PoliticsThe IndependentTrump did ‘more harm than expected’ to transition, says senator close to president
Senator Chris Coons has said that Donald Trump and “his team caused more harm than expected” during the transition period after Joe Biden's transition team was not permitted access. The revelation came during an interview on MSNBC during which the Democratic senator was asked for his opinion on the flurry of executive actions passed by the president since Wednesday. Senator Coons, who holds Mr Biden's old seat and has known the president for 30 years, said the president had been thoroughly preparing since he won the election in November.
WorldAssociated PressIsraeli police, ultra-Orthodox protesters clash over schools
Ultra-Orthodox demonstrators clashed with Israeli police in two major cities on Sunday, as authorities faced new difficulties in enforcing coronavirus restrictions in the country's religious communities. The clashes occurred in Jerusalem and Ashdod as police attempted to close religious schools that had opened in violation of lockdown orders. Throughout the pandemic, many major ultra-Orthodox sects have flouted safety regulations, continuing to open schools, pray in synagogues and hold mass weddings in funerals.
PoliticsBusiness InsiderThe Bidens were reportedly left waiting outside the White House on Inauguration Day because Trump sent the staff home
Biden reportedly wasn't greeted by White House staff on Inauguration Day because Trump sent them home. Trump reportedly sent the butlers home so "there would be no-one to help the Bidens when they arrived." Chief usher Timothy Harleth left his role before the Bidens arrived at the White House.
PoliticsThe TelegraphBiden on collision course with Saudi Arabia that could upset Trump's alliance against Iran
The Biden administration has already set itself on a collision course with Saudi Arabia after its director of National Intelligence vowed to declassify a report on the murder of Jamal Khashoggi. The push to release the intelligence community's assessment of the murder of the dissident journalist, which is believed to implicate Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, has the potential to trigger a major fallout with the kingdom. Avril Haines, who was confirmed in her new role on Thursday, told Congress “we will follow the law” regarding the report, referring to the Trump administration's refusal to release the full version for US House representatives.
WorldAssociated PressProtests against Israeli PM Netanyahu continue nationwide
Over a thousand protesters gathered in Jerusalem on Saturday for weekly demonstrations demanding Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu step down over corruption charges, as smaller protests were staged at intersections and bridges across the country. The protests have taken place each week since last summer, primarily at a Jerusalem square near Netanyahu's official residence, and continued despite lower turnout in the cold winter nights. In March, Israel will hold its fourth national election in less than two years, and Netanyahu is facing further challenges from defectors within his Likud party.
U.S.Business InsiderMan who punched cop during Capitol riot has brother in Secret Service who is friends with Michelle Obama, the Huffington Post has revealed
Scott Kevin Fairlamb, 43, of Stockholm, New Jersey, was arrested on five charges on January 22. Preston Fairlamb III led Michelle Obama's service detail while she was First Lady. The son of a police officer who punched a cop during the Capitol riots also has a brother in the Secret Service who Michelle Obama previously described as a "real friend," the Huffington Post found.
PoliticsLA TimesWashington gets whiplash in shift from Trump to Biden
White House events have carefully calibrated themes. Washington is suffering whiplash — or enjoying it, depending on whom you ask — as President Biden takes over from former President Trump, a transition that stands as one of the starkest contrasts in U.S. political history. Before the election, Trump mocked his opponent as "Sleepy Joe."
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Saudi TV says missile or drone intercepted over Riyadh
Saudi Arabia said Saturday it intercepted an apparent missile or drone attack over its capital, Riyadh, amid the kingdom's yearslong war against neighboring Yemen's Houthi rebels. Saudi state TV quoted authorities in the kingdom acknowledging the interception. Yahia Sarei, a military spokesman for the Houthis, said in a brief statement that the rebels had not carried out attacks on Saudi Arabia in the past 24 hours.
PoliticsBusiness InsiderOver 3 dozen Democrats lawmakers urge Biden to commute the sentences of all remaining federal death row inmates
Thirty-seven lawmakers asked President Joe Biden to commute the sentences of all remaining federal death row inmates. The effort was led by Reps. Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts and Cori Bush of Missouri. Biden is opposed to the death penalty and campaigned on ending the practice.
WorldAssociated PressUS reaffirms Taiwan support after China sends warplanes
The U.S. has reaffirmed its support for Taiwan following China's dispatch of warplanes near the island in an apparent attempt to intimidate its democratic government and test the resolve of the new American presidential administration. The U.S. State Department on Saturday said it was concerned by China's "pattern of ongoing attempts to intimidate its neighbors, including Taiwan.” “We urge Beijing to cease its military, diplomatic, and economic pressure against Taiwan and instead engage in meaningful dialogue with Taiwan's democratically elected representatives," Ned Price, a spokesman for the department, said in the statement.
PoliticsAssociated PressSupporters' words may haunt Trump at impeachment trial
The words of Donald Trump supporters who are accused of participating in the deadly U.S. Capitol riot may end up being used against him in his Senate impeachment trial as he faces the charge of inciting a violent insurrection. At least five supporters facing federal charges have suggested they were taking orders from the then-president when they marched on Capitol Hill on Jan. 6 to challenge the certification of Joe Biden's election win. Jacob Chansley, the Arizona man photographed on the dais in the Senate who was shirtless and wore face paint and a furry hat with horns, has similarly pointed a finger at Trump.
U.S.BBCNational Guard: President Biden apologises over troops sleeping in car park
US President Joe Biden has apologised after some members of the National Guard stationed at the Capitol were pictured sleeping in a car park. Mr Biden called the chief of the National Guard Bureau on Friday to apologise and ask what could be done, according to US media reports. First Lady Jill Biden also visited some of the troops to thank them personally, bringing biscuits from the White House as a gift.
PoliticsAssociated PressMyPillow Guy among the Trump acolytes picking up the torch
When Mike Lindell, better known to TV viewers as the MyPillow Guy, went to the White House last week to try to persuade President Donald Trump to keep pushing bogus theories about the election, he came away disappointed. Unexpectedly, Trump passed him — and his claims about sabotaged voting machines — off on staffers. The president has told him before that he would back his bid for governor of Minnesota, Lindell told The Associated Press.
PoliticsAssociated PressCitizenship data is latest rollback of Trump census efforts
The U.S. Census Bureau is suspending efforts to create neighborhood-level statistics on the citizenship and age of residents, using 2020 census data, in the latest rollback of Trump administration census-related initiatives that critics feared would be used to favor Republicans and whites during the drawing of state and local districts. As part of an order President Joe Biden signed Wednesday on the 2020 census, the Census Bureau said Friday that it would discontinue efforts to create citizenship tabulations at the city-block level using 2020 census data combined with administrative records.
U.S.USA TODAYOhio man stole a coat rack in Capitol riots; another brought a bottle of bourbon, court records say
An Ohio man is charged with stealing a coat rack during the US Capitol riots and another was found with marijuana and an open bottle of bourbon, according to court records. Dustin Byron Thompson and Robert Anthony Lyon were sitting on the sidewalk on a street near the U.S. Capitol grounds hours after the Jan. 6 rioting when they were approached by two Capitol Police special agents. Thompson, 36, of Columbus' University District, was wearing a Trump 2020 winter hat and a bulletproof vest, and Lyon, 27, whom records indicate has resided in Columbus and Reynoldsburg, had a Trump 2020 flag.
U.S.INSIDERKyle Rittenhouse's bond conditions modified after prosecutors said he was seen using white power hand symbols with Proud Boys members at a bar
The terms of Kyle Rittenhouse's bond were modified after he was seen at a bar with his mother and members of the far-right Proud Boys, according to FOX 6. Kenosha County prosecutors previously requested to adjust his bond conditions after being spotted using white power associated hand symbols and drinking beers following his release. Rittenhouse,18, is the gunman associated with the deaths of two people and injuring another during a Jacob Blake protest in Kenosha, Wisconsin last summer.
LifestyleArchitectural DigestLucas Interior Embraces Color to Modernize Palm Springs Spanish Revival Home
The materials and colors took center stage,” said David Lucas when it came to the design of the home. Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest
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Canadian pol rips Biden admin for canceling Keystone Pipeline
Alberta Premier Jason Kenney tells 'The Story' both countries will be hurt by Biden action
PoliticsThe New York TimesTrump and Justice Dept. Lawyer Said to Have Plotted to Oust Acting Attorney General
The Justice Department's top leaders listened in stunned silence this month: One of their peers, they were told, had devised a plan with President Donald Trump to oust Jeffrey Rosen as acting attorney general and wield the department's power to force Georgia state lawmakers to overturn its presidential election results. The unassuming lawyer who worked on the plan, Jeffrey Clark, had been devising ways to cast doubt on the election results and to bolster Trump's continuing legal battles and the pressure on Georgia politicians. Because Rosen had refused the president's entreaties to carry out those plans, Trump was about to decide whether to fire Rosen and replace him with Clark.
PoliticsThe Daily BeastDems Urged Not to ‘Waste a Second’ Negotiating as Republicans Back Away From COVID Relief
Democrats are facing new objections from Republicans over the Biden administration's COVID-19 relief package, a maddening reality that has set off alarm bells among progressives who fear hard-fought issues could be left on the chopping block. While President Joe Biden has long touted a working ability to inspire bipartisanship, some on the party's left wing are already warning against spending too much time trying to negotiate with the GOP, citing double control in the House and Senate and playing up the importance of providing fast monetary relief to Americans during the pandemic. “Democrats need to just plow ahead,” said Larry Cohen, chairman of Our Revolution, a grassroots network that supported Sen. Bernie Sanders' (I-VT) presidential bids.
U.S.Associated PressFor 1st Black Pentagon chief, racism challenge is personal
Newly confirmed Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin will have to contend not only with a world of security threats and a massive military bureaucracy, but also with a challenge that hits closer to home: rooting out racism and extremism in the ranks. Austin took office Friday as the first Black defense chief, in the wake of the deadly insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, where retired and current military members were among the rioters touting far-right conspiracies. Austin, who was confirmed in a 93-2 vote, has made clear that accelerating delivery of coronavirus vaccines will get his early attention.
EntertainmentThe TelegraphSir Kenneth Branagh to play Boris Johnson in Sky coronavirus drama
Sir Kenneth Branagh will play Prime Minister Boris Johnson in an upcoming Sky drama based on the first wave of the coronavirus pandemic, it has been announced. The BAFTA and Emmy award-winning actor, who has starred in Valkyrie, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets and Dunkirk will portray Mr Johnson in This Sceptred Isle, a five-part drama will chart the events surrounding the Prime Minister, the government, and the country in the face of the first wave of the global pandemic. This Sceptred Isle will tell the tale of some of the most devastating events to ever befall the United Kingdom, and of a Prime Minister leading in these unprecedented times, Sky said.
BusinessBusiness InsiderElon Musk's SpaceX reportedly plans to drill near a Texas launchpad for natural gas
Elon Musk, who recently relocated to Texas, now reportedly has plans to to drill for natural gas there, too. SpaceX, Musk's space company, is looking to drill wells close to the company's Boca Chica, Texas, launchpad, according to Bloomberg. The site in Boca Chica previously hosted prototype launches for the company.
PoliticsINSIDERGiuliani admits his associate asked for a fee of $20,000 a day to help Trump overturn the election, but says he didn't know about it
After months of denial, Giuliani admitted his associate requested a daily $20,000 fee to help Trump. Giuliani said he represented Trump out of a sense of commitment and didn't expect to be paid. After months of denials, former President Donald Trump's personal lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, conceded that one of his associates asked campaign officials for a $20,000 daily fee to help Trump after his election loss, according to a New York Times report.
U.S.Business InsiderBiden apologizes to National Guard chief after 5,000 soldiers had to reportedly sleep in a DC parking garage with only one bathroom
President Joe Biden called the National Guard's chief on Friday to issue an apology. National Guard members were forced to vacate the Capitol on Thursday, according to Politico. President Joe Biden has called the chief of the National Guard Bureau to apologize after images circulated online of troops sleeping in a parking garage.
“By encouraging this act of terror on our capital, Trump’s legacy is destroyed.”
“Both backers and critics of Trump agreed that he remade the federal judiciary — a change that will impact America for decades.”
“He was largely responsible for the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Americans who did not need to die.”
“I do know what the future should hold for this country. That is to say, a policy of Trumpism without Trump.”
“It will be decades before the consequences of his tenure are fully known.”