95.1 The Bee

The Republican party of Wyoming will no longer consider their sole U.S. House lawmaker, Rep. Liz Cheney, as a member of the GOP. Cheney, who is a consistent critic of former President Donald Trump, was one of 10 Republicans who voted to impeach Trump in January following the insurrection attempt on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6 by a mob of his supporters who were attempting to halt the counting of electoral votes, which found Joe Biden to be the victor of the 2020 presidential election.

Cheney, the daughter of former Vice President Dick Cheney, has repeatedly defended her vote to impeach Trump. Last week she called Trump a “dangerous and irrational man” who is at “war with the rule of law and the Constitution.” Cheney has also criticized Trump for his baseless claims that he won the 2020 presidential election before House Republicans removed her from her post as the third-highest ranking Republican, conference chair, in May.

In February, the Wyoming GOP also censured Cheney over her impeachment vote, arguing Cheney’s vote to impeach ran counter to the will of Wyoming voters, who supported Trump by a more than 40-point margin. The state party also made baseless claims that members of the anti-fascist movement Antifa and Black Lives Matter instigated the violence on Jan. 6. The congresswoman said she had put the Constitution above party in her impeachment of Trump and criticism of his attempts to undermine the 2020 election, but the state central committee voted to pass a resolution that questions her decision making.

Editorial credit: Jerome460 / Shutterstock.com

Former Trump advisor Steve Bannon was released without bail Monday after surrendering to federal authorities in Washington, D.C., where he faces criminal charges after defying a subpoena from the lawmakers investigating the deadly Capitol invasion.  The 67-year-old Bannon was charged with two counts of contempt of Congress following his refusal to comply with demands to produce documents and sit for a deposition as part of that investigation. Each count of contempt of Congress is a misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in jail and a maximum fine of $100,000.

Magistrate Judge Robin Meriweather said during Bannon’s brief initial appearance that he will be subject to general supervision requirements as part of the conditions of his release. He will have to regularly report to pretrial services and alert them to any plans to travel outside Washington. Bannon has also surrendered his passport and agreed not to obtain any other international travel documents.

Bannon did not enter a plea at the hearing. He is scheduled to appear before U.S. District Judge Carl Nichols on Thursday at 11 a.m. ET. Appearing outside the FBI’s Washington field office before turning himself in, Bannon claimed he and his allies were “taking down the Biden regime.”

Bannon was a senior White House advisor during the first seven months of Trump’s single term in office. He was fired by Trump years before the 2020 presidential election and the Jan. 6 invasion.

Editorial credit: JL IMAGES / Shutterstock.com

Six teenagers were wounded in a shooting involving multiple suspects at a small park close to a high school in Aurora, Colorado. The shooting happened around 12:45 p.m., police spokesperson Matthew Longshore said.

Police Chief Vanessa Wilson said Monday that the six students from Aurora Central High School, ranging in age from 14 to 18, were brought to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. School resource officers responded and applied a tourniquet to one victim, who went into surgery, Wilson said. Investigators found shell casings from different caliber guns and witnesses said there were multiple suspicious vehicles.  Said Wilson: “My understanding is it was a drive-by shooting, as well as there may have been people on foot. I think enough is enough. And I think we need to come together as a community. This is a public health crisis.” 

Aurora Police tweeted that the shooting occurred at Nome Park, just north of Central High School, where officials enacted a secure perimeter. The city of Aurora’s website says Nome Park is .8 acres and features a playground and community garden. Aurora Central High School had more than 2,000 students.