NewsReutersU.S. border agents will not speak to lawmakers about girl's death
U.S. Border Patrol agents who detained a 7-year-old Guatemalan migrant girl who later died in federal custody will not speak with U.S. lawmakers investigating her death, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security said on Monday, citing their union membership. Members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus on Tuesday plan to visit the New Mexico patrol station where Jakelin Caal and her father were taken on Dec. 7 to learn more about why she died the next day. Caal's death fueled criticism of President Donald Trump's immigration policies from Democrats and migrant advocates.
PoliticsAssociated PressThe Latest: Judge orders Flynn to stay within 50 miles of DC
The White House says it is not backing down from its criticism of the Federal Bureau of Investigation's interview of Mike Flynn, the former Trump national security adviser who pleaded guilty to lying to the law enforcement agency. Press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders is repeating her allegation that the FBI "ambushed" Flynn in an interview in which he denied contacts with Russian officials. Flynn later acknowledged having lied to investigators during the interview.
- PoliticsHuffPost
Chili's Weighs In On North Carolina Election Fraud And Immediately Regrets Decision
Chili’s social media department is getting ribbed after it weighed in on North Carolina’s election fraud scandal ― without really understanding it. It all started Monday when Andrew Bates, a spokesperson for the progressive super PAC American Bridge, offered a Chili’s gift certificate to North Carolina GOP Executive Director Dallas Woodhouse with a caveat: Stop trying to seat Republican congressional candidate Mark Harris, whose election has been marred by ballot fraud allegations. Woodhouse didn’t respond, but Chili’s social media person did and aggressively attempted to do some promotion piggybacking on Bates’ tweet.
- CelebrityUSA TODAY
Cher ditches Facebook, Google for 'conspiring with Russia to destroy our democracy'
Facebook and Google have one less user to worry about. Cher, 72, vowed to boycott the two tech giants Tuesday, saying Facebook and Google's alleged love of money trumps their "(love) of country." "Won't use Google, getting rid of Facebook account I didn't know I had," Cher tweeted in all capital letters.
- BusinessAutoClassics
1000mph Bloodhound SSC record car saved
The Super Sonic Car was set to raise the land speed record bar with the vehicle finished and undergoing final testing, but the project was stopped in its tracks when funding ran out. Related Video: Watch the Bloodhound SSC Team Show off Car Months of administration failed to find an investor willing to supply the £25 million ($31.5 million) required to set what might be the last record of this kind. Time was called on Bloodhound and we all shed a tear over a hard-fought challenge that seemingly fell at the final hurdle.
WorldAFPBritain, Switzerland reach post-Brexit aviation deal
Switzerland and Britain signed an agreement Monday guaranteeing that flights between the two countries can continue uninterrupted even if London opts to leave the European Union without a deal with Brussels. "We have managed to ensure a flawless transition, which is in the interest of both of our countries," Swiss Transportation Minister Doris Leuthard said in a statement after signing the deal in Zurich with her British counterpart Chris Grayling. Switzerland is not a member of the EU, but its relations with Britain are based on a long line of bilateral agreements between Bern and the bloc.
- WorldBloomberg
Hungary’s Orban Suffers for His Overconfidence
Since his Fidesz party won a constitutional majority in April and installed him as prime minister for a third consecutive term, Orban has moved to tighten his grip on the country. Late last month, more than 400 news outlets founded or acquired by Orban’s allies were consolidated into a non-profit organization called the Central European Press and Media Foundation. Earlier this month, the Central European University, founded by George Soros, announced it would decamp for Vienna after years of fighting to stay in Budapest.
- WorldUSA TODAY
‘One of a kind’ royal tomb is 4,400 years old, Egypt says
Egyptian officials said they have discovered a 4,400-year-old tomb linked to the fifth dynasty of pharoahs. According to Egypt's Ministry of Antiquities, the tomb — located at a site west of Cairo in Saqqara — belonged to a senior official of the pharoahs, reports The Associated Press. Antiquities Minister Khaled al-Anani tells CNN the tomb belonged to a royal purification priest named Wahtye.
- U.S.Meredith Videos
Carnival Says a Passenger Is Missing From a Ship Currently in Mexico
Authorities are searching for a man who went missing from a cruise ship bound for Mexico.
- BusinessArchitectural Digest
The 14 Most Anticipated Buildings of 2019
In the words of architect Robert Venturi, we believe these buildings will allow you to “see familiar things in an unfamiliar way”
- WorldReuters
Officials say two Honduran migrant youths killed in Mexico
The bodies of two slain Honduran migrant youths were found in the Mexican border city of Tijuana at the weekend, officials said on Tuesday, in a sign of the dangers facing Central Americans in Mexico as they seek to enter the United States. The prosecutors' office in Tijuana said in a statement it was investigating the deaths of the two youths, who showed signs of having been stabbed and strangled. The victims were believed to be about 16 or 17 years old, the office said.
- NewsHuffPost
Justice Department Moves Forward With Trump's Bump Stock Ban
The Justice Department on Tuesday moved to implement President Donald Trump’s efforts to ban bump stocks, a gun modification that allows semiautomatic rifles to fire faster. The new rule, which is expected to be published in the Federal Register in the coming days, will mandate that owners of bump stocks turn them in or destroy them. The rule encourages people who currently possess bump stocks to destroy the devices themselves, but also says they’ll have the option to turn them over to the nearest Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives office.
WorldAssociated PressCorrection: Vatican-Bulgaria-Macedonia story
In a story Dec. 13 about the pope's May travel schedule, The Associated Press reported erroneously that Bulgaria is a former Soviet republic. During the Cold War, Bulgaria was one of the Soviet allies that formed the Warsaw Pact. A corrected version of the story is below: Pope to visit Bulgaria, Macedonia in May in busy travel year Pope Francis is travelling in May to the Orthodox countries of Bulgaria and Macedonia, where he will pay tribute to Macedonian-born Mother Teresa, officials said Thursday VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Francis is travelling in May to the Orthodox countries of Bulgaria and Macedonia, where he will pay tribute to Macedonian-born Mother Teresa, officials said Thursday.
- BusinessUSA TODAY
Delta adds Mexico City route from Minneapolis/St. Paul hub
Delta Air Lines will add nonstop service to Mexico City from its Minneapolis/St. Paul hub. Daily service will begin June 8, with Delta offering one daily round-trip flight on 132-seat Airbus A319 aircraft. Minneapolis/St. Paul will become the sixth city to get nonstop service to Mexico City on Delta.
WorldAFPRussia slashes Syria military flights
Russia has cut its military flights in Syria from more than 100 per day to fewer than four a week, the defence minister said Tuesday, in another sign the country's conflict is winding down. Russia launched air strikes in Syria in support of long-term ally President Bashar al-Assad in September 2015. Russian support helped Assad's forces reclaim swathes of territory once in the hands of opposition fighters and Islamic extremists.
- WorldBloomberg
General Dynamics Warns Trudeau Over Exit Penalties in Saudi Deal
Canada is looking for a way out of a $13 billion deal to export armored vehicles to Saudi Arabia -- a move the company warns could leave the government liable for billions. In a television interview Sunday, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said the government was looking for a way to halt the sale of armored vehicles manufactured by a unit of U.S.-based General Dynamics Corp. We are engaged with the export permits to try and see if there is a way of no longer exporting these vehicles to Saudi Arabia,” Trudeau told CTV, without elaborating.
- BusinessUSA TODAY
Milwaukee airport adds unlimited free Wi-Fi service
Milwaukee's Mitchell International Airport said Monday that it is now offering unlimited free Wi-Fi for travelers. Previously, free Wi-Fi was limited to one hour at the airport, which goes by airport code MKE. "Unlimited free Wi-Fi has been one of the most-requested passenger amenities at MKE," Chris Abele, Milwaukee County executive, said in a statement.
NewsReutersE-cigarette usage nearly doubles in U.S. high-schools: survey
The percentage of high school seniors who used e-cigarettes in the last 30 days nearly doubled to 20.9 percent from last year, results of a survey released by the National Institute on Drug Abuse showed on Monday. The increase in vaping by 10th and 12th graders was the largest year-over-year jump for any substance ever measured by the survey, which started 44 years ago. The annual survey, which also measures use of other substances including marijuana, alcohol and opioids, questioned more than 44,000 students from 8th, 10th and 12th grades in U.S. public and private schools.
- LifestyleBGR News
Instant Pot’s most popular pressure cooker is on sale for even less than it was last week
The Instant Pot DUO80 8 Qt 7-in-1 Multi- Use Programmable Pressure Cooker is the largest version of Instant Pot’s most popular pressure cooker, and it costs a hefty $140. It was on sale last week at a $40 discount though, which was a great deal that many of our readers took advantage of. Don’t worry if you missed it though, because it turns out you’re in luck.
- WorldThe Guardian
Fleeing home alone: the migrant children blocked at Mexican border
Guatemalan children caught in Mexico while trying to migrate into the US, queue before climbing into a minibus at Aurora international airport in Guatemala City. For years, Dora waited impatiently to turn 15, the age her mother had agreed she would be old enough to leave their home in El Salvador – where she suffered physical and sexual abuse at the hands of her grandfather – and head to the US, in search of a new life. “Seeing them leave together … that gave me hope and gave me the courage to finally leave,” said Dora, who is now living at a children’s shelter in Tijuana, on the border with California.
- PoliticsHuffPost
Weekly Standard Co-Founder Calls Rep. Steve King 'Foul, Disgusting Liar'
White supremacist congressman Steve King (R-Iowa) tweeted over the weekend that the recently shuttered magazine The Weekly Standard “deserved” to shut down and was met with major pushback from magazine co-founder John Podhoretz. The 23-year-old conservative publication known for being critical of President Donald Trump released its final issue on Monday after announcing last week that it would be folding. Trump addressed the closure, referring to the publication as “pathetic and dishonest” and lambasting the editor-at-large, Bill Kristol.
WorldAssociated PressUN condemns North Korea rights violations and nuke spending
The U.N. General Assembly on Monday condemned North Korea's "systematic, widespread and gross violations of human rights" and its diversion of resources into pursing nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles over the welfare of its people. It noted "with concern" that over 10 million North Koreans are estimated to be undernourished and that there is "an unacceptably high prevalence of chronic and acute malnutrition" in the reclusive northeast Asian nation. The resolution, sponsored by Japan and the European Union, was adopted by consensus, though countries including Russia, China, Cuba and Venezuela disassociated themselves from it.
WorldAFPNew Zealand warns Google over naming murder accused
New Zealand warned Google to "take responsibility" for its news content Wednesday, after the internet giant broke a court order suppressing the name of a man charged with murdering a British backpacker. An Auckland court granted the man interim name suppression this month but Google revealed his identity in an email to subscribers of its "what's trending in New Zealand?" service. Justice Minister Andrew Little said the breach was unacceptable and he had made his views known to Google executives at a meeting in parliament on Tuesday night.
WorldReutersU.S.-Taliban talks focus on Afghan ceasefire
U.S. and Taliban officials have discussed proposals for a six-month ceasefire in Afghanistan and a future withdrawal of foreign troops as talks aimed at setting up peace negotiations went into a second day, Taliban sources said. The meeting in Abu Dhabi is at least the third time that U.S. special peace envoy Zalmay Khalilzad has met Taliban representatives as diplomatic efforts to end the 17-year war have intensified this year. Taliban officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the U.S. delegation was pressing for a six-month truce as well as an agreement to name Taliban representatives to a future caretaker government.
- BusinessUSA TODAY
Ask the Captain: Do planes have quirks like cars?
Question: Owners of cars, trucks and motorcycles, especially older models, learn the quirks of their vehicles and how to safely compensate for them while driving. Are modern commercial aircraft maintained so precisely that individual airplanes of the same model do not have unique mechanical or electrical quirks that pilots notice in flight? Answer: Pilots fly many different airplanes of the same model within a fleet.
