- PoliticsThe Independent
Trump may have spoken to Michael Cohen about testimony to congress, says Rudy Giuliani: 'So what?'
Donald Trump may indeed have spoken to his then lawyer Michael Cohen about false testimony he delivered to Congress, and which is now at the centre of a seething political controversy, Rudy Giuliani has said. Last week, BuzzFeed reported that Mr Trump's personal lawyer delivered the false information to politicians about the then candidate's business interests in Moscow on the orders of the man who is now president. Democrats and opponents of Mr Trump leapt on the story, saying it showed the president had committed perjury.
WorldAFPDeath toll from Mexico fuel explosion rises to 89
The death toll from a fiery explosion in central Mexico rose to 89 on Monday as authorities vowed to hold accountable those responsible for a deliberate fuel-line puncture that drew hundreds of people looking to gather gasoline before it ignited. The search for human remains at the site of the explosion in the state of Hidalgo ended Saturday. While families began to bury the dead, officials indicated the death toll could still rise.
- PoliticsTime
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Reacts to Aaron Sorkin's Comments That Congress Members Need to Grow Up
In an interview with CNN on Sunday, Sorkin – who is renowned for penning political dramas like the West Wing and Charlie Wilson's War – argued that while he likes the young freshman Congressmembers, “They need to stop acting like young people, ok? In an extended thread, Ocasio-Cortez argued that Sorkin is falling into a trap common among conservatives – belittling individuals, and especially women, for their identity or style rather than addressing their ideas.
WorldAssociated PressRecent developments surrounding the South China Sea
A look at recent developments in the South China Sea, where China is pitted against smaller neighbors in multiple disputes over islands, coral reefs and lagoons in waters crucial for global commerce and rich in fish and potential oil and gas reserves: EDITOR'S NOTE: This is a weekly look at the latest developments in the South China Sea, the location of several territorial conflicts that have raised tensions in the region. TOP U.S. NAVY OFFICER URGES CHINA TO RESPECT RIGHT OF PASSAGE The U.S. Navy's top officer says he urged China to follow international rules at sea to avoid confrontations and insisted that ships should be able to pass safely though the South China Sea and Taiwan Strait.
NewsUSA TODAYVideo shows Florida toddler walking towards police with hands up during her father's arrest
A passerby's video of Tallahassee Police making a shoplifting arrest Thursday showed a toddler climbing out the driver's side door of a pick-up truck and walking barefoot with her hands up over her head toward officers with their guns drawn. As the video ricocheted around social media and concern mounted, TPD released two body camera videos in response Friday evening that provide a fuller picture of the incident. It shows the officers talking with adults and working to get the toddler and an infant who were in the cab safely away from the vehicle.
- NewsThe National Review
Meet the Women Who Protested the Women's March
Women from various political and ideological backgrounds challenged the 2019 Women's March by marching in protest and organizing alternative rallies near the Washington, D.C. event on Saturday. The third annual Women's March took place in Freedom Plaza, a more confined space than in years past, suggesting that organizers anticipated smaller crowds after facing allegations of anti-Semitism and defending Nation of Islam's anti-Semitic leader Louis Farrakhan. Following the development of those controversies, conservative group Independent Women's Forum (IWF) organized a rally across the street in the name of “all women” at the same time as the Women's March.
- NewsAccuWeather
After the storm: Dangerous stretch of subzero AccuWeather RealFeel® Temperatures to grip northeastern US
A polar plunge of brutally cold air is following this weekend's blockbuster winter storm, which can threaten lives and complicate travel and cleanup efforts. Between lingering effects of the storm and the cold, there can be further disruptions to daily routines during this Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday weekend. The brutal cold that dropped temperatures down to around 40 below zero in International Falls, Minnesota, will continue to plunge on the backside of the storm from the Plains to the East through Sunday.
- WorldReuters
Suicide bomber rams U.S.-backed forces at Syria checkpoint
A suicide bomber drove his car into a checkpoint in northeastern Syria on Monday, injuring several soldiers of Kurdish-led forces during a joint convoy with U.S. allies, locals said. The attack happened on the western edge of Shadadi town in Hasaka province near a route frequented by the U.S.-led coalition fighting Islamic State, residents and sources said. In a tweet, the coalition said a convoy with allied Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) was involved in an attack, but there were no American casualties.
BusinessAssociated PressReport: China population growth continued to slow in 2018
China's population growth rate continued to slow in 2018, spelling possible trouble ahead as a swelling number of retirees pushes up against a shrinking labor pool. Numbers released Monday by the National Bureau of Statistics put the population at 1.395 billion in 2018. China for decades sought to slow its population growth, seeing a massive population as a drag on development, and it now joins Japan, South Korea and other East Asian nations in seeing a radical drop in its birthrate.
- PoliticsBloomberg
Kamala Harris Seeks to Make Historic 2020 Presidential Run
Black Voters Key Harris's likely path to the Democratic nomination runs through black voters, who made up a quarter of the primary electorate in 2016 and were critical to nominating Hillary Clinton, as well as to electing Barack Obama in 2008 and 2012. The backing of African Americans, who dominate the Democratic electorate in early primaries like South Carolina, which is expected to hold its primary in February 2020, followed by other Southern states in the first half of March, would make her formidable. Winning her delegate-rich home state of California, which votes relatively early on March 3, compared with its 2016 primary in June, could make Harris the favorite.
- PoliticsThe Independent
Government shutdown: US federal workers turn to pawn shops for cash as stalemate goes on
US federal workers who are not getting paid during the longest government shutdown in the country's history are increasingly turning to pawnbrokers for short-term loans, according to shop owners. The turnout is small – a few people per day – pawnbrokers said, but many expect the numbers to increase amid the stalemate. About 800,000 federal workers have missed a paycheck during the nearly month-long shutdown.
- NewsTime
Kentucky Catholic School Considers Expelling Boys Who Taunted Native Americans
A Kentucky Catholic high school is considering expelling students who were captured in viral videos taunting a Native American veteran on Friday. In the videos, a large group of teenage boys – including several wearing Covington Catholic High School sweatshirts – are seen chanting and surrounding a small group of Native Americans, who were attending the Indigenous Peoples March in Washington, D.C. One of the boys, wearing a red “Make America Great Again” hat, smirks and stands close to an elderly Native American man, who was later identified as Vietnam veteran Nathan Phillips. Covington Catholic High School and the Diocese of Covington released a joint statement Saturday, saying that they “condemn the actions” of the students and apologize to Philips.
WorldAFPIsrael to open new international airport near Red Sea
Israel was to inaugurate a new international airport Monday in its desert south meant to boost tourism to the nearby Red Sea and serve as an emergency alternative to Tel Aviv's Ben-Gurion airport. The official ceremony was scheduled to begin at 11:30 am (0930 GMT) with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in attendance. Initially Ramon Airport will handle only domestic flights, operated by Israeli carriers Arkia and Israir.
- NewsThe Telegraph
Prince Philip 'could be sent on driving awareness course' as police investigate crash
The Duke of Edinburgh could be sent on a drivers' awareness course, it has emerged, as police continue to investigate a crash which left two women hospitalised. The Duke, 97, is understood to have no intention of giving up driving, having been photographed on public roads driving a new car less than 48 hours after the accident. Two women, aged 45 and 28, will also be asked for their recollections of the accident, after their Kia Carens collided with the Duke's Land Rover Freelander on the A149 on Thursday.
PoliticsFOX News VideosWhy did Mueller's office choose to speak out about a news article with false information for the first time?
Texas Republican Rep. John Ratcliff says he is curious why Robert Mueller chose to speak out about the BuzzFeed article when there have been multiple fake articles published over the last two years.
- NewsAccuWeather
Reports: Ice storm creates treacherous travel in New England as temperatures plummet across snow-covered Northeast
Hundreds of flights have been canceled at Boston's Logan International Airport as the major winter storm continues to bring an ice storm and heavy snow to New England. At least one fatality has been associated with this storm. In Kansas, a snowplow driver was killed after his vehicle drove onto the shoulder and rolled over, the Associated Press reported.
WorldReutersEnd 'no-deal brinkmanship' and let's talk, Britain's Corbyn tells May
Jeremy Corbyn, leader of Britain's opposition Labour Party, will reiterate on Monday his willingness to talk to Prime Minister Theresa May on ways to break the deadlock over Brexit but not while the government wastes money on "no-deal brinkmanship". After seeing her deal to leave the European Union resoundingly defeated in parliament last week, May has opened talks with lawmakers from all parties to try to find a way to move forward with Brexit. She is due to return to parliament on Monday to outline her plans, but with just weeks before Britain is due to leave in March and little concrete yet to have come out of those talks, some lawmakers are trying to wrest more control over...
WorldAssociated PressWorld's oldest man, 113, dies at his home in northern Japan
The world's oldest man has died at his home — a hot springs inn — in northern Japan at the age of 113. Masazo Nonaka died in the early hours of Sunday while sleeping at home in Ashoro on Japan's northern main island of Hokkaido, his family said. The supercentenarian, whose family has run a hot springs inn for four generations, was certified by Guinness World Records in April 2018 as the world's oldest living man at 112 years and 259 days.
WorldAFPBomb blast in a bus kills 3 civilians in Syria's Afrin: monitor
A bomb blast in a bus killed three civilians Sunday in the northern Syrian city of Afrin on the first anniversary of a Turkish attack on the Kurdish-majority region, a war monitor said. Nine other people, including fighters, were wounded in the explosion, the head of the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, Rami Abdel Rahman, told AFP. Turkish troops and allied rebel groups seized the Afrin region from Kurdish forces in March last year after a two-month air and ground offensive.
- NewsThe Independent
Trump confuses weather with climate change again: 'Wouldn't be bad to have a little good old fashioned Global Warming right now!'
Donald Trump has again confused weather with climate change, suggesting the US would benefit from “a little of that good old fashioned Global Warming right now” amid forecasts of snow and cold conditions. Little more than two months since a similarly misleading conflation, the president tweeted: “Be careful and try staying in your house. Large parts of the Country are suffering from tremendous amounts of snow and near record setting cold.
- NewsTime
4 Arizona Women Convicted for Leaving Water for Migrants
Four aid workers were convicted Friday on charges connected to their efforts to leave food and water for migrants in an Arizona wildlife refuge along the U.S.-Mexico border. The volunteers, who are members of the faith-based humanitarian aid group No More Deaths, were caught on Aug. 13, 2017, by a Federal Wildlife officer as they left water jugs, beans and other supplies for migrants in Cabeza Prieta National Wildlife Refuge, which shares a 50-mile border with Mexico. The judge, United States Magistrate Bernardo P. Velasco, ruled that three of the volunteers – Oona Holcomb, Madeline Huse and Zaachila Orozco-McCormick – were convicted of entering a national wildlife refuge without a permit and abandoning personal property or possessions.
BusinessAFPChina's population growth slows despite two-child policy
China's population grew at a slower rate last year despite the abolition of the one-child policy, official data showed Monday, raising fears an ageing society will pile further pressure on an already slowing economy. China's government raised the limit to two children in 2016 to rejuvenate the world's most populous country, which has nearly 1.4 billion people, and experts say it may remove the cap next year. "Decades-long social and economic transformations have prepared an entirely new generation in China, for whom marriage and childbearing no longer have the importance as they once did for their parents generation," said Wang Feng, a sociology professor at University of California, Irving.
- BusinessUSA TODAY
British Airway is giving one of its Boeing 747s a 1960s-era paint scheme
British Airways will paint one of its Boeing 747-400s in a retro livery that dates to the 1960s – part of an effort to commemorate its 100th birthday. The company also revealed plans to paint other planes in vintage schemes, but – for now – would say only that “more details of further designs (would) be revealed in due course. The 747 due to get the first makeover will be painted in the “much-admired design” of British Airways' predecessor company, British Overseas Airways Corporation (BOAC).
- NewsHuffPost Opinion
Christian Schools Like Karen Pence's Are The Real Threat To Academic Freedom
I say that these schools are not only anti-American, in that they exclude so many Americans, but are also not in the best educational interests of the students who attend them. For too many other institutions, faith provides the material to build a defensive wall rather than a strong foundation. There are about 27,000 religious private K-12 schools in the United States and over 1,000 religious colleges and universities.
- WorldThe Telegraph
Congo opposition leader declares himself president as court upholds election result
Congo's political standoff deepend on Sunday after the top court backed the contested presidential election victory of Felix Tshisekedi, then his main rival rejected the ruling, called for protests and declared himself leader. As Mr Tshisekedi's supporters celebrated the ruling in the streets of Democratic Republic of Congo's capital, runner-up Martin Fayulu said the decision had opened the way to a “constitutional coup d'etat”, raising fears of more violence. Rwandan President Paul Kagame - the chair of the African Union which has said it has “serious concerns” about the vote and called for the results to be delayed - was due to arrive in Kinshasa with an AU delegation to discuss the crisis on Monday.
