| US intelligence suggests Russia was fishing Putin's doomsday missile out of the sea when it mysteriously exploded Posted: 29 Aug 2019 05:15 PM PDT  Sources familiar with an intelligence report told CNBC that Russia was trying to recover the weapon after another unsuccessful flight test.
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| UK, Germany, France warn on South China Sea tensions Posted: 29 Aug 2019 08:40 AM PDT  Britain, Germany and France said on Thursday they were concerned by tensions in the South China Sea, in a statement issued the day after a U.S. Navy destroyer sailed near islands claimed by China. The situation there "could lead to insecurity and instability in the region," the three countries said in a joint statement issued by Britain's foreign ministry. China and the United States have traded barbs in the past over what Washington has said is Beijing's militarization of the South China Sea via the building of military installations on artificial islands and reefs in disputed waters.
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| Trump cancels Poland visit as hurricane heads for Florida Posted: 29 Aug 2019 04:21 PM PDT  US President Donald Trump on Thursday canceled a trip to Poland as Hurricane Dorian bore down on Florida, where it could make landfall as a dangerous Category 4 storm. Trump, who had been scheduled to attend World War II anniversary commemorations in Poland this weekend, said he would focus instead on preparations for the approaching hurricane. Vice President Mike Pence would go to Poland in his place, Trump said.
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| West Virginia state senator charged with prostitution Posted: 28 Aug 2019 05:28 PM PDT  West Virginia state Sen. Mike Maroney has been charged with soliciting a prostitute. The Republican lawmaker turned himself in and was arraigned Wednesday morning, a Marshall County court clerk said. Maroney exchanged text messages to discuss prices and set up meetings with a woman who has acknowledged being a prostitute, according to a criminal complaint.
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| Stacey Abrams will not run for Senate seat in Georgia now that Republican Johnny Isakson to retire Posted: 28 Aug 2019 04:40 PM PDT  After GOP Sen. Johnny Isakson announced he was retiring from his seat, Georgia Democrat Stacey Abrams, who gained national attention following her 2018 gubernatorial race, said she will not be a candidate to replace Isakson.
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| Portuguese national interrupts TV interview, gives moving speech about Brexit's impact Posted: 29 Aug 2019 03:22 AM PDT  Another spanner has been thrown into the works in the countdown to Brexit. UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson asked the Queen to suspend parliament which will scupper MPs chances to block a no-deal Brexit. On Wednesday, the Queen approved Johnson's request, prompting a national outcry and protests across the country.During a Central London protest against prorogation (the official term for the suspension of parliament), a Portuguese woman, who has lived and worked in the UK for 20 years, interrupted an interview and delivered an impassioned and extremely moving speech about Brexit's impact on her life."I'm Portuguese and I worked here for 20 years and I have no voice and the Settlement Scheme is not working," the woman -- whose name is unknown -- told Sky News. The woman is referring to the EU Settlement Scheme, which allows EU citizens to apply to continue living in the UK once it's no longer part of the European Union. She had been attending the protest, stating her reason for attending as "because I need a voice." "I gave this country my youth, I'm very grateful for what you taught me but you must make me part of all this process," she said. "I can't just be kicked out, I've built things for you, I've looked after your children, I looked after the elderly in this country, now you kick me out with what?"> A Portuguese national interrupted an interview to speak passionately to Sky News during protests against prorogation, saying she had "given her youth" to the UK > > For more on this story, head here: https://t.co/Bw9GJrZl0b pic.twitter.com/sFCZ1cnvrO> > -- Sky News (@SkyNews) August 28, 2019Per BBC News, a no-deal Brexit would result in the UK immediately exiting the EU with no agreement on Oct. 31. "Overnight, the UK would leave the single market and customs union -- arrangements designed to help trade between EU members by eliminating checks and tariffs (taxes on imports)," the BBC explains.The woman said she is "very, very hurt" by what's happening to the country. As she was about to walk away from the interview, the Sky News journalist urged her not to go away, and asked what was happening with her Settlement Status application. She explained that she'd been told her National Insurance number (the UK version of Social Security) didn't "correspond to the right thing" and she's been told she has to restart the whole process. "Oct. 31 is fast approaching, what am I going to do? What am I going to do? How am I going to stay? What are my rights?" she said. WATCH: Watch Zuckerberg's face freeze after a far-right politician credited Facebook for Trump's win and Brexit
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| Joe Biden warned about ‘welfare mothers driving luxury cars’ in a 1988 column Posted: 29 Aug 2019 08:37 AM PDT  Former VP Joe Biden's half-century of public life has drawn extensive attention to his record on race and civil rights in the 2020 Democratic primary.
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| Serbia Vows to Block Plan to Turn Nazi Death Camp Sites Into Shops Posted: 29 Aug 2019 06:51 AM PDT ![Serbia Vows to Block Plan to Turn Nazi Death Camp Sites Into Shops]( "Serbia Vows to Block Plan to Turn Nazi Death Camp Sites Into Shops") (Bloomberg) -- Serbia will adopt a law to create a memorial center in Belgrade for tens of thousands of Jews, Serbs and Roma killed by Nazis in World War II, preventing plans to redevelop two concentration camp sites in the capital city into commercial space.Draft legislation will be sent to parliament in November with the "active involvement of the Jewish community in Serbia," Efraim Zuroff of the Simon Wiesenthal Center told reporters in after meeting with President Aleksandar Vucic on Thursday. He said he got assurances from the Serb leader that the bill will be adopted and the government will provide funds for the memorial.Originally a 1937 trade fair complex built in the then capital of Yugoslavia, Staro Sajmiste became a death camp when Nazis invaded the country in 1941. Some 30,000 died there, including 7,000 Jews. After the fall of communism, this and another site of a Nazi-era camp in Belgrade, Topovske Supe, were partly sold off by the state, but have been spared large-scale redevelopment.After the war, parts of Staro Sajmiste were used as art studios, a kindergarten, a nightclub, and a restaurant. It even housed a local office of Vucic's ruling Serbian Progressive Party. The land of Topovske Supe is slated for building a $220 million shopping mall by closely held Delta Holding. That may be prevented through mandatory expropriation, according to the draft bill.To contact the reporter on this story: Misha Savic in Belgrade at msavic2@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Irina Vilcu at isavu@bloomberg.net, Andrea Dudik, Andrew LangleyFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| Jessi Combs Killed In Jet-Car Crash During Speed Record Attempt Posted: 28 Aug 2019 10:52 AM PDT  An automotive legend gone too soon.The automotive world has suffered a huge loss. Racer, television personality, fabricator, and all-around female gearhead, Jessi Combs, was attempting to break her own land speed record behind the wheel of a 52,000-horsepower jet car in Oregon's Alvord Desert. For reasons yet unknown, the jet-powered car she was driving crashed during the land-speed record attempt, killing Combs.Combs held the title of "fastest woman on four wheels" after driving that same North American Eagle Supersonic Speed Challenger to a staggering 398 miles per hour back in 2013. Last year, she attempted to beat her speed record and clocked a 483.227 mph shakedown run, but mechanical issues arose and ended the attempt early.At just 36 years old, Combs has accomplished so much in the automotive industry, and her untimely death is mourned by many. She has appeared on multiple television shows such as Overhaulin', All Girls Garage, Mythbusters, and she was a co-host on Extreme 4x4 on PowerBlock TV (now PowerNation).A role model for women in the motorsports industry, Combs was a skilled automotive builder and fabricator. Whatever she set her mind to, she accomplished. Combs represented the American Welding Society and designed a line of women's welding gear.Combs was also a force to be reckoned with in the off-road world, competing in the Baja 1000. At a King of Hammers event, she was the first woman to place. Given the nickname "Queen of Hammers", Combs finished first place overall in 2016 at King of Hammers.Combs' accident follows a couple of jet-powered car crashes that have also ended in tragedy. Katarina "Kat" Moller, just 24 years of age, died from her injuries after her Larsen Motorsports "American Dream" jet dragster crashed at Sebring International Raceway during an exhibition run in November. Doug Rose, 80, was behind the wheel of his own Green Mamba jet dragster at Norway Speedway in Michigan's northern peninsula last August when a failed turn sent him into a guardrail resulting in his death. Back in 1966, Rose had both legs amputated below the knees after the Green Monster jet car he was driving also hit a guard rail, but that didn't stop his love for the sport.It's safe to say that Jessi Combs was a female advocate in the automotive world, a hands-on role model for women in a male-dominated industry. She paved a path doing what she loved, but the world lost a bright light in the automotive world and beyond. Our condolences go out to her loved ones. Rest in peace, Jessi.
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| War and poverty drive Gazans to seek better life in Europe despite dangers Posted: 29 Aug 2019 07:20 AM PDT  Shaban Khalaf's advice to any other Gazans thinking of heading to Europe in search of a better life, as he did, is blunt: don't bother - it's not worth the danger and the expense. Khalaf should know. Despairing of ever finding a decent job in Gaza, where the economy is near collapse, the journalism graduate flew to Turkey via Egypt in June 2018 and tried no fewer than 18 times to cross into Europe, mostly by boat.
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| Hurricane Dorian: Trump warns of 'very, very big' category 4 storm expected to hit Florida on national holiday Posted: 29 Aug 2019 03:24 PM PDT  Residents of Florida have been stocking up on essential supplies after forecasters said a potentially devastating category 4 hurricane could make land there during a national holiday.Donald Trump said he was cancelling a trip to Poland in order to oversee the federal response if Hurricane Dorian smacks into the state, where the governor has already declared a state of emergency.
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| Gaza under alert after suicide bombings kill three police officers Posted: 28 Aug 2019 01:08 PM PDT  Gaza's Islamist rulers Hamas said Wednesday two overnight suicide bombings killed three Palestinian police officers in the strip, placing the Palestinian enclave in a state of alert. Interior ministry spokesman Iyad al-Bozm said in an evening statement that they had identified the two bombers who blew themselves up at two police checkpoints in Gaza City. A source familiar with the investigation said a Salafist movement in Gaza that sympathises with the Islamic State jihadist group was suspected.
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| Satellite photos show burning Iran space center launch pad Posted: 29 Aug 2019 10:33 AM PDT  A rocket at an Iranian space center that was to conduct a satellite launch criticized by the U.S. apparently exploded on its launch pad Thursday, satellite images show, suggesting the Islamic Republic suffered its third failed launch this year alone. State media and officials did not immediately acknowledge the incident at the Imam Khomeini Space Center in Iran's Semnan province. In previous days, satellite images had shown officials there repainted the launch pad blue.
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| 'Well heck, I'm not doing anything': This Arizona couple moved to Iowa to volunteer for Tulsi Gabbard Posted: 29 Aug 2019 11:05 AM PDT  Lawn signs, billboards and a very dedicated volunteer corps make up Tulsi Gabbards' Iowa campaign
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| Federal Court Rules Atheists May Be Barred From Giving Invocations at Pennsylvania Statehouse Posted: 28 Aug 2019 04:23 PM PDT  A federal appeals court ruled that atheists and others who do not believe in God can be prohibited from delivering an invocation at the Pennsylvania statehouse.The 2 to 1 ruling from the 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals in Philadelphia on Friday upheld a state House of Representatives policy that stipulates the chamber's opening invocation may be led only by a current member of the House or "a member of a regularly established church or religious organization."The court found that the rules governing the opening invocation, which also require the invocation to be "respectful of all religious beliefs," do not infringe on the First Amendment since the invocation falls under government speech and goes along with the "historical tradition of legislative prayer.""First, only theistic prayer can satisfy all the traditional purposes of legislative prayer. Second, the Supreme Court has long taken as given that prayer presumes invoking a higher power," the court stated.A lower court halted the policy last summer, ruling that there is "no justification to sanction government's establishment of a category of favored religions — like monotheistic or theistic faiths — through legislative prayer," but Friday's ruling overturns that decision.Americans United for Separation of Church and State, which represented the plaintiffs who complained about the rule, panned the "disappointing ruling," saying it gives "special privileges to people because they believe in a god."
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| Democrats' Medicare for All must consider union-won plans: AFL-CIO Posted: 29 Aug 2019 09:48 AM PDT  Democratic White House hopefuls should ensure their Medicare for All proposals honor union-negotiated private insurance, AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka, head of the largest federation of U.S. labor unions, said on Thursday. How to best extend health coverage to millions of uninsured or under-insured Americans has been one of the early issues defining the Democratic nominating contest to take on Republican President Donald Trump in November 2020. "You can't ask the American worker, who sacrificed wages and everything, to simply say: 'Okay, I'll accept this plan here,'" Trumka added, noting that some union plans likely provide more benefits than Medicare.
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| View Photos of the 2020 Porsche Taycan Posted: 28 Aug 2019 06:12 AM PDT |
| Woman pleads guilty to shooting man in the head inside car while on Facebook Live Posted: 29 Aug 2019 11:44 AM PDT  Sentencing is scheduled for a later date, which will include statements from the victim.
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| Hurricane Dorian spares Puerto Rico and heads for eastern coast of Florida Posted: 28 Aug 2019 11:13 PM PDT  Power outages and flooding were reported in the Virgin Islands and the Puerto Rican islands, but no damagesHurricane Dorian caused only limited damage in Puerto Rico late Wednesday. Photograph: Ramón Espinosa/APHurricane Dorian caused limited damage in the northern Caribbean as it left the region and gathered strength late Wednesday, setting its sights on the US mainland as it threatened to grow into a Category 3 storm.Puerto Rico, which had braced for the worst, seemed to be spared any heavy wind and rain, a huge relief to many on an island where blue tarps still cover some 30,000 homes nearly two years after Hurricane Maria. The island's 3.2 million inhabitants also depend on an unstable power grid that remains prone to outages since it was destroyed by Maria.Power outages and flooding were reported across the US Virgin Islands, the British Virgin Islands and the Puerto Rican islands of Vieques and Culebra after Dorian hit St Thomas as a Category 1 storm."We're happy because there are no damages to report," Culebra's mayor, William Solis, told the Associated Press, noting that only one community lost power.Donald Trump began the day by insulting and taunting Puerto Rico and its residents, who are US citizens, on Twitter. "Puerto Rico is one of the most corrupt places on earth," the president wrote in part. "Their political system is broken and their politicians are either Incompetent or Corrupt. And by the way, I'm the best thing that's ever happened to Puerto Rico!"Florida officials said Wednesday that they are preparing for the hurricane to make landfall somewhere along the state's eastern shore. Florida's governor, Ron DeSantis, declared a state of emergency and urged residents to take precautions in anticipation of a possible Labor Day strike.Dennis Feltgen, a Hurricane Center meteorologist in Miami, said Dorian may grow in size and could land anywhere from south Florida to South Carolina on Sunday or Monday. "This will be a large storm approaching the south-east," he said.County governments along Florida's east-central coast are distributing sandbags and many residents are rushing to warehouse retailers to load up on water, canned food and emergency supplies.Trump declared an emergency on Tuesday night and ordered federal assistance for local authorities in Puerto Rico. But in a tweet Wednesday morning, Trump, a climate crisis denier, seemed to complain about Puerto Rico's exposure to storms, and escalated a long-running feud with Carmen Yulín Cruz, the mayor of San Juan, Puerto Rico's capital.The two established a combative relationship after the island was devastated by Hurricane Maria almost two years ago, when US aid was slow to arrive and Trump offended many during a visit. > We are tracking closely tropical storm Dorian as it heads, as usual, to Puerto Rico. FEMA and all others are ready, and will do a great job. When they do, let them know it, and give them a big Thank You - Not like last time. That includes from the incompetent Mayor of San Juan!> > — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 28, 2019On Tuesday night, Cruz said that Trump should "get out of the way"."Three thousand Puerto Ricans did not open their eyes this morning because this racist man did not have it within him to do his job," Cruz said on CNN. "So get out of the way, President Trump."Cruz was referring to the death toll from Hurricane Maria, which hit Puerto Rico in September 2017. An official report criticized the Trump administration's slow response to the devastation from the storm, which destroyed the island's power grid and decimated its agriculture and tourism industries.On Tuesday morning, Trump had tweeted about Dorian, and seemed to complain about the cost of hurricane recovery efforts in Puerto Rico, which have fallen far short of restoring the island."Wow! Yet another big storm heading to Puerto Rico," Trump wrote. "Will it ever end? Congress approved 92 Billion Dollars for Puerto Rico last year, an all time record of its kind for 'anywhere'."Trump's tweet contained multiple falsehoods. While Congress has allocated $42.5bn for disaster relief for Puerto Rico, the island had received less than $14bn through May, according to federal data. And in any case Trump's headline amount of $92bn would not qualify the Maria relief package as "an all-time record" for the costliest tropical cyclones, according to the federal government's own figures. Spending on recovery for Hurricane Harvey, which hit Texas and Louisiana in the same storm season as Maria, has so far cost $125bn.Since Maria, Puerto Rico has struggled with political turbulence leading to the recent departure of the governor, Ricardo Rosselló. Earlier this month, the territory's supreme court overturned the swearing-in of Rosselló's successor, Pedro Pierluisi, and the former justice secretary, Wanda Vázquez, became governor.
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| US suggests won't prosecute Venezuela's Maduro if he leaves Posted: 29 Aug 2019 10:02 AM PDT  A US envoy suggested Thursday that Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro will be safe from US prosecution if he quits but acknowledged that his departure remained elusive despite a half-year pressure campaign by Washington. Elliott Abrams, the US pointman on Venezuela, renewed demands that Maduro cede power to opposition chief Juan Guaido but said there was no "personal edge" to the position. "We are not trying to go after him," Abrams told reporters.
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| Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand has dropped out. Here are the 3 big winners. Posted: 29 Aug 2019 06:21 AM PDT  Insider has been tracking how many candidates' fans like other candidates. Gillibrand's exit could help Sen. Elizabeth Warren consolidate support.
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| A bear broke into a Colorado couple's home. They fought it off with a baseball bat and their bare fists Posted: 28 Aug 2019 08:57 PM PDT ![A bear broke into a Colorado couple's home. They fought it off with a baseball bat and their bare fists]( "A bear broke into a Colorado couple's home. They fought it off with a baseball bat and their bare fists") A Colorado couple fought a bear with their fists and a baseball bat Monday, authorities said, driving the animal and her cub out of their home.
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| UPDATE 1-Iranian tanker changes course away from Turkish coast - tracking data Posted: 29 Aug 2019 05:12 AM PDT ![UPDATE 1-Iranian tanker changes course away from Turkish coast - tracking data]( "UPDATE 1-Iranian tanker changes course away from Turkish coast - tracking data") Iranian tanker Adrian Darya, at the centre of a dispute between Washington and Tehran, has changed course away from the Turkish coast, Refinitiv ship tracking data showed on Thursday. The tanker, formerly called Grace 1, was released from detention off Gibraltar in mid-August after a five-week standoff over whether it was carrying Iranian oil to Syria in violation of European Union sanctions. On Monday, IRIB news agency quoted an Iranian government spokesman as saying that Iran had sold the oil from the Adrian Darya and the vessel's owner will decide on its next destination.
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| Tulsi Gabbard Slams DNC for ‘Lack of Transparency’ after Failing to Qualify for Upcoming Dem Debate Posted: 29 Aug 2019 05:04 AM PDT  Representative Tulsi Gabbard (D., Hawaii) denounced the Democratic National Committee (DNC) for its "lack of transparency" Wednesday night after learning that she likely won't qualify for the third Democratic primary debate."I think the bigger problem is that the whole process really lacks transparency," Gabbard told Fox News' Tucker Carlson. "People deserve having that transparency because ultimately it's the people who will decide who our Democratic nominee will be.""When you see that lack of transparency," she added, "it creates a lack of faith and trust in the process."Gabbard, an Iraq war veteran and staunch isolationist, has reached the individual donor threshold to qualify for the upcoming nationally-televised debate next month but, according to the DNC, has fallen two polls short of clearing the public support threshold as of the Wednesday deadline.Asked to explain why the DNC wouldn't recognize a number of polls that would have helped her qualify for the debate, Gabbard suggested the DNC's standards were opaque and helped propagate the notion that national politics are controlled by a cabal of "political elites.""Really what they see is a small group of of really powerful political elites, the establishment making decisions that serve their interests and maintaining that power while the rest of us are left outside. The American people are left behind," Gabbard said.The DNC came under fire following the 2016 presidential election after it was revealed that the institution worked to secure the Democratic nomination for Hillary Clinton at the expense of Bernie Sanders.Carlson labeled the DNC's efforts on behalf of Clinton "rigging" during the Wednesday night program and suggested similar machinations may be at work this election cycle."You got sideways with the political establishment last presidential cycle because you didn't jump aboard the Hillary Clinton express immediately," Carlson said. "Then we learned that there was activity that looked a lot like rigging . . . in order to steer one candidate towards victory and hamstring another."
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| Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey apologizes for participating in blackface skit in college Posted: 29 Aug 2019 12:47 PM PDT  "I offer my heartfelt apologies for the pain and embarrassment this causes," Ivey said.
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| Fox News Host Jeanine Pirro: Dems Plotting to ‘Replace American Citizens With Illegals’ Posted: 29 Aug 2019 11:09 AM PDT  MIKE THEILERNearly a month after an accused shooter reportedly said he deliberately targeted "Mexicans" while killing more than 20 people in El Paso, Fox News personalities are still echoing the same talking points from the gunman's racist manifesto, in which he complained about a "Hispanic invasion" of America.Appearing on Fox Nation's The Todd Starnes Show on Thursday, Fox News host Jeanine Pirro was asked by Starnes—who recently likened migrants to a "rampaging horde" of Nazis—if Democrats and liberals hate President Donald Trump and his supporters.Pirro, who is currently promoting a book that Trump has already endorsed, took the opportunity to push a version of the "Great Replacement theory"—the same racist lie that was cited by the El Paso gunman and other recent domestic terrorist attackers."They hate Donald Trump—he's the one they want to get rid of," she said, in a segment first spotted by Media Matters. "Their plot to remake America is to bring in the illegals, change the way the voting occurs in this country, give them licenses. They get to vote—maybe once, maybe twice, maybe three times."After decrying same-day voter registration and grousing about voter rolls not being purged, Pirro—who was suspended by Fox earlier this year for questioning Ilhan Omar's loyalty to America—went right back to the far-right well."Think about it," Pirro exclaimed. "It is a plot to remake America—to replace American citizens with illegals who will vote for the Democrats."Pirro's comments come just days after the National Association of Hispanic Journalists cut ties with Fox News over the network's use of "invasion" rhetoric to describe immigration, with the NAHJ saying Starnes' remark about immigrants was the final straw.In the wake of the El Paso slayings, Fox News has been the focus of widespread criticism for the extreme anti-immigrant rhetoric of many of its opinion hosts. Tucker Carlson, for instance, has seen a further erosion of his advertiser base after he called white supremacy a "hoax" just days after the shooting.Read more at The Daily Beast.Got a tip? Send it to The Daily Beast hereGet our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.
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| DNA to solve mystery of Napoleon's general lost in Russia Posted: 28 Aug 2019 01:20 AM PDT  Archaeologists are set to unveil the answer to a 200-year-old question over the remains of a French general who died during Napoleon's 1812 campaign in Russia. Charles Etienne Gudin was hit by a cannonball in the Battle of Valutino on August 19 near Smolensk, a city west of Moscow close to the border with Belarus. "As soon as I saw the skeleton with just one leg, I knew that we had our man," the head of the Franco-Russian team that discovered the remains in July, Marina Nesterova, told AFP.
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| 26 killed in fiery attack on bar in southern Mexico Posted: 28 Aug 2019 05:04 PM PDT  Gang members burst into a bar, blocked all the exits and then started a fire that killed 26 people and injured about a dozen others, Mexican officials said Wednesday. Authorities said the attack in the Gulf coast city of Coatzacoalcos late Tuesday apparently was overseen by a man who had been recently arrested but released. "The criminals went in, closed the doors, the emergency exits, and set fire to the place," President Andrés Manuel López Obrador said at his daily morning news conference.
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| Here’s What Hurricane Dorian Looks Like From Space Posted: 29 Aug 2019 03:01 PM PDT  The powerful storm is expected to become a Category 4 hurricane
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| Elizabeth Warren is the only candidate to consistently rise in the polls. That could make her the candidate to beat in the 2020 primaries. Posted: 28 Aug 2019 06:59 AM PDT  Elizabeth Warren is the only candidate who has consistently and steadily gained support over time, a huge warning sign for the frontrunner Joe Biden.
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| Swedish teen climate activist arrives in New York by boat for U.N. summit Posted: 28 Aug 2019 05:18 AM PDT  Teenage climate activist Greta Thunberg sailed into New York Harbor on Wednesday in a zero-carbon emissions vessel, completing her nearly 14-day journey from England to take part in a United Nations climate summit. The 16-year-old Swedish schoolgirl, who set sail from Plymouth, England, on Aug. 14, was greeted by cheers, chants and singing as her silver sailboat, the Malitzia II, cruised past the Statue of Liberty through choppy waves and rain to drop anchor in Manhattan's yacht harbor. "All of this is very overwhelming and the ground is still shaking for me," a seemingly bashful Thunberg, clad in a dark blue jumpsuit, told a gathering of reporters and activists who greeted her and the crew of the Malitzia II on land.
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| Canada: workers race to free millions of salmon trapped after huge landslide Posted: 29 Aug 2019 08:37 AM PDT  * Rockslide on banks of Fraser River created impassable barrier * Heavy machinery and helicopters used to help gather fishA vessel used to transport salmon up the Fraser River. Crews have leaned heavily on local Indigenous communities to help gather tens of thousands of fish. Photograph: Darryl Dyck/APHelicopters, heavy machinery and nearly 200 workers are frantically working to free millions of salmon trapped by a landslide in western Canada.Government crews in the area have worked relentlessly along the banks of the Fraser River to clear debris after a rockslide, discovered in a late June, created an impassable 5m-high waterfall.Each year, several species of Pacific salmon – sockeye, chinook, pink and coho – travel up British Columbia's Fraser River to reproduce. But the newly formed barrier has blocked the fish from accessing critical watersheds for egg laying.Weeks of excavation have shown success: already, 12,000 salmon have passed through carefully constructed channels. And 44,000 salmon – as many as 3,000 per day – have been transported by helicopter."Nothing is off the table unless it's determined as not being feasible. We are looking at any and all options," Michael Crowe of the Department of Fisheries and Oceans, told reporters on Wednesday. The team hopes to continue moving fish by truck, after the road was rebuilt, as well as developing a fish ladder.Emergency crews have leaned heavily on local Indigenous communities, and their knowledge of salmon spawning, to help gather tens of thousands of fish."First Nations' technical knowledge in fish capture – from beach-seining crews to a second fish wheel – underpins the operation," said the government in a media release.Muddy, fast-moving water has made it difficult for officials to estimate the number of salmon trapped below the landslide site. In previous years, said Crowe, millions of salmon would be passing through this section of the Fraser River. A number of fish have been outfitted with radio tracking collars in order to give a clearer picture of how many have successfully moved upstream.The landslide, and the frantic effort to clear it, highlights the barriers – natural and human-made – that salmon face each year.In much of western North America, hydroelectric dams have blocked critical spawning routes. In recent years, the plight of displaced salmon has prompted increasingly dramatic attempts to move the fish, including the "salmon cannon" – footage of which recently went viral.The efforts in British Columbia to free the trapped salmon comes amid a difficult times for the fish: recent data suggests sockeye salmon have plummeted 75% over the last century in Canada. Last week, the department of fisheries and oceans confirmed the dire state of sockeye when it warned only 600,000 were expected to spawn this year, as apposed to the normal return of five million. Chinook salmon, which are also stranded in the river, are also endangered.
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| Woman survives 80ft fall after attempting yoga pose on sixth-floor balcony Posted: 28 Aug 2019 05:07 AM PDT  A Mexican woman has survived an 80ft fall after she slipped while doing an extreme yoga pose over the edge of her sixth-floor balcony.Alexa Terrazas, 23, was hanging off the edge of her balcony when she fell onto the driveway of her building in the northeastern Mexican state of Nuevo Leon on Saturday, local media reported.
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| 'Tough guy!': Trump mocks NYT columnist Bret Stephens for bedbug reaction Posted: 28 Aug 2019 05:34 AM PDT  Bret Stephens, who was called a bedbug Monday evening on Twitter, has since deactivated his Twitter account.
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| Imran Khan to sound sirens to summon Pakistanis to noon protest over Kashmir Posted: 29 Aug 2019 09:31 AM PDT  Pakistanis have been urged to come onto the streets at noon Friday amid blaring sirens and renditions of the national anthem, as Imran Khan called for a mass display of solidarity with Kashmir. Sirens and the national anthem will be sounded at midday to summon people out of their homes and workplaces to mark what will become a weekly "Kashmir hour", the military's information wing has said. The mass demonstrations are being staged protest against Delhi's abolition of autonomy for Indian-administered Kashmir. Indian forces have imposed a strict curfew and communications blackout to try to snuff out protest in the territory. The former cricketer said: "We must send a strong message to Kashmiris that our nation stands resolutely behind them. So I am asking all Pakistanis for half an hour tomorrow stop whatever you are doing and come out on the road to show solidarity with the Kashmiri people." Srinagar in India-administered Kashmir remains tense after more than three weeks of lockdown Credit: AP The mass mobilisation is part of Pakistan's attempt to highlight events in Kashmir as it tries to court international opinion to intervene. Mr Khan has said he will speak before the United Nations general assembly next month to press the issue. Pakistan's denunciations of India have so far met a muted response, with some countries Islamabad had counted as allies declaring India's move is an internal matter. India's trading might, and Pakistan's long-standing diplomatic isolation for its sponsorship of militants have made it difficult for Islamabad to gain traction, diplomats say. Tensions between Islamabad and Delhi have been high since February air strikes by Delhi after Narendra Modi's government sought revenge for a suicide bombing claimed by Pakistan-based militants. They rose further after the August 5 decision to revoke Kashmir's self rule. Kashmir has been divided between the two countries since independence, and has been the spark for two major wars and countless clashes between the arch-rivals. Mr Khan's calls for protests came as the Pakistani military announced earlier Thursday the testing of a surface-to-surface ballistic missile, with the army's spokesman saying the weapon was "capable of delivering multiple types of warheads".
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| FBI searches Detroit-area home of UAW president Posted: 28 Aug 2019 02:48 PM PDT  Federal agents on Wednesday searched the suburban Detroit home of the president of the United Auto Workers, apparently another step in a corruption investigation that has netted labor leaders and auto industry officials, and damaged the union's reputation during contract talks with U.S. car companies. The UAW criticized the remarkable search of Gary Jones' home in Canton Township, insisting it has fully cooperated with authorities. "President Jones is determined to uncover and address any and all wrongdoing, wherever it might lead," the UAW said in a written statement.
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| View Photos of the 2020 Volvo XC60 Polestar Posted: 29 Aug 2019 05:18 AM PDT |
| Steyer Deducted $181 Million for SALT: Campaign Update Posted: 29 Aug 2019 03:49 PM PDT  (Bloomberg) -- Billionaire Tom Steyer wrote off the $181 million he paid in state and local taxes over nine years, according to tax returns released by his presidential campaign Thursday.His income totaled $1.2 billion from 2009 through 2017, and SALT was his single biggest deduction in all nine years. His total income was $146.3 million in 2017, when he claimed a $26.9 million write-off for state and local taxes. His campaign said he'd release his 2018 return when it was available, but he may have paid far more in federal taxes as the Republican-controlled Congress has capped the SALT deduction at $10,000.Steyer, who has advocated for a wealth tax, has consistently been among the top U.S. political donors. In 2017, he spent $65.4 million on political activities, according to a memo accompanying the documents he released.The hedge fund manager, a California resident, has said he could spend as much as $100 million on his 2020 presidential campaign, though he is foundering in the polls and failed to qualify for a candidate debate next month. He has spent an estimated $10.8 million on television advertising since launching his campaign in July, according to Advertising Analytics LLC.Biden Defends Anecdote About Afghanistan Incident (4:45 p.m.)Democratic presidential front-runner Joe Biden brushed aside a report that he recently told an inaccurate story about traveling to Afghanistan to honor a heroic Navy captain, arguing that the "central point" of his account was "absolutely accurate."Biden's comments on Thursday came in response to a Washington Post article challenging the accuracy of the anecdote, saying that Biden had "jumbled elements of at least three actual events into one story of bravery, compassion and regret that never happened."At a campaign stop last week, Biden recalled visiting Afghanistan during his years as vice president and meeting the captain, who had rappelled down a ravine under enemy fire to retrieve the body of another American, and later refused to accept a Silver Star medal that Biden tried to pin on him.Biden said Thursday in Rock Hill, South Carolina, that he hadn't read the Post story, but insisted he'd stayed true to the thrust of the incident."The story was that he refused the medal because the fella he tried to save and risked his life saving, died," he told the Post and Courier. "That's the beginning, middle and end. The rest of you guys can take it and do what you want with it." -- Jennifer EpsteinGoogle, Twitter to Discuss 2020 Disinformation (3:50 p.m.)Google, Facebook and Twitter have been invited by the head of the Federal Election Commission to explore ways to combat digital disinformation in the 2020 elections.The all-day symposium on Sept. 17 will examine new types of false information spread online that could be used to influence elections. In 2016, Russia used online platforms in a bid to support the candidacy of President Donald Trump, according U.S. intelligence agencies.Ellen Weintraub, the head of the agency, is co-hosting the event, which will also include academics, congressional staffers and political organizations, according to an official at the agency. The event was first reported by Politico.Spokespersons for Facebook and Twitter said the companies are planning to attend. Google did not immediately respond to requests for comment.The other co-hosts are the Global Digital Policy Incubator at the Stanford Cyber Policy Center and PEN America. The FEC as an agency isn't involved. -- Bill AllisonGabbard Says She Won't Run as an Independent (12:30 p.m.)Tulsi Gabbard may have qualms about some of her rivals, but she's ruling out an independent bid for president if she fails to get the Democratic nomination."No, I have ruled that out," the Hawaii congresswoman told CNN Thursday.Gabbard failed to qualify for the September primary debate by Wednesday's deadline and is polling at 1.4%, according to the RealClearPolitics average. But in the first two debates, she filled a unique role as Trump supporters' favorite Democrat. An Iraq war vet, she frequently appears on Fox News and has challenged the orthodoxy of both parties on foreign policy.On Wednesday, she complained to Fox News about a lack of transparency in the criteria for Democratic primary debates and said the party is run by "a small group of really powerful political elites."Speculation of a third-party run had been driven by Gabbard's unusually harsh criticism of some of her rivals, particularly Kamala Harris, as unqualified. -- Gregory KorteHarris Offers Plan for People With Disabilities (6:00 a.m.)Kamala Harris vows to increase grants and strengthen rules aimed at bolstering opportunity for people with disabilities if she's elected president in 2020.Her campaign said that a Harris proposal released Thursday would enhance Department of Education programs aimed at helping disabled people get jobs. It would also use the powers of the departments of Transportation and Housing and Urban Development to strengthen accessibility rules for new projects to qualify for funding.The proposal says Harris, California's junior senator, would "have diverse leaders with disabilities developing all the policies her administration champions."Her nine-point plan includes legislative proposals to increase wages of disabled workers and resources for teachers of students with disabilities. It also calls for the U.S. to ratify the United Nations' Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. -- Sahil KapurCOMING UPClimate change takes center stage at a CNN town hall on Sept. 4. The Democratic National Committee has rejected demands from climate activists and several candidates for a party-sponsored debate solely on that issue.\--With assistance from Sahil Kapur, Gregory Korte, Bill Allison and Jennifer Epstein.To contact the reporter on this story: Bill Allison in Washington DC at ballison14@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Wendy Benjaminson at wbenjaminson@bloomberg.net, Max Berley, John HarneyFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| 'Feed the wolf': fear stalks Cathay staff after Hong Kong protest sackings Posted: 28 Aug 2019 07:29 PM PDT  A fortnight ago Cathay Pacific said it "wouldn't dream" of muzzling the views of its 27,000 Hong Kong staff, but after the dismissal of several pro-democracy supporters among its workforce under Chinese pressure, employees say this is exactly what has happened. Hong Kong, a financial centre that was once a byword for stability and prosperity, has been plunged into an unprecedented crisis by anti-government protests, framed by fears over growing Chinese influence. The chaos put airline Cathay in a bind over whether to allow its staff to take part in -- or voice support for -- the massive demonstrations, or risk losing its China-facing business.
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| How Russia and China are preparing to exploit a warming planet Posted: 29 Aug 2019 02:11 AM PDT  POLITICO's latest Global Translations podcast explores how climate change is reshaping power dynamics among America's adversaries.
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| After euphoria and anxiety, Germans turn pragmatic on immigration -study Posted: 29 Aug 2019 07:50 AM PDT  Germans are broadly positive towards immigration and think it benefits the country, a survey showed, suggesting the often extreme reactions triggered by the arrival of a million-plus refugees there in 2015 have given way to a calmer view. A long-standing split between attitudes in the more welcoming western Germany and more skeptical former Communist east has also become less marked, Thursday's Bertelsmann Foundation study revealed - though judged purely on economic factors the differences between the two parts remain acute. Overall, almost two thirds of Germans believe immigration is good for the economy and 67% that it makes life more interesting, with young people the most positive.
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| Secret Service, police in standoff with barricaded suspect in Fairfield Posted: 28 Aug 2019 12:00 PM PDT  BARRICADED SUSPECT: The Secret Service along with police are in the middle of a standoff in Fairfield.
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| 'Very graphic’ evidence, including satanic elements, in Ohio child porn case, police say Posted: 29 Aug 2019 04:40 PM PDT  An Ohio man confessed to raping and photographing a 5-year-old boy in a case authorities say is the worst they've ever seen.
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| Outrage mounts over Harvard student turned back at airport Posted: 28 Aug 2019 03:27 PM PDT  The story of an incoming Harvard freshman who was denied entry into the United States after his laptop and cellphone were searched at the airport last week has immigration and free speech advocates sounding the alarm over the Trump administration's increasingly restrictive immigration policies and how they are enforced.
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