Trump Tower

By Steve Neavling
ticklethewire.com

Although President Trump has provided no evidence that the Obama administration wiretapped his offices during the 2016 presidential campaign, he insisted again Wednesday that the claims are true.

On Monday, FBI Director James Comey is scheduled to testify before a congressional panel to discuss what evidence, if any, has been found to back up Trump’s claims.

“Wiretap covers a lot of different things,” Trump told Fox News Channel’s Tucker Carlson last night.

But even Republicans are getting frustrated with the unfounded claims, and leaders of the House Intelligence Committee said Wednesday that they have found no evidence to confirm President Obama wiretapped Trump Tower during the election.

“We don’t have any evidence that that took place,” said U.S. Rep. Devin Nunes, a California Republican and the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee. “In fact, I don’t believe — in the last week … people we’ve talked to — I don’t think there was an actual tap of Trump Tower,” the Boston Herald reports. 

By Steve Neavling
ticklethewire.com

Two Secret Service agents are under investigation for taking selfies with President Trump’s sleeping 8-year-old grandson last weekend.

The agents were driving Donald III to Manhattan from Westchester County, where Trump has an estate, Mother Jones reports.

Agents began taking selfies with Trump’s grandson when he fell asleep in the car.

The boy was “freaked out” by the selfies, a source told Mother Jones.

When he reached his destination, the boy told his mom what had happened, prompting an investigation.

“The US Secret Service is aware of a matter involving two of our agents and one of our protectees,” a Secret Service spokesman said. “Our Office of Professional Responsibility will always thoroughly review a matter to determine the facts and to ensure proper, long-standing protocols and procedures are followed. The Secret Service would caution individuals to not jump to conclusions that may grossly mischaracterize the matter.”

The McArthur Bridge on Belle Isle in Detroit.

By Steve Neavling
ticklethewire.com

A Border Patrol agent rescued a man who attempted to commit suicide by jumping into the icy Detroit River from the McArthur Bridge on Belle Isle in Detroit.

The agent was patrolling when they saw what appeared to be a couple in need of help, WWJ reports. 

The agent saw the man push his wife aside before trying to climb the railing of the bridge.

The Border Patrol agent quickly grabbed the man, preventing him from jumping.

The man was pulled to safety.

“The courage of the men and women of the law enforcement profession was evident in every aspect of protecting our community Monday,” said Chief Patrol Agent Douglas Harrison, in statement. “The keen eye of the off duty Park Ranger noticing something out of place and quick response by the Border Patrol made for the best possible outcome in this situation.”

Other Stories of Interest

• Charges Announced in Massive Cyber Intrusion Case
• Investigating threats to Jewish Centers Top Priority for FBI
• Pa. Couple Being Sought by FBI win Double Drug Murder
• Homeland Security Moving to Condemn Border Property Wall Proposed by Trump
• Border Patrol Defends Surge in Electronic Searches Amid Privacy Complaints

Former Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca, via Wikipedia.

By Steve Neavling
ticklethewire.com

Former Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca was found guilty Wednesday of obstructing an FBI investigation involving corrupt and violent guards.

Baca, who was facing a second trial because a jury deadlocked last year, could spend up to 20 years behind bars, the Associated Press reports. 

Baca, 74, resigned in 2014 after the corruption investigation netted arrests among rank-and-file deputies in his inner circle.

In 2011, the FBI began investigating the department after jail guards found a contraband cellphone on an inmate who was acting as an FBI mole to record jail beatings.

“When defendant Baca learned the FBI and a federal grand jury was investigating, he obstructed, and when he learned the FBI has turned its focus on him, he lied,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Lizabeth Rhodes said.

The investigation revealed that deputies hid the FBI informant from federal agents by moving him to different jails and booking him under fake names.

Donald Trump, via Wikipedia

By Steve Neavling
ticklethewire.com

The Justice Department and President Trump criticized two judges’ decisions Wednesday to halt the revised travel ban by ruling it is discriminatory against Muslims.

The Justice Department contends Trump’s executive order “falls squarely within his lawful authority in seeking to protect our nation’s security,” the Washington Post reports. 

It’s unclear what step the government will take next.

At a rally in Nashville on Wednesday, Trump lashed out at the court decisions, saying he would take the case to the Supreme Court. He event suggested returning to his original executive order, which was a more sweeping ban.

“Let me tell you something. I think we ought to go back to the first one and go all the way,” Trump said. “The danger is clear, the law is clear, the need for my executive order is clear.”

Federal judges in Maryland and Hawaii struck down the order on religious discrimination grounds, pointing to Trump’s statements during the campaign that he wanted to ban all Muslims from entering the U.S.