- U.S.Yahoo News
Obama to George Floyd protesters: Channel 'justifiable anger' into action
Former President Barack Obama on Monday addressed the nationwide protests over the death of George Floyd, praising the “overwhelming majority” of peaceful demonstrators, condemning the violence brought on by a “small minority” and calling on a “new generation of activists” to “bring about real change.” “The waves of protests across the country represent a genuine and legitimate frustration over a decades-long failure to reform police practices and the broader criminal justice system in the United States,” Obama wrote in an essay published on Medium.com. The former president then lauded police in Camden, N.J., and Flint, Mich., for publicly supporting peaceful protests before he criticized demonstrators who have been acting violently.
- U.S.Yahoo News
Biden suggests police could shoot assailants 'in the leg instead of the heart'
Joe Biden said Monday that police under attack in the line of duty should shoot their assailants “in the leg instead of the heart” as a way to avert the killing of civilians. Biden's remarks were made as cities across the nation continue to be engulfed in violent protests in the wake of the death of George Floyd, an African-American, in police custody in Minneapolis. Former Officer Derek Chauvin, who kneeled on Floyd's neck for nearly nine minutes, was charged Friday with third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter.
- WorldBusiness Insider
Leaked documents reveal China withheld crucial information about the coronavirus at the start of the outbreak
Xinhua via REUTERS China delayed the release of information about the coronavirus, according to a new investigation. Its health officials did not share the coronavirus genome until over a week after scientists in Chinese laboratories decoded it at the beginning of January. Beijing did not warn the World Health Organization that the virus passed between people until two weeks later.
- PoliticsReuters
U.S. judge no 'mere rubber stamp' in case of ex-Trump aide Flynn, lawyers say
The U.S. judge in the criminal case against President Donald Trump's former adviser Michael Flynn defended himself on Monday, saying it was proper to seek outside views on the Justice Department's request to drop a charge to which Flynn has pleaded guilty. Lawyers representing U.S. District Judge Emmet Sullivan said in a court filing that he is not a "mere rubber stamp" and needed to carefully consider the department's "unprecedented" request. Democrats and former federal prosecutors have accused Attorney General William Barr of politicizing the criminal justice system to go light on Trump associates in key cases.
- U.S.NBC News
New York mayor Bill de Blasio defends daughter after protest arrest
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio defended his daughter on Monday following her arrest during weekend protests and insisted she didn't "commit any violence." Chiara de Blasio, 25, was taken into custody late Saturday night at East 12th Street and Broadway in Manhattan for alleged unlawful assembly during protests against police brutality. De Blasio said he didn't know his own daughter got arrested until a reporter called City Hall.
- U.S.Associated Press
Tensions mar Paris protest as Floyd outrage goes global
Tear gas choked Paris streets as riot police faced off with protesters setting fires Tuesday amid growing global outrage over George Floyd's death in the United States, racial injustice and heavy-handed police tactics around the world. French protesters took a knee and raised their fists while firefighters struggled to extinguish multiple blazes as a largely peaceful, multiracial demonstration degenerated into scattered tensions. Several thousand people defied a virus-related ban on protests to pay homage to Floyd and Adama Traore, a French black man who died in police custody.
- U.S.INSIDER
The head of the Minneapolis police union called protests a 'terrorist movement' and blamed politicians for unrest in a leaked email
Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images In a leaked email, the president of the Minneapolis Federation of Police said the ongoing protests over the death of George Floyd were a "terrorist movement" that has occurred following a "long time build up which dates back years." Lt. Bob Kroll blamed politicians for the ongoing tension, specifically targeting Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey. The former police chief of Minneapolis called on Kroll to resign, and Frey said Kroll was "shockingly indifferent to his role in undermining that trust and support" of the police force.
- HealthCBS News
Cuomo: Don't "blur the lines" between looters and protesters
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said Tuesday that people protesting the death of George Floyd have "by and large" been peaceful, and stressed that looters are a separate group. "What's happening in this environment … all these issues are getting blurred," Cuomo said at his daily press briefing. "We can't blur the lines … don't blur the lines for your political purpose," Cuomo said, noting President Trump's criticism of New York City's response to the ongoing unrest.
- TechnologyThe National Interest
Northrop Grumman's New B-21 Stealth Bomber: A Technological Powerhouse?
The new stealth U.S. Air Force B-21 bomber has taken yet another key technological step toward being ready for war, through integrated computer automation designed to streamline information, improve targeting and offer pilots organized warzone information in real-time. Air Force and Northrop Grumman developers recently completed an essential software-empowered process intended to bring greater levels of information processing, data management and new measures of computerized autonomy, according to published statements from Air Force Acquisition Executive Dr. William Roper. Through virtualization and software-hardware synergy, B-21 sensors, computers, and electronics can better scale, deploy and streamline procedural functions such as checking avionics specifics, measuring altitude and speed and integrating otherwise disparate pools sensor information.
- WorldThe Telegraph
Hong Kong leader accuses international community of double standards over US riots
Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam accused foreign governments for having “double standards,” criticising the US for condemning Beijing's move to impose national security laws to quell protests, while taking its own severe steps to curb unrest at home. “They are very concerned about their own national security, but on our national security...they look through coloured glasses,” said Ms Lam in a weekly press conference. Last week, the US declared that it would axe preferential treatment over worries the global financial hub no longer remained sufficiently autonomous from mainland China, ruled by the Communist Party, with the onset of the national security law.
- WorldBBC
Pakistan 'blasphemy' death row couple's plea for freedom
Their lawyer, Saif ul Malook, who also represented Asia Bibi, another Christian woman who had a death sentence for blasphemy successfully overturned, told the BBC the evidence used to convict the couple was deeply flawed. But, he warned, that judges can be "fearful" of acquitting suspects, in case they are targeted themselves by extremists. Court proceedings have also slowed in recent weeks as a result of the coronavirus outbreak.
- U.S.Business Insider
'You will move, or you will die': A frightened truck driver's viral Facebook post says truckers will 'defend themselves' by running over protesters
A truck driver named Bogdan Vechirko is in jail for assault charges after he nearly drove an 18-wheeler into a large group of protesters in Minneapolis on Sunday. Minnesota state officials said on Monday that his truck was not loaded and that, because he slammed the brakes before getting too close to the crowd, he did not intend to injure any protesters. A Facebook post from originally from a trucking education page asserts that truck drivers who are facing protesters have the right to drive into them.
- U.S.Yahoo News
New Yahoo News/YouGov poll: Most Americans say Trump is a 'racist' and want him to stop tweeting
The survey, conducted on May 29 and 30, found that 52 percent of Americans answered yes when asked whether they “think that President Trump is a racist.” Only 37 percent said no. Just 33 percent said the president should continue “posting messages on Twitter.”
- HealthThe Mighty
New Evidence Suggests COVID-19 May Actually Be a Blood Vessel Disease
What's new: While early on COVID-19 was branded as a respiratory illness, its wide array of symptoms — from the toes to the brain — baffled experts. According to experts interviewed in an Elemental article, it's unprecedented that a respiratory illness could migrate outside the lungs. But new research suggests COVID-19 may actually be a blood vessel disease, which would explain all of the virus' symptoms.
PoliticsFOX News VideosBrit Hume: President Trump has aligned himself with those who feel the restoration of law and order is job one
Fox News senior political analyst Brit Hume joins Bret Baier on 'Special Report.
- U.S.INSIDER
A New York police officer drew his gun on protesters. Mayor Bill de Blasio says he 'should have his gun and badge taken away.'
Seth Wenig/AP Photo A New York City police officer pointed his gun at peaceful protesters in Manhattan Sunday night. After a video of the incident trended on Twitter, Mayor Bill de Blasio said the officer's actions were "unacceptable" and he should "have his gun and badge taken away." On Saturday, de Blasio was widely criticized for defending police officers who drove into a protesting crowd, before backtracking on his comments Sunday.
- U.S.Military.com
Minnesota National Guard Opened Fire on a Vehicle, Commander Says
A soldier in Minneapolis opened fire on a speeding vehicle that posed a threat Sunday night -- the second known instance of a National Guard member discharging a weapon during the nationwide mass protests, the Minnesota National Guard commander said Monday. "Our soldier fired three rounds from his rifle in response to a direct threat" from a vehicle that drove at a position held by local law enforcement supported by the Guard, said Army Maj. Gen. Jon Jensen, adjutant general of the Minnesota National Guard. Read Next: Army Vet Lawmaker: Invoke Insurrection Act, Deploy Active-Duty Troops to Riots The driver ignored warnings to stop or turn away before the soldier opened fire, Jensen added.
- U.S.Associated Press
Black Liberty U. alums rebuke Falwell after blackface tweet
Nearly three dozen black alumni of Liberty University denounced school President Jerry Falwell Jr. on Monday, suggesting he step down after he mocked Virginia's mask-wearing requirement by invoking the blackface scandal that engulfed the state's governor last year. In a letter to Falwell, shared with The Associated Press, 35 faith leaders and former student-athletes told Falwell that his past comments “have repeatedly violated and misrepresented" Christian principles. “You have belittled staff, students and parents, you have defended inappropriate behaviors of politicians, encouraged violence, and disrespected people of other faiths,” they wrote, advising Falwell that “your heart is in politics more than Christian academia or ministry.”
- U.S.The Guardian
George Floyd protests in California stretch from biggest cities to rural towns
California erupted in protest alongside the rest of the country over the weekend, with hundreds of thousands taking to the streets over the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis. Across the state, protesters marched and chanted, calling for justice for not just George Floyd but all victims of police brutality and systemic racism in recent years. The demonstrations sprung up not just in cities known for protest, such as Oakland and Los Angeles, but throughout the state, from Eureka, near the Oregon border, to La Mesa in southern California , from the coastal Santa Cruz to the conservative stronghold of the Central Valley.
- PoliticsUSA TODAY
Michael Flynn judge defends decision to challenge DOJ request to drop case; no 'rubber stamp'
The federal judge overseeing the fraught prosecution of former national security adviser Michael Flynn Monday defended his decision to review the Justice Department's effort to abandon the case, calling such a move "unprecedented." "It is unusual for a criminal defendant to claim innocence and move to withdraw his guilty plea after repeatedly swearing under oath that he committed the crime," attorneys for U.S. District Judge Emmet Sullivan said in documents filed in a D.C. appellate court. "It is unprecedented for an acting U.S. Attorney to contradict the solemn representations that career prosecutors made time and again, and undermine the district court's legal and factual findings, in moving on his own to dismiss the charge years after two different federal judges accepted the defendant's plea."
- U.S.Business Insider
China's state media says US can now 'enjoy' protests after criticizing China's handling of unrest in Hong Kong
China has been furious at the US government for criticizing its handling of protests in Hong Kong and for backing pro-democracy demonstrators. Over the weekend, state-run media made the most of the current protests in America, sparked by the police-related death of George Floyd. "US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi once called the violent protests in Hong Kong 'a beautiful sight to behold,'" he wrote.
- U.S.CBS News
Trump says he is "your president of law and order"
President Trump said Monday he would deploy the military against protesters if local officials cannot stop violence that has erupted in some areas. "I will fight to protect you — I am your president of law and order and an ally of all peaceful protesters," Mr. Trump said. While only states can activate the National Guard, Mr. Trump said he would deploy "thousands and thousands" of heavily armed soldiers to Washington D.C. About 200 troops were moved out of Fort Bragg to deploy to the Washington area to be ready on short notice if needed, CBS News' David Martin reported.
- WorldThe Telegraph
Iranian 'spy' scientist flies home after release from US prison, raising hopes of prisoner swap
The families of British dual nationals imprisoned by Iran today criticised the Foreign Office for “complete inaction” in trying to secure their release, as an Iranian scientist previously jailed by the US was allowed to fly home. A plane carrying Sirous Asgari took off early this morning and was on its way back to Tehran to bring him home, Iran's foreign minister announced, raising hopes of a potential prisoner swap for Western dual nationals in Iran. Mr Asgari was accused by a US court in 2016 of stealing trade secrets while on an academic visit to Ohio, where he visited a university working on projects for the US Navy.
- PoliticsPolitico
North Carolina governor rejects GOP's demand for full-fledged convention
North Carolina's Democratic governor, Roy Cooper, on Tuesday rejected the GOP's plans for a full-fledged convention in Charlotte, telling Republican officials the only way the event would move forward is with proper health protocols in place. The people of North Carolina do not know what the status of COVID-19 will be in August, so planning for a scaled-down convention with fewer people, social distancing and face coverings is a necessity, Cooper wrote in a letter to the Republican National Committee. The letter is a rebuke of the fully-attended convention that the RNC and President Trump have been pushing for despite concerns about spread of the coronavirus.
- U.S.NBC News
NYC Mayor de Blasio's daughter arrested during Saturday night protests
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio's daughter, Chiara de Blasio, was arrested Saturday night during the citywide protests over the death of George Floyd, a senior NYPD law enforcement official told NBC News. Chiara de Blasio was arrested Saturday night at East 12th Street and Broadway in Manhattan for “unlawful assembly.” The official said Chiara de Blasio was taken into custody at 10:30 p.m. She has been released.
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