- PoliticsYahoo News
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.”
- U.S.INSIDER
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."
- PoliticsBusiness Insider
California Rep. Maxine Waters says Biden 'can't go home' without choosing a Black woman as his running mate
Associated Press/Andrew Harnik California congresswoman Maxine Waters said in a live interview with ESSENCE that former Vice President Joe Biden must choose a Black woman for his running mate. "He can't go home without a Black woman being VP," said Waters in the interview. Meanwhile, with the Democratic National Convention less than 10 days away, Biden is expected to announce his pick for vice president anytime soon.
- PoliticsNational Review
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.
- U.S.AccuWeather
Forecasters keeping close eye on key areas of Atlantic basin as peak of hurricane season nears
The lull in tropical activity across the Atlantic Ocean following Isaias should not have people letting their guard down as experts warn that the worst of 2020's active tropical season may still be to come. The 2020 season has already spawned nine named storms and a tropical depression. On average, it takes until Aug. 10 for the season's first hurricane to form in the Atlantic.
- U.S.The Week
At least 97,000 U.S. kids tested positive for coronavirus over last 2 weeks of July
During the last two weeks of July, at least 97,000 children in the United States tested positive for the coronavirus, according to a new report released Sunday by the American Academy of Pediatrics and the Children's Hospital Association. More than seven out of 10 infections were reported in southern and western states, with the highest percent increase occurring in Missouri, Oklahoma, Alaska, Nevada, Idaho, and Montana. Since the beginning of the pandemic, at least 338,000 kids have been infected.
- PoliticsFOX News Videos
Gov. Mike Huckabee weighs in on religious voters, 2020 election
Fox News contributor and former Arkansas Republican Governor Mike Huckabee joins 'Fox & Friends Weekend.
- WorldBBC
Jimmy Lai: Hong Kong media tycoon arrested under security law
Hong Kong business tycoon Jimmy Lai has been arrested and his newspaper offices raided by police over allegations of collusion with foreign forces. His case is the most high-profile arrest so far under the controversial security law imposed by China in June. Mr Lai has been a prominent pro-democracy voice and a supporter of protests that erupted last year.
- WorldReuters
Venezuela court jails two U.S. ex-soldiers for 20 years after failed incursion
A Venezuelan court sentenced two former U.S. soldiers to 20 years in prison for their role in a failed incursion aimed at ousting President Nicolas Maduro in May, chief prosecutor Tarek Saab said late on Friday. Former Green Berets Luke Denman, 34, and Airan Berry, 41, admitted to participating in the May 4 operation, Saab wrote on his Twitter account. "Said gentlemen ADMITTED to having committed the crimes," he wrote, adding that the trials were ongoing for dozens of others captured.
- U.S.Time
Police Officer Fired After Allegedly Mishandling Explicit Photos of Slain University of Utah Student
A police officer in Logan, Utah, was fired after a state investigation concluded he “mishandled” explicit photographs that were used to extort University of Utah student Lauren McCluskey, the Logan Police Department announced Friday. In October 2018, 21-year-old McCluskey told the University of Utah Police Department that her ex-boyfriend Melvin Rowland was extorting her for money by threatening to release explicit photographs of her. She then sent those photographs to Officer Miguel Deras, the on-duty campus police officer, according to a report summarizing the Utah Department of Public Safety's (UDPS) investigation into Deras' conduct.
- U.S.Associated Press
Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine again tests negative for coronavirus
The fourth COVID-19 test result for Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine came back negative Saturday after he received conflicting positive and negative results two days before, ahead of a scheduled meeting with President Trump. The governor and first lady, Fran DeWine, were tested at Ohio State University “out of an abundance of caution” following a rollercoaster day Thursday that began with DeWine receiving a positive test result followed by two negatives. The governor announced the negative results on Twitter on Saturday afternoon, thanking “everyone who sent along good wishes.
- PoliticsUSA TODAY Opinion
Celebrate the VP nominee, not Biden's decision to pick a woman. It's the least he can do.
In over two centuries of American presidential politics, just three women and only one person of color have ever been on a major party presidential ticket. This year's Democratic nominee for vice president will join this small club and has a very real shot at becoming the first woman to hold one of the top two most powerful positions in U.S. politics. Selecting a woman nominee is not an act of sacrifice for Joe Biden's presidential campaign.
- U.S.INSIDER
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.
- WorldThe Telegraph
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.
- WorldAFP
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.
- U.S.The Daily Beast
How Leander Perez’s Vicious Racism Backfired and Saved Jury Trials
Which is one reason why Duncan, despite his innocent gesture, was arrested on the charge of “Cruelty to Juveniles,” and why his case eventually culminated in Duncan v. Louisiana, a Supreme Court ruling that guaranteed the right to a jury trial for any and all serious crimes. The significance of Duncan v.
- WorldBBC
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.
- PoliticsNBC News
Organizational changes at Postal Service come amid slowdown concerns
Postmaster General Louis DeJoy, who is facing pressure from Congress over mail delays and concerns about how the U.S. Postal Service would handle mail-in voting during the November presidential election, is shaking up the agency's organizational structure. New managerial appointments came with the removal or reassignment of nearly two dozen postal leaders, illustrated by a new list of executive leaders but not expressly noted by the U.S. Postal Service's statement on the shakeup. “This organizational change will capture operating efficiencies by providing clarity and economies of scale that will allow us to reduce our cost base and capture new revenue,” DeJoy said in the statement.
- WorldReuters
Russian city holds another anti-Kremlin protest over detained governor
About 3,000 people joined another march in the Russian far eastern city of Khabarovsk on Saturday in protest over President Vladimir Putin's handling of a local political crisis. Residents of Khabarovsk, around 3,800 miles (6,110 km) and seven time zones east of Moscow, are protesting for a fifth consecutive weekend against the detention of Sergei Furgal, the wider region's popular governor. Furgal was arrested on July 9 in connection with murder charges he denies.
- WorldBusiness Insider
France and Germany pulled out of talks to reform the WHO because the US was trying to take control, according to a report
JOHN MACDOUGALL/AFP via Getty Images France and Germany are out of talks to reform the World Health Organization because the US is trying to dictate terms, Reuters reported. The G7 alliance is currently drafting a reform document that will ultimately be voted on by the G20 and UN. The US is set to leave the WHO in July 2021, after Donald Trump slammed the WHO for pandering to China during the pandemic.
- WorldAssociated Press
Israeli military strikes Hamas target in northern Gaza Strip
The Israeli military said late Sunday that it struck a Hamas target in the northern Gaza Strip in response to the continued launches of explosives-laden balloons from the Palestinian territory into Israel. In a brief statement, the army said an aircraft struck a Hamas observation post in northern Gaza. Israel and Hamas have fought three wars and numerous smaller flareups since the Islamic militant group seized control of Gaza in 2007.
- WorldINSIDER
A stranded tanker carrying 4,000 tons of fuel has breached and is leaking oil into the pristine, azure waters of the Indian Ocean
A stranded Japanese-owned oil tanker, sailing under the Panamanian flag, has breached and is flooding waters of the Indian Ocean island nation of Mauritius with fuel. Mauritius is famous for its coral reefs and abundant marine wildlife. Authorities are racing against the clock to secure a stranded tanker carrying 4,000 tons of oil leaking fuel into waters near a tropical Indian Ocean island.
- U.S.The Telegraph
Sweden looks to US model to curb deadly gang shootings
Police in Stockholm are considering using a strategy against gun violence pioneered in gang-ridden US cities to counter a wave of shootings including an incident in which a 12-year-old girl was killed in crossfire last week. Senior officers from the Swedish capital have visited the southern city of Malmö, which has greatly reduced its shootings by using the Group Violence Intervention (GVI) methods pioneered in the 1990s in US cities. “They reacted very positively,” Rolf Landgren, the police commissioner who leads the Group Violence Intervention (GVI) programme in Malmö, said.
- WorldAFP
Why the fuss? The US, Taiwan and China -- a guide
Why has the United States' highest-level visit to Taiwan for four decades sparked such anger from Beijing? Here is a recap of the key issues surrounding the delicate relations between the US, China and Taiwan. The deep rift between China and Taiwan dates back to China's civil war, which erupted in 1927 and pitted forces aligned with the Communist Party of China against the Nationalist Kuomintang (KMT) army.
- U.S.Los Angeles Times Opinion
Op-Ed: Blocked by racism from earning a good living, my mother 'made a way out of no way'
I've spent a lifetime being proud of my mother, of her brilliant insistence that we were entitled to a stable, middle-class life — even if achieving one meant operating, as she put it, “a legitimate business that just happened to be illegal. My mother, Fannie Davis, was a numbers runner, which meant she ran an underground lottery business from our home. In her work, she embodied a phrase ubiquitous in Black life: “making a way out of no way.
“It may be a campaign tactic, but older workers, be forewarned. Ageism runs deep in our culture.”
“Genuine concerns about the capacities of people who want the world’s most powerful job mingle bizarrely with insults.”
“Joe Biden and Donald Trump are both old. But the media should not be making mental illness a campaign issue, on either side.”
“The Trump campaign is now betting his reelection’s already slim chances on Biden proving Trump’s diagnosis is right.”
“The nightmare scenario for Democrats is that, at a pivotal moment, Biden will struggle to put together a coherent thought.”