U.S. and world news for August 2

CIA dealings: CNN reported this morning that CIA officials held a secret meeting with Russian intelligence officers in June and it was after that meeting that negotiations that led to yesterday’s prisoner swap intensified. In July, CIA Director Bill Burns was told in a phone call from Moscow that Russian President Vladimir Putin was ready to move ahead with a deal that included the Germans releasing Russian assassin Vadim Krasikov who has close ties to Putin.

Former prisoners welcomed: President Biden and Vice President Harris were at Joint Base Andrews just before midnight when the plane carrying the Americans who had been held prisoner by Russia arrived. They welcomed Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, former U.S. Marine Paul Whelan and Russian-American journalist Alsu Kurmasheva back to the U.S. The former prisoners spent time with their family members and then boarded a plane to go to the Military Medical Center in San Antonio where they will receive medical evaluations and care and help adjusting to freedom.  

Trump’s claims: Donald Trump yesterday falsely claimed that when he was president he didn’t have to give up anything to get prisoners being held overseas released. In actual fact, Trump four times approved the release of prisoners the U.S. was holding in exchange for foreign governments releasing Americans they were holding. In May, Trump had declared he was the only person who could get Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich released. Gershkovich was one of the prisoners the Biden Administration got released by Russia yesterday.

Unemployment rate: Statistics released this morning by the Bureau of Labor Statics point to a continued economic slowdown. The unemployment rate rose to 4.3% in July, with nonfarm payroll employment going up by only 114,000. Employment continued to trend up in health care, construction, and in transportation and warehousing. The number of unemployed people increased by 352,000 to 7.2 million. A year earlier, the jobless rate was 3.5% and the number of unemployed people was 5.9 million.

Intel financials: Intel Corporation reports what it calls a disappointing second quarter performance, with a $1.6 billion loss on revenues of $12.9 billion for the quarter. The chip maker says it plans to tighten its belt and cut several thousand jobs. The board of directors voted to suspend a stock dividend in the fourth quarter. Intel said it is looking to cut next year’s expenses by about $10 billion. Intel said that these and other moves will help it have the financial resources and liquidity for future operations. Intel stock was down about 27% in morning trading.

$10 million: The Washington Post reported today that there was a secret federal investigation into whether Donald Trump arranged for an illegal payment of $10 million from Egyptian strongman Abdel-Fattah el-Sisi. The Post reported that the investigation was shut down while Trump was in the White House. The Post said that investigators found evidence of a $10 million cash withdrawal from an account linked to an Egyptian intelligence agency that was made five days before Trump became president. The Post said that investigators were blocked by political appointees in the Justice Department under the Trump Administration from obtaining records that they believed would answer the question of whether the money went to Trump.