PoliticsAssociated PressMJ Hegar launches 2020 Senate run against Texas' John Cornyn
Democrat MJ Hegar, an Air Force veteran whose viral campaign ads nearly helped her get elected in one of Texas' most Republican-friendly congressional districts last year, set her sights higher on Tuesday and launched a run for U.S. Senate against Republican incumbent John Cornyn. Hegar, 43, is the first big-name Democrat to jump into one of 2020's marquee races. U.S. Rep. Joaquin Castro is also considering running for the seat and signaled Tuesday that Hegar's entry wouldn't influence his decision.
- WorldThe Telegraph
First picture of 'mastermind' behind Sri Lanka suicide bomb attacks as identity of UK student is revealed
This is the first image of Inshaf Ahamed Ibrahim, the Sri Lankan suicide bomber and alleged mastermind of the atrocity which killed 359 people. Ibrahim, 33, blew himself up at the Shangri-La Hotel at just before 9am local time in a third-floor restaurant. The hotel was full of tourists including British victims Anita Nicholson, 42, and her two children Alex, 14, and 11-year-old daughter Annabel.
WorldAFPMexico tells US to invest in Central America to stem migration
Mexico President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador told the United States on Tuesday that if it wants to stem the flow of Central American migrants to its southern border, it needs to invest in the region. Slowing entries from Mexico has been a major focus of President Donald Trump's administration amid numerous reports of migrant caravans heading up from Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras in the hope of a better life. The migrants say they are fleeing poverty and gang violence, but Trump has characterized many as criminals and has ramped up pressure on Mexico to help ease the strain on US immigration authorities.
NewsAssociated PressArmed border group shuts down camp at border in New Mexico
An armed group that has been patrolling the U.S.-Mexico border left its post in the New Mexico desert Tuesday amid pressure from law enforcement following videos that showed militia members stopping migrants who had illegally crossed into the country. Sunland Park police and security officers with a railroad company told members of the United Constitutional Patriots on Tuesday they needed to move their trailers and equipment. Union Pacific Railroad said the group crossed its land to access the site and requested that the group not trespass onto its property.
- PoliticsTime
Does the Vice Presidency Give Joe Biden an Advantage in the Race to the Top? Here's How VPs Before Him Fared
Capping off months of speculation and concern, the 47th Vice President of the United States Joseph R. Biden announced Thursday morning that he will join the 2020 race for the Democratic Party nomination for President. Joel K. Goldstein is the author of The Modern American Vice Presidency: The Transformation of a Political Institution and The White House Vice Presidency: The Path to Significance, Mondale to Biden.
- NewsUSA TODAY
'I smiled in the face of bigotry': A woman's response to anti-Islam protesters goes viral
A Muslim woman's response to protesters at a conference in Washington, D.C., has gone viral. Shaymaa Ismaa'eel, 24, was attending a conference for the nonprofit group Islamic Circle of North America when she spotted a group of Islamophobic protesters, reports CNN. "On April 21st I smiled in the face of bigotry and walked away feeling the greatest form of accomplishment," she wrote in a tweet on April 23 accompanying the images, which has drawn more than 292,000 likes.
PoliticsFOX News VideosBattle of Mogadishu veteran responds to Ilhan Omar's criticism of 'Black Hawk Down' mission
In a resurfaced tweet, Rep. Ilhan Omar claims U.S. forces killed 'thousands' of Somalis during the 1993 mission; reaction from retired Sergeant Major Kyle Lamb, who fought in the Battle of Mogadishu.
WorldReutersSpurned by Washington, North Korea's Kim seeks a friend in Putin
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un will meet Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday at a summit designed to show that Washington is not the only power able to set the agenda on Pyongyang's nuclear program. The two men will sit down together on an island off the Russian Pacific city of Vladivostok two months after Kim's summit with U.S. President Donald Trump ended in disagreement, cooling hopes of a breakthrough in the decades-old nuclear row. The summit in Vladivostok - the first ever between Putin and Kim - provides Pyongyang with an opportunity to seek support from a new quarter, Russia, and possible relief from the sanctions hurting its economy.
BusinessAFPTesla hit with big loss as car deliveries sputter
Electric carmaker Tesla on Wednesday announced a heavy loss in the first quarter as car deliveries sputtered overseas and a US tax credit that made its prices more attractive was reduced. The California-based company reported a loss of $702 million in the first three months of this year after two consecutive quarters of profit. Tesla produced about 63,000 Model 3 vehicles in the period, an increase of three percent from the same quarter a year earlier but fewer than had been anticipated.
- PoliticsThe Daily Beast
Bernie Sanders Got It Right on CNN: Felons Ought to Be Allowed to Vote
In their CNN town halls Monday night, Democratic presidential candidates Sen. Bernie Sanders and Mayor Pete Buttigieg disagreed on whether current prisoners should be able to vote. Sen. Kamala Harris refused to endorse a plan for expanding the franchise to incarcerated people, but supported voting rights for former prisoners. Sanders was specifically asked about Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev and “those convicted of sexual assault.” What sane person would want them to vote?
- BusinessCar and Driver
In-Depth Photos of Our Long-Term 2019 Mazda CX-5 Turbo
We got the expensive one, too, because that's what you're buying. From Car and Driver
- PoliticsThe Independent
Trump 'would certainly have been indicted' if not president, Hillary Clinton says
The only reason Donald Trump has not been indicted on charges of obstruction of justice is because he is the president, Hillary Clinton has said. Ms Clinton, a trained lawyer, said that in her eyes special counsel Robert Mueller's report into Russia election interference “could not be clearer”. “As I read it, what I thought it is saying is 'look, I think he obstructed justice here are 11 examples,” Ms Clinton said.
NewsAssociated PressThe Latest: Police clarify suspect sketch in girls' killings
The Latest on the investigation into the 2017 killings of two northern Indiana girls (all times local): 3:40 p.m. Indiana State Police have released a statement clarifying information about a newly-released sketch of a man suspected of killing two teenage girls in 2017. The statement Wednesday said that the sketch police released Monday of a youthful-appearing man "more accurately represents the person" they believe killed 14-year-old Liberty German and 13-year-old Abigail Williams in February 2017.
BusinessReutersRouhani says U.S. must lift pressure and apologize before Iran will negotiate
Iran is willing to negotiate with America only when the United States lifts pressure and apologizes, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said on Wednesday, according to state media. Oil prices hit their highest level since November on Tuesday after Washington announced all waivers on imports of sanctions-hit Iranian oil would end next week, pressuring importers to stop buying from Tehran and further tightening global supply. quot;We have always been a man of negotiation and diplomacy, the same way that we've been a man of war and defense.
- NewsUSA TODAY
#FeelingCute challenge: Texas prison guards fired after probe into 'inappropriate' posts
The investigation was tied to the "#FeelingCute" challenge, the department said last week. The Houston Chronicle — which reported earlier this month that officers were apparently linked to posts with captions such as "Feeling cute, might just gas some inmates today, IDK" — reported on Tuesday that four officers have been fired and two resigned because of the investigation. Texas Department of Criminal Justice statements to the Chronicle and the Associated Press did not provide details on the social media content involved in the firings.
- BusinessThe Guardian
Elizabeth Warren's plan to end student debt is glorious. We can make it a reality
That protest represented a watershed moment, the point when student debt went from being a personal problem to a political one, the result of decades of disinvestment in public colleges and universities that turned education into a consumer product instead of a public good. We kicked things off with the Rolling Jubilee fund, a public education campaign that bought and cancelled more than $30m in medical, student debt, payday loans and private probation debts. Then, in 2015, the Debt Collective launched the country's first student debt strike.
- WorldBloomberg
Putin Confronts New Ukraine Leader With Rebel Zone Passports
Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree offering passports to people living in breakaway regions of eastern Ukraine, triggering calls for more sanctions against Moscow from the incoming leadership in Kiev. This is yet more proof of Russia's real role as an aggressor state that's waging a war against Ukraine,” President-elect Volodymyr Zelenskiy's office said on Facebook after the order was posted on the Kremlin website Wednesday. Ukraine “is counting on increasing diplomatic and sanction pressure” by the international community against Russia, it added.
WorldAFPTop Sri Lanka defence official resigns over blasts
Sri Lanka's top defence official resigned on Thursday over security failures that led to the deadly Easter bombings, as Catholic churches suspended all services fearing further attacks. Sri Lanka's government has come under increasing pressure over the revelation it failed to act on intelligence about planned attacks, which claimed nearly 360 lives, and Hemasiri Fernando had been widely expected to step down. A defence ministry official said Fernando had submitted a letter of resignation to head-of-state Maithripala Sirisena.
- TechnologyBGR News
Video leak shows Apple's iPhone 11 and iPhone 11 Max designs side by side
Just a few short months ago, Apple's next-generation iPhone 11 lineup was shaping up to be one of the most boring iPhone updates in recent history. It couldn't be the most boring iPhone update, since there's no way Apple will be able to top the iPhone XS in that department. Thankfully, a few new reports from well-placed sources over the past few weeks have painted a much more compelling picture of the iPhone 11.
- U.S.WLS – Chicago
How did Crystal Lake police crack the case of AJ Freund?
Law enforcement officials used cell phone data to get the break they needed to find the body of 5-year-old AJ Freund.
- PoliticsThe Independent
Trump news – live: President mocks 'Sleepy Joe' Biden over 2020 election bid and rages at media over Mueller report
Donald Trump has hit out at Joe Biden after the Democratic veteran announced his intention to run against him in 2020, questioning his intelligence and branding him “Sleepy Joe” after lashing out over the Mueller report and attempting to fend off further congressional investigations into his affairs. Barack Obama's former vice-president, a man with almost half a century of experience in US politics, is widely tipped to be Mr Trump's most serious challenger at the polls, joining a crowded field of 20 Democratic candidates already confirmed for the race. Despite digging in his heels in Washington, the president faces a new threat in his old stomping ground of New York City, where Deutsche Bank is beginning the process of handing over records of its dealings with Mr Trump to the state attorney-general, who is investigating allegations made by his ex-lawyer, Michael Cohen, that he inflated his assets to secure loans in order to bankroll his hotel business.
BusinessAssociated PressAP EXCLUSIVE: At Walmart, using AI to watch the store
Welcome to Walmart's Intelligent Retail Lab — the retail giant's biggest attempt to digitize the physical store. Walmart envisions using them, combined with other technology like sensors on shelves, to monitor the store in real time so its workers can quickly react to replenish products or fix other problems. The technology, shown to The Associated Press, will also be able to track when shelves need to be restocked or if shopping carts are running low.
- BusinessReuters
UPDATE 3-Visa profit jumps, lower cross-border volume weighs on shares
Visa Inc reported higher expenses and lower spending by people using its cards abroad on Wednesday even as increased overall consumer spending drove quarterly profit 14 percent higher. Shares of the company were trading lower after the bell as investors worried over a slide in cross-border volume growth, which measures the value of transactions made on a Visa card outside a customer's home country. The company and its rival Mastercard had recently come under fire for charging high fees on tourist cards in the European Union.
- NewsUSA TODAY
Delphi murders: Here's what we know about unsolved killings of two teen girls in Indiana
INDIANAPOLIS - It's been more than two years since the Delphi murders, when the bodies of Indiana teens Liberty German, 14, and Abigail Williams, 13, were discovered near a wooded creek. The deaths of Abby and Libby horrified people in Indiana and around the world. The emotional toll on the Delphi community has been overwhelming.
BusinessAFP Relax NewsTesla Model S and X get new drivetrains, longer range
Without changing or upgrading the battery, Tesla has updated the Model S and Model X to increase each vehicle's driving range to 370 miles and 325 miles respectively. On Tuesday, Tesla announced that it has upgraded the powertrains of the Model S liftback and Model X SUV to increase the range by 10 percent for each, and significantly improve the power and torque for all model variants. The new drive unit technology increases the drivetrain efficiency by 93 percent, according to Tesla.
