A top U.S. intelligence official says it looks like the invasion of Ukraine could become one of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s most significant and enduring blunders.

“It’s hard to see the record of the war — Putin’s record — as anything other than a failure, so far,” Central Intelligence Agency Director William Burns told a cybersecurity conference in Washington on Thursday.

“Russia is going to pay a very heavy price,” Burns said. “Not only has the weakness of the Russian military been exposed, but there is going to be long-term damage done to the Russian economy and to generations of Russians as a result of this.”

The blunt assessment is not the first from a top U.S. intelligence official warning that Russia’s war with Ukraine is backfiring on Moscow.

 

In June, U.S. Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines said that Russia’s ground forces “have been degraded to the point where it will take them years to get back to where they were, in many respects.”

At the time, Haines said Russia’s losses could possibly persuade Putin to negotiate at least a temporary end to the fighting.

But instead, Putin appears to have hardened his stance on Ukraine.

“It wasn’t us who started the military action, we are trying to put an end to it,” Putin told an economic forum in the port city of Vladivostok on Wednesday, reiterating his long-held position that he was compelled to send forces into Ukraine to protect Moscow-backed separatist regions that have battled Ukrainian forces since Russia’s 2014 annexation of Crimea.

“In the longer run, it will help strengthen our country both domestically and internationally,” he added.

Burns, the CIA director, said Thursday that he expects the war in Ukraine will prove Putin wrong.

“Putin’s bet, I think, is that he’s going to be tougher than the Ukrainians and the Europeans and the Americans,” Burns said. “Putin’s view is always that we have attention deficit disorder, and we’ll get distracted.”

“Putin is as wrong about that bet as he was profoundly wrong in his assumptions going back to last February about the Ukrainian will to resist and the will of the West, of the United States and all of our partners to support the Ukrainians,” he said.

 

Some information in this report came from The Associated Press.
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The United States will boost its stockpile of at-home COVID-19 tests, ordering more than 100 million tests from domestic manufacturers, the White House said on Thursday, but warned it was a short-term solution. 

President Joe Biden’s administration has repeatedly and unsuccessfully asked Congress for more pandemic money. It said last week it would request $22.4 billion in emergency funding for COVID-19 relief ahead of a potential case surge in autumn. 

“The administration is acting, within its limited funding, to increase the supply of at-home COVID-19 tests in the Strategic National Stockpile (SNS) by purchasing over 100 million additional at-home, rapid tests from domestic manufacturers,” the White House said in a statement. 

The administration has warned it would be unable to provide enough tests, vaccines and treatments without more funding. Thursday’s announcement comes a week after it suspended orders of free tests from its COVIDTests.gov website as of September 2. 

“While insufficient to adequately replenish our existing stockpile of at-home tests, this procurement will help meet some testing needs in the months ahead and will put us in a better position to manage a potential increase in testing demand this fall and winter,” the White House said of the new tests. 

It did not say if ordering from COVIDTests.gov, through which 600 million tests have been delivered, would resume as a result. It said last week that orders through the website would resume if Congress provides funding. 

The administration is also launching a telehealth “Test to Treat” program that will allow people in 15 rural and high-risk communities to get tests delivered to their homes, use telehealth to consult a clinician, and get antiviral treatments prescribed and delivered if necessary at no cost, it said. 

There are currently 2,800 “Test to Treat” sites where people can be tested at a pharmacy and immediately receive free pills if they test positive. 

 
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President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden welcomed former President Barack Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama to the White House Wednesday to unveil the Obamas’ official portraits. White House Bureau Chief Patsy Widakuswara has the report.
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High inflation and soaring interest rates are taking a financial toll on many Americans, especially low-income minorities, compelling a growing number to borrow money to make ends meet, according to debt monitoring organizations. At the same time, people of color are increasingly turning away from traditional lending institutions, opting instead to ask family and friends for a personal loan.

“I asked my sister to lend me money,” said Monica Welborn, an African American mother of two from Maryland. Welborn reluctantly made the request after being denied a bank loan for $4,000.

“They [the bank] said my credit score was too low to receive a [standard] loan,” she told VOA. “They offered to lend me half of what I wanted but at a very high interest rate.”

Welborn is among millions who face roadblocks to borrowing from traditional lending institutions. Minorities are especially likely to seek loans from other sources, usually people they know. A survey released by the U.S. Census Bureau earlier this year found that 17% of Black Americans and 15% of Hispanics had borrowed money from family and friends, compared to 7% of whites.

But informal loans can present challenges as well, including something as basic as nailing down the terms of repayment. A Florida-based financial technology firm is part of a growing industry dedicated to facilitating non-traditional lending, sometimes referred to as peer-to-peer.

“There’s got to be a better way from a software perspective we can make these loans a little less cumbersome, and a little less of a burden,” said Kaben Clauson, co-founder of Pigeon Loans. His company is hoping to capitalize on providing services for the tens of millions of Americans who rely on borrowing from friends and family.

Clauson, 34, launched the free online platform last year to make it easier for people to lend and borrow money outside the banking system. “You create a payment plan, and say I want to pay you back over the next 15 months and this is how much I’m going to pay you,” he said.

The service sends out text message reminders to borrowers to help ensure money is paid back on time and with minimal drama. The lender can also add an agreed upon interest rate, which Clauson maintains is typically much lower than those offered by banks.

Pigeon Loans said its service has increased 200% in the past two months, with 70% of its users either Black, Latino or Asian. “These are traditionally disadvantaged communities. So many of them are living paycheck to paycheck, but those communities have a legacy of helping one another,” Clauson told VOA.

Small business lending

Such lending isn’t limited to individuals for their own needs. Pigeon Loans has seen an uptick in the number of loans given to minority business owners. There are an estimated 8 million minority-owned businesses across the country, and most are sole proprietorships, according to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

Clauson’s company recently helped an African American entrepreneur in the nation’s capital open a bakery with a $10,000 loan from a friend. “People in other communities that are more advantaged have a rich uncle or parents that can help them get them going,” he said. “That’s not the case for many in minority communities, particularly for entrepreneurs.”

Some observers see peer-to-peer lending as a crutch, not a solution. “Personal loans can help with startup opportunities for Black-owned businesses but it’s not a long-term solution,” said Rick Wade, senior vice president of strategic alliances at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. “We want small minority companies across America to have a solid relationship with traditional lending institutions to help grow their business and we’ve got a lot of work to do in that regard.”

Taking on debt

Clauson predicts a wave of lending and borrowing on his platform next year if the U.S. economy slows and people take on more debt. He argues that borrowing from family, a neighbor or a colleague at work makes sense, especially when times are tough. “They’re likely going to give you the most favorable interest rate and payment terms,” he said.

Traditional lending institutions go to great lengths to vet borrowers and make sure they can repay loans. Does bypassing such procedures lead to greater loan delinquency? Not according to Pigeon Loans.

The company says its platform has attracted more than 50,000 users who, according to Clauson, have a 97% on-time repayment rate. The loan default rate, in which the money is never repaid, is said to be less than 1%.

Clauson acknowledges the loan platform may not be for everyone and warns against lending money that would otherwise be used to pay for one’s own core expenses.

“If you happen to be lucky enough to have some discretionary cash you can lend, go for it. But make sure that you have your own financial house in order first,” he said.
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A panel of federal health advisers voted Wednesday to recommend approval for an experimental drug to treat Lou Gehrig’s disease, a remarkable turnaround for the much-debated medication that was previously rejected by the same group earlier this year.

The Food and Drug Administration advisers voted 7-2 that data from Amylyx Pharma warranted approval, despite hours of debate about the strength and reliability of the company’s lone study. The FDA is not required to follow the group’s advice, but its positive recommendation suggests an approval is likely later this month.

The FDA has approved only two therapies for the disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS, which destroys nerve cells needed for basic functions like walking, talking and swallowing.

Patients support drug

ALS patients and their families have rallied behind Amylyx’s drug, launching an aggressive lobbying campaign and enlisting members of Congress to push the FDA to grant approval.

Despite a negative review published by FDA’s internal scientists ahead of the meeting, a majority of the outside panelists said Amylyx had presented enough evidence to suggest the drug is helping patients live longer. The same group of neurology experts narrowly voted against the drug in March, because of concerns about missing data and other issues in the company’s study.

“To deprive ALS patients of a drug that might work, it’s probably not something I would feel terribly comfortable with,” said Dr. Liana Apostolova of Indiana University’s School of Medicine, who voted for approval. “At the previous meeting it wasn’t that clear and it’s still questionable.”

Amylyx also appeared to benefit from an unusual exchange in which a company executive — at the FDA’s request — committed to pull the drug from the market if its benefits aren’t confirmed by a large, ongoing study.

The FDA has the power to force companies to pull drugs from the market, though it’s generally faster if drugmakers voluntarily take that step. In cases where companies resist removal the regulatory process can drag on for years.

New data prompts second look

Wednesday’s vote concluded a rare second meeting to review several new statistical analyses submitted by Amylyx in support of the treatment’s benefit in slowing disease and extending life.

The ALS drug review is being closely watched as an indicator of FDA’s flexibility in reviewing experimental medications for the terminally ill and its ability to withstand outside pressure.

Amylyx conducted one small, mid-stage trial of its drug that showed some benefit in slowing the disease, but it was plagued by missing data and other problems, according to FDA reviewers.

“The final result — for a single study — is borderline and not very statistically persuasive,” FDA statistician Tristan Massie told panelists.

Company says data shows drug extends life

The Cambridge, Massachusetts, company says follow-up data gathered after the study concluded showed the drug extended life. Patients who continued taking the drug survived about 10 months longer than patients who never took the drug, according to a new company analysis.

Panelists favoring the drug cited that data, along with the drug’s mild side effects, to suggest there would be little downside for patients even if it doesn’t ultimately slow ALS.

Hanging over the review is FDA’s controversial approval of the Alzheimer’s drug Aduhelm last year, which was reviewed by the same agency scientists and outside advisers.

In that case, the FDA disregarded the overwhelmingly negative vote by its outside advisers, three of whom resigned over the decision. The agency’s approval — which followed irregular meetings with drugmaker Biogen — is under investigation by Congress and federal inspectors.
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U.S. lawmakers are getting back to work after a monthlong summer recess as the Senate returns this week and the House of Representatives comes back into session next week.

With narrow control of both chambers and some significant items already checked off President Joe Biden’s legislative agenda, Democrats are aiming to pass several key new pieces of legislation. But they have only a handful of weeks before Congress recesses again so that members can campaign ahead of the November 3 midterm elections.   

 

Government funding  

 

In what has now become almost a yearly routine, U.S. lawmakers will not reach an agreement on spending bills by the September 30 deadline when government funding runs out. Democrats and Republicans normally agree on a short-term continuing resolution, or CR, to keep the government operating. It remains to be seen, though, whether that CR will cover the rest of the calendar year or possibly even further out.   

 

Passage will also depend on whether the parties can agree on Biden’s request for $47 billion in additional funding, an amount that includes a new $13 billion tranche for U.S. military and humanitarian aid to Ukraine and $22.4 billion for continuing efforts to combat COVID-19.   

 

“Ukraine needs more help. We want to give it to them. And on monkeypox and COVID, we need to be prepared. We’ve always been prepared in this country. And it’s disgraceful that Republicans are playing political games with this when the health of the nation is at stake,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer told reporters Wednesday.   

 

Republicans are reluctant to approve Democrats’ new funding request, arguing the money should instead come out of unused COVID funds.   

 

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell told reporters, “The cleaner the CR, the better. Ukraine is obviously a priority for most of us on both sides of the aisle. We’ll see what they’re requesting and how much of it is actually designed to help Ukraine wage war.”   

 

Same-sex marriage  

The U.S. Supreme Court’s Dobbs v. Jackson decision earlier this summer, which overturned the nearly 50-year-old constitutional right to abortion guaranteed by Roe v. Wade, triggered a wave of legislation that would provide protection for other rights on the federal level.   

 

Democratic Senators Tammy Baldwin and Kyrsten Sinema are working to secure the Republican support needed to clear a 60-vote threshold to pass a bill protecting same-sex marriage. In June, the House passed similar legislation with the support of 47 Republicans.   

 

“A vote about marriage equality will happen on the Senate floor in the coming weeks, and I hope there will be 10 Republicans to support it,” Schumer told reporters Wednesday. 

“We prefer to do it as a separate bill,” Schumer said, leaving open the possibility it could be added to the CR, which would raise the stakes for Republicans by forcing them to shut down the government in order to block it.

January 6 investigation

The select committee investigating the January 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol is set to resume hearings this month. Originally scheduled to run for only seven hearings earlier this summer, lawmakers extended their public investigation into former President Donald Trump’s efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election, culminating in the worst attack on the Capitol in two centuries.   

 

Republican Representative Liz Cheney – who lost her primary bid to seek re-election to her congressional seat in August – has already said Trump should face charges for his actions. The committee is expected to hear new evidence that has come to light because of its work earlier this summer.   

 

The Senate also could pass the Electoral College Reform Act clarifying the role of the vice president in certifying the results of a presidential election. The bipartisan legislation is aimed at preventing misuse of an 1887 law that came under scrutiny following the attack on the Capitol.   

 

Other agenda items   

Additionally, Democrats are expected to continue confirmation of Biden’s judicial nominees. And the so-called “Gang of Eight” top Democratic and Republican leaders from the Senate and the House could receive a classified briefing on Trump’s possession of classified documents at his residence in Mar-a-Lago.   

 

With Democrats gaining ground on Republicans in several key midterm races around the country, Schumer could decide to cancel the Senate’s two-week session in October in order to give members more time to campaign in their home states.
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Elon Musk will be able to include new evidence from a Twitter whistleblower as he fights to get out of his $44 billion deal to buy the social media company, but Musk won’t be able to delay a high-stakes October trial over the dispute, a judge ruled Wednesday. 

Chancellor Kathaleen St. Jude McCormick, the head judge of Delaware’s Court of Chancery, denied Musk’s request to delay the trial by four weeks. But she allowed the billionaire Tesla CEO to add evidence related to whistleblower allegations by former Twitter security chief Peiter Zatko, who is scheduled to testify to Congress next week about the company’s poor cybersecurity practices. 

Twitter has sued Musk, asking the Delaware court to force him to go through with the deal he made in April to buy the company. Musk has countersued and a trial is set to start the week of October 17. 

Musk’s legal team has argued that the allegations made by Zatko to U.S. officials may help bolster Musk’s claims that Twitter misled him and the public about the company’s problem with fake and “spam” accounts. Zatko, a well-known cybersecurity expert known by his hacker handle ” Mudge,” said he was fired in January after raising flags about Twitter’s negligence in protecting the security and privacy of its users. 

The judge’s ruling followed an hourslong hearing Tuesday at which attorneys for Musk and Twitter argued with each other about the merits of Zatko’s claims and the pace at which both sides are producing evidence ahead of the trial. 

Twitter’s attorneys sought to downplay the relevance of Zatko’s allegations to the merger dispute, arguing that an initial 27-page complaint he sent to Twitter and a later retaliation claim made no mention of the “spam bot” issues that Musk has given as a reason to terminate the deal. Zatko “never said a word about spam or bots” until his July whistleblower complaint, said Twitter attorney William Savitt. 

Twitter has argued for weeks that Musk’s stated reasons for backing out were just a cover for buyer’s remorse after agreeing to pay 38% above Twitter’s stock price shortly before the stock market stumbled and shares of the electric-car maker Tesla, where most of Musk’s personal wealth resides, lost more than $100 billion of their value. 

McCormick, the judge, said Wednesday the newly published whistleblower complaint gave Musk’s team grounds to amend its countersuit but she declined to weigh in on the details. 

“I am reticent to say more concerning the merits of the counterclaims at this posture before they have been fully litigated,” she wrote. “The world will have to wait for the post-trial decision.” 

McCormick, however, sided with Twitter’s concerns that delaying the trial would make it harder for the company to get back to business. 

“I am convinced that even four weeks’ delay would risk further harm to Twitter too great to justify,” she wrote. 

In afternoon trading, Twitter shares added 5.5% to $40.77. 

 
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