
Biden surprises Elton John with National Humanities Medal at White House
CNN
President Joe Biden on Friday presented Sir Elton John with the National Humanities Medal, surprising the music icon following a performance on the South Lawn of the White House.
"I'm never flabbergasted, but I'm flabbergasted," a visibly moved John said, thanking the President and saying that he will "treasure" the honor.
The medal, according to the Friday presentation, was to honor John "for moving our souls with his powerful voice and one of the defining song books of all time. An enduring icon and advocate with absolute courage, who found purpose to challenge convention, shatter stigma and advance the simple truth -- that everyone deserves to be treated with dignity and respect."

Botched Epstein redactions trace back to Virgin Islands’ 2020 civil racketeering case against estate
A botched redaction in the Epstein files revealed that government attorneys once accused his lawyers of paying over $400,000 to “young female models and actresses” to cover up his criminal activities

The Justice Department’s leadership asked career prosecutors in Florida Tuesday to volunteer over the “next several days” to help to redact the Epstein files, in the latest internal Trump administrationpush toward releasing the hundreds of thousands of photos, internal memos and other evidence around the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

The US State Department on Tuesday imposed visa sanctions on a former top European Union official and employees of organizations that combat disinformation for alleged censorship – sharply ratcheting up the Trump administration’s fight against European regulations that have impacted digital platforms, far-right politicians and Trump allies, including Elon Musk.










