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Susan Rice's resurfaced 2017 comments denying knowledge of Trump team surveillance raise eyebrows
A three-year-old interview clip of former National Security Adviser Susan Rice resurfaced Tuesday after the declassified email she sent to herself on the final day of the Obama administration was released. It suggests Rice has lied about her knowledge about the Obama administration's surveillance of President Trump's transition team.
The clip comes from an April 2017 appearance on "PBS NewsHour." Rice was asked about the then-breaking revelations about members of President Trump's transition team having been surveilled before he took office.
"In the last few hours, we've been following a disclosure by the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, Devin Nunes, that in essence, during the final days of the Obama administration, during the transition after President Trump had been elected, that he and the people around him may have been caught up in surveillance of foreign individuals and their identities may have been disclosed. Do you know anything about this?" PBS anchor Judy Woodruff asked.
"I know nothing about this," Rice said at the time. "I was surprised to see reports from Chairman Nunes on that count today."
However, the newly released email on Tuesday appeared to indicate Rice had knowledge of the surveillance that took place that led to the "unmasking" of then-incoming National Security Adviser (NSA) Michael Flynn from his communications with the then-Russian ambassador.
The email, which was written on Jan. 20, 2017, documented a Jan. 5 Oval Office meeting with then-President Obama and others, during which he provided guidance on how law enforcement needed to investigate Russian interference in the 2016 presidential race. Click here for more on our top story.
Other related developments:
- Brit Hume says declassified Susan Rice email 'suspicious on many counts'
- Sen. Ron Johnson: Declassified Rice email shows Obama officials 'sabotaging the incoming administration'
- Hannity calls out FBI Director Wray after Rice email declassified
Exclusive: Planned Parenthood affiliates improperly applied for and received $80 million in coronavirus stimulus funds, feds say
Thirty-seven Planned Parenthood affiliates applied for and received a total of $80 million in loans from the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), Fox News' "Tucker Carlson Tonight" has learned -- and now the federal government wants the money back, saying the affiliates should have known they weren't eligible for the coronavirus stimulus payouts.
The Small Business Administration (SBA) is reaching out to each involved Planned Parenthood affiliate explaining that affiliates of larger organizations with more than 500 employees aren't eligible for PPP distributions, Fox News is told. The Planned Parenthood Federation of America (PFFA) alone has had more than 600 employees. Click here for more.
Other related developments:
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- Texas man charged with coronavirus loan fraud topping $5 million
- 'Jane Roe' in Roe v. Wade Supreme Court case said she was paid to support pro-life movement
More than 100 million people in China face new lockdown as second wave of COVID-19 cases emerge
Nearly 108 million people in China's Jilin province could be forced back into lockdown after a growing group of new coronavirus infections triggered a backslide in the nation's push to return to normal.
The abrupt reversal in China's northeast region has once again cut off public transportation, closed schools and led to another round of quarantine. Fan Pai, who works at a trading company in the nearby province of Liaoning, told Bloomberg News that people are starting to feel "more cautious" again.
"Children playing outside are wearing masks again," she said. "It's frustrating because you don't know when it will end."
The new clusters of coronavirus cases have also ignited everyone's worst fear that a second wave of the deadly disease could be on the horizon. Click here for more.
Other related developments:
- Ex-WHO official says coronavirus not increasing in reopened spots: 'It's as though something has changed'
- Wearing a face mask can reduce coronavirus transmission by up to 75 percent, study says
- Southern California organizations seek weekly assistance for workers in state illegally: report
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SOME PARTING WORDS
Tucker Carlson argues that China benefited the most while U.S. leaders were consumed with the Russia collusion narrative for years.
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Fox News First is compiled by Fox News' Bryan Robinson. Thank you for making us your first choice in the morning! Stay safe, stay healthy, and remember: hard times don't last forever. We will get through this coronavirus crisis together. We'll see you in your inbox first thing Thursday morning.
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