PoliticsAFPTrump denies directing lawyer to break law
Donald Trump on Thursday denied directing his ex-lawyer Michael Cohen to break the law after the US president's longtime close ally was sentenced to three years for campaign finance violations and other crimes. "I never directed Michael Cohen to break the law. Pleading for leniency in a packed Manhattan courtroom before US District Court Judge William H. Pauley III, Cohen said he had been led astray by misplaced admiration for Trump.
- WorldThe Independent
Chinese tech workers told not to travel to US 'unless it's essential' after Huawei exec arrested
Technology researchers in China have been ordered to not travel to the US unless it is absolutely necessary, amid rising tensions between the two countries. Staff working in sensitive tech sectors were given the warning following the arrest of a Chinese tech executive in Canada, a source told the South China Morning Post. Workers at a research agency were also told to remove any sensitive data from laptops, mobile phones and other devices if travel to the US was essential.
NewsReutersInsurance claims for latest California wildfires top $9 billion
Insurance claims from the recent spate of California wildfires, including one ranked as the most deadly and destructive in state history, have topped $9 billion and are expected to grow, the state insurance commissioner reported on Wednesday. The claims, so far, fall short of the record $12 billion in wildfire-related insured losses sustained in California in 2017, most of that from more than a dozen blazes that swept a large swath of wine country north of San Francisco Bay, killing 46 people. This year, the Camp Fire that erupted on Nov. 8 has accounted for the bulk of the claims, just over $7 billion of the total.
WorldAssociated PressUS military identifies 5 dead in warplanes crash off Japan
The U.S. military has identified five Marines who were declared dead after their refueling plane collided with a fighter jet last week off Japan's southern coast. Search and recovery operations have ended after finding only one survivor, who was aboard the fighter jet. The five crew members identified Wednesday were on a KC-130 Hercules refueling aircraft that collided with an F/A-18 Hornet during regular training.
- TechnologyArchitectural Digest
The 6 Best Smartwatches of 2018
From the Samsung Galaxy Watch to Tag Heuer's Connected Modular 41, these smartwatches shouldn't be on your radar—they should be on your wrist
- WorldThe Telegraph
Erdogan says Turkey will start new military operation against US-backed Kurdish fighters in Syria within days
Turkey will launch a new operation in Syria within days against a US-backed Kurdish militia that Ankara considers a terrorist group, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Wednesday. "We will start an operation to free the east of the Euphrates from the separatist terrorist organisation in the next few days," Mr Erdogan said during a speech in Ankara, referring to territory held by the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG). Turkey says the YPG is a "terrorist offshoot" of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which has waged an insurgency against the Turkish state since 1984.
- WorldThe Guardian
Canada Goose shares slide amid Beijing-Ottawa row over Huawei CFO arrest
Luxury retailer appears to be first casualty as calls for a boycott spread on social media Weibo and echoed on state-run media Growing tensions between Beijing and Ottawa over the arrest of a senior Huawei executive have inflicted damage on the luxury clothing retailer Canada Goose, as Chinese consumers call for a boycott of the brand. Shares in the company have plunged nearly 20% since the arrest last week of Huawei’s chief financial officers Meng Wanzhou in Vancouver. A Canadian judge granted bail to Meng on Tuesday evening.
- BusinessAOL.com
Man quits his job with epic rant over the store's PA
A disgruntled employee at a Canadian Walmart decided that he wasn’t going to quit quietly. In a video posted to Facebook on Friday, a 17-year-old worker named Jackson Racicot grabbed the PA mic and told everyone in the store what he really thought about working there. Racicot then dove into individual grievances, starting with his manager who apparently had called him “a waste of time.” He goes on to say that promises had been made and not kept, and details the story of how he was given only benefits of a part-time employee even though he worked full-time.
- NewsHuffPost
Love Triangle, Not Alligators, Caused Florida Man's Death, Confessed Killer Testifies
A Florida man testified this week about fatally shooting his best friend ― who was long suspected of falling victim to alligators ― because he was having an affair with the friend’s wife. Brian Winchester told a courtroom in Tallahassee that he killed his best friend, Mike Williams, in 2000 and hid his body because he was having an extramarital relationship with Denise Williams, who is now on trial for first-degree murder, the Tallahassee Democrat reported. Winchester’s remarks came as the prosecution presented its case against Williams on Wednesday, the second day of testimony.
- PoliticsYahoo News
Trump uses terror attack in France to push U.S. border wall
President Trump on Wednesday seemed to suggest the deadly shooting at a Christmas market in Strasbourg, France, is evidence that the United States needs stronger border security. “Another very bad terror attack in France,” Trump tweeted. President Trump speaks during a meeting with Democratic leaders in the Oval Office on Tuesday.
WorldAssociated PressJailed former Venezuela oil minister dies in state custody
Nelson Martinez, the jailed former head of Venezuela's state-run oil giant PDVSA who was arrested last year as part of anti-corruption purge, died in state custody Wednesday, authorities said. The chief prosecutor's office said Martinez suffered from a serious and chronic illness that led to his death at a medical facility where he was undergoing treatment. The death is likely to focus attention on the conditions in which authorities are holding key opponents and former government officials.
WorldReutersIndian girl seeks father's arrest over broken promise to build lavatory
Millions of Indians do not have access to sanitation and open defecation is a problem, even in developed, industrial states. The girl, E. Hanifa Zaara, didn't want to go out in the open and won a promise from her father to build a lavatory indoors, said police officer A. Valarmathi. Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government has been pushing a campaign to build 100 million toilets over five years but the drive has not covered large parts of the country.
WorldAFPJapan plans tighter regulation of tech giants
Japan is planning to tighten regulation of tech giants like Google and Facebook after an expert panel called for better oversight on competition and privacy, an official said Thursday. Japan has followed in the footsteps of other countries in scrutinising the dominant role played by the world's largest information technology companies, including Big Four tech firms Google, Apple, Facebook and Amazon. Despite bringing benefits, tech giants "tend to monopolise the market through their features such as... low costs and economies of scale," the report said.
- PoliticsUSA TODAY
Georgia Democrat Stacey Abrams, narrowly defeated in race for governor, says she will 'certainly' run again
ATLANTA – Stacey Abrams, the charismatic Georgia Democrat who came up short last month in her bid to become the first black woman governor in the nation, plans to run again for office – perhaps as soon as 2020. Abrams, Georgia's former House minority leader, attracted national attention, endorsements and money this year with a progressive campaign that energized new voters in the deep red state. The Yale-trained lawyer won the most votes of any Democratic candidate in Georgia history, but lost the bitterly fought election to Republican Secretary of State Brian Kemp by 1.39 percentage points.
WorldBloombergHuawei's Washington Presence Dwindles Amid Legal Brawl With U.S.
The company now keeps a three-person skeleton staff at its office on 15th Street, a few blocks from the White House, according to a person familiar with its operations. Huawei depleted its ranks in the nation’s capital months before facing what could be the legal fight of its life: a U.S. extradition request to Canada, which on Dec. 1 arrested Huawei’s finance chief over charges she conspired to evade sanctions against Iran. As the legal brawl risked spilling over into efforts by the U.S. and China to ease their trade tensions, President Donald Trump suggested Tuesday in an interview with Reuters that he’d intervene in the case if he thought it would help him get a trade deal with China.
- U.S.KSWB - San Diego
Raw Sewage Spill in Mexico Floods Southern California Beaches
A sewage spill has sent millions of gallons of raw sewage flowing into the Tijuana River.
- BusinessAFP Relax News
Procter & Gamble doubles down on beauty by snapping up Walker & Company Brands
Procter & Gamble is diversifying its beauty offering with the acquisition of Walker & Company Brands. Walker & Company Brands, which will operate as a separate and wholly-owned subsidiary of P&G, includes the specialized haircare ranges Bevel and FORM Beauty. "When I started Walker & Company Brands, I set out to build a company that would meet the health and beauty needs of people of color on a global scale," said Tristan Walker, CEO of Walker & Company Brands.
NewsAssociated PressBrazilian couple get light sentences in grandson's abduction
A wealthy Brazilian couple were sentenced Wednesday to minimal U.S. prison terms for helping their daughter keep her son in Brazil for the past five years in violation of the terms of her divorce to the boy's American father. Carlos Guimaraes, 68, was sentenced in Houston federal court to three months in prison while his wife, 66-year-old Jemima Guimaraes, received a one-month term. Prosecutors allege that the couple helped their daughter, Marcelle Guimaraes, keep her son in Brazil after she took him there in 2013 and failed to return to the U.S., violating a custody order in a divorce case out of Houston.
- BusinessHuffPost
Google CEO Had To Explain To Congress Why Googling 'Idiot' Shows Donald Trump
Search for the term “idiot” on Google and several photographs of President Donald Trump will appear high in the image results. On Tuesday, the search engine giant’s CEO Sundar Pichai had the task of explaining to members of Congress why that happens during a hearing in front of the House Judiciary Committee. Pichai refuted Rep. Zoe Lofgren’s (D-Calif.
PoliticsAssociated PressMexican president starts process to scrap education reforms
Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador signed an initiative Wednesday that would cancel the controversial education reforms of his predecessor and announced plans to vastly expand free university education. Cancellation of the reform was one of Lopez Obrador's most oft-repeated campaign promises and a gift to teachers' unions, some of which felt forced into accepting the reforms while others never dropped their vocal opposition. "Promise kept, teachers," Lopez Obrador said.
WorldReutersDetained Canadian in China being probed for harming state security
Chinese authorities are questioning former Canadian diplomat Michael Kovrig, who was detained days after the arrest in Canada of a Chinese businesswoman, on suspicion of engaging in activities that harmed China's national security. The state-run Beijing News said on Wednesday that Kovrig, who works for the International Crisis Group (ICG), had become the subject of an investigation by the Beijing State Security Bureau. He was detained after police in Canada arrested the chief financial officer of China's Huawei Technologies Co Ltd [HWT.UL] on Dec. 1 at the request of U.S. authorities, infuriating Beijing.
- BusinessCar and Driver
Plot Thickens for Carlos Ghosn: Financial Charges Filed in Japan, But Renault Declares He Did Nothing Wrong in France
UPDATE 12/13/18: The embattled former leader of Renault, Nissan, and Mitsubishi, still in jail in Japan over financial irregularity charges from Nissan, is retaining his status as chairman and CEO at Renault. The French automaker's board of directors met today and made that announcement, stating that it finds Ghosn's compensation reports were "in compliance with applicable law" in France. Japanese prosecutors have formally charged Renault CEO Carlos Ghosn for making "false disclosures" about his income with Nissan, the automaker said on Monday.
BusinessAFPApple unveils plan for $1 bn campus in Texas, US expansion
Apple unveiled plans Thursday for a $1 billion campus in Texas that will create jobs for the tech giant outside Silicon Valley, a move made without the fanfare of the recent Amazon headquarters bidding war. The new campus -- which will be used for engineering and other functions, but not manufacturing -- will be near the tech giant's existing facility in Austin and initially accommodate 5,000 new employees, with room to grow to 15,000. Currently, Apple employs some 6,200 in the Texas capital, the largest cluster outside its headquarters in Cupertino, California.
- WorldThe National Interest
Sanctions Will Harm Only the Iranian Regime, Not the Iranian People
Many critics have suggested that new American pressure is harmful to both the people and the regime, perhaps sending many Iranians into the arms of the mullahs in protest. In reality, the protests and strikes in Iran’s cities have made it clear that the people recognize their economic hardships are rooted in the self-serving priorities of the mullahs, not international pressures. The enemy is right here,” protesters are chanting.
BusinessUSA TODAYAmazon's extending free shipping and same-day delivery for last-minute shoppers
Good news for procrastinators! Amazon is giving you some extra time to finish your Christmas shopping. The online retail giant announced Thursday it has extended its free shipping for all customers with no minimum purchase amount by four days. Originally, the free shipping promotion, was scheduled to end Friday, Dec. 14, which happens to be the 11th annual Free Shipping Day. Now, the last day to get free standard shipping on Amazon orders is Tuesday, Dec. 18.
