- PoliticsYahoo News
Trump rips his own FBI director for agreeing with IG report
President Trump on Tuesday lashed out at Christopher Wray after the FBI director — whom he handpicked after firing James Comey — agreed with the conclusions of the Justice Department inspector general report that the FBI's Russia probe was justified and not politically biased. I don't know what report current Director of the FBI Christopher Wray was reading, but it sure wasn't the one given to me,” Trump tweeted. With that kind of attitude, he will never be able to fix the FBI, which is badly broken despite having some of the greatest men & women working there!
- NewsBusiness Insider
The architect of Mexico's war on cartels was just arrested in Texas and accused of drug trafficking and taking bribes
Genaro Garcia Luna, who was Mexico's public-security secretary between 2006 and 2012, was arrested in Texas on Monday. Garcia Luna, the architect of Mexico's campaign against organized crime in the late 2000s, is the latest Mexican official accused of corruption and involvement in drug trafficking. A former high-ranking Mexican security official who led the country's crackdown on organized crime in the mid-2000s was arrested in the US on Monday and been charged with conspiracy to import and distribute drugs and making false statements.
- WorldReuters
UPDATE 1-Iran foreign ministry issues travel advisory for citizens not to visit America
Iran warned its citizens, particularly scientists, on Tuesday not to visit America, saying Iranians there were subjected to arbitrary and lengthy detention in inhuman conditions. "Iranian citizens, particularly elites and scientists, are requested to seriously avoid traveling to America, even to take part in scientific conferences and even having an invitation," a travel advisory on the foreign ministry website said. It cited, "America's cruel and one-sided laws toward Iranians, especially Iranian elites, and arbitrary and lengthy detention in completely inhuman conditions" as reasons for the travel advisory.
- PoliticsCBS News
Infowars host interrupts House impeachment hearing
An Infowars host interrupted the opening minutes of the House Judiciary Committee's impeachment hearing on Monday, accusing Chairman Jerry Nadler and other Democrats of committing "treason" while declaring President Trump innocent. The protester, Owen Shroyer, began shouting just seconds after Nadler gaveled in the hearing and posted live video of the interruption to his Twitter feed. "Jerry Nadler and the Democrat party are committing treason against this country, and you can kick me out, but he's the one committing crimes.
- WorldThe National Interest
Remember When Russian Diesel Submarines Chased Down A British Nuclear Sub?
Russian diesel subs chased a British nuclear sub off the Syrian coast, according to British media. The incident reportedly involved one or two Russian Kilo-class diesel-powered submarines, which have been dubbed the "Black Hole" by Western navies because they are remarkably quiet. The British sub did not fire its Tomahawks during last week's strike by American, British and French forces against Syrian chemical weapons sites, leading to speculation that the British boat was driven off by the Russian subs.
- NewsThe Guardian
'An outright lie': Ohio lawmaker shown to be linked to group pushing rightwing Christian bills
An Ohio legislator who said he had “no knowledge” of a rightwing Christian bill mill called Project Blitz is, in fact, the co-chair of the state branch of an organization behind the campaign. The Ohio state representative Timothy Ginter sponsored a bill called the Student Religious Liberties Act. The Guardian revealed the bill was nearly identical to one promoted by Project Blitz, a state legislative project guided by three Christian right organizations, including the Congressional Prayer Caucus (CPC), WallBuilders and the ProFamily Legislators Conference.
- NewsAssociated Press
2 St. Louis police officers fired over Facebook posts
Two of nearly two dozen St. Louis police officers accused this summer by a watchdog group of posting objectionable Facebook messages have been fired. Sgt. Ronald Hasty and Detective Thomas Mabrey are appealing, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported. Their attorney, Brian Millikan, said the posts were made as private citizens and did not violate any city or police policy.
- PoliticsThe Daily Beast
Pro-Trump Network OAN Tried to Get This Ukrainian Millionaire a Visa Before His Arrest
Before catching the eye of German law enforcement, former Ukrainian parliamentarian Oleksandr Onyshchenko drew attention from the conservative TV channel One America News. Before his arrest, though, the Trump-friendly media outlet tried to help him get a visa to travel to the U.S. The effort, which has not been previously reported, was part of a push by OAN to unearth information on Burisma Holdings, the energy company that retained Hunter Biden, the son of former Vice President and current Trump rival Joe Biden.
- SciencePopular Mechanics
How Saturn Cracked Open Enceladus's Icy Surface
Scientists have discovered how the four famed fissures on Saturn's moon, Enceladus, formed. The largest of the “tiger stripes” formed due to gravitational pressure exerted on the moon's poles, according to a paper published December 9 in Nature Astronomy. The other three fissures formed soon after, as pressure on nearby ice built up.
- PoliticsYahoo News
Inspector general finds 'significant errors or omissions' in Trump adviser surveillance warrant
While clearing the FBI of political bias in opening an investigation into then candidate Donald Trump, a Justice Department inspector general report hands powerful new ammunition to the president's allies, sharply criticizing the bureau for “serious performance errors” and “significant” errors and omissions in its applications for a secret surveillance warrant targeting a member of Trump's campaign. The long awaited 434-page report finds that FBI's team conducting Crossfire Hurricane— the code name for the bureau's investigation into links between the Trump campaign and the Kremlin — improperly relied too heavily on allegations made by Christopher Steele, a former British spy who had been hi...
WorldYahoo News Video'Old man' Trump is 'bluffing,' says North Korea: KCNA news agency
North Korea on Monday accused President Trump of “bluffing” and called him “an old man bereft of patience” as Pyongyang ramps up pressure on Washington over stalled nuclear talks.
- BusinessPopular Mechanics
The Best War Movies on Netflix
For when only a war film will do. From Popular Mechanics
- BusinessBusiness Insider
How did South Bend actually do under Mayor Pete Buttigieg? We pulled the numbers to find out.
Still, South Bend's median income in 2017 was much lower than the other 87 cities with 100,000 to 125,000 inhabitants: the average city's median income was $60,211 in 2017. But, Mayor Pete's term has been a fairly unambiguous success on one point: In 2012, according to the ACS data unemployment in South Bend stood at 15.6%. As of 2017, according to the American Community Survey estimates it was down to 9.0%, a 6.6 percentage point decline that was the second-highest of any of the 87 cities in the sample.
WorldAFPRussian court sentences 11 for Saint Petersburg bombing
A Russian court on Tuesday sentenced 11 people to terms including life in prison after finding them guilty of a deadly bomb attack on the Saint Petersburg metro in 2017. Abror Azimov, a 29-year-old from Kyrgyzstan, was sentenced by a military court in Russia's second biggest city to life in prison for organising and participating in a terrorist group. The bomb blast in April 2017 killed 15 people in the Saint Petersburg metro and wounded dozens more.
- WorldReuters
Brazil's Bolsonaro calls activist Thunberg a 'brat'
Brazil's right-wing President Jair Bolsonaro called Swedish climate change campaigner Greta Thunberg a "brat" on Tuesday after she criticized mounting violence against indigenous people in which two Amazon tribesmen were shot dead three days ago. "Greta said the Indians died because they were defending the Amazon (forest). How can the media give space to a brat like that," Bolsonaro told reporters, using the Portuguese word "pirralha."
- PoliticsNational Review
Representative Ted Yoho Becomes the 23rd House Republican to Announce Retirement
Representative Ted Yoho of Florida announced Tuesday that he will step down after completing his fourth term, joining the wave of House Republicans who have opted against running for reelection in 2020. Yoho had promised to serve no more than four terms in Congress. I ran on a pledge to serve four terms — eight years and come home,” Yoho said in his announcement.
- WorldBloomberg
Hong Kong Pro-Democracy Camp Wins Big in Accountant Election
In a vote for seats on the council of the Hong Kong Institute of Certified Public Accountants, all six pro-democracy candidates running won against a mix of pro-government and independent opponents. The vote followed a broader citywide election late last month, which saw pro-democracy candidates secure a landslide win. The politicized battle over seats on even an accounting board underscores how the polarization is deepening in Hong Kong amid mounting protests against China's grip on the city.
- NewsThe New York Times
5-Year-Old Carries Baby in Subzero Cold After They Are Abandoned, Police Say
A 5-year-old, wearing just socks and light clothing, carried an 18-month-old through subzero temperatures in the Yukon Flats of Alaska after the power went out at the home where they had been left alone, according to the authorities. The power failure scared the older child, who then carried the baby to a home about half a mile away in Venetie, Alaska, Tuesday, the Alaska State Department of Public Safety said in a statement Friday. The children are expected to make a full recovery, Ken Marsh, a department spokesman, said Sunday.
- PoliticsThe Daily Beast
Chris Wallace Schools Ken Starr: Trump Impeachment ‘Much Bigger’ Than Clinton’s Sex Lies Were
Fox News anchor Chris Wallace on Monday dressed down Kenneth Starr, the Clinton impeachment-era independent counsel, objecting to Starr's insistence that the current allegations against President Donald Trump are “narrow” and “slanted. During a break in Monday's House impeachment hearing, Wallace addressed Starr directly, letting him know he was going to “push back a bit respectfully” on his previous analysis of the impeachment inquiry while referencing Starr's own role in former President Bill Clinton's impeachment two decades ago. He said that the presentation of the case against the president is narrow, prosecutors look at the world through dirty windows.
- NewsAssociated Press
Kentucky's new governor reorganizes school board on day one
Delivering on a campaign promise to teachers who helped elect him, Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear used his first day in office Tuesday to overhaul the state school board. In his inaugural address outside the state Capitol, the new Democratic governor proclaimed his support for public education and expanding health care coverage. He also pledged to protect public employees' pensions, emphasizing the “kitchen table" issues that helped him oust Republican Gov. Matt Bevin.
- WorldThe National Interest
Missile Race: Does America or China Dominate the South China Sea?
Key point: In an actual war, both Washington and Beijing would employ their conventional missile arsenals to sink each other's ships. The Chinese military lobbed anti-ship ballistic missiles into the South China Sea in tests in early July 2019. The missile trials underscored Beijing's increasing militarization of resource-rich waters on which several countries have conflicting claims.
- ScienceBusiness Insider
Greenland's ice is melting 7 times faster than it did in the early 90s — suggesting scientists' worst-case predictions may come true
Caspar Haarloev from "Into the Ice" documentary via Reuters The Greenland ice sheet is melting seven times faster than it was in 1992 — an increase that's even greater than scientists expected. According to a new study, Greenland has lost more than 4.2 trillion tons of ice in the last quarter-century, which raised global sea levels 0.4 inches. The melt rate is expected to increase, especially during years like this one, since a heatwave in July caused Greenland's ice sheet to lose 55 billion tons in just five days.
- LifestyleINSIDER
Walmart apologizes for selling a Christmas sweater that showed Santa at a table with lines of white powder and the words 'let it snow'
Walmart Canada Walmart Canada apologized for selling a Christmas sweater that appeared to show Santa Claus doing cocaine. The sweater showed Santa in front of a table with three lines of a white substance and the words "Let it snow." Walmart Canada pulled the sweater from its site, along with a few other "adult" Christmas sweaters.
- NewsReuters
U.S. Supreme Court rejects inmate's bid for sex reassignment surgery
The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday refused to hear an appeal by a convicted murderer who filed a civil rights lawsuit because Texas prison officials denied her request to be considered for gender reassignment surgery. The justices let stand a lower court's decision to reject the claim by inmate Vanessa Lynn Gibson that denying the surgery request violated the U.S. Constitution's Eighth Amendment prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment. Gibson, 41, who is transgender and also goes by the name Scott in court papers, was assigned male at birth and has lived as a female since age 15.
PoliticsYahoo News Video'S*** just got real': DOJ watchdog uncovers pro-Trump text messages between FBI agents
The Justice Department's inspector general, Michael Horowitz, uncovered a series of text messages between two FBI agents expressing support for President Trump right after the 2016 election.
