Christopher Georgia, 53, who is from the state of Georgia died from a slef-inflicted gunshot wound to his chest, and his body was found in the basement of a home.
Washington, DC police had arrested Georgia and charged him with “unlawful entry of public property” and violating the US capital’s curfew in connection with last week’s deadly attack of Congress by Trump supporters.
Biden said he was seeking a “clear picture” from the outgoing administration on the force posture of US troops around the world.
President-elect Joe Biden said Monday that Donald Trump’s appointees at the Pentagon were stalling on the transition and warned that the United States faces security risks as a result.
After he and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris were briefed by their transition teams on national security, Biden said that political appointees at the Pentagon as well as the Office of Management and Budget had put up “roadblocks.”
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“Right now, we just aren’t getting all the information that we need from the outgoing administration in key national security area(s),” Biden said after the briefing.
“It is nothing short, in my view, of irresponsibility.”
“We need full visibility into the budget planning underway at the Defense Department and other agencies in order to avoid any window of confusion or catch-up that our adversaries may try to exploit,” Biden said.
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Trump has refused to concede the November 3 election, which Biden won by some seven million votes and by 306-232 in the state-by-state Electoral College. The president has made unsubstantiated claims of widespread fraud.
The Trump administration has drawn concern by shaking up the leadership of the Pentagon since the election including firing defense secretary Mark Esper, who had distanced himself from the president’s use of force against unarmed anti-racism demonstrators earlier this year.
Trump’s new acting defense secretary, Chris Miller, has said that the outgoing administration had agreed with Biden’s people to pause briefings for the holiday season, an assertion that the incoming team called untrue.
Miller released a statement Monday saying the Pentagon’s coordination efforts with the transition team “already surpass those of recent administrations with over three weeks to go.”
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He added that Department of Defense officials would continue working in a “transparent and collegial manner” to support the transition.
Trump’s last-minute installation of loyalists at the Pentagon comes amid high tensions with Iran, which Trump blamed for a rocket attack on the US embassy in Iraq ahead of the January anniversary of the US killing in Baghdad of a top Iranian general.
President Donald Trump on Monday made the surprise announcement that he is taking hydroxychloroquine, an anti-malaria drug that his own government experts say is not suitable for fighting the novel coronavirus.
Trump, noting that he has tested negative for the virus and shows no symptoms, said he’d been taking the drug as a preventative measure for about a week and a half.
“I take a pill every day,” he said, adding that he combines this with zinc.
Asked why, he said: “Because I think it’s good. I’ve heard a lot of good stories.”
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Trump has shown interest for weeks in promoting the use of hydroxychloroquine, even if some doctors think it does not work for coronavirus patients and US government regulators warn it has “not been shown to be safe.”
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said it’s “not a good idea” for Trump to be taking the drug as a potential treatment for the coronavirus.
“I would rather he not be taking something that has not been approved by the scientists, especially in his age group and in his, shall we say, weight group, which is morbidly obese, they say,” Pelosi said during an appearance on CNN’s “Anderson Cooper 360.”
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“So, I think that it’s not a good idea,” she added.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer called Trump’s decision to take the drug “reckless.”
“It gives people false hope, has people avoid real medical attention, and can actually cause them trouble. It is just dangerous what he did,” Schumer said on MSNBC.
Trump’s latest remarks came out of the blue, immediately grabbing headlines on a day when US deaths from COVID-19 topped 90,000 people — almost a third of the total world toll.
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“You’d be surprised at how many people are taking it, especially the front-line workers before you catch it. The front-line workers — many, many are taking it. I happen to be taking it,” he let slip to reporters attending a White House meeting devoted to the struggling restaurant industry.
“I’m taking it, hydroxychloroquine, right now, yeah. A couple of weeks ago, I started taking it,” he said.
Trump has often played down the dangers of coronavirus, including last week when he said it threatened only a small number of people. He also pointedly refuses to wear a mask, despite federal recommendations to do so and the fact that most of his staff have taken to covering their faces in public.
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A personal valet to Trump has tested positive for the coronavirus, as has Katie Miller, Vice President Mike Pence’s press secretary.
‘Reckless’ Trump said his use of the medicine was approved by the White House physician, Sean Conley. However, Trump insisted that he, not the doctor, took the first step.
“I asked him, ‘what do you think?’ He said, ‘if you’d like it.’ I said ‘yeah, I’d like it.’”
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Conley later issued a statement saying that he had agreed to Trump using the anti-viral drug “after numerous discussions” between them about the pros and cons.
“We concluded the potential benefit from treatment outweighed the relative risk,” Conley said.
Trump said he has received many “positive calls” from people, whom he did not identify, telling him about the malaria drug. He mentioned a letter he’d received from a New York doctor, also unidentified, who reported giving the medicine to hundreds of patients and “I haven’t lost one.”
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By contrast, the government’s Food and Drug Administration warns against giving hydroxychloroquine for either prevention or treatment of the coronavirus, noting reported side effects including “serious heart rhythm problems in patients with COVID-19.” Only emergency use is authorized under temporary rules.
Earlier this month, a medical paper out of New York suggested that combining hydroxychloroquine with the dietary supplement zinc sulfate, which has antiviral properties, could create a more effective treatment against coronavirus.
But Matthew Heinz, an Arizona doctor who served under Barack Obama’s government, said medicines like hydroxychloroquine are not “benign” and open for unregulated use.
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“I cannot stress enough how reckless it is to encourage anybody to take hydroxychloroquine or any other unproven remedy,” he said in a statement.
Trump signalled as he has throughout the crisis, that there was nothing to lose by trying possible treatments.
“It seems to have an impact, and maybe it does, maybe it doesn’t but if it doesn’t, you’re not going to get sick or die,” Trump said. “I take a pill every day. At some point, I’ll stop.”
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The president said again on Monday that he showed “zero symptoms.”
“Every couple days they want to test me, you know, for obvious reasons. I mean I am the president, so they want to test me. I don’t want to be tested but they want to test me,” he said. “I’ve shown always negative.”
US President, Donald Trump, has confirmed his call to the Nigerian president, Muhammadu Buhari. He also confirmed that his government will be gifting Nigeria 200 ventilators as the nation battles the Coronavirus pandemic.
NobleReporters earlier reported that President Buhari had a telephone chat with the US President who promised to give Nigeria ventilators.
President Trump had a press conference where he confirmed his government will be giving Nigeria 200 or more ventilators. According to him, we will do anything for ventilators.
”I spoke today to Nigeria. They will do anything for ventillators. We are going to send at least two hundren ventillators to Nigeria, probably more than that” he said
>>> COVID-19: Australia set to try Chinese vaccine on humans <<<
An Australian research and clinical facility is preparing to lunch human trial of COVID-19 vaccine developed by China, Chinese media reported on Tuesday.
According to the state-run agency Xinhua, Linear Clinical Research, Perth-based clinical research company, has began to recruit healthy adults for the trial within next two months.
S-Trimer vaccine, developed by China-based global biotechnology company Clover Biopharmaceuticals, is among the first COVID-19 vaccines under development.
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Linear also announced the vaccine trial on their website and called on the interested people to register with the company.
“If you’re healthy and located in Perth, WA, register your interest to participate in our upcoming COVID-19 vaccine study,” the company said.
Protein-based S-Trimer vaccine aims to help the body to produce anti-bodies to fight the virus, according to Xinhua. NobleReporters learnt
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“This is one of the most prominent trials globally and involves some of the most renowned vaccine companies,” the agency quoted Jayden Rogers, chief executive of Linear, as saying.
S-Trimer vaccine on trial showed great potential and was at the forefront of the global battle with COVID-19, Rogers added.
On April 14, Chinese authorities approved human testing of two other coronavirus vaccines developed by the Wuhan Institute of Biological Products under the China National Pharmaceutical Group (Sinopharm) and Sinovac Research and Development Co., Ltd, a company based in Beijing.
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Sinopharm has produced over 50,000 doses for the initial clinical trials. After production is normalized, the output could reach 3 million doses per batch with an annual output at 100 million doses, according to the Global Times, a Chinese state-run new outlet.
The Chinese pharmaceutical group last week also extended offer for clinical trials of the COVID-19 vaccine in Pakistan, however Islamabad said they asked the company for more information.
US President, Donald Trump Glad As Italy Residents Recovers From COVID-19
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>>> COVID-19: Italy is recovering, Trump’s happy <<<
United States President Donald Trump said Monday he was “happy that Italy is recovering” from the coronavirus crisis.
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Speaking at a press conference at the White House, Trump also recalled that Premier Giuseppe Conte was a “friend”.
Italy will gradually start coming out of lockdown starting May 4 after the virus contagion curve has started dipping along with the daily toll of victims.
US President Donald Trump predicted that the death toll from coronavirus in the United States could reach 60,000, noting that the figure was “substantially” lower than the minimum figure of 100,000 estimated last month.
Speaking at the daily White House coronavirus briefing, on a day when global deaths from the virus passed 100,000, Mr Trump claimed the fatality rate in the US was “very low compared to other countries”.
The president said that “in the midst of all this grief and pain” there were positive signs that the country was nearing the peak of cases. Much of this was due to his administration’s “aggressive strategy”, he said. “We are saving so many lives compared to what it could have been.
“Nationwide the number of new cases is flattening substantially, suggesting we are nearing the peak and our comprehensive strategy is working,” he added.
Amid reports that the president was considering reopening the country as early as May 1st, Mr Trump insisted he would listen to the health experts before making a decision. He said he would be announcing the formation of a task force next week to look at ways of reopening the economy.
“I want to get [the country] open as soon as possible. This country was meant to be open, to be vibrant,” he said.
The Pentagon has confirmed that commander of Iran’s Quds Force has been killed in a United States air strike ordered by President Donald Trump and aimed at “deterring future Iranian attack plans”.
Qasem Soleimani, the commander of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) Quds Force unit, andAbu Mahdi al-Muhandis, the deputy head of the Iran-backed Iraqi Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), were among those killed in the attack at Baghdad International Airport on Friday, January 3rd the PMF said in a statement.
The Iraqi military said three rockets were fired at the airport, with the total number of people killed unclear. In a statement, the Pentagon said the US had taken “decisive defensive action to protect US personnel abroad” by killing Soleimani, who heads what the US describes as a foreign terrorist organization.
“This strike was aimed at deterring future Iranian attack plans. The United States will continue to take all necessary action to protect our people and our interests wherever they are around the world” the statement said.
In a statement, the PMF confirmed the pair “were martyred by an American strike.”
According to the Pentagon, Soleimani was“actively developing plans to attack American diplomats and service members in Iraq and throughout the region.”
Soleimani and his Quds Force were responsible for the deaths of hundreds of American and coalition service members, and the wounding of thousands more, the Pentagon added.
The Pentagon also blamed Soleimani for orchestrating attacks on coalition bases in Iraq in recent months, including an attack on December 27 that culminated in the deaths of additional American and Iraqi personnel
Earlier today, the Pentagon confirmed that commander of Iran’s Quds Force has been killed in a United States air strike ordered by President Donald Trump.
Qasem Soleimani, the commander of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) Quds Force unit, and Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, the deputy head of the Iran-backed Iraqi Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), were among those killed in the attack at Baghdad International Airport.
With Iran expected to respond to the attack on its sovereignty by US, social media is already awash with reactions and talks of possible ‘World War 3’ if the situation is not properly managed.
Me laughing at the World War 3 memes than realizing this shit might actually happen pic.twitter.com/0I4zrb98cm
If Iran strikes a military base or an aircraft carrier in the region they will likely face a nuclear response from the Trump administration
If they order their terror cells in the U.S. to carry out attacks then they'll likely face even tougher sanctions and a military response https://t.co/SURSmbXZ5Q
Iran’s Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has responded to US President Donald Trump’s Tuesday threats to attack Iran if there are any damages to US lives and properties after protesters stormed the US Embassy in Baghdad, Iraq, destroying parts of the building and setting fire on parts of the walls.
Dozens of Iraqi protesters stormed the US embassy compound in Baghdad, Iraq on Tuesday and smashed the main door, setting fire to the reception area after US Military launched attacks on Iran backed Kataib Hezbollah, killing 25 suspected terrorists as retaliation for last week’s killing of an American contractor in a rocket attack on an Iraqi military base .
The protests continued till Wednesday but later reduced after Iraqi military and US Marines boosted security around the US Embassy.
Trump, after ordering deployment of over 700 US Marines to Baghdad, in a series of Tweets said he holds Iran responsible for any loss of American properties or lives and that the US will retaliate
But Iran’s Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei who called for a press conference on Wednesday, referred to Trump as ‘that guy’ and tweeted that the US “can’t do anything.”
“If you were logical — which you’re not — you’d see that your crimes in Iraq, Afghanistan… have made nations hate you,” Khamenei tweeted.
According to Khamenei, Iran – which has one of the best land & proxy forces in the world, doesn’t want war, but wouldn’t hesitate to fight if it has to defend it’s rights and interests.
US and Iran have been on a dangerous path since the 2015 Idea nuclear deal was botched by Trump in 2018, citing Iran’s growing influence in the Middle East and Iran’s control over anti-Israel ‘terrorist’ group.
A spokesman for Kataib Hezbollah, the alleged Iran sponsored terror group, that US targeted in the attacks that killed 25 alleged terrorist, told CNN that the embassy protests on Tuesday and Wednesday were a “first step.”
“The American administration should understand the following: the first step was to protest near the American embassy, we are waiting their reactions to determine the second step,” Mohamad Mouhiye said, calling for the US to shut down the embassy and withdraw from Iraq.
Donald Trump (Left) Ayatollah Ali Khamenei (Right)
“First, close the doors of the evil embassy, which we consider a spy building and an operations room to administer and sabotage Iraq’s well-being,” Mouhiye said.
“We also call on the US to withdraw their military forces which are in Iraq illegally.”
…US Airstrikes in Iraq & Syria, killed 25 and injured 51 militants
Iran has warned the US to prepare for ‘consequences’ after the US Militia launched airstrikes against Iranian backed militia group in Iraq and Syria killing 25 people and injuring 51.
The precision airstrikes, targeted five facilities controlled by Kataib Hezbollah in Iraq and Syria on Sunday, leading to Iran’s fury filled statement Monday night.
“The US has openly shown its support to terrorism and shown its negligence to the independence and national sovereignty of countries,” said Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Abbas Mosavi , according to the state-run IRNA news agency.
“It must accept responsibility of the consequences of the illegal attacks,” added Mosavi.
Hezbollah, another militia group based in Lebanon that receives it’s funding from Iran, called the attack “a blatant violation on the sovereignty, security and stability of Iraq and the Iraqi people,” in a statement released on the group’s al-Manar TV Monday.
“This aggression reaffirms that the American administration wants to strike the underlying potential powers of the Iraqi people which is capable to confront ISIS and the powers of extremism and crime,” the statement read.
“The American administration reveals its true face as an enemy to Iraq and the interest of the Iraqi people and their aspiration for freedom, true sovereignty and a secured future,” it continued.
Meanwhile the Pentagon has released a statement confirming the attacks .
Pentagon spokesman Jonathan Hoffman described the strikes as “precision defensive strikes” that “will degrade” the group’s ability to conduct future attacks against coalition forces.
The military strikes represent the first significant US military response in retaliation for attacks by the Iran backed militia groups against US Forces or interests in the region in a long while.
Military analysts believe a proxy war could start out now between the US and Iran following the latest
A new Gallup survey released on Monday, December 30th found President Donald Trump and former President Barack Obama tied as the most admired man of 2019.
However, Trump’s wife Melania failed to match the popularity of Obama’s wife, Michelle, who was named as the most admired woman for the second year. She had 10 percent of respondents naming her, down from 15 percent last year. Melania Trump came in second at 5 percent.
This is the first year Trump has risen to the top spot in the annual survey and the 12th year for Obama. Each was named by 18 percent of respondents to the open-ended survey conducted December 2-15.
Obama tied former President Dwight Eisenhower for the most times named as most admired man since the survey began in 1948.
The survey reflected the political divide in the nation, with 41 percent of Democrats naming Obama and 45 percent of Republicans naming Trump. The results also reflect Trump’s rise in popularity, with a 45 percent job approval rating up from 40 percent in 2018 and 36 percent in 2017, Gallup noted.
Donald Trump (Left) Barrack Obama (Right)
The incumbent president has taken the top spot in 58 of the 72 prior Gallup polls. Other men in the Top 10 this year were former President Jimmy Carter, businessman Elon Musk, Microsoft founder Bill Gates, Pope Francis, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, California Rep. Adam Schiff, the Dalai Lama and investor Warren Buffett, though none earned mentions from more than 2 percent of respondents.
Among women, talk show host Oprah Winfrey, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and teen climate change activist Greta Thunberg tied with mentions from 3 percent of respondents, followed by Queen Elizabeth II, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley.
A leading Christian magazine founded by late evangelist Billy Graham (father of key presidential supporter Franklin Graham) published an editorial on Thursday, December 19th calling for President Donald Trump to be removed from office and urging evangelicals not to support him.
“Whether Mr. Trump should be removed from office by the Senate or by popular vote next election that is a matter of prudential judgment. That he should be removed, we believe, is not a matter of partisan loyalties but loyalty to the Creator of the Ten Commandments” Christianity Today’s editor in chief, Mark Galli, wrote in the op-ed.
“We believe the impeachment hearings have made it absolutely clear, in a way the Mueller investigation did not, that President Trump has abused his authority for personal gain and betrayed his constitutional oath. The impeachment hearings have illuminated the president’s moral deficiencies for all to see.”
“None of the president’s positives can balance the moral and political danger we face under a leader of such grossly immoral character,” he added.
The publication, an influential one among evangelicals, has criticized Trump before on immigration and other issues, but never before called for his removal. The op-ed shows potential reasoning for dissent among a key faction of the Republican coalition as Trump prepares for a potential Senate trial following his impeachment by the House of Representatives Wednesday night.
“To the many evangelicals who continue to support Mr. Trump in spite of his blackened moral record, we might say this: Remember who you are and whom you serve.
Consider how your justification of Mr. Trump influences your witness to your Lord and Savior. Consider what an unbelieving world will say if you continue to brush off Mr. Trump’s immoral words and behavior in the cause of political expediency” Galli wrote.
President Trump however dismissed the criticism today, calling the publication a “far left magazine” and drawing a contrast between himself and the Democrats seeking the 2020 presidential nomination
A far left magazine, or very “progressive,” as some would call it, which has been doing poorly and hasn’t been involved with the Billy Graham family for many years, Christianity Today, knows nothing about reading a perfect transcript of a routine phone call and would rather…..
….have a Radical Left nonbeliever, who wants to take your religion & your guns, than Donald Trump as your President. No President has done more for the Evangelical community, and it’s not even close. You’ll not get anything from those Dems on stage. I won’t be reading ET again!
President Donald Trump has announced that Rep. Jeff Van Drew would join the Republican Party, a day after the New Jersey congressman and one other Democrat voted against both articles of impeachment.
Van Drew met with Trump, Vice President Mike Pence and House GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy at the White House on Thursday, December 19th but looked to have already made up his mind Wednesday night. He sat with Republicans before the historic vote, receiving handshakes and fist bumps from GOP members.
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Democrat Rep. Jeff Van Drew tells President @realDonaldTrump what made him leave his own party, quotes Ronald Reagan.
“I didn’t leave my party, my party left me.”
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He crossed his arms when House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff presented the Democratic case for impeachment. And he gave McCarthy’s counter argument a standing ovation. “I think they were very kind, very gracious, very nice, very supportive,” said Van Drew about the Republican welcome on Wednesday night. “And I appreciated that.” Van Drew added that he thought Trump’s chances of reelection “are going to be even higher” after the Senate acquits the President.
Democrats are however moving quickly to keep the seat. Brigid Harrison, a political science professor at Montclair State University, announced on Monday that she would run and other Democrats are considering campaigns.
Democrat Rep. Jeff Van Drew tells President @realDonaldTrump what made him leave his own party, quotes Ronald Reagan.
Russia’s President, Vladimir Putin has dismissed the impeachment charges against US President Donald Trump which he claimed were all made up.
Speaking during an annual press conference, Putin said he expects the US president to survive the historic proceedings.
Describing the impeachment proceedings as political infighting, the Russian leader insisted that the Democrats were seeking to make up for their loss in the 2016 presidential elections “by other means”.
“The Democratic party, which lost the elections, is achieving results through other means, by accusing Trump at first of conspiracy with Russia, then it turns out, there was no conspiracy at all.
“It then turned out that there was no collusion and it could not form the basis for an impeachment, and now there is this made-up pressure on Ukraine.”
Recall that President Trump became the third president in US history to be impeached, after the House passed two articles of impeachment: abuse of power and obstruction of Congress.
On June 4, 2014, while Barack Obama was still the US president, Donald Trump tweeted: “Are you allowed to impeach a president for gross incompetence?”.
With his impeachment by the House of Representatives yesterday, Americans dug out the Tweet and below is how they’re reacting to it.
.@realDonaldTrump, there really is a tweet for every occasion.
Day 1063) i could have told you so 1062 days ago that we can impeach a gross president for incompetence. https://t.co/n94lG3QxZN— eponine deserved better (@kayno919) December 19, 2019
Final Answer:
I don’t think so, but we can impeach for bribery and obstruction of justice 🙃
Donald Trump has reacted to the news of his impeachment by the House of Representatives.
On Wednesday night, the United States House of Representatives voted largely to impeach President Donald Trump for obstruction of Congress and abuse of power related to his dealings with Ukraine.
Two articles of impeachment were actually passed over his behaviour in the Ukraine scandal, one for abuse of power and the other for obstruction of Congress.
The issue will now be pass to the Senate, where a trial will be carried out to determine whether to convict and remove Mr. Trump from the office next month.
Reacting to his impeachment on Twitter, Donald Trump shared a poster of himself with the inscription : ‘IN REALITY, THEY’RE NOT AFTER ME THEY’RE AFTER YOU, I’M JUST IN THE WAY.’
Donald J. Trump
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@realDonaldTrump
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Trump, who has denied any wrongdoing, took the stage at a Michigan rally earlier as the House began voting on impeachment and said : ‘They’ve been trying to impeach me from day one.”
“After three years of sinister witch hunts, hoaxes, scams, tonight, House Democrats are trying to nullify the ballots of tens of millions of patriotic Americans.”
Donald Trump is now the third president in US history to be impeached after Andrew Johnson and Bill Clinton.
One of Donald Trump’s strong supporters has donated his left testicle for medical research following hisimpeachment by the House of Representatives on Wednesday night (Dec.18).
The man identified as Mr. Joey Saladino on Twitter had taken to his page back in September to announce that he will donate his left testicle in protest against the impeachment of Mr. Donald Trump if it comes to reality.
Well, the man has now come out to claim that his left testicle has now been donated for medical research. He also shared a letter of acknowledgment from the National Testicle Association (NTA) after the donation.
