| Warren backs congressional plan for reparations study Posted: 18 Mar 2019 07:39 PM PDT  JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — Democratic presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren on Monday embraced a congressional proposal to study a framework for reparations to African-Americans hurt by the legacy of slavery as the best way to begin a "national, full-blown conversation" on the issue.
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| Lion Air Pilots Were Checking the 737 Max 8's Handbook Right Before the Plane Crashed Posted: 20 Mar 2019 12:24 PM PDT  The pilots of Lion Air Flight 610 looked to a handbook for guidance as the plane plummeted.
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| What Happens Next in Brexit? Two Cliff-Edges and a Summit Posted: 19 Mar 2019 06:41 AM PDT  (Bloomberg) -- Follow @Brexit, sign up to our Brexit Bulletin, and tell us your Brexit story.
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| Pence arrives in Nebraska as U.S. Midwest reels from historic floods Posted: 19 Mar 2019 04:23 PM PDT  The floodwaters have inundated a large swath of farm states Iowa and Nebraska along the Missouri River, North America's longest river, prompting half of Iowa's 99 counties to declare states of emergency."Touched down in Omaha, Nebraska to survey flood damage & thank volunteers & emergency personnel," Pence said on Twitter, in a post that included photos of him meeting with the governors of both states and lawmakers. Nebraska, Iowa and Wisconsin have all declared states of emergency in the floods, which stem from a powerful winter hurricane known as a "bomb cyclone" that slammed into the U.S. Farm Belt last week, killing untold numbers of livestock, destroying grains and soybeans in storage, and cutting off access to farms because of road and rail damage. The latest confirmed death was identified by the sheriff in Fremont County, Iowa, as 55-year-old Aleido Rojas Galan, who was pulled from floodwaters along with another man on Friday and later succumbed to injuries.
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| Utrecht gunman left letter in getaway car signalling possible terrorism motive Posted: 19 Mar 2019 04:03 AM PDT  Dutch authorities said Tuesday they were "seriously" investigating a possible terrorist motive for the Utrecht tram attack because of evidence including a letter found in the gunman's getaway car. Police were questioning Turkish-born main suspect Gokmen Tanis, 37, and two other men over Monday's rampage in which three people were killed and seven injured, three seriously. Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte had earlier said they "cannot exclude" other motives including a family dispute, but police and prosecutors said on Tuesday that the probe was leaning towards terrorism. "So far, a terrorist motive is seriously being taken into account. This is based on a letter found in the getaway car among other things and the nature of the facts," police and prosecutors said in a joint statement. "Our investigation has established no link between the main suspect and the victims." Flowers have been set up in tribute to victims at the site of the shooting in a tram Credit: JOHN THYS/ AFP The three people who died in the shooting were a 19-year-old woman from Vianen, south of Utrecht, and two men aged 28 and 49 from Utrecht itself, the statement said. Armed police captured Tanis after an eight-hour manhunt that virtually shut down the Netherlands' fourth largest city and triggered a nationwide increase in security at airports and key sites. Police said they had found a red Renault Clio used as a getaway car after the attack. They had also found a firearm after his arrest, they added. Tanis and two other men aged 23 and 27 are still being interrogated, police said. A stream of mourners laid flowers on Tuesday at the site of the attack near the 24 Oktoberplein square. "One of the victims was my friend's girlfriend. So coming here today was the least I could do," Marco van Rooijen, 43, told AFP. "I am here to pay homage to the victims and to support their families," added local resident Yvette Koetjeloozekoot, 29. Flags were flying half-mast on many buildings around the Netherlands. Public transport was running again after forensic police finished their investigations at the scene and removed the tram on which the shooting erupted. Rutte was chairing a cabinet meeting on the attack, which has raised security fears a day before provincial elections in the Netherlands. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said his country's intelligence agency was "looking into" the attack. "Some say it is a family matter, some say it is a terror attack ... Our intelligence agency is looking into the matter", Erdogan told Ulke TV late Monday. Dutch media have reported that the suspect had a long rap sheet and was only released from jail two weeks ago on a number of charges. Broadcaster NOS reported that some people close to him had links to fundamentalist Islamic groups, but also that he had divorced his wife two years ago. Police and witnesses said gunfire broke out on the tram on Monday morning, sending people fleeing and triggering a huge police response. Mosques and schools were closed across Utrecht following the bloodshed, before heavily armed officers surrounded a building and arrested Tanis. Support for the Netherlands poured in from around the world including the United States, the EU and Russia. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said: "America stands with you. We will continue to do all we can to help you in this terrible time of tragedy."
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| Punctuation Marks Posted: 20 Mar 2019 05:00 AM PDT |
| Trump Dismisses Democratic Push to Pack Supreme Court Posted: 19 Mar 2019 03:54 PM PDT  President Trump on Tuesday rejected the idea that has gained traction among Democrats of adding seats to the Supreme Court, saying it will "never happen.""I wouldn't entertain that," the president said Tuesday at a press conference at the White House. "If they can't catch up through the ballot box winning an election, they want to try a different way.""We would have no interest in that whatsoever. It will never happen." he added.""It won't happen, I guarantee you, for six years."With two conservative justices recently appointed to the high court, the proposal to add seats has picked up steam among Democratic presidential candidates, including Senators Kamala Harris, Elizabeth Warren, and Kirsten Gillibrand as well as former Texas Representative Beto O'Rourke."We are on the verge of a crisis of confidence in the Supreme Court," Harris said. "We have to take this challenge head-on, and everything is on the table to do that.""It's not just about expansion, it's about depoliticizing the Supreme Court," Warren said.O'Rourke suggested a more convoluted solution as "an idea we should explore.""What if there were five justices selected by Democrats, five justices selected by Republicans, and those ten then picked five more justices independent of those who chose the first ten?" the El Paso-area former lawmaker said last week at a campaign event in Iowa.Gillibrand said she would "need to think more about it."During the last year of Barack Obama's presidency, Senate Republicans refused to even consider Obama's Supreme Court pick, Merrick Garland, who would have replaced the late Justice Antonin Scalia, a move that riled Democrats. Since taking office, two of Trump's picks have been confirmed to the court, Justices Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh. Democrats have accused the GOP hypocritically engaging in court packing themselves by approving the two Supreme Court justices as well as many other conservative judges on the lower courts.
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| The Latest: Russia defense minister meets with Syria's Assad Posted: 19 Mar 2019 10:50 AM PDT  BEIRUT (AP) — The Latest on developments in Syria (all times local):
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| FAA says reviewing 737 Max software fix is 'an agency priority' Posted: 20 Mar 2019 01:36 PM PDT  Boeing has been working on a software update that is expected to correct issues with the 737 Max maneuvering characteristics augmentation system.
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| Aggressive Instagramming is ruining Southern California's super bloom Posted: 19 Mar 2019 04:30 PM PDT  People trampled California's poppies for the 'gram, and ruined it for the rest of us. Fields of fiery "super bloom" poppies are lighting up the hills of Walker Canyon in Lake Elsinore, a city about halfway between Los Angeles and San Diego. Thanks to uncommonly heavy rains this winter, much of Southern California is seeing a massive burst of wildflower blooms across the state. The poppies in Walker Canyon are so lush, they can be seen from space. > Superbloom visible from space - California poppies (orange) near Lake Elsinore, CA > > [15 March 2019; Sentinel-2 satellite; https://t.co/fy8NaGcTwN] pic.twitter.com/ZdSqCvjbuY> > -- Zack Labe (@ZLabe) March 18, 2019With the bloom came hordes of influencers, mommy bloggers, and YouTubers, all eager to snap a few photos of themselves sitting among the flowers.But it's making life absolute hell for Lake Elsinore, which has a population of 60,000. On Sunday, about 100,000 visited Walker Canyon, overwhelming Lake Elsinore and creating the traffic of nightmares. Since the poppies went viral -- even getting their own Twitter moment --the city has tried to cope with the flood of visitors by closing, then reopening, then closing the fields. SEE ALSO: Death Valley, the driest place in North America, is now a sea of yellow flowersIn a Facebook post over the weekend, the city of Lake Elsinore closed Walker Canyon because "the situation has escalated beyond our available resources." The city also closed the highway ramps leading to the canyon because traffic was so bad. By Monday, Walker Canyon was open to the public again, albeit with "extremely limited" parking. Explaining that it is "not feasible" to keep visitors out, the city stated that "this is something unlike anything we have ever experienced in our city and may never again." "Lake Elsinore is the destination for so many unique and incredible features," the Facebook post said. "And this attraction has brought thousands of people from around the world to not only see our city, but to shop in our stores and dine in our restaurants."But by noon, Mayor Steve Manos asked people to come another time because the fields were so full. "As you can see behind me, there are a large number of people here again," Manos said in an Instagram video recorded in front of the blooms. "We've expended lots of resources over the weekend ... But we are full." He added that the city just didn't have the resources to keep Walker Canyon closed because of the sheer amount of people sneaking in and parking on the freeway. Never underestimate the tenacity of an Instagram devotee.> View this post on Instagram> > SuperBloom Update: Steve Manos, Lake Elsinore Mayor provides update regarding why City was forced to reopen Walker Canyon and encourages visitors to choose other options. Walker Canyon is full. City is evaluating all options. We must remain flexible to this once in a lifetime opportunity and crisis facing our city.> > A post shared by City of Lake Elsinore (@cityoflakeelsinore) on Mar 18, 2019 at 12:02pm PDTManos is hopeful that the city will figure out a solution, though. "We've gone through fires and floods, we'll get through the flowers," he told CBS This Morning. By Tuesday afternoon, Lake Elsinore once again closed the freeway ramps in both directions. In a Facebook post citing "severe congestion," the city said that the decision was made by California Highway Patrol, not the city. In the meantime, here are some photos of the super bloom if you can't (or consciously won't) see them in person. > View this post on Instagram> > A post shared by Momo Twins ~ Leia & Lauren (@leialauren) on Mar 18, 2019 at 10:20pm PDT> View this post on Instagram> > A post shared by ⠀ ⠀⠀J i m e n a R e n o (@renosaurio) on Mar 18, 2019 at 8:04am PDT> View this post on Instagram> > A post shared by Gerd Ludwig (@gerdludwig) on Mar 19, 2019 at 12:51pm PDT> View this post on Instagram> > A post shared by J E S S (@jess.wandering) on Mar 14, 2019 at 8:30am PDT> View this post on Instagram> > A post shared by Lil' Sawyer the Labradoodle (@sawyertheminidood) on Mar 19, 2019 at 7:26am PDTAnd don't forget that if you do end up visiting, stick to the wildflower etiquette guide. WATCH: Elon Musk did it - Tesla's $35,000 Model 3 is finally finally finally here
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| Glyphosate under fire from San Francisco to Sri Lanka Posted: 20 Mar 2019 07:19 AM PDT  Glyphosate, the world's most widely used herbicide and the active ingredient in Monsanto's weedkiller Roundup, is the subject of fierce controversy across the globe and is classified by the World Health Organization as "probably" being carcinogenic. A California court on Tuesday found that Roundup was a "substantial factor" in Edwin Hardeman, 70, getting non-Hodgkin's lymphoma after spraying the weedkiller on his garden for decades.
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| Kazakhstan's president abruptly resigns Posted: 20 Mar 2019 01:03 AM PDT  Kazakhstan's President Nursultan Nazarbayev unexpectedly resigned on Tuesday after three decades in power. Lauren Anthony reports.
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| New Zealand holds first funerals for victims of Christchurch massacre Posted: 19 Mar 2019 11:15 PM PDT  A father and son who fled the civil war in Syria for "the safest country in the world" were buried before hundreds of mourners on Wednesday. The funerals of Khalid Mustafa, 44, and Hamza Mustafa, 15, came five days after a white supremacist methodically gunned down 50 worshippers at two mosques in Christchurch - a massacre that he broadcast live on Facebook. Hamza's high school principal described the student as compassionate and hardworking, and said he was an excellent horse rider who aspired to be a veterinarian. Those present included Hamza's younger brother, 13-year-old Zaed, who was wounded in an arm and a leg during the attack. The boy tried to stand during the ceremony but had to sit back in his wheelchair, one mourner said. "We tried to not shake his hand, and not touch his hand or his foot, but he refused, he wanted to shake everybody's hand, he wanted to show everyone that he appreciated them. And that's amazing," said Jamil El-Biza, who travelled from Australia to attend the funeral. Female mourners attend the funeral of two victims of the Christchurch terrorist attack at Memorial Park Cemetery Credit: Getty The Mustafas had moved to New Zealand last year, after spending six years as refugees in Jordan. Mustafa's wife, Salwa, told Radio New Zealand that when the family asked about New Zealand they were told "it's the safest country in the world, the most wonderful country you can go ... you will start a very wonderful life there." She added, "But it wasn't." Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said the family should have been safe. "I cannot tell you how gutting it is to know that a family came here for safety and for refuge," she said. Families of those killed had been anxiously awaiting word on when they could bury their loved ones. Police Commissioner Mike Bush said police have now formally identified and released the remains of 21 of those killed. Islamic tradition calls for bodies to be cleansed and buried as soon as possible. The burials began soon after Ms Ardern renewed her call for people to speak of the victims rather than the man who killed them. New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern receives a hug from a student during her visit to Cashmere High School which lost two students during a mass shooting Also on Wednesday, a man accused of sharing video footage of Friday's massacre was jailed by a judge until his next court appearance in mid-April. And Mr Bush said he believes police officers stopped the gunman on his way to a third attack. Ms Ardern's plea against giving the accused gunman notoriety followed his move to represent himself in court, raising concerns he would attempt to use the trial as a platform for airing his racist views. During a visit on Wednesday to the high school Hamza and another victim attended, Ms Ardern revisited that thought and asked students not to say the attacker's name or dwell on him. "Look after one another, but also let New Zealand be a place where there is no tolerance for racism," she told students at Cashmere High School. "That's something we can all do." Another Cashmere student, 14-year-old Sayyad Milne, also died in the attack. About 30 people wounded in the attacks remained in hospital as of Tuesday evening. About 10 of them were in critical condition, including a four-year-old girl. Brenton Tarrant, a 28-year-old Australian man, has been charged with murder and is next scheduled to appear in court on April 5. Police have said they are certain Tarrant was the only gunman but are still investigating whether he had support from others. Ardern previously has said reforms of New Zealand's gun laws would be announced next week and she said an inquiry would be convened to look into the intelligence and security services' failures to detect the risk from the attacker or his plans. New Zealand's international spy agency, the Government Communications Security Bureau, confirmed it had not received any relevant information or intelligence before the shootings. Sheik Taj El-Din Hilaly, of Sydney, travelled to Christchurch to attend or lead some of the funerals. Through a translator, he said he felt compelled to support the grieving. A nationwide lockdown on mosques was imposed until Monday, which Hilaly said had upset Muslims whom he had visited in Auckland. Police continue to guard mosques across the country. Philip Arps, 44, appeared in a Christchurch court on Wednesday on two charges of distributing the killer's livestream video of the attack on the Al Noor mosque, the first mosque that was attacked, a violation of the country's objectionable publications law. Each charge carries a maximum sentence of 14 years in prison. Arps, heavily tattooed and dressed in a T-shirt and sweatpants, hasn't entered a plea. He remained expressionless during the hearing, his hands clasped behind his back. Judge Stephen O'Driscoll denied him bail. Charging documents accuse Arps of distributing the video on Saturday, one day after the massacre. Bush said they believe they know where the gunman was going for a third attack when officers rammed his car off the road but won't say more because it's an active investigation. In a 74-page manifesto he released before the attack, Tarrant said he was going to attack two mosques in Christchurch and then one in the town of Ashburton if he made it that far.
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| Flooding will continue into next week in storm-ravaged Midwest Posted: 20 Mar 2019 03:50 AM PDT  Floods driven by rain and melting snow have affected several states, with four people killed and one missing after storms.
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| See Spy Photos of the Jeep Wrangler Plug-In Hybrid Posted: 20 Mar 2019 10:26 AM PDT |
| Trump is 'looking into' Facebook 'bias' as aide melts down over suspension Posted: 19 Mar 2019 10:48 AM PDT  A Facebook spokesperson told Yahoo News that a system intended to stop bots had temporarily halted Dan Scavino's ability to post comments, and that the company had apologized and restored his account.
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| Beto: ‘I Think There’s a Lot of Wisdom in’ Abolishing Electoral College Posted: 19 Mar 2019 10:58 AM PDT  Beto O'Rourke endorsed fellow Democratic presidential contender Elizabeth Warren's call for the abolition of the Electoral College during a Tuesday campaign stop in Pennsylvania."I think there's a lot to that. Because you had an election in 2016 where the loser got 3 million more votes than the victor. It puts some states out of play altogether, they don't feel like their vote really counts," O'Rourke told MSNBC's Garrett Haake when asked about Warren's opposition to the Electoral College. "So if we really want every person to vote and give them every reason to vote, we need to make sure their votes count and go to the candidate of their choosing. So I think there's a lot of wisdom to that and it's something we talked about during that last senate race in Texas."> Asked about the idea of getting rid of the electoral college, Beto O'Rourke tells @GarrettHaake today: "I think there's a lot of wisdom in that." pic.twitter.com/k5yUiL2gmb> > -- Kailani Koenig (@kailanikm) March 19, 2019O'Rourke's comments come one day after Warren, citing the outsize influence of voters in battleground states, advocated the abolition of the Electoral College during a Monday night CNN town hall."My view is that every vote matters and the way we can make that happen is that we can have national voting, and that means get rid of the Electoral College," Warren told the audience at Mississippi's Jackson State University.The Massachusetts Democrat went on to accuse Republicans of seeking to disenfranchise minority communities through voter-ID laws and called for a constitutional amendment that "protects the right to vote for every American citizen and makes sure that vote gets counted."The notion of the Electoral College as a means by which the votes of rural, white Americans enjoy greater influence than those cast by the diverse, urban majority has gained popularity among liberal lawmakers and activists since the 2016 election.The vast majority of Republicans and Republican-leaning independents (81 percent) prefer to maintain the status quo, while the same percentage of Democrats would like to see a constitutional amendment passed to transition to a national popular vote, according to a Gallup poll taken weeks after Election Day 2016.
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| SEC says Musk's contempt defense 'borders on the ridiculous' Posted: 19 Mar 2019 08:58 AM PDT  DETROIT (AP) — U.S. securities regulators countered Tesla CEO Elon Musk's contempt-of-court defense Monday night, writing in court papers that he brazenly disregarded a federal judge's order and that one of his arguments "borders on the ridiculous."
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| Novartis Probe Finds No Trace of Payoffs to Greek Officials Posted: 20 Mar 2019 01:28 AM PDT ![Novartis Probe Finds No Trace of Payoffs to Greek Officials]( "Novartis Probe Finds No Trace of Payoffs to Greek Officials") Greece is investigating reports of payoffs by Novartis in a high-profile case that implicates two of the country's former prime ministers and a European Union commissioner. Novartis didn't receive preferential pricing from the Greek state and to date has been unable to identify any "inappropriate payments" to government officials, a local spokesperson said in an email.
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| USC to deny students connected to cheating scheme class registration, transcripts as their status is frozen Posted: 19 Mar 2019 01:46 PM PDT  USC says it won't let students currently at the school who may be connected to the nation's college admissions bribery scandal to register for class.
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| Outrage over Pope's decision to reject resignation of archbishop convicted of protecting predator priest Posted: 19 Mar 2019 11:16 AM PDT  Catholic campaigners condemned as "shocking" a decision by Pope Francis not to accept the resignation of a French archbishop who was given a suspended prison sentence this month for failing to report the sexual abuse of boy scouts by a known predatory priest. Tuesday's surprise decision came just a month after the Vatican convened an unprecedented conference of cardinals in which it pledged to get tough on priests who abuse children and the bishops who cover up for them. French cardinal Philippe Barbarin travelled to Rome on Monday and offered his resignation to Pope Francis. But on Tuesday the Vatican announced that the Argentinian pontiff had decided to reject the resignation. While the Vatican offered no explanation, it seems likely that the Pope wants to wait to see the outcome of an appeal that the 68-year-old archbishop intends to launch against his six-month sentence. But the decision was condemned by groups representing survivors of clerical sex abuse from around the world. Pope Francis receives Cardinal Philippe Barbarin, Archbishop of Lyon, at the Vatican Credit: Reuters "I'm stunned by this decision. It is shocking and depressing," Anne Barrett Doyle, the head of the US-based organisation Bishop Accountability, told The Telegraph. "It reveals the Pope's very narrow concept of accountability. It is a reminder to bishops that they have nothing to fear from this Pope. It is a profound and disastrous misreading of what is required to address this crisis." Just last month, during a four-day conference at the Vatican attended by bishops and archbishops from around the world, the Pope said that "no abuse must ever be covered up, as has happened in the past". In a statement, Barbarin, the most senior French Catholic to have been swept up in the Church's sex abuse scandal, said: "On Monday I handed over my mission to the Holy Father. He spoke of the presumption of innocence and did not accept this resignation." Barbarin said that he would step back from his role as archbishop of Lyon "for a little while", allowing his deputy to stand in for him. Even the Bishops' Conference of France – the country's most senior Catholic body - said it was surprised by the decision, which it described as "unheard of". Barbarin was convicted earlier this month of failing to act against Bernard Preynat, a priest who has confessed to abusing boy scouts in the 1980s and 1990s. Preynat is expected to be put on trial later this year. Barbarin became archbishop of Lyon in 2002 and learned of Preynat's abuse of boys but let him remain in ministry until 2015, said Bishop Accountability. French victims of clerical abuse also reacted with outrage to the papal decision. "I think that man (the Pope) is going to manage to kill off the church. It's a mistake too many," said Francois Devaux, a co-founder of a victims' organisation. Faith in the Catholic Church has plunged as a result of its failure over two decades to address sex abuse perpetrated by clergy. Last week George Pell, the Australian cardinal who was once the third most powerful figure in the Vatican, was sentenced to six years in prison after being convicted of abusing two altar boys in Melbourne's St Patrick's Cathedral in the 1990s. He also intends to appeal and remains a cardinal, despite being behind bars. Campaign groups were profoundly disappointed when last month's Vatican conference on combating sexual abuse failed to come up with any new, concrete initiatives to address the crisis.
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| New Zealand begins funerals for mosque shooting victims, PM visits school Posted: 20 Mar 2019 06:16 AM PDT  The majority of victims from Friday's attack in the South Island city were migrants or refugees from countries such as Pakistan, India, Malaysia, Indonesia, Turkey, Somalia, Afghanistan and Bangladesh. The youngest was a boy of three, born in New Zealand to Somali refugee parents. The first two victims buried, father and son Khaled and Hamza Mustafa, came from war-torn Syria.
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| Floodwaters threaten millions in crop and livestock losses Posted: 20 Mar 2019 12:00 AM PDT  DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Farmer Jeff Jorgenson looks out over 750 acres of cropland submerged beneath the swollen Missouri River, and he knows he probably won't plant this year.
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| The bread crumb papers: Why Cohen document dump should worry Donald Trump and others Posted: 20 Mar 2019 07:56 AM PDT  Redactions can be used to avoid alerting a defendant before he's charged or tipping off suspects in a pending investigation. Who might that apply to?
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| Could the Twitter Primary Cost Democrats the Oval Office? Posted: 19 Mar 2019 12:04 PM PDT  In my lifetime, I've never seen more presidential candidates advocate breaking more American constitutional, economic, and policy norms than I've seen from the Democratic field so far in 2019. When you assemble their proposals, it's breathtaking.End the Electoral College? Elizabeth Warren is for it, and Beto O'Rourke says there's "a lot of wisdom" in her proposal.Pack the Supreme Court? Warren, Beto, Kamala Harris, and Kirsten Gillibrand are open to the idea.End the legislative filibuster? Harris and Warren are thinking about it.Remake the American economy with the Green New Deal? Virtually every significant Democratic presidential candidate is an enthusiastic yes.Sweep away the private health-insurance policies of 150 million Americans? This is the emerging Democratic consensus.This is only a partial list of Democratic power moves to the left, including calls to fundamentally transform longstanding constitutional structures and institutions. What is going on? Are these all conviction moves by progressive politicians telling the American people what they really believe? Are these politicians merely reflecting and amplifying the deeply held views of the Democratic rank-and-file?Certainly the Democratic mainstream has become more liberal, and its left-most cohorts are white, female, college-educated, and young. In other words, I just described many of the key demographics of American Twitter — the platform that exercises a wildly disproportionate influence on politicians, journalists, and political activists. The dominant feedback loop in the early primary isn't just from the motivated base (which would be entirely normal), but a motivated base amplified by a specific social-media platform.Yes, radical Democratic pronouncements will earn them a wave of negative media attention on Fox News and in conservative media, but not a single Democratic candidate is trying to win that demographic. Indeed, a wave of Fox News hate is good for the brand. But if a Democratic candidate breaks in even small ways from the emerging online orthodoxy, watch them trend on Twitter. Watch them get viciously dragged in real time in front of every single leading progressive politician, activist, and journalist in the United States. It takes a brave person to withstand the attack, especially when there is precious little short-term advantage in confronting the online Left.This immediate, public, toxic, and often vicious or scornful feedback amplifies existing primary-season pressures to move leftward — just as the same kind of immediate toxic reaction can cow conservatives who oppose Trump. These attacks aren't just read by campaign staffers. They also provide fodder for journalists, and they can quickly create narratives that dog candidates for days or weeks.I'm not arguing that primary-season purity tests are anything new. Republicans have been through those wars, and now the GOP purity test is centered around loyalty to Trump. But these days Twitter — which has developed into a hysterical platform prone to mobbing and shaming — amplifies and intensifies preexisting primary pressures. Now, a strategy to prevent poor optics on Twitter will push Democratic candidates further and further to the left, as they express "openness" to ideas they'd never otherwise entertain, all to avoid the backlash.As I've argued before, Twitter is so influential in part because that's where the people who care the most spend their time. The people who care the most about anything — from politics to sports to pop culture — set the tone. And in American politics, the people who care the most tend not to be moderate, either in temperament or ideology.By the time progressive Twitter has done its work on the Democratic field, the American people may no longer have the ability to choose true American norms in 2020. They may well encounter a choice between an extremist personality with a relatively center-right or populist agenda and a more normal personality who seeks to enact extremist policies. If suburban voters long for not radical change but rather a more reasonable politics, where will they turn?But Democrats — indeed, both parties — need to remember that while Twitter has disproportionate influence on activists and elites, there's little evidence that its outrages and controversies penetrate the wider world. An incident from this past week speaks volumes. If you'd only watched Twitter, you'd think that Beto's presidential announcement was a bust. The Bernie Brigades — which punch well above their weight online — gang-tackled Beto on social media. He wasn't taking on Ted Cruz, he was taking on the heroes of the progressive movement, and the honeymoon was most definitely over.Twitter pronounced its verdict: His announcement was a bust. His campaign was days old, but he was already struggling. And then we learned Beto had out-raised every other Democratic candidate — including Bernie — in the first 24 hours of his campaign.That doesn't mean Beto is a favorite. Nor does it mean that he's immune to Twitter's progressive temptations. Just yesterday he backed abortion-on-demand even into the third trimester. He has backed the Green New Deal. He's even advocated tearing down parts of the existing border wall. But it does mean that sensible politicians and sensible members of their staffs would do well to remember that the praise they earn online may well spell their doom at the ballot box. Twitter politics is extremist politics, and fighting one norm-breaker by creating another is an excellent way for the Democrats to fail again.
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| US State Department under fire for secrecy surrounding 'faith-based media' press conference Posted: 19 Mar 2019 10:48 AM PDT  The US State Department has raised concerns among the American press after conducting a conference call exclusively with "faith based media" outlets. Secretary of state Mike Pompeo reportedly participated in the Monday afternoon press call. Reporters from networks across the country are typically provided the opportunity to listen to these State Department calls and ask questions about news developments and upcoming announcements.
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| Georgetown University students say Ocasio-Cortez is the face of the Democratic Party Posted: 20 Mar 2019 03:53 AM PDT  Are Democrats having an identity crisis? CampusReform.org contributor Emma Meshell weighs in.
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| Jump-seat pilot reportedly saved Boeing Max jet one day before Lion Air crash Posted: 20 Mar 2019 11:57 AM PDT  A day before a Boeing 737 Max 8 crashed off of Indonesia last year, killing all 189 people aboard, pilots struggled for control of the same aircraft.
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| Dow falls after dovish Fed decision as Brexit chaos hammers pound Posted: 20 Mar 2019 02:46 PM PDT  Wall Street stocks finished a volatile session mostly lower on Wednesday following a dovish Federal Reserve decision, while the pound dropped amid Brexit chaos as Britain tries to avoid a damaging no-deal exit.
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| See Photos of the 2020 Mercedes-Benz GLC300 Coupe Posted: 19 Mar 2019 04:00 PM PDT |
| Warren tests 2020 message with black voters in U.S. South Posted: 19 Mar 2019 07:55 AM PDT  Affordable housing is a chief concern for the senator from Massachusetts, who recently reintroduced a $500 billion housing plan she says will create millions of housing units and reduce rental costs by 10 percent. During meetings with housing advocates in Memphis, Tennessee, and walking tours of small Mississippi towns, Warren, who is white, tested and tailored her central message of combating income inequality to black voters, a critical Democratic voting bloc. "I'm running to be president of all the people, and it's important to go around the country and have a chance to talk with people face to face," Warren told reporters after a town hall that drew about 500 people to a high school in Memphis.
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| Syrian refugee father and son laid to rest as New Zealand burials start Posted: 20 Mar 2019 06:26 AM PDT  A Syrian refugee and his son who fled the chaos of their homeland only to meet tragedy in New Zealand were buried on Wednesday in the first funerals of those killed in the mosque massacres. Hundreds of mostly Muslim mourners gathered at a cemetery in the southern city of Christchurch to lay to rest Khalid Mustafa and his 15-year-old son Hamza, who were among 50 people slaughtered at two mosques by an Australian white supremacist. The pair had fled to New Zealand seeking sanctuary from the Syrian maelstrom but died in last Friday's hail of bullets, a bitter irony that New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern called "gutting".
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| Surveillance Appears to Show Person Carrying Rifle Wandering California Elementary School Posted: 19 Mar 2019 12:10 PM PDT  Investigators say a northern California elementary school staff member called police after watching surveillance footage of an armed person scoping out the school.
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| Trump renews attack alleging social media's political bias Posted: 19 Mar 2019 08:25 AM PDT  U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday accused social media platforms Facebook, YouTube and Twitter of favoring his Democratic opponents over him and his fellow Republicans. "But fear not, we will win anyway, just like we did before! #MAGA," he said in a tweet. MAGA refers to Trump's 2016 campaign slogan, "Make America Great Again." Facebook Inc and Twitter Inc declined to comment.
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| Troops celebrate as US-backed force seizes IS camp in Syria Posted: 19 Mar 2019 11:03 AM PDT  BAGHOUZ, Syria (AP) — U.S.-backed Syrian forces on Tuesday seized control of an encampment held by the Islamic State group in eastern Syria, after hundreds of militants surrendered overnight, a spokesman said, signaling the group's collapse after months of stiff resistance. A group of suspects involved in a January bombing that killed four Americans in northern Syria were among militants captured by the Kurdish-led forces.
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| Danish MP told her baby not welcome in parliament Posted: 20 Mar 2019 06:06 AM PDT  A Danish MP said on Tuesday she was ordered to remove her infant daughter from parliament's chamber, sparking surprise in a country often hailed as a pioneer in women's rights. "You are not welcome with your baby in the parliament's chamber," speaker Pia Kjaersgaard, an outspoken former leader of the far-right Danish People's Party, allegedly told MP Mette Abildgaard. "I didn't ask for permission to bring her since I had previously seen another colleague bring a child into the chamber without any problems," Ms Abildgaard, whose Conservative party is part of the ruling centre-right coalition, wrote on Facebook. Ms Abildgaard, who is in her 30s, said she found herself in an exceptional situation with her five-month-old daughter, and had never brought her into the chamber before. But she said the infant was "in a good mood and had a pacifier in her mouth." Mette Abildgaard responded to the incident on Facebook Ms Kjaersgaard passed the message to an assistant, who then asked Ms Abildgaard to remove the baby from the room. Ms Abildgaard handed the child to an assistant and returned to the chamber to vote. "MPs should be in the chamber, not babies or children," insisted Ms Kjaersgaard when questioned by news agency Ritzau. She said clear rules would be issued on the subject. The Scandinavian country is often held up as a champion of gender equality and women's rights, and as a child and family-centred nation with generous parental leave. Ms Abildgaard noted that she was entitled to a year's maternity leave with full pay, but that she had chosen to return to work. Her Facebook post garnered more than 600 comments within the space of a few hours. New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern holds her baby after speaking at the UN General Assembly Credit: REUTERS/Carlo Allegri "A chamber that represents mothers, fathers and babies ought to be open to mothers, fathers and babies," one person wrote. In 2016, an Icelandic lawmaker made headlines after breastfeeding her infant while speaking at the podium in parliament. And in September, New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern became a symbol for working mothers when she brought her baby to the UN General Assembly in New York.
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| Former House Speaker Paul Ryan joins board of Fox News parent company Fox Corp. Posted: 19 Mar 2019 01:15 PM PDT  Former House Speaker Paul Ryan was named Tuesday to the board of the new Fox Corp. as the stock was to begin trading as a stand-alone public company.
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| Pope nixes French cardinal resignation after cover-up Posted: 19 Mar 2019 11:13 AM PDT  VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Francis has declined to accept the resignation of French Cardinal Philippe Barbarin as archbishop of Lyon after he was convicted of failing to report a known predator priest to police, the Vatican said Tuesday.
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| Amazon is blowing out MacBook refurbs for just $929, today only Posted: 19 Mar 2019 08:26 AM PDT ![Amazon is blowing out MacBook refurbs for just $929, today only]( "Amazon is blowing out MacBook refurbs for just $929, today only") If you want the quality, performance, and fit and finish of an Apple laptop but you don't want to spend a minimum of $1,300, Amazon is running a killer one-day sale that you definitely need to check out. The Apple MacBook 12" Laptop with Retina Display costs $1,299 new, but Amazon is flush with refurbs and it's blowing them out on Tuesday. You can snag one in either Space Gray, Gold, or Rose Gold for just $929, but only until they sell out... which will probably be pretty soon considering how good that price is.'Here are the key details from the product page: * This product has been tested and certified to work and look like new, with minimal to no signs of wear, are refurbished by Apple and come with a 1-Year Apple Warranty. All accessories are brand new, and they will come packaged in a white box. * 12-inch (diagonal) LED-backlit display with IPS technology; 2304-by-1440 resolution at 226 pixels per inch with support for millions of colors * 1.2GHz dual-core Intel Core M3-7Y32 processor (Turbo Boost up to 3.0GHz) with 4MB shared L3 cache * 256GB PCI-E based flash memory storage; 8GB of 1866MHz LPDDR3 onboard memory * Intel HD Graphics 615 processor for an outstanding everyday graphics experience * 802.11ac Wi-Fi wireless networking; IEEE 802.11a/b/g/n compatible; Bluetooth 4.2 technology for connecting with peripherals such as keyboards, mice, and cell phones * Built-in stereo speakers along with omnidirectional microphone, headphone port * Full-size keyboard with 78 (U.S.) individual LED backlit keys, including 12 function keys and 4 arrow keys with ambient light sensor; Force Touch trackpad for precise cursor control and pressure-sensing capabilities * I/O Ports: USB-C (1) / 3.5mm jack (1) * Note: These are being sold As-Is and are not eligible for the AppleCare Protection Plan or AppleCare+'
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| U.N. rights boss decries Venezuela crackdown; says sanctions may worsen crisis Posted: 20 Mar 2019 10:15 AM PDT  The country was plunged into a political crisis in January when Juan Guaido, head of the opposition-controlled congress, invoked the constitution to assume an interim presidency, arguing Nicolas Maduro's 2018 re-election was not legitimate. Bachelet told the U.N. Human Rights Council that she had information, without elaborating, that the National Police's Special Actions Force (FAES) had executed 37 people in January in Caracas in illegal house raids in poor areas supporting the opposition. "... my office documented numerous human rights violations and abuses by security forces and pro-government armed groups, including excessive use of force, killings, arbitrary detentions, torture and ill-treatment in detention, and threats and intimidation," she said.
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| Christchurch Muslims protected as they pray following mass haka Posted: 20 Mar 2019 03:17 AM PDT  Muslims praying in front of the one of the Christchurch mosques attacked by a white supremacist were protected on Wednesday evening by locals, moments after hundreds performed a mass haka. As men, women and children prayed and prostrated, dozens of locals silently stood behind them, their arms interlinked. Moments earlier a crowd of hundreds thumped their chests, stomped their feet and stuck out their tongues for a haka dance, their Maori cries echoing across the park towards the bloodstained mosque.
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| The BMW 2-series Gran Coupe Will Be a Front-Wheel-Drive "Four-Door Coupe" Posted: 20 Mar 2019 07:36 AM PDT  This new model, debuting later this year, will be BMW's answer to the Mercedes-Benz CLA.
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| Biden Has Started Telling Supporters He Plans to Run for President, Source Says Posted: 20 Mar 2019 01:00 AM PDT  Former Vice President Joe Biden has told some supporters that he's making plans to jump into the race, joining a diverse field of candidates vying to challenge President Donald Trump, a person familiar with the conversations said. Biden, 76, has led in early polls of primary voters, and could capture significant support from major Democratic donors, many of whom have held off from backing other candidates while awaiting his decision. A spokesman for Biden, Bill Russo, declined to comment.
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| Jury finding upends Bayer's Roundup defense strategy: experts Posted: 20 Mar 2019 02:39 PM PDT  Bayer shares tumbled more than 12 percent on Wednesday after a unanimous jury in San Francisco federal court found Roundup to be a "substantial factor" in causing California resident Edwin Hardeman's non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. The jury decision was a blow to Bayer after the judge in the Hardeman case, at the company's request, had split the trial, severely limiting evidence plaintiffs could present in the first phase. Tuesday's defeat on terms considered advantageous to Bayer sets up the second phase to be even tougher and limits the grounds on which the company could appeal any final verdict, the experts said.
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