Putin says some of Macron's ideas could form basis to move forward

Russian President Vladimir Putin described Monday's talks with French President Emmanuel Macron in the Kremlin as useful, substantive and business-like, and said that some of Macron's ideas could form a basis for further joint steps. The French leader travelled to Moscow for talks amid an East-West standoff over a Russian military buildup near Ukraine and a Kremlin campaign for security "guarantees" from Washington that would include a halt to NATO expansion. In a joint news conference after the talks, Putin said that a number of Macron's ideas concerning security were realistic and that the two would talk again once Macron had travelled to Kyiv to meet Ukraine's leadership.

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  France's Macron flies to Moscow in bid to ease Ukraine tensions

  Reuters
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  Macron tells Putin he seeks to avoid war and build trust

  Reuters

Nikki Haley calls out Pence for saying Trump was "wrong" about overturning 2020 election

Nikki Haley told Fox News on Monday she believed Mike Pence "did what he thought was right" when the then-vice president certified the results of the last presidential election. Yes, but: The former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations took issue with Pence saying last week that former President Trump is "wrong" to claim that he could have overturned the results. What she's saying: "Mike Pence is a good man.

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  'Snake oil salesmen' advised Trump on 2020 election, Pence aide Marc Short says

  Yahoo News Video
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  'Snake oil salesmen' advised Trump on 2020 election, Pence aide says

  Reuters

40 beheaded Roman skeletons with skulls placed between their legs found by archeologists at construction site

Archeologists working on Britain's HS2 railway line uncovered a late Roman cemetery. The decapitated skeletons could have been criminals or outcasts, archeologists said. About 40 beheaded skeletons were among 425 bodies found in a late Roman cemetery uncovered by archeologists in southern England.

Chris Christie rips Trump's Jan. 6 claims: 'He actually told the truth by accident'

Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie did not hold back Sunday in his criticism of how former President Donald Trump has sought to depict the deadly attack against the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. .@GovChristie says Jan. 6 “was a riot that was incited by Donald Trump” in an effort to intimidate then-Vice Pres. Christie, a former GOP presidential candidate, made the comment in reaction to the back-and-forth between Trump and former Vice President Mike Pence.

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  What does Ivanka Trump know about Jan. 6? Congress is asking

  Associated Press
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  Chris Christie: Trump Incited Jan. 6 Capitol Riot To 'Intimidate' Pence, Congress

  HuffPost

California man says police blamed him after Arco Gas worker told him to ‘go back to China’

A 22-year-old Asian man in California is voicing his frustration after a gas station cashier told him to “go back to China,” leading a police officer to purportedly blame him for escalating their encounter. The incident, which was partly caught on video, allegedly occurred at the Arco gas station at 631 North Garfield Ave. in Monterey Park around 5 p.m. on Jan. 28. The man, who asked to not be identified, told NextShark, “I just came in and asked for gas, then the cashier started to yell, 'Go back to China,' and denied me service,” he claimed.

Mitt Romney says he 'exchanged texts' with his niece and RNC chairwoman Ronna McDaniel after RNC censure of Cheney, Kinzinger over January 6 investigation

Ronna McDaniel, chairwoman of the Republican National Committee, is a granddaughter of George W. Romney. Last week the RNC censured two Republicans for participating in the January 6 committee's investigation. Utah Sen. Mitt Romney told reporters he texted his concerns to McDaniel.

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  Romney says he texted with niece McDaniel after RNC censure

  The Hill
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  Trump congratulated the RNC for censuring Reps. Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger, calling them 'horrible RINOs'

  INSIDER

Black lawmakers blast plans for monument to Justice Thomas

Georgia's Republican-controlled Senate voted Monday to erect a monument to conservative U.S. Supreme Court Justice and Georgia native Clarence Thomas after heated debate and objections from several Black senators, one of whom called Thomas a “hypocrite and a traitor. The monument would be financed by private donations and would be erected somewhere at the state Capitol if the measure were to receive final passage. It was approved by a vote of 32 to 21 and now goes to the state House for consideration.

Inside Ron Jeremy’s Motion To Have 21 Sexual Assault Trials

Jailed porn star Ron Jeremy is asking a Los Angeles judge to break up his serial rape case into separate trials for each of his 21 sex assault accusers. At a hearing Monday, the judge said he was ready to rule on Jeremy's motion, filed Feb. 2, but prosecutors asked for more time to respond to the lengthy and novel severance request that seemed to catch them by surprise. Jeremy, 68, who was born Ronald Hyatt, argues his right to due process will be violated if he's forced into one umbrella trial for his long list of charges ranging from assaulting minors and drugging women for sex to forcible groping.

'Everyone is afraid of him': White House probe finds 'credible evidence' that top science adviser bullied, disrespected subordinates

A recent internal White House investigation found that President Biden's top science adviser and director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy Eric Lander "bullied and demeaned his subordinates and violated the White House's workplace policy," Politico reports per the investigation, as well as interviews with current and former staffers. The probe, conducted over a two-month period, found that Lander was "bullying" his former general counsel, Rachel Wallace.

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  Biden adviser Lander resigns after workplace complaints-White House

  Reuters
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  Investigation finds top Biden science adviser bullied subordinates: report

  The Hill

Canada court silences protesters' horns, police seize fuel

Police in Canada's national capital said on Monday they have seized thousands of liters of fuel and removed an oil tanker as part of a crackdown to end days long protest against the government's COVID-19 measures, while a judge granted an interim injunction against deafening honking that has irked residents. Canada's capital Ottawa has been gridlocked by a so-called "Freedom Convoy" consisting of truckers and other motorists for 11 days now. What started as a movement opposing a Canadian vaccine mandate for cross-border drivers - a requirement mirrored by a U.S. rule - has morphed into a rallying point against Prime Minister Justin Trudeau' public health measures.

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  Ottawa police say 'relentless' in blocking protest funding

  Reuters Videos
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  Ottawa declares state of emergency over anti-vax truck protest

  Reuters Videos

Vitamin D could be a piece of COVID-19's 'complex puzzle,' Israeli scientists say, after a new study finds a link between deficiency and severe illness

Israeli scientists said they found "striking" differences in the chances of getting seriously ill from COVID-19 when they compared patients who had sufficient vitamin D levels prior to contracting the disease with those who didn't. A study published on Thursday in the research journal PLOS One found that about half of people who were vitamin D deficient before getting COVID-19 developed severe illness, compared to less than 10% of people who had sufficient levels of the vitamin in their blood. We know vitamin D is vital for bone health, but its role in protecting against severe COVID-19 is less well established.

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  Boston doctor discusses link between vitamin D deficiency and severe COVID-19

  WCVB - Boston
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  Taking Vitamin D Daily Can Help Prevent This Disease, New Study Says

  Eat This, Not That!

Amazon Prime Memberships Will Soon Cost $139 a Year. Here Are 5 Ways to Get a Discount

Gift yourself a membership at the old rate Did you know that you can gift an Amazon Prime membership? If you're already an active member and want to secure the old pricing for another year, you can buy a yearly Amazon Prime membership as a gift at the current rate. Before Feb. 18, purchase a membership through Give the Gift of Prime and hold on to the email with the gift confirmation details.

Shirley Cuban, mother of Mavericks owner Mark Cuban, dies

Shirley Cuban, the mother of Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban, has died, her son Brian Cuban said. Cuban died Friday in the suburban Pittsburgh home where she and her husband, Norton, raised sons Mark, Brian and Jeff, The Dallas Morning News reported. Brian Cuban said his mother died after a long battle with lung cancer.

WSJ Gives Republicans A Blunt Reality Check Over '3-Time Loser' Trump

The Wall Street Journal ripped into Donald Trump and Republicans after the party doubled down in its support of the former president. The newspaper also praised former Vice President Mike Pence for refusing to cave to Trump's pressure to overturn the 2020 election results on Jan. 6, 2021. “Mr. Pence was presiding over the vote counting as President of the Senate, but he refused Mr. Trump's pressure to disqualify electors from some closely contested states,” the editorial stated.

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  What does Ivanka Trump know about Jan. 6? Congress is asking

  Associated Press
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  Republicans back Pence rebuke of Trump on overturning 2020 election

  The Hill

Virginia inmate sentenced in Michigan for daughter's killing

A man serving life sentences in Virginia for raping and killing a woman in 1980 was sentenced Monday to an additional 35 to 50 years in prison in Michigan for the 1989 killing of his 14-year-old daughter. Dennis Bowman pleaded no contest to second-degree murder in December for the killing of his daughter Aundria Bowman, whose body was found two years ago buried in his backyard in Hamilton, about 25 miles (40 kilometers) southwest of Grand Rapids. “His numerous assaults, his behavior in this case, other convictions all indicate Mr. Bowman is a serious, dangerous man that has harmed many communities, many families," Allegan County Circuit Court Judge Margaret Zuzich Bakker said during Monday's sentencing, which Bowman attended in-person.

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  Hamilton man to be sentenced for 1989 murder

  The Holland Sentinel
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  Hamilton man gets 35 years for daughter's 1989 murder

  The Holland Sentinel

An Oregon woman was duped into thinking she was training to be a DEA agent for almost a year, officials say

An Oregon man tricked a woman into thinking she was training to be a DEA agent for a year, officials say. Authorities accused him of keeping fake badges, tactical vests, and a rifle that was actually a BB gun. A woman in Oregon who believed that she was training to be a Drug Enforcement Administration agent realized she had been tricked for a year by a man pretending to be her supervisor, according to a criminal complaint seen by Insider.

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  DEA Impostor Tricked Woman Into Believing She Was An Agent-In-Training: Feds

  HuffPost
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  Woman says she was tricked into believing she was a DEA agent trainee for a year

  NBC News

You Might Not Like It, but Hunter Biden’s Shenanigans Are Real News

The 1980s TV crime drama Hunter featured an eponymous main character who popularized the catchphrase, “Works for me.” The troubled presidential scion is in the news again and raising questions about his father, President Joe Biden. This unwanted attention has also renewed questions about the media's relative lack of interest in the younger Biden's highly questionable business interests during the 2020 presidential election.

Separatist leader says full-scale war in east Ukraine could break out any time

DONETSK, Ukraine (Reuters) -A Russian-backed separatist leader in eastern Ukraine said on Monday that full-scale war could break out there at any time and his forces might need to turn to Moscow for support. Denis Pushilin, head of the breakaway Donetsk People's Republic, said there was a high likelihood of a war that would bring huge casualties, although it would be "madness" to embrace such a conflict. "First of all we rely on ourselves, but we do not rule out that we will be forced to turn to Russia if Ukraine, with the support of Western countries, passes a certain line," he told Reuters in an interview in his fortified office.

Mentally, I'm Rita Ora Soaking Up The Sun In A Bikini RN

Rita Ora spent her Sunday afternoon getting lots of sun and showing off her super sculpted and strong bod in a new post to her Instagram Stories. The "You for Me" singer recently finished filming The Voice Australia, and has been making the most of her time Down Under catching tons of rays. Last month, she shared some pics of her gym workout, which included a pic of her doing some dumbbell chest presses.

You Need to See the Wild and Terrifying Moment Robert Irwin Got Chased By a 12-Foot Crocodile

It's the Irwins, Steve Irwin's son Robert was nearly attacked by a 12-foot crocodile. After moving the reptile, Casper, into a new home at the family's Australia Zoo, the 18-year-old wanted to check how comfortable the croc was in his new enclosure. "If he's coming out of the water," Robert, who jumped in with Casper as part of his test, explained, "giving big strikes, that means he's going to be ready for the Crocoseum show."

Ex-justice's Wisconsin election probe drags as critics scoff

The leader of a sprawling, taxpayer-funded probe of Joe Biden's victory in battleground Wisconsin ignited his political career in 2008 by unseating the first Black justice on the state Supreme Court, capitalizing on an ad that sparked ethics complaints and allegations of racism. Michael Gableman's commercial against then-Justice Louis Butler drew comparisons with the infamous Willie Horton ad from the 1988 presidential race and an official complaint from the state judicial commission. But the ad paid off as Gableman, then a little-known circuit judge in rural Wisconsin, became the first challenger to defeat a sitting justice in 40 years, tilting the court's balance in favor of conservatives.

Fox News’ Brian Kilmeade Slams Trump Over ‘Outright Lie’ About 2020 Election

Brian Kilmeade of Fox News blasted Donald Trump over his 2020 election claims Monday. Kilmeade, speaking on his talk-radio show, said that the former president lied about Arizona's election audit. Taking a call from a listener named Logan, who said he was a Trump supported, the host agreed that he was concerned about Trump's various claims of the election.

Claiming Social Security Spousal Benefits? These 3 Rules May Surprise You

If the primary earner claims benefits at FRA but you start your checks when you're just 62, early filing penalties could reduce your monthly Social Security check to as little as 32.5% of your partner's standard benefit -- down from 50%. Before starting your checks early, make certain you're aware of this major potential downside. You can't claim your spousal benefits until your spouse has If you're eager to claim spousal benefits, you may be faced with an unpleasant surprise if your partner is putting off filing for their own checks.