Conspiracy-mongering Republican seeking John Lewis seat gets social media boost from Trump

On Thursday evening, amid a fairly typical burst of presidential Twitter activity, President Trump retweeted two recent posts from the account of Angela Stanton-King, a Republican congressional candidate who has repeatedly used her social media feeds to promote content related to QAnon and other fringe conspiracy theories, including wildly implausible internet rumors about sex trafficking of children. Trump has also flirted with QAnon memes on social media, although his retweets of Stanton-King were not related to the loosely knit group whose followers have been described by the FBI as “conspiracy theory-driven domestic extremists.” In the first tweet, which was originally posted last week, Stanton-King describes herself as “a proud Black woman who supports @realDonaldTrump” and is “done with the Democrat Party lying to my community.”

The former Dallas police officer who killed Botham Jean in his own apartment is appealing her murder conviction

Tom Fox/The Dallas Morning News via AP, Pool, File Amber Guyger, a former Dallas police officer killed Botham Jean in his own apartment in 2018 filed an appeal to her 10-year prison sentence. Guyger's lawyers argue in the appeal that "she had the right to act in deadly force in self-defense since her belief that deadly force was immediately necessary was reasonable under the circumstances," CBS reported. A lawyer for the Jean family said in a statement to CNN that filing the appeal reflects Guyger as "someone who is not repentant but instead was hoping to play on the families sympathies at the time that they were most vulnerable."

$800 a week to test employees for COVID-19. Could rapid, cheap tests help?

Epidemiologist Dr. Michael Mina of Harvard University T.H. Chan School of Public Health wants the U.S. to support more antigen tests, which can offer faster results with less lab work. Doctors already use antigen tests to diagnose infectious illnesses like influenza or strep throat, and while they are not as sensitive as the polymerase chain reaction, or PCR, test, widespread use of them could ease lab delays and help control "burning epidemics" across the U.S., Mina said. Mina describes them as "transmission blocking tests" because they could identify people who are most infectious and likely to spread the virus.

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  Conflicting COVID test results raise accuracy questions as states re-impose restrictions

  FOX News Videos
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  Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine tested positive, then negative for COVID-19: 7 questions you might have about testing

  USA TODAY

Should Judge Sullivan Be Disqualified from Flynn Case? An Appeals Court Is Asking

At the time, that court's three-judge panel had not yet heard oral argument on Michael Flynn's mandamus petition — i.e., Flynn's request that the panel find that federal district judge Emmet Sullivan was acting lawlessly. Sullivan had not only failed to grant the Justice Department's motion to dismiss the criminal case against Flynn; he had appointed a former federal judge (the overtly anti-Trump John Gleeson) to posit the argument abandoned by DOJ — to wit, that Flynn should proceed to sentencing because he had pled guilty to a false-statements charge, waiving his right to contest the case any further in exchange for the government's agreement not to file any other charges.

A father, a sister, a son: Beirut blast takes a heavy toll

A DOTING HUSBAND AND FATHER Soha Saade and her husband, Jihad Saade, were at Saint George Hospital, caring for their 6-year-old daughter, Gemma, who was being treated for Hodgkin lymphoma. The daughter had one more day of treatments left at the hospital before they were scheduled to leave. They saw smoke billowing outside and Soha went with nurses to see if there was any reason for worry.

Nasa drops 'colonial' nicknames for cosmic objects like 'Eskimo Nebula' and 'Siamese Twins Galaxies'

Nasa is to drop "colonial" and "insensitive" nicknames for cosmic objects, including the "Eskimo Nebula" and the "Siamese Twins Galaxies". The space agency said it had taken the decision to address "systemic discrimination and inequality" in science. From now on it will use the official International Astronomical Union designations for planets, stars, galaxies and other stellar bodies "in cases where nicknames are inappropriate."

French passengers sue Costa Cruises over virus ship ordeal

Around 850 French passengers who were onboard a coronavirus-riddled cruise ship that was turned away from numerous ports in March have filed a collective suit in Paris with 180 complaints, including manslaughter, against Costa Cruises, their lawyer said Sunday. The class action, which includes complaints from the families of three passengers who died of COVID-19, accuses the Italy-based cruise giant of negligence and various faults during their trip on the Costa Magica. In the absence of stopovers, the crew encouraged the passengers to use the ship's shops, spas, restaurants and casino without sufficiently putting health measures in place -- or informing them there were suspected infections onboard -- the complainants said in their suit.

Michigan university among 1st in US to test campus living during COVID-19 pandemic

Just before 10 a.m. Wednesday, Sophia Schiepek pulled her car, loaded down with some of the stuff needed to survive a year in a dorm room, into a parking lot driveway on the campus of Lake Superior State University. Students have been coming to Lake State – Michigan's smallest public university – since the 1940s. While the styles of cars dropping off the students have evolved over the years, much of the process remains unchanged.

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  When the CEO Can’t Get on a Plane, Deputies Step Up

  The Wall Street Journal
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  Here's the biggest news you missed this weekend

  USA TODAY

Puerto Rico’s primary goes off the rails

Puerto Rico on Sunday was forced to partially suspend voting for primaries marred by a lack of ballots as officials called on the president of the U.S. territory's elections commission to resign. The primaries for voting centers that had not received ballots by early afternoon are expected to be rescheduled, while voting would continue elsewhere, the commission said. I have never seen on American soil something like what just has been done here in Puerto Rico.

The Trump administration reportedly quashed part of an intelligence report that showed Russia is helping him win the 2020 election

The Trump administration reportedly pressured the Office of the Director of National Intelligence to delete part of a report that concluded Russia was aiming to help Trump win reelection in 2020. When former director of national intelligence Dan Coats refused to delete that conclusion from the report, Trump forced him to retire earlier than planned, according to an investigation by The New York Times Magazine. Previous reports from the FBI, CIA, and NSA concluded that Russia attempted to help Trump win in 2016 — and Vladimir Putin said publicly he wanted Trump to win — but Trump has denied those reports' accuracy.

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  'I Don't Care': Trump Responds To Intel That Russia Is Working To Get Him Elected Again

  HuffPost
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  'They're not equivalent': Pelosi says Russian election interference more serious than that of China, Iran

  USA TODAY

A woman claiming to be from the 'Freedom To Breathe Agency' filmed telling a grocery employee that she could face legal action for making people wear face masks

In a viral TikTok video, a woman claiming to be from an anti-mask group told a grocery store supervisor in Orange County, California, that she could face legal action for asking people to wear face coverings. The mask-less woman, who claimed she was from the "Freedom to Breathe Agency", was filmed giving the employee a piece of paper that stated she could go to prison for up to three to five years for telling customers to wear a mask. The "Freedom To Breathe Agency" is not a real governmental agency and has previously received a warning from the Department of Justice after it distributed fake "face mask exempt" cards.

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  I went to the movies for the first time post-lockdown, and even though most people took their masks off in the theater, I'd go back

  INSIDER
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  Major US airlines have created a 'no fly list' for travelers who refuse to wear face coverings during the pandemic

  Business Insider

She Was Charged With Murder After Her Baby Was Stillborn. Now California’s AG Has Stepped In.

For more than nine months, five of them during a global pandemic, a 26-year-old woman named Chelsea Becker has been sitting in Kings County Jail, under a $2 million bail, for giving birth to a stillborn baby. Becker has been there since November, when police arrested her and prosecutors charged her with murder. The District Attorney argued that Becker's methamphetamine addiction had caused the stillbirth, citing a 50-year-old law that civil rights advocates say was never supposed to apply to pregnant women.

Hong Kong hits back at 'shameless' U.S. sanctions on leader Carrie Lam

The Chinese and Hong Kong governments strongly criticized Washington Saturday after the United States imposed sanctions on the territory's leader Carrie Lam, and other officials, dismissing the move as "clowning actions" that would not intimidate Chinese people. Hong Kong's government said the sanctions were "shameless and despicable" and represented a "blatant and barbaric" interference in China's internal affairs, warning that Hong Kong was being used as a "pawn" in the U.S.-China relationship. The Trump administration announced Friday it would impose sanctions on Lam and Luo Huining, the head of China's Liaison Office in Hong Kong, along with nine other current and former officials that Washington accuses of curtailing political freedoms, following the imposition of a draconian new security law in June.

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  US sanctions are 'clowning actions', says Beijing's top Hong Kong office

  The Telegraph
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  Carrie Lam: Hong Kong's divisive leader now sanctioned by US

  AFP

New 'threat' against former Saudi spy in Canada: media

A former senior Saudi intelligence official who has accused Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman of trying to have him assassinated in 2018 has been placed under heightened security after a new threat on his life, a Canadian newspaper reported. The Globe and Mail said Canadian security services had been informed of a new attempted attack on Saad Aljabri, who lives at an undisclosed location in the Toronto region. Aljabri served as a counterespionage chief under a rival prince, Mohammed bin Nayef, who was ousted in 2017 by Prince Mohammed.

Niger attack: French aid workers among eight killed by gunmen

Gunmen have attacked a group of aid workers in Niger, killing six French citizens, their local guide and driver, officials say. The gunmen arrived on motorcycles and opened fire, the governor of Tillabéri region, Tidjani Ibrahim, told the French news agency AFP. They were in the Koure region, which attracts tourists who want to see the last herds of giraffe in West Africa.

• 6 French citizens, 2 guides killed by gunmen at giraffe park

  Associated Press
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  Gunmen kill six French aid workers, their driver and guide in Niger, minister says

  Reuters

Susan Rice: Let Republicans use Benghazi as a 'political distraction'

The emergence of Susan Rice, a former national security adviser in the Obama administration, as a leading candidate to become former Vice President Joe Biden's running mate has led to a renewed focus on the 2012 attacks against U.S. government facilities in Benghazi, Libya, which resulted in the deaths of 11 people, including U.S. Ambassador to Libya J. Christopher Stephens. In an interview with The Atlantic, Rice did express regret about agreeing to represent the Obama administration on news shows where she announced that the attacks were part of a spontaneous protest in response to an anti-Muslim video. Rice told The Atlantic her mother warned about going on the shows, especially since then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton declined, but said she ultimately accepted the task because she consider herself a "team player."

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  Celebrate the VP nominee, not Biden's decision to pick a woman. It's the least he can do.

  USA TODAY Opinion
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  Donna Brazile weighs in on Biden’s potential VP picks

  FOX News Videos

Letters to the Editor: We're a third-world country if Trump can corrupt the Postal Service so easily

To the editor: I was incensed upon reading that the postmaster general appointed by President Trump is doing what he can to hold up the mail on which so many Americans rely. America is becoming a third-world country when an institution as basic as U.S. Postal Service is vulnerable to Trump's whims. To the editor: I think the U.S. Postal Service does a great job.

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  Postal Service emerges as flash point heading into election

  Associated Press
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  Coronavirus won’t stop Souls to the Polls in Florida — but it will look different

  Miami Herald

Three parks and wildlife employees die in helicopter crash during bighorn sheep survey

Three Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) employees have been killed in a helicopter crash while conducting aerial surveys for desert bighorn sheep in the south-western part of the state, according to officials. The crash happened on Saturday in the remote wilderness of Black Gap Wildlife Management Area, which is adjacent to Big Bend National Park, on the Rio Grande that marks the border with Mexico. The victims of the crash were identified as wildlife biologist Dewey Stockbridge, fish and wildlife technician Brandon White, and state wildlife veterinarian Bob Dittmar, according to the TPWD.

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  Helicopter crash kills 3 Texas wildlife workers during survey of bighorn sheep

  NBC News
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  Helicopter crash kills three Texas Parks and Wildlife workers, officials say

  Miami Herald

Man who was given life sentence for $30 marijuana sale to be freed

A man in Louisiana serving a life sentence for selling less than a gram of marijuana is due to be released from prison, his lawyer has said. Derek Harris, who is a military veteran, was arrested in 2008 for selling 0.69 grams of marijuana — an amount worth less than $30 (£23) — to an undercover officer who came to his door. Harris was initially convicted and sentenced to 15 years in prison.

Explosives expert: It's only a matter of time before human error leads to another Beirut blast

One of the world's leading experts on ammonium nitrate told The Daily Telegraph: “It's only a matter of time before something similar happens again.” Vyto Babrauskas, a fires and explosives forensics expert based in New York, said that there were tens of thousands sites around the world where the chemical was stored unsafely. About 2,750 tonnes ignited to devastate Beirut on Tuesday. In the UK, it is legal to store up to 1,250 tonnes.

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  Timelapse Captures Scale of Beirut Protest

  Storyful
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  Beirut blast: Two Lebanese ministers resign as protesters clash with security forces

  The Telegraph

Nation hits 5 million coronavirus cases with few signs of slowing

As the U.S. surpassed 5 million coronavirus cases this weekend, the milestone was met with little fanfare as some school districts planned to reopen and thousands descended on Sturgis, South Dakota, for the world's largest annual gathering of motorcycle enthusiasts. The new highs will not likely mark a plateau or peak if the nation continues to face the virus without a cohesive national strategy on mask-wearing and social distancing, said Dr. Gabe Kelen of Johns Hopkins Medicine. "There just doesn't seem to be enough will in enough parts of the country to deal with this the way other countries have," said Kelen, director of Johns Hopkins' Department of Emergency Medicine.

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  Quarter of a million bikers defy Covid fears to hold South Dakota rally

  The Telegraph
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  Motorcycle Rally In Sturgis Draws Thousands Of Largely Unmasked Attendees

  Scary Mommy

Is France helping Lebanon, or trying to reconquer it?

It was almost as if Emmanuel Macron forgot that Lebanon is no longer a French protectorate. Visiting explosion-ravaged Beirut this week, France's leader comforted distraught crowds, promised to rebuild the city and claimed that the blast pierced France's own heart. “France will never let Lebanon go,” Macron said.

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  Letters: France must face up to its failure to stop migrants crossing the Channel

  The Telegraph
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  The Latest: Another Lebanon Cabinet member resigns

  Associated Press

Canada's last fully intact ice shelf has suddenly collapsed, forming a Manhattan-sized iceberg

Almost half of Canada's last remaining intact ice shelf has suddenly collapsed into the ocean. A massive chunk of Canada's last fully intact ice shelf, some 4,000 years old, has broken off, reducing the shelf by more than half, scientists reported last Sunday. This summer, the region's temperature was 9 degrees Fahrenheit warmer than the 1980 to 2010 average, Luke Copland, a glaciology professor at the University of Ottawa, told the Associated Press.