Pompeo appeared to coordinate with Giuliani on Ukraine, new documents show

WASHINGTON — “Pls have Mr. G bring the documents,” reads the March 27, 2019, email from a State Department official to someone who worked for “Mr. G.,” better known as former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, a central figure in the Ukraine pressure campaign that culminated in the impeachment of President Trump. “S is happy to meet with him tomorrow for 10 minutes,” went an email, apparently between State Department officials, the next day (both sender and recipient are redacted, though the title “Office Manager to the Secretary of State” is visible in the sender's signature). “S” was Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who is suspected by Democrats to have had a more central role in that Ukrainian campaign than has yet been publicly acknowledged.

The coronavirus death toll is still rising, but US interest in the outbreak is plummeting

Richard Baker/In Pictures via Getty Images Google Trends data show that Americans are losing interest in the coronavirus, even though the death toll continues to rise in mainland China and other countries. The World Health Organization said Monday that the epidemic peaked and plateaued in China between January 23 and February 2. Cases have been reported in 34 countries outside of China, with the most severe outbreaks in Italy, Iran and South Korea.

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  WHO Head Warns of ‘Potential Pandemic’ after Initially Praising China’s Response to Coronavirus

  National Review
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  Virus-driven risk-off move lifts yen versus dollar

  Reuters

10,000 mourn victims of racist shooting rampage in Germany

Around 10,000 protesters marched through the central German town of Hanau on Sunday to mourn the nine people who were killed by an immigrant-hating gunman four days ago. These days and hours are the blackest and darkest our town has ever experienced during peace times,” Hanau mayor Claus Kaminsky told the somber crowds, according to the German news agency dpa. But, he said, those who want to pull apart society won't succeed, “because we are more and we will prevent that.

A California man drove his Jeep off the roof of a six-level parking garage and crashed into a McDonald's, police say

Police in California are investigating after a man drove his Jeep off the roof of a six-level parking garage and into a McDonald's across the street. Police responded just after midnight Sunday and found a newer-model Jeep against a building, the Santa Monica Police Department said in a press release. The Santa Monica Fire Department reported it received information that the Jeep had been driven off the top of a parking garage.

"Mad" Mike Hughes dies in rocket crash

Daredevil and Flat Earth theorist Michael "Mad Mike" Hughes died Saturday in a rocket crash. Hughes, 64, wanted to prove the Flat Earth theory by taking photographs of the Earth from a homemade rocket. Saturday's rocket launch was to be featured on the Science Channel, which was chronicling Hughes' attempts to launch himself high enough in a homemade rocket to take pictures of the curvature — or lack thereof as far as Hughes was concerned — of the Earth.

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  Skeptic of world being round dies in California rocket crash

  Associated Press
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  Daredevil 'Mad' Mike Hughes, 64, Killed After Homemade Rocket Crashes Over Calif. Desert

  People

Crackdown on immigrants using public benefits takes effect

With new rules taking effect on Monday that disqualify more people from green cards if they use government benefits, droves of immigrants, including citizens and legal residents, have dropped social services they or their children may be entitled to out of fear they will be kicked out of the United States.

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  Legal immigration will decline by 30 percent next year due to Trump policies, report projects

  The Week
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  As Trump Barricades the Border, Legal Immigration Is Beginning to Plunge

  The New York Times

Washington pledges $1 billion for coronavirus vaccine as pandemic risks grow

BEIJING/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump will seek $2.5 billion from Congress to fight the coronavirus epidemic and U.S. and South Korean militaries are considering scaling back joint training as the virus spreads in Europe and the Middle East. Countries around the world are stepping up efforts to prevent a pandemic of the flu-like virus that originated from China late last year and has now infected more than 80,000 people, 10 times more cases than the SARS coronavirus. The White House said more than $1 billion of the requested virus budget would go toward developing a vaccine, while other funds would be used for therapeutics and the stockpiling of personal protective equipment such as masks.

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  WHO Head Warns of ‘Potential Pandemic’ after Initially Praising China’s Response to Coronavirus

  National Review
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  Coronavirus outbreak not a global pandemic yet: WHO

  Yahoo Finance Video

Iran Prepares to Suffer the Wrath of the Coronavirus

The spread of coronavirus has rapidly come to the Middle East after almost two months of being mostly contained in China, where it has killed more than two thousand people. Iran's leadership has responded by either ignoring the crisis or denying that it exists, even as all of Iran's neighboring countries have closed the borders that they share with Iran and began to institute checks on Iranians traveling abroad. The reaction of Middle Eastern states reveals a lack of coordination in responding to the emerging crises and also creates questions about what kind of impact a virus can have on a region that has deep divisions and smoldering conflicts.

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  Coronavirus Outbreak: Death toll in Iran is now at 50, news agency says

  KTRK – Houston
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  Coronavirus Cases Soar to Alarming Numbers in Italy, South Korea and Iran with Hundreds Infected

  People

China sentences Swedish bookseller Gui Minhai to 10 years

A Chinese court has sentenced Swedish book publisher Gui Minhai to 10 years in prison on charges of illegally providing intelligence abroad in a case that has rattled relations between Beijing and Stockholm. Gui, one of five Hong Kong-based booksellers known for publishing salacious titles about Chinese political leaders, was snatched by Chinese authorities while on a train to Beijing in February 2018, the second time he disappeared into Chinese custody. The court in the eastern city of Ningbo said Gui was convicted on Monday and that he had his Chinese citizenship reinstated in 2018, but it was not immediately clear if he had given up his Swedish nationality.

Nine of the World’s Most Beautiful Outdoor Saunas

From Seattle to Oslo, these outdoor saunas take relaxation and high-design to the next level Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest

President says he fears Bernie Sanders, as Indians label him ‘warmonger, imperialist, gangster’ during lavish Taj Mahal visit

Donald Trump has told reporters Vermont senator Bernie Sanders is the 2020 rival he fears the most during his tour of India, which began with the president receiving a bear hug from Narendra Modi and a lavish welcome from the locals. Prior to visiting the Taj Mahal, the president addressed a “Namaste Trump” rally before a 100,000-strong crowd at the Motera Stadium in Ahmedabad and praised the country's economic progress, thriving Bollywood film industry and “very tough” prime minister - only to mangle the pronounciation of several key names, including that of legendary cricketer Sachin Tendulkar.

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  Trump Says U.S.-India to Sign $3 Billion in Defense Deals

  Bloomberg
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  The Trumps (with Ivanka and Jared) Visit Taj Mahal During India Trip Half a World Away from the Election

  People

China said it would relax its lockdown of Wuhan's 11 million residents, only to immediately reintroduce it

Wuhan announced on Monday that some people who are deemed healthy will be allowed to leave the city, whose transport links have been severed since January 23. China's decision to lock down Wuhan and nearby cities is the largest quarantine in human history, with the World Health Organization calling it an unprecedented step that's it's not sure will work. The Chinese city of Wuhan, the epicenter of the deadly coronavirus outbreak, relaxed the unprecedented quarantine restrictions on its 11 million citizens on Monday, only to almost immediately reverse that decision and reimpose the lockdown of the city.

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  WHO experts visit Chinese virus epicentre

  AFP Relax News
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  The Coronavirus Is Starting to Go Global

  Bloomberg

Thomas criticizes a previous high court opinion - his own

Justice Clarence Thomas has made no secret of his dislike of past Supreme Court decisions written by other justices, including seminal opinions about abortion rights, press freedoms and a defendant's right to a lawyer. On Monday, the 71-year-old justice turned inward, focusing his criticism on himself — a court opinion he wrote in 2005 defending the power of federal administrative agencies. In the case, known as Brand X, the court sided with the Federal Communications Commission's decision not to regulate broadband cable providers, rejecting a federal appeals court ruling that would have required regulation.

Trump Admin. Considers Booting Chinese Reporters in Response to ‘Egregious’ Expulsion of WSJ Journalists: Report

The Trump administration is considering whether to expel Chinese journalists in response to China's own expulsion of three Wall Street Journal reporters, Bloomberg News reported on Monday. A meeting will be held at the White House on Monday to discuss the administration's options. The meeting will be led by deputy national security adviser Matt Pottinger, who himself was a Journal reporter based in Beijing.

Probe into abuse at America's oldest deaf school finds 'appalling truths'

An investigation into inappropriate conduct at America's oldest school for deaf people corroborated multiple allegations of sexual and physical abuse that stretched decades, school officials said. In a report, officials at the American School for the Deaf, in West Hartford, Connecticut, said Friday that the allegations involved former dorm supervisors, a maintenance worker, a dean and the school's longtime executive director. "The results of this investigation reveal startling and appalling truths," Executive Director Jeffrey S. Bravin and Catherine Burns, president of the board of directors, said in the report.

Five killed, 90 hurt in violence in Indian capital - hospital official

At least five people were killed and about 90 were injured in clashes in the Indian capital during protests over a new citizenship law, a senior hospital official told Reuters on Tuesday. "Some of the people brought in had gunshot wounds," Dr Rajesh Kalra, additional medical superintendent at the Guru Teg Bahadur Hospital, said of Monday's clashes. The clashes erupted between thousands demonstrating for and against the new citizenship law.

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  One killed, dozens injured in Delhi clashes as Trump visits

  Reuters
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  Violence breaks out in India's capital over new citizenship law ahead of Trump visit

  Reuters

South Korea's F-15K Slam Eagle Fighters Could Make North Korea Hurt

On September 13, 2017 the Republic of Korea Air Force (ROKAF) test-fired a Taurus cruise missile in response to a North Korean ballistic missile test. For decades, the South Korean military has had to prepare for a conflict in which its cities, especially the capital of Seoul, would be on the receiving end of a North Korean artillery, chemical weapons and ballistic missiles. Based on the F-15E Strike Eagle fighter bomber in U.S. Air Force, the Slam Eagles have souped-up sensors and electronic warfare systems, and now are loaded with bunker-busting cruise missiles to blast open North Korean missile silos.

'It's my guilty pleasure': Sen. Chuck Schumer confirms spending $8,600 on Junior's cheesecake

Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer admitted Sunday that he has dropped almost $9,000 on his favorite cheesecake over the years. Holding a platter of the rich dessert aloft at a news conference, Schumer responded to a New York Post report that said Federal Election Commission filings reveal he spent $8,600 on cheesecake from Junior's, a restaurant that boasts it has the best cheesecake in New York, over the course of a decade. "Guilty as charged," the New York Democrat confessed.

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  Yes, Chuck Schumer has spent more than $8,600 on cheesecake. He's 'guilty as charged.'

  INSIDER
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  Schumer is 'guilty' of spending thousands on cheesecake

  Reuters Videos

Islamic Jihad renews rocket fire on Israel amid ongoing air strikes

Islamic Jihad resumed firing rockets at Israel from Gaza Monday night amid ongoing Israeli air strikes, damaging hopes for an end to a two-day flare-up a week before the Jewish state's election. The militant Islamist group announced Monday evening it had ceased firing rockets but backtracked about an hour later after Israel continued striking its forces in the Gaza Strip. "We announced the end of our military response...

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  Gaza: Israeli army filmed dragging corpse of suspected militant with bulldozer, as cross-border violence surges

  The Independent
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  Israeli jets strike targets in Syria and Gaza

  Reuters Videos

Bernie Sanders said 'it's unfair to simply say everything is bad' about Fidel Castro's Cuba

Joe Raedle/Getty images Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders defended his past comments on communist leader Fidel Castro that focused on social programs installed by the despot. Speaking in a CBS' "60 Minutes" in an interview that aired Sunday, Sanders said that "it's unfair to simply say everything is bad" with the way Castro ruled the country, adding that he had "transformed the society." The Democratic presidential hopeful condemned North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Russian President Vladimir Putin, two authoritarian leaders who have been friendly with President Donald Trump, but that didn't stop response surfacing online to slam Sanders' comments.

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  ‘It’s Unfair to Say Everything Was Bad’: Sanders Defends Cuban Dictator Fidel Castro

  National Review
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  Florida Democrats think Sanders' Castro comments could cost him the state in November

  The Week

Iran is closing schools, scrambling for hospital places, and spraying disinfectant in the subway as coronavirus deaths and cases spike

reported. These figures have been questioned, however, with one lawmaker from the city of Qom telling the semi-official ILNA news agency that at least 50 people had died in that city alone, The Guardian, AFP and AP reported. ILNA's editor also told AFP: "The rest of the media have not published this figure, but we prefer not to censor what concerns the coronavirus because people's lives are in danger."

Pacific NW winds shut interstate, fell tree that crushes man

High winds wreaked havoc on the Pacific Northwest on Sunday, closing a stretch of an interstate freeway in Oregon and toppling a large tree that crushed a man sleeping in an apartment complex in Washington state. The man was critically injured in Renton, Washington, after a tree fell on a six-unit apartment building during a morning of high winds and heavy rain. Elsewhere, Interstate 84 was closed in both directions between Pendleton and La Grande in northeast Oregon, about 200 miles (320 kilometers) east of Portland, because of a downer power line.

Two-Thirds of the World’s Most Polluted Cities Are in India

Several Chinese cities, including Beijing, have dramatically improved their air quality in recent years, while Indian metropolises remain some of the world's worst polluted, according to a new report. Beijing -- once infamous for its toxic haze -- has reduced smog levels and dropped down a list of the world's most polluted cities, falling to 199 from 84 three years before, according to the 2019 World Air Quality Report published Tuesday by IQAir AirVisual. In contrast, India still dominated its list of the smoggiest urban areas, accounting for 14 of the top 20.

Coronavirus updates: 5 dead and 200 infected in Italy as Europe braces for COVID-19

Number of coronavirus deaths in China nears 2,600 • Italy records fifth coronavirus death as it becomes worst-hit country in Europe • Dow plunges by more than 900 points on fears of coronavirus • Two more doctors die of coronavirus in China • More than 800 confirmed cases, 8 dead in South Korea • China postpones key political meeting because of virus • China bans illegal wild animal trading amid coronavirus outbreak: state media • Coronavirus deaths spike to 12 in Iran; 47 cases confirmed Dow plunges by 950 points on fears coronavirus will tank global economic growth Wall Street plunged at Monday's opening bell after a spike in the number of reported cases of coronavirus fueled fears that th...

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  WHO Head Warns of ‘Potential Pandemic’ after Initially Praising China’s Response to Coronavirus

  National Review
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  Iran COVID-19 Death Toll Reaches 8, With 43 Confirmed Infection Cases

  Meredith Videos

Supreme court denies Rodney Reed appeal

The United States Supreme Court on Monday denied an appeal from Texas death row inmate Rodney Reed. But while the petition for a review of his case was denied, Justice Sonia Sotomayor left the door open for further appeals pending the outcome of upcoming hearings. "There is no escaping the pall of uncertainty over Reed's conviction," Sotomayor wrote.