowers, the investigator, found that Stein may have believed that his comments were not “intended to pollute or degrade the work environment or set conditions for others to sexually harass or reprise against co-workers, (but) they could easily be seen as having that effect.”

Several witnesses expressed concern that responding to investigators’ questions about Stein would prompt retaliation from him, Bowers noted.

At the conclusion of the town hall meeting, the report says, General Stein opened the floor of the Scuttlebutt Theater at the Marine Corps museum at Quantico for questions.

“No one asked any questions,” the report notes.

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Stradivarius, ridden by Frankie Dettori and trained by John Gosden, has won the Lonsdale Cup at York to land the inaugural WH Stayers’ Million bonus.

The £1m prize was announced in January for any ‘staying horse’ that won one of four races in May – including the Yorkshire Cup – followed by the Gold Cup at Royal Ascot, the Goodwood Cup and the Lonsdale Cup.

“I didn’t feel the horse was as good today as at Ascot, only his courage and class got him through,” Dettori told ITV Racing. “Show me the money!”

A horse had never won the four races in the same season before.

Stradivarius triumphed in the Yorkshire Cup at York in May, before claiming the Ascot Gold Cup in June and defending his Goodwood Cup crown in August.

The 4-11 favourite, owned by Bjorn Nielsen, got the upper hand in the final furlong at York to beat his old rival Count Octave.

“He has managed to get over every hurdle and he must feel like he has just gone 12 rounds with Muhammad Ali,” Gosden told ITV. “He is not a big horse but he is fabulous and he showed a real mentality.

“Full marks to the owner, he’s been trying to breed a Derby winner for years and he ends up with a Cup horse.”

There was a surprise in the Nunthorpe Stakes as pre-race favourite Battaash finished fourth behind shock 40-1 winner Alpha Delphini.

The seven-year-old, trained by Bryan Smart and ridden by Graham Lee, edged out Mabs Cross in a photo finish.

‘A giant in heart and quality’ – analysis

BBC horse racing correspondent Cornelius Lysaght

Well, it wasn’t the cakewalk that some thought it might be, and Stradivarius really had to knuckle down to win the million because, as Dettori agreed, about three furlongs from the finish – 600m – things didn’t look especially great.

But the fact is that this horse, who’s not very big in terms of size but is a giant in terms of heart and quality, was able to dig deep enough to stay on stoutly and ultimately win actually quite well.

And after the campaign he’s had, winning month after month and over long distances, he can be forgiven pretty much anything.

Image: keith bedford/Getty Images

Even if everyone else abandons him or goes to jail, Ali G will always be by Trump’s side.

On Thursday, comedian Sacha Baron Cohen shared an old — and particularly painful — video of his most famous character, Ali G, interviewing Donald Trump. In a follow-up note, Ali G expressed affection for President Trump during this difficult time.

Watch in horror as Trump claims that humans existed hundreds of millions of years ago, an idea that’s been disproven by pretty much everyone in existence. Remember: this video was filmed before Trump ran for president, when he was notably more coherent.

Ali G made his feelings for Trump clear in the subsequent note he posted:

“Yesterday it was proven in de courts dat u iz a crook — respeck!” Ali G writes. “U iz a genuine gangsta!”

U iz a genuine gangsta, Donald Trump, and if Mueller has his way — you just might be going to jail.

U.S. Sen. John McCain, who has battled a deadly form of brain cancer for more than a year, is ending medical treatment, his office said in a statement Friday. 

The six-term senator from Arizona and 2008 Republican presidential nominee has been battling the cancer, known as glioblastoma, from his home near Sedona since December. His family and a team of caregivers have cared for McCain, 81, ever since. 

“Last summer, Senator John McCain shared with Americans the news our family already knew: he had been diagnosed with an aggressive glioblastoma, and the prognosis was serious,” the statement said. ” In the year since, John has surpassed expectations for his survival.

“But the progress of disease and the inexorable advance of age render their verdict. With his usual strength of will, he has now chosen to discontinue medical treatment. Our family is immensely grateful for the support and kindness of all his caregivers over the last year, and for the continuing outpouring of concern and affection from John’s many friends and associates, and the many thousands of people who are keeping him in their prayers. God bless and thank you all.”

MORE:  What if McCain leaves office? Here’s how the process works

From his home, McCain has continued his Senate duties as much as he could, from his family home in northern Arizona, 2,200 miles away from Washington, D.C. There, he occasionally weighed in on policy and media reports via Twitter, issued official written statements as he deems necessary and receives staff briefings.

However, McCain could not cast Senate votes by proxy or in absentia.

The senator’s wife, Cindy, expressed her gratitude for those who have helped in her husband’s treatment. They have been married for 37 years. 

“I love my husband with all of my heart,” she wrote on Twitter. “God bless everyone who has cared for my husband along this journey.” 

McCain’s daughter, Meghan, also thanked supporters for the “love and generosity” they have shown her family over the past year. 

“We could not have made it this far without you — you’ve given us strength to carry on.”

Family and friends have visited the McCain family at their Arizona home, including former Vice President Joe Biden, U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham, of South Carolina, and other friends and associates who have worked on his various campaigns. 

McCain’s 82nd birthday is on Aug. 29. 

MORE ON MCCAIN:

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