- PoliticsBusiness Insider
Texas Republican party chairman said Trump can hold the RNC in his state if the president moves it from North Carolina like he threatened
Texas GOP Chairman James Dickey said his state would "welcome President Trump" and the RNC for an in-person convention later this year. President Donald Trump on Monday threatened to move the RNC from North Carolina if the state's governor refused to allow "full attendance" at the event, blaming the Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper's "Shutdown mood." Vice President Mike Pence suggested Texas, Georgia, or Florida could house the 2020 convention if it is moved from North Carolina.
- WorldReuters
Brazil police raid Rio governor's residences amid COVID-19 probe
Brazilian federal police on Tuesday raided the residences of Rio de Janeiro Governor Wilson Witzel as part of a COVID-19 corruption probe, targeting one of President Jair Bolsonaro's political foes as the pandemic sweeps the nation. Two sources and a statement from the federal police said the search warrants were part of an investigation into alleged corruption involving the use of public money destined to fight the coronavirus pandemic in Rio de Janeiro state. No arrest warrants were issued, a source said.
- WorldThe Telegraph
India detains pigeon on suspicion of spying for Pakistan
An intrepid Pakistani 'spy' pigeon is facing a life behind bars in India. The allegation was made after Geeta Devi, a resident of the Kathua district of Indian-administered Kashmir, reported a bird - painted pink and carrying a coded ring tagged to its foot - flew into her home on Sunday night. The Indian Border Security Force passed the pigeon on to the police, who launched an investigation and logged the animal as a 'Pak Suspected Spy.'
WorldAFPIsrael court rules Australia sex crimes suspect fit to stand trial
An Israeli court ruled Tuesday that an Orthodox Jewish teacher accused of child sex abuse in Australia was mentally fit to stand trial, bringing her closer to extradition after years of legal battles. The decision was hailed by alleged victims who have campaigned for years for Malka Leifer to be sent back to face trial. Jerusalem district court judge Chana Lomp said that she had "decided to accept the expert panel's opinion, the defendant is fit to stand trial".
- WorldAssociated Press
Venezuela celebrates docking of tanker with Iran gasoline
Venezuelan authorities celebrated Monday as the first of five Iranian tankers loaded with gasoline docked in the South American country, delivering badly needed fuel to the crisis-stricken nation that sits atop the world's largest oil reserves. The gasoline shipments are arriving in defiance of stiff sanctions by the Trump administration against both nations, and they mark a new era in the burgeoning relationship between Venezuela and Iran, which is expanding its footprint in the Western Hemisphere. “We keep moving forward and winning,” Venezuela's Minister of Energy Tareck El Aissami tweeted.
- U.S.INSIDER
The white woman who called 911 after a black bird-watcher asked her to leash her dog has 'voluntarily surrendered' her pet to an animal rescue
More than 22.8 million people have watched a video of Amy Cooper, a white woman, calling 911 and alleging that there was an "African-American man threatening" her. In reality, Christian Cooper, who is black and enjoys bird watching, asked Amy Cooper to put her dog on its leash while they were in Central Park in Manhattan. The Abandoned Angels Cocker Spaniel Rescue, Inc. has since announced that the woman has "voluntarily surrendered" her dog, confirming that "he is safe and in good health."
U.S.Yahoo News VideoBaby gorilla injured at Seattle Zoo
A baby gorilla was badly injured at a Seattle zoo on Saturday when he was caught in a skirmish between his family group members, zookeepers said.
WorldAFP Relax NewsMacau casino tycoon Stanley Ho dies aged 98
Stanley Ho, the Hong Kong-born tycoon who made billions transforming neighbouring Macau from a sleepy Portuguese outpost into the world's biggest gambling hub, died on Tuesday at the age of 98, his family said. Known as the "godfather" of Macau's casinos, Ho was instrumental in turning the semi-autonomous city on China's southern coastline into a gambling boomtown. He fathered at least 17 children and speculation about how his vast fortune would be divided among his offspring has long occupied Hong Kong's tabloid media.
- U.S.Los Angeles Times Opinion
Editorial: Nearly 100,000 Americans have died from COVID-19. As a nation, it's time to mourn and honor them
This week, the United States is set to pass another sorrowful milestone in the coronavirus pandemic: 100,000 dead from COVID-19. It bears repeating: One hundred thousand Americans dead since the first known coronavirus death in the U.S. in February. It's a staggering figure, the equivalent of a Vacaville, Calif.
- PoliticsThe Guardian
Why is Trump so restrained about the Biden sexual assault allegation?
Sometimes Donald Trump portrays his election rival, Joe Biden, as a sleepy geriatric who should be in a care home because “he doesn't know he's alive”. At others, the president speaks of Biden as a wily manipulator who conspired with the deep state and China. But in this scattergun approach, the US president has been uncharacteristically reluctant to use what, in normal times, would seem standard political ammunition: an allegation of sexual assault.
- WorldReuters
Dutch PM did not visit dying mother until end due to coronavirus rules: statement
Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte did not visit his 96-year-old mother for more than eight weeks until hours before her death this month due to lockdown measures in the Netherlands, his office said on Tuesday. Mieke Rutte-Dilling died on May 13, Rutte's office announced on Monday. "The prime minister complied with all the coronavirus restriction measures and didn't visit his mother for (more than 8) weeks," the premier's office said in a statement.
- WorldBusiness Insider
Russia records its highest daily death toll from the coronavirus as its number of new cases appears to decline
Lev Fedoseyev\TASS via Getty Images Russia recorded 8,599 new cases 153 new deaths on Sunday linked to the coronavirus, raising its overall death toll to 3,541. The country has recorded 344,481 coronavirus cases and is the third-worst hit country in its total number of coronavirus cases behind Brazil and the US, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. While its daily death toll continues to increase, its number of new daily cases appears to be on the decline.
WorldAFPCorruption prosecutions nearly double in China over last year
The number of prosecutions related to corruption in China nearly doubled last year, according to a report by Beijing's top prosecutor, as President Xi Jinping ramped up his crackdown on graft. According to the annual report from the Supreme People's Procuratorate submitted to the national parliament, 18,585 people were prosecuted for crimes related to corruption in 2019, a 90 percent year-on-year increase. Sixteen cases involved former provincial or ministerial-level Communist Party cadres, including former Yunnan party chief Qin Guangrong, who was accused of taking bribes.
- WorldAssociated Press
UN probe: Both Koreas violate armistice in gunfire exchange
A U.N. investigation into a recent exchange of gunfire between the two Koreas has determined that both countries violated the armistice that ended the 1950-53 Korean War, the American-led U.N. Command said Tuesday. The May 3 gunfire exchange was the first shooting inside the Korean Demilitarized Zone in about 2½ years. The DMZ, which was established as a buffer at the end of the Korean War, is a de facto border separating North and South Korea.
- CelebrityCBS News
Two-faced kitten dies 4 days after birth
Biscuits and Gravy, the two-faced kitten born in Oregon last week died on Saturday night, the cat's owner, Kyla King, told CBS affiliate KOIN-TV. King woke up last Wednesday to find her pregnant cat had given birth — and one of the new kittens had two mouths, two sets of eyes and two noses. The phenomenon is not unheard of — it is a rare Janus cat, named after the Roman god Janus, who is depicted with two faces.
- U.S.The Week
Trump administration promises 100 million coronavirus testing swabs by the end of 2020
The Trump administration sent Congress a national coronavirus testing strategy in time to meet a Sunday deadline, The Washington Post reports, citing a copy of the 80-page "COVID-19 Strategic Testing Plan" it obtained. The report delivered to Congress promises that the federal government will buy 100 million swabs by the end of 2020 and distribute them to states to help them expand testing. The document did not outline federal testing goals for each state; instead it listed testing targets states reported to federal officials for May. Public health officials say broader testing to determine who has been infected with the novel coronavirus and who might have immunity are key to curbing the spread of the outbreak and allowing the economy to fully reopen.
- WorldBBC
Coronavirus: US suspends travel from Brazil for foreigners
The US has imposed travel restrictions on foreign nationals who have been to Brazil in the last 14 days. The South American nation recently became the world's second major hotspot for coronavirus cases. Brazil has recorded more than 360,000 cases, the country's health ministry announced on Sunday, while over 22,000 people have died with the virus.
- ScienceThe Independent
Nasa SpaceX launch: What time is the rocket liftoff and how can I watch it live
Nasa and SpaceX are preparing to send two astronauts to space in a mission that hopes to change the future of space exploration. When Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley lift off from Kennedy Space Center to the International Space Station, Nasa will be hoping they will both break tradition and set a new course for US spaceflight. It will be the first time in almost a decade that astronauts have been launched from US soil, with Nasa being forced to borrow seats on board spacecraft from the Russian space agency.
- PoliticsThe Week
Joe Biden wears mask in 1st public appearance since March
Former Vice President Joe Biden on Monday made his first public appearance since mid-March as he visited a veterans memorial in Delaware, notably clad in a mask. The presumptive Democratic presidential nominee laid a wreath in honor of Memorial Day, alongside his wife, Jill Biden, who also wore a mask. Biden's choice to follow the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommendation to wear a mask during the coronavirus pandemic is in stark contrast to President Donald Trump, who often refuses to wear masks in public, fearful that he'd look ridiculous.
- WorldReuters
Hong Kong police issue warning amid calls for new demonstrations
Hong Kong police issued a warning late on Tuesday that they would not tolerate disruptions to public order, after activists circulated calls online for fresh demonstrations on Wednesday. A new national security law proposed last week by Beijing has revived mass protests by demonstrators who say China aims to curb the freedoms enjoyed in Hong Kong, a global financial centre with broad autonomy. Calls were circulated on Tuesday on online forums for a general strike and protests on Wednesday against a national anthem law due for a second reading in the city's Legislative Council.
- BusinessBusiness Insider
Trump's senior economic adviser referred to Americans returning to work as 'human capital stock'
Alex Wong/Getty Images Senior White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett told CNN's "State of the Union" on Sunday that America's "human capital stock" is ready to get back work as the country moves toward reopening its economy. "Our capital stock hasn't been destroyed, our human capital stock is ready to get back to work, and so there are lots of reasons to believe that we can get going way faster than we have in previous crises," Hassett said. Hassett's statements come as the number of Americans who filed for unemployment benefits continues to grow.
U.S.USA TODAYDaytona beachside shooting wounds at least 5 people
At least five people were treated for gunshot wounds Saturday night after a large crowd blocked State Road A1A and a fight spilled into a restaurant in the heart of the city's tourist area, officials said. About 200 young people were observed in a helicopter video dancing, partying and gathering on the sidewalk in the middle of the street outside the Burger King, on Atlantic Avenue Ave as the sun came down on the first big night of the Memorial Day weekend. The gathering continued as police shut down all traffic coming over the bridges on to Daytona Beach's barrier island.
WorldAFPTop Brazil media end coverage of presidential doorstop
Brasília (AFP) - Two of Brazil's top media groups said Monday they were suspending coverage of President Jair Bolsonaro's informal news conferences outside the presidential palace because of harassment by his supporters and a lack of security. Media conglomerate Globo and newspaper Folha de Sao Paulo said the presidential security detail was failing to provide adequate protection for journalists covering Bolsonaro. The far-right president, who regularly rails against the mainstream media, often stops outside the Alvorada Palace in Brasilia in the morning to greet supporters and occasionally speak to the press.
- ScienceThe Telegraph
50 billion years of animal evolution under threat from human activity, study says
Fifty billion years of evolutionary history is under threat from human activity, according to a new study which suggests some of the most threatened areas contain the most unique animals. Branches of the tree of life will be cut by the loss of animals such as the Mary River turtle, native to Queensland, Australia, recognisable by its punk-like algae 'hair', whose evolution stretches back 40 million years. The study was led by Imperial College and the Zoological Society of London, which works to protect species of high evolutionary importance through its EDGE of Existence programme.
- U.S.The Independent
Husband of ‘Reopen North Carolina’ leader says he is ‘willing to kill’ in fight against lockdown
The husband of a leading protester campaigning to “reopen” North Carolina has said he and his fellow protesters are “willing to kill people” as they fight to overturn their state's lockdown order. Adam Smith, whose wife Ashley was arrested at a recent protest in the state capital of Raleigh, said in his video that the only just response to the lockdown was to treat it as a fight against tyrannical government domination. It comes as Donald Trump threatens to move this summer's Republican National Convention away from North Carolina unless Governor Roy Cooper makes moves to reopen the state in time.
