Day: May 31, 2024

After the jury came in with its verdict that Donald Trump was guilty of a scheme and coverup to illegally influence the 2016 election, the Biden campaign issued a statement saying that the judgment demonstrated that “no one is above the law,” not even a former President. The overwhelming truth is that the majority of criminal laws are not a deterrent to the serious violations of law committed by sitting presidents of the United States.

This includes the incumbent Joe Biden, especially with regard to foreign and military decisions.

At least five long-standing federal laws explicitly condition the shipment of weapons to foreign countries.  It is legally impermissible for the U.S. government to provide weapons to countries that violate human rights or use these weapons offensively. Day after day, Joe Biden has become a co-belligerent with Netanyahu’s genocidal war crimes and mass slaughter of innocent children, women and men. He has violated all five of these federal laws. (See my February 16, 2024 column: Biden & Blinken – Rule of Illegal Power Over Rule of Law).

As the military, diplomatic and political enabler of the Israeli government’s siege, with the unconditional shipment of weapons of mass destruction, along with civilian bombardment and starvation of defenseless Palestinians in Gaza, Biden is violating the UN Charter and other treaties that past Administrations have signed and that have been ratified by the U.S. Senate.  Biden and other presidents act like they are above these and other laws.

One president after another has spent monies not appropriated by Congress, has defied subpoenas issued by Congress, launched wars undeclared by Congress, sent deadly weapons to nations that obstruct the delivery of U.S. humanitarian aid, and that do not protect civilian populations under foreign military rule. All violations of federal law.

Donald Trump in 2019 brazenly stated the lawlessness in one sentence: “ I have an Article II, where I have the right to do whatever I want as President.” Trump got away with defying over 125 Congressional subpoenas, and with violating the criminal statute known as the Hatch Act by using the White House and other federal property to promote his re-election campaign. Then of course there was the January 6 insurrection, and the likely delay of his trial until after the election, if at all.

Joe Biden shuffles around unappropriated monies, continues to allow the violation of a 1992 federal law requiring the Pentagon to provide Congress with an audited military budget, and is constantly sending unlawful armed incursions into other weaker countries with impunity.

To make matters easier for presidents, there is the Justice Department’s Office of Legal Counsel memo, from decades ago, that asserts there can be no criminal prosecution initiated against a sitting president.

As attorney Bruce Fein, who worked in the Office of Legal Counsel, has said repeatedly, this baseless opinion has no legal force and should be rescinded. (See, Letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland, May 31, 2024).

The courts have shielded presidents from accountability for perpetuated crimes committed either by the White House or by the president’s administration.  For example, citizens have no “standing to sue,” to challenge in court a variety of Executive Branch abuses says the Supreme Court, not even members of Congress. As for presidential violations of the Constitution and federal laws by launching illegal wars or armed attacks abroad, the courts dismiss such cases, saying they raise “political questions” outside the jurisdiction of the courts.

Being allowed to get away with crimes is what constitutional law specialist Bruce Fein calls “a way of life at the White House.” Obstruction of justice or deliberate non-enforcement of seriously violated laws marks every presidency. Trump just boasted about what he inherited and intensified it.

Again, presidents operate in a system of considerable sovereign immunity, and law that either can’t or has not breached this shielded impunity. They really are above the criminal laws. Only the very difficult political penalty of impeachment by the House of Representatives and conviction by two-thirds of the Senate can only evict them from office, after which they are free to enjoy life, and receive huge lecture fees and large book advances.

By Mike Eckel

(RFE/RL) — Earlier this week, a Russian early warning radar installation was hit by unidentified projectiles; Ukrainian drones, Ukraine’s military intelligence agency claimed.

It was unclear if there was any significant damage, but of more significance was where the facility was located: around 1,800 kilometers from the Ukrainian border.

Throughout the 27 months since Russia launched its all-out invasion, Ukraine has been attacking sites inside Russia: first quietly and sporadically, then boldly and loudly, including cross-border raids by loosely affiliated paramilitary groups and spectacular drone strikes in the heart of Moscow.

But Ukraine has chafed at the restrictions that have kept it from utilizing its Western-supplied arsenal to make more substantive attacks further inside Russia: on troop staging grounds, or railways, or weapons depots, for example. A 3-week-old offensive near Kharkiv in the northeast that has stretched Ukraine’s forces thin has added to the impatience.

As of May 30, that’s changed, as the United States joined more than a dozen NATO allies and signaled for the first time it would give Ukraine permission to strike some targets inside Russia itself.

The shift is limited in scope, allowing Ukrainian forces to use short-range missiles from HIMARS launchers, or artillery, to hit command-and-control posts, arms depots, and other military targets used as part of the Kharkiv offensive. Ukraine will still be barred from using longer-range surface-to-surface missiles known as ATACMS against targets inside Russia.

U.S. President Joe Biden “recently directed his team to ensure that Ukraine is able to use U.S.-supplied weapons for counter-fire purposes in the Kharkiv region so Ukraine can hit back against Russian forces that are attacking them or preparing to attack them,” a U.S. official told RFE/RL. “Our policy with respect to prohibiting the use of ATACMS or long-range strikes inside of Russia has not changed.”

The change was first reported by Politico.

“Ukraine has the right to strike targets in Russia,” Jack Watling, senior researcher at the Royal United Services Institute in London, said during a Financial Times podcast prior to the announcement. “It is at war with Russia, and Russia is striking targets in Ukraine every day.”

But he said the question is what kinds of weapons Ukraine would be allowed to use to make a substantial difference. Howitzers fired across the border are one thing; longer-range Storm Shadow or Scalp cruise missiles or ATACMS missiles are another.

“I think if we just draw a hard line and say, ‘Strikes in Russia? No.’ That’s very unhelpful,” he said. “But we do also need to appreciate that there are different kinds of strikes using different kinds of systems that hold quite different risks.”

Red Lines

In the past, Russia has warned that Washington supplying longer-range weaponry to Ukraine “would cross a red line.” But even as Western weapon supplies have grown in frequency and number, Russia has refrained from targeting shipments or depots where they could be located.

Asked about the reported change in U.S. policy, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov claimed that Moscow knew nothing about it and suggested that the Russian government did not see it as a significant change in the status quo.

“It’s well known that on the whole American weapons have already been used to try and target Russian territory,” he said on May 31. “That is enough for us to know and is very eloquent evidence of the level of involvement of the United States in this conflict.”

Ukraine for months has enthusiastically gone after targets in Crimea, the Black Sea peninsula that Russia seized in 2014. Russia has a substantial deployment of troops, aircraft, and equipment there, not to mention its Black Sea Fleet naval ships, which until recently have been based in the port of Sevastopol.

In late April, Ukraine used ATACMS, or Army Tactical Missile System, to hit an airfield in Dzhankoy in Crimea. Though Ukraine had received shorter-range versions of the ATACMS in the past, the Dzhankoy attack was the first time Ukraine had used the longer-range model — something that the United States had secretly supplied months prior.

Ukraine has also used the British-French-designed Storm Shadow missiles to target Russian naval facilities in Crimea.

Since the United States, like most of the international community, does not recognize Russia’s claim to Crimea, there were few, if any, restrictions on Ukraine targeting sites in Crimea.

Ukrainian forces have been struggling on the battlefield for months now, a situation caused in part by the pause in U.S. weapons supplies that resulted from political infighting in Washington.

On May 10, their struggles deepened further when tens of thousands of Russian troops crossed the border north of the city of Kharkiv, opening up a new offensive and forcing Ukrainian commanders to rush more experienced units to the region from other hot spots.

The policy change “will allow for Ukraine to target Russian troops, especially high-value targets such as command-and-control elements, artillery, logistics, and air-defense units that are located on Russian territory near Kharkiv and concentrating or rehearsing future operations against Ukraine,” Mick Ryan, a retired Australian Army major general, said in an e-mail newsletter. “This is the kind of operational strike — the ability to destroy Russian military forces before they are committed to combat operations — that is essential while Ukraine reconstitutes its forces in 2024.”

One of the reasons Russia is making gains at present is its dominance of the air. Russia has been able to use jet-dropped glide bombs to devastating effect, said Johan Norberg, a senior analyst and expert on Russia’s military at the Swedish Defense Research Agency FOI.

Ukraine has been unable to push back due to a lack of robust air defenses such as U.S.-made Patriot systems.

With Western weaponry and the ability to strike Russian airfields, Ukraine should be able to curtail Russia’s ability to attack effectively with planes, Norberg said.

“They have to move farther away, also making things more difficult in terms of the frequency of sorties you can make over Ukraine,” he told RFE/RL. “And then the military rationale is clear. There could be other arguments I could find, like striking on command posts…deeper inside Russia or various logistics hubs…. But I think right now, air power seems to be some of the Ukraine’s biggest problems at the moment.

‘Boiling A Frog Slowly’

It’s unclear exactly what prompted the Biden administration to change its policy. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who traveled to Kyiv last month, reportedly received a sober assessment of the ability of Ukraine’s forces to hold out. In Congress, lawmakers from both parties had criticized the White House for holding Ukraine back.

Speaking to Blinken at a hearing of the House Foreign Affairs Committee on May 22, the committee’s Republican chairman, Michael McCaul, accused the Biden administration, and White House national-security adviser Jake Sullivan more specifically, of creating a “sanctuary” for Russian forces across the border.

Germany, which has been one of the most hesitant NATO members where Western weaponry is concerned, on May 31 signaled it was in agreement with the new U.S. policy. Ukraine has repeatedly asked Berlin for its Taurus KEPD-350 cruise missile.

Over the past two weeks, a growing chorus of NATO members have come out in support of using various Western weaponry more aggressively, to hit targets inside Russia itself.

“However, with regard to weapons that can operate over a long distance, of hundreds of kilometers, there is still a reluctance on our part,” German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius told reporters during a visit to Moldova.

“Looking at where we are today, where we…supply missiles, armored vehicles, what have you — they would have been out of the question two years ago. But everything is done very gradually,” Norberg said. “Whether this was deliberate to, sort of, slowly boil the frog, and not pass any Russian red lines, or just because of decision-making taking a long time at the West, I don’t know.”

Complicating the discussion: Ukraine’s willingness to go after Russian targets – civilian or military – on its own, with its own technology, in all likelihood without U.S. and NATO approval. The attack on the Voronezh-M radar installation near the city of Orsk on May 27 was the latest example.

That drew criticism from some arms control experts who say it’s potentially dangerous for Ukraine to target military objects used for nuclear deterrence – not something directly related to the Ukraine conflict.

RFE/RL correspondent Todd Prince contributed to this report from Washington, D.C.

• Mike Eckel is a senior correspondent reporting on political and economic developments in Russia, Ukraine, and around the former Soviet Union, as well as news involving cybercrime and espionage. He’s reported on the ground on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the wars in Chechnya and Georgia, and the 2004 Beslan hostage crisis, as well as the annexation of Crimea in 2014.

By Alex Willemyns 

A Thailand-based Chinese man who created a cybercrime operation that seized control of Americans’ computers and led to $5.9 billion in fraudulent claims from the U.S. COVID-19 relief program was arrested in Singapore, according to the Justice Department.

The U.S. Treasury Department on Tuesday issued sanctions against YunHe Wang, 35, and two associates based in the Thai beach resort of Pattaya, alleging that they created a “botnet” – or robot network – called 911 S5 that took control of 19 million computers so criminals could use their internet connections.

On Wednesday, the Justice Department said Wang was arrested in Singapore last week following an international law enforcement effort led by the FBI, which included Thai and Singaporean authorities.

U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland said Wang made “more than $99 million” selling access to his network of hijacked computers, which he gained control of by offering victims free access to virtual private networks, or VPNs, which people use to hide their online activity.

What the free VPN users did not know, he said, was that their internet connections were being hijacked by Wang’s operation and sold on to “customers” who used their I.P. addresses to commit crimes.

“We estimate that 911 S5 customers are responsible for more than $5.9 billion in losses due to fraud against pandemic relief programs,” he said at a news conference. “We and our partners have seized over $29 million in criminal assets tied to the botnets operation.”

“This case makes clear that the long arm of the law stretches across borders and into the deepest shadows of the dark web and the Justice Department will never stop fighting to hold cybercriminals to account.”

FBI Director Christopher Wray said 911 S5 was “likely the world’s largest botnet ever,” and had provided its users with a veil that also facilitated identity theft and child exploitation crimes.

Stolen credit cards

An analysis by Krebs on Security, an online security news website, said users of Wang’s free VPN services – including MaskVPN, DewVPN, PaladinVPN, Proxygate, Shield VPN, and ShineVPN – would have had few clues about the ways their connections were being used.

“911’s VPN performed largely as advertised for the user – allowing them to surf the web anonymously – but it also quietly turned the user’s computer into a traffic relay for paying 911 S5 customers,” the analysis said, adding that the service was a lucrative one.

The botnet’s “reliability and extremely low prices quickly made it one of the most popular services” available on “the cybercrime underground,” with criminals able to use the service to make it appear as if they were nearly anywhere in the United States, according to the analysis.

That was useful, it explains, because it let a criminal route “malicious traffic” through a connection that is “geographically close to the consumer whose stolen credit card is about to be used, or whose bank account is about to be emptied” and thereby avoid fraud detection.

Besides the $5.9 billion in fraudulent COVID-19 relief losses sustained because of the 911 S5 botnet, U.S. financial institutions identified “millions of dollars more” in losses because of fraudulent credit applications, according to a statement issued by the Justice Department.

With the proceeds of the botnet, Wang bought property in the United States, China, Singapore, Thailand, the United Arab Emirates and the Caribbean nation of St. Kitts and Nevis, where he also gained citizenship through investment in May 2022, the statement said.

An unsealed indictment says “dozens of assets and properties” have been seized, including a Ferrari F8 Spider, a BMW i8, a BMW X7, a Rolls Royce, several luxury wristwatches, 21 properties, more than a dozen bank accounts and two dozen cryptocurrency wallets.

Wang was charged with conspiracy to commit computer fraud, conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering and faces up to 65 years in prison if found guilty.

Europol, Europe’s crime agency, has announced that four ringleaders of several cybercrime networks that used botnets, have been arrested in Armenia and Ukraine, with servers across the world including in the UK, the US and Germany taken down, the BBC reports.

The agency said Thursday, May 30 that it has made four arrests but said eight fugitives are on the run. They will be added to Europe’s “most wanted” list.

More than 2,000 websites are now under the control of European law enforcement.

Europol said one of the main suspects had made more than €69 million (£58m) in cryptocurrency through what is known as ransomware – installing software that makes it impossible for a person to access their computer unless they pay a fee.

The malicious software got on peoples’ devices mainly through through phishing attempts – such as the kind of emails people are advised not to click on – and compromised websites.

Europol said the take down – dubbed Operation Endgame – is ongoing and it has plans for future busts.

(NewsNation) — Stormy Daniels was more relieved than happy when she learned of former President Donald Trump’s conviction in his hush money trial, according to her attorney.

“She was really kinda taken aback. She got emotional to me,” attorney Clark Brewster told NewsNation’s “Elizabeth Vargas Reports.” “The finality of it really hit her hard.”

He said Daniels didn’t express any “true happiness” at the verdict.

“It was more or less a relief that it’s over,” Brewster said.

Brewster, who was in the courtroom when Daniels testified, praised his client for her testimony.

“I thought she did a great job dealing with the (cross-examination) and being able to respond directly … and withstand a fairly withering cross,” he said.

Brewster also praised the prosecutors and the jury members.

“You couldn’t have a more diligent, responsible, good officers of the court than the prosecutors I dealt with,” he said. “The idea that this was some kind of fix, or some kind of dishonest prosecution, is offensive.”

When it comes to what sentence Trump will receive July 11, Brewster said it may come down to allocution, where Trump can address the judge before he passes sentence.

“I predict the judge will have two sentences before he announces it: one with contrition and acceptance of responsibility, and one without,” said Brewster.

WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden on Friday detailed a three-phase deal proposed by Israel to Hamas militants that he says would lead to the release of the remaining hostages in Gaza and could end the grinding, nearly 8-month-old Mideast war.

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Biden added that Hamas is “no longer capable” of carrying out another large-scale attack on Israel as he urged Israelis and Hamas to come to a deal to release the remaining hostages for an extended cease-fire.

The Democratic president in remarks from the White House called the proposal “a road map to an enduring cease-fire and the release of all hostages.”

Biden said the first phase of the proposed deal would would last for six weeks and would include a “full and complete cease-fire,” a withdrawal of Israeli forces from all densely populated areas of Gaza and the release of a number of hostages, including women, the elderly and the wounded, in exchange for the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners.

American hostages would be released at this stage, and remains of hostages who have been killed would be returned to their families. Humanitarian assistance would surge during the first phase, with 600 trucks being allowed into Gaza each day.

The second phase would include the release of all remaining living hostages, including male soldiers, and Israeli forces would withdraw from Gaza.

“And as long as Hamas lives up to its commitments, the temporary cease-fire would become, in the words of the Israeli proposal, ‘the cessation of hostilities permanently,’” Biden said.

The third phase calls for the start of a major reconstruction of Gaza, which faces decades of rebuilding from devastation caused by the war. The 4-1/2 page Israeli proposal was transmitted to Hamas on Thursday.

Meanwhile, congressional leaders on Friday invited Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to deliver an address at the U.S. Capitol. The invitation from House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Republican, and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, a Democrat, has been in the works for some time though there is great concern, especially among the Democrats, about Israel’s pursuit of the war.

No date for the speech was set.

Biden acknowledged that keeping the Israeli proposal on track would be difficult, saying there were a number of “details to negotiate” to move from the first phase to the second.

One roadblock to overcome during the first phase would involve the two sides agreeing on the ratio of hostages to prisoners to be released during the next phase, according to a senior Biden administration official who briefed reporters on the condition of anonymity.

Biden’s remarks came as the Israeli military confirmed that its forces are now operating in central parts of Rafah in its expanding offensive in the southern Gaza city. Biden called it “a truly a decisive moment.” He added that Hamas said it wants a cease-fire and that an Israeli-phased deal is an opportunity to prove “whether they really mean it.”

But even as Biden pressed for the “war to end and for the day after to begin,” Israeli officials have made clear they remain committed to a military defeat of Hamas. The Democrat is in the midst of a tough reelection battle and has faced backlash from some on the political left who want to see him put greater pressure on Netanyahu’s government to end the war.

Netanyahu’s office in a statement following Biden’s speech said that he authorized Israel’s hostage negotiating team to find a way to release the remaining hostages.

But the Israelis maintain “the war will not end until all of its goals are achieved, including the return of all our abductees and the elimination of Hamas’ military and governmental capabilities.” The prime minister’s office also called for the “exact outline” proposed by Israel to be followed.

Matt Duss, executive vice president for the Center for International Policy in Washington, said the Netanyahu reaction suggested the “possibility of daylight between a proposal Israel would accept and what President Biden outlined.”

Hamas said in a statement it viewed the proposal presented by Biden “positively” and called on the Israelis to declare explicit commitment to an agreement that includes a permanent ceasefire, a complete withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza, a prisoner exchange and other conditions

Israel has faced growing international criticism for its strategy of systematic destruction in Gaza, at a huge cost in civilian lives. Israeli bombardments and ground offensives in the besieged territory have killed more than 36,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between combatants and civilians.

Biden also addressed those in Israel who resist ending the war. Some members of Netanyahu’s far-right coalition have opposed any deal that falls short of eradicating Hamas and they have called for an enduring occupation of Gaza.

“They want to keep fighting for years, and the hostages are not a priority to them,” Biden said. “I’ve urged leadership of Israel to stand behind this deal.”

Biden in his remarks made no mention of establishing Palestinian statehood, something that he has repeatedly said is key to achieving long-term peace in the region. The U.S. administration has also been working to forge normalization between Israel and Saudi Arabia, the region’s two biggest powers. But the Saudis are opposed to any agreement that does not include concrete steps toward creation of a Palestinian state.

Israel launched its war in Gaza after Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack in which militants stormed into southern Israel, killed some 1,200 people — mostly civilians — and abducted about 250. Israel says around 100 hostages are still captive in Gaza, along with the bodies of around 30 more.

Ceasefire talks ground to a halt at the beginning of the month after a major push by the U.S. and other mediators to secure a deal, in hopes of averting a planned Israeli invasion of the southern city of Rafah.

The talks were stymied by a central sticking point: Hamas demands guarantees that the war will end and Israeli troops will withdraw from Gaza completely in return for a release of all the hostages, a demand Israel rejects.

The outline of the new Israeli proposal is “nearly identical to Hamas’s own proposals of only a few weeks ago,” according to the Biden administration official.

First Lady Dr. Jill Biden has taken an active role in stumping for the Biden-Harris campaign – appearing regularly at political rallies and events when Joe Biden ran for president four years ago, and later on for down ballot candidates in 2021 and 2022.

Her Wednesday appearance on The View showed why she’s a more powerful surrogate than ever, as she didn’t mince words when making the case to the audience why they need to get behind the re-election campaign in 2024. The choice, as the first lady lays it out, is between a good, strong capable leader as we already have in President Biden, or chaos, which we had our share of the last time the former guy occupied the Oval Office.

Perhaps the finest moment for Dr. Biden, though, was when she called out the very real possibility of who might replace Clarence Thomas or Sam Alito on the Supreme Court: “Can you imagine if we put any more Republicans on the Supreme Court? WE WILL LOSE ALL OF OUR RIGHTS!”

The RNC Research page on social media tried to frame this as the first lady losing her composure, but outrage is really the only way to respond to the way that the GOP has hijacked SCOTUS, with a majority that barely pretends to be nonpartisan anymore. This is how we all need to react as we drive turnout and voter registration to win on Nov 5.

The post Score one for Dr. Jill Biden appeared first on Palmer Report.

Sam Hodde/Getty Images

• As AAPI Heritage Month draws to a close, these are some of the most famous AAPI celebrities today.
• Dwayne Johnson, who is Samoan, has been the highest-earning actor in Hollywood multiple times.
• Ali Wong, who is Vietnamese and Chinese, made history with her Emmy win.

May is AAPI Heritage Month. AAPI stands for Asian American and Pacific Islanders, a population that encompasses millions of people throughout the US from all over Asia, the Indian subcontinent, and the Pacific Islands, such as Samoa, Hawaii, and other Polynesian islands.

As AAPI Heritage Month concludes, we took a look at some of the most influential AAPI celebrities in Hollywood, including actors, directors, producers, and musicians. All have broken records and broken boundaries in terms of AAPI representation on-screen, behind the scenes, and on the radio.

Here are some of the most famous AAPI celebrities who are changing the entertainment industry.

Dwayne Johnson has been the highest-paid actor in Hollywood four separate times.Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson.

Sean Gardner/Getty Images

As reported by Forbes, Dwayne Johnson was the highest-paid actor in 2016, 2019, 2020, and 2021 for his roles in films such as “Central Intelligence,” “Moana,” “Jumanji: The Next Level,” “Hobbs & Shaw,” “Jungle Cruise,” and “Red Notice.”

The former pro wrestler is now one of the most famous people in the world and a face of the Samoan community in mainstream entertainment.

In addition to Johnson’s movie roles, he is also a producer of many of his films, and he co-created a sitcom about his life growing up in Hawaii, his time at high school in Pennsylvania, and as a college student in Miami. Fittingly, it was called “Young Rock” and aired from 2021 to 2023.

Mindy Kaling has created multiple successful shows.Mindy Kaling attends the 2024 Met Gala.

Kevin Mazur/MG24/Getty Images

Mindy Kaling is one of the most influential showrunners in streaming right now. After starring on “The Office” (which she also wrote for), Kaling co-created and starred in her own sitcom, “The Mindy Project,” which aired for six seasons.

Since, Kaling has somewhat stepped back from acting and is now focused on developing TV. Her Netflix series “Never Have I Ever” was a huge hit until it wrapped up in 2023. Her next hit, the Max series “The Sex Lives of College Girls,” was responsible for introducing audiences to Renee Rapp, now a star in her own right.

Kaling also co-created the animated series “Velma,” which was almost universally hated … but got enough people hate-watching to greenlight a second season.

Two more shows created by Kaling are set to hit streamers soon: A comedy on Hulu called “Murray Hill” about 20-somethings in NYC and “Running Point,” a Netflix comedy series starring Kate Hudson as the new president of a fictional Los Angeles NBA team.

Olivia Rodrigo is currently on a mega-successful world tour for her second album, “Guts.”Olivia Rodrigo performs during the Guts World Tour in New York City.

Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for Live Nation

Rodrigo, who is just 21 years old, has been hailed as the future of pop music after her stratospheric rise in 2021 due to her debut single, “Drivers License.”

Since then, Rodrigo has released two chart-topping albums, won three Grammys, was named Time’s entertainer of the year, and gracefully exited the Disney+ series that gave her a platform,
“High School Musical: The Musical: The Series.”

She also became the first Filipino-American to be featured on the cover of US Vogue in July 2023, according to Next Shark.

Director Jon M. Chu is gearing up for the release of “Wicked” this fall.Jon M. Chu

Jordan Strauss / Invision / AP

Chu is a high-profile director who has helmed multiple big-budget productions — besides the two-part “Wicked” adaptation, Chu directed Justin Bieber’s concert film “Never Say Never,” “In the Heights,” “Now You See Me 2,” and most famously, 2018’s “Crazy Rich Asians,” the first modern-day major studio film featuring an Asian cast since “The Joy Luck Club” 25 years prior.

“Crazy Rich Asians” made $239 million worldwide, which is significant for a rom-com considering many consider the genre dead.

Now, he keeps fans hyped for “Wicked” this fall by posting photos from set, engaging with people online, and praising how amazing the cast is.

Steven Yeun is an Oscar nominee and an Emmy winner.Steven Yeun.

Chris Pizzello/AP

It might’ve taken a bit for Yeun’s career to rebound after his character Glenn was killed off “The Walking Dead,” but it was worth the wait. Since he exited the show in 2016, his career has only skyrocketed.

Yeun was nominated for an Academy Award (best actor) in 2021 for his performance in “Minari,” making him the first Asian-American actor to ever be nominated in that category.

In 2023, he starred in and executive-produced the Netflix series “Beef.” He won two Emmys, two Golden Globes, two Critics’ Choice Awards, and an Independent Spirit Award for the show.

The Korean-American actor also plays the super-powered teen Mark Grayson on the critically acclaimed Prime Video series “Invincible.”

Ali Wong has also won numerous awards for “Beef.”Ali Wong.

Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP

Wong also won two Emmys and two Golden Globes for “Beef,” making her the first Asian woman to win the Emmy for outstanding lead actress in a limited series or movie.

In addition to “Beef,” Wong has produced three stand-up comedy specials. In the first one, “Baby Cobra,” Wong was 7 ½ months pregnant and making dirtier jokes than almost anyone else, pushing the boundaries of what stand-up comedy can be.

Wong also wrote and starred in her own rom-com, “Always Be My Maybe,” and cast Keanu Reeves as her love interest, a true power move.

Priyanka Chopra is the most-followed Indian actor on Instagram.Priyanka Chopra Jonas attends the 2023 DKMS Gala.

Taylor Hill/Contributor/WireImage

Chopra, who won Miss World in 2000, has become a powerhouse in both India and the US. In 2012, she became first Bollywood star to sign with the American talent agency CAA.

Since then, she’s cultivated a massive Instagram following (91.1 million followers and counting), has become a lifestyle figure (with a hair-care line, an NYC restaurant, and a home-goods line), wrote a best-selling memoir, and is a successful actor and producer.

In 2020, Chopra signed a “a two-year multimillion-dollar first-look television deal with Amazon,” Variety reported. Her first project after the deal was the 2023 spy thriller series “Citadel,” with a second season already on the way.

Bowen Yang is the last true “SNL” breakout we’ve had in years.Bowen Yang.

Evan Agostini/AP

Yang, who joined the cast of the sketch show in 2019, is a star. The first Chinese-American comedian to ever join the show, Yang almost immediately cemented himself as an important addition to the cast. He’s already been nominated for three Emmys (one for writing, two for acting).

He’s also branched out into movies, appearing in “The Lost City,” “Fire Island,” and “Bros.” Later this year, he has a supporting role in “Wicked,” and is set to remake the Ang Lee rom-com “The Wedding Banquet” alongside recent Oscar nominee Lily Gladstone.

Chloé Zhao was the first woman of color to win best director at the Oscars (and the second woman ever).Chloe Zhao.

Matt Petit/A.M.P.A.S. via Getty Images

Zhao made history in 2021 when she won best director for her film “Nomadland.” She was the second woman to ever win that award, behind Kathryn Bigelow in 2010, and the first Asian woman to owin.

Following “Nomadland,” Zhao directed the MCU film “Eternals,” which made a respectable $402 million at the box office, even though it wasn’t a huge hit with critics or fans.

Next up for Zhao is an adaptation of the hit novel “Hamnet,” starring Paul Mescal and Jessie Buckley, Deadline reported.

Auli’i Cravalho is the voice of the first Polynesian Disney princess.Auli’i Cravalho attends the premiere of “Mean Girls” in 2024.

John Nacion/Stringer/Getty Images for Paramount Pictures

Cravalho made her film debut in 2016 as the voice of Moana, the first Polynesian Disney princess, a huge step forward in AAPI representation at Disney. She’ll return to the role in 2024 for “Moana 2.”

And though she won’t play Moana in the live-action film in order to “pass the baton to the next young woman of Pacific Island descent,” as she told The Wrap, she will produce the film alongside Dwayne Johnson.

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Elizabeth Aldrich’s father and stepmother at the Cape of Good Hope in South Africa in the summer of 2019.

Courtesy of Elizabeth Aldrich

• I ignored my Dad’s advice about saving money and investing until I saw him retire a decade before his peers.
• Now, he and my stepmom get to enjoy retirement while they’re young and healthy, and they spend their time traveling the globe.
• They live below their means, invest in retirement accounts, stocks, bonds, and rental properties, and have a back-up plan.

As a child, there’s no joy like opening a birthday card and seeing crisp dollar bills fall out.

Growing up, my Dad tried to convince me that this cash, when saved, symbolized opportunity for my future self. I’d hold my birthday money up to the light to see the watermark and try to picture my future self enjoying this money, but all I could see was my current self enjoying 7/11 Slurpees, top-ups for my pre-paid cellphone, and band tee shirts.

When I got my first job in high school, my Dad printed an article about the power of compound interest and put it in my purse with a note: “Start investing early, Lizzie.” My money left my checking account almost as soon as it entered that summer, and not because it was being funneled into a retirement account.

Even after I graduated from college and got “grown-up jobs,” I didn’t start saving. I contributed to my 401(k) for a while, only to empty it when I quit my job and use the money to road trip around the U.S.

I just never quite understood the point of letting my money sit around in someone else’s pocket for decades until, hopefully, I could one day spend it — not when there were so many things I could spend it on now.

Then I watched my Dad retire at least a decade before many of his peers, and my entire perspective changed. My stepmom retired even younger after my Dad convinced her to join him in his plan for early retirement.

Hoping it wasn’t too late for me to get my finances on track, I asked them how they did it.

How my parents retired early

My Dad had always planned to retire early. He was frugal and highly practical growing up⁠ — my sister and I ate a lot of $0.50 frozen pot pies and didn’t get new sneakers until there were holes in our current ones. He was generous with stuff that mattered, though, like educational opportunities that could set us up for a better future. But education is an investment; shoes are not. He understood that money invested usually provides more value to your life, in the long run, than money spent. You invest first, then you spend.

My stepmom, on the other hand, never had plans to retire early until she started dating my Dad. When he told her he wanted to retire by 50, she looked at him incredulously. “I told him, there’s no freaking way,” she recalled to me.

She played along anyway. As it turns out, his goal wasn’t so unrealistic.

My Dad would have been on track to retire by 50, which was a stretch goal, if it weren’t for the 2008 recession, which decimated his retirement accounts. However, he was able to eventually recover and retire at 55. My stepmom retired at 49.

Both my Dad and stepmom worked in sales and marketing for a high-tech company by way of degrees in electrical engineering, so it’s worth stating up front that they both earned salaries that most would consider more than comfortable.

Regardless, most people — my non-engineer self included — can apply the advice they gave me.

1. Set a goal, create a budget, and track your progress

Setting clear goals and tracking your progress will make all the difference. It wasn’t until my stepmom checked in on their progress and saw their money growing according to plan that she believed they could retire early.

“I realized it was real,” she told me. “When you make saving a priority, retirement becomes possible. Money makes more money, and it makes it surprisingly quick.”

The first thing they did was figure out exactly how much money they’d need to comfortably retire when my dad hit 50 and live off that money well into their 90s. Their retirement budget included a salary equal to their pre-retirement pay and line-item expenses for things like healthcare.

After creating a retirement budget, they worked backward to figure out how much money they’d need to save each year to get there by age 50, taking into account the expected rate of return on their investments. Then, they cut spending and invested all their extra earnings to meet that goal.

They regularly checked in with their budget and did a full progress assessment every six months. Eventually, they started meeting with a financial advisor for these biannual check-ins, and they’ve continued them in retirement to ensure they’re still where they need to be.

2. Avoid lifestyle inflation

Lifestyle inflation, or increasing your cost of living every time your income increases, is one of the most insidious ways to destroy a retirement plan. It often lands folks in debt.

For my parents, living below their means was essential to retiring early. They invested at least half of any raise. My Dad’s bonuses at work were invested in rental properties that could generate income. When they got married, my parents bought a house that was priced at half of what they could actually afford.

They also didn’t go overboard on cars. Our whole family has always driven Hondas, and my parents drive a car until it stops running. They did get all of us kids cars, but we got old, used cars for a couple grand — mine was a 1990 Acura Integra — and paid for them in cash.

3. Invest aggressively … and diversify

Like most people, a 401(k) was central to my parents’ retirement plan. They took full advantage of employer matching from the start and worked up to maxing their 401(k)s as early as possible. My stepmom also runs a consulting business, so she opened a SEP-IRA, which is an option for folks who are self-employed.

Because they wanted to retire early, my parents had to have other investments they could rely on for retirement income. Retirement accounts, like a 401(k) or SEP IRA, shouldn’t be touched until you’ve actually reached retirement age (59 ½). If you withdraw funds early, you’ll incur a hefty penalty.

So, my parents also invested in stocks, bonds, and rental properties to provide income until they turn 59 ½.

After the recession, my parents bought foreclosed houses in cash at extremely low prices. They renovated the houses, doing all the work themselves to save money, and then rented them out.

These properties now serve as income generators for the early years of their retirement as well as a safety net, as they can be sold off one by one. My parents know that they could weather a 30% cut on what they live off of, thanks to the properties, and still be fine.

In addition to rental income, they’ve set up a bond ladder to live off of in the short-term. Each year for the next four or five years, they have bonds maturing that provide them with income.

4. Consider a part-time backup plan for income

My stepmom is younger than my Dad and planned to work a little longer. However, rather than continue with the company where they’d both worked, she decided to start her own consulting business online that would help her transition to full-time retirement.

My stepmom still does consulting work on the side for “fun money.” They’ve used this consulting income to go on a safari in South Africa, take their parents to Germany, and throw a big anniversary celebration with the whole family in St. Thomas, where they now live part of the year.

If anything ever happened to one of their income sources, they could always lean on my stepmom’s consulting.

Why early retirement was important to my parents

A lot of people my age (20s and early 30s) can’t envision retiring at all, let alone early, so it surprised me that my Dad had been planning early retirement since he was my age. I asked if any life experiences or lessons had helped him gain that foresight at such a young age.

“I think it was your Dad’s mom dying young and Alzheimer’s running in the family,” my stepmom offered. “He felt like he really wanted, while he was in good health, to have his own life.”

My Dad agreed. “That was part of it,” he said. He also brought up my aunt, his sister, who died of cancer. When he saw how quickly she went from perfectly healthy to very sick, they doubled down on their plan to retire. “I could’ve kept working, but when your aunt passed within six months of being diagnosed I said, ‘Why are we waiting?’ I just wanted the freedom to do what we wanted when we wanted.”

“We enjoyed [our work], but it was like, this isn’t what I am,” my stepmom added. “This isn’t what I want my whole life to be.”

Now, they spend almost half the year in the Caribbean, learning to play guitar, going on sailing trips, and doing volunteer work. They’ve traveled all over the globe, spending several months road-tripping to the best U.S. national parks, exploring Europe, spotting wildlife in South Africa, cruising the Panama Canal, and visiting relatives.

Watching them, I’ve learned that saving money is the opposite of letting it sit around collecting dust. If invested properly, that money grows indefinitely, and it will probably do a lot more for me in the long-run than spending it would.

My stepmom framed it in a way that really resonated with me. “It’s not your money, it’s your future self’s money,” she said. Think of saving and investing as a form of self-care for your future self. Your future self will thank you.

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