Lawmakers React to FBI Dir. Testimony; Israeli PM Netanyahu Addresses Congress – Jul. 24

Good evening, everyone. Welcome to NTD Tonight. I'm David Zhang. Here are today's top stories. Lawmakers in Congress reacted to FBI Director Christopher Wray's testimony on the attempted assassination of former President Trump. Israeli Prime Minister addressed Congress earlier today more on what he said. We'll also take a closer look at what Wray told lawmakers about the shooter and his motive. First up, FBI Director Christopher Wray faced questions from Congress today over the attempted assassination of former President Trump. Wray appeared before the House Judiciary Committee to answer questions about the FBI's investigation of suspected shooter Thomas Crooks. And on Capitol Hill, NTD's Washington correspondent Jack Bradley spoke to several members of Congress about how they felt about FBI Director Wray's testimony. I think clearly there were some lapses, but we'll find out more. I think it was right that, what's her name, Cheadle resigned. But I think the FBI is doing what it can. He appears to be trying to be very forthcoming about what they've found out with respect to the shooting in Butler County, you know, within the bounds of trying to make sure they don't mess up their investigation. These kinds of hearings are meant to make sure that we as a federal government are doing the best job we can to protect our candidates, both sides of the aisle. Our democracy depends on it. We have to make sure we have the trust of the people, trust of the nation, to make sure democracy works. As far as the local law enforcement, what they told you personally, what were they saying? Not enough communication, not enough coordination. And I, you know, my line of questionings, I tried to, again, emphasize that I was told by some of the locals quietly, you know, they weren't sure what was going on. And that's not a good statement. I'll just say violence has never been the answer, and I don't think political parties should be relevant here, because it's clear that this did not have to do with political parties. The FBI has been handling this investigation with professionalism, and Director Wray's been incredibly forthcoming. While I may not like everything that the FBI does, and I've certainly criticized surveillance and other things, surveillance of American citizens, I also think it is important to have an agency, a law enforcement agency, that is not subject to the whims of the president and is actually politically independent and can follow investigations to the conclusion. What else can be done by the FBI to prevent future acts of violence like this? They can just have their intelligence extensive to try to find out if there's somebody out there trying to plant something. As the FBI continues its investigation into the assassination attempt of former President Trump, there are many unanswered questions left to be resolved. Reporting from Washington, D.C., Jack Bradley, NTD News. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed a joint session of Congress today. He highlighted the importance of bipartisan support for Israel, which he called an irreplaceable ally to the U.S. We meet today at a crossroads of history. Our world is in upheaval. In the Middle East, Iran's axis of terror confronts America, Israel, and our Arab friends. This is not a clash of civilizations. It's a clash between barbarism and civilization. Netanyahu's visit has sparked controversy due to concerns over Israel's actions in Gaza. Over dozens of lawmakers, including Vice President Kamala Harris, didn't attend his speech. President Biden will meet with Netanyahu at the White House tomorrow to discuss Gaza's ceasefire progress and a hostage release. The White House said Vice President Harris will also meet with Netanyahu on the same day but separately. Netanyahu is scheduled to meet with former President Trump at Mar-a-Lago on Friday morning. A new poll sheds light on a race rocked by President Biden's sudden departure. In the NPR PBS News, Marist College poll released yesterday, Trump leads Harris 46 to 45 percent. Nine percent are undecided. Independents break 46 percent for Trump to 32 percent for Harris. 21 percent are undecided. In a multi-candidate field, Harris and Trump tied at 42 percent, while independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. received 7 percent. In a Reuters-Ipsos poll conducted this week, Harris opened up a two-point lead over Trump. Harris led Trump 44 percent to 42 percent in the national poll. That's within the 3 percent margin of error. More on the investigation into the assassination attempt of former President Trump. Congress today held the third of three hearings. The FBI director told the lawmakers what we know about the shooter and his motive. NTD's Arian Pasdar has the highlights. FBI Director Christopher Wray testified before the House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday. Now, among other things, lawmakers tried to find out why the shooter tried to kill former President Trump and what the FBI knew about him before the incident happened. Here's how it went. There doesn't seem to be a whole lot of rhyme or reason to it so far. Wray told lawmakers that the FBI is currently looking into the shooter's personal devices, his social media accounts and more. So far, without much success. We do not yet have a clear picture of his motive. You might see a manifesto, things like that. We're not seeing that yet. But we are digging in hard because this is one of the central questions for us. Wray explained why the FBI didn't make much progress yet. He says that even after they got their hands on the phone, new challenges popped up. It turned out he was using some encrypted messaging applications. And again, the same question relative to the bombs. Was this a pretty sophisticated or is this this is the kind of the norm you see with folks like, you know, similar situation? On this on this subject, I would say this is unfortunately now become very commonplace and it's a real challenge for not just the FBI, but state and local law enforcement. Another pressing question is what the FBI knew about the shooter before the incident happened. Florida Republican Matt Gaetz question Wray on that. We did not have any information about the shooter. He was not in our holdings before the shooting. No communication in any chat rooms, no CI's or confidential human sources of any interaction. We've run a thorough search for the subject through all of our holdings and he was not in them anywhere. Wray made clear that investigations are still ongoing and that the FBI will disclose more information as the probe continues. Ariane Pastar, NTD News. During a hearing yesterday, a clear timeline in the assassination attempt began to emerge. Police shared new details on what they saw that day and how they responded. Here's the story. The Committee on Homeland Security will come to order at a hearing in front of the House Homeland Security Committee. Pennsylvania State Police Commissioner gave his version of what happened on July 13th. Colonel Christopher Paris said local officers identified the shooter, Thomas Crooks, and He said a member of Pennsylvania State Police inside the command post received the information and related it to the Secret Service via text message. On Monday, Secret Service Director Kimberly Chito faced harsh scrutiny from lawmakers for failing to stop the attempted assassination. In her testimony, Chito said the Secret Service deemed Crooks suspicious about 20 minutes before the shooting. She resigned from her position after she testified to security lapses at the rally. Colonel Paris said two emergency service officers left their posts to follow Crooks. Video presented by lawmakers showed the officers would have had a clear view of the position from which Crooks fired at Trump from their original location. Paris said the shooter spent about three minutes on the roof before firing eight shots into the rally. Paris said a police area commander told him the rooftop could be a potential issue two days before the rally. He said Secret Service agents told the commander the Butler County Emergency Service Unit would secure the building. During her hearing, Chito said the roof was not manned because there were security concerns about it being sloped. Newly released body cam footage from one officer shows Secret Service and law enforcement discussing a sniper who spotted Crooks. They say the sniper sent them a photograph of Crooks before the shooting. So if you go to that window that's open and yell for... That's the sniper that sent the original pictures and seen him come from the bike and set the book back down and then lost sight of him. He's the one that sent the pictures out. I don't know if you got the same ones I did. I think I did, yeah. Retired U.S. Navy Captain and National Security Analyst Armin Kurdian spoke to NTD Tuesday. He suggested a communication breakdown between local law enforcement and the Secret Service may have led to a lack of response. When you have this many organizations that are working together, the lines of communication need to be absolutely clear and information has to move from one level to another. Speaking after Paris' hearing, Mississippi Congressman Michael Guess said the testimony places the ultimate responsibility for what happened upon the Secret Service. Chito's resignation is not likely to end the scrutiny the Secret Service is facing. FBI Director Christopher Wray is set to testify Wednesday. At the first rally in her presidential campaign, Vice President Kamala Harris vowed to unite the party. President Biden appeared in public for the first time in six days. NTD's White House correspondent Iris Tao has the story. Just a day after securing of delegates to clinch a Democratic nomination, Vice President Kamala Harris was holding her first rally in her presidential bid in the battleground state of Wisconsin. She vows to unite the party and win in November. We have doors to knock on, we have phone calls to make, we have voters to register, election to win! Harris was also touting her fundraising record. She raised a historic $100 million between Sunday afternoon and Monday evening. She also continues to receive high-profile endorsements from Democrats. On Tuesday, the top two Democrats in Congress endorsed Harris after initially hanging back. So now that the process has played out, from the grassroots bottom up, we are here today to throw our support. We're going to win the House, we're going to elect Kamala Harris. Meanwhile, Republicans continue to take aim at the administration's record on the border and inflation. But House Speaker Mike Johnson on Tuesday emphasized that they're focused on contrasting policies, not personalities. This is not personal with regard to Kamala Harris and her ethnicity or her gender have nothing to do with this whatsoever. This is about who can deliver for the American people and get us out of the mess that we're in. And all this is as President Biden appeared in public for the first time after self-isolating for the past six days in Delaware for COVID. Biden returned to the White House and told reporters that he was feeling well. His doctor says Biden is now testing negative for COVID and that his symptoms are all gone. Biden also announced on X that he would address the nation from the Oval Office on Wednesday at 8 p.m. Eastern time. He said he would talk about, quote, what lies ahead and how I will finish the job for the American people. This Thursday, Biden will meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu here at the White House. But former President Trump also announced that he too would be meeting with Netanyahu though on Friday at Mar-a-Lago. Trump said he would talk about his, quote, peaceful strength agenda, which he said was the theme of his calls with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and other world leaders in recent weeks. Reporting from the White House, Iris Tao, NTD News. Well, take a short break now, everybody, but here's a look at what we have for you when we come back. A Silicon Valley-backed initiative to build a new city in California won't be on the November ballot after all. Find out why. Family and friends of a missing Southern California teenager now found safe are speaking out to the community. Some fall out from the recent global tech outage. Delta Airlines is under scrutiny and now faces an investigation. Those stories and more coming up on NTD Tonight. Welcome back to NTD Tonight. I'm your host, David Zhang. A Silicon Valley-backed initiative to build a green city for up to 400,000 people in the San Francisco Bay Area won't be on the November ballot after all. County officials say it would be too costly and asked the project organizers to provide a plan to prove it's feasible. The California Forever campaign qualified for the ballot in June, but a Solano County report released last week raised questions about the project and concluded it, quote, may not be financially feasible. The measure would have asked voters to allow urban development on 27 square miles of land between Travis Air Force Base and the Sacramento River Delta city of Rio Vista, currently zoned for agriculture. The land use change is necessary to build the homes, jobs and walkable downtown proposed by Jan Sramick, a former Goldman Sachs trader. In a joint statement, Chair of the Board of Supervisors Mitch Mashburn said delaying the vote also creates an opportunity to take a fresh look at the plan and incorporate input from more stakeholders. He also asked the new city CEO to prove how it will provide water, solve transportation challenges and pay for billions of dollars of infrastructure without increasing taxes and while delivering a net tax surplus to the county. California Forever said project organizers would spend the next two years working with the county on an environmental impact report and a development agreement. Sramick said, in the upcoming weeks, we will launch a series of community workshops to help design the community benefits including down payment assistance, training funds and small business grants and to hear any other suggestions for improving the plan. The project faces opposition from conservation groups and some local and federal officials who say the plan is a speculative money grab rooted in secrecy. The Solano Land Trust, which protects open lands, said in June that such large-scale development will have a detrimental impact on Solano County's water resources, air quality, traffic, farmland and natural environment. Sramick said he hoped to have 50,000 residents in the new city within the next decade. The proposal included an initial $400 million to help residents buy homes in the community as well as an initial guarantee of 15,000 local jobs paying a salary of at least $88,000 a year. And now some fallout from the recent global tech outage. Delta Airlines is under scrutiny. Airline regulators have opened an investigation into the Atlanta-based carrier. NTD's Daniel Monaghan has more on the inquiry. Delta was still struggling to restore operations on Tuesday. That's more than four full days after a faulty software update caused technological havoc worldwide, disrupting global air travel. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg announced the Delta investigation on X on Tuesday. He says the goal is to make sure the airline is following the law and taking care of its passengers during continued widespread disruptions. Delta and its Delta Connection partners had cancelled nearly 500 flights by midday Tuesday on the East Coast. That's about two-thirds of all cancellations in the country. Buttigieg says the things he's hearing about Delta's customer service are troubling. People having to sleep on airport floors, even accounts of unaccompanied minors being stranded in airports unable to get on a flight. The transport secretary says Delta's handling of communication issues leaves much to be desired. When we hear about hour after hour on hold, even if you're using that chat function, it's taking hours to get a response. Buttigieg says he's heard reports of a line of over 100 passengers. Waiting to talk to one customer service agent who's there to handle their vouchers and refunds. The outage began Thursday night into Friday morning after a faulty software upgrade from cybersecurity company CrowdStrike to more than 8 million Microsoft computers around the world. The Atlanta-based carrier has cancelled more than 6,600 flights since the outage started, far more than any other airline. Delta's meltdown mirrors that of Southwest Airlines, which cancelled nearly 17,000 flights over 15 days in December 2022. A Transportation Department investigation ended with Southwest agreeing to pay a $35 million fine as part of a $140 million settlement. Delta says it is cooperating with the investigation. The air carrier says operations might not be back to normal until the end of the week. It says it will reimburse hotel, meal and ground transportation expenses for long delays and cancellations. Daniel Monaghan, NTD News. A 15-year-old girl who has been missing for one week was found safe with the help of local police in Glendale, California. Now family members and friends are speaking out on the disappearance. NTD's Christina Corona gives us the latest update on the story. Allison Chow was located with the help from the Glendale Police Department on Tuesday. During a press conference, her father, Jeffrey Chow, expressed gratitude to friends and the community for their help in finding his daughter. We've been really worried about where she's been. And, you know, we really appreciate what everybody's done and helped out with. I just want what's in the best interest of Allison at this point. Allison was found outside ABC 7's news office at 9 30 a.m. What is undisputed factually is that she left on her own accord on her bicycle. He stated there was no indication of a kidnapping and mentioned that Allison didn't have her cell phone, debit card or keys, which had an air tag with her. Allison was leaving her father's house to visit her aunt in San Gabriel, but she never showed up. The family attorney stated that the mother has sole legal custody of Allison for mental health reasons, while the father retains joint custody. As of last week, physical custody was granted to mother on a temporary basis. However, Allison's friends stated he knew Allison was having issues at home. She does not enjoy the presence of her mother. She's like what that video showed online. She's she said that she doesn't feel safe. She would definitely run away from home if she was to be forced into the care of her mother, especially if they were going to put her someplace she doesn't want to be. I know everything. And my dad knows everything. And we are going to do the best to help you, Allison. Allison's aunt also shared her thoughts on her disappearance. The system has failed her. We are hearing that this is a child who would never do anything like this. She is a good kid. She's a smart kid. She's a kind kid. She would never do anything like this. So I need the community to make sure that we fight for her and we make sure that her voice and her story is heard. Changes need to be made. People need to be held accountable. This is not acceptable. Allison's disappearance is still under investigation. Christina Corona, NTD News. A portion of Yellowstone National Park is closed after an eruption yesterday. Debris was sent about 100 feet into the air. An eruption of steam in a Yellowstone National Park geyser basin sent people scrambling for safety. A video clip has been circulating online of the incident. Large rocks shot into the air, highlighting a little-known hazard that scientists hope to be able to predict someday. Thankfully, the hydrothermal explosion on Tuesday at Biscuit Basin caused no injuries, but it destroyed the wooden walkway after sending debris about 100 feet into the air. The park here in Wyoming has many geysers and hot springs, attracting millions of tourists each year. The U.S. Geological Survey says hydrothermal explosions are violent and dramatic events resulting in the rapid ejection of boiling water, steam, mud, and rock fragments. It can reach heights of over one mile high. Explosions occur where shallow reservoirs of near-boiling point fluids underlie thermal fields. These fluids can rapidly transition to steam if the pressure suddenly drops. Some explosions erupt like clockwork and understood by scientists. But this one is apparently less common and understood. Scientists are trying to change that with a monitoring system to measure seismic activity to signal an eruption. Yellowstone said the explosion does not reflect a change in the volcanic system, which remains at normal background levels of activity. Stay tuned for China In Focus with Tiffany Meyer coming up next. Protesters scuffling with police officers in different parts of China. Those seeking justice range from drivers to online retailers and will be homeowners. More on what triggered the protests. More on China In Focus with Tiffany Meyer at 9.30 p.m. Eastern. And that's all we've got for you tonight. We'd like you to join us again on NTD Tonight every weekday at 9 p.m. I'm David Zhang. Have a wonderful evening.