- PoliticsYahoo News
3 things to watch for in Friday's Trump impeachment hearing
Yovanovitch, who was recalled from her post in May after Giuliani complained she was interfering with his demand for an investigation into former Vice President Joe Biden, has testified that Giuliani's efforts were at odds with U.S. policy. Her testimony will likely corroborate what Bill Taylor, the top U.S. diplomat in Ukraine, described as the Trump administration's “irregular” channels of diplomacy with Kyiv. At the heart of the Democrats' case against Trump is the contention that he abused his power — House Speaker Nancy Pelosi referred to his actions as “bribery” — in seeking a foreign investigation of a domestic political rival and pressing his demand by withholding security assistance...
- PoliticsYahoo News
Sorry, Hillary: Democrats don't need a savior
Reminder: There are 84 days until the Iowa caucuses and 358 days until the 2020 election. With the Iowa caucuses fast approaching, Clinton is just the latest in the colorful cast of characters who seem to have surveyed the sprawling Democratic field, sensed something lacking and decided that “something” might be them. Never mind, for instance, that billionaire businessman and former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg already closed the door on a run earlier this year, declaring in March that he was “clear-eyed about the difficulty of winning the Democratic nomination” and that “the best way for me to help our country is by rolling up my sleeves and continuing to get work done” as a political philanthropist.
- NewsAssociated Press
The Latest: Officer says Miranda failure was a mistake
A police officer who obtained a confession from the suspect in the disappearance and death of University of Iowa student Mollie Tibbetts says she made an honest mistake by initially failing to read him his legal rights. Officer Pamela Romero testified Wednesday that she tried to read Cristhian Bahena Rivera his Miranda warnings from memory during the Aug. 20, 2018, interrogation. After several more hours of questioning, Rivera led police officers to a cornfield where they discovered Tibbetts' body underneath a stack of leaves and stalks.
- WorldBusiness Insider
Pirates attacked an Italian ship off the coast of Mexico — the latest sign of a growing criminal industry
Gunmen boarded a ship in the Gulf of Mexico on Monday night, robbing the passengers and leaving two of them wounded. It's only the latest attack on oil infrastructure in the Gulf, as fuel theft becomes more common on land and at sea in Mexico. A pirate attack on an Italian ship in the Gulf of Mexico that left two sailors wounded isn't the first such incident, and with Mexico struggling to address rising insecurity, it's not likely to be the last.
- NewsThe Independent
American war veteran who spent several days in ICE detention receives $190k settlement
A US citizen and military veteran suffering from a mental health condition will reportedly receive $190,000 (£147,988) from a Michigan city after local officials transferred him to ICE detention following an arrest last year. Jilmar Ramos-Gomez, a decorated Marine veteran suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, was arrested while experiencing an episode in which he lost all recollection, according to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU). Police found the veteran, who was born and raised in Michigan, on the helipad of a hospital after he started a small fire and pulled an alarm, according to reports.
- WorldReuters
Russia blames fatal plane crash on pilots, including one who lied to get license
A plane crash that killed all 50 people on board at Russia's Kazan Airport in 2013 was the result of errors made by two pilots, including one who got his license using falsified documents, Russian investigators said on Thursday. The Boeing 737-500 aircraft was operated by the now-defunct Tatarstan Airlines, which later had its license revoked by Russia's Federal Air Transport Agency, Rosaviatsiya. The plane from Moscow had been trying to abort its landing when it nose-dived into the runway and burst into flames.
WorldAFPVietnam jails music teacher for 'undermining' state
Vietnam sentenced a music teacher to 11 years in prison on Friday for Facebook posts that allegedly undermined the one-party state, which has been accused of tightening the noose on online dissent. Communist Vietnam has long jailed its critics but has come under fire recently for targeting users on Facebook, a popular forum for activists in the country where all independent media is banned. Nguyen Nang Tinh is the latest activist jailed for his Facebook comments, including posts about police brutality, land rights, and a Taiwanese steel firm that dumped toxic sludge into the ocean, killing masses of fish off the coast of Vietnam.
- WorldBloomberg
Electric Cars and Floods Stall Johnson’s U.K. Election Drive
Burned by their disastrous 2017 election under Theresa May, the Conservatives chose Johnson as their leader partly because they felt he was a winner, a superstar politician who enjoyed the campaign trail. It would be dangerous to read too much into this: It's still a month until polling day, and every poll has the Conservatives comfortably ahead. Johnson is also ahead of opposition Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn on questions about who would make the best prime minister.
- NewsThe National Interest
The U.S. Marine Corps Is Making Big Changes (Thanks to Threats from Russia and China)
Currently the Marine Corps deploys infantry battalions to Okinawa, Japan on a rotational basis as part of the Unit Deployment Program. While in Japan, the battalions fall under 4th Marine Regiment, which has a permanent headquarters in Okinawa. The 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, while not part of the Unit Deployment Program, contributes another infantry battalion to Okinawa for several months per year.
- PoliticsYahoo News
'You embarrassed yourself': Kellyanne Conway blasts CNN's Wolf Blitzer for playing George Conway clip
Appearing live on CNN Thursday, Kellyanne Conway, special counselor to President Trump, was asked to respond to the assessment given by her husband, George, that testimony of career diplomats in the first public impeachment hearings was damning for her boss. George Conway, a conservative lawyer and outspoken Trump critic, appeared on MSNBC as a guest analyst during Thursday's hearings. While introducing a clip of George Conway, CNN's Wolf Blitzer told Kellyanne Conway he wanted to ask her a “sensitive” political question.
- PoliticsNational Review
Ethics Probe into Rashida Tlaib Extended after Watchdog Finds Evidence of Misuse of Campaign Funds
The House Ethics Committee released texts and emails on Thursday that show Representative Rashida Tlaib (D., Mich.) repeatedly asking for campaign for funds to defray personal costs. The committee's announcement comes after the board of the Office of Congressional Ethics unanimously voted in August to refer Tlaib for a potential violation of federal law. While FEC regulations permit a campaign to pay a candidate, it must be for “work performed up through the date of the general election.” Checks, emails, and spreadsheets show that Tlaib was paid $17,500 after the November 6, 2018, election.
- WorldAssociated Press
The Latest: Hong Kong highway blocked after deadline passes
Protesters in Hong Kong have once again blocked a highway in an outlying area after the government did not meet their demand that it pledge to go ahead with local elections later this month. The protesters had allowed one lane of traffic to re-open in each direction and gave the government 24 hours to meet their demand. Constitutional Affairs Secretary Patrick Nip said the government hopes the election will be held on schedule but warned that it could be postponed if conditions are unsafe and roads and other transportation are blocked.
- PoliticsYahoo News Video
Pelosi: What Trump did makes what Nixon did during Watergate ‘look almost small’
At her weekly press conference, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said what President Trump did with regard to Ukraine makes what President Nixon did during Watergate “look almost small.
- BusinessCar and Driver
2020 BMW X1 vs. 2019 Audi Q3 in Photos
Audi has completely redesigned its smallest SUV, but is it finally better than its aging BMW rival? From Car and Driver
- NewsYahoo News
Immigration officer blows whistle on 'morally objectionable' Trump asylum policy
A new anonymous whistleblower has accused the Trump administration of requiring U.S. asylum officers to enforce an illegal and immoral policy “clearly designed to further this administration's racist agenda of keeping Hispanic and Latino populations from entering the United States. The policy in question is the so-called Migrant Protection Protocols, or MPP, the controversial program requiring that most asylum seekers who attempt to request protections in the United States via the southern border be returned to Mexico to await their immigration proceedings there rather than inside the U.S. Under the MPP, which was first announced at the end of last year, more than 50,000 migrants have been s...
- WorldBusiness Insider
An Air India flight was delayed nearly 12 hours after a stowaway rat was spotted in the cabin
An Air India flight flying from Hyderabad to Visakhapatnam was delayed for 12 hours after a rat was spotted in the cabin. Flight AI-952 was due to depart at 06:10 a.m. on Sunday but after the rat was spotted passengers were told to disembark the plane— which did not leave until later in the day at 5.30 p.m. according to the Times of India. A domestic flight in India was delayed for 12 hours after a rat was spotted in the cabin as the flight was about to take off.
- PoliticsBloomberg
DNC Announces 10 Candidates in Atlanta Democratic Debate
The Democratic National Committee on Thursday announced the 10 candidates who will participate in the fifth Democratic primary debate in Atlanta on Wednesday. They are: Joe Biden, Cory Booker, Pete Buttigieg, Tulsi Gabbard, Kamala Harris, Amy Klobuchar, Bernie Sanders, Tom Steyer, Elizabeth Warren and Andrew Yang. Julian Castro, who participated in previous debates, most recently in October at Otterbein University in Westerville, Ohio, didn't make the cut.
- WorldReuters
Iran starts gasoline rationing, hikes prices - state TV
Iran introduced gasoline rationing and price hikes on Friday with an official saying that the revenue would be used for subsidies for 18 million needy families, state television reported. Iran, which has some of the world's cheapest fuel prices due to heavy subsidies and the fall of its currency, has been fighting rampant fuel smuggling to neighbouring countries. State TV said the price of a litre of regular gasoline was increased to 15,000 rials (12.7 U.S. cents) from 10,000 rials and the monthly ration for each private car was set at 60 litres per month.
- PoliticsCBS News
Meeting with Turkish leader and GOP senators gets heated
An Oval Office meeting with President Trump, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Republican senators took a dicey turn Wednesday afternoon when the conversation turned to Erdogan's conflict with the Kurds, multiple sources tell CBS News. Erdogan brought out an iPad and showed the senators an anti-Kurds video, leading to a heated exchange about the Kurds and his treatment of them. Turkey launched an incursion into northern Syria against the Kurds in recent weeks, as the president decided to withdraw U.S. troops from the region after a phone conversation with the authoritarian leader Erdogan.
- NewsThe Independent
'One-in-a-million' deer with three antlers spotted caught on camera
A day after images of a puppy with an extra tail growing from its head made headlines around the world, another animal with unusual extra headgear has been sighted - a rare three-antlered whitetail deer. The creature was pictured between the snow covered trees on Michigan's Upper Peninsula by amateur photographer and former state representative, Steve Lindberg. The large buck was captured looking directly at the camera.
- NewsAssociated Press
Justice Dept. rolls out new program to combat gun violence
Attorney General William Barr announced a new initiative Wednesday that would better enforce the U.S. gun background check system, coordinate state and federal gun cases and ensure prosecutors quickly update databases to show when a defendant can't possess a firearm because of mental health issues. The push, known as Project Guardian, was unveiled at a news conference in Memphis, Tennessee, alongside officials from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, on the same day public impeachment hearings against President Donald Trump began in Washington. As part of the program, U.S. prosecutors will coordinate with state and local law enforcement officials to consider potential federal charges when a suspect is arrested for weapons possession, is believed to have used a gun to commit a violent crime or drug-trafficking offense or is suspected of being a violent gang member.
WorldAFPWhen Hamas is not in Israel's sights
For the first time in more than a decade, Israeli forces have bombed Gaza without targeting Hamas. Before dawn on Tuesday, Israeli forces struck an apartment in the northern Gaza Strip, killing Baha Abu al-Ata and his wife Asma, who died immediately. Ata was not a commander of Hamas, which has de facto control over the Gaza Strip, a territory of some two million people that has fought three wars with Israel since 2008.
- PoliticsThe Week
William Taylor laughs at GOP question if Giuliani channel was 'as outlandish as it could be'
Republican counsel Steve Castor came to Wednesday's impeachment hearing with a curious line of questioning: could something extremely unusual have, theoretically, been even more unusual? Castor, the lawyer who questioned diplomat William Taylor on behalf of House Republicans during the public impeachment hearing, asked about what Taylor had previously described as a "confusing and unusual arrangement for making U.S. policy toward Ukraine" in the Trump administration, with there being a secondary, "highly irregular" channel including Rudy Giuliani operating outside of formal diplomatic processes. "In fairness, this irregular channel of diplomacy, it's not as outlandish as it could be," Castor said to Taylor.
- WorldThe Telegraph
Bolivia interim leader recognises Guaido as legitimate Venezuelan leader as balance shifts
Interim president Jeanine Anez moved Thursday to consolidate power in deeply polarized Bolivia, winning recognition from the United States and immediately shifting the country's foreign policy on erstwhile ally Venezuela. Anez was expected to complete her government line-up, having named new military chiefs and half of her proposed 20-member cabinet - including Defense Minister Fernando Lopez Julio - the night before. "We have come to pacify the country," Lopez Julio said in a speech at the military college in La Paz.
- BusinessChristian Science Monitor
China’s great pork shortage: Why it could cost Beijing
As China's Communist Party leaders confront challenges ranging from Hong Kong protests to the trade war, a more alimental problem has Beijing nervous: a paucity of pigs. China faces a huge shortage of pork – by far the country's favorite meat – after losing about half of its hog herd to African swine fever over the past 15 months. China's pork production has plummeted an estimated 45%, while the price of pork soared 101% in October compared with a year earlier, according to INTL FCStone, a U.S. financial services group, and Chinese government statistics.
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