Well, next to me here is flamingo chick number three for the season. So, this little guy is 12 days old now. The really exciting thing about this guy is
potentially he's a new generation for us. The chick that we raised three seasons ago has paired up with the female that laid this egg, so, we'll have to do some DNA testing
to confirm, but, yeah, potentially that's really exciting, and we've got a new generation of flamingos.
So, this is flamingo chick hand-rearing formula. So, there's all sorts of different vitamins
and things in there, there's fish and prawns, some egg yolk and a lot of human baby food as well. What we don't want is for this guy to completely imprint on us, so, we try and not talk to him as much as we can and when we're here feeding him, we'll just play him adult noises. This little guy is getting fed six times a
day.
Today he's up to 30mls per feed, so it's quite a lot for a little bird and then that increases every day, so, they really do get a lot of
food in the first month or so. As with most youngsters, he doesn't like being cleaned. So, now that he's all fed and relatively
happy, he's quieted down a bit now, we'll go and check the other two out. So, these are obviously the older two, who
are looking much more like flamingos now than their younger cousin over there.
So, this big guy is almost two months old now, and the little guy here is about six weeks old and as you can see on the big guy, he's starting to get his pink feathers through, so he's looking more and more like a flamingo every day. Of course, there's a big size difference now between these guys and the little one, so we might have to wait until the little one has grown up a wee bit before we integrate these guys all into the exhibit. So, in the next month or so, we'll start getting the three of them over to start meeting some adults..
Wednesday, May 9, 2018
Friday, May 4, 2018
Trumps Lawyers Want Him to Refuse an Interview in Russia Inquirytick tock news
Lawyers for President Trump have advised him
against sitting down for a wide-ranging interview with the special counsel, Robert S. Mueller
III, according to four people briefed on the matter, raising the specter of a monthslong
court battle over whether the president must answer questions under oath. His lawyers are concerned that the president,
who has a history of making false statements and contradicting himself, could be charged
with lying to investigators. Their stance puts them at odds with Mr.
Trump,
who has said publicly and privately that he is eager to speak with Mr. Mueller as part
of the investigation into possible ties between his associates and Russias election interference,
and whether he obstructed justice. Mr. Trumps decision about whether to speak
to prosecutors, expected in the coming weeks, will shape one of the most consequential moments
of the investigation.
Refusing to sit for an interview opens the
possibility that Mr. Mueller will subpoena the president to testify before a grand jury,
setting up a court fight that would drastically escalate the investigation and could be decided
by the Supreme Court. Rejecting an interview with Mr. Mueller also
carries political consequences.
It would be certain to prompt accusations
that the president is hiding something, and a court fight could prolong the special counsel
inquiry, casting a shadow over Republicans as Novembers midterm elections approach
or beyond into the presidents re-election campaign. But John Dowd, the longtime Washington defense
lawyer hired last summer to represent Mr. Trump in the investigation, wants to rebuff
an interview request, as do Mr. Dowds deputy, Jay Sekulow, and many West Wing advisers,
according to the four people.
The lawyers and aides believe the special
counsel might be unwilling to subpoena the president and set off a showdown with the
White House that Mr. Mueller could lose in court. Continue reading the main story
Advertisement Continue reading the main story
They are convinced that Mr. Mueller lacks the legal standing to question Mr.
Trump about
some of the matters he is investigating, like the presidents role in providing a misleading
response last summer to a New York Times article about a meeting Mr. Trumps son Donald Trump
Jr. Had with Russians offering dirt on Hillary Clinton. The advisers have also argued that on other
matters like the allegations that the president asked James B.
Comey, then the F.B.I.
Director, to end the investigation into the former national security adviser Michael T.
Flynn the president acted within his constitutional authority and cannot be questioned about acts
that were legal. One of the few voices arguing for cooperating
with Mr. Mueller is Ty Cobb, the White House lawyer whom Mr. Trump also brought on to deal
with Mr.
Muellers investigation. Since Mr. Cobb was hired in July, he has argued
that the White House should do everything possible to cooperate with Mr. Muellers
investigation.
But Mr. Dowd has taken the lead on dealing
with the special counsel about an interview and has been discussing the matter with Mr.
Muellers office since December. Others close to Mr. Trump have also cautioned
him against a freewheeling interview.
Marc E. Kasowitz, the presidents longtime
personal lawyer from New York who initially dealt with the special counsel after Mr. Mueller
took over the Russia investigation last May, has also consistently said that the president
should not agree to the interview. Chris Christie, the former governor of New
Jersey who led the presidential transition team until just after the election, bluntly
said last week that Mr.
Trump should reject a request to be questioned. I dont think the president of the United
States, unless there are credible allegations which I dont believe there are should
be sitting across from a special counsel, he said on ABCs Good Morning America. Newt Gingrich, the former House speaker and
an informal adviser to Mr. Trump, echoed that advice.
The idea of putting Trump in a room with
five or six hardened, very clever lawyers, all of whom are trying to trick him and trap
him, would be a very, very bad idea, Mr. Gingrich said last month on Fox and Friends. Presidents have often agreed to speak with
federal prosecutors who are investigating their actions or those close to them. But President Richard M.
Nixon refused to
turn over to the special prosecutor investigating him tapes of incriminating conversations with
aides. The matter eventually went before the Supreme
Court, which ruled in 1974 that the president, like every American, was not above the law
and had to comply with the special prosecutors request. The upshot of the Nixon tapes case was
that any president is going to have an extremely hard time resisting a request from a law enforcement
officer, said Neal K. Katyal, an acting solicitor general in the Obama administration
and a partner at the law firm Hogan Lovells.
In general, he added, presidents
do sit for interviews or respond to requests from prosecutors because they take their constitutional
responsibility to faithfully execute the laws seriously, and running away from a prosecutor
isnt consistent with faithfully executing the laws. Mr. Trumps penchant for bravado has been
a factor that his lawyers must contend with. The president has bragged to some aides that
he would be able to clear himself if he talked to Mr.
Muellers team. Im looking forward to it, actually,
Mr. Trump told reporters at the White House last month, though he added, almost as an
afterthought, that an interview would be subject to my lawyers, and all of that. When pressed, he also said he would be willing
to be questioned under oath.
Questioning by Mr. Mueller would not be under
oath, though lying to federal investigators is a crime. Despite his penchant for exaggerations and
falsehoods in public remarks, Mr. Trump has appeared far more aware of the legal risk
of making false statements when he has been deposed in civil cases related to his businesses.
In one deposition related to a libel case
that Mr. Trump brought against the journalist Tim OBrien, Mr. Trump admitted more than
two dozen times under oath that he had lied in the past about a range of subjects. Mr.
Trump ultimately lost the case. Since last summer, the White House has been
in what Mr. Cobb has called total cooperation mode. He has issued few, if any, objections
as Mr.
Muellers team interviewed senior White House officials and reviewed reams of
emails and other internal documents. The White House was operating on a strategy
that, since Mr. Trump had nothing to hide, full cooperation was the best chance to bring
the investigation to a quick, decisive end. Mr.
Cobb had told the president and the public
that the Mueller inquiry would be over by the end of 2017, or soon after. But a month into 2018, it remains unclear
when Mr. Mueller will wrap up the bulk of his work. Privately, people close to the president have
conceded that assuring Mr.
Trump that the investigation would end by a certain date
was primarily aimed at keeping him from antagonizing Mr. Mueller on his Twitter feed or in interviews..
against sitting down for a wide-ranging interview with the special counsel, Robert S. Mueller
III, according to four people briefed on the matter, raising the specter of a monthslong
court battle over whether the president must answer questions under oath. His lawyers are concerned that the president,
who has a history of making false statements and contradicting himself, could be charged
with lying to investigators. Their stance puts them at odds with Mr.
Trump,
who has said publicly and privately that he is eager to speak with Mr. Mueller as part
of the investigation into possible ties between his associates and Russias election interference,
and whether he obstructed justice. Mr. Trumps decision about whether to speak
to prosecutors, expected in the coming weeks, will shape one of the most consequential moments
of the investigation.
Refusing to sit for an interview opens the
possibility that Mr. Mueller will subpoena the president to testify before a grand jury,
setting up a court fight that would drastically escalate the investigation and could be decided
by the Supreme Court. Rejecting an interview with Mr. Mueller also
carries political consequences.
It would be certain to prompt accusations
that the president is hiding something, and a court fight could prolong the special counsel
inquiry, casting a shadow over Republicans as Novembers midterm elections approach
or beyond into the presidents re-election campaign. But John Dowd, the longtime Washington defense
lawyer hired last summer to represent Mr. Trump in the investigation, wants to rebuff
an interview request, as do Mr. Dowds deputy, Jay Sekulow, and many West Wing advisers,
according to the four people.
The lawyers and aides believe the special
counsel might be unwilling to subpoena the president and set off a showdown with the
White House that Mr. Mueller could lose in court. Continue reading the main story
Advertisement Continue reading the main story
They are convinced that Mr. Mueller lacks the legal standing to question Mr.
Trump about
some of the matters he is investigating, like the presidents role in providing a misleading
response last summer to a New York Times article about a meeting Mr. Trumps son Donald Trump
Jr. Had with Russians offering dirt on Hillary Clinton. The advisers have also argued that on other
matters like the allegations that the president asked James B.
Comey, then the F.B.I.
Director, to end the investigation into the former national security adviser Michael T.
Flynn the president acted within his constitutional authority and cannot be questioned about acts
that were legal. One of the few voices arguing for cooperating
with Mr. Mueller is Ty Cobb, the White House lawyer whom Mr. Trump also brought on to deal
with Mr.
Muellers investigation. Since Mr. Cobb was hired in July, he has argued
that the White House should do everything possible to cooperate with Mr. Muellers
investigation.
But Mr. Dowd has taken the lead on dealing
with the special counsel about an interview and has been discussing the matter with Mr.
Muellers office since December. Others close to Mr. Trump have also cautioned
him against a freewheeling interview.
Marc E. Kasowitz, the presidents longtime
personal lawyer from New York who initially dealt with the special counsel after Mr. Mueller
took over the Russia investigation last May, has also consistently said that the president
should not agree to the interview. Chris Christie, the former governor of New
Jersey who led the presidential transition team until just after the election, bluntly
said last week that Mr.
Trump should reject a request to be questioned. I dont think the president of the United
States, unless there are credible allegations which I dont believe there are should
be sitting across from a special counsel, he said on ABCs Good Morning America. Newt Gingrich, the former House speaker and
an informal adviser to Mr. Trump, echoed that advice.
The idea of putting Trump in a room with
five or six hardened, very clever lawyers, all of whom are trying to trick him and trap
him, would be a very, very bad idea, Mr. Gingrich said last month on Fox and Friends. Presidents have often agreed to speak with
federal prosecutors who are investigating their actions or those close to them. But President Richard M.
Nixon refused to
turn over to the special prosecutor investigating him tapes of incriminating conversations with
aides. The matter eventually went before the Supreme
Court, which ruled in 1974 that the president, like every American, was not above the law
and had to comply with the special prosecutors request. The upshot of the Nixon tapes case was
that any president is going to have an extremely hard time resisting a request from a law enforcement
officer, said Neal K. Katyal, an acting solicitor general in the Obama administration
and a partner at the law firm Hogan Lovells.
In general, he added, presidents
do sit for interviews or respond to requests from prosecutors because they take their constitutional
responsibility to faithfully execute the laws seriously, and running away from a prosecutor
isnt consistent with faithfully executing the laws. Mr. Trumps penchant for bravado has been
a factor that his lawyers must contend with. The president has bragged to some aides that
he would be able to clear himself if he talked to Mr.
Muellers team. Im looking forward to it, actually,
Mr. Trump told reporters at the White House last month, though he added, almost as an
afterthought, that an interview would be subject to my lawyers, and all of that. When pressed, he also said he would be willing
to be questioned under oath.
Questioning by Mr. Mueller would not be under
oath, though lying to federal investigators is a crime. Despite his penchant for exaggerations and
falsehoods in public remarks, Mr. Trump has appeared far more aware of the legal risk
of making false statements when he has been deposed in civil cases related to his businesses.
In one deposition related to a libel case
that Mr. Trump brought against the journalist Tim OBrien, Mr. Trump admitted more than
two dozen times under oath that he had lied in the past about a range of subjects. Mr.
Trump ultimately lost the case. Since last summer, the White House has been
in what Mr. Cobb has called total cooperation mode. He has issued few, if any, objections
as Mr.
Muellers team interviewed senior White House officials and reviewed reams of
emails and other internal documents. The White House was operating on a strategy
that, since Mr. Trump had nothing to hide, full cooperation was the best chance to bring
the investigation to a quick, decisive end. Mr.
Cobb had told the president and the public
that the Mueller inquiry would be over by the end of 2017, or soon after. But a month into 2018, it remains unclear
when Mr. Mueller will wrap up the bulk of his work. Privately, people close to the president have
conceded that assuring Mr.
Trump that the investigation would end by a certain date
was primarily aimed at keeping him from antagonizing Mr. Mueller on his Twitter feed or in interviews..
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