PoliticsYahoo News'Skullduggery' political podcast: 'Will Afghanistan end like Vietnam?' — April 17, 2021
President Biden has announced his plans to withdraw all U.S. troops from Afghanistan by Sept. and end America's longest war — but is it too soon to leave? Michael Isikoff, Daniel Klaidman and Victoria Bassetti are joined by Richard Clarke, the former counterterrorism adviser under Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush and an outspoken critic of the Bush administration's response to 9/11.
CelebrityYahoo NewsRemembering the lives lost to COVID-19: Terrence James, 49, of Galveston, Texas
Terrence James, 49, of Galveston, Texas, died on Feb. 19, 2021, after becoming ill with COVID-19. He is among the more than 565,000 Americans who have succumbed to the disease since the first known fatality in the United States in early 2020. His wife, Ebony James, told Yahoo News that her husband was a man of faith who loved God and his family fearlessly and that he was also passionate about helping people.
U.S.National ReviewChauvin Trial Judge Says Maxine Waters Comments Could Lead to Trial Being ‘Overturned’ on Appeal
The judge in the Chauvin trial stated Monday that inflammatory remarks by Representative Maxine Waters could lead to the trial being “overturned” on appeal. Waters had called for demonstrators to “get more confrontational” and protest in the streets if no guilty verdict was reached in the case. Waters delivered the comments over the weekend ahead of closing arguments in the high-profile case against former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin, who's been charged with the murder of George Floyd.
WorldNBC NewsSteady increase in Russian troops in Crimea on Ukraine border, says Pentagon
The number of Russian troops deployed in occupied Crimea near Ukraine's border has steadily increased over the past two weeks and has surpassed the size of the force that annexed the peninsula in 2014, the Pentagon said on Monday. Press secretary John Kirby declined to provide specific numbers on the growing Russian troop presence. A spokesperson for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said last week there are about 80,000 troops now stationed along the country's border with Russia, 40,000 of them in Crimea.
WorldBBCIndia coronavirus: Delhi announces lockdown as Covid cases surge
Indian capital Delhi has announced a week-long lockdown after a record spike in cases overwhelmed the city's healthcare system. Government offices and essential services, such as hospitals, pharmacies and grocers, will be open during the lockdown which starts on Monday. The city had imposed a weekend curfew but reported its highest single-day spike so far on Sunday - 24, 462 cases.
U.S.INSIDERThe police officer who fatally shot 13-year-old Adam Toledo was listed as a victim on an incident report. One law enforcement expert said it's 'an old cop trick meant to muddy the murky waters.'
An incident report lists Officer Eric Stillman as the victim in an officer-involved shooting that left 13-year-old Adam Toledo dead. A law enforcement expert told Insider that doing so is an "old cop trick" meant to shift culpability from the police. It's "meant to muddy the murky waters," often used in "the aftermath of what we cops call a 'bad shoot,'" he said.
PoliticsAssociated PressMondale remembered as effective policymaker, public servant
During our administration, Fritz used his political skill and personal integrity to transform the vice presidency into a dynamic, policy-driving force that had never been seen before and still exists today. Fritz Mondale provided us all with a model for public service and private behavior.
U.S.Idaho StatesmanIdaho woman charged in ‘egregious’ case surrounding missing grandchild’s death
An Emmett woman faces steep bail for allegedly failing to report a death at her home. Connie Smith, who was arrested in Ada County last week, appeared in a Gem County court Monday afternoon for an arraignment hearing. Smith is charged with single felony counts of failing to notify law enforcement of a death and destruction of evidence.
WorldBusiness InsiderThe war against Russia's spies just cost Putin billions from a cancelled nuclear contract
Russia announced on Monday the expulsion of at least 20 Czech diplomats in a furious response to the gutting of Moscow's most critical intelligence station in central Europe over the weekend, when Czech authorities accused Russian intelligence of being behind two blasts at an ammunition storage facility in 2014. Czechia has accused a notorious Russian intelligence unit implicated in multiple operations across Europe and the UK of conducting two operations in 2014 that led to explosions at a munitions factory in 2014. At the time, the ammunition was said to be headed for Russia's rivals in Ukraine.
U.S.INSIDERJudge denies Chauvin defense's motion for a mistrial, but says Rep. Maxine Waters' comments 'could lead to this whole case being overturned'
Derek Chauvin's defense cited comments from US Rep. Maxine Waters in a motion for a mistrial. Over the weekend, Waters called on protesters to stay on the streets if there's no guilty verdict. Judge Peter Cahill denied the motion but said Waters may have given the defense a successful appeal.
U.S.Idaho Statesman1,000-year-old petroglyphs damaged by climbing bolts in Utah, photos show
A 36-year-old climber stood in front of a nearly 5,000-feet-tall rock formation looking to create a new route up when he made a regretful mistake. Richard Gilbert, a climber from Colorado Springs, was in Moab, Utah, in March, according to the Colorado Springs Gazette. When Gilbert was visiting in March, he created climbing routes by adding bolts to Sunshine Slabs.
PoliticsThe IndependentBiden news: White House warns Russia of consequences if Navalny dies as John Kerry apologises for Trump
The White House has warned Russia that “there will be consequences” if Alexei Navalny, a Putin critic, dies in prison, National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said on Sunday. This comes after President Joe Biden gave a speech on Thursday about Russia where he failed to mention the imprisoned Russian opposition leader, which angered critics. John Kerry has also apologised for former President Donald Trump's “non-leadership” on the effort to address the climate crisis during his four years as US leader.
U.S.BBCDerek Chauvin trial: What we learnt and key questions answered
The trial of Derek Chauvin, the former US police officer accused of killing George Floyd last year, will soon come to a close. Here we explain what's happened so far, and BBC correspondent Tara McKelvey - who has been in Minneapolis throughout the trial - answers questions from BBC audiences about the case that led to protests around the world. A reminder of the background to the case; white police officer Derek Chauvin, now 45, is on trial in Minneapolis after the death of George Floyd in May last year.
BusinessCBS NewsAmazon buying Atlas 5 rockets to launch its internet satellites
Amazon plans to buy nine powerful Atlas 5 rockets from United Launch Alliance to boost an initial wave of the company's planned Kuiper internet satellites into orbit. The satellites will be part of a planned constellation of 3,236 relay stations that will compete with OneWeb and SpaceX's fast-growing Starlink system. "We're determined to make affordable broadband a reality for customers and communities around the world," Amazon founder Jeff Bezos said in a statement.
- WorldKGO – San Francisco
EXCLUSIVE: EB family followed home by robber; dad held at gunpoint
Concord Police confirmed the same vehicle was used in a similar incident targeting women in Oakley earlier in the day. They ask anyone with additional information to reach out.
PoliticsThe IndependentSupreme Court scraps last GOP election lawsuit, ending five-month challenge to results
After five months and an estimated 65 lawsuits, the GOP lost its final legal bid at challenging the results of the United States' presidential election. The Supreme Court on Monday dismissed as moot a Republican challenge to the extension of Pennsylvania's deadline to receive mail-in ballots. It was the last challenge over Pennsylvania's results, and the last of 65 cases brought by GOP plaintiffs, according to Democrat Party attorney Marc Elias, who has been tracking the post-election legal battle.
U.S.USA TODAYElderly Korean couple attacked in park in California by same man who harassed Olympian Sakura Kokumai, police say
Olympian Sakura Kokumai said she was verbally harassed and called racial slurs in April. Now, weeks later, authorities say they arrested her harasser after he attacked a senior couple on Sunday. According to authorities, Michael Vivona, 25, punched a 79-year-old man and his 80-year-old wife, knocking them to the ground while they were walking in a park in Orange, California, about 40 miles from Los Angeles.
CelebrityThe TelegraphNo man-to-man for Prince Charles and Harry as Duke heads back to US
The Duke of Sussex will return to California without having a private meeting with his father, The Telegraph understands. Many family members had hoped the pair would take the opportunity to spend some time together alone, to air their differences face to face. While the Duke's travel plans have not been disclosed, he is thought likely to return home to his pregnant wife, the Duchess of Sussex, 39, and their son Archie, who turns two next month, within the next day or two.
BusinessBusiness InsiderFacebook says it will remove content that 'praises, celebrates or mocks George Floyd's death' ahead of Chauvin trial verdict
Ahead of the verdict in the trial of former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin, Facebook is beefing up content moderation standards. Among those new standards, Facebook "will remove content that praises, celebrates or mocks George Floyd's death," the company said in a blog post on Monday. Floyd died during an interaction with police in Minneapolis on May 25, 2020.
PoliticsThe Independent‘Give back her socialist cash’: Democrats pushed to return campaign donations from Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
The campaign arm of the Republicans in the House of Representatives is putting pressure on their Democratic colleagues to return donations from New York congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. The National Republican Congressional Committee launched a website on Monday called “Socialist Give Back”, listing 26 House Democrats who have received funds from Ms Ocasio-Cortez. The new NRCC site comes after Politico reported earlier this month that the New York Democrat donated $5,000 to a number of her House colleagues in an effort to help keep the House majority in the upcoming 2022 midterms.
U.S.Chicago TribuneJaslyn Adams shooting: First grader shot 6 times, Chicago police investigating if father was target
The 7-year-old girl killed Sunday afternoon while with her father in a McDonald's drive-thru was a first grade student who attended a Chicago public school in Humboldt Park and Chicago detectives are investigating her fatal shooting as possibly targeting her father, according to police. Jaslyn Adams, 7, was shot six times Sunday as she and her father waited in a drive-thru line at the McDonald's, 3200 W. Roosevelt Road in the Homan Square neighborhood on the West Side, a preliminary police report states. A responding police officer took the gravely injured child in a squad car and rushed her to Stroger Hospital, where she was pronounced dead at 4:39 p.m. Her father, 29, with whom she had been in an Infiniti sedan in the drive-thru lane at the time of the shooting, was shot once in the lower back, the report states.
PoliticsUSA TODAYBiden administration: US must catch up to China on renewable energy to create jobs
Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Monday will frame climate change as both the biggest challenge and the biggest opportunity facing the United States. “If we succeed, we will capitalize on the greatest opportunity to create quality jobs in generations,” Blinken will say in a speech at the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, according to excerpts released by the State Department. This week's summit is meant to signal a renewed U.S. commitment to leading the global fight against climate change after four years in which the Trump administration played down the threat.
PoliticsThe IndependentGOP members who voted to impeach Trump get flood of donations defying former president’s vow for revenge
Despite Donald Trump's vow to drive them from office, the ten House Republicans who voted to impeach the former president for his role in the violent insurrection at the US Capitol on 6 January are enjoying a flood of re-election campaign donations. Seven of the representatives set personal records for fundraising in a non-election year, and all of the lawmakers out-raised challengers who filed campaign finance reports, Bloomberg reported. Both Tom Emmer, chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee, and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy say they will support incumbents and are trying to discourage Mr Trump from backing primary challengers.
U.S.The IndependentSuspect in custody after fatal triple-shooting in Kenosha bar
A suspect in the fatal shooting at a tavern in Wisconsin has been taken into custody by Wisconsin police, authorities have said. The Kenosha County Sheriff's Office said on Sunday afternoon that a “person of interest” had been arrested in connection to the shooting. “A person of interest has been located and will be criminally charged with one count of 1st-degree intentional homicide with additional criminal charges to follow pending further investigation,” the office said in a release.
ScienceUSA TODAY'The tipping point:' First T. rex mass death site in southern US, found in Utah, strengthens evidence of pack behavior
The Tyrannosaurus rex may not have been as solitary as we believed. In a groundbreaking discovery of the first T. rex mass death site in the southern U.S., announced Monday by the Utah Bureau of Land Management, scientists found evidence of pack-like behavior among the famous ancient predator in the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. "The new Utah site adds to the growing body of evidence showing that tyrannosaurs were complex, large predators capable of social behaviors common in many of their living relatives, the birds,” said Dr. Joe Sertich, curator of dinosaurs at the Denver Museum of Nature & Science.
“High-speed rail is bold and attention-grabbing, but the scale of the project makes it near impossible.”
“While a long, slow train ride across the country can be a great thing, the US needs real high-speed rail too.”
“Liberals are right that America has a car problem — but it's commutes, not road trips, that suck.”
“Investments into a high-speed rail system wouldn’t just improve the railroads — automobile traffic could also see some relief.”
“Big cities that are reasonably close together is pretty much a prerequisite for high-speed rail.”